Nurlan led Shaleh through the rambling stone building that was the heart of the Khashbal Clan's realm. Shaleh looked around uncertainly. It was the first stone building she had been inside and it left her feeling suffocated. She took deep breaths and tried to hide her feelings. It would do her no good if Chumerra thought she was weak.

"What do you think of your new home?" Nurlan asked Shaleh as they walked through the dim, narrow hallways.

"Not much so far to be honest."

Nurlan stopped and turned to her. "It was not always this way. Not so long ago we were known as the greatest clan on The Plains because of our wisdom and courage. Now look what we have become. I am sorry you have to join us at this time."

She put her hand on his forearm. "We must have hope that tomorrow will be a better day. The night is always followed by the day."

"Yes, but how long and dark will the night be?"

"No one knows."

"Indeed. No one knows."

He took her hand in his and led her forward. His hand was rough and calloused, yet warm and strong. Touching his skin still felt awkwardly close for Shaleh. She was glad of the darkness in the hallway so that Nurlan would not see her blush.

Nurlan dropped her hand as they entered the circular throne room. Chumerra was pacing; her head a thundercloud. To Shaleh's eyes she looked much less bent.

"Your wedding will take place tomorrow at noon," Chumerra told them scarcely a second after they had bowed before her.

Shaleh's jaw went slack. Nurlan saw her reaction and opened his mouth to speak.

"A quick wedding is to any man's liking, so I thank you for your consideration, but in this case I humbly request that we postpone the wedding a few weeks. Custom and kindness demands that Shaleh's parents are brought to the wedding. As you know it helps strengthen the new bond between our clans. It would also bring peace of mind to my bride to say farewell to them properly."

"I know the custom Nurlan and I am not moved. If her parents wanted to be present for the wedding then they should not have fled the Clan Meet like thieves. I will not be inviting them back, nor will the wedding be delayed."

"But who then will help me prepare if not my mother?" Shaleh burst out.

"You are not the first bride to be missing her mother on her wedding day. I am sure you can find someone to fill the role of dress-maid. Now leave. There are many more important tasks for me to see to than one spoiled girl's wedding." She waved them away.

Nurlan lifted a shaking Shaleh to her feet and led her out of the rambling building.

***

Shaleh had been allowed to stay in Nurlan's cousin's tent. She had a large family with four of the children still unmarried and thus still living in the tent. They were kind, and generous, and treated her with the respect due to the daughter of a clan chief. Because of the upcoming wedding Nurlan's cousin had ordered all her children to go to sleep early so Shaleh would be fully rested. It did not work. A combination of wedding nerves, despair, and an unfamiliar bed kept her awake most of the night. When the first glimpse of light could be seen from the smoke hole at the top of the tent Shaleh gave up hope of rest. Not wanting to wake her hosts she lay as still as possible and waited for them to stir.

What am I doing here?

I hate this place. It's too big, it's noisy, it's smelly. This many people shouldn't live so close together.

This sacrifice better be worth it. Chumerra had better honour the alliance that Kirill and father made or why on earth am I here? Stuck in a dirty place surrounded by strangers and a chief who seems to think of me as a silly, vain little girl.

Nurlan is the only good in this whole place.

And this family. They are kind.

If I have to be married to someone I don't love I'm glad it's him. At least he's kind and strong, and the warriors obviously respect him.

I wonder what tonight will be like once he takes me to his tent? I don't think I can do it. But he's been married before. He'll have expectations. Maybe he'll throw me out if I can't manage it.

If so I'll run back home. I'll steal a horse and run. Just like Alam and Tajar did.

Alam... Where are you Alam?

***

Girls all over The Plains expected, from a young age, that their wedding day would be the best, most beautiful day of their lives. Shaleh, likewise, had pictured her wedding day hundreds of times as she grew up. As a young girl she had imagined herself wearing the world's most beautiful dress and surrounded by her friends and family cheering and smiling at her. The day would be sunny and warm and they would eat cherries, as they were her favourite fruit. The groom was almost irrelevant. He would be handsome, and strong, and the young chief of a powerful clan, but what he was really like did not matter. Later, as she became a young woman, her thoughts changed. She was still surrounded by friends and family, and still ate cherries, but the groom had become Alam. She had not dared to tell him or her parents for fear of the dream being shattered. She knew Alam would never be the chief of a powerful clan, but he was something more important than that - her friend. More than her friend.

But when she was old enough to cope with the truth her parents had made it clear that she would be given over to another clan for marriage. For days she had wept silently at night and tried to put a brave face on in the morning. In her head she knew her parents were doing what they thought was their duty; they had to look after the welfare of the entire clan, not just hers. Yet even though she knew that they were not punishing her, or deliberately causing her pain, in her heart she felt betrayed and discarded. Had they raised her all those years merely to be an item of trading? Something to barter and broker deals with?

It was only when the entire Empa clan had left the Meet so suddenly that the full impact of her upcoming marriage to a stranger struck her.

As the morning began in earnest Nurlan's cousin saw to Shaleh's dress, hair and paint.

I have waited for this day all my life, but now that it's here I wish it wasn't. If only I had run away with Alam when I had the chance.

I don't even know this man. What if he's a monster? Everyone else here is. His calm politeness could be an act for all I know.

The tapping Shaleh had been waiting for sounded on the tent's door-flap. Her heart jumped at the same time that her stomach fell. Nurlan had come to collect his bride and present her before the clan.

"Thank you for your help," she bowed to Nurlan's cousin. She had done an excellent job of preparing Shaleh for the wedding.

"It is an honour," she bowed in return. "Soon we will be cousins."

Shaleh felt the sweet sting of tears forming. "Cousins. Yes. I will like that." The words came out weakened by tears.

Perhaps not everyone here is a monster.

"Hush, hush," the woman scolded kindly. "No tears. Your paint will smudge. Now go! Nurlan will be wondering if he came to the right tent!"

Shaleh smiled and pushed the door-flap open. Hundreds of people were watching. Nurlan smiled widely and extended his hand to her. She took it and stepped over the threshold - the first of many symbolic gestures of starting a new life.

As she straightened up a gasp went out from the gathered crowd. She was a breath-taking sight with her yellow silk dress, her oiled hair tied up perfectly, and her face gracefully painted to accentuate her full lips and dark eyes. She drew gasps of admiration from women, men, girls and boys. First one voice and then hundreds broke into whooping and cheering. Both Shaleh and Nurlan burst into laughter as flowers were thrown at them.

No, they aren't monsters.

"Come. Let's get married!" Nurlan's smile made his face more radiant than she had ever seen it. As they walked she looked to take note of his attire. At first glance he seemed to be dressed as always in his warrior's uniform. On closer inspection she could see that he had put effort into making himself presentable. His armour, sword hilt and scabbard gleamed bright; his hair was carefully combed and braided into a warrior's plait; he wore a wide belt of new leather with a shining brass buckle; the red silk he customarily wore under his armour was newly washed.

She leaned towards him. "You look very handsome today," she whispered.

"You are so beautiful I think my life is in danger."

"Why?" she asked in surprise.

"Surely every man that sees you is now thinking of knocking me on the head and stealing you away," he smiled.

"Nurlan," she smiled in return. "I had no idea that you were a flatterer."

"Not a very good one I'm afraid."

As they walked through the camp the crowd grew behind, around, and in front of them. A warrior started chanting "Nurlan! Nurlan!" Soon hundreds of voices were shouting his name. The noise was deafening but Shaleh smiled all the broader as realisation dawned on her of just how much Nurlan was loved by his people. The crowd parted when they reached the wedding place. A holy man from the clan waited under a cherry tree. Chumerra stood to his side. Nurlan and Shaleh, still hand in hand approached the holy man and bowed.

"Make it fast," Shaleh heard Chumerra mutter to the holy man.

Shaleh felt like cold water had been poured over her head. She was shocked at Chumerra's rudeness. She glanced at Nurlan, but either he hadn't heard her comment, or was ignoring it.

The holy man, however, openly scowled at her interference before he started the ceremony. He lifted his hands in prayer, asking the heavens to bless their union. The prayer was very thorough - and long. When he lowered his hands he made the couple vow before all assembled to be faithful, to serve each other, and to obey their chief. He drew the circle around them that symbolized that they were one in the sight of heaven though they had separate souls. He gave them each a handful of wheat grains to symbolize fertility. He turned to Chumerra as chief of Khashbal to accept the union. She nodded her agreement.

"Nurlan, warrior of Khashbal, and Shaleh, daughter of the Empa clan, you are now married before these people and the heavens. Go now to your tent and live as husband and wife!"

Thousands of voices lifted up cheering. Nurlan and Shaleh bowed in respect to the holy man and then to Chumerra. Then Nurlan shed every ounce of restraint and bent back whooping louder than anyone else. Shaleh burst out laughing.

"Where did the real Nurlan go!"

He swooped on her and lifted her by the waist as easily as if she were a piece of firewood.

"For now he is gone! Come wife, we have a tent to attend to!" he laughed and put her over his shoulder like a sack and carried her away from the wedding place. The crowd erupted into laughter.

"Hey!" she screamed, kicking. "Put me down! I don't want everyone looking at my backside!"

He carefully lowered her to the ground and gently took her hand.

"Much better," she said with nose in the air.

As they walked to his tent the sea of well-wishers whistled and catcalled after them. As was customary, lewd jokes and jibes flew at them from all sides. Shaleh had been to dozens of weddings growing up and knew what was expected of her. The bride was to act aloof and slightly affronted while the groom was free to laugh along and strut like a rooster. She kept her head held high with dignity and forced herself to think of fishing and snow and anything else cold that she could picture. It didn't work. By the time they reached his tent her cheeks were scarlet red.

Nurlan opened the tent flap and beckoned for her to enter. Once she was inside he turned to the crowd.

"You've seen what you came to see now get out of here! It's time for me and my bride to have a cup of tea!"

The crowd laughed and shouted back, but only a few of them drifted away.

Nurlan entered the tent and closed the door-flap tight by tying rope from the door's wooden peg handle to the tent's centre pole. It was common for boys entering puberty to try to peek into a newly-wed's tent.

Shaleh smiled at him. "I've not seen this side of you before. It's like I don't know you at all."

"Now that we're married we have plenty of time to get to know each other better."

Shaleh's stomach was a bundle of butterflies as he walked over to her and engulfed her in his arms. His hug was strong and gentle.

He's a good man.

But he's not Alam.

Her thoughts must have registered on her face for Nurlan asked "What's wrong?"

"Nothing."

Nurlan stroked her cheek and looked sympathetically at her. He was silent for a few seconds. "You know that you'll probably never see him again."

"Yes I know," she bowed her head.

"But that doesn't mean that you will stop caring for him. I know what that is like."

"You still love your wife?"

"You are my wife now."

"You know what I mean."

"Yes, I know what you mean. I will always love her."

"Then why marry me?"

"Because it is time for me to move on and shake off the lichen that has covered me these past five years. It also helps that you are the most enchanting woman I have met since knowing her. I am not a poetic man, and I do not like exaggeration, so you can believe me when I say that there is no woman alive more beautiful than you."

Shaleh blushed as she looked into his dark eyes.

"Thank you Nurlan. You are a good man," she let his lips touch hers.

But you're not Alam.

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Thank you for your votes and comments. They mean a lot to me.

-Y. V. Qualls