The 5th Bride

Fatima was unused to being so idle but there was not much for the wives of Prince Calid to do.

Eunuchs did the chores that Fatima was accustomed to doing, from trips to the market to the cooking. Even cleaning was left to servant women that fluttered about and kept their heads down, so not to meet eyes with honored wives of the prince.

It was very lonely.

Somehow Niobe always seemed busy or was off somewhere, and if Fatima hadn’t known she couldn’t leave, she would have thought the woman was running off. Kassi did little other than lay in the heap of pillows inside the tent of draped scarves, inhaling the heady smell of incense and smoking the pipe of opium Kiara packed for her. Sometimes she rose and danced to music that was not playing or walked over and felt Fatima’s face, nodding to herself before wandering back to her hut.

Kiara was sweet to her and apologized for her sister and Phadra’s absence and just about everything, and every time their eyes met, Kiara’s cheeks would color and she would duck her head with some excuse why she had to leave.

Fatima wished Kiara would stay longer because she very much thought she would enjoy the woman’s company. Even when Kiara stayed herself from running off after their eyes met, it seemed soon Kassi would require her attention.

And attend to her sister Kiara did.

Everything from dressing her to lighting the incense and holding the opium pipe to Kassi’s lips was Kiara’s job. She even fed and bathed her twin.

Kiara was very thorough in bathing her sister, and Fatima felt strange witnessing it. The way Kiara made sure to rub the soap along every part of Kassi’s body was very, very thorough. She even got between Kassi’s toes and ran the bar of soap along in the crevasse of her backside.

Fatima felt strange and often left when the twins came into the baths.

No one seemed to use the library much and Fatima found it was her sanctuary to go and read, books her father would never have allowed. Books on every subject, from war and politics to doctrines on childrearing, and even illustrated manuals for how to please a husband.

Fatima looked over those whenever a rumor came that Prince Calid might return home. She wondered if his member was like the ones in the books and if it would pierce her straight through.

It was late one night when Fatima could not sleep that she went to the library, walking the shelves in the moonlit darkness to calm her nerves. A missive had come from the prince and Phadra had not yet told them of the contents, and Fatima was certain every time she woke that it would be the day the prince appeared and demanded she do her duty.

There was a flutter of sound and Fatima hid herself in the shadows as she looked to find what it was. Never had anyone been in the library with her and it seemed an odd time to come across someone for the first time.

She followed the gasping sighs to a round pit of cushions below a half circle of windows. A woman was sitting in the moonlight with her skirts bunched about her waist and her legs parted. It was impossible to if it was Kassi or Kiara, and while the open mouth and strange movements might have made her think Kassi, a stain of blush across her cheeks made Fatima certain it must be Kiara.

Kiara’s head was thrown back over the pillows and her body moved with rolling waves that seemed to come from her hips. Her hands disappeared between her thighs and seems busy as the sounds continued pouring from her lips, interspersed with low moans.

Fatima was transfixed as she watched the woman and felt a strange heat between her own legs, she pressed a hand through the folds of her skirt and was surprised at how damp her thighs were. She could feel the peaks of her nipples against the fabric of her nightshift and she wondered why they should be so taut when it was so warm. Something told her she should leave, but Kiara’s breath came in panicked pants and her hips began jerking without rhythm, and Fatima could not move.

With a gasp of air, Kiara went rigid and then fell boneless into the pillows, her breath heavy as she remained still.

For several moments, Fatima did not move but when it seemed clear Fatima was finished with whatever strange ritual she was performing, she thought it best to leave. Her elbow knocked against the shelf and it was such a small sound she thought no one could have heard it, but Kiara was on her feet and their eyes met for a long stare.

It ended with Kiara racing from the library and Fatima walking over to the pillows to see if she could find some clue as to what had been happening. The only thing she discovered was a smell she found soothing as she knelt down and pressed her face into the pillows.