Soaring over Nile
Disclaimer: I do not own Yugioh
Chapter Four: Slipping Away
"Why must I be dressed up again?" Amuenet demanded, glaring at Neema. The woman glared right back at her. "Because, your father believes the Pharaoh took an…interest. In you," she replied curtly, barely concealing the venomous snarl. "Believe me, I will not have done this by choice. Now put this on and cease your complaints!"
Amuenet felt the silky material of the cream-coloured dress as it fell over her and tried to tell herself it was better than the colourful atrocities Omorose and Shemei were wearing. She had also been forced to put on azure eyeshadow and her cheeks were now brushed with ochre. Halyma followed her perpetually with a comb, ready to brush out tangles in her long black hair, which was loose. Amuenet didn't understand how a mere few minutes with the Pharaoh's presence could have resulted in an hour of dressing up.
Neema threw her a final, contemptuous glance before beckoning for her to come. Dusk had fallen and the sounds of voices and music from the Great Hall became louder as they neared the entrance. Noble Hamadi led the family with Omorose and Shemei chattering to each other and Eshe walked with her two children. Amuenet and Neema brought up the rear.
The wives were given perfumed cones to put on their wigs as they entered the hall. The air was thick with the smells of foods and perfumes. Loud conversation, music and dancers added to the general upbeat din of the Hall. Despite all that, the Great Hall remained relatively comfortable in terms of spaces. Amuenet had to give grudging credit for the sheer magnitude of the hall.
Watching her father and Oba make their way to the men's table, Amuenet followed the women reluctantly to the smaller tables, laden with fruits and exotic dishes of all kinds. Acrobats and dancers wove in and out and the servants were constantly there to fill her plate and glass.
Amuenet took a seat on the cushions, bothered by the noise. The male and female tables were separated by the vast expanse of the hall, but that did not prevent the sons of nobles from wandering around, eyeing girls with interest and striking conversation at proximities hardly deemed to be appropriate. Shemei had generated the attention of five or six boys already. Omorose was sitting next to her sister, basking in Shemei's popularity, though Amuenet noticed hardly any were paying attention to her conversation. Neema had effortlessly started a loud conversation with other wives and Eshe was sitting with Aziza and talking to other women.
Feeling out of place and dizzy from the smells and music, Amuenet looked around desperately for some kind of exit. She spotted a smaller door on the other side of the room. After checking to make sure no one was looking in her directly, Amuenet stood up and quietly edged toward the exit.
"Hello my lady," a burly-looking boy about seventeen summers blocked her way. He had a slightly leering quality to his smile and his eyes raked up and down her figure. Amuenet mumbled a response, disguising her disgust, and slipped through the crowd of dancers until she was at the door.
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Atem sighed quietly as he sat amongst a bunch of older men. His father had insisted he sit in and listen to the Nobles discussing various state affairs. The conversation was going in one ear and out of the next. He looked longingly over at the boys his age – but noticed they were following the older ones toward the women's side of the room. He grimaced. It wasn't as though they'd accept him anyway, even if he had taken off his royal purple clock. The multicoloured hair was a bit of a giveaway to his identity and everyone deferred to the Prince.
It wasn't as though any of the Nobles were making much of an attempt to include him in the conversation. He thanked the Gods the talk of marriage had not sprung up. Worse, the High Priests dined at another table, which put an end to any thoughts about finding Mahaado or Mana to talk to. Well, he was not going to sit here for the whole evening. Atem stood up and indicated for the Nobles to continue talking. His father, occupied with conversation, didn't notice.
Atem was about to creep out the exit on the opposite side of the room when a guard blocked his path with his spear. Atem started and, recognizing the guard, groaned. "Jarha, please!"
"I'm sorry Prince," Jarha replied, his face solemn. "The Pharaoh has requested you remain in the Hall." He was a tall boy who was four years Atem's senior and, when he wasn't being the Authorative Guard Of Atem's Life, was actually one of Atem's closest friends. Or so Atem had thought.
"Once Jarha, I won't go far!" Atem urged. "I'll be back before you know it; I just need some fresh air!"
Jarha frowned. "No. No. You said that last time."
Atem sighed, mind working fast, and then allowed a look of horror to dawn on his face. "Jarha! Behind you! Beware!"
Jarha whirled around in alarm, sword already at the ready. When he looked back a split second later, the Prince had vanished. Mentally giving himself a slap, Jarha ran out into the exit. "Prince Atem! Come back!"
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Amuenet sighed in relief, breathing in the cool air of the evening. The courtyard was long and rectangular, two enormous statues on either side of the exit. Amuenet could still hear the music echoing from inside and the chatter of conversation. She moved away from the light cast from inside, running a hand along the cool stone walls of the Hall. It was lucky she did. The sound of footsteps seemed to come out of nowhere and she saw a growing shadow approaching the exit of the Hall.
Quickly, Amuenet retreated further along the side of the walls and behind one of the giant statues. There were male voices and then a jeering call. "My lady? Are you there? Why don't you come say hello?" Other voices joined his call.
Amuenet stepped slowly backwards, feeling disgusted. She silently made her way to the edge of the Hall, watching the dark shadows of the older boys wander a little and then return into the Hall. Her desire to return to the dizzying light and music was shrinking by the second. She glanced at the building a little way off in the distance. The sheer size of the Pharaoh's Palace was amazing. Just the Great Hall itself was almost as big as her father's entire Villa. She was sure there were other smaller halls and, considering the Palace could house all the guests in the Great Hall, there were bound to be hundreds of apartments as well.
The moonlight lit up a white building in the distance and Amuenet found herself wondering what the place was for; it was practically glowing under the silvery light of the moon. Looking back at the Hall and thinking of those horrible boys, Amuenet made up her mind and made her way toward the white building.
As she approached, Amuenet realized the white building was, in fact, a low wall, lined with tall trees. Amuenet recognized a date tree, which they had in their own garden, but there were exotic-looking trees she'd never seen before. There was a door with patterned pillars on either side. Amuenet pushed on the door and realized it was unlocked. Smiling at her good luck, she pushed the door open a little wider, making sure there was enough of a gap so that a passing wind would not blow it shut, and slipped in. The garden was enormous. At the centre of the well-maintained paths was a white pavilion with enormous white marble pillars. Greenery like none she'd ever seen covered the pillars and a large swimming pool was in front of the pavilion, still in the night. If she squinted hard enough in the moonlight, Amuenet could make out shapes of exotic birds near the plants.
To the pavillion's right, she could see more of the royal apartments. She closed her eyes, trying to envision the path she needed to get back. A rough, sketchy outline swam before her eyes – she had a general idea, but she hoped dearly that the party would not be finishing soon, because it would take awhile to walk back.
This place was too tempting, in its calmness and silence. The swimming pool water looked almost silvery in the moonlight. Amuenet sat down on the raised marble platform and gazed into the water, glad for a moment's peace.
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The one frustrating thing about the Palace was that one often got lost in it, despite having lived there one's entire life. Atem knew he should have turned into his private chambers but Jarha and a few other guards were right behind him. He didn't think he could have pushed open the door to his room quickly enough so Atem kept running. It was dark and the mental maps of the winding hallways in the Royal Apartments were blending into one blurry mess as he ran. His purple cloak was in his arms; it was heavy but it was better than running with it on.
"Prince!" Atem was relieved to hear Jarha's voice came from further away than he had expected. "Prince! Stop!"
Atem turned sharply to his left and felt a burst of triumph. His father's personal garden was just ahead. The guards were not allowed to set foot inside the garden and to get permission, they had to go to his father themselves. Atem knew they'd choose camping outside the garden to facing the intimidating Pharaoh himself. Grinning at that thought, Atem ran faster toward the white walls, not even noticing the door was slightly ajar before he opened and closed the door quietly behind him.
Breathing hard from the exertion of his escape, Atem put his purple cloak down near the door's entrance and strode briskly towards the white pavilion, still reveling in his victory.
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Amuenet only looked up from the water when she heard the footsteps close – too close – behind her. If she hadn't been taken by surprise, she'd have moved quietly until she was hiding behind the pillar. As it was, she stood up and turned sharply. There was no time to hide - she readied herself for a fight.
"Who's there?" two voices echoed together in the night.
A/N: YES I'm terrible for ending this on a cliffhanger. For Spirit Seer, who wanted to read it even though it's unfinished, and all the readers who have stuck with SoN throughout thick and thin. This was an old chapter (part of it...) I had written about three years ago when the desire to rewrite SoN was still burning, so please forgive the regressive writing style. This is the last you will be reading of this version of the fic or any writing on this account. I'm so sorry for ending so many fics on cliffhangers ):
I'm still writing but I'm not writing for these fandoms or at anymore. I will, however, be updating my favourites list if I find good fic (: taught me hard but invaluable lessons about writing and I'm grateful to every reviewer, critic and even flamer who has commented. You've all helped me improve (I wish this chapter showed my improvements, but it's an old piece of writing...sigh. Sorry about that)