Princess Qamari's Interview

Princess Qamari made her way into a turquoise medical shop in the west Inner city, her heart rapidly drumming with anticipation. The shop was built like a dome, glazed windows circling around the entire structure; six feet distance placed between each one. As soon as she entered, an old man with long white beard and blue turban looked up at her, scrutinizing with doubtful eyes.

"Yes, my lady. How can I serve you?" He said expressionlessly without getting up from his seat behind the counter.

"You know we are close, right?" He continued languidly.

"Yes. I saw the sign. But it said that you were closed for interviewing. I am here for the interview, Sir." Princess Qamari replied as she made her way to the counter, pulled a chair, and sat down without invitation.

Eight days. Princess Qamari, who had been in the imperial city for eight days now, was finally going to take her first step towards her dream. Gaining independence and healing people. Having gotten to this point after suffering many sleepless nights reading parchments detailing researching medical centers and pharmacies, as she looked into currently hiring medical shops in the imperial city, she was not going to take no for an answer or go back without making a claim.

"You? Little girl, do you know where you are? If you are looking for a job that will provide you with a little bit of pocket money to cover your spending, than you are at the wrong place. We are looking to hire a pharmacist to run our shop, not a janitor. You can leave now." The man instantly dismissed and ushered her out with a wave of his hand without hesitation, before laying his head back on the counter and closing his eyes, intending on taking a little nap.

And why should he not? A little girl barely eighteen years of age, claimed to be here for an interview. From his point of view, the girl was looking for a job and upon seeing the poster, entered their shop without finding out the position they were hiring for. As such, there was no need for him to take an ignorant little girl seriously. After knowing they were looking for a pharmacist, she will leave on her own.

"I am sorry sir, but I am here to interview for the pharmacist position." Princess Qamari said with a sigh.

Although it was not difficult for her to get a job as a healer, employers' did not take her seriously due to her age. Her gender was no longer an obstacle, but instead her age became a hindrance.

"Yes, yes. Good luck. You will definitely get the job." The shop keeper replied without much thought.

"Okay, then can we start my interview now?" Princess Qamari instantly followed up.

"Huh? What?" The man confusedly raised his head with barely open eyes.

"My interview. If you do not start interviewing me now, I will consider it as you hiring me." Princess Qamari's eyes twinkled with light as she looked at the old man.

Although, he instantly dismissed, he had still not pushed her out of his store, which was a much better treatment compared to the other shops she had previously visited. As long as the man gave her the chance to prove herself, she would make sure that he would never regret it.

Finally awake after her declaration, the man looked directly at her this time, his sea-blue eyes colliding with her serious violet ones.

"Little girl, there are matters in this world which cannot be joked over. Pharmacology is one of these matters. What is a pharmacist, what is pharmacology? Do you know anything about it? A pharmacist is a practitioner who is professionally trained to dispense and prepare medical drugs for sick individuals. Do you think one can become a pharmacologist just by going into a shop and interviewing? It takes years of learning and experience to be able to stand in such a position. Now, if you are done playing around, you may leave." The man seriously dismissed her this time.

"I know what a pharmacist is without you needing to tell me. A pharmacist is a person who administers drugs that could determine the live and death of the receiver. As far as I am aware, you are looking for a talented pharmacist. You did not specify the age or gender of the interviewee. From that perspective, I am qualified for interview until proven incapable, right?" Princess Qamari coldly questioned.

Looking at the cold and determined eyes of the little girl, the man was left speechless, blankly staring at her with his mouth open. He wanted to immediately throw her out of his shop, but than thinking of the two points she made, he reconsidered. She was right about the fact that there was no age or gender specified for the position and if he just threw her out without taking her interview, she would not be convinced.

Getting to this point, he decided to take her interview. By then she will leave on her own without his asking once miserably failing.

"Alright, we will do your interview. I will be asking questions on types of herbs and their usage, as well as ways to identify herbs of similar appearance, smell and taste but different functions from one another. If you answer more than half of the questions right then I will immediately hire you." The shopkeeper declared domineeringly.

"Okay, thank you for the chance." Princess Qamari said with a smile in her voice. Finally, after many twists and turns, she got the chance to display her talents. Her silent cold eyes glowed faintly with a silver light as she raised her head high.

An hour later, Princess Qamari left the medical shop with the old man politely escorting her out, a fervent look in his eyes as he stared at her veiled face.

"A genius! No, a monstrous genius!" He excitedly shouted in his head, throwing his hands about.

"I will see you tomorrow, shopkeeper." Princess Qamari politely said.

"Yes, yes. Tomorrow, I will be here. Qamari girl, get home safely and do not stop about at random places. It is very important for people with such talents to take care of themselves, because you are the future of our empire." The old man advised in a caring tone as he waved at her.

Watching her receding back, he could not stop the grin spreading from ear to ear across his face. Laughing manically, he ran back inside the shop, grabbed his medical bag, locked the door, and ran off into the bustling crowd rushing towards the east of the Inner city.

Princess Qamari entered the aquamarine mansion with light steps. She finally had a job and did not have to depend on anyone for her food and clothing. Pretty soon, she will also have her own home and stand on her own two feet, with her own name, Princess Qamari Ramulas; the daughter of King Ramulas, the first, and Queen Sapia, the kind. With the future suddenly bright, Princess Qamari could not help looking forwards to it with great expectations.

Days passed and it was already the day before the Empirial wedding. After getting her job managing the pharmacy, Princess Qamari had been quite busy, to the point where she rarely saw Princess Nari's face. The two sat together for the morning meal, before leaving to do their own things.

Princess Nari would occasionally look at Princess Qamari while they ate, as if desiring to say something, but would than stop and bow her head. Princess Qamari was too busy with her own affairs to sit down and patiently probe her, and force her to say whatever was on her mind. As such, the days passed with the two cousins' barely interacting.

On this certain day, Princess Nari was anxiously pacing in her room. She was so tense that she chewed on her fingernails as she walked.