Queen of Persia

Queen of Persia Chapter 12

Copyright © 2011 preciious-diamondz

Chapter 12

Two more months passed, and during that time each girl who remained had their night with Xerxes, all except Esther. During the month leading up to the date she was set to go to the king, she had been constantly praying and asking YHWH for guidance and strength. She had also caught Mordecai, her dear uncle, outside the east gate of the palace and had confided in him for advice. He had been thinking of her often while she was in the palace and had prayed that somehow Esther’s life would be changed by this for the better – that some good would come out of the situation she was in.

She took comfort in knowing that her God was in control of all that happened and that He had a plan and purpose for everything in her life.

                                                               ***      

On the morning of her special day, Esther woke up later than usual, knowing she would be spending the night with the king and would need energy to keep herself awake and alert. She stretched her arms above her head as she yawned, blinking a few times to get her eyes to focus.

Standing around her bed were her seven hand maidens, as well as many other servants around the room. All of them had come to help Esther prepare as they all loved her and had spoken to her at least once.

“Well good morning to you all,” smiled Esther, sitting up in bed. “What do I owe to the pleasure of your fine company?”

Some of the women giggled, while one of her handmaidens spoke up.

“Esther, have you not forgotten, it is your night with King Xerxes. We were getting worried about you sleeping in.”

Esther shook her head.

“There is no need to worry; I was merely allowing myself more sleep so I would be able to stay awake tonight for the king.”

“Would you like some breakfast now then?” asked another handmaiden as a servant brought forward a tray of fresh fruit – Esther’s favourite kind of breakfast.

“How thoughtful!” exclaimed Esther, smiling at all the people around her. “But do I really need all of you to help me get ready? I feel bad having all of you helping me prepare when there is only one of me to get ready. Surely you are all tired from helping the other girls.”

The servants shook their heads.

“We were so excited for your night Esther, and because of your kindness towards us, there was no way in the world we would miss helping you when it was your turn to see the king,” said one of the servants.

“If you really insist, I will require some help in two hours, but for now I will need to keep my daily routine – eat, wash and pray.”

The servants nodded in understanding and walked quietly out of the room, knowing to come back in two hours. Her hand maidens followed, leaving behind the platter of fruit for Esther to eat.

She smiled at their kind words and thoughtfulness, acknowledging how blessed she was to be the favoured candidate.

“I have truly been blessed,” she murmured as she bit into a large strawberry, the sweet flavour filling her mouth.

She thought back to when she got to pick her outfit, from choosing the colour to being measured and fitted.

                                                                 ~

It was a cool day, the sun was shining and the breeze from outside swept through the harem. All the girls had been buzzing with excitement as they were taken to a different room, piled high with every kind of colour and style of fabric known to man. How they had swarmed like bees to honey when Hegai gave the instructions to choose one fabric. Everyone was pulling out different ones and holding fabrics up against their skin tone, trying to see what would look best. Some girls fought over colours, while others panicked if another girl picked a similar colour to them.