Chosen by the Tsar

The Day I was Chosen

     Tsar Petriv never came to our side of the city. Our streets were not paved, they were not even cobblestone so it made it impossible for the carriages to pass through gracefully.  For this reason, we never paid any attention to the announcements from the palace. If we had, my life would have turned out very differently.   

     But Tsar Petriv did come to our side of the city that day. In fact, he walked down our very street. He was trying to determine where to build a vacation palace for his new Tsarina’s family when they came to visit. Our side of the city was not established and therefore expendable.  

     It was as he was walking down our street, surrounded by his guards, admirers, and beggars alike, that I was running in circles around the carts and people everywhere with my best friend, Marcov, and little sister, Belis. We were not paying attention to the procession filling the street, only the chase and dodging as each of us tried to tag the other. We ran directly in front of the Tsar’s path and were grabbed viciously by his guards. Our frolicking was immediately halted by confusion and pleas to be let go. Tears began running down my cheeks as the guard continued squeezing my wrists together, lifting my hands and arms above my head to the point that my feet were barely touching the ground. I looked over to see Marcov and Belis were in the same state I was, hanging by the grip of two other guards. It was then that I first heard his voice. He was calm and collected and with a soft chuckle he said “Rastam, can’t you see they’re just children? Release them.”  

   I was suddenly released, my knees crashing to the ground with the sharp rocks piercing into my skin.  I had never seen the Tsar before but I knew by his clothes adjourned with jewels, countless guards, and the procession we now found ourselves engulfed by that it was none other than Tsar Petriv. I continued to cry and thank him for his kindness. Without realizing how close he still was, I suddenly felt his soft hand on mine and his gentle pull as he brought me back to my feet.  He slowly raised his other hand and placed his index finger under my chin, lifting my head until I was forced to look up into his eyes. No longer able to speak, I simply stood in front of him. His thumb then reached up from below my chin and wiped away the tears on my cheek. 

     The Tsar continued to stare at me, seemingly mesmerized and not saying a word. His blue eyes seemed to pierce my soul.  I knew if I had any chance in getting out of this mess I was to be silent, but I didn’t like the way the he was looking at me. He  just continued to examine me, my every feature. First my dark brown eyes, then the slender ridge of my nose, the freckles on my cheeks, then my entire face including my thin pink lips.  His gaze went up to my long dark hair and over my shoulder as it ran down my back.  As his gaze started to move down my body I heard one of the guards clear his throat trying to break the Tsar’s uncomfortable concentration towards me. It was only then that he tore his eyes off of me as he too cleared his throat and looked back at the guard, clearly trying to recover from the trance he was in.  But it was too late, little did I know I had already been chosen by the Tsar