Note: Hi there! I've finally finished the next chapter of For the Love of Geb and Nut! And here's some more good news: I'm almost over that hurdle of overcoming the writer's block for Blue Eyes White Mermaid! I figured that with my pace, it may be a short chapter when it's done and uploaded. I'm terrible when it comes to thinking up fight scenes... :P Anyway, you finally get to learn the name of the Nubian Princess, and it follows what I think is a funny scene involving Atem and a pair of shoes. Well, you know me when it comes to feet. So enjoy the story!
Chapter 4: The Name of the Princess
Atem stared long into the sky-blue eyes of the Nubian Princess, his own crimson eyes shining with love. "Love at first sight…" he sighed contentedly before he turned to look at their oasis. "Hathor must have blessed us both."
The Princess also gave a blissful sigh, looking at the fireflies dancing above the water. "Indeed she has." She replied, "I know I'm going ahead of myself, but this oasis fountain brings back so many happy memories."
Atem once again let out a gasp of revelation. "Speaking of memories…"—he quickly turned back toward his love—"It's… it's happening again! Another memory is filling the gap!"
The Nubian Princess faced her love in excitement. "It is?" she gasped in joy, "Then please tell me! Tell me what happened next! I'll even help you out a bit, because from here, it is our story."
The young Pharaoh smiled. "When we met back at that room," he began, "I admit, it was a brief moment. You didn't know that I saw you; I didn't know that you saw me. But as it turns out, Hathor herself seemed determined to bring us closer together…"
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"You had us worried Prince Atem!" Shada said to the Prince when he returned with Mahado. "If Mahado had not found you, you would have exposed your identity and had yourself captured by the enemy, or worse killed! Please don't run off like that again without telling us!"
"Forgive me Shada." Atem ruefully apologized. "I should have asked for your permission, but my impatient curiosity got the better of me."
"Well make sure you don't let it happen again." Mahado scolded. "After all, your father doesn't know that we're taking part in this venture. If you fell into Nubian hands and he finds out about it, he would be devastated!" The three of them had just made their approach to the pillars marking the outside, probably to witness the party from a different view, when Atem started to wince. You see, the shoes he happened to be wearing may seem like his size, but in truth, he had just outgrown them a few days ago. He couldn't help it; he had just turned fourteen, the age when an Egyptian man was considered an adult. And by now, his shoes have become painfully tight, much to his displeasure.
"Ouch!" Atem hissed quietly. Of course, Mahado and Shada immediately took notice of their future Pharaoh's pain.
"What's wrong, my liege?" Mahado asked respectfully.
"Nothing Mahado." Atem replied, "It's just that my feet are killing me…"
"Those shoes are starting to get tight on you." Shada mused as he looked down. "Not to worry, I'll see to it that you get some new pairs that fit you once we return to Egypt."
"Thank you Shada." Atem said before hissing in pain once again. "If you don't mind, I think I'll go find an oasis to ease the pain, one that a Nubian could not find. I'll let you know when I'm ready to leave."
"Be careful then." Mahado replied. And with that Atem took a torch and went off by himself to look for a pool of crystal clear water to dip his feet in. Mahado sighed, "He really is growing up, isn't he Shada?"
"Indeed he is." Shada agreed. "How quickly the years have passed."
As Atem continued to walk, his shoes seemed to become tighter and tighter, and his feet were becoming very sore. "There has to be an oasis around here somewhere… Where could it be?" he sighed. Once again he gasped, then hissed in pain. For a brief moment, he looked down at his feet. "Great… If this keeps up, I might never walk again." The Prince had barely taken three more steps, before suddenly there it was! A pool of clear clean water reflected the moon dotted with light blue lotus flowers. It was complete with a beautiful garden and a waterfall cascaded from a natural fountain. "Finally!" he said in relief, and he quickly went towards the pool.
At the same time, the Nubian Princess was strolling out of the palace from another direction, and making her way to that very same pool. Her mind was filled with the image of that handsome young man whom she had glimpsed briefly. That man… she thought, I can't get him out of my head! But then again, I don't want him to go away. Because of the very thoughts that had filled her head, she had excused herself from the banquet in order to travel to the oasis fountain. This fountain was special to her, because no one else in her kingdom knows about it, not even her father. Here, she would have time for herself, time to relax, time to escape from her everyday life, if only for a moment. This was one of those moments. Finally, after a few minutes of walking, the fountain came into view. But this time, there was something different. Someone else was entering her oasis. Someone wrapped in a cloak. At first, she was shocked. Had someone in her kingdom found out about her secret place? Using some palm trees for cover, the Princess crept in for a closer look. Her eyes widened in amazement. It was him! The man she saw back at the palace! Her heart leapt in joy.
After putting down his torch, Atem looked around to see if anyone had followed him. From what he could see, there was no one. "Good." he said to himself, "It's all clear." Slowly, he removed his cloak. He took the hood of his regal head, then let the cloak slip off his shoulders, revealing his royal glory. The Nubian Princess watched the disrobing, unseen from the palm trees in the dark of night. She was surprised to see that the man was dressed all in royal garb from under the plain robes, but what took her aback was the style of those clothes, an original style that exposed him for what he really is.
An Egyptian! She thought, That must mean he's an enemy of Nubia! Her heart was beating fast, but amazingly, it was not out of fear. I know I'm supposed to hate him, but I find no reason to do so. Somehow, I don't see him as an enemy, even though he is from Egypt. She eagerly continued to watch as the Egyptian sat down upon a nearby rock and prepared to take off his shoes.
Atem lifted his left foot, and took hold of the tight shoe that was clinging to it. He tugged with one hand. It seemed to cling to his skin, as if it did not want to move. He tried again, using the other hand to grip the toe side of the shoe. Still, his dismay, the shoe would not come off. The prince growled in frustration as he stared at that foot. "Damn! These shoes must be tighter than I thought!" He took the sides of his shoe with his thumbs, and after struggling to tug them apart, he stuffed his thumbs inside. With a loud growl through his teeth, he pulls the shoe with all his strength. Bit by bit, the shoe began to inch downward from the heel, rubbing against the skin on the side of his foot. Then suddenly, it finally released its grip on his left foot. The Prince, of course, did not expect this success, and he abruptly lets go. The next thing he knew, he was staring blankly at his left shoe, which was swinging back and forth from its position on his toes. It was a rather silly sight, and he started blushing. I am so glad that no one is around to watch this! he thought as he lifted the shoe off his foot and threw it to the side. He wiggled his toes for a bit, savoring the freedom he gave to his left foot. But he sighed as he put it down. "Well, time for the other shoe."
If only he knew! The Nubian Princess couldn't help but smile at the sight. It's not everyday she gets to see a nobleman like this one in such an awkward position. It was actually quite refreshing, not to mention cute!
Atem now lifted his right foot, and went to work on removing the other shoe. He tugged as hard as he could. When it didn't budge, he tried again. It was no good. His right shoe seemed to be even tighter than his left! Now he was truly exasperated, and in desperation he picked up a stick and stuck it into his shoe in order to pry it off! "Come on, COME ON!" Atem barked in frustration as he thrust the stick like a lever over and over, "LET GO OF MY FOOT, WILL YOU?!" The Princess tried her very best not to laugh, but as the spectacle continued it was getting harder to resist. Then suddenly the stick broke! The Prince stared at the broken stick in utter shock. "Oh Mother of Ra, ARE YOU SERIOUS?!" he whined as he threw it down. In one last desperate attempt, he grabbed the shoe and pulled with all his strength. It moved inch by inch… until finally, the shoe flew off like a cork from a wine bottle. But as it turns out, the force behind it made him lose his balance. Atem waved his arms wildly, but it was in vain. "WHOOAAA!!" The next thing he knew, he had fallen backward off the rock, right onto his back!
As the scene unfolded before her, the Nubian Princess could hold it in no longer. It was so hilarious, and so refreshing! She let out a stream of laughter. At the same time, her fondness for the young Egyptian man grew even stronger. She watched as Atem kicked himself back up into a sitting position.
"Finally! Freedom!" Atem rejoiced in triumph. He stood up, and went over to pick up the shoes he had removed. Clutching the shoes by the heels he glared at them and said, "You have tortured my feet for the last time!" Then he threw them far to the other side of the oasis barking, "GOOD RIDDANCE!" After the offending pair shoes were out of sight, silence permeated the oasis fountain.
Silence, broken only by… the laughter of a young woman!
This surprised Atem to no end. Could it be that someone had followed him after all? "Who's there?!" he exclaimed. The Nubian Princess, realizing that he had heard her, ceased her chuckles and stared in astonishment as he turned around. The Prince scanned the surroundings until he found someone hiding in the shadows of the nearby palm trees. From what he could see, that figure was indeed a woman. "Show yourself." He commanded.
At first, the Princess was hesitant to obey. She did not expect this young nobleman to speak directly to her so soon! But again, she was not afraid. Deep inside her heart, she was looking forward to meeting him face to face anyway. Slowly, she stepped out from behind the palm tree and into full view.
Atem gasped, recognizing the Nubian Princess instantly. Both of them stared at each other, and they blushed as sparkling eyes met for the first time under the light of the full moon. Neither of them spoke for a while. Finally Atem broke the silence. "It's you…! You're the princess I saw back at the palace!"
The Nubian Princess gasped in amazement. "You… were watching me?"
"Y-yes… of course!" Atem stuttered. "Did you…"
"Yes…You were running past the door when I saw you." She admitted. "It was for a brief moment before you left, so I didn't know that you were watching." She soon started smiling. "In a way, I find it flattering."
"Oh, uh, thank you." Atem muttered sheepishly.
"By the way, how did you manage to find my secret place?" asked the Princess.
"Your secret place?"
"This oasis fountain." She revealed. Atem looked around, and his eyes widened in surprise.
"Oh! That's your secret place?!" he said, "Oh, I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to intrude on you like this!" He started walking away, saying, "I'll just go and find another oasis to--"
"No, no!" The Nubian Princess interrupted, "Please stay." The Prince stopped in his tracks, amazed at what he was hearing. "It may be my secret place, but it can get awfully lonely. I don't mind the company."
Atem stared in disbelief. But then he smiled. Turning around, he walked toward the waters of the pool. The Princess sped forward, eager to join him. "Ladies first." Atem offered. She slipped off her own sandals and laid them to the side, just before entering the water.
"From what I can see, you must be some kind of nobleman from Egypt." She said as she kneeled down in slightly deeper water.
"Well, 'Nobleman' is a bit of an understatement." Atem replied, "My father is the Pharaoh."
The eyes of the Nubian Princess widened in astonishment. "Really?"
"Really." He replied as he dipped his bare feet into the cool water and sat down on a nearby ledge. He let out a quiet hiss of pain, for his feet were still terribly sore. Come to think of it, they felt rather moist on the sides, even before they entered the pool.
She paused for a moment as the information sank into her head. "So what is your name?"
"You can call me Atem." Was his reply, "What's yours?"
The Nubian Princess blushed and replied, "Nimea."
"Nimea…" Atem repeated, and his heart was soaring. "That's a beautiful name." Suddenly, he felt a sharp pain in his feet. "Ow!" he barked, reaching down to clutch one foot.
"Are you all right?" Nimea asked in concern.
"I-I'm fine." Atem hastily replied.
"I'm not so sure about that." She said, and she before he could protest, she lifted his foot into the dim light made by the nearby torch. She gasped. "By the breath of Isis! You got blisters all over the sides of your foot right here, and some of them have burst open!" She touched the blisters, causing the Prince to hiss in pain.
"I knew my shoes were tight, but I didn't think they were that tight!" he muttered ruefully.
"Let me look at your other foot then." Nimea suggested. Reluctantly, he did as she requested. There were terrible blisters on that foot as well. "Oh dear… now that doesn't look good. Your shoes must have been rubbing against them, especially when you were taking them off."
"ERK!" Atem shouted in shock, his cheeks quickly turning red as a beet. "You were watching me take off my shoes?! Oh no! I can't believe that just happened! This is so embarrassing!"
"Embarrassing or not," Nimea noted, "I'm glad you took off those shoes before they could do more damage. I may not be a healer, but these blisters are nothing I couldn't fix." She took out a small ceramic jar out of the pouch she carried and after opening the lid, she scooped out some light brown paste. "Here," she said as she started to rub the paste onto his feet, "This ointment will help to speed up the healing. And don't worry, it's waterproof."
There was a look of astonishment in the Prince's eyes as the application took place. "N-Nimea! You're a princess! You don't have to do this for me!"
Princess Nimea just smiled and simply replied, "I know."
For a while, Atem was speechless. Then he too gave a soft smile. "Thank you." He continued to watch as the lovely princess tended the sides of his feet and wrapped them each in a strip on clean linen to keep the water from washing off the waterproof ointment.
"There! It's done." She said, "Take care not to touch the blisters so much, and you'll be better in no time." The air around them suddenly filled with tiny balls of light. They danced in the air, adding to the beauty of the stars in the moonlit sky. "Oh look!" Nimea gasped in excitement, "Fireflies!"
"Beautiful…" Atem said.
"You know, this might be a good time to start talking to each other," Nimea mentioned, "and get to know each other a little more."
"That's a good idea." Atem agreed, "Let's talk."
"I'll start." Nimea let out a sweet chuckle. "As you might have already figured out, I am the princess of Nubia. I'm sure you know about royal duties, being that you are a prince."
"Of course!" he replied, "That's why I used to go hiding in the vases when I was little."
"Did you?"
"It's true." Atem replied with a chuckle, "I don't do much of that anymore."
"Well, whenever I have free time," Nimea said, "I go out of my way to interact with people. Sometimes I would share some food. I have some skill in healing, and so on occasion I help the Healers tend to the sick and the injured. But if there's one thing I love above all things, it's music. I love playing the harp, and I love to dance. There were times when I wish I would join the court dancers when they perform in banquets and festivals."
"So you can dance?" Atem asked in awe, to which she nodded in confirmation. "That's amazing! You should let me watch you sometime!" Nimea let out a joyful laugh.
Hours passed. Prince Atem and Princess Nimea enjoyed the tranquility of the oasis fountain, and they continued their conversation, discovering that they have a whole lot in common. The whole time, they both wanted to tell each other about their love, to confess their feeling for each other right then and there, but they didn't. Neither of them knew how the other feels, so no matter how strong their feelings for each other, they didn't want to rush in. They decided to take it slow. Still, they really enjoyed spending time with each other.
Nimea let out a sigh of content. "Thank you for tonight. I really had a great time talking with you." Atem stepped out of the pool as the Princess took his hand and stood up with him.
"So did I." Atem replied. He paused and he and Nimea looked into each other's eyes. "Well Nimea… it's time for me to return to Egypt. Would you… like for us to meet again sometime?"
"Oh definitely!" Nimea answered joyfully, "I would love for you to come back!" For a moment, there was a look of concern as she scanned her surroundings. "I don't want any of our families to get suspicious though." But her smile returned just as quickly. "Let's meet right here in the fountain next month."
"Of course!" Atem agreed, "And since it's going to be once a month, we should spend three nights together in the time of the full moon. Is that all right with you?"
"Yes! I already look forward to it!" She picked up her sandals as Atem made his departure. "Goodbye Atem! May the gods watch over you in your travels!"
"Until we meet again!" Atem said likewise, waving goodbye. Then he left to meet up with his two priests, but not before he found his old shoes, which he carried for the rest of his trip back to Egypt.
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"…And after that, the rest was history." Atem finished. "Your secret place became our secret place, and we would meet there every month for three nights under the full moon." The Pharaoh of Games smiled at the Nubian Princess, Nimea. "Well, that's all I can recall for the time being. Looking at this place now, it really does look just like our secret place, doesn't it?"
"It does." Nimea sighed contentedly, "And now here we are in the Offering Fields, sitting side by side in the oasis fountain… just like in old times."
Atem wrapped an arm around his beloved. "I can't wait to discover what happened next. Aside from that, I have many things to tell you about, and many questions to ask you."
"You can ask me all the questions you want," Nimea replied, "I'm more than happy to give you the answer, Brother." Atem smiled at the very mention of that pet name. In Ancient Egypt, it is common for lovers to call each other 'Brother' and 'Sister' as well as by their true names, even if they are not related by blood whatsoever. This was due to the influence of the Egyptian Gods; Osiris and Isis were not only husband and wife, they were brother and sister. The same applies to their parents, the earth god Geb and the sky goddess Nut, and their grandparents Shu and Tefnut. All of these divine couples loved each other with an undying passion, especially Geb and Nut, with whom Atem and Nimea could both relate to. The Princess leaned on Atem's shoulder. "But for now, let us savor this moment, the perfect way to celebrate your homecoming." She looked up at him and they both blushed. "I look forward to the day you remember our first kiss." The two of them leaned toward each other, and they closed their eyes in the anticipation of a long awaited kiss…
"CANNONBALL!" the excited voice of a child suddenly hollered, followed by a loud splash. The next thing they knew, they were drenched by a wave of water. In an instant they looked up and in the pool, there was a small boy, laughing in triumph of his antics. Atem stared in amazement, for it was the very same boy he saw on his way to his new palace, the one with straight red hair and golden bangs shaped like lightning! "Ha ha ha, that was fun!"
"Paneshe! You little rascal!" she exclaimed walking over to the boy, "What are you doing here?"
"I just wanted to say hi, that's all!" replied the boy, Paneshe.
"Well, it's good to see you again!" Nimea chuckled, ruffling his hair. "And you've come just at the right time. There's someone I'd like to for you to meet!"
"Oh! You mean that guy over there?" Paneshe asked, pointing to Atem.
"That's right!" Nimea takes hold of the boy's hand and brings him toward the young Pharaoh. "Atem, this little mischief maker over here is Paneshe. You'll be seeing him quite often, because he lives in this palace too."
"Well, it's a pleasure to meet you Paneshe!" Atem chuckled and shook the boy's hand.
"And I'm honored, Atem!" Paneshe replied, "I've heard a whole lot about you and your adventures! You must be very brave, standing up to Zorc like that!"
"Just wait until you hear about my recent adventures!" Atem said with a playful smirk. "I actually shared the body of my reincarnation for two years before I came here!"
"Really?!" Paneshe gasped, "Oh please tell me all about it sometime! The world must have been so different from 3000 years before!"
Now it was Atem's turn to ruffle the boy's hair. "Anytime, Paneshe!"
"I'm gonna head back to the palace." Paneshe said, rushing out of the water, "You guys have fun out there, and don't forget to kiss before you go to bed! See ya tomorrow!" Atem blushed at the mention of the kiss. If it came right out of the mouth of a child who obviously knows about your romantic relationship, who wouldn't?
"You may not know this Atem," Nimea noted, "But of all the angel children who live in the Offering Fields, half of them grow up very slowly. Paneshe is one of those children; he looks like a ten-year-old boy, but he didn't get to that stage until he was 1800 years old. That's one of the quirks of the afterlife."
"I guess he must have been waiting for me almost as long as you have." Atem replied.
Nimea laughed, "Why wouldn't he be? You are his role model!"
"Ah…" Atem sighed happily, "So he is." It was just his first day in the afterlife, and already he was looking forward to witnessing more of its marvels with his beloved.
Note: Well, that's it for this chapter! I don't exactly know what will happen in the next one, but I think it involves Atem discovering his wings. It might take a while to conjure up the details, but at least it will give me time to work on the chapters of my other stories. Who knows? Until next time!