Chapter 7: Father's Warning
I sat with Kitty in the garden. Despite what happened yesterday, she was fully recovered and running around behind Puppy like usual. I watched her as she followed him into the bushes, emerging with twigs and leaves within her short, dark hair. She ran up to me.
"I'm bored…" she sighed, taking a seat alongside me on the marble bench.
"I bet…" I chuckled.
Kitty looked at me. "I'm serious!" She climbed onto the tree above us and looked over at the bustling city on the opposite side of the wall. "I want to go there…"
I stood up and climbed up the tree, looking over beside her. "It would be exciting…but it's impossible, Kitty. We're going to be stuck here inside the palace walls for most of our lives."
"You won't," she said, sadly. "You're going to be Queen. That's means that you'll be able to go places…even if you won't really have much freedom. But what about me?" Her eyes gazed longingly to the people ahead. "I'll rot here. I'll lead a boring, unproductive life…no one really needs me."
I looked down for a second. I glanced back at her. "Come with me."
We slid off of the tree and sat back down on the bench.
"I know how that feels…" I told her. "I used to be just a princess, too, remember?"
Kitty stared at me. "You mean when Jade was still around?"
I nodded. "Yeah. I felt unneeded and unwanted, as well. Jade was supposed to be Queen and I was supposed to just support her. After she departed, it was my job to become Queen. Do you see what your purpose in this family is?"
"I'm not sure…"
"In case anything happens to me, it'll be up to you to help Egypt. Not only that, I need someone to talk to…besides Mother…"
Kitty smiled brightly. "I'm really all that important?"
I giggled and grabbed her by the arm and began to squeeze her in a tight embrace. "Yeah! Who else am I going to torture?"
She squirmed within my arms and tried to pull away. "Esther! I can't breathe!"
I let her go and laughed. "I love bugging you!"
Kitty pouted then shoved me and I shoved her back. This continued until she managed to knock me down to the grass. We rolled on the floor, tickling each other and play fighting. We finally gave up and lay calmly in the grass, staring up at the clouds in the sky. It was silent until Kitty spoke up.
"You know, Esther…" she began.
"Huh?"
"I'm glad you're my sister," she said. She rolled over on her stomach and looked over to me. "I mean…if I had a really snobby, really mean sister I wouldn't feel important at all. I'm glad I'm a princess, because you get to be my sister."
I sat up and smiled at her, my face flushed. "Aww…Kitty." I grabbed her and wrapped her up within my arms. "I am, too."
I could feel eyes on us, and so I looked back. There I saw Jericho staring at us.
"Hey!" Kitty called cheerfully, standing up. "Hello, Jericho."
He curtsied to us and came closer. "I heard you wanted to see the city, Princess Katra."
Kitty nodded and came closer to him. "Yeah. I wonder what it's like…" She went over to the wall and leaned against it, placing her ear there, as if attempting to listen.
"Kitty?" I asked, confused. "What are you-?"
"SHH!" Kitty silenced me, looking back, and then slowly placing her ear against the stone barrier once again. "I'm trying to listen."
I sighed helplessly. Jericho came closer to me. "It's a shame…"
I looked at him, now that he was confusing me, too. "What's a shame?"
"Princess Katra will never have a chance to see the outside world…" He crossed his arms and shook his head. "She's seems so outgoing, but is trapped…like a bird inside of its cage. Flying is its instinct…and the Princess's instinct, as well."
I glowered at him. "What are you saying?"
"I'm saying that the Princess deserves a chance to see the outside world…" he placed his hands on his hips. "And I can do that for her..."
"What?"
"I go out at night and I know all about the city…" Jericho ran to an empty space on the wall and scaled it. He sat atop it and looked over. He motioned for me to come forward. I slowly approached him and he reached a muscular arm down. "Come on…"
I hesitated, but scaled the wall and grabbed his hand. He pulled me up and I sat atop the wall, too. Below I could see children and young preteens. They looked up at me and smiled.
"Hey look!" a little girl called to her friends. "It's the Princess!"
The children gathered around and looked up. They waved happily and cheered. I smiled warmly at all the children that assembled.
"Wouldn't you like to see the city, too, Princess Esther?" asked Jericho. "There are many people to meet and countless places to see. The world isn't small…at least not when you're out here."
I stared at him for a while, and then gazed over at the city, rolling over the open land. They're my people, right? I was going to rule over them and make many decisions that would affect everyone of them. It wouldn't hurt to meet them…then again…
"I don't know," I almost whispered. "I'm not supposed to leave. What if something happens to me…or to Kitty? It'll be my fault. And what if my father finds out? Do you know what could happen to you? And-"
Jericho stopped my endless rant. "Princess…I'll handle it. I just want you to see the world…to see what it is you're missing."
I hoped off the wall and went over to Kitty.
"Kit?"
Kitty looked up, whispering, "What?"
"…How would you feel if we could go out and see the city…?"
Kitty's face brightened up. "Really? Now?"
I sighed and crossed my arms. "I don't know…"
Kitty came closer to me. "Why not? What gave you the idea?"
Jericho jumped down from the wall at that moment. Kitty grinned from ear to ear. "You? You want to take us?"
He nodded. "Sure…if you're sister doesn't mind."
Kitty turned back to me. "Come on, Es. I really want this. I may never get to see anything other than the palace walls. That's not fair at all. And you're just as curious as I am, right? You'll come, too!"
I looked down at her, and then gazed up at the sky. My eyebrows were furrowed, much like Father's when he was deep in thought. "I don't know, Kitty. What if Father finds out? What can we tell him?"
Kitty shrugged and let her shoulders drop. "…Nothing… We'll just have to return before he has the chance to realize we're gone!"
"But what about ka training?"
"I don't have any training until later today. If we can make it here before noon, at least, then I'll be set!"
Kitty was really trying to come up with excuses and reasons. She obviously was desperate to go…how could I refuse? After all, I wanted to see the outside world with just as much anticipation as she had.
"Kitty… All right."
Kitty's face out shone the sun and the stars and any other glowing cosmic body. She grappled onto me and squeezed tightly.
"Oh, thanks, sis!"
I was still a little unsure. "Yeah…okay."
Kitty let go of me and looked up. "So…how are we going to do it?"
Jericho cleared his throat, just to get our attention. Kitty and I gazed at him and he stepped forward. "I've got a plan…"
…A few minutes later…
"Did you do it?" Jericho asked me. Kitty and I shut the doors to our chambers and secured them, to be sure that no one would enter. We told our parents that we were going to take a short nap. Surprisingly, they believed us.
"I'll be in your bedroom to wake you up, Katra," Mother told Kitty. "You have training today."
Kitty nodded and she and I locked our doors and snuck out to the garden, which was below our balconies. We hopped down and we ran over to the spot where we were to meet Jericho. We found him standing by the wall and grinning as we approached.
"I see you're prepared," he said, gesturing to our white cloaks.
"We can't be seen publicly," I explained. "Egypt may be a large country, but word spreads fast, especially when it's concerning my family."
Jericho nodded in agreement and turned toward the wall. "Let's get going."
He climbed atop the wall, helping Kitty up and then lending me a hand as well.
Kitty and I marveled at all of the ordinary people we saw in the village. There were vendors at every corner, children running around freely, and people just sitting on the ground enjoying a meal.
"Wow, Es!" Kitty exclaimed grabbing onto my arm. "Can you imagine how life here would be like?"
"Quickly, girls," Jericho commanded. I stopped and stared at him. He turned around to look at us and chuckled. "I mean, we really don't have much time and I want you to meet my friends and take a look at my old place."
Kitty nodded and went over to him. "All right. Then let's go! I wanna meet new people!"
I hesitated for a while. He was sweating, and I don't think it was the heat.
"Come on, Princess," he said coming behind me and gently pushing me forward. "We must hurry."
It wasn't long until we arrived in a really poor section of the city. Most of the structures around here were abandoned and there was trash spread throughout the ground.
"You…lived here?" I asked Jericho. He stopped without looking back at me.
"Yeah. Not quite like your palace, huh?"
I shook my head. "I can definitely see why you came for a job. You really don't like it here."
Jericho moved forward to a doorway. There was a red curtain hardly concealing it, for it was shredded and missing pieces of fabric. "Come in and I'll explain everything."
We came in and there was a stairway that led underground. I was apprehensive entering but Kitty wasn't even hesitating to explore new places.
We ended up in a quite cozy room. There were two vanilla scented candles located on either side of the doorway and there was tan colored furniture neatly set around. To be honest, I felt very invited.
"Take a seat," he insisted. Kitty and I sat down beside each other. "I wish I could offer you girls something to eat, but I don't really have anything."
Kitty giggled. "It's okay. I'm not hungry."
"WE'RE HOME!"
Kitty and I were startled by two loud voices. We saw two boys around Jericho's age enter the room. They came to a halt when they saw Kitty and me sitting there.
The tall, thin boy stared at Kitty up and down. "Hello, cutie…"
She blushed. "Hey…"
I was ready to say something until the pudgy one came to my side. He grabbed my hand and stared at me.
"Hello, beautiful…"
I pulled my hand away from him. "Excuse me!"
I stood up and pushed the thin man away from Kitty. "Back off my sister, toothpick!"
The man stood back. "What did you say?"
I glared at them. They sure heck deserved a slap in the face.
"Guys!" Jericho yelled coming in between us. "This is…" Jericho lowed his voice. Fool thought I couldn't hear. "…Them…"
The men gasped.
"We're very sorry," said the thin one. "My name is Sef."
He bowed toward Kitty.
"It's all right…" she nodded, still confused.
"And I'm Upton," the chubby man said, bowing before me.
"I'm…" I thought it would be best for me to come up with an alias. "…Aziza… And this is my sister…Sanura."
The men stared at each other, and then turned toward us.
"Yes, of course!" said Sef. "It's a pleasure to meet you."
Kitty smiled. "My name is Sanura! Sanura…S-a-n-u-r…uh…"
I elbowed Kitty and leaned down to her slightly and whispered into her ear, "It's not the time to act like a monkey, Kit…"
Kitty blushed and giggled. "I see…" she stood silently, before uttering out of no where, "…a! Sanura!" I glared at her and she winced. "…Sorry…"
Jericho cleared his throat. "Nice… Anyway, now that we're all I introduced, we can go hang out."
Kitty nodded and jumped up and down happily. "Let's go!"
We were walking around the city for a while and I was not very impressed as I hoped I would be. Kitty, on the other hand, was absorbing everything like the jovial little sponge she is. Jericho noticed the bored look on my face and came closer to me.
"What's wrong, Princess?" he whispered to me.
I shook my head. "This isn't exactly the thrill I expected. Don't you guys do anything besides walk around?"
Jericho shrugged. "Well, I could take you to this really hot club near by…"
"Club? Really? I think Kitty would like that…"
Jericho laughed out loud, and then whispered to me again. "It's not that kind of club."
"Huh?" I still didn't get it.
Jericho whispered into my ear. His warm breath tickled my skin and I winced slightly. "I'm talking about 18 and over…"
I stared at him, a naughty smile on my face. "You mean…with belly dancers and smoke and…stuff?"
Jericho nodded.
I giggled and sighed. "Well that sounds exciting…"
Bop!
"…For a pervert! Do you think I'm a freak? Did you forget who I am?"
Jericho twitched. I left the red imprint of my right hand on his left cheek.
Smoke was blowing out of my ears. "I bet you want to get me so drunk I can't even talk right so that you can take me to your dirty bed and…!"
I stopped myself when I turned about and realized people all around me staring silently. Kitty and the two men were staring, too. I became tomato red, with a mix of anger, annoyance, and humiliation.
"You know what?" I whispered angrily. "I had a blast making a clown of myself in front of my future kingdom!" I stormed over to Kitty and grabbed her arm, dragged her away with me. "I'm leaving! See you later, freak!"
Kitty looked up at me. "Esther! I won't ask what that was about, but please, can't we stay?"
"No!" I said sternly. "I'm not going to hang around with a group of lewd men, and you're not going to, either."
Jericho ran in front of me. "Please. I'm really sorry I forgot my manners. Give me a chance, please!"
I stared at him up and down. "We're two different people, Jericho. I can see all you want from me is your pleasure. I'm not that kind of girl, Jericho. And neither is my sister, so tell your freaky friends to back off useless they want to see me get ugly."
I pushed him aside and walked along.
"Wait!" he called again, running over to me. "I was joking! Can't you take a joke?"
"Obviously not!" I snapped. "I'm the wrong woman to play games with. I think I made that very clear the moment we met."
"Please!" he said. "Is there anyway you can stay?"
I stared at him, and then down at Kitty. She had her head down in disappointment. She knew me too well to argue.
"Lose those friends of yours and I'll consider it…"
Jericho looked back. I didn't trust those men. Something about them didn't ring well with me.
He crossed his arms. "I won't. Those are my friends and if you don't like them then you don't like me…"
I scoffed. "That makes sense. I'll see you back home, Jericho…"
Kitty looked up at me. "Can't we stay for just a little while, Esther?"
"No."
"Please?"
"No."
"Just a little…"
"No!"
Kitty pulled back roughly. Her strength surprised me. I stopped and turned to look at her. "Kitty, come on."
"No," she said, crossing her arms.
"Katra, stop acting like a baby and let's go. We're not supposed to be here."
Kitty pouted and turned her back on me. "You're just like Papa."
I shook my head. "No…I just don't want to get punished by Papa…"
Kitty said nothing and stared at the sky. She glanced down at all of the children running around sighed. Jericho was talking with his friends from a distance, occasionally looking up to see us.
"Kitty," I said gently. "Would you feel better if I took you to the river?"
Kitty gasped and turned around. "Really? You'll do that?"
I shrugged. "Sure. If you'll change back into Kitty instead of Mother."
"Mother?"
"Yeah…she says she used to be like that when she was your age…"
Kitty giggled. "Well, I want to go to the river…at least…"
I nodded and took her hand. "Then we'll go to the river. I'll just have to ask Jericho for directions."
I walked over to him and his face filled with joy. That delusional man must have thought I came to crawl into his arms.
"You came back…"
"For directions…" I held onto to Kitty's arm. "That's all. We're going to the Nile…alone…"
Jericho heaved a sigh. "You're still mad?"
"Obviously. Just lead me to the river and that's all."
Jericho nodded. "Can my friends come?"
"No."
Jericho stared at me for a while. He had beautiful crystal eyes, but I had to dismiss that to glare at him. He looked back at his friends.
"I'll see you guys later…"
The men seemed outraged.
"What!" Sef bellowed. "That's not part of the…"
POM!
Jericho elbowed the man in the stomach. He toppled over on top of Upton. Jericho stared at them sternly. He turned to me and smiled warmly.
"Let's go…"
Kitty and I stared at the men then at each other. What was that about? We walked on and disregarded that, and Kitty went back to her chirpy self.
Jericho stopped to sit by the river with me, as much as I told him not to. Kitty was throwing rocks into the water with a group of younger children that happened to be there at that moment.
"I'm really sorry, Princess," he said. "I wasn't showing the proper respect…"
I sighed and lower the hood on my cloak. We were in a relatively desolate area of the river, which is probably the reason why other children were playing here.
"What's you're deal, anyway?" I asked.
He hesitated before answering. "I grew up without my parents. They died when I was two years old. I don't remember much about them at all. My aunt told me thieves who broke into our home and took what little treasures we had and killed them. I was living with a family friend for about a year, until my aunt came and took me in. We moved here just recently and she decided to seek a job in the best place she could think of…the Pharaoh's palace."
I stared at him as he went into detail about the rest of the problems in his life. He suffered a lot as a youth, traveling place to place with no home and no parents, only a spiteful aunt. Jericho told me when he was younger she used to beat him, apparently because he lost every job he had. He was young, how could he possibly keep any job?
I shook my head. "I would have never guessed that about you. You seem so strong it's hard to imagine. I can't believe I've been so rough on you…"
Jericho chuckled and smiled warmly. "I have no problem with that. You have a fiery personality…I find you more appealing…" He blushed. "I shouldn't have said that. I think I crossed the line again…"
I laughed. "No! That sounds really nice. I guess I've become hard on men from watching so many suitors trying to seduce me in choosing them… I mean, some of them are really sweet. Yet, some of them have all this wealth and they try to impress me like that, as if I've never seen gold in my life…"
Jericho's face faded into slight gloominess. "I've never seen gold…"
"Really? Not even in the palace?"
"Yeah. But not up close."
I pulled my hair back. "I have gold earrings."
He stared at me for a moment, even after I let my highlighted hair fall over my shoulders.
"Are those highlights unnatural?"
I looked at him a little puzzled. "No. It's funny, though. Most people think they are. I was born like this…you know, my father and all…"
The setting sun faded over his face. That's when it dawned on me. "Oh no!" I shouted standing up. "It's late! Father must know that we're gone! Kitty, we have to go!"
Jericho stood up and tried to comfort me. "Esther, don't worry. I'll take the blame…"
"No…you…" I shook my head. "We'll find some way to chat, but first we have to get to the palace!"
Kitty, Jericho, and I scaled over the wall. It was already dark and I knew we were in trouble. It was so dark I couldn't even see either one of them.
"Princess, I'll take the heat," he said.
I smiled to myself. "You don't have to. I can handle my father…" I sighed. "I think…"
Suddenly, a flash of light came from the palace and shone on the three of us. It was blinding and it took me a second to look ahead. I saw my parents and a group of palace guards. Mother was using her magic to produce the light and I could see Father. I shivered when I noticed the look on his face.
"Esther! Katra!" Mother raced over to us and wrapped us up within her arms. The guards came and roughly grabbed Jericho, dragging him away. I reached out for him, but Father called my name sternly and I froze.
"Take them inside, Demitria," he told my mother. She shook at his tone but took Kitty and me inside. She clutched on to us, wishing us the best of luck through her embrace. She grabbed on to me tight, for she knew I'd hear the worst of it.
Inside the palace, we were taken to a room where Father held his monthly council meetings. I honestly felt like a fugitive, and Kitty was sweating like a pig. Mother was standing behind Father and she was just as worried as we were.
"Katra!"
Kitty shivered and stepped forward. "Papa?"
"Go to your bedchamber. Your mother will punish you momentarily."
Kitty nodded and walked over to me. She embraced me. "Good luck, Es," she whispered. She looked at Jericho and waved.
"Katra," Father called her name harshly and she walked to the doorway. She looked toward Mother.
Mother blew a kiss to her and Kitty smiled sadly and left. Father motioned for two palace guards to escort her.
I sighed and wiped sweat from my forehead. I stared at Jericho. From the look on his face, he was worried but he smiled affectionately at me.
"Jericho!"
Jericho stood tall and looked forward. "Yes, my Pharaoh."
Father glared at him as if he were a filthy rat. "What were you thinking when you decided to help my daughters escape the palace?"
"Father…"
"Esther."
I sighed and bit my tongue.
"I'm waiting."
Jericho began to sweat. "…I wanted to show them my old neighborhood and my friends… Kitty wanted to see what life was like outside of the palace walls and I wanted to show her."
"Do you know that what you did is forbidden?"
Jericho nodded. 'Yes, Pharaoh."
Father stared at me. "I don't understand why you did it if you knew it was wrong. I am feeling generous and therefore I'll give you another chance. This will never happen again."
"Yes sir."
Father stared at Jericho. "…You will no longer work in the garden. You will no longer be permitted to come in any contact with the Princesses what so ever, am I clear?"
I gasped. Jericho nodded and bowed his head. What could he say against my Father? My father was intimidating. It wasn't fair. I tried my best to keep myself from speaking up. But when Father called for the guards to take him away, I lost my control.
"Father, it wasn't all his fault!"
Father looked at me coldly. "I know that very well. You're not getting it any easier, Esther."
I watched helplessly as they dragged him away. His eyes were focused on me, but I didn't see anger or fear or in his eyes. I saw something more…and it filled me with warmth…and strength.
I looked up at Father. He wasn't dramatically taller than me, but at this moment, I felt like a helpless flea. All was silent and the only beings in the room were my parents and I. Mother was unvoiced the entire time. She must have feared Father just as much as she loved him.
"Esther, I am very disappointed in you," he finally said. His voice was quick and firm, as the anger was slowly building up.
"Father…"
"I'm not done," he scolded me. "How could you do this? Something could have happened to you. Something could have happened to your sister. Did that ever cross your mind?"
"Yes…" I admitted. "But I was very careful…"
"That doesn't make it right, Esther. Leaving the palace with out permission is strictly forbidden, and I will not tolerate it. The future of Egypt rests on your shoulders and you're not setting a good example for Katra or your people!"
"Father, I apologize!"
Father stared at me, his eyes empty, filled only with anger. "That doesn't fix it. You're to stay in your room and you can only exit to continue your ka training. Other than that, you're confined there until further notice."
I gasped. "Can I see Kitty at least?"
"No," Father said roughly, walking across the chamber. 'You've set a bad example for her. You won't see her until your punishment is lifted."
"That's not fair!" I cried, raising my voice. I rushed over to his side. "I wanted to make Kitty happy!"
"It's fair enough, Esther," he scolded, turning to look down at me. "You're an irresponsible sister, and for that I will not allow you to see Katra, until she learns, after her punishment!"
I growled and stomped out of the room. "You're nothing but a tyrant!"
I ran off to my chambers, ignoring Father's voice calling my name in rage. I shut my door and locked it well. I blew out my candles and threw myself onto my bed, and I wept into my pillow.
Father stomped on my door, nearly knocking it over. He wasn't the type to take back talk, especially from his own children.
"Go away!" I yelled through my tears. The stomping continued and I place a pillow over my head to drown out the clatter and his terrifying voice.
"Atem," I could hear my mother call to my father. "Leave her alone. She's already on punishment. What more do you want?"
Father hollered at her, but I couldn't hear it well. I cried. I was restricted from seeing my own sister. And I would no longer see Jericho. I wanted to see him…I wanted to talk to him again…to feel those gemstone eyes glistening on me once again. My father is a tyrant.