Copyright © 2011 preciious-diamondz
Chapter 4
"Esther, wake up!" exclaimed one of her hand maidens, who shook Esther's sleeping body gently.
Esther's eyelids fluttered open and her eyes looked to the maiden.
"Is everything alright?" asked Esther, slowly sitting up and looking around.
"Yes, everything is fine," laughed the maiden. "I just wanted to make sure you were awake in time for when Hegai announces the first girl who will be spending her night with the king."
Esther leapt up out of the bed.
"How long do I have?" she asked, not wanting to be late.
"Enough time to change and brush your hair," joked the maiden, knowing Esther didn't need hours to get ready, she was as beautiful as a young woman could be.
Esther nodded and walked over to her fold-out screen and picked up the dress that had been laid out for her.
"I hope you liked the dress we picked out for you," said another one of the maidens, who was putting out various items for Esther to use on her hair and face.
"It's always a nice surprise having someone pick for you," smiled Esther warmly. "I love it."
"Thank you Esther," they said in unison as she went behind the screen to change into the dress.
This one was a deep cherry red dress that had little beads sewn onto the the sleeves and hem of the dress.
Esther threw off her nightgown and tossed it over the screen so it draped down on either side. She held up the dress and grinned. She always had something nice to wear, and today was no exeception. She carefully stepped into the dress, before pulling it up over her legs and putting her arms through the sleeves. Like all the other dresses Esther had, this one fitted perfectly and easily slipped over her slim frame.
She stepped out from behind the screen and did a little twirl.
"It's so pretty," said one of the hand maidens.
"I know," giggled Esther.
"Did you need any help getting ready this morning?" asked the maiden.
Esther thought about it. She hated asking for help when she knew perfectly well she could do it herself, but then again her hand maidens seemed to enjoy doing her hair and facials for her so it couldn't hurt asking.
"Would you beautiful ladies mind doing my hair and make up this morning? I know I should but you all do a much better job than I ever do."
The seven hand maidens beamed at her and got Esther to sit down as they set to work about making her look like the beautiful queen they all knew she could become.
***
A few minutes later and Esther was ready to make her way down to where Hegai had instructed them to meet.
"Thank you once again," said Esther, thanking her hand maidens for the millionth time in a row. "I will see you all later!"
She waved good bye as she rushed out of her room and out past the other sleeping quarters. She could see a lot of girls had already gathered in the gardens so she lifted up her dress' hem and ran down the stairs that led to the open gardens.
She slowed down to a walk and went over to a group of girls who were busily chatting amongst themselves.
"Good morning," she said, smiling at them.
YOU ARE READING
Queen of Persia
SpiritualA real-life romance about faith, hope and love that happened over 2000 years ago. Based on the biblical account of Esther, a young Jewish orphan chooses to go against years of Persian tradition and protocol in the hope of saving her people from comp...
