"I knew you would enjoy it," Jehudi smiled. She had spent the last thirty minutes or so listening to her daughter ranting on and on about the meeting, while her chokla stood by the door, head bowed.
"Yes, as usual mother, you are always right," Gem mused grinning from ear to ear. Her mother had been awaiting her return from the meeting and had refused to leave until Gem ranted on and on.
She was not disappointed, contrary to what she thought. Instead she had basically been the center of attention. Questions were directed her way and she answered them with intelligence she thought she lacked.
"Why thank you, I am," Jehudi smiled before getting up from the chair she had pulled up, after deciding to avoid the bed for fear that her daughter with all her excitement would bounce her off the bed. She pecked her daughter on the cheeks before wishing her a good night.
She nodded curtly to acknowledge Riblah's presence in the room. She still did not like her, not one bit. Especially after the rosewood incident.
"Good night my Queen!" Riblah bowed as she left the room, deep red gown trailing behind her majesty. Then waited for a few minutes before poking her head out the door to make sure she had left Gemariah's wing.
After she was certain Queen Jehudi had left, she put up a shoda, and locked the doors before jumping on the bed and squealing loudly.
"I know right!" Gem asked then squealed loudly, "rrahhhh!" she shouted along side Riblah.
"Did you see Baruch's face? He definitely noticed me." Riblah said excitedly, already dreaming of her two children and a nice little cottage by the sea.
"I did, I really did," Gem rushed before asking, "did you see Gedaliah? He could not take his eyes off of me, I swear I felt his eyes on me throughout the meeting," she boasted.
"Yes, Gedaliah is hooked," Riblah replied sourly, ignoring her dismissal, after all she was used to it. Twenty years with the young princess had taught her a whole lot, and one of those things was her manner of turning things around to herself. She did not do it on purpose, it was just built in her person.
"So, did Baruch still..." Gem trailed off, rolling her hands for Riblah to continue, "you know?" she coaxed.
"Know what?" Riblah asked, confused at her odd behaviour.
"Ask you to be his bride?"
"Oh," her face fell and she sighed loudly. "No. And if you were not too busy giving Gedaliah googly eyes, you would have noticed Gabrielle, the daughter of the Chanson royal family wearing a blue sash, and not just any blue sash, a royal blue sash!" Riblah spat bitterly.
"So?" Gem asked, left eyebrow raised, seeing no reason as to why a pretty girl could not wear a blue sash.
"Ugh!" Riblah slapped her right palm to her forehead before falling face down on the bed.
"I forgot!" She exclaimed, "you were not around during the first few meetings, one of the ways to ascertain your bride is to give her the colour of your household, its mostly for Royal family's and rich men, we peasants or commoners cannot afford to have a family colour." She finished before sitting up and staring at Gem.
"I'm still not following," she retorted.
"Silly you! Present a piece of clothing or just about anything with the royal colour of your family to the lady or man that catches your fancy, and if it is accepted, then your courting has begun," Riblah finished.
"Oh," Gem said as realisation dawned on her, she had collected two articles from two people. "Erm riblah?"
"Yes,"
"I think I may have agreed to court Gedaliah and Michael," she said drawing her skirt up to reveal a royal green leg chain, obviously pure emeralds, before turning around to reveal a small purple pin holding together her short blouse.
Riblah stood shocked for a minute before she burst out laughing.
"What?" Gem asked slightly put off at her.
Riblah just ignored her until gem smacked her arm.
"Owww!" She groaned glaring at gem who stuck out her tongue at her.
"Enlighten me on why my predicament is so funny to you?" Gem asked firmly, but with authority. She knew that sometimes she could get a little fierce.
"Its just that your face!" She chuckled before clearing her throat, pretending to cough as gems frown deepened.
"Its not a problem, you like Gedaliah, right?" Gem nodded, "then return Michael's pin tomorrow."
"Whew, that's a relief," she sighed.
"Not quite," Riblah cut her off, "you can't just return it like that, there is a speech you have to say before returning it or else he will call attention to your case and if he does, Misha can only give two options!"
"Which are?" Gem asked, already dreading the answer.
"One of them has to surrender to the other or fight for you-"
"Surely that does not sound so bad-" Gem cut her off.
"To the death!" Riblah finished, smiling at Gem's incredulous facial expression.
"Bloody hell!" She exclaimed, "who thought up such a stupid rule?" She asked no one in particular.
"Apparently your forefathers," Riblah smirked and she scowled.
"Why must everything end in blood?" She said dismayed.
"I do not know, I was not born back then," Riblah remarked.
"Shut up, what is the bloody speech?" She asked.
"Well its long, and trust me you are going to stay all night memorising this, so...." she stood up and opened a large drawer picking out a quill and a piece of paper. She sat down and started writing. Gem got bored after a few minutes and stood up, twirling around, trying to remember the dance steps they were thought earlier.
After about twenty minutes riblah handed her the paper which was full, from top to bottom. Gem scowled at Riblah's mocking smile.
"I pray thee, have mistaken thy appraisal for courtship. After some mulling over, Thence I have made up my mind. This is a tough decision as thy grace outshines all, but I have eyes for one whose grace is enough for me. Therefore accept my heart, as a friend or counterpart but not thy bride to be. Thine kind heart receive my plea, and accept this as thine." Gem looked at riblah then the parchment then riblah, "all this for breaking someone's heart, yeesh," she laughed heartily.
"I know," Riblah chuckled before suddenly getting serious, "get to studying!" She commanded, before standing up, stripping down to her undergarment. Gem watched as she pulled out her sleeping mat.
"But why is it necessary to recite this?" She asked still baffled at the speech.
"Because your fore fathers believed that if you could not recite it properly,then your so called love for the other was not genuine, hence you were not certain about who it was you wanted, therefore the fight."
"And that made sense to them?"
"Apparently it did," Riblah replied before dusting her mat.
"Night princess," she smirked dressing into her sleeping gown.
"No!" Gem shouted halting her in her tracks, "take the bed tonight, I will be studying this night, so might as well share." Gem shrugged, standing up and going to sit by her study table.
"Oh your highness!" Riblah mocked in a high pitched voice climbing on the bed and standing before twirling around, "your grace surpasses all!" She said.
"Sleep," Gem snorted and Riblah laughed, collapsing on the bed and snuggling deep into the covers, it had been a long while since Gem had shared the bed, she usually just collapsed on the bed, splaying herself everywhere.
Riblah could still remembered the first time she slept on it. They were ten and Gem had seen her shaking on the mat. She was cold and shivering feverishly, already turning blue.
Gem had offered her the right side of the bed and told her, "you shall not speak of this or my mother will have your head, understood?!" She had nodded her head meekly, happy to be warm and comforted by satin sheets.
"Gemariah! What is wrong with you today?" Her father shouted, the day's training was all just a waste of time. Her mind was not in the task at hand, she kept on getting distracted and it was definitely distracting.
"Sorry father," Gem replied dully, correcting her stance which had been wrong all afternoon. Today was just terrible, she had woken up bright and early, eager to fulfill her task for the day, only for her eyes to trail over to the piece of parchment lying on her study table. Her mood immediately became spoilt.
Riblah had prepared her mouth rinsing bowl with her chewing stick. She did not even bother with early morning niceties and riblah had noticed: avoiding her like the plague.
Scarcely had she put the stick in her mouth before it cut her on the gum. Livid, she had rinsed her mouth and stalked over to the kitchen, only to find her bowl of sweet treats missing.
Gemariah had screamed like a banshee before punishing the maids in the kitchen. Her mother had come down and ordered them to make another bowl. And they burnt it.
Gem just left the 'disgusting food' as she had put it in her own words before heading downstairs to look for Michael. And the conversation had been bloody vexing.
"MICHAEL," Gem called running up to meet him. He was dressed in the royal training clothes: A loose fitting, brown, long trousers which bunched up slightly at the ankle. And a tight armless jacket that clearly showed off their biceps, and if Gemariah was not distressed she would have taken her time to admire him.
"Hufff," she scoffed, "Gedaliah will finish you without batting an eye," she finished cockily before slapping her hand to her mouth, eyes wide at her slip up.
"So Gedaliah, you choose that oaf over me," he snapped, eyes blazing while stalking towards her menacingly, she backed up scared, before realising she was a princess. She stopped walking for a moment, looking at the buffoon who was muttering profanities. He most certainly didn't deserve her.
Gem advanced onto him, "marrying you!" she spat, "would have been a death sentence, hugging you would have been tears, kissing you would have been floggings, and giving up my virginity to you would have made me the most stupid princess ever to have walked the soil of our land," she finished.
Just one meeting had changed her life. Her entire existence, she had an idea of what people had to do to pleasure themselves, she had learned from her father and mother what kissing would be like if you were in love . And she hoped to have that one day but it was most definitely not with Michael. She made up her mind what she was going to do there and then, screw her ancestors.
"W-what?" Michael blanched at her harsh words, he was furious, been a princess didn't give her the right to trample on someone's heart, she had messed with the wrong fellow, and he was willing to bet every last drop of his royal blood that she would suffer. What would his parents say? He couldn't manage to trap an ordinary lady, he could hear his mothers mocking tone 'where is that charm you always speak of eh,' he shivered before turning red with anger.
"Misha will hear of this," he barked, before stalking away angrily like a child denied of his sweet treats.
"Gemariah!" Her father called, "it is clear that your mind isn't here, what is going on?" He asked concern etched onto the folds of his forehead.
"Nothing father, I'm just a little bit under the weather today," she replied weakly, looking at the ground instead of her father's face.
"My dear I can spot your lie from afar, what is wrong sweet cheeks? You know you can tell me anything right?" he pushed.
"Father I'm fine," she scowled before softening up at the hurt that fleetingly crossed his sharp features. "Father!" she whined, "what do I do if-?" She narrated her ordeal. Never been one to keep secrets from her old man.
"How come? Oh jehudi was right, you accepted both?" He screeched.
"You see why I don't want to say anything?" Gem sighed.
"Sorry Gem, I'll talk to him but Michael has always been a hot headed young man, I'll see if I can pacify him," he said.
"You will?" Gem asked with relief, "oh father! You are the best," she hugged him dearly before raking him cleanly off the floor.
"First rule of battle, never let your guard down," she smirked at her fathers shocked expression. He looked up at her his jaw dropping before closing his mouth sharply.
"Well played sweet cheeks, well played," he pulled himself up, "I'll get you for this," he snared holding his sword firmly in his right hand, "I surely will," gem laughed.
"I swear the leg chain looks so nice on you," Riblah commented as they made their way down the path to tonight's meeting.
"I know right, its just a pity that Gedaliah may not be able to take it off my feet on the night of the malchiah ceremony," she sighed sadly.
"Oh come of it!" Riblah chided "you said your father would handle it, who is he to refuse the king?" She asked.
Gem just smiled as her confidence came back full force. That was one of the numerous reasons she loved Riblah. She had the power to hurt and the the power to heal Gem's mind. The power to boost her already heightened ego and the power to crush it just as easily, but that would come with a punishment to Riblah.
Once she had punished Riblah to scrub the palace cooking cauldrons for a whole week. The blisters on her hand had been so big, one would have thought she had come in contact with the boilwarts, a nasty but beautiful plant that if it came in contact with any skin, be it animal or man would leave you wishing you were dead as the pain and boils one would receive was like a death sentence.
"I guess you are right," Gem smiled, who can refuse the king she said cockily, they had walked on in companionable silence when Gem had suddenly stopped.
"What is it?" Riblah groaned, looking down at gem's outstretched hand in front of her blocking her path.
"Shhhh," she put two fingers to Riblah's lips, Riblah looked at the dainty fingers crossed eyed. "Shhh do you hear that?"
"Hear what?" She whispered against Gem's fingers spraying spit on her hand.
"Ewwwww," she whispered trying to clean off the slobber, before halting as they heard the moaning again. They veered off the path towards the right, following the moans which were getting louder with each step they took.
They kept on walking, occasionally checking out for the fireweed, gem out of fear and Riblah just because, she wasn't really bothered. She snagged off a sweet poppy leaf and chewed loudly.
They paused at a clearing to see Gabrielle been held against a baobab tree. Ravished beyond their comprehension, she moaned low and long, arching her back, as she threw her head back in passion.
Riblah and Gem were full of curiosity as the man kissing her so languidly was backing them. They needed to see this mystery man. Who could pleasure a woman to the point of no return. Suddenly Gabrielle let out a shrill scream, eyes dilated and she began to rock back and fort, and so did the man. They were bucking against each other as he groaned.
Riblah got bored and she felt bad that they were intruding on the couple. She chided Gem but Gem just brushed her off.
"Surely, you want to know who is pleasuring the love of your life's betrothed?" she coaxed.
Riblah sighed before taking a really a deep breath and marching out from the bushes.
"Well well, look who we have here," she sneered as Gabrielle flashed her eyes open, shocked before blushing fiercely and wiping her lips, she ran away straightening her hair and dress, Gem gave her a glare as she brushed past her, running away like as if she was fire.
"Well come on mystery man, show yourself?" She barked. He sighed before turning around, eyebrows raised at their intrusion.
"Baruch!" Gem gasped, suddenly feeling ten times guilty for making Riblah watch, she looked over at Riblah whose mouth was open in shock, eyes wide and skin paler than usual.
"Seriously ladies, you see two people making out," he cleaned his lips which were red from kissing Gabrielle. "You walk away, you don't look left nor right, you just walk away."
He turned to Riblah, "oh shilla!" He said alarmed, running to her side, "are you okay?" He touched her face, she didn't move but just kept on looking forward, to the tree where they had just sucked each others faces passionately. She cried inwardly, hurt anger confusion laced into one big cauldron of emotion flashed through her features.
She turned to face him "I-I-I think I'll head to the palace, I feel sick," she ran past Gem.
"Is she okay?" he asked.
"Yeah, just a stomach ache," she shrugged, before looking at Riblah's retreating back. "Let's head to the meeting, we are already late."
"Yeah your Highness, considering you caused two royal houses to clash heads."
Gem gasped, "you heard about that?"
"Everybody! Everybody heard about it, I just wonder what will happen at the meeting tonight," he shrugged nonchalantly, "ouwww," he cried out holding the side of his head as Gem hit him.
"What happened to, 'you are my best friend for life, your problem is my problem,'" she mused frowning at him.
"Well that went out the window when you collected two tokens from two royal houses," he paused staring at her, as if she were mad, "really! Michael!"
"How was I supposed to know," she wailed as they approached Misha's tent.
The meeting went on smoothly with only an occasional glare here or there. After the meeting when Gem was about to sneakily leave, misha stopped her.
"Princess," she called. Her coal black hair was plate one by one with different colours of beads hung in them. Her skin had the Royal tattoos painted in swirling contrast on her white skin.
Her clothing was a simple igdalian blouse, that stopped just above her abdomen, a belly ring and a brightly coloured skirt hung from her perfectly curved waist.
"Yes misha," she drew up her shoulders standing proudly, there was only one way she could do this, and that was her way she decided.
"You know why I called you," she confirmed as a smirking Michael came to stand beside her.
"Yes," she said as Gedaliah walked up to her too.
"Good," she motioned for Michael and Gedaliah to stand in front of each other, and bow down, signifying the beginning of the duel while pushing Gem to the back.
As if she was insignificant, these two buffoons were fighting for her but it was obvious they were fueling their egos. She scoffed as the duel started and they circled round each other. Only Baruch was present in the room as misha had dismissed everyone else. That was the rule of this duel. Only one person, victor came out, the other person's body was carried out.
They had been about to hit each other when gem had suddenly swiped Gedaliah onto his butt and headbutted Michael, HARD.
He had staggered for a few seconds before attempting to blow Gem.
Gem had seen it coming, she sidestepped the blow, bent down to pick up Misha's stick and hit him with it, chest, head, and nearly broken his leg off. He fell down defeated and she stood over him, stick poised to impale him with. He begged and Gem spat to his side.
Before walking out with Baruch, leaving a shocked Gedaliah, Misha and an ashamed red faced Michael.
3456 words.
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