Hypnotised by the sun, Crystalline almost jumped out of her skin when the handmaiden opened the door with a slam: “Woaaah! Sofiya! Why didn’t you knock!? You almost scared me to death! My heart was already excited enough!”
“I’m so sorry, my Queen! I heard some commotion in your chamber! I just wanted make sure you were well. After all, it has been FIVE days since your royal Örlög began! I was beginning to worry if something might have gone wrong! That would have been terrible and my poor heart wouldn’t have wanted to live with knowing that you were in pain!”
“Uhhh… Could you repeat that word again? My royal WHAT?!?”
“Your Örlög, your Highness! Örlög? Surely, you must know what that means?”
“Ah… um… no. I have no idea what you are talking about but I am trying really hard not to feel offended by your choice of words! Örlööö.. whatever, sounds rather obscene!”
Sofiya started talking fast, reassuring her: “Oh noo, your Highness, it’s nothing like that! Sunmother forbid! Örlög, you must know, is the sacred sleep procedure every high-elf monarch must go through as their reign begins…”
Crystalline stared at her in disbelief, piercing the young handmaiden with her eyes, which made her go silent again quickly. Sofiya was younger than her, skinny and beautiful in a modest, natural way. Enthusiastic, kind, supportive… and still inexperienced as a handmaid, which contributed to an air of nervousness around her. She was wearing a plain, white dress with a bright, golden hood that partly covered her head. Her cheeks had blushed and she appeared to feel even more insecure after what had happened.
“Has… nobody… ever told you? Everybody at court was talking about this since your father died! Endlessly and continuously, I must add! You must know something about the procedure!”
Crystalline sighed and rolled her eyes, covering her face with her right hand and attempting very hard to recollect a sense of calm. “No. This can’t be. Nobody told me! Nobody!! Not. One. Single. Soul. In. This. Goddess-damned. Universe.”
“Oh, no! Please forgive me! What about… Why don’t you sit down for a moment and take a deep breath to…”
“ENOUGH, Sofiya! I will take it from here! You are dismissed!”, a harsh call cuts Sofiya’s voice off.
“Matron March!”, the maiden exclaimed anxiously. “Her Highness just woke up (finally!) and I was just trying to…”
“I said you are dismissed, Sofiya! Should I spell it out for you? DIS-MISSED.”
© Miriam Laschenko 2024-04-23