The next morning, Atemu didn't want to get out of bed. After trying and failing, Mahad thought he should tell the Pharaoh, in case there was something they had to talk about.
"My son, what's wrong? Are you not feeling well?" the Pharaoh asked Atemu.
"Something happened yesterday, father." Atemu sat up and leaned with his back against the wall, looking up at the roof.
"Tell me." the Pharaoh sat on the bed.
"Yesterday, Cerise took me to her hiding place." He began to explain.
"The place she goes when she's angry. Yes, go on." The Pharaoh nodded.
"We were all alone, and we went for a swim." Atemu went on, looking at his father from behind his golden bangs
"Oh, I see where this is going." The pharaoh smiled. He knew they loved each other, and quite frankly, he had expected them to have been together already. But it seemed something was wrong.
"You do?" Atemu asked and his father nodded.
"You and her almost made love yesterday, didn't you." He asked.
"Yes, we did, almost." Atemu sighed.
"Well there's nothing wrong with wanting her. She is strikingly beautiful." The Pharaoh admitted.
"Thank you, but she has it in her head that she wants to be married before we do." Atemu said.
"There, is another way." His father stood up and walked to the balcony.
Atemu got up and followed him.
"It is called the Ritual of Osiris and Isis." The Pharaoh explained.
"Okay. Why haven't I heard anything about it?" Atemu asked.
"This ritual is reserved for princes, future Pharaohs." He explained to Atemu.
"Okay, how does it work?" he asked.
"Do you know how long it took Isis to revive Osiris?" he asked Atemu.
"Nine days, why?" he said to his father.
"It is called the ritual of Isis and Osiris, because, you and a girl are locked in a room for nine days, to do whatever you want." The Pharaoh said.
"Any girl?" Atemu asked and his father nodded.
"Any girl."
"Anything?"
"Anything you want. You do it when you are 16. So if you want her, we can do this ritual." He said to Atemu, placing his hand on his shoulder.
"I'll have to talk to Cerise, but I'm sure it will be okay." Atemu said.
"Fine, you talk to her today, and then you let me know tonight. Then we can start arranging things tomorrow." Atemu nodded and his father left the room.

He got dressed quickly and then he went to go look for Cerise. As usual, she was at the royal stables, training yet another horse. He stood at the poles, waiting for her to take a break. She threw a glance in his direction every now and then. She couldn't believe that that skinny little boy could become such an attractive man. He had a tan like all the other Egyptian boys, but the body of a warrior, the mind of a genius and a heart of gold. He was perfect.
She hadn't done too bad herself. When she came here, she was pale from working indoors at Kaiba Corp. She had a weak body, with little muscle tone, compared to what it was now. Now she had curvature, hips, a butt, and strength; riding wild, unbroken horses all day had its advantages. She also had a stunning, golden, even tan, but was still paler than the other girls.
As she was watching him, he was watching his horses in the other field. She saw a group of maybe ten girls behind him, gossiping and whispering. She never liked people like that, even now. One of them called to Atemu and he turned around and waved at them. They ran off like childish little girls with crushes. She pulled in the horse she was training and let him go. She walked up to the fence and leaned in the opposite direction that he was looking.
"Good morning." He said, clearly happy about this ritual business.
"Morning." She replied, laying the rope down on the fence.
"Look at those two." He said, gesturing towards Ra and Iris.

She turned around and leaned on the fence with her elbows. Ra was still trying to impress Iris, but she wasn't buying it, grazing like he wasn't even there.
"Are they still at it?" he asked.
"Yeah, soon she'll be ready to be covered. You should see how he fights for her." she said, looking at him.
She showed him the other stallion that Ra had fought with. He had deep cuts and bite marks all over.
"Ouch, anyway." He said, looking back at her.
"There is something I want to ask you." He said.
"There is something I want to ask you too." She said too.
"You go first." He said.
"What was that, just now?" she asked.
"Remind me." he frowned.
"With the girls."
"I was only greeting them."
"They like you."
"Everyone likes me. I'm the Prince."
"No, I mean the like, like you." She said.
"Oh, well I didn't know that." He rubbed the back of his head.
"Yeah, you never see things like that." She said, grabbing the rope off the fence.
She walked to the horse she was training, and hooked the rope up to him again. She began training him again.
"Can I ask you my thing now?" he shouted over the sound of thundering hooves.
"Sure." She shouted back.
"I... I spoke to my father, this morning…" he shouted.
"Hey, what was that?" she couldn't hear him. He sighed and waited for the horse to run past then he climbing into the arena with her. He walked up to her and carried on.
"I spoke to my father this morning." He said to her.
"Oh, about what?" she asked, not looking at him.
"Yesterday." He said and she stopped the horse and looked harshly at him.
"You told him." She looked at him with worry in her eyes.
Before he could say anything, she asked the next question.
"Have you told Mana and Mahad?" she asked.
"No. But, just listen." he urged her.
"He must think I'm a whore." She looked down at the ground before she sat down on the ground.
"No, he told me that there was nothing wrong with it." Atemu went down on his haunches next to her.
"He also told me that there was a way around it." He added.
She turned to face him.
"There is?" she asked and he smiled and nodded.
"He told me of a ritual called the Ritual of Osiris and Isis." He said.
"Never heard of it." She frowned. He had to be making this up, just to get her into bed.
"It is reserved for Princes only." He smiled.
"Go on." She said.
"Basically, I can choose an girl and we get locked in a room for nine days." He outlined the basics.
"Alone?" she asked and he nodded.
"To do whatever we want."
"And we won't be criticised." She asked.
"No."
"Nine days is a long time." she said, looking up at him.
"Time flies when you're having fun." He suggested and smiled.
She pushed him over and he fell on his back.
"So, are you thinking of doing this thing?" she asked him.
"Yes, I am." He put his hands under his head and closed his eyes.
The sun was warm on his skin, and the grass was soft on his back.
"All I need is the go ahead from you." He said.
"You want to do this thing with me?" she swooped over him, blocking the sunlight.
He opened his eyes.
"Who else?" he said.
"Well, maybe one of your pretty Egyptian admirers." She stood up and walked towards the fence.
He got up and walked after her.
"There is no one else I would rather be locked up with." He said, seizing her around her hips.
He pulled her towards him with his hands. He knew exactly what to do to get her to say yes. He came in close to her neck and breathed onto it.
"Say you'll do it." He whispered into her left ear.
"Atem, we…can't." She sighed, feeling err lust for him rising again.
"Why not? We'll have the blessing of the gods." He breathed on her neck.
"Say yes." He urged her on.
He was swaying his hips with hers. She felt his hands on her hips, and his breath on her neck and her mind flooded with the images of when they were together back in 2006. That hot and steamy night haunted her ever since, and she longed o have that time back. To have him back in her bed.
"Yes." She finally whispered.
"What was that?" he whispered softly, grabbing her earlobe in between his teeth.
"Okay. I'll do it." She whispered.
"Thanks." He kissed her on the cheek quickly and let her go, leaving her reeling in her little cloud of hormones and lust.
He ran off towards the palace.
"That's not fair!" she shouted at him.
"What's not fair?" he turned around.
"You tricked me into saying yes." She shouted at him.
"I did no such thing." He blew her a kiss and ran off.
"Oh, I'll get you back." She said. She picked up the rope and thought of how she was just swindled. But she was glad as she watched him run off.

Atemu went to his father, who was in the throne room with Cerise's father and all the priests. All the priests students were there too, the people who would take over after them.
"Father, I have," Atemu stormed into the room.
He looked around, and saw that they were in the middle of a meeting.
"Sorry, I'll come back later." He said, beginning to leave the room.
"No, son, you can come in." the Pharaoh said.
Everyone bowed to him as he walked past, everyone but two people, the high priest of Seth and his son, Set.
"Father, that thing we talked about this morning." Atemu said to his father, not wanting to give too much away.
"Yes?" he asked his son.
"We can go ahead. I have a girl." He smiled.
Mahad stood up.
"Pharaoh, are you going to let him do the Ritual of Osiris and Isis?" he asked.
Mana stood up too. She knew exactly who he had chosen.
"Yes. I am." He looked down at them from his throne.
"He isn't even 16 yet." Mana said.
"He will be in two months." The Pharaoh said.
"You have chosen Cerise?" her father asked.
Atemu nodded.
"Good. We will start with the preparations as soon as it is possible. Well done son." He said.

Atemu nodded and left the room. He went to go see Cerise, but she was gone. He went to go look for her by the river, but she wasn't there either. He asked the guards at the front gate where she had gone and they told him that she had gone to the Temple of Isis. He got Ra ready and rode out to go see if it was true. Sure enough, Iris was tied up outside the temple. He reined Ra in and got off. He tied him to the pole and went in. Children weren't allowed in temples, so he had never been in this one before. He found her on the ground, praying in front of a statue of Isis. He put his hand on her shoulder and she stood up. She turned around and looked at him.
"If you're not ready, we can postpone it." He said softly.
"No, I want to do it." She smiled.
"Then why are you so sad?" he asked.
"I'm not. I'm thanking her, for giving me this gift." She said, turning to look at the golden statue of Isis.
"Why her?" he looked at the statue.
"Sorry?"
"Why did you choose her, to be your goddess?"
"I don't know, I just feel connected to her, that's all." She smiled.
"I've told my father." He said.
"And?" she asked.
"When I'm 16. Then we…" he looked at her.
"You know." He shrugged his shoulders.
"You know, Atem I think you're lost for words." She mocked him.
"Well, yes." He agreed.
"Two months, I have a lot to do and learn." She said.
"Isn't it better when we don't know what's happening?" he said.
"Yeah, I suppose. But I still have to go get something." She smiled.
"What?" he asked.
"You can come with if you want." She offered him a day of shopping with her.
"Is it going to be embarrassing?" he asked and she shrugged.
"Maybe." She smiled.

The high priestess came into the temple and the acolytes left the room for her to join the two of them.
"Cerise." She said.
"Mana." She greeted her.
"I believe we have reason to rejoice." She looked at Atemu.
"Yes." She looked at him too, he was blushing profusely.
"I'll give you a list of things you need to buy." She went to the scroll room and took down and empty scroll.
She jotted down a few things and gave it to Cerise. She checked the list and nodded.
"Atemu, have you forgotten about your sword handling lesson?" she looked at him.
"Oh gods." He remembered that Mahad was waiting for him.
"You had better get going." She said.
"I know." He kissed Cerise on the cheek and ran out.
"I had better go and buy these things." She said, walking out the temple.

She jumped up onto Iris, and rode off after Atemu. She wanted to watch him learn to handle a sword. Today was his first lesson.
When she got the archery and sword ring, Mahad was giving him tips on holding the sword. She got off and let Iris graze, next to her. She sat down and watched him. He had a natural flare for swordsmanship. She smiled, knowing she had chosen well.
Within a week, he was ready take on an opponent.

"I want to fight Cerise." He said, looking at her standing next to the fence.
"No, you're not that good yet." Mahad said.
"Remember she was a trained assassin in her last life." Mahad reminded him.
"I have a better opponent." He said, calling a boy from the side.
It was Seto, or in this life, his name was Set. Mahad stepped out of the ring of whites stones and counted them down.
"1, 2, 3. Go." He said.
Their swords connected and white sparks flew in every direction. Atemu ducked and swung around to the other side and Set turned around, swung his sword at him with full force. Atemu jumped back, and the sword narrowly missed him.
They fought like this for a few minutes, and then things got even rougher. Set used a move and disarmed Atemu, sending his sword flying. When he realized he was unarmed and that Set was still in the game, he put up his hands.
"Whoa, man. It's over, you win." Atemu said.
"Step down, Set." Mahad said.
Set didn't listen. He lifted his sword to Atemu's throat and pressed the silver blade against his neck. Atemu stepped back, tripping on the white stones. He fell over and Set moved closer. He had so much anger and it was all seemed directed at Atemu. Cerise knew she had to do something. Set had the look in his eyes she knew all too well, when she looked at herself when she was on the job. He was going to kill Atemu.
"I'm going to kill you in front of you little woman." He said, lifting his sword high above his head to plunge into Atemu's heart.

As the sword fell, Atemu closed his eyes and waited for it to be over. Then he heard the sound of metal against metal. He opened his eyes, and Cerise was standing above him. She had run over, grabbed his sword and blocked Set's attack, and was holding the sword against Set's power. They were evenly matched. Atemu couldn't help, but grab a glance up her skirt.
"I hope you're not looking were I think you're looking." She said, never letting Set out of her sight.
She was right. If she had not stepped in, he would have killed Atemu. She was now thankful for all the training she had gone through, the pain, the broken bones, and nights spent balancing on a pole in the bitter cold rain, had all led up to this moment, when she used her skills to save the man she loved.
Atemu looked at Set, who wasn't giving up. He lifted his sword to get Cerise to stand down, but she did the same move he had used to disarm Atemu, on him, only faster. Before he knew it, he was flat on his back on the ground, her foot on his chest and her sword at his throat.
She had that same feeling she had when she was about to kill someone. She thought of running the edge down his neck and watching the blood gush out, but lowered her sword instead. Set crawled back, not expecting her to be so good. She looked at him as he got to his feet and looked at her in shock.
"Stand down." Mahad said to Set.
She stared at him, unblinking, ready to take him again if he lunged at them again. Set laughed nervously, pretending that he hadn't just been beaten by a girl, and picked up his sword.
"One day, Prince. I will have my vengeance." He said, walking off.
Cerise dropped the sword and turned to Atemu.
"Are you okay?" she asked.
"Yeah." He said, lifting his hand for her to pull him up.
She pulled him up and when she stood on his right foot, the pain shot through his leg like a hot blade.
"AH!" he shouted and leaned heavily on Cerise.
She caught him with a hand on his chest and arm.
"What is it?" she asked.
"My leg." He said timidly.
She looked down and saw that his ankle was swollen and blue.
"You've sprained you ankle." She said.
"It feels broken." he said, looking down at it.
Mahad took a look at it and agreed.
"It is broken." He agreed.
"We need to get him to his room." She said.
"No, just lie him down here." Mahad said.
She was puzzled, but did as he said. She lay him down and knelt next to his head.
"Take his hand." Mahad said.
She did, and then Mahad took out a little golden box out of his pocket. He opened the box and sprinkled a black powder on his ankle. He began to scream like he was being murdered, writhing and fighting against her hand and the ground as he arched his neck and back.
"What's happening to him?" she shouted at Mahad.
"He is healing, but so fast that it hurts more than the broken ankle." He said.
Atemu squeezed her hand till both their hands were red.
"It's okay, just listen to my voice. Everything will be okay." She whispered in his ear, but it didn't seem to help.
"How long will this go on?" she asked Mahad.
"Not much longer now." He said.
He took out a canister of water and washed off the powder. Atemu stopped screaming and took a few deep breaths.
"Is it over?" he asked Mahad.
"Yes." He smiled.
"Stand on it." Mahad added.
Atemu stood up and put all his weight on his leg. It was fine.
"What is that stuff?" Cerise asked.
"Dried phoenix tears. Works like a charm." Mahad put the little box away.
"It really hurt." Atemu said.
"Like being gutted alive." Mahad agreed.

They went back to the palace and got dressed into more comfortable clothes. Cerise came to fetch him when she was ready to go to town. They walked out of the palace.
"Did you see how angry he was?" Atemu said to Cerise.
"He really hates you." she said.
"What for, I did nothing to him." He thought.
"Maybe he learnt his lesson." She was wishful, but she doubted it. That kind of hate didn't die after one defeat.
"You were so fast; you grabbed that sword and taught him a lesson." He copied her moves with the sword. She laguehd at him and smiled.
"I did what I had to." She smiled at him dancing in the middle of the street.
"Maybe you should give me lessons." He said.
"When you're ready, we can fight. Okay." She said.

They went to the apothecary in town.
"What do we need to get here?" he asked her.
"Come and see." She went in.
She walked up to the pharmacist and asked him for the thing they had to come and get.
"Do you have any Winter Lilly Powder?" she asked him.
He nodded and walked to the back.
"Winter Lilly?" Atemu asked.
"Ask Mahad." She smiled.
"Planning to do something that no one should know about, hey." The pharmacist said as he came out the back with a big jar of white powder.
"No, it's for a friend." She smiled and took out two gold coins.
"No, you can have it." The pharmacist said.
"Thank you." She said, walking out the pharmacy.

The next day, when Atemu went for his sword-handling lesson, he asked Mahad what this medicine was.
"Why do you want to know?" he asked him.
"Yesterday, when I went with Cerise to the apothecary, she bought a big jar of it." He said to him.
"Oh." Mahad said, looking at him with wide eyes. He had hoped Mana would let the secrets of being a woman in this time, elude Atemu.
"Oh, what?" he asked him, dropping the point of his sword to the ground.
"It stops woman becoming expectant when they don't want to." Mahad explained.
"So it's birth control." Atemu thought.
"Yes." He confirmed.
"Oh." He said, looking towards Cerise and Mana, who were watching them from the fence.
"Does it work?" he asked, looking at Cerise. They had spoken about having a baby just before they came to this place. He secretly hoped that the Winter Lilly was just an old wives tale, and that they could have a child soon.
He never expected her to be this stunning. She got a tan, and had blended in well with Egyptians. Her legs were long and shapely, her physique was like that of a woman, but she was somewhat taller than the other girls. Her hair was long and elegant; it came almost to her waist.
"The Winter Lilly? I think so." Mahad blushed.
"Are you going to get married?" Atemu asked him.
"Maybe, look at her." he stopped and looked at Mana.
Atemu's eyes never left Cerise.
"Yeah, she is gorgeous." He said.

"They're looking at us." Mana said to Cerise.
"What do we do?" Cerise asked.
"We wave." Mana waved at Mahad.
Cerise waved at Atemu. They waved back.
"Did you get the Lilly powder?" Mana asked her.
"Yes."
"What is wrong today?" Mana asked her.
"What do you mean?" she asked, looking up at Mana.
"You've never hesitated to show that you care for Atemu." She said.
"I have a lot on my mind, that's all." She sighed.
"Like?" Mana pushed her to tell her.
She turned around and leaned on the fence.
"I don't think I'm ready for this." She admitted.
"When you look at him, what do you want to do?" Mana asked.
Cerise blushed.
"I can't tell you that." She said, looking at her feet.
"Then you're ready." Mana smiled.
Cerise smiled and turned back around to smile at Atemu.