Rieka was greeted at the entrance of the temple by one of Ostrythe's priestesses, women who willingly chose to serve him for the rest of their lives. The priestess offered her no words, but quietly ushered her to an inner room with a large bath where she was left to alone.
Rieka sighed as she quietly undressed and stepped into the lukewarm water. Despite it only being slightly warm, she relished the feeling of sinking into the tub. Her mother never allowed her to boil water for her bath, so this water felt like heaven.
"What's going to happen to me?" she asked the empty room. She was to marry a God soon! Where did a wolf God live? All she knew was that his brides entered the forest on their wedding day and never returned. Ever. Did they meet Ostrythe after going deeper into the forest? Would he carry them away on his back? Would his other wives be there as well?
So many questions swirled her mind as her fear swelled in the pit of her stomach. She was walking blind into an unknown future. A future where she'd be married to a God. What did that entail for her? What did it even mean to marry a God? Would she experience a paradise of her own or, a voice whispered at the back of her mind, would she be walking into the arms of death?
She was pulled from her thoughts when the unknown priestess returned and held up a towel, signaling that her bath was now over. She quickly dressed herself then was taken to another room where two other girls already sat on low wooden stools, each facing a large round mirror. Two other priestesses stood behind them combing and styling their hair.
Rieka sat herself in the only empty stool and tried not to move as her priestesses went to work on her own hair. She glanced sideways at the other two unlucky girls, Elaine and Ivy.
Elaine sat just to Rieka's righthand scowling at the mirror. Her dark brown hair was a mass of cascading curls around her. Every so often she would pluck out one of the white marigolds the priestess had placed in her hair and rearrange it to her liking. Elaine had always been particular about how she looked. She was only two years younger than Rieka and the daughter of jeweler. Her family, though wealthy from their trade, was by no means noble. A fact that Elaine tried to remedy with the other young nobles with offers of fine beads and precious stones whenever she could. When they were young Elaine had always swore she would marry into the Rosling family, one of the highest ranking families in her village. She never imagined that their generation would be struck with such a terrible disease and that she would be unlucky enough to be picked for Ostrythe.
"I can't believe we've been tossed together with the jinx," Elaine scoffed in Rieka's direction. "I could have been the madam to the Rosling family, but now I'll be stuck as a sister-wife with you two."
Ivy whimpered in reply, tears threatening to fall. She was the youngest among them, barely 16. Her round, blue, doe-like eyes fluttered wildly as she tried to force her tears away. Her own honey colored hair was plaited down her back, hanging loosely down her back. A crown of white peonies cradled her head, giving her the illusion of a bride.
Ivy hadn't considered marriage of any kind, with Ostrythe or otherwise. She had just reached marrying age only a month prior. As it was accustomed, she couldn't even be probably introduced to the village as a lady until one month after she turned 16. She hadn't even been given a chance to hope or wish for a husband of her own before one was unwillingly thrust upon her. One she feared would kill her on sight and eat her flesh. What else could a wolf possibly want with a young girl such as herself?
"D-do you suppose he'll eat us once we go into the woods?" Ivy muttered.
"Maybe he'll eat YOU. But before that, you can rest easy knowing he'll probably eat the jinx first," Elaine gave her a conspiratorial grin. "With any luck, she'll leave his stomach upset and then he'll leave us alone."
Rieka refused to acknowledge Elaine's verbal abuse. Talking back only egged her on, so the only solution was for her to stay silent. She was used to it. She'd heard it all from everyone in the village her whole life. All kinds of terrible words and curses, like poison darts thrown at her. If she let them sink in, she would be poisoned. Lost to the same hate and bitterness her mother felt. She refused to let herself end up that way.
"Why does the jinx get roses in her hair?!" Elaine cried, glaring daggers at Rieka's head.
Rieka looked up at the mirror and let out a small gasp. Her red hair, which was normally in an unruly wave, had been straightened; two strips of hair on either side of her face were the only ones curled into perfect spirals. As she turned her hair to glimpse the back, she saw two braids that trailed from her temples to the back of her head where it met a small bouquet of white roses. She had never seen anything so beautiful. It seemed impossible that such beauty was on herself.
"If anyone deserves to have roses in their hair, it's me!" Elaine continued, rising from her seat and reaching for Rieka's hair.
"That will be QUITE enough!"
The three girls turned to the door where a man in a white robe stood, a silver sash draped across his chest. The girls quickly rose and bowed to the great Prophet of Ostrythe. He was a stout man with a short silver beard and thin greying hair. He stood with confidence as a man of his station should, for no other in their village could convene with Ostrythe except for the Prophet. He rarely left the temple and only spoke to a select few. Though, Rieka noticed, those 'select few' always seemed to have a large amount of wealth with them. Still, he was perhaps the most powerful man in the village. Who else had a wolf God backing them up?
"Each of you was given your selected flower for a reason," the Prophet said looking directly at Elaine. "It is Ostrythe's will."
"As He wills it," the girls echoed back as they had been taught since infancy.
"Good," the Prophet said with a smile. "Now then, shall we go and meet your husband-to-be?"