Chapter 56: Daily routines

Dedyet turned to the side, feeling rather uncomfortable. After realizing that her headrest was even more uncomfortable when she was lying on the side, the queen turned to the front again, closing her eyes. Sleeping seemed easy until – about twenty minutes later – another wave of pain attacked her.

It was many hours later when the door to the bedroom opened.

"Good morning, your highness," one of Dedyet's friendly servants, who came to wake her up every morning, greeted. "How was your night?"

Dedyet opened her eyes tiredly. Had she slept at all?

"I was in pain so I couldn't really sleep," the queen mumbled.

"Oh! Is there anything I can do for you?"

"You could help me up."

"Oh, of course!"

The servant came closer, carefully getting her queen out of bed.

"My belly is so big, I can't even see my legs," Dedyet mumbled, really sounding as if she had only slept a few hours.

Before the servant could answer, the door opened quietly. Several women stepped inside whose job it was to prepare Dedyet for the day. They would wash her, dress her, put makeup and jewelry on her body. Egyptian royalty had a certain routine. Everything happened every day the same, planned in detail.

After that, the queen walked through the palace halls, greeted by some servants, the ones who were brave enough to speak to her. As she entered the dining hall, she met her husband and sat down to enjoy only the finest of meat.

"How are you, my love?" Ramses asked her gently, obviously knowing that it wasn't long until he'd be a father.

"I'm okay," Dedyet answered, barely looking at him.

"Oh."

"It's just that my cramps are becoming more frequent."

"I will call a doctor!"

Dedyet rolled her eyes, more than annoyed. "I don't need one!"

"Are you really sure?"

"Ugh, yes. How often until you finally get it?"

"How about a priest?"

"No!"

"I'm really excited for our son's birth," Ramses told her, trying to change the subject.

"It's not a son," Dedyet explain moodily, probably for the twentieth time this month.

"Aw, but, Honey, I have told you how inaccurate the test with the seeds is."

She crossed her arms. "You don't know anything about pregnancy."

"Well, my mother has-"

"She has done the test and it was wrong. Yeah. I know."

"Mother was enraged, thinking her firstborn would be female!"

Dedyet rolled her eyes another time.

"You are really moody today, are you, my dear?"

"Argh!"

"I see."

"You don't know anything!"

"I know that it's the hormones that make you so rude."

"Ramses, could you be quiet for, like, one second?!"

"Yes."

And so, the dining hall turned quiet. A last time before birth.