A Forgotten Soul ~
Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-gi-oh
Dictionary
Bazaar-Market
Daiu- a loincloth of cotton or linen
Ra- Egyptian sun god
Abnore' looked out of her window as the ship she was on entered a port in Cairo. She had to laugh, "So is this what my life has come to?" As she walked onto the dock, she thought about the events leading up to this moment.
Her father had been a rich merchant. For the first three years of her life, he was almost nonexistent. He spent all of his time trading in countries like Japan, China, Italy, England, Portugal, the Middle East, and his favorite Spain.
Her mother died when she was three. For the next four years, she was raised by nannies that taught her to sew, cook, and clean. At age 7, her father moved her to Spain so that she could be closer to him. When she was fourteen, her father's company started to loose business and money. By the time she was 16 (which is her present age in the story) The Spanish government was furious with him because he was in debt millions of dollars.
That faithful night when the guards entered her father's estate to take everyone on the grounds to prison, her father held a small bag in his hand for her. " Abnore', this is what's left of our money, take it. Use the secret passage way in the dining room to get to the city Cartagena. Take a boat back to your place of birth, back to Egypt. There is a job as a maid for the pharaoh waiting for you there."
"Papa, I can't just leave you here. They'll kill you!" Abnore' argued.
" You are the last of the Ashido's. Our family has worked hard to get to where we are today. Your great-grandfather traveled from Japan to Egypt. If you die, so does our family line. If we both go, they'll hunt us down to make an example of us. But if they get me, they may be content and leave you be. Go, just go!" He hissed. He threw her into the secret passageway, closed the door, and put the mantle, and dressing table over it. Just as he sat down at the dining room table the Spanish guards appeared. "What seems to be the problem officers?"
Abnore' s small and barefooted feet traveled quickly and surreptitiously through the passageway. It would be a long night for her, because if she stopped to rest, she could miss the ship bound for Egypt, or worse, the Spanish guards could have found a way in. She had to leave her home in Torre Pacheco to Cartagen, which was about 10-20 miles away. She had to do it in the night that way no one would see her.
She could only bring a few pieces of clothing, enough to sustain her for a week without washing them, a few pieces of fruit, and jewelry. The jewelry was not for a sentimental value, but if she got stuck in a jam, she could sell or trade the jewelry for money. She broke into a sprint so that she could reach there sooner. Good thing she was a fast runner. By the time she reached Cartagen's port, she had nearly missed the boat.
So here she was, back in Egypt again. No family. No friends. She'd have learn to blend in again. She knew how to speak Egyptian, so that was a start. She took off into a sprint again heading for the palace. She studied the map for days and if it was drawn correctly she could make it there in ten minutes. Her scarlet, knees length dress clung to her like an infant to its mother.
Finally she reached. Unbeknownst to her, her jaw had dropped. Before her father's business had crumbled, she was used to the finer things in life, but she'd never seen anything like this building before. It was eloquent, yet there seemed to be some sort of simplicity to it.
"You must be the new maid." A male voice called to her from behind. She turned around to see a tall man with short brown hair with mesmerizing, blue eyes. A young boy with long, black hair accompanied him. They looked a lot like each other, and they were dressed in similar attire. They both wore a long daiu each and a white transparent shirt.
"I'm Seto, and this is my brother Mokuba. I'll be showing you around the palace today. Your late." Although he had a soft tender voice to him, he seemed to be irritated, as though he was being forced to do this.
"I'm sorry I…" was all Abnore' could get out before getting cut off.
Names and excuses are of no use to me. This way please." Seto added haughtily.
"And this is your room." Mokuba concluded happily at the end of the tour.
" I would like to thank pharaoh, for helping me get this job. Is it possible for me to see him?" Abnore' asked.
Pharaoh does not have time to waste talking to servant girls who want to make googly eyes at him, besides he's out of town." Seto responded.
'No Abnore', calm down. You need this job. You cant afford to draw attention to yourself right now.' she scolded herself. ' I hope pharaoh isn't as rude as him.'
"Thank you anyway." was all she could muster up to say. She walked into the sparsely furnished room. There was a bed, desk, lantern, a trunk to put all of her stuff into and a thick curtain covering the window.
It had been a month since Abnore' started working for the pharaoh and still no pharaoh. She was beginning to wonder if this "pharaoh" actually existed.
Yet everywhere she went people spoke highly of him. From the servants to the wealthiest people in all of Egypt. One day while she was at the bazaar, he was mentioned all day. "I heard he once set a whole ship of Roman slaves free." said one servant to his companions. " No, no, no, his greatest deed was figuring out a way to control those duel monsters," retorted another starry-eyed girl servant. "No, your both wrong…" piped in their friend.
Whoever this mystery pharaoh was, he was loved and revered by his people.
Since Abnore's job was arduous at best, and mind-numbingly complicated at worst, she liked to take strolls in the evening through the bazaar when the sun went down to relax. Everyday, she thanked Ra that her nannies made her help out. Other wise she wouldn't know how to cope with keeping up.
As she walked through the bazaar one night a guy came up behind her, a guy came up behind her and grabbed her; "Little girls such as you should be in bed by now. Don't worry, I'll tuck you in myself!"