Pure Destiny (PureDark Ones #12) - Aja James Page 0,12
Persia, but one could never rely on the rendering of the artist. Who knew what they’d been bribed with to paint or sculpt? A fictional likeness of their subject in order to embellish his charms, perhaps. All she could reliably account for were the Prince’s black, wavy hair and olive or sun-bronzed skin. As most Persians boasted.
Whether he was tall or short, fat or thin, handsome or otherwise—all of that could be misrepresented, and she would simply have to see with her own eyes.
To say that she was not looking forward to it was to grossly understate her sentiment.
“Try not to judge him too harshly,” the Priestess advised as Kira stood and walked toward the front entrance of the Temple of Neith.
“Wait until you see him in his own home to assess the real man.”
It was a strange enough comment that Kira turned finally to look the Priestess in the eyes.
Glittering, hypnotic black orbs met her gaze.
“After all,” the Priestess added, “he will not feel at his utmost ease here, in a foreign, somewhat hostile land. His manners might not be…natural. Wait until you see him in his own palace, amongst his own people, to judge him. Treat him with an open mind while he is here.”
“Why are you so interested in my marriage?” Kira asked curiously.
This particular Priestess had been a fixture in her life for many years, since she began escaping to the temple to learn astronomy and healing arts. She was one of a dozen Priestesses, along with the Head Priestess, who served the Goddess Neith and carried out the duties of the Temple. It was both a place of worship and a sanctuary for learning, and it was Priestess Undine who had taught Kira the most.
Kira learned from a young age, like every other Egyptian, that each person was composed of the soul and the body. Each soul was made of many parts—the heart, the vital essence, the personality, the shadow, the life force, the name, and the mind. Equally, the body was made of many parts. And all of these parts had to be in balance in order for the person to achieve their fullest potential, whether it was health, strength, wit, or emotion.
Well, she was definitely not in balance right now. And she feared she wasn’t going to be in balance for the foreseeable future. One in which she would be tied ’til death to a stranger, in a strange land, and among strange people. The Prince might be out of his normal realm of comfort tomorrow when he came for her, but Kira would have to endure a lifetime away from her home.
“I am merely interested in you, my child,” Priestess Undine said in response to a question Kira had already forgotten, too lost in her own thoughts.
Even so, the way the Priestess worded the sentence seemed strange, prickling Kira’s awareness.
“I want you to achieve your fullest potential,” the older woman murmured as she waved Kira goodnight.
Early the next morning, Kira raced out of the royal stables on her fastest steed, needing to unleash the coiled energy and frustration that had been stewing within her all through the night. To clear her head and simply feel the hot wind in her face, the rhythm of the mare’s pounding hoofs, lose herself in the exhilaration of space and speed.
Across the deserted dunes, over the quiet sands along the sea, she could imagine for a brief while that she was free.
But reality pulled her reluctantly back into its gilded cage the closer she rode back to the Palace. At least, in her boyish disguise, no one paid her much attention as she entered through one of the city’s side gates.
She wasn’t Princess Kira. There were no responsibilities to uphold for that lofty position. No arranged marriage to attend. No rules, no boundaries.
She observed her people bustling about their day, in more of a flurry than usual, and she realized that it was in preparation for the Persian Prince’s arrival.
Everyone wanted the city square to look its best. They swept the paved roads free of dust and debris. They decorated windows and doors with rare blossoms and garlands.
Women, men and even children donned their finest clothing. Many of them wore kohl around their eyes and various shades of lip color, as well as necklaces, arm bands, wrist cuffs, anklets, and all kinds of bejeweled hair adornments.
Her people loved to celebrate. And there was seldom an event grander than the marriage of their most beloved princess.