Chapter 1: When I Grow Up You Have to Marry Me
The carriage creaked as it rolled over the snow-covered path, its wheels crunching softly against the frozen earth. Beyond the frosted glass window, the world stretched out in a vast, endless white—snow blanketing the desert dunes, transforming them into rolling hills of silver.
Calista leaned forward, pressing her palm lightly against the chilled glass. Her breath fogged the window as she traced faint shapes with her fingertips.
Snow in the desert.
She had read about Ziwengi’s rare winters, but seeing it firsthand felt almost like magic. The endless dunes, which she had imagined would be golden and dry, were now softly dusted in white, their shapes smoothed by the snowfall.
Icicles clung to the carriage roof, and even the great cacti and hardy desert trees stood stiff and frozen, their branches coated in glistening ice. The wind, sharp and biting, whistled through the canyons, carrying with it the scent of frost and sand.
She shivered slightly, pulling her thick winter cloak tighter around her shoulders.
“Ziwengi must be close now,” she murmured, her voice barely above a whisper. Then, hesitantly, she asked, “Do you think... Do you think he will be there to welcome us?”
Abetha, her ever-playful maid, let out a dreamy sigh as she adjusted the thick fur-lined cloak draped around Calista’s shoulders. “Oh, Your Highness, wouldn’t that be romantic?” She sighed dramatically. “The Crown Prince himself, waiting at the gates, standing tall in his armor as the snow falls around him... gazing at you as if the whole world has ceased to exist.”
Elowen, who had been watching the snowfall outside, turned toward them with a giddy smile.
“I can already picture it! The dashing Crown Prince Tajoe (tay-JOE), standing tall in his royal armor, his cloak billowing behind him, his voice deep as he says,‘At last, my princess, you have arrived!’" Elowen teased.
Calista bit her lip to hide her smile, a warmth blooming in her chest.
Calista turned away quickly, hiding the shy smile that tugged at her lips.
“Oh, don’t tease me!” she said, trying to sound indifferent but failing miserably. “He’s probably much too busy with matters of the court to personally greet me...”
Elowen nudged her playfully. “Perhaps. But a prince in love is never too busy! And didn’t you say he once saved you?”
“Yes,” she murmured.
“That was before you entered Her Highness’s service,” Abetha cut in eagerly, turning to Elowen. “When she was eight, the prince visited Luwan. Her Highness fell into a pond, and he rescued her!”
As Abetha told Elowen the story, Calista’s expression softened and she drifted into the past.
The sun was high in the sky when Ziwengi’s royal entourage arrived in Luwan for the diplomatic summit. At the time, Prince Tajoe was only twelve years old.
For eight-year-old Princess Calista, it was the most exciting thing to happen all year. She had never seen foreigners before—especially not the prince of the powerful Ziwengi. The moment she laid eyes on him, standing beside his towering regent king uncle with a confident stance, her world seemed to shrink around him.
The first day of the summit, Calista had been playing near the royal garden’s pond, fascinated by the blue and white lotus flowers floating on the water. She had always been fearless, but she was also terrible at judging danger. When she leaned in too far to grab a fallen petal, her feet slipped on the mossy stones, and she tumbled straight into the deep water.
She sank instantly, her small arms flailing in panic. The world around her blurred into a terrifying mix of blue and green, the weight of her royal attire pulling her downward. Her lungs burned.
And then—strong arms wrapped around her.
Prince Tajoe had been nearby, admiring the Luwan palace, unfamiliar with its open courtyards and lush greenery. When he heard the splash, he didn’t hesitate—he jumped in.
With powerful strokes, he dragged her above the water, coughing as he pulled her to the pond’s edge. She clung to him, her little fingers grasping his soaked robes, shaking from the cold.
“Are you stupid?” he snapped as he hauled her up onto the grass, his chest heaving. “You could have drowned!”
Instead of answering, Calista only stared at him, eyes wide with wonder. The sunlight made his wet brown skin glow, and the water trickled down his sharp but youthful features.
To her, he wasn’t just a prince. He was a hero.
She fell in love with him at that very moment.
From that day on, Calista followed Tajoe everywhere, much to his frustration.
If he trained with the Luwan warriors in the Envoy residences, she sat on the sidelines, cheering him on.
If he explored the city, she tagged along, asking a thousand questions.
If he ignored her, she would stomp her little foot and demand his attention.
At first, he found her annoying, but soon, he grew used to her presence. No one had ever clung to him so stubbornly, not even his own people.
One evening, after a long day of talks among the rulers, Calista found him sitting alone in the gardens, staring at the sky.
“What are you looking at?” she asked, plopping down beside him.
“The stars,” he said simply.
She tilted her head. “Do Ziwengi stars look different from Luwan stars?”
He gave a small smirk. “No. But in Ziwengi, we say the stars guide warriors to their fate.”
She thought about that for a moment. Then, she grinned brightly and grabbed his hand.
“Then the stars must have guided you to me!”
Tajoe blinked, caught off guard. “What?”
Calista beamed. “Because you saved me! And now, you’re my hero. So, when I grow up, you have to marry me!”
Tajoe laughed—a genuine, boyish laugh. He had never met anyone like her before. “You’re just a little girl.”
“And you’re just a little boy,” she huffed. “But I’ll wait. And you have to promise to make me your princess!”
With an exaggerated sigh, he held out his pinky finger, letting her wrap her small one around his.
“Fine,” he said playfully. “I promise.”
Elowen’s voice pulled her back to the present. “Your Highness, is that true?”
“Huh?”
“That you both made a promise to marry?”
“Ah. Yes”
Elowen placed a hand over her heart. “A promise made by a prince is never forgotten. Who knows, Your Highness? Perhaps by this time tomorrow, you will be riding through the gardens with him at your side.”
“Or perhaps,” Abetha teased, “he will sweep you into his arms and declare before the entire palace how long he has waited for you.”
Calista covered her face with her hands, her cheeks flushing. “Oh, stop it!”
Abetha smiled, reaching over to tuck a loose curl behind Calista’s ear. “It could be, Your Highness. After all, you are to be his princess.”
The three young women giggled, their laughter filling the carriage, light and unburdened.
Then there was a sudden knock on the carriage window.
“Your Highness, we will be arriving shortly,” a guard riding alongside them informed.
Abetha peeked outside eagerly. “Oh! I see the banners of Ziwengi in the distance!”
Elowen grasped Calista’s hand, her excitement radiating through her grip. “That means we’ll be at the capital soon! Oh, Your Highness, can you believe it? By this time tomorrow, you’ll be married!”
A small tremor ran through Calista’s fingers as she tightened her hold on Elowen’s hand.
“It feels like a dream...” she whispered. “One I’ve had since I was a child.”
She hesitated before adding, “I wonder... does he remember me?”
“How could he forget?” Abetha scoffed. “You were a little girl who gazed at him as if he had lassoed the stars from the sky.”
“And now you are sixteen, and just as smitten,” Elowen teased. “But truly, Your Highness, Prince Tajoe is lucky. You will be the sweetest, most beautiful royal concubine in all of Ziwengi.”
Abetha nodded fervently. “And if he doesn’t see that immediately—well, we shall have words with him!”
Calista’s smile faltered.The warmth that had been building in her chest, so bright and full of hope, dimmed as an uncomfortable thought crept in.The thought she had buried deep now clawed its way to the surface, refusing to be ignored.
She hesitated, fingers tugging at the embroidered edge of her cloak, her voice quieter now.
“What... What about the fact that he has concubines?” she murmured, almost afraid to say it aloud.
Her gaze drifted toward the snow-covered horizon, but the rolling dunes offered no comfort to realization that she was not the only woman meant to stand by his side.
Her throat tightened.
“He already has a Crown Princess, too,” she added, barely above a whisper.
Her fingers gripped the fabric of her dress, twisting it nervously. “What if I am just another woman to him? I am only a concubine. I am not his main wife.”
She swallowed, her heart sinking with the words that had been gnawing at her since they left Luwan.
“It’s not really the fairy tale ending I imagined...”
A heavy silence settled in the carriage.
Elowen and Abetha exchanged a quick glance, their playful expressions softening. Elowen clicked her tongue and reached out, gently grasping Calistah’s hand.
“Oh, Your Highness,” she said with affection, “men of power especially in Ziwengi have many wives. But do you know what makes a difference?”
Calistah slowly lifted her gaze, searching Elowen’s face.
“The heart.”
Abetha nodded, leaning closer. “It doesn’t matter how many concubines he has, or how many women fill the palace. If he loves you, truly loves you, then you won’t just be ‘another woman.’”
“And besides, one of the side consort positions is empty. You never know. Perhaps he will elevate you to that position when he sees how beautiful you are,” Elowen added.
“Also, you get to have a wedding. Concubines don’t have weddings. They just enter the palace and that is it. But you have one. Doesn’t it say something?”
Calistah sighed, forcing a small smile. “You’re both right. I’m thinking too much.” She knew this marriage wasn’t built on love but just an alliance between two countries. So what if Prince Tajoe had other women and has forgotten all about her? Love could grow, couldn’t it?
She had always believed that kindness softened even the hardest hearts. That if she was patient, if she was a good wife, Tajoe would love her just as she loved him.
Their marriage was already decided. There was no changing that. She would give it her all, just as she had always imagined. And if Tajoe remembered her and his promise then surely, he would be happy to see her again.
Wouldn’t he?
With a soft sigh, she leaned back against the seat, her fingers still curled around Abetha’s.
Outside, the snow continued to fall, dusting the landscape in silver and the golden spires of the Ziwengiian Capital began to appear on the horizon, gleaming in the afternoon sun.
*****
Mini- theatre:Calista at Eight, Tajoe at Twelve
Calista: [flailing in knee-deep water] “Prince save me! I’m drowning!”
Tajoe: [standing on dry land, arms crossed] “Princess... you can stand.”
Calista: [dramatically clutching her chest] “My prince, you saved me! I will love you forever!”
Tajoe: [sighs, rubbing his temples] “...No need.”
Calista: “...”
Note: some chapters will have mini theatres at the bottom for humour and not part of the main story and not how things actually unfolded in the story.
