Chapter 3

"My Prince, I am still struggling to comprehend our presence here this early. The third croak has not even been heard yet", complained a young man, the prince's close friend.

"Well, Lwani. It is rude to keep a lady waiting. That is why we are here this early", responded Prince Abasi with a somewhat self-appraisal smile.

Soon a crock let out its third cry. Almost ceremonially, maidens of the kingdom left their houses like a gentle flood. Decorating the kingdom of Simunye.

For some reason, the sun decided to shine brighter on that day, providing just the right amount of heat. Swaying in the sky were birds of different kinds. They were happy. Almost as if rejoicing to see the kingdom's maidens adorned beautifully, even the trees swished and danced to their own tune.

The maidens could not hide their self-admiration. Each one knew they were gorgeous that day. Even the poorest maidens in Simunye were dressed in top tier clothing. Every parent in the kingdom had prepared for that day; saving coins, expensive fabrics and precious gems for many years, in case their daughter would have an audience with the Prince.

The girls, they had elegant smiles on their faces, lady-like and graceful as a bird. Each beautifully dressed in appealing garments. Their hair was intricately done. And their bodies, adorned with jewelleries.

"I can see the maidens embarking from down those houses, my Prince. Let us go, shall we?", Lwani said.

The prince nodded to Lwani and began walking on a carpet that was gradually unrolled onto the ground by two men. Behind him, were four men; two were rolling up the carpet and the other two served as bodyguards. Beside Prince Abasi was Lwani.

The Prince and his servants first went knocking from door to door; ensuring no maiden had been left behind. One each door, he greeted the parents with a kind, humble smile and asked the question;

"Has the precious dandelion swirled to the rivers?"

The parents would respond; "If The Prince does not get to her quickly enough, a precious wind might sweep her away."

After knocking on all the doors that were reported to have marriable maidens, The Prince and his servants set out to the river. Luckily all the maidens were not at home, many of them had already set out to the river.

The Prince had long dark brown locks on his head. They represented his fertility. They were big, and healthy. And they were full of life. His skin had a sheen to it, courtesy of the sun.

Around his neck, he wore multiple jewelleries to show off his wealth. That ensured the future lover that she would be safe and taken care of,. That included her kids. Some of his jewelleries served as a protection, others were for identification and some were lucky charms.

The beads he wore on his waist protected him from witchcraft – he was The Prince, some people inevitably wanted him dead. And thus, they consulted with witches for some concoctions.

Some beads and metal bangles on his ankles and, upper and lower arms enhanced his physical strength. He also had jewellery around his neck made of obsidian stone serving as a medal for his unmatched battle skills.

His neat locks had cuffs and cowry seeds attached to them, bringing more beauty to his mane.

The Prince wore a long cloth, made of cotton, on his lower body. It went down to his ankles. Around his slim waist, he tied a silk rope, to act as a decorative and a large belt to what he wore on his lower body. The Prince also had a lace cloth draping over one of his shoulders.

He had smooth, youthful skin; evidence of his self-care and royal beauty routine. His skin was painted, minimally, to farther decorate him. The Prince was very big on self-presentation and self-care.

He believed that one should always look 'put together'. The Prince felt that people who presented themselves beautifully had the ability to effortlessly manipulate people and bring out the best treatment and service out of them. He would often explain to Lwani that beauty is a 'legal hypnosis pill', and that people would blindly follow and praise anyone they thought was the manifestation of beauty.

"It is not my rule. It is just the world we live in. It is up to you what you do with this knowledge. Do you complain about it? Or do you work on your beauty?", The Prince would often justify himself.

The Prince was seen descending down the rocky area into the rivers. Maidens saw him, they gasped. Taking in his beauty. No commoner had ever seen The Prince. But, by his jewelleries and the servants that stood by him, they all recognized that he was the Prince of Simunye.

He was an apple to the eye.

"Oh my. He is even more handsome than I heard," whispered one girl to another.

The Prince finally stood, his eyes were fixated on the girls. Respectfully so, he looked at them, almost studying them. His close servant, Lwani gave the briefing. He greeted the maidens and introduced The Prince. To which, The Prince slightly bowed his head as a sign of respect.

Finally, the Prince approached the ladies one by one, he took a girl's hand and left a kiss on it. She blushed. She tried her hardest not to embarrass herself. Straight after that, he looked into her eyes and greeted;

"Young lady, how are you this morning?"

"I am well, my Prince. May I ask how my Prince is doing?", the girl shyly asked, barely able to keep eye contact.

With a gentle smile, he responded; "I am well too. I am Prince Abasi. What is your name?"

The other maidens shyly stole glances at the charming Prince. They could not process that he was standing right there amongst them.

"I am Ntombi Mkhize. The daughter of Zanele and Nqoba Mkhize. My mother used to work in the palace in her maiden days. And my father is a tailor", the girl replied.

"Aah, Mam'Zanele. I remember her. Send my regards", Prince Abasi said and nodded to the girl respectfully gesturing to her that he was moving forward to another girl.

He then shifted to the next girl. He repeated the routine to all the girls present.

At the farm, was Buhle and her grandfather.

"Buhle, you should be with the other maidens in this very crucial moment", grandpa said and waited for her response.

He was well acquainted to her stubbornness.

"Buhle, what you are doing is not right. It is custom that all unmarried girls, on this day, must be seen by the Prince of this land. Even those who have not finalized their arranged marriage", grandpa argued.

"I have no fantasies of marrying The Prince. And I am sure he is a very arrogant being. You know how people of the higher class are", Buhle retorted.

Grandpa disputed;

"Quite the contrary. Royal families' children must inhibit perfect character and sincerity. More especially boys since they will be the land and the people's King. No-one wants an unruly, immoral King, you know."

Buhle remained silent. The young lady had no words to say. She occupied herself by getting busy turning the soil – getting ready for sowing seeds.

"Not all beings become vile with mere wealth and power, you know", advised Grandpa. Seeing how Buhle was not willing to bend, grandpa decided to say no more.

A part of him understood Buhle's pain. And he did not wish to aggravate her more.

The Prince's Bridal Search Parade was concluded. He and Lwani were headed back to the palace, where The Queen and King and, some nobles waited. What was expected was for The Prince to return with a maiden, a bride to be. And then have her introduce herself at the palace.

The palace held a small tea party as they waited for the young lady who would come walking in, hand in hand with The Prince. During that tea party, The Queen and King were catching up with the nobles. And introducing each other to different teas that serve different purposes.

Despite being few in numbers, the atmosphere was lively. The nobles behaved in a noble manner as usual, while still having a good time with The Queen and King.

"My Queen", said one noble, "Have you heard of this tea? It helps strengthen hair."

Another noble offered The King a tea meant for aiding in weight loss and maintaining a healthy weight. Others offered tea meant for heart health.

The Queen and King offered the nobles a variety of teas and herbs. Some were an aphrodisiac, others were for calming down. There were those that assisted in bone and joint strength. There were many different teas.

Nobles that liked traveling were, of course, bragging and showing off their finds from their travels.

The Prince's arrival was announced. An anticipation built up. Everyone was curious to see The Prince's type of woman. Although he was soft spoken and kind to everyone, mostly towards women, he was known for being unfazed by even the most alluring kinds of women. And his focus was on his battle strategies and building his combat skills. So it was only natural for the people to wonder what kind of woman would capture The Prince's innocent eyes.

Would it be a voluptuous, round beauty? Or a slender damsel? Or would it be a woman who possesses both; slender and voluptuous – a slender-waisted maiden with a busty chest and full wide hips? And her persona, how would it be? Innocent and curiuos? Or seductive and fierce in nature?

....

Along the way to the palace, Lwani had some curiosities;

"My Prince, you have not told me which one of the girls has caught your very picky eyes", Lwani said with a bit tease.

"I have not chosen, Lwani. None of them seemed appealing to my heart", The Prince responded.

"But, My Prince. All the maidens were alluring, weren't they?", said Lwani.

"Beauty it not everything... it seems. I need to choose one who is beautiful but also clever and sincere. That is because, I am not choosing for only me, but for the rest of the Kingdom as well. A queen plays an equal role as the king, if not larger", said The Prince as they journeyed to the palace on the backs of their horses.

....

Nobody would find out on that day who the chosen maiden was. For The Prince returned empty handed. The disappointed faces of The Queen, King and the nobles were very visible. The Prince got off his horse and walked farther to the crowd. He explained that he could not choose a bride. He then swiftly went to his room, leaving the small crown speechless. He felt he should leave quickly before they finally escape their daze and summon up the words to say.

While in his own palace, the took off his jewelleries and placed them on a folded cloth held out by a male servant. Meanwhile, Lwani stood waiting for some form of explanation. There was a silence in the room for a moment. The Prince signalled his servants to leave him alone with Lwani. They left.

"Lwani," said The Prince; "I only met 36 damsels. One was missing. The quarterly annual count revealed there are 37 unmarried damsels in the Kingdom. Where is the 37th girl? There has been no deaths or emigrations reported to the palace since the latest count."

Lwani shrug.

"Lwani, did you really inform all the households of this present day? All the households?", The Prince asked, emphasizing on 'All'.

"Of course, My Prince. I did. I would never tell a lie to My Prince and the rest of the royal family", Lwani assured The Prince.

"Then where is the 37th maiden?" Prince Abasi wondered to himself.

The palace was large and divided into a main palace and some sub-palaces. The Prince lived in one. It had its own living room, which was also a dining room with a few changes made each time The Prince sat down to eat, there was also a bedroom and two bathrooms. The other bathroom was meant for The Prince's guests. That palace was solely for The Prince. It was known as the Prince's Palace. The Prince had his own kitchen, not attached to his palace. It farther away. It only served food for The Prince and his guests, who sat to eat with him.

All guests had their own palace, where they slept and bathed, and dined.

The Prince's mother, The Queen, entered the living room of the Prince's Palace with a curious smile on her face. That was where The Prince and Lwani were having their conversation. Prince Abasi saw The Queen and immediately went away. That left The Queen bewildered. Lwani had gotten onto his knees when The Queen entered, it was a sign of respect for The Queen. His avoided eye contact with The Queen by fixating his eyes on the ground, another act of courtesy. The only eyes Lwani was allowed to make eye contact with were those of The Prince, since he kept The Prince companied and was his closest servant and companion.

"The Prince is in a state. Why?", The Queen wanted to know. She expressed that she was aware that The Prince was playing a trick on everyone. And that she believes that The Prince had chosen a maiden.

Lwani got up from his knees and responded;

"None of the maidens were appealing to The Prince, My Queen."

"Why is that? The Sangoma (one who speaks with ancestors) confirmed it. The ancestors said she is among the maidens of the kingdom. We need not search far beyond the kingdom", said the perplexed Queen.

"I do not know the answer to My Queen's question, but…" Lwani hesitated as if he would be damning himself by saying what he was about to say.

"Speak at once, young man", The Queen ordered.

"The Prince said he only met 36 maidens, My Queen. Only 36 out of 37 maidens presented themselves. So, The Prince said, My Queen", Lwani spoke.

"Then, is that the truth or is The Prince finding ways not to marry?", The Queen wanted to know.

Taken aback, Lwani said; "I-I do not know, My Queen. Please forgive me, I was not counting. I-I was too happy for My Prince, My Queen", nervously said Lwani, worried The Queen would see him as an incompetent servant.

The Queen sighed, heavily so.

"It is alright. Who is this 37th girl?", she wanted to know.

"I do not know, your Majesty", Lwani responded.

Annoyed, The Queen said; "Think carefully. You were the one sending out the invitations for the past 7 months. And today, you were beside The Prince as he met with the maidens."

Lwani thought for a short while and recalled; "I remember, My Queen. The absent maiden is the daughter of the late warlock, whose mother is Zitha."

As if it was at the back of her mind, The Queen gasped almost immediately.

"It cannot be!" she said.

Lwani remained silent.

"Well? Was she invited?", The Queen was curious.

"Yes, My Queen. I announced the news to both her and her grandfather", Lwani replied.

"Then why was she not there? No wonder then. That is why, it seems, the ancestors have not awakened The Prince's desire of female attention; the custom was not followed", said The Queen trying to make sense of the whole situation.

Lwani stood silent, hoping The Queen does not see him as an incompetent servant.

"She was supposed to be there. Hideous or not! It is custom! And custom should be followed. Do you want misfortune to reign down on this kingdom?", The Queen asked.

To which, Lwani stood timidly.

"She could have her head cut off of her shoulders. Tomorrow… take your men and see her", ordered The Queen.