Something Fairytale-ish

Something Mulan-ish Part VII

Huriyah was taking a stroll through the marketplace. Harith and Nouri were working the scroll stall and she didn't want to stay in one place for too long in case someone she knew recognized her. Her face was itchy from covering it with a cloth mask all day, but it was necessary if she wanted to remain unseen.

A loud commotion overhead broke her from her thoughts. She looked up to see a large crowd gathering around the matchmaker's building. I wonder what's going on, she thought, making her way cautiously to the scene. She was met with an unexpected sight.

"GIVE ME BACK MY DAUGHTER!" a woman screamed as two other women held her back.

From the steps of the building, the matchmaker, the same one that Huriyah had met with, stared at the woman coldly.

"GIVER HER BACK!" she screamed again. This time the matchmaker spoke.

"I don't have your daughter," she said emotionlessly.

"Where is she then?" a man asked, emerging from the crowd. He shooed the two women holding down the hysterical woman and held her close to him. "She was last seen with you. Where is our daughter?" he asked again. His wife slumped her body against him and started sobbing uncontrollably.

"I. Don't. Know," the matchmaker grit out. "She probably ran away or something of the sort. I wouldn't be surprised too, she was a fiesty one." It wasn't a compliment.

"YOU ROTTEN PIECE OF FILTH!" the mother screamed, pushing herself away from her husband and running up the steps. She was at the matchmaker's throat before anyone could stop her. "HOW DARE YOU INSULT MY DAUGHTER LIKE THAT! IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT THAT SHE RAN AWAY, IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT!" she screamed as she choked the matchmaker.

The old woman sputtered and her face started turning blue. Before she could die from asphyxiation, the man grabbed his wife and held her close to him. The mother didn't let this stop her.

"IF YOU HADN'T FORCED HER TO GET MARRIED, THEN NONE OF THIS WOULD HAVE HAPPENED!" she continued screaming. "SHE WAS ONLY EIGHT YEARS OLD! EIGHT YEARS OLD AND YOU FORCED HER TO MARRY YOUR PEDOPHILE SON!". As soon as she said this, the crowd gasped. At this point, the matchmaker couldn't control herself anymore.

"Mind your mouth you dirty woman! He was only twenty! The match was perfect!" the matchmaker screeched. Huriyah felt her stomach convulse. A twenty year old man married an eight year old girl? How utterly disgusting!

"Another girl ran away, huh?" some men began to mutter.

Huriyah's ears perked.

"How many girls has it been now?" another man asked.

"I lost count after the tenth one," another answered. "It all started when that daughter of Hakim--what was her name...oh right, Huriyah--it all started when that Huriyah ran away," he said.

"Oh yeah, that girl who could read," the first man said. "I wonder whatever happened to her."

"Probably got caught by a bunch of slave traders and is now toiling her life away as an emmeh," the second man muttered.

"She would deserve it too. That wench brought shame and dishonour on the whole family," the last man said.

Huriyah's heart clenched. Is this what people were saying about her disappearance?

"I pity her father. He had to look for a new wife after his previous wife, Huriyah's mother, died of grief," the first man spoke up again.

Huriyah's heart dropped. The sound of the townsfolk chatter faded, and the world around her grayed.

She's dead. My mother is dead. And it's all my fault.

...

Huriyah sat alone in her room at the inn. The men's words kept on replaying in her mind.

"That wench brought shame and dishonour on the whole family."

"I pity her father. He had to look for a new wife after his previous wife, Huriyah's mother, died of grief."

She was numb with shock. Her mother, her dear precious mother, was dead?

"Hur, I'm back. Do you want some dinner?" Harith asked as he knocked on her door.

Huriyah sat mutely, unable to open her mouth. It was like fate had taken a thread and needle and sewed her lips shut to punish her for her crime.

"Hur?" Harith asked as he knocked again. After another long silence, Harith left, assuming that she was sleeping.

But there was no way Huriyah would be sleeping that night.

She's dead because I ran away, she thought as she laid in bed.

She's dead and it's all my fault.

I killed my mother.

I killed my own mother.

Huriyah twisted and turned her body, making her bed a tangled mess. She couldn't sleep. She tried closing her eyes, hoping that sleep would overtake her then.

Her mother's smiling face flashed before her eyes.

"Huriyah." She could almost hear her mother calling her name.

Huriyah gasped as a wave of emotion suddenly overtook her. "Mama! Mama I'm so sorry!" she cried. She kept on repeating the phrase over and over again, in between her sobs and hiccups. The sounds of her mourning were muffled by crying into her pillow. Her tears incessantly rolled down her face in large drops, soaking her pillow with her grief. "I'm so sorry!" she cried again, her body shaking uncontrollably. She cried and cried until she eventually fell asleep.

When she woke up the next morning, her face was red and blotchy, her nose full of dried snot, and her lips cracked from dehydration. Remembering the news she received the day before, Huriyah started crying again. The sounds of her wailing were dried and cracked, and she felt her head grow dizzy from the lack of water. Nevertheless, she continued to cry like a newborn infant.

"Hur, are you okay?" Harith asked as he knocked on her door.

She didn't reply, she just kept crying.

Harith opened the door. "Hur?" he asked worriedly. When he saw her hunched and wailing form, he quickly rushed to her side, shutting the door behind him. "What happened? Are you hurt?" he asked her frantically, checking her body for any injuries.

She shook her head and continued crying.

Harith started panicking. He wasn't used to dealing with emotional women, so what was he supposed to do now?

Without thinking, he sat on her bed and pulled her close to him. He wrapped his arms around her and cradled her to his side. Huriyah's hands gripped his shirt and she laid her head against his chest and cried. He tried to ignore the strange feeling in his heart and began stroking her, moving his hands in slow, circular motions on her back. He kept on doing so until she finally calmed down. The two sat in silence, Harith not knowing what to say, and Huriyah struggling to open her mouth.

"I found out that my mother is dead," she finally croaked.

Harith's eyes widened. He had many questions, but he stayed silent, wanting to let her finish speaking.

"She died out of grief because I ran away," Huriyah continued. "She died because of m-me!" she exclaimed, sobbing once again.

Harith held her closely as she cried. When she finally passed out, he laid her down gently on her bed and pulled the covers to her chin. He got up and left the room to bring her some food and drink, which he set beside her bed for when she woke up. He then left the room once again, this time heading out of the inn and to his father's home. He had questions and they would be answered. 

A/N: Salaam.

I know, I know, you guys are upset that Huriyah's mother died. I'm upset too. I hope the Hariyah fluff in the end made it better. I promise I'll try to update soon so that y'all aren't left hanging. 

Toodles ~~ʕ•ᴥ•ʔ~~