When the twins were not performing their daily duties, they mostly spent their time studying. For Maryam it meant studying the laws of Babylon.
If and when she had a spare moment she liked to visit the local markets and mingle with the common people. Language was no issue since Arabian had replaced Persian as the working language.
The situation was completely different in Neopolis. With the mountain folks following their lovers back to Neopolis, life became less strict in the garrison city. More markets on the streets, with new exotic fruits and food and more colorful clothing.
And a bilingual community as a consequence. Q'eqchi made its way fast in the city and even some official announcements were made in it.
So Elisheba spent a lot of her time learning the new language, to make sure that when she became queen, she could understand all parts of the population.
And there was also something else changing, although nobody noticed it in the beginning. Soldiers who had finished their time in the army started letting their hair and beards grow. And they started to pay less attention to their clothes.