THIRTY-THREE

[LADY SULTAN]

"For those who care to listen, there was an ominous that year, as in many others, the princess received many gifts of Jewelries, fruits and proposals from many suitors across the lands.

Within weeks there was another Suitor, Colen Grey, the duke of kent, who arrived At Thebes. He was fair in the skin, strong in bones and had pretty words. After an hour of tension, fear and dull witt, I must say whether or not one was in favour of the marriage, but the princess's heart strained far away from the young Lord.

As for marriage... The princess had been lone for not quite three years and marriage was beginning to creep back into her mind, though many suitors had sort for her hand, no one had raised her interest...

Having mourned her parents, The Princess had many duties to attend to and merry entertainments in the sunny month of early summer, now that she had stepped up to rule the land. At open court, the dancing spilt out to the finely cared-for garden grass, so many were in attendance. The musicians stationed themselves so the dancers inside and out could participate... A ball of a particular kind, which the Duke and Duchess of Hohenberg's Host."

[RENDITION OF WHEN HE PARTY'S OVER BY BILLIE EILISH PLAYING]

[GUEST CHATTERING AND TOASTING]

"Make sure the fine linens are brought before the guest," I ordered.

"Yes, your grace," One of the maids said, rushing through the double doors.

"Your grace, the guest has arrived," Miriam said. I turned to look at her before dragging her into my chambers to get dressed. Miriam held out linen. She unstoppered it, sprinkled the linen with a few spare drops and then kissed the linen before dressing me. Unsettled, unhappy and confused. I was fully gowned and my other lady maid assisted me as I slipped into a silver-black slipper.

I felt a hand upon my shoulder and turned, Lord Elodie Babineaux. "Would you honour me with a dance, as the first Man to approach you, Miss Sultan?" He asked.

I said, "I would be most pleased." We were of course among all the other dancers, changing partners and dancing in a line. "Vous êtes ravissante ce soir, mademoiselle sultan. : You look lovely tonight" He said to me. I cocked my head, wondering if I had somehow misheard him. "I beg your pardon, My lord?"

He sighed " 'ant jamilatan, Miss: You are beautiful" I laughed "Ah, Jamilatan: Beautiful"My eyes filled with tears. "Ca fait longtemps, queue j'ai entendu l'arabe et le francais : It has been long since i heard Arabic and French."

" Are you well, Miss?" Lord Elodie asked. I dramatically wiped my tears and chuckled. "Yes, I am. It was a pleasure having these dances with you" I curtseyed before stepping away from him. I ran for the doors, out to the garden. The cold breeze hit my face, drawing my hair out of the pins into a rough style. I sit on the white bench beside the magnificent window by the side of the house, which gave me a great view of the party. Tears rolled down my eyes as I thought of the days I would speak Arabic to my father and listen to my mother read French stories to Rashida and me before we lay to sleep.

*********************************

[FOOTSTEPS APPROACHING]

[MUFFLED WORDS]

[CHUCKLING]

I cleaned my moistened cheeks immediately. I wouldn't want people to see me crying, especially now that I would be crowned queen of Thebes. It's my weakness. I look deeply into the dark, I see two couples, the lady was dressed in a cherry red dress, holding her curves in different ways, while the man was dressed in an expensive suede black suit. Truly, this garden was for couples not for a lone girl shedding tears of her deceased parents. I stand up from the bench and walked towards them to go back into the party but I stopped when I noticed who it was.

"Charles!" I said not sure who I had seen. The two couples stopped kissing. He looked up at me and his eyes shut wide open, checking me out from the top of my head to the bottom of my foot.

"Kleo! Is that you?" He asked smiling. The lady by his side kept pulling his coat. Who is she, Oh maybe his wife? I mean he has been gone for three years so he has moved on.

"Yes, it's me, Kleopatra, Miss sultan," I said, popping the Miss Sultan out loud. "What are you doing here, I thought you were in Europe?"

"I was...," He said straightly.

"Charles, let's go back to the party before the toast is over," The lady by his side said, pulling him for the door. "I will join you in a second, Haley." He said, She kissed him a bit longer before walking past me, I looked behind to watch her, she was swaying her hips. She is sizzling.

"What are you doing here?" I turned, shaking my head from my thoughts.

"[SCOFFS] What am I doing here? This is my sister's house, so why wouldn't I be here?" I asked straightly, staring at the tree behind him.

"These gardens are so beautiful." He said, diverting the fact that I am before him.

"Why?..." I asked staring down at the grass beneath my feet. "Why what?" He asked.

I dared to ask, "Why have you not sought me out these many years?" I asked looking him straight in the eyes. His eyes squinted in thought.

He shrugged. Still staring at me in silence. "I thought of you in my sails to Europe and my meetings in Germany, I thought of seeing you..."

"[SIGHS] If you'd wished to see me before now, you need not have waited," I whispered.

"You are still angry, I am sure?" He asked. I looked up at him in disgust.

"Angry? Oh no, my anger had burned out the day you rode off those dusty roads, Charles."

[SILENCE]

"Did you ever read my letters?" I asked, holding the tears from spilling away.

"No,...[INHALES]" He looked down hiding his disappointment.

"I wrote to you every week, then I became sick for some months, then I started writing to you every month until I stopped because I knew you never wrote back to me... I waited for new letters to come to me but it was never yours." I cried, now the tears spilling down my eyes, not holding back the pain I had for years.

"I love you, but.." He murmured.

"No! You don't, 'cause if you do, you wouldn't leave me three years ago in front of the court, and you wouldn't be here with a lady other than me. It's such a shame that you moved on so quickly, while I cried day and night thinking about our promises in the garden but look at me, crying for you,[CHUCKLING] when you humiliated me publicly." I hissed. A tear slipped down the side of my face and wiped it away quickly and then curtseyed, face tilted downward to hide my further sorrow, I picked up the hem of my gown and rushed for the doors.

"Kleo!"

"Kleo wait!" Charles rushed into the House but Kleo was with her sister, kissing her goodbye, ready to go back to Thebes.

"Are you not going to wait for the toast?" Rashida asked, but I shook my head in disagreement.

"Sister, I will write to you as soon as I arrive at Thebes," I said, kissing her on her both cheeks and then curtseyed to her husband. I ran out the door and into my carriage as it rode me out.

"Kleo!" Charles called out but Haley ran up to him, hugging him dramatically. "Here you are, it's time for the toast." Charles faces down and looked away from the doors and into Haley's eyes before smiling.

[LADY SULTAN]

"The incident did not put the princess in mind to think about men, though again and more importantly, why had he appeared at the ball. A dark thought crossed her mind. Perhaps she was not a matter that concerned him any longer. Perhaps he had already fallen out of love.

What she had been wrong? What if he has been pining for her day and night all these years...?"

When I returned to Thebes that evening, there was a letter for me.

"Ahmed brought this" Miriam said.

"Did he say who sent it?" I asked.

"He didn't tell me." She said. My hand shook as I clumsily opened the letter. It was not from the mourners but Charles instead. I read it aloud to Miriam.

"When did it come in?" I asked.

"This evening, your grace." She said.

"Dear Kleo,

I am sorry about our meeting at the party tonight..." I took a deep breath before squeezing the letter and throwing it into the fire to burn to ashes.

"What shall you do, princess?" Miriam asked.

"I know not,[SIGHS] send the prince, I wish not to see him or receive his letters," I said as I lay there quietly.

In the morning I wrote a letter to Rashida and told her I would be delighted and honoured to take the step to be the Queen if she would permit by signing the scrolls before I yield. I sent the note with a messenger to Hohenberg.

The old gardener drew near me the next morning, "You have had a difficult day, Your grace and I be very certain these will make you feel better." He handed me White daffodils that shined when the sun shone on them.

"Thank you, Estiene." I smiled before walking down the hill. Miriam ran up to me, panting with a basket of Potatoes in her hands.

"[PANTING] Fresh from July's farm."

"How lovely, the harvest is bountiful...truly July has brought a lot of food stock to the land both in great size and plenteous meat." I laughed.

[CHUCKLING]

"Your grace!" Miriam said. [SIGHS] "I have told you before, Miriam, it's Kleopatra, not your grace. you are my friend."I said looking straight ahead.

"But, if I call you by your name, it is disrespectful." I looked at her raising an eyebrow. "Sure, ok I will not address you by your position again."

"What do you wish to tell me?" I asked drawing the conversation back. "I feel, I must share something with you"

"Yes?" I said.

"I...well, he, ah, he, was, um, a..."

"Miriam, are you all right?" I asked looking at her flushed face.

"I am to wed by fall... I thought not to tell you... Because..."

"Because...?" I asked angrily.

"I thought it might, anger you." She said looking down at the potatoes. I withdrew my arm, angry that she would have so little respect for me. "I am sorry, Princess," She said. I waved at her with a smile.

*****************************************

[HUMMING] 🎵"You think I am an ignorant wild, and you have been so many places, I guess it must be so, but still, I cannot see if the wild one is me, how can there be so much that you'd not know? I don't know..." 🎵 [HUMMING] (Pocahontas, Disney)

[FOOTSTEPS APPROACHING]

"I have been looking for you" I jumped up to the familiar voice, Charles. I rolled my eyes when I saw him.

'And now, I have been found, what exactly do you want?" I asked walking past him to sit on the cushion before pouring myself a cup of tea and not offering him any.

"Kleo..." His voice had grown quiet when I raised my hands to stop him from uttering another word.

"You care for tea?" I asked, picking up the cup on the table...

[SIGHS] Yes, thank you, but i..." I turned the milked tea, hitting the cup with the spoon and creating a loud irritating sound.

"...I am..." I waved down the guards from the drawing room, leaving Charles and me alone. I waved down one of the serving men, who brought us more tea and biscuits.

"Do you even remember me?" I asked sipping my tea.

"I've certainly not forgotten you, Kleo" He answered not touching his tea.

"I love you Kleo, I do, I wish I could go back to the day I left you and make things right." He confessed.

"[SIGHS] It was too late for that..., it's too late," I said looking at him with no feelings attached to my words.

"I am sorry, Kleo, I know you are still angry... and I am truly sorry." He said.

"I raised an eyebrow, "Are you indeed?"

"Am I not? I am." He said.

"I will take you out to the town and show you the new implants I had introduced weeks ago..." He said. I held my head high and came much nearer to Charles. I shook my head.

"Foolish! There was a time for pride. This is not one of them, Charles" I lashed out.

"Please give me a second chance." He pleaded. I nodded my head and walked to the window staring at my lovely daffodils blooming under the sun.

"Leave, Charles... I have concluded my meeting with you today." I said still staring out the window.

"[SIGHS] Are you certain I may take my leave?"

[SCOFFS] "The seamstress and crown sizers are coming this afternoon to measure me for a new closet and I have a busy day, should I require your presence?, No!" He pondered for a moment before walking out of the room and the palace doors, I watched him walk out the palace gate. Was he sad at not having time to explain himself?

I could not sleep that night. I thought of the words Charles had said to me over and over in my head and my heart. Had he meant it when he said, he loves me? Perhaps maybe he loves me and he thought about me deeply.