YURA awoke to a muffled scream not unlike the sound of shattering porcelain. She blinked as she tried to sit up. But she found it quite hard. It was like her mind had awoken before her body. Her vision still hadn’t caught up yet.
She gazed up at the ceiling, taking deep breaths.
Where am I?
A reddish-brown curtain hung from the ceiling, stretching all around the bed. It was not dissimilar to what she imagined being inside a birdcage felt like, even though it was just part of the canopy surrounding her bed.
The bed was so soft, she felt she might sink into it. She was wearing a gown that someone had changed her into. Gentle sunlight from a nearby window danced over the curtains illuminating her cozy bed.
Yura blinked.
What am I doing here?
When she closed her eyes, her memories of yesterday quickly bubbled back to the surface. That magnificent hall; the banquet. All she could remember after that was passing out.
I see. I must’ve collapsed from being overwhelmed by all the new experiences—and I’m pretty sure the corset and not eating for more than a day didn’t help. I guess I can’t expect to wake up from this dream just yet.
She felt around for a gap in the canopy. She could see people on the other side. There was a window to her left and a wood table in front of her, decorated with engravings. A carpet stretched across the floor. Several women were kneeling on the floor, their backs to Yura’s bed.
“What if you wake up Lady Yuura?” a lady stooped directly in front of Yura asked.
“I’ll handle it. Bring me the cloth. Sisty, you go over there. Watch where you step.”
She could hear quiet but energetic voices. Brisk but graceful movements. Their hair, neatly pulled up, traced an arc in the sun’s light.
So it wasn’t all just a dream.
Yura sat up. “Leila?” she called out.
At that moment, all the ladies-in-waiting turned her way. They looked shocked. Leila, who’d leapt up, walked over and pulled back the curtain, gazing inside.
When her eyes met Yura’s, Yura grinned. Leila smiled back in relief.
“I see you’re awake, Lady Yuura.”
“I…fainted.”
Half a moment later, Yura was eased into a chair, water glass in hand.
The light from the midday sun was so bright.
Leila flashed Yura a troubled smile as she placed a shawl over her shoulders. The other ladies-in-waiting were preparing tea. Yura watched their deft movements, impressed by their skill.
“You must’ve been exhausted,” Leila said. “After you collapsed, we sent for the doctor, who said you had passed out from sheer exhaustion and fatigue. You should have seen His Majesty’s face—”
The other women began tittering. Leila slightly lowered her head. Yura gave her a wry smile in return.
“Of course, it would be too soon for you to be pregnant. But we wanted to be sure—”
Yura stared blankly at that remark. Leila put a hand on her cheek thoughtfully.
“Though it wouldn’t be THAT impossible. Ever since Emperor Ashes ascended to the Tolkinian throne at the age of nine, he has not even taken one concubine…”
Leila paused to breathe. Yura blinked. It was happening again. Even if she knew the words Leila was saying, she couldn’t keep up with them.
“Huh…”
Frowning, Yura folded her arms. Unfortunately, she still didn’t get it at all. On the contrary, with the indirect way Leila spoke, it was like trying to decipher a code. She couldn’t seem to get the point Leila was trying to make.
Yura nodded, looking up at Leila.
“…At any rate, I caused you all trouble, didn’t I?” That was the one thing Yura could be sure of. “I’m sorry…” she apologized and bowed her head.
Leila looked panicked. She urged Yura to lift her head.
“Please…don’t say such things! We ask only that you take care of yourself! We cannot have you fall apart before the wedding.”
“Wedding?”
Yura understood those words.
Leila looked bashful.
“It is truly a shame… If only the sacred festival didn’t last for two whole months, we wouldn’t have had to postpone it so long.”
“Wait, what do you mean, Leila?”
This time, Leila was the one who looked startled. However, she quickly understood, lowering her eyes and shoulders in shame.
“How terribly rude of me. I am referring to His Majesty’s wedding ceremony.”
“His Majesty…!” Yura exclaimed and clapped her hands, louder than she meant to. It startled Leila and she stepped back. “Wow, that’s great! So Ashes is getting married?!”
Yura excitedly clasped her cheeks. Conversations like this, after all, were particularly exciting for a girl her age.
“Congratulations!” she exclaimed. “So, how old is Ashes?”
Leila’s face broke out into a grin. The others exchanged bashful expressions.
“Why, His Majesty is twenty-three.”
“He’s so young for an emperor!” Yura said in admiration, then broke into a grin. “I bet his bride must be lovely!”
Wow, it’s so unfair. I wish I could’ve seen her.
Yura snapped her fingers. Leila covered her mouth and laughed in amusement.
“Why is it being delayed?”
“During the festival, one cannot make a sacred vow in the church. But any ceremony held afterward is said to be blessed.”
“That’s so unfair to the couple…”
If only the wedding could be tomorrow. If it were, I could congratulate them in person. Yura seemed embarrassed at saying something so crazy, and Leila burst into laughter.
“It is all right. Two moons will pass in no time. I’m sure His Majesty feels the same.” She sounded like she was trying to encourage Yura as she then clasped both her hands together. “It’s fortuitous you feel this way… there’s plenty for us to do. Decorum, manners, behavior, preparations to enter the royal family… we can worry about the ceremony’s specifics after that. The summer solstice is already a pivotal day, as it is the Great Sage’s birth festival. And now, it’ll be the day of the wedding ceremony as well.”
“Several guests from other countries will be invited on that auspicious day which starts the calendar year,” one of the other women chimed in on Leila’s explanation for the first time. “That’s what my grandmother told me. She said the previous emperor’s ceremony was a splendorous celebration.”
“Sisty’s grandmother resided in this palace up until her passing last year.”
Yura nodded in admiration and the lady called Sisty smiled bashfully.
“It’s like a dream!” Leila said, enthralled. She was so spellbound, she seemed to be staring off into the distance before finally murmuring, “We just can’t wait for the day when His Majesty, and you, Lady Yuura, declare your love inside the church.”
“Ohh…” Yura said, but her mind seemed to have completely stopped working. It felt like she was blowing cold air out of her mouth, and she struggled to keep it back.
Hang on a second!
“What do you mean?” Her voice seemed to startle the ladies out of their rapturous states. They all turned her way. “No, I mean, just before,” Yura stammered in a panic, trying to cover for her own surprise, but her words wouldn’t come out right.
Leila gaped.
“Pardon?”
Leila seemed to recoil as she lifted her confused face. She quickly cleared her throat and returned to her normal, composed state.
“My apologies. Well, what exactly are you referring to?”
“You were saying they were going to say their vows. Who and who, Leila? Sorry, but…can you repeat that part…?”
All of the girls went still. They made no attempt to hide their regal smiles, and their faces seemed to break out into giant, enveloping grins. Seeing their faces like that was making Yura uneasy.
“Oh, Lady Yuura!” Leila suddenly smacked Yura on the back, causing her to go stiff. Even though she chided Yura when she was rude, she seemed to act more relaxed when she was being genuine.
The elegant air surrounding her earlier faded away, a playful grin taking its place. She winked.
“How many times will you make me repeat it? All right, go ahead and ask!”
“Ask us too, please!”
At that moment, all the ladies chimed in excitedly in unison. Seeing them seemingly lose their composure, Yura felt her body temperature decrease. She had a horrible feeling and couldn’t bring herself to look directly at them.
I have a sinking feeling I know what’s coming. That there’s been a horrible misunderstanding. I really don’t want to ask her…
However, she couldn’t avoid it. Clenching her fists tight, Yura called on Leila.
“…Okay, Leila, I’ll ask you…”
“Okay!” Leila answered with the excitement of a first grader just starting school.
If excitement changes a person’s body temperature, then surely, there’s a ten-degree Celsius difference between the other girls and me.
It reminded her of a paranormal TV show she had seen at Tomoko’s house. They had a machine to detect human body temperature called a thermal imaging machine.
I’d be pale blue, like a ghost. They’d be the only one it registered as human.
“…Who and who are going to be standing there, making vows, Leila…?”
“That is…! Naturally…!”
Later, Yura would think back on how a vicious criminal awaiting a judge’s final sentence would receive kinder treatment than she did at that moment.
After a beat, they all delivered their “final judgment” in unison with a broad grin.
“…You and His Royal Highness, of course!”