Prince Haroun wasn’t nearly as spectacular as his bride -to -be, and rode his horse through King’s Bazaar accompanied by an elite honor guard of soldiers all dressed in their finest armor with their horses groomed to perfection. Haroun’s outfit was mostly white and gold, with touches of sapphire blue embroidery. His cloth-of-gold hizam held a saif in a gem-encrusted scabbard. The sunlight threw prismatic reflections from these jewels onto his clothes and face. He squinted to avoid the reflections, and this only made him seem more loutish.
Even though Haroun was less well loved by the populace than his half-brother Ahmad, a royal wedding was a time when such minor matters were put aside, and the people cheered him as though he were the most popular man in Ravan. The roar along the length o
