The dark curled-hair handmaiden was prepared for the king. Her almond-shaped eyes had allured the pretense of her fateful evening. As the oblivious young girls tended to braid her hair in the style of those before her, she directed her gaze at the chestnut treasure chest that lay in the corner of the room. That chest had carried secrets that dragged the handmaiden’s mother to her grave.

The moon was beginning to set by the time that the handmaiden was appropriately dressed in her loose silky black dress. The kohl that underlined her eyes had brought a sense of comfort to the girl that wasn’t there before. The two bright-eyed girls who were assisting her had turned to her and offered their condolences for their part in her doom. The handmaiden had ignored them. Instead of acknowledging or denying the existence of her doom, she had exited out of the entrance of her home to wait for the carriage to arrive.

There was nothing in the dark sky save for the moon that lit up a path for the horses to take. The gentle breeze that welcomed the handmaiden was something that she would soon yearn for. She spread her shawl over shoulders, so that her curls could breathe with the wind. Lifting her face out of the window, she saw that the trees were naked. No comfort nor anything that could provide warmth were on the trees. Creatures with yellow and green eyes appeared to be walking towards her from the trees. Howls could be heard from the bloodthirsty wolves as the horses fled from them towards the estate of the king.

The evening had saved the handmaiden from bloodthirsty creatures but had sent her to the man who would soon kill her.

………………………………………….

The handmaiden admired the marbel floors and the golden-colored walls of the castle. She viewed her temporary home with such admiration that only a peasant can have. When she was escorted to her room, by one of the residents of the castle, she had thrown herself onto the bed and burrowed her face into her pillow. Tears had soon clouded her eyes and caused the artwork on her face to smear all over her face. She knew what awaited her. She knew that her time on this Earth would soon come to an end. The twenty-two years that she lived on this Earth would soon end because of her father. Her father had caused this sudden marriage to occur and he would be the one that would cause her death.

It was nearly dawn before the king had decided to invite his bride to dine with him for breakfast. He had sent his servants to wake her up at this unusual time. The handmaiden’s eyes were swollen from the tears that she had cried the night before. The kohl that she was wearing her smeared under her eyes and had caused the illusion of her having large bags under her eyes.

The King was impatient. He had sent more servants to her than necessary. The servants had urged the handmaiden to go meet the King with desperation evident on their voices. Their gentle yet persistent voices caused the handmaiden to feel pity for them. She knew that if she didn’t obey them, the king would cause harm to them --he would torture them. Upon this realization, the handmaiden raised her eyes to meet theirs and gave them a nod. She would join the king for dinner at this ungodly time.

After the servants had left her room, she washed her face with the rosewater that was in the small tub. She was hoping that she would not die tonight because of her puffy eyes.

As the handmaiden descended from the stairs, she began to recall her past.

“You are warrior, Fayrouz. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. You are my warrior.” Those were her mother’s last words to her. The handmaiden’s mother was a lady of the court of the Kingdom of Wonders. When the kingdom was under attack, her father’s men had murdered her mother in cold blood. Her mother’s beautiful brown-eyes were staring back at her as she bled in the room that the handmaiden was born in --the room that her mother was also born in.

Her father was a cruel man. He was a lord of a nearby manor that was not too far from her mother’s home. When he had overthrew the Kingdom of Wonders, he captured the handmaiden, when she was a blossoming young girl, and made her his bed slave and a handmaiden to her half-sister. He used her whenever he desired her body, then beat her body with a whip made of leather when she struggled against him.

He was no father to her.

The handmaiden did not realize that she was in the dining room until she heard a cold voice distract her from her horrible thoughts. She had nearly pounced on the king as if she was a tomcat.

“Welcome to my Kingdom, Fayrouz. How have you enjoyed your temporary stay?”

The hairs on her neck stood up straight when she heard this cold yet melodic voice. Her heart began to palpitate against her ribcage. She was almost sure that the king would be able to her the sounds that her heart was making.

“Are you nervous, my Love?” He softly chuckled as he raised her chin with his thumb and forefinger. “I promise that I will make this enjoyable for you, if you want.”

Fayrouz turned away from the king, then took a step backward when she said, “Why would I be nervous, my King? When I know for certain what the last hours of the night hold for me?”

The King took her palm into his hands, then sat her down beside him when he said, “What a brave one you are. The night may hold something interesting for you.” Something in his dark eyes twinkled when he said that. Although his eyes were the color of an obsidian stone, a small light had disappeared in them as fast as it had appeared.