Chapter 3
Bathsheba, after greeting the lovesick Cherie, who she smiled at, walked into the common room of the harem. The girls, who had been pleasantly yapping with each other, noticed something unusual in Bathsheba's bearing. They were oddly afraid of the confidence and happiness they say in her manner. Deep in their minds they perceived what was about to happen to them.
"I am glad all of you are here together so I can give you all the message at the same time," Bathsheba began.
"What is it that you mean to tell us. This must have something to do with the fact that you are now the Directrix's wife," a blond concubine said.
"That is quite perceptive. That is true indeed. As I am married to the Directrix, there is no more need for all of you to be in the palace. Natonito has said to me that all of you will be free to have your own lives and marry yourselves. As former concubines to the second-in-command in the empire, it is probable that all of you will have the hand of nobles rather quickly, especially considering how in demand talented courtesans are as wives for bachelor nobles," Bathsheba replied.
"That is true, Bathsheba, but where will we go until that time. Obviously this will not happen overnight. We will have to have somewhere to live until we can get settled," the blond concubine said.
"Apparently you are the spokeswoman for all of the women here. Does anyone else have something to say before I respond to the question?" Bathsheba said rather pointedly.
"Well, I wonder about the same thing myself," a rather shy redhead concubine said, "After all this is rather sudden, especially if you want us to leave today, as I can guess from the tone of your voice."
"Natonito must really have good taste in women to pick so many perceptive concubines," Bathsheba muttered to herself, "He was looking for the wise and clever woman before he met me."
"Do you want us to leave today? Or do we have more time to prepare for our exile from this house?" the redhead asked.
"Yes, I want all of you to leave today. There is no time to spare. Currently, Natonito is at the palace asking permission to turn this harem into an imperial finishing school for teenagers. Assuming, as is likely, that it will be approved by the Emperor, he will be back tonight for dinner and will begin work on the house tomorrow. All of you should be gone by the time he returns from his business," Bathsheba replies.
There in that blue velvet room it took a while for the words to sink in. These girls had lived the same rooms, seldom leaving, for several years. Now they would be cut from this palace forever, except as guests on the arm of a noble seeking favor from the Directrix. At least there were no hard feelings. All of them knew that a wife was going to look at harem a lot differently than a chief concubine would. While a chief concubine would look with some jealously at the other girls, she would know she was one of them herself. A wife however, saw those same girls not as near-equals but as threats to the affection of a husband, and demanded strict loyalty. Even though he hadn't slept with these girls for a while, Bathsheba, knowing some of them were younger than she was, knew that he might go after some of them as time went on, if there was a fight or as Bathsheba got older. This was unacceptable, and the girls knew it as well as Bathsheba. There was no sense in having concubines share a house with a jealous wife. It was a recipe for disaster, especially if a concubine got pregnant. All of them wanted to avoid the harem intrigues that plagued some palaces.
"Well, at least there is not a lot we have to move around," the concubines said to each other.
"That is correct. I expect that all of you will pack and get ready rather quickly. After all, you only have a few hours. There is an inn across the street for you to settle in. Natonito will have no trouble picking up the tab for you until you can get settled in somewhere permanent. I will go over there and reserve rooms for all ten of you right after lunch," Bathsheba said.
"That is good," the blond concubine said, "After all, it is good to know there is somewhere for all of us to go."
"Yes," Bathsheba said, "even a jealous wife could not bear to leave people out in the cold."
Everyone laughed, and her message done, Bathsheba went back to the dining room, enjoyed a pleasant lunch, and then left to the inn. Meanwhile, the concubines all looked at each other with puzzlement, wondering what they were going to do next. After all, this strange new world was one they were utterly unfamiliar with.
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