THE UNKNOWN WORLD

CHAPTER NINE

Rebecca removed the veil from her face with a sigh as she stood Infront of the mirror where she was practicing her dance.

"You are getting better everyday" Madame Tirzah said as she walked in, Rebecca smiled.

" I have always been smart, that's why I learn so fast. I was also a ballerina in school" She said proudly.

"Ballerina? What's that?"

Rebecca sighed. "That's a classic name

for a kind of professional dancer"

"I heard that you have been sending messages to the royal house, seeking an audience with the Crown Prince??"

"Nothing passes you, right??"

Tirzah smiled and took a seat.

"Dance for me, I want to see you dance"

"Sure, Madame Tirzah" Rebecca replied formally and started her dance.

"Why do you still send messages when he doesn't reply to them, what do you gain from troubling yourself?"

"You didn't even ask why I want to see the Prince?"

"I don't care"

Rebecca furrowed her brows and stopped.

"Ok" She said and turned to continue.

"I have been pampering you a lot lately Sol, you still don't know that this world is different from your own world"

"Make me understand yours then, I have told you a lot about mine, tell me yours"

"Don't bother sending letters to him, first of all is that, the royal house will not honour a letter sent from this house no matter the reason and.... even when it gets to the Prince, he cannot answer your letters"

"Why?"

"He can't fraternize with dancers... that will put a stain on his name"

"Discrimination" Rebecca said.

"And what does that even mean?"

"It means setting a particular group of people apart from the rest and treating them differently, in terms of their s*x, religion, culture, or even their race"

"Yes, it's something like that, dancers are not important people in Quin city, no matter how popular and beautiful they are, servants are treated with more respect than they are"

"I see, I also heard the Prince is celebrating his birthday soon, if I get invited to the palace to entertain his guests, I might get closer to him and talk to him"

Madame Tirzah shook her head.

"You are so stubborn, no one can convince you of anything, I told you he cannot be with people of your kind, he wouldn't invite dancers to the palace, he is the Crown Prince, he can't have anything to do with this house, it will spoil his chances to the throne"

"But he is the only heir to the throne"

"His twin brother may be crippled, but he can still pose as a threat to his ascending the throne, give up this idea and don't hurt yourself"

"What if this is my chance to escape this world" Rebecca faced Tirzah fully.

"You know, I never believed your stories about earth" Tirzah said. "I just let you talked because you always seemed so happy to talk about it, but you have to stop, there is no world after this, everything you have said is crazy... the Prince wouldn't believe it if you told him, drop it now and focus on better things"

"And Amraphel? You said it yourself that he was the strangest man you've ever met, isn't it prove that we are both from earth?"

Rebecca walked to her wardrobe and searched for the book, Tirzah patiently waited.

"I really thought it was here, I bought a book titled 'Earth', I really did"

She stopped to think.

Come to think of it, I haven't seen it since that day.... Did I lose it at the market or did it disappear like the book woman.

"Tirzah, I...."

Tirzah interrupted her with her hand.

"You will address me with full respect"

"I am sorry, Madame Tirzah"

Tirzah stood up and looked away, irritated.

"You have the ways of those book people, but you also have to learn about our ways too, in order for you to survive"

"What do you mean by book people"

"I have read the book, I read about earth, but I don't believe it, it is crazy, I don't want to talk about it with you anymore"

"Fine, but if the Prince decides to invite me to the palace, you must include my names to the list of the other dancers"

"You are talking nonsense" Madame Tirzah said, walking away.

Rebecca sighed.

"She just needs a little convincing, I need to convince myself too, that this world is real"

With the princes birthday coming soon, Dane Hoglah wanted to make sure Achsah attended the ceremony, looking the best amongst all the other young ladies in the city. The girl was looking more beautiful each day and even obedient too, she couldn't wait for her to get married.

She had dresses made for her and wanted to show the girl herself, she went to her room but the girl wasn't there, she wasn't in the garden too, so she went to the paint room.

Achsah was dusting the paintings when she came in.

"What are you doing?"

"My paintings are dusty, I am just giving them a little cleaning, I should consider giving them out, I could sell them" The girl smiled, pleased with her work.

"Oh, how thoughtless" Hoglah commented, it wiped the smile off Achsah's face. "I thought you painted for fun, you should have done embroidery instead"

"I have never been good with the needle"

"Painting is for men, it is Elidad's fault you are doing this" She scowled and looked away, catching a glimpse of a painting of a man, she went over to it and picked it up.

"What is the painting of Wun's son doing in your possession"

Achsah smiled. "Isn't it beautiful?" She asked, collecting the painting from her aunt. "I have improved since the last time, I painted Wun Barca so well, he will be happy when I show it to him"

"How did you meet him?" Hoglah asked with a stony stare but Achsah was so happy, she didn't notice it.

"I met him during my last social outing to the royal garden organised by his royal highness, Prince Li-Irad"

"That family has no assets in the sale of jewelries, not even in mining, all they own is a.... farm, and you befriend people of their status?"

Achsah chuckled, Hoglah stared, surprised.

"Aunty, who bothers with things like that as criteria for making friends"

"Well, young lady, I do, and you should too"

Achsah looked away.

"You are still so naive that it makes me angry, I don't know if it's naivety or stupidity anymore, couldn't you have painted someone higher, someone of our status not below us"

"Aunty, we are not better than they are, though they aren't as rich as we are , they got theirs through hard work and we got where we are now through the same thing"

"Stop talking nonsense, nobody thinks about how you got money, they are only concerned about how much you have, next time, young lady, don't talk back at me, try and paint someone higher instead, someone like the Crown Prince"

Achsah gaped.

'So this was it, the crown prince eh? Aunty Hoglah was indirectly telling her to focus her attention on the Prince instead'

As the birthday of the princes drew nearer, Rebecca started giving up hope of ever attending it, they haven't yet sent an invitation. Two days before the party, an invitation from the royal house arrived, as soon as she heard it, she rushed down to Madame Tirzah's Chambers.

"Remember your promise" She warned as soon as she entered the room and saw Tirzah opening the letter.

"You don't ever give up, do you?"

"No, so what does it say?"

"This isn't from the Crown Prince"

"What do you mean, isn't it from the royal house?"

"This is from Prince Li-Irad, the crippled prince"

Rebecca frowned.

"He is inviting ' Fair lady Sol ' to entertain his guests at his party.... he is thoughtful and polite, unlike that arrogant and wicked Crown Prince"

Rebecca rolled her eyes.

"I had hopes for the other one not this one"

"Don't be ungrateful girl, at least the crippled one knows your name, I told you how difficult it is for nobles to invite dancers to their homes" She put the letter away. "He sent so many gifts to me" She waved her hand at the wrapped gifts in front of her. "I'll let you go with the other girls, okay?"