Roshanak, the first wife of king Sherfiruz, was not someone to be crossed. In truth, she was an attractive woman, but incredibly intimidating, deceptive, and calculative. Tall, with raven-black hair and piercing eyes the color of ebony framed by eyelashes that made her eyes appear smokey, a single look from her made even some of King Sherfiruz's Counsel shift uncomfortably in their positions. Roshanak was Persian nobility and a distant relative of the king. Since her marriage two years prior, she had set out to fulfill some goals: produce a male heir and earn the title of queen. To her disgust and annoyance, Sherfiruz had agreed to marry a Greek princess shortly after her in order to establish diplomatic relations. What was worse was that Roshanak and Anemone (the Greek Princess) were pregnant around the same time. Fortunately for Roshanak, she had produced a son, Prince Shahin, and Anemone, a daughter, Princess Yasmin, which put Roshanak in greater favor with the court and gave her greater leverage; however, there were two great obstacles she already faced: The fact the Prince Shahin was a sickly, weak child since birth, and that King Sherfiruz had still not named her Queen.
As she took her place near the king's throne dressed in a deep green and purple garment and adorned with jewels, she turned her mind to the king's new wife-to-be. That Indian princess, Farah, would be making her appearance in front of the royal court shortly. Internally, Roshanak sneered at the thought of that brown-skinned savage taking her place among them. Naturally, the palace was flooded with Roshanak's spies, and they had caught a glimpse of Farah as she had exited her carriage. Although she had a shawl heavily wrapped around her head and face, Roshanak's spies had noted her brown skin and disheveled appearance on arrival and informed her of such. Looks, however, could be deceiving, and Roshanak knew she could not take this woman lightly, especially if she jeopardized her chances of becoming queen. After all, she had heard that Farah had aided the King in taking back the throne, and some of her most trusted sources had informed her that she and Sherfiruz had been close.
"Is it the custom of the Indian court to make late appearances?" remarked Roshanak icily, tilting her head towards the King, but making sure she was loud enough for the king's counsel to hear. There were a few muffled snickers behind her. When the King did not answer, she added, "I'm just concerned. If Lady Farah is to join the royal court, she must learn the proper etiquette."
Before anyone could interject, a voice thundered at the front of the hall opening.
"Your Majesty, members of the royal court, I would like to present Lady Farah."
Farah walked in slowly behind the ambassador, the silk of her hand woven dark blue and gold sari swishing on the floor as she moved. Farah made a strong effort to dip her head down as she walked, obscuring the view of her face and avoiding eye contact with anyone. She could, however, hear the whispering around her, people craning their necks to get a good look at her. Let's keep them guessing for know she thought to herself as she continued forward. When both she and the ambassador reached the throne, they both stopped and paid their formal respects to the royal family.
"Both of you, at ease" said a familiar voice that both made Farah's heart race and also put her at ease at the same time. It had been so long since she had heard it, and now…it felt reassuring.
"Lady Farah, please rise" continued the voice.
Farah slowly lifted up her head and looked up at the king. Although he sat with the crown of Persia on his head and dressed in royal garb, he looked quite similar to their encounter two years earlier. His hair was a bit shorter, his long face perhaps a bit fuller, but the beard was identical, and that same scar on his left eyebrow. In fact, Farah thought he looked more handsome and regal than ever. As she looked into his luminous blue-green eyes, she saw his face soften a bit. Where had she seen that look before? No sooner than she had thought this, she felt the pendant getting warm and for a second, she was no longer in the court. She was in a dream-like trance, almost in a different time or dimension.
"Your eyes…they're green"
"Really?"
Farah inwardly gasped and her hand flew to the pendant on her chest. What was that? To cover up any awkwardness cause by her daze, she coughed lightly and bowed her head apologetically.
"Bring water for the princess" said the king motioning to a servant.
Farah gratefully accepted the water and the attention turned to the ambassador, who droned on about things she had no interest in. After he had finished, they established that the official marriage would take place in a week's time, and after that, the two Kingdoms would establish their official ties. As the formal talk ended and the counsel expressed their approval and congratulations, Roshanak made her way to Farah.
Farah immediately bowed her head and murmured a greeting. Roshanak reached over and placed her hand under Farah's chin, tilting her head upwards. Suddenly, Farah found herself face to face with Roshanak's piercing dark eyes.
"My dear," she began icily, "One does not completely lower their head in front of another unless they are a lowly servant…or of course they have something to hide. You would do well to learn our ways. After all, you are no longer in the Indian court."
With that, Roshanak flashed a smile at Farah that sent chills through her whole body.
For someone with such beautiful features, she has no warmth in her expressions!
"Take care, my dear. I would suggest that you learn our customs well before your marriage! If you need help, I would be delighted to show you our ways."
With that, Roshanak turned with her servants, two of whom flashed Farah haughty smirks, and left the hall.
No thanks…thought Farah to herself. It was clear that the King's first wife was not someone to cross paths with and that she was no admirer of Farah. I will make an effort to stay out of her way as much as possible.
As Farah and her servants turned to exit the hall, Farah looked up and saw the King staring at her. The expression on his face, although not a smile, was one of compassion and warmth, and Farah could not help but give him a slight smile in response before she headed out of the hall.
Little did Farah know what effect that one slight smile had on the King; it shot through his heart like one of her arrows and a warm feeling blossomed in the pit of his stomach.
What is happening to me? He thought to himself, shaking his head. I'm behaving like a naïve youth who sees a girl he likes for the first time…
In truth, the King had been watching Farah closely the entire time she had stood before him and his court. Standing there in her blue and gold garb, she had looked so endearing, nervous, and beautiful at the same time, and he wished he could have just gone to her and squeezed her hand to ease her nerves. Sighing to himself, King Sherfiruz reminded himself that it was only a week's time until a wedding, and by then, he would finally have some time alone with Farah.
Note: Roshanak is a Persian name that refers to light and luminosity. I named the character as such for the purpose of irony, given that she's obviously the opposite. Anemone is Greek for "daughter of the wind" and also refers to the windflower. More on this character will be revealed in later chapters. The name Shahin refers to falcons. Yasmin=jasmine. And yes, I gave the King a name. Sherfiruz means "triumphant lion" in Persian, and I figured it fit well. Also, I've always imagined that tattoo on the Prince's back in T2T to have a lion in it.
