Shirazad could not understand how she'd deserve to miss her sister's wedding. Had she behaved inappropriately? Because truly, she hadn't meant to. On this Earth she did not have many relatives, and no one was as close to her as her sister... but they now saw each other rarely.
"...You know I never hold you or your sister responsible for the money you spend. But this is unbelievable. Your sister has been spending so much money lately." the king said as Shirazad came to visit the library and found him there.
"Perhaps she's feeling depressed or insecure... there have been a lot of changes recently."
"What is she buying, three Persian carpets a day?! I really can't imagine how depressed she must be to spend so much money. What kind of cosmetics or clothes cost that much? I did not put a limit or try to control her expenses, but I have the right to do so."
"I think material comforts make her feel secure. She is going to be married off soon, but it's not the kind of marriage women crave for, she will be one of many concubines. It is different from the culture of our kingdom and she isn't used to it. I've heard some concubines spend their whole life alone. She must feel scared and unsure of the future."
"She attended a ball recently. She asked single gentlemen about their yearly income. ...Make sure to talk about that with her as we leave for Samarkhand."
"We? Does this mean I will attend my sister's wedding celebration?" Shirazad exclaimed. "But I thought..."
"I said once that I can't afford to leave you alone here," he half-smiled.
"I will indeed talk about propriety with her," Shirazad said.
***
As they were leaving for Samarkhand... Dunyazad was preparing her baggage while chit-chatting with Shirazad.
"Haha, and I asked them all about their income and I think they decided I'm very materialistic. And I liked one guy but it was too dark that evening... so the next day I disliked them. Not handsome enough."
They went down the stairs and into the carriage. As Shirazad and Dunyazad hadn't seen each other for quite some time, Dunyazad spent a part of the way in the royal carriage instead of her marriage sedan. The more time Shahryar spent listening to her, the more he disliked her. Maybe it was a mistake to send her to Samarkhand? Anyway, it was too late now to change decisions or to try to make Dunyazad more modest or instruct her how to behave...
At one point, she returned to her sedan. The king couldn't change the course of events, but still he couldn't help but exclaim,
"Your sister is incredibly egocentric."
"...It's not her fault that the guy was not handsome," Shirazad replied. "...I am kidding."
Shirazad remained silent for a while.
"It was out of place," he snorted. "Half of the way she's been looking at herself in the mirror. I bet she's doing that again now," Shahryar added.
"She's pretty. Why shouldn't she? It's not like she's doing something bad," Shirazad said.
"All she's ever concerned about is herself."
"I don't think so. You don't know her so well."
"What do I have to know? All her comments are about how awesome she is, how people told her she is so awesome, and asking you if you think she's awesome."
"This is her kind of protection. She talks like that, this is because she truly feels insecure. She's already getting older, her family's reputation... is not what it was. Truly, she just wants all people to be happy. She does not have a single ill intention in her mind."
"As always, you have a way with words," he frowned. "Almost convinced me she's an angel."
Shirazad stared at her own lap. Who's an angel, who is not? What is perfection? Isn't it too sad that people never attain it... or it's not. Since it lacked definition, then of course it was impossible to attain it. Though it was definitely not a virtue to focus on your good looks, she could understand her sister's behavior in this time of crisis.