It was nighttime, the queen was having dinner when she called Mitra.
Jwala wasn't convinced about the security of the palace so she asked Mitra to call the guards but Arin, the court lady objected saying that the men were not allowed in the queen's residence.
Jwala also agreed with Arin thinking that calling soldiers in the palace at night might also cause some misunderstanding like what happened at the king's palace earlier that day.
"I will keep watch, my queen," Mitra said considering her queen's concerns.
"no. you will rest. I need you to be with me tomorrow." Jwala said while preparing another bite for herself. "Then call the chief and the troop heads."
"No. wait. They had a long journey as well." she thought for a second. "call some of the palace guards…"
"My queen, palace guards?!" Mitra was highly against it. She would never leave her queen's safety up to Hanna's soldiers. "I will stand guard. I can rest after the wedding."
"I will too, my queen." Bano said and called the others. "we all will."
Jwala clicked her tongue, "I feel bad about making you all stay up after this long journey."
"I will stand guard, your highness." Arin said after finding Bano staring at her. "others will too."
"We will stand guard," Arin said referring to the court ladies. "You all must be tired from the journey. Take rest."
"Okay, if you say so. You must scream at the top of your lungs if someone or something suspicious happens."
"yes, your highness." Arin bowed. She was having a hard time serving this foreign queen but she didn't have a choice.
"Roll out Mitra's bed here," Jwala said while chewing.
"Your Highness, this is the queen's chambers, A servant mustn't sleep here."
Jwala was quietly eating but Bano was giving condescending looks to Arin.
Arin gave a defeated sigh. "I will lay the beddings, your highness."
"She annoys me," Bano whispered to Mitra, as she watched Arin leave the chambers.
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The wedding day:-
The main hall of the palace was decorated with flowers, ribbons, and various fancy materials. Stages were set for the musicians and performers to entertain the audience. Another stage was set for the Queen-mother to sit and watch the ceremonies.
In the queen's residence, the atmosphere was a bit tense.
"Your Highness, this is the traditional marriage attire," Arin again told Jwala who had a questionable look on her face.
"All of these?" Jwala gestured at the multiple fabrics laid out in front of her.
"Yes, your highness," Arin confirmed again.
"No," Jwala said and told Bano to ready the bath.
Arin was left alone, her shoulders slumped and face tired from staying up all night only to get stressed this early in the morning. She gave a low sigh, "I should have retired."
---
The ministers and officials had arrived, wearing their ceremonial red-colored uniforms. The musicians were playing and the performer was doing a traditional Hanna dance that had slow and fluid steps with intricate movements.
The king took his place at the center stage prepared with various offerings and a prayer table as per Hanna tradition.
Maan was wearing a multilayered long knee-length robe in white paired with red open-legged pants and a black full-length overcoat on top of it all. A wide black and golden sash on his abdomen held the whole outfit in its place. The overcoat was made of fine silk and had beautiful small and colorful patterns on the hem and edges. He also wore a cylindrical hat that had a long line of beads hanging from the top of the hat and ending at his forehead. As for the jewelry, he was a stone necklace and many jade rings.
When the queen arrived, slow murmurs begin to start.
She wasn't dressed in similar attire to the king but ceremonial attire from her kingdom, Devdurg.
The queen wore a long, yellow circle skirt with heavy stone embroidery that grazed the ground, a blouse in the same color, and a long thin fabric draped around her torso and wrapped on her arms and wrists. Her neck and chest were adorned with multiple gold and gem neckpieces, earrings, and a big nose ring kissing her lips.
She hadn't worn a hat like the king but a hair accessory that ran along her hairline and covered almost half of her head.
Maan's eyes traveled to the Queen mother who was looking at Jwala with disgust. He felt good to see her get triggered by Jwala's every appearance. He couldn't help but smile whenever he thought about what was coming for his sweet sweet grandma…
There was another person who was watching Jwala; standing away from the crowd and far from the stage, Sumin had a clear view of the queen.
"She is bold," Rumi said standing behind her brother. "Everyone is wearing their customary attire except her."
"The dress is so pretty." Rumi held onto Sumin's arm. "She has some nerve to be showing up like that."
"She has plenty of that," Sumin murmured. He was far but the striking yellow of Jwala's attire and the shining gold that covered her from head to toe was amiss. She appeared different this time, in fact, she appeared different every time he had met her, in the streets, at palace gates, or at her wedding.
Each time he had met with her different personalities, when he first met her she was aggressive, suspicious, and bold.
the second time he came across her at the palace gates, she was commanding and assertive. Honestly, a bit arrogant too.
This time she was gentle and calm. Like a maiden in a flower garden. She walked gracefully, her gaze was lazy and hypnotizing.
His lips curled in a gentle smile as he watched her stand tall instead of bowing to the king. Like he knew she wouldn't accept that the king was above her.
Jwala kneeled down to light the incense sticks to offer her prayers with the king. The sunlight shone on her hair accessory, creating a dazzling effect around her head, the reflections emerging from her headpiece danced on Sumin's face, making him squint his eyes in order to keep admiring her.
"Beautiful…" Sumin uttered the words like he was in a trance. Her face appeared soft and gentle, unlike the day when she was aggressively attacking him. His eyes traced her high nose and stopped at her lips and stayed there.
"The King and Queen are now officially married." The priest announced followed by the sounds of the drums to celebrate the occasion.
"People of Hanna, Greet your queen, Jwala Chitra Bhanu," King announced.
The audience started clapping and cheering for the couple and the sound shook Sumin out of his thoughts.
His expression changed as he drew a sharp breath like he was caught red-handed. He was in disbelief, "How could I?"
Sumin was a man of morals and discipline, he dedicated his life to his nation and family, and his thoughts just now weren't up to his beliefs. He left the ceremony feeling disappointed.
"She is the queen, the king's 'wife'."
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the king and queen were sitting on a shared chair to receive gifts and greetings from the audience.
"The queen looks pretty," Maan whispered to Jwala.
"You don't look bad either." She replied. "That must be queen mother."
"Yes." Maan followed Jwala's line of sight.
"Is she sick?" she noticed queen mother holding her head with her eyes closed.
"Not sick. But upset I think," Maan answered receiving the gift from a minister and passing it to the servant. "She is strict with customs and rules. Our wedding must be giving her headaches."
She noticed a minister dressed in red standing close to the stage but he never came up. "Who is that?"
"This is the royal advisor, Bei Un Jheng," Maan answered.
"Why is HE upset?"
Maan pressed his lips, "There's a story to that."
when he saw Jwala still waiting for the answer he added, "His daughter would have been the queen if you hadn't accepted my proposal."
"You were that desperate to get married?" She taunted. "It would have been his daughter if not me?"
He covered his mouth to hide his chuckle. "Do not be jealous, my queen. It was out of obligation. A king's responsibility is also to produce an heir to pass down the throne."
"So, you are desperate to produce an heir?" She gave him side eyes.
He coughed and pretended to not hear her. He repeated her words, 'Desperate to produce an heir…' and couldn't keep himself from smiling. he admitted she might hinder his plans but it wasn't all in vain, "At least she has a sense of humor." He mumbled to himself.
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The king and queen were in the shared palace. The room was decorated and lit with fragrant candles.
They were sitting across the round table full of exquisite cuisines and drinks. After changing into lighter and casual clothing, Maan was wearing a white half robe with white trousers and a white full-length overcoat with a golden hem and collar. While Jwala was wearing a red blouse and skirt of similar design and style as she wore at the wedding, but it was light.
"You love gold, my queen," Maan said looking at her string-like headpiece and a layered necklace of gold.
"The same way you love robes." She said and brushed her loosely braided hair back from her face.
He gave a side smile and poured a glass of wine, "It suits the queen."
She raised her glass and took a sip.
...