A/N: Once again here I am with the next part to Tiger Lily. YAY!!! I hope
you enjoy! A special thanks to all who reviewed.
Satiana: Thank you so much, here is the next part for you!
Deana: Thank you for correcting me on that spelling. I knew something was wrong! ^_^. Thanks a lot!!
Ruse: Thank you! I'm so glad you liked it!
Disclaimer: I own nothing except Lily. If I did. well, I don't so let's not get into that. So on with the story!!!
Tiger Lily Part Two By: Venus
Ardeth had not slept at all. He had been far too nervous for that. All night he had been urging the sun to rise; to rise and just get what was coming over with, and now to his horror it was. Now as the sun slowly peeked over the horizon, he found himself wishing it back down into its slumber. He had sat all night, waiting for it to make him go and do what he needed, yet now, he was begging for more time. Begging for more time to prepare and get ready. He supposed it was the irony of the situation that bothered him. He was not one to behave this way! He would just as soon go and shoot up some mummies, then confront his anxiety about picking up his wife. He was nervous that she would be gone and he would parade in there like a fool, demanding something that was not there. He sighed and pulled a dagger out of his boot, studying his image in its highly reflective, polished blade. Not sleeping very well the night before and not at all this night had certainly taken its toll. He hoped she would not mind some dark circles.
Ardeth stood and cursed. Why did it matter what she would mind? Why was he being such a fool? He did not care for the affections of some woman! Or did he? Was that why he was so frightened? Was he truly that afraid of rejection? Shaking his head he replaced the dagger in his boot and went to saddle up his horse. The others were only now waking up, and a few of them were surprised to see him up, while the majority looked as though they expected as much. Ardeth suppressed a scowl. They all felt they knew what he was feeling, but he knew they didn't really know. How could they? They had all found their wives within their own clan: Ardeth on the other hand was barging into some unknown village demanding their leader's daughter! He shook his head as if to clear his thoughts and continued to saddle up his magnificent black steed. By the time everyone was done with eating and the camp was packed away and destroyed, the sun was already well into the brilliant morning sky.
As Ardeth swung up onto his saddle, his black robes billowing behind him, he said one last prayer as he looked down onto the village under them. He had dressed in what he considered his finest and had the pendent stowed safely in a bag on his saddle. Unbeknownst to him, the men behind him were also offering a prayer up in the name of their leader; they hadn't seen him this nervous for quite a long time. Upon his face there was always a look of confidence. A stolid glare always written upon his countenance. yet they had seen it as he looked down at the village, a small, well hidden look of doubt; of hesitation. Of course who would not be nervous to look upon the face of the woman you were promised to? The very woman who you would be spending the rest of your life with? The woman you had to rip away from her home and family? Yes, they knew very well why he was nervous.
Ardeth looked nervously from side to side as his companions lined up beside him on the hill top. Below them, he saw the movements of the different people as they went about their day. Their presence had gone unnoticed for several minutes before a child, being toted behind her mother looked up and spotted the black riders, lined up menacingly above them. Ardeth heard her shouting and pointing, drawing her mothers attention to them. Seeming like the best moment, Ardeth gave the command to rush down the hill. In a flurry of sand, the black Medjai warriors plunged down the mount, their horses plummeting into the sand, making a sand storm of their own as they plodded through the thick dirt. Through the mess, Ardeth could see the woman running towards a specific tents as the rest of the villagers emerged, attracted by her cries. Reaching the bottom of the hill, Ardeth raced forwards, urging his horse to go faster. His heart was pounding in his ears and his hands gripped his reins tightly.
As he neared the entrance to the village he passed many startled onlookers, their faces just a blur, for his eyes were trained ahead, where the ruler had emerged from his tent. As his horse came to a halt, it reared back, sending him high into the air mounted upon his brilliant stallion. He could see the fear in the man's eyes below him and could hear the startled gasps of people around him. He made for quite an imposing and mysterious figure.
His horse landed and Ardeth ceremoniously dismounted to bow deeply to the man in brilliant colored robes in front of him. The man was old, by the looks of it nearing his seventy's. however living in the desert could be deceiving as the sun and sand tended to wrinkle ones skin before its time. He had a long gray beard, and hair to match it. Upon his shoulders was a radiant green robe, reaching clear to the scorched sand on which they stood. Ardeth looked past this and into the man's eyes to find surprised brown orbs. Well, one of them was brown; the other had a milky blue film over it, indicating the loss of sight in it. Ardeth straightened and seemingly towered above the short, old man. "I've come for the third daughter of the house of Bilhgded." (A/N: made that up too, can you tell? ^_^.)
Whatever Ardeth was expecting, it certainly wasn't what he got. The old man merely looked up at him and shrugged. Ardeth tried again. It was only when the old man spoke did he realize he did not speak the language, nor even understand it. Ardeth mentally sighed and looked to the sky in defeat. Of all the languages of the desert he knew, the one his wife happened to be from, he didn't know. oh the God's surely answered his prayers.
The man shook his head, seeing the predicament and looked around for something that might help. Seeing a stick, he seized it and offered it to Ardeth, indicating the sand beneath his feet. Ardeth tried not to groan. The old man wanted him to draw what he wanted? What was he supposed to do? Draw a fat man with a beard and say it was him, draw his third daughter beneath him, then draw himself taking away his daughter in the sand? Oh sure! That would go over really well! Ardeth could not help but curse. Part of him felt like grabbing the stick and breaking it in two! The old man offered him the stick with a reassuring smile. Ardeth pushed the stick away. Suddenly as though lightning had hit, he remembered the pendent. Reaching into the bag secured to his belt, he withdrew from it the tiny silver necklace back, the blackened silver reflecting in the sunlight bouncing off its surface.
Immediately, upon seeing the pendent, the old mans eyes brightened and without any warning he swept Ardeth Bay into a bone crushing hug. The old man, once reluctant to speak was now chattering a mile a minute, Ardeth crushed to his side, trying to retain whatever dignity he had left. He had no idea what the old man was singing about, but the sound of it only made his heart lighten with relief. At least he hoped that meant that she was still here.
Kneeling across from her father in the middle of a lavishly decorated tent, Ardeth tried to make sense of what was happening. The man had resorted to the idea of drawing pictures in the sand and Ardeth was now struggling to understand just what was happening. He had drawn a stick figure and pointed at Ardeth, then made another and pointed at himself. Drawing a third figure, he drew a line connecting Ardeth to the third figure. The old man looked at him as if questioning him whether he understood or not. Ardeth nodded. At least he thought he understood what the old man was implying. Moving over a couple of feet the old man drew what Ardeth assumed was a horse and drew a line from the third figure (Which Ardeth could only assume was his daughter) and himself to the horse, then from the horse a line stretching out for a while. Ardeth knew what the old man was trying to say and nodded to indicate that he understood. Smiling with satisfaction the old man put down the stick and called out. "Lily!"
Although Ardeth didn't understand the language, he knew that this was his future wife's name and held his breath as he heard the tent flap in the back open after waiting a few tense moments. With the sun glinting behind her, lighting up different strands of her hair, making it gleam with light, in stepped one of the most beautiful women he had ever seen in his life. She was gorgeous. She had chocolate brown hair and brown eyes. Her skin was tanned from the desert sun and her slim body was covered in a spectacular red outfit. Ardeth didn't even know how to describe it. It was two pieces. The top was a midriff that only covered what needed to be. The bottom part was very baggy, sheer pants. It was something many women of the desert wore; it kept them covered, but not too hot while they labored under the sun. While he had seen many women wearing similar outfits, he lacked the words to explain why she was different from anyone else.
The woman entered and knelt before her father, touching her forehead to the floor. She said something in her native tongue and knelt beside her father. As she did so she threw a furtive glance at Ardeth. Ardeth felt his heart skip a beat, he went to gasp, but realized he was still holding his breath. Not wanting to look like a fool, he let out his breath as silently as he could. Her father said something to her, and in it Ardeth heard his name being said. He tried to contain his utter bewilderment. After her father finished speaking, she offered a small smile to him, and bowed again, though not as deeply as she did to her father. Ardeth counted his blessings; it appeared she had no problem with leaving. That is if her father told her she was going to be leaving.
Ardeth couldn't stop looking at her. she was absolutely gorgeous. The red of her outfit fit her dark skin, and brought out her brown eyes and dark hair. He could still feel his heart beating rapidly beneath his ribs. Even so, he could not contain his relief. The women had teased him before he left about having a wife bigger than himself. But this. this specimen was absolutely perfect in his eyes.
As custom in many villages, Ardeth slowly drew out the pendent and went to kneel closer to the woman across from him. As he did so she gave him a funny look, and looked to her father. Ardeth scowled as the father hid his face, pretending to be busy with something else while Ardeth leaned closer to her. While he did so she swallowed deeply and moved slightly away as though she was not expecting anything like this to happen. Ardeth reached forward to grab her necklace, and Lily started to say something. Again, Ardeth didn't know what she said but he didn't like her indignant tone or her father's reluctance to look at her. Pulling the necklace a little towards him, he pulled out his pendent and flipped over her golden pendent.
Ardeth took a moment to study her necklace. Unlike his pendent, hers was gold. On the font was an olive green type color background; while on the top of the color was the brilliant gold sun. It looked like a star, but the gold gave it the identity of the sun; a symbol of Nut, Goddess of the sky. As Ardeth went to connect his pendent to the back of hers, she caught eye of what he was doing. Something happened then that scared him to death. She let out a blood curdling screech and fled, stumbling out of the tent. It seemed as though she had no idea what was going on until she'd seen the pendent in his hands. Ardeth threw a furious glance at her father who was now looking at him just as angrily. He didn't tell her she was getting married! He'd just introduced them to each other! Her father like wise pointed heatedly to the picture still etched in the sand. It was then in that split second of bewilderment that Ardeth understood; he literally had to take her. It was like kidnapping his wife! What a ludicrous idea. All the same however, he would not give up his only chance for a wife like her and a family and life with her.
Scrambling to his feet he rushed out of the tent, whistling to his horse to come to him. As the black steed came rumbling towards him, he looked over to his side and caught sight of her running the way they came. He swung up onto his horse in a movement so fluid, so graceful, it seemed to exist only in dreams. Then with urgency in his movements he spurred the horse into a running gallop, easily catching up to the retreating Lily. Reaching down, he grabbed her hand that had come up while running, and yanked. She was much lighter than he had anticipated, so she was literally plucked out of the sand to land face to face with Ardeth as he thundered out of her village, his men following behind.
She was bawling now, and struggling with the furry of a tiger in a trap. She was reaching desperately back toward her village as though wishing someone would grab her hand and pull her back to safety. She was crying out in her language with words so full of emotion, Ardeth had to fight the impulse to stop and let her go. Looking over his shoulder one last time he saw her father reaching towards her, with her people looking after them, some of them running to try and catch up the them; a futile effort, for in seconds, they were already plodding up the steep hill.
Lilly was sitting uncomfortably in Ardeth's lap, facing him, but refusing to meet his eyes. He was sure it must be horrible to have to sit on a saddle that way, but he was unsure of how to remedy that at the moment. He didn't want to stop until they were far enough away from the village that she couldn't really run and get away before they found her again. as heartless as it sounds, he didn't want her to be able to leave him. She sat upon him, yet he could see her straining to refrain from touching him. Their eyes never made contact, but he could still see that they were puffy and red stained. Her chest was heaving from the effort of trying to stop crying and small hic-ups escaped her throat every now and again. Her hair was slightly disheveled and her hands were trying to lift herself off of the saddle -without touching him- trying to ease the discomfort of the position she was in. As sad as she looked, and as heartbreaking as it was to Ardeth, he could not help but feel relieved. It was over.
"She fights with the furry of a tiger," said one of his comrades riding beside him. "You'll have to watch her until this is over." "Until what is over?" Ardeth asked; trying to hide the fact he had the pretense that he thought it was. "This! It's not over until you're married, my friend." His comrade laughed. "This is only the beginning!" Ardeth paled noticeably and looked at his future bride who was still avoiding his eyes. Just as he had thought he would be rid of the butterflies in his stomach, they appeared again just a strong as before.
To Be Continued.
A/N: Yay!!! I know this was kind of hurried so I'm really sorry about that! The next chapter will be a lot better, with more of Ardeth being a gentleman and. yeah, just being Ardeth! I promise its going to be better. Thank you sooooo much to everyone who reviewed, that really means a lot to me. Because you did I'm thinking of dedicating the next chapter to you guys. Let me know if that would be ok with you, k? ^_~.
Satiana: Thank you so much, here is the next part for you!
Deana: Thank you for correcting me on that spelling. I knew something was wrong! ^_^. Thanks a lot!!
Ruse: Thank you! I'm so glad you liked it!
Disclaimer: I own nothing except Lily. If I did. well, I don't so let's not get into that. So on with the story!!!
Tiger Lily Part Two By: Venus
Ardeth had not slept at all. He had been far too nervous for that. All night he had been urging the sun to rise; to rise and just get what was coming over with, and now to his horror it was. Now as the sun slowly peeked over the horizon, he found himself wishing it back down into its slumber. He had sat all night, waiting for it to make him go and do what he needed, yet now, he was begging for more time. Begging for more time to prepare and get ready. He supposed it was the irony of the situation that bothered him. He was not one to behave this way! He would just as soon go and shoot up some mummies, then confront his anxiety about picking up his wife. He was nervous that she would be gone and he would parade in there like a fool, demanding something that was not there. He sighed and pulled a dagger out of his boot, studying his image in its highly reflective, polished blade. Not sleeping very well the night before and not at all this night had certainly taken its toll. He hoped she would not mind some dark circles.
Ardeth stood and cursed. Why did it matter what she would mind? Why was he being such a fool? He did not care for the affections of some woman! Or did he? Was that why he was so frightened? Was he truly that afraid of rejection? Shaking his head he replaced the dagger in his boot and went to saddle up his horse. The others were only now waking up, and a few of them were surprised to see him up, while the majority looked as though they expected as much. Ardeth suppressed a scowl. They all felt they knew what he was feeling, but he knew they didn't really know. How could they? They had all found their wives within their own clan: Ardeth on the other hand was barging into some unknown village demanding their leader's daughter! He shook his head as if to clear his thoughts and continued to saddle up his magnificent black steed. By the time everyone was done with eating and the camp was packed away and destroyed, the sun was already well into the brilliant morning sky.
As Ardeth swung up onto his saddle, his black robes billowing behind him, he said one last prayer as he looked down onto the village under them. He had dressed in what he considered his finest and had the pendent stowed safely in a bag on his saddle. Unbeknownst to him, the men behind him were also offering a prayer up in the name of their leader; they hadn't seen him this nervous for quite a long time. Upon his face there was always a look of confidence. A stolid glare always written upon his countenance. yet they had seen it as he looked down at the village, a small, well hidden look of doubt; of hesitation. Of course who would not be nervous to look upon the face of the woman you were promised to? The very woman who you would be spending the rest of your life with? The woman you had to rip away from her home and family? Yes, they knew very well why he was nervous.
Ardeth looked nervously from side to side as his companions lined up beside him on the hill top. Below them, he saw the movements of the different people as they went about their day. Their presence had gone unnoticed for several minutes before a child, being toted behind her mother looked up and spotted the black riders, lined up menacingly above them. Ardeth heard her shouting and pointing, drawing her mothers attention to them. Seeming like the best moment, Ardeth gave the command to rush down the hill. In a flurry of sand, the black Medjai warriors plunged down the mount, their horses plummeting into the sand, making a sand storm of their own as they plodded through the thick dirt. Through the mess, Ardeth could see the woman running towards a specific tents as the rest of the villagers emerged, attracted by her cries. Reaching the bottom of the hill, Ardeth raced forwards, urging his horse to go faster. His heart was pounding in his ears and his hands gripped his reins tightly.
As he neared the entrance to the village he passed many startled onlookers, their faces just a blur, for his eyes were trained ahead, where the ruler had emerged from his tent. As his horse came to a halt, it reared back, sending him high into the air mounted upon his brilliant stallion. He could see the fear in the man's eyes below him and could hear the startled gasps of people around him. He made for quite an imposing and mysterious figure.
His horse landed and Ardeth ceremoniously dismounted to bow deeply to the man in brilliant colored robes in front of him. The man was old, by the looks of it nearing his seventy's. however living in the desert could be deceiving as the sun and sand tended to wrinkle ones skin before its time. He had a long gray beard, and hair to match it. Upon his shoulders was a radiant green robe, reaching clear to the scorched sand on which they stood. Ardeth looked past this and into the man's eyes to find surprised brown orbs. Well, one of them was brown; the other had a milky blue film over it, indicating the loss of sight in it. Ardeth straightened and seemingly towered above the short, old man. "I've come for the third daughter of the house of Bilhgded." (A/N: made that up too, can you tell? ^_^.)
Whatever Ardeth was expecting, it certainly wasn't what he got. The old man merely looked up at him and shrugged. Ardeth tried again. It was only when the old man spoke did he realize he did not speak the language, nor even understand it. Ardeth mentally sighed and looked to the sky in defeat. Of all the languages of the desert he knew, the one his wife happened to be from, he didn't know. oh the God's surely answered his prayers.
The man shook his head, seeing the predicament and looked around for something that might help. Seeing a stick, he seized it and offered it to Ardeth, indicating the sand beneath his feet. Ardeth tried not to groan. The old man wanted him to draw what he wanted? What was he supposed to do? Draw a fat man with a beard and say it was him, draw his third daughter beneath him, then draw himself taking away his daughter in the sand? Oh sure! That would go over really well! Ardeth could not help but curse. Part of him felt like grabbing the stick and breaking it in two! The old man offered him the stick with a reassuring smile. Ardeth pushed the stick away. Suddenly as though lightning had hit, he remembered the pendent. Reaching into the bag secured to his belt, he withdrew from it the tiny silver necklace back, the blackened silver reflecting in the sunlight bouncing off its surface.
Immediately, upon seeing the pendent, the old mans eyes brightened and without any warning he swept Ardeth Bay into a bone crushing hug. The old man, once reluctant to speak was now chattering a mile a minute, Ardeth crushed to his side, trying to retain whatever dignity he had left. He had no idea what the old man was singing about, but the sound of it only made his heart lighten with relief. At least he hoped that meant that she was still here.
Kneeling across from her father in the middle of a lavishly decorated tent, Ardeth tried to make sense of what was happening. The man had resorted to the idea of drawing pictures in the sand and Ardeth was now struggling to understand just what was happening. He had drawn a stick figure and pointed at Ardeth, then made another and pointed at himself. Drawing a third figure, he drew a line connecting Ardeth to the third figure. The old man looked at him as if questioning him whether he understood or not. Ardeth nodded. At least he thought he understood what the old man was implying. Moving over a couple of feet the old man drew what Ardeth assumed was a horse and drew a line from the third figure (Which Ardeth could only assume was his daughter) and himself to the horse, then from the horse a line stretching out for a while. Ardeth knew what the old man was trying to say and nodded to indicate that he understood. Smiling with satisfaction the old man put down the stick and called out. "Lily!"
Although Ardeth didn't understand the language, he knew that this was his future wife's name and held his breath as he heard the tent flap in the back open after waiting a few tense moments. With the sun glinting behind her, lighting up different strands of her hair, making it gleam with light, in stepped one of the most beautiful women he had ever seen in his life. She was gorgeous. She had chocolate brown hair and brown eyes. Her skin was tanned from the desert sun and her slim body was covered in a spectacular red outfit. Ardeth didn't even know how to describe it. It was two pieces. The top was a midriff that only covered what needed to be. The bottom part was very baggy, sheer pants. It was something many women of the desert wore; it kept them covered, but not too hot while they labored under the sun. While he had seen many women wearing similar outfits, he lacked the words to explain why she was different from anyone else.
The woman entered and knelt before her father, touching her forehead to the floor. She said something in her native tongue and knelt beside her father. As she did so she threw a furtive glance at Ardeth. Ardeth felt his heart skip a beat, he went to gasp, but realized he was still holding his breath. Not wanting to look like a fool, he let out his breath as silently as he could. Her father said something to her, and in it Ardeth heard his name being said. He tried to contain his utter bewilderment. After her father finished speaking, she offered a small smile to him, and bowed again, though not as deeply as she did to her father. Ardeth counted his blessings; it appeared she had no problem with leaving. That is if her father told her she was going to be leaving.
Ardeth couldn't stop looking at her. she was absolutely gorgeous. The red of her outfit fit her dark skin, and brought out her brown eyes and dark hair. He could still feel his heart beating rapidly beneath his ribs. Even so, he could not contain his relief. The women had teased him before he left about having a wife bigger than himself. But this. this specimen was absolutely perfect in his eyes.
As custom in many villages, Ardeth slowly drew out the pendent and went to kneel closer to the woman across from him. As he did so she gave him a funny look, and looked to her father. Ardeth scowled as the father hid his face, pretending to be busy with something else while Ardeth leaned closer to her. While he did so she swallowed deeply and moved slightly away as though she was not expecting anything like this to happen. Ardeth reached forward to grab her necklace, and Lily started to say something. Again, Ardeth didn't know what she said but he didn't like her indignant tone or her father's reluctance to look at her. Pulling the necklace a little towards him, he pulled out his pendent and flipped over her golden pendent.
Ardeth took a moment to study her necklace. Unlike his pendent, hers was gold. On the font was an olive green type color background; while on the top of the color was the brilliant gold sun. It looked like a star, but the gold gave it the identity of the sun; a symbol of Nut, Goddess of the sky. As Ardeth went to connect his pendent to the back of hers, she caught eye of what he was doing. Something happened then that scared him to death. She let out a blood curdling screech and fled, stumbling out of the tent. It seemed as though she had no idea what was going on until she'd seen the pendent in his hands. Ardeth threw a furious glance at her father who was now looking at him just as angrily. He didn't tell her she was getting married! He'd just introduced them to each other! Her father like wise pointed heatedly to the picture still etched in the sand. It was then in that split second of bewilderment that Ardeth understood; he literally had to take her. It was like kidnapping his wife! What a ludicrous idea. All the same however, he would not give up his only chance for a wife like her and a family and life with her.
Scrambling to his feet he rushed out of the tent, whistling to his horse to come to him. As the black steed came rumbling towards him, he looked over to his side and caught sight of her running the way they came. He swung up onto his horse in a movement so fluid, so graceful, it seemed to exist only in dreams. Then with urgency in his movements he spurred the horse into a running gallop, easily catching up to the retreating Lily. Reaching down, he grabbed her hand that had come up while running, and yanked. She was much lighter than he had anticipated, so she was literally plucked out of the sand to land face to face with Ardeth as he thundered out of her village, his men following behind.
She was bawling now, and struggling with the furry of a tiger in a trap. She was reaching desperately back toward her village as though wishing someone would grab her hand and pull her back to safety. She was crying out in her language with words so full of emotion, Ardeth had to fight the impulse to stop and let her go. Looking over his shoulder one last time he saw her father reaching towards her, with her people looking after them, some of them running to try and catch up the them; a futile effort, for in seconds, they were already plodding up the steep hill.
Lilly was sitting uncomfortably in Ardeth's lap, facing him, but refusing to meet his eyes. He was sure it must be horrible to have to sit on a saddle that way, but he was unsure of how to remedy that at the moment. He didn't want to stop until they were far enough away from the village that she couldn't really run and get away before they found her again. as heartless as it sounds, he didn't want her to be able to leave him. She sat upon him, yet he could see her straining to refrain from touching him. Their eyes never made contact, but he could still see that they were puffy and red stained. Her chest was heaving from the effort of trying to stop crying and small hic-ups escaped her throat every now and again. Her hair was slightly disheveled and her hands were trying to lift herself off of the saddle -without touching him- trying to ease the discomfort of the position she was in. As sad as she looked, and as heartbreaking as it was to Ardeth, he could not help but feel relieved. It was over.
"She fights with the furry of a tiger," said one of his comrades riding beside him. "You'll have to watch her until this is over." "Until what is over?" Ardeth asked; trying to hide the fact he had the pretense that he thought it was. "This! It's not over until you're married, my friend." His comrade laughed. "This is only the beginning!" Ardeth paled noticeably and looked at his future bride who was still avoiding his eyes. Just as he had thought he would be rid of the butterflies in his stomach, they appeared again just a strong as before.
To Be Continued.
A/N: Yay!!! I know this was kind of hurried so I'm really sorry about that! The next chapter will be a lot better, with more of Ardeth being a gentleman and. yeah, just being Ardeth! I promise its going to be better. Thank you sooooo much to everyone who reviewed, that really means a lot to me. Because you did I'm thinking of dedicating the next chapter to you guys. Let me know if that would be ok with you, k? ^_~.