I made it to the dining hall just as the servants were serving breakfast.
"Ah, Rhea," the Pharaoh announced as I walked in the door, "there you are! We were beginning to worry about you." I glanced around the table. Apparently by "we," he'd meant everyone except the Prince, who was glaring down at his meal while everyone else stared at me. I took my seat, which apparently had officially been assigned beside the Prince without my knowledge, since it was the only seat left available.
"I apologize, Pharaoh," I said. "I just had to collect a few things." Like my composure.
"Did you get everything you needed?" asked Lady Isis.
I smiled and nodded to her. "Yes, ma'am, I did."
We dug into our meals, and the conversation quickly ensued as it had the night before.
As the servants cleaned up our now-empty dishes, the Pharaoh turned to his son.
"Don't forget, son, you still have yet to give Rhea a tour of the palace, haven't you?"
"Father, I don't think—"
"Actually, a tour of the palace would be nice." I continued to smile at the Pharaoh, feeling the Prince's harsh glare on my back. Whether it was because I'd interrupted him or because I'd just disproven his argument that I didn't want a tour, I wasn't sure. It could have been a bit of both. "It might actually help me so I don't get lost." I quietly turned to the Prince, mouthing a silent apology for interrupting him. He rolled his eyes at me in return.
"Well then, it's settled! Wonderful."
The Prince growled, but rose from his seat, gesturing to me to follow him. I stood, briefly bowed to the Pharaoh and the Guardians for their company, and quickly strode to catch up with the Prince, who was already at the dining room's main entrance.
He showed me each and every one of the rooms in the palace; and there were a lot of them. I'd never seen so many rooms in my life! I didn't know so many could fit in one building. There were kitchens, servants' quarters, studies, libraries, empty guest rooms, occupied guest rooms (we always knocked before entering those). We even passed by the throne room! And the Prince led me through all of them…
…except for one.
I spotted the small wooden door that the Prince had ignored. I paused. It was just slightly taller than I was. The wood was old, faded and chipped. It had no special markings, nor any indication as to what was behind it. It held no physical significance that would draw me to it. Nevertheless, I felt drawn to it somehow.
"What's behind here?" I asked. The Prince stopped and turned toward the door. As I glanced at his face, I thought I saw a flash of…something in his eyes, but it vanished before I could determine what it was.
"Nothing of importance," he responded, very obviously lying. "You'd be better off if you didn't go in there." He grabbed my hand and began pulling me away from the door. His grip was firm, but not rough. His palm was smooth as a newborn child's, as if he'd never worked manual labor a day in his life.
"Come," he urged. "There is still much of the palace left to see."
We finished the tour, and I soon forgot about the mysterious door.
That night, I found myself tossing and turning in my bed, unable to fall asleep. Eventually, I gave up trying. I figured a nice walk through the corridors would be enough to tire me out. I climbed out of bed, slipped on a pair of brand new silk slippers, and wrapped a thin linen robe over my nightgown. I quietly sneaked out of my room and began to wander the halls.
Guided only by the dim light of the torches mounted periodically along the walls, I was thankful for the Prince's tour today. Despite the eerie silence and the dark of night shifting my surroundings a bit, I was fairly certain I could find my way back to my room.
I was wrong.
It wasn't long before I was aimlessly wandering the halls, praying that I would somehow find my way back. I made left and right turns at random intervals, hoping that by some astronomical chance, I would stumble upon my bedroom again.
I almost passed it. Not my bedroom, unfortunately, but the mystery door from earlier that day. However, before I could pass by I seemed to sense its presence. There was really no other way to describe the sensation. I somehow knew it was there. I could feel it almost pulling me toward it. I glanced down the halls to my left and right to see if anyone was around. Once I was sure no one was around, I reached for the doorknob.
Are you sure we should be doing this? Kuriboh asked, sounding unusually cautious. What if the Prince finds us?
I stopped. The Prince had been very protective of this door, making sure I couldn't even ask about it. No doubt, whatever was beyond that door, he didn't want anyone else to see. The only question was exactly how angry he would be with me if he discovered I had been here?
Then again, what was it that was so important that he felt he had to keep it a secret? I began to feel the pull of curiosity tug at me again. I grasped the tarnished brass doorknob, turning it as slowly and quietly as I possibly could. Ever so tenderly, I creaked the door open just enough so I could slip inside before turning and closing it behind me again.
I didn't take into account the footsteps running down the corridor toward me.
The first thing I noticed was the pale white glow along the wall, like that of moonlight. Next, I felt the crisp, cool air and the soft grass beneath my feet. I heard the rustle of leaves and the lap of water against the shore. I was confused. My senses were depicting a setting unlike anything I'd ever known in my 14 years of life here in Egypt. I turned slowly to face my surroundings, not quite sure what to expect.
What I saw was quite possibly the most beautiful scene I'd ever seen! The pale glow had indeed been moonlight from a full moon hanging in a clear, star-filled sky. I walked across the grass to the path of smooth, flat stones. The pathway led to an elegant stone garden bench under a young weeping willow tree, whose vine-like branches cascaded gently, providing a delicate shade to whoever chose to relax beneath it. The bench faced a small pond that was surrounded by small, round stones. Two light-colored fish called the pond their home.
"What are you doing here?!"
I whirled back to the door through which I had just entered. There stood the Prince, a mix of surprise and fury apparent on his face. He was still dressed in his day clothes, which led me to believe he hadn't slept either.
Having realized my mistake, I quickly fell to my knees, head ducked in an apologetic kowtow.
"Please forgive me, Your Highness," I begged. "I should never have intruded. I apologize." The grass was soft between my fingers and the stone slabs of the trail were smooth beneath my knees.
"I thought I told you not to come here," he growled as he approached me. Despite his earlier insistence at his passivity, I felt myself tense with every step he took, bracing myself for any sort of impact.
"Yes sir, you did," I said, my voice starting to grow shaky. Oh, gods, please don't hurt me again! I thought as tears stung behind my eyes. "I'm begging you, please, forgive me."
At the top of my peripheral vision, I could see his fine leather sandals. After a long, tense moment, I heard him sigh.
"Stand up, Rhea. You look ridiculous." He knelt down and gently took my arm, helping me to my feet. "And please stop acting like I'm going to hurt you. You look like I've taken a whip to your back like a master to his slave."
I looked up into his blood-red eyes. His expression was incomprehensible. I felt my heart beat a little faster. A slight blush crept its way onto my face.
"I'm sorry, sir."
The Prince rolled his eyes. "For Ra's sake, stop apologizing. It's getting on my nerves."
I opened my mouth to apologize again, but caught myself. Instead, I merely nodded, asking, "I'm assuming I'm not allowed to tell anyone of this, either?"
He nodded silently, but sternly.
I glanced around the garden again. "So, what is this place?"
The Prince sighed again. "Well, since you're already here, I suppose I might as well tell you. It used to by my mother's before she passed away. I come here every now and then when I need time to think or when I can't sleep."
Atem glanced down at Rhea, whose emerald eyes were sparkling with curiosity and excitement. It was clear she could appreciate this paradise as much as he did.
The reason he refused to tell anyone about this place was because it was the one room left in the entire palace that he could be alone, have time to himself; something he rarely received nowadays. Being the prince of Egypt meant constantly being surrounded by servants and watchmen. He was granted little to no privacy.
When he'd found his mother's garden three years ago, it was overgrown with weeds, and the fish were close to death. Luckily, over time, he'd managed to pry every weed from the ground and nurse the fish back to health, turning it into the picturesque scene that it was tonight.
"It's so beautiful," Rhea whispered in amazement. "Do you care for it yourself?"
Atem nodded, allowing the smallest grin of pride escape to the very corners of his lips. "I've tended to it since I found it three years ago. I even feed the fish."
The girl's eyes widened excitedly. "Show me?"
Atem laughed once before strolling off the path to the small jar of stale bread crumbs he'd snagged from the kitchens. He got down on his knees—with Rhea following close behind—and poured a small handful into his palm, tossing a few of the pieces to the pond. They hovered just below the surface of the water the fish swam up and swallowed them whole.
Rhea gasped. She stared up at him with delighted eyes. "May I?"
Atem took her hand and poured the rest of the bread crumbs into the palm of her hand. He couldn't help but notice how delicate her hands were.
The boy watched as she swept her hand over the water, distributing the remainder of the crumbs across the surface of the water. She giggled lightly as the fish darted up and down as they plucked their food from the water above.
"You know, you can get a better view from the seat by the willow."
Rhea gave Atem an incredulous look. "Are you offering for me to sit with you?" she asked.
Atem shrugged, rising to his feet. "I suppose," he replied. "Isn't that what we were doing already?" He offered a hand to help her to her feet.
"I…suppose," Rhea said hesitantly. Still she took his hand, and they walked to the shade of the willow tree and sat down. She smiled brightly as she realized that Atem had been right about the better view.
Slowly, the scaled spectacle began to die down. A light breeze blew through the garden, causing me to shiver a bit. I'd forgotten about my lack of sufficient clothing until just then. I crossed my arms over my chest in an attempt to keep any more body heat from escaping when I felt a warm, heavy cloth drape over my shoulders.
"Here," the Prince said. "You look like you need it more than I do."
"But, what about you?" I asked, just now starting to notice his strong shoulders and back that his cloak had been hiding. I felt the blush return. "Won't you get cold?"
The Prince shook his head. "I've been out here almost every day for the past three years. I'm used to it by now."
I was still uncertain, but I also wasn't entirely willing to give the cloak back either. I pulled the makeshift blanket closer to me, feeling the heat from the Prince that the cloak had absorbed seep into my skin.
With the warmth and the silence, I finally began to feel the effects of fatigue weigh on my eyelids. I yawned. I started to let my head fall, but I stopped myself. A strong arm wrapped around my shoulder, pulling me closer. I looked up at the Prince. Staying completely stone-faced, he nodded once, letting me know it was okay. Ever so carefully, I laid my head down and closed my eyes.
