They soon came to the gates of SuKech's capital city, Ocklan.
As the grand procession approached an even grander procession waited to receive them. The Kings procession. The King would never lower himself to receive a tribute woman at the city gates but he could still honor her and her country by inviting her into the land in grand style.
When the two processions were close enough. An Eunuch from the Kings procession closed the distance and bowed at Esme's window.
'Greetings your destined highness'. He spoke in nararian.
Esme lifted the little curtains very slightly and made a dismissive sound of acknowledgement. The Eunuch lifted his head, 'I am Chief Eunuch of ceremonies, Agao. The King is busy and has sent me to receive your destined highness'.
Another sound of acknowledgement.
'I heard the journey was lengthy, I hope your destined highness did not find it too difficult'.
'Just fine Eunuch. If you don't mind I would like to continue towards the palace before the sun falls'.
Eunuch Agao went red. 'O..of course your destined highness right away'. He disappeared and brought processions continued through the city gates. Esme reminded herself that she had to act a little dumb while still maintaining an image of an entitled woman used to commanding people.
The carriage rolled on and Esme began to look around and notice the changes to the capital city in the last eleven years. When the carriage rolled by her fathers manor, her heart tightened. Suddenly the feeling of yearning that she had fought back for so many years flooded back into her body. Onan.
Onan her younger brother, the eight young master and only boy born after her. Esme missed Onan so much, he was the only reason why she sometimes questioned her decision. Poor Onan must have been so confused at her disappearance. He had only been six at the time perpharps he had forgotten her already. He would now be a young man of seventeen and Esme just new that he would be pursuing a career as a general.
She reminded herself that she was now Esmeliyah of Otunara and not Onia of Sukech.
All that was in the past, but just as she was beginning to feel like herself again the carriage rolled past the Aron Devine manor and Esme's breath caught at the sight of a heavily pregnant Tayan walking out of the manor. A man was following closely behind her carrying a girl of about six on his shoulders. On a second look Esme realised that the man was too young to be Arcan. Onan.
That was Onan and Tayan and no doubt Tayans little one on Onans shoulders.
Esme's heart squeezed so tightly she could barely breath she looked away from the window and commanded Colene to veil her already.
Colene not understanding why her mistress wanted to wear her veil this early rather than just throwing it on when the carriage stopped did as she was told without asking questions. A white satin veil to match the white shoes was fitted over Esme's face and the visual world around her was cut off.
Through her sharp hearing she was aware when they rolled through the palace gates. The heavy palace gate groaned loudly and there was the clacking of metals as guards on duty quickly checked through her procession for any threat. They were quickly cleared and she moved on into the palace. A few miles in and her carriage rolled to a stop. Almost immediately Eunuch Agao was by her little window again. In Nararian he said, ' Your destined highness, His majesty would receive you in the imperial garden. However there is not enough room for your large carriage to enter the imperial garden please agree to travel the rest of the way in this bridal palanquin I have prepared. I assure you that it is of top quality and very fitting to your destined highness tastes'.
Esme rolled her eyes behind the veil. What the Eunuch really meant to say was that her carriage was too dirty and muddied from the long travel and that it wouldn't be good enough for the imperial garden. He was after all the chief Eunuch of ceremonies, if he presented the kings woman in a less than decent fashion his head would roll.
Esme of course agreed but made a big show of how insulted and annoyed she felt. The palanquin was indeed grandly decorated in cloudy white and blue fashion. This Eunuch must want to keep his head so bad he must have peeped at the color of her dress and then sent someone ahead to prepare a palanquin in a complimenting color. Esme chuckled to herself as she climbed in, life in the palace would be dramatic. Six strong men lifted the palanquin unto their shoulders, as they began to carry her towards the imperial garden, Esme watched as Eunuch Agao's men switched all the horses on her procession to freshly brushed beautiful stallions and handed out complimenting colored capes to her servants so they could hide any mud on their clothing.
As the imperial garden loomed before her, the pounding in Esme's heart began. She was trained for this, she was ready, she was beautiful enough for a tribute woman, her thigh piece was in the right place, what was the method of courtesy to the king as an intended bride?, how was she supposed to greet the officials again?
And then one thought almost had her jumping out of the palanquin and running for freedom.
'Would her father be there?'
Of course he would. Dajeon Don Avan-Knightly had now attained the position of prime minister. He would never insult the king with his absence at the receiving ceremony of a treaty tribute woman.
What if she freaked out and courtseyed to her father in a daughter to father greeting instead of waiting for him to bow to her and acknowledge it with a nod.
Right she wasn't supposed to greet the officials there were supposed to greet her.
' I am too trained for these rubbish nerves', Esme scolded herself in a whisper as the grand procession moved through the second gate of the imperial garden.
Her name and status was loudly announced.
'Her destined highness, Lady Esmeliyah Tian Haaland Dekoritsche of Otunara'.
At this announcement all nobles present stood up except the king. None of the kings other women were at the ceremony. Just officials and their legitimate wives, some older royal children and serving maids and Eunuchs.
There was a decorated aisle for her palanquin to walk through and some maids were throwing peach blossom flowers on the path ahead. At the end of the aisle was the kings throne and his officials stood on both his left side and right side. The kings personal Eunuch and personal maid stood just behind him. On the table before the king were cups of beverages and several rare fruits. On the officials tables there was only two bowls of beverages each. Her procession walked eighty percent down the aisle and then stopped.
Once her palanquin was placed on the ground the King stood. Everybody dropped to their knees. The King then walked the short distance to her palanquin and offered his hand for her to climb out.
Despite all the nerves Esme once battled, in that moment her whole aura was switched to that of business. She climbed out confidently with the Kings support and quickly arranged her skirt. She could feel Colene behind her discretely flaying the skirt and adjusting the huge jewelry on her thigh with large butterfly wings that spread out covering the opening in her skirt that the spring and slit caused.
Esme courteseyed to the king perfectly, with knees halfway bowed arms up and together and head bowed low resting at the back of her palms. She counted the seconds till four, before she stood upright again.
The king grunted an acknowledgment and offered his hand again. As they approached the Kings elevated seat under a tent, the officials all stood up and got in a line. The king released her hand in front of the first official and walked up to his seat. As he sat everyone arose.
One by one the officials bowed to her introducing themselves with their family and their status. It was a long line and Esme had to keep her regal stance in those stupid pinching shoes. She recognized Tayans husband Arcan who introduced himself as the Duke of Kmer. It made her smile behind the veil. Duchess of Kmer, her troublesome, masculine, good-for-nothing sister was Duchess of Kmer.
Her father was the last official to greet her and the ease with which she acknowledged and dismissed him helped her realise just how much of a real spy she had been trained to become.
Her father knew of the Kings Calvary, so she wondered if he knew she was the tribute spy woman or if he even knew this was all a sham.
Despite her ponderings, Esme's composure never faltered. She walked up those stairs to the Kings tent, adjusted her skirts and bowed herself completely to the ground. Colene who was following behind her did the exact same thing.
This was the reverence of a new bride that signified total submission.
Before she had greeted him as an intended lady, now after the introduction of the officials she had become a bride.
The bow lasted a while, she was not to move from her submission pose until the king told her to do so.
At the mark of twelve seconds, the King then told her to rise as he stood from his throne to help her up which signified the acceptance of her submission.
She was ushered into a seat just beside the Kings but a lot less fancier and on a lower step.
Maids served the wedding wine into the matrimony cups and then handed it to them both.
The King then removed her veil, there was an applause and numerous compliments of her beauty which was tradition.
Esme did her best to not squint her eyes due to the sudden brightness. She looked up as one half of the cup of matrimony with the clear wedding wine in it was pushed into her hand.
One thought registered as she began intertwining her arm with the Kings.
The King was old.
She had no time to despair over that fact as everyone was expecting her to drink from the matrimony cup.
In one swift, graceful enough movement she raised the cup to her lips and took a sip that would seal away her dreams forever.
IT WAS WATER.