Jastina and I anxiously wait outside the doors to the women's quarters of the enormous dining hall. All the other women are chattering inside as they get seated and wait for us to join them. Apparently, the queen and I are last to be seated and last to be fed, as is custom. Still, the queen hasn't shown up. Jastina can't be seated until Lythia arrives and I can hear her stomach rumble as she bounces lightly on the balls of her feet. I can almost feel my stomach eating itself as I stand waiting. I can smell the waifs of delicious and exotic foods. I'm excited to try something new, although I can be extremely picky at times, so I hope the food tastes as good as it smells, or I might just die of hunger.
Finally the queen arrives in a beautiful white dress. It is tight fitting to her plump body, but she manages to seem totally confident and beautiful in it. She motions to the guards and to Jastina, who immediately slips inside the large doors. I hear a silence pass over the group inside as they wait for my arrival. Queen Lythia then curtsies to me and without another word walks through those massive oak doors. I'm left alone to wait for my cue to enter into the public life.
Bong. Bong.
The great gong sounds and the doors open as I stand in the center. I take the quick steps Jastina taught me, into the women's dining hall. The women all around me bow low, their noses against the mats that are placed on the floor underneath their knees. I smile and nod at each one. I even touch Jastina's head as I pass by it on the way to the throne that sits, slightly smaller, on the right hand of the queen. I curtsy politely to her then continue on my way to sit in the massive oak chair complete with golden velvet covers on the cushions. At my feet Jastina seats herself, as Lythia's first lady-in-waiting does. A maid comes up to both of us with a bowl of water with which to wash our hands, after our ladies have taken off our rings and placed them in a wooden bowl attached to the outside of our thrones.
After we've properly washed our hands and waited for all of the delicious food to be set on the very low tables with pillows placed all around the sides, for each person to kneel at, we watch as the men make their ritual dinner speech and both royal men raise their wine glasses to us, royal women, in a salute, we are finally able to eat. The food is primarily vegetarian, definitely no beef to be seen. I see a few dishes of octopus on another table, but our dishes are mainly rice plates and many vegetables from the palace's garden. The goat's milk is the perfect addition to a lovely, sweet rice dish I instantly love.
After dinner, once again the royal men raise their glasses to us as we bow our heads to show our faithfulness to them. Then the queen and I sit in our wooden thrones and again have our hands washed, before our ladies place our rings once more on our fingers. Each woman and child then comes up to us, first me then the queen, to be blessed as they leave the large dining hall. The room becomes quieter and quieter with every woman who leaves. It empties and leaves us in calm solitude. After the last person leaves, I in turn kneel before the queen to get my own blessing before leaving the room with her hand-in-hand.
"Are you ready for this?" Queen Lythia asks as we wait outside the ballroom for our introductions. She gives me a quick pat on the back as she leaves to join her husband and son who have just walked in the door. I smile bashfully as they approach me. The prince bows before me as I curtsy to him.
"My lady, may I say you look ravishing tonight," the prince says stiffly. He takes my shaking hand and kisses it with his soft, thin lips. I smile, not knowing what else to do.
"Thank you, sir," I say formally as he places my hand in the crook of his arm. The great doors open for his parents to walk through. The applause is great and I get a brief glimpse of the outstanding crowd in the grand ballroom. It holds all sorts of people all dressed in black and stuffed into this room, a room larger than most houses, but unable to comfortably hold everyone invited to this grand ball. I immediately feel afraid, the stage fright I thought I had gotten over suddenly resurfaces as I imagine falling flat on my face in front of all these people.
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