Yay! ^_________^ 6 REVIEWS!!!! That's 3 times more what I had for Sleeping Handsome at this time! Thanks to all those that reviewed!
They would be:
f.y.i(): Sorry about that. ^^;;; I am a terrible speller. Both my parents are bad spellers, so naturally I'm cursed. -_-; I typed it in Microsoft Word and it recognized it. Stupid spell check! *Throws Yami her stuffed frog at computer. * I forgot it was a homonym. -_-
Lau: Thanks; guess I'm not the only person who likes Aida 'round here. ^^;;
Waterlily7763: I'm glad you like it! ^. ~ I can't believe you think it's "awesome" @_@!
Miami-chan: I am. ^_^
Koishii No Tenshi: I'm happy you enjoyed it! And ditto as Miami-chan.
ChibiYuugi-kun: You don't know how surprised I was to get a review alert literally minutes after I posted, and before going on vacation. Guess I'd better start. *imagines several things being thrown at her, like knives, if she does not. *
Interesting fact: I did not know that originally the show Aida (musical not the opera) was called Elaborate Lives: The Legend of Aida during the casting sessions in the spring of 1998. I did not know that when I started writing this! I named it "Elaborate Lives" because I thought the name of the song was an appropriate title for this fic.
Disclaimer: Still don't own Yu-Gi-Oh! I if I did Yami and Yugi would be together. And no! I don't own Aida or any lyrics I use! Any flames will be used to burn Yami / Anzu manga!!!!:D
Now back to the story!
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Prince Atem watched his soldiers burning down houses from his position on deck as the sun shown brightly in the sky reflecting its glorious rays of the cobalt blue waters of the Nile. Destruction and chaos surrounded him. Small village huts were being burned to a crisp, and a chorus of screams of pain and terror could be heard in the distance. He watched one little girl standing in the middle of the village sobbing and hugging her doll which was no more than a scrap of cloth covering a rock and tied together with a piece of string.
"MAMA," she screamed. Honestly his heart went out to the poor frightened child, but he had his duties to his father (the Pharaoh) and Egypt. He didn't like this part of exploring. He loved to see new places and to meet new people. He did not enjoy hurting the innocent, but he would do almost anything for his Kingdom. He sighed remembering a phrase his father always said, "fortune favors the brave".
"Your highness," said a voice from behind him. Atem turned around
"Yes?" he asked.
"We have carried out your orders sir, and have secured many of Nubia's natural resources, sir," replied the soldier.
"Does your highness wish to what we have gotten?" he asked.
"Yes, I do, bring it on deck, if it is enough we can return home," replied Atem. This was met by many load cheers form the soldiers. Several of them set about dragging heaps of goods such as gold, ebony, ivory, and an assortment of various kind of incense, as well as slaves. When he was young he wasn't sure what his father meant. Now he thought he understood.
"Soldiers, Did I ever tell you what my father used to say to me as a child?" asked Atem. A soldier stubbed his big toe on a loose floorboard.
"Oh, oh" he cried picking up his foot and began hopping up and down.
"Fortune favors the brave," replied another to the prince's question.
"Yes, and I've told you that I had no idea what it meant?" he asked. Several soldiers nodded, not really sure where he was going with this.
"I think I know what he meant now. Another soldier stubbed his toe on the same loose floorboard. He too cried "Oh, oh." The other soldiers joined in and sang.
Soldiers:
Oh oh
Fortune favors the brave
Oh oh
Fortune favors the brave
Atem joined in the chorus and sang:
We have swept to glory, Egypt's mastery expands
From the Nile's northern delta to the dry, dry southern sands
The more we find, the more we see, the more we come to learn
The more that we explore, the more we shall return
Soldiers:
Oh oh
Fortune favors the brave
Atem:
It's all worked out, my road is clear
The lines of latitude extend
Way beyond my wildest dreams
Toward some great triumphant end
We seized the day, we turned the tide
We touched the stars, we mocked the grave*
We moved into uncharted lands
Atem and soldiers:
Fortune favors the brave
Atem:
The more we find, the more we see
the more come to learn
The more that we explore
the more we shall return
Nothing is an accident
We are free to have it all
We are what we want to be
It's in ourselves to raise and fall
This is easy to believe
When distant places call to me
It's harder from the place yard
Fortune favors the free
Soldiers:
Oh oh
Fortune favors the brave
Atem:
Fortune favors the young
Soldiers:
Oh oh
Fortune favors the brave
Atem:
Fortune favors the brave
"All right men. Let's go home!" cried Atem. With that every soldier hurried to his station. The sails fell down and filled with the breeze, sending them on their way home. It wasn't till now that Atem began to notice the slaves. He noticed that they all looked young, strong, and healthy and nearly all of them were women. Slaves like that would bring a good profit at the auction block.
Then he noticed one boy, who was staring at him rather defiantly. Normally he would have punished a slave for such an action, this boy seemed different. Atem almost admired this boy for his defiance. He noted that the boy had a striking resemblance to himself. They both had tri-colored hair of black, blond, and red. This boy's eyes were a lovely shade of lavender and they were innocent. So unlike his own, blood red and narrow. Just then a soldier interrupted his thoughts.
"Captain what will you have us do with these vermin?" Something about the soldier calling these slaves vermin got on the prince's nerves, but he decided not to react on it.
"Lock them in the brig." He retorted, a bit annoyed about getting his thoughts interrupted. This remark got a wide-eyed stare out the lavender-eyed boy. The soldier immediately began rounding the slaves up, including the boy.
"No, not that one' ordered Atem 'bring him to my quarters!" the soldier quickly complied and the boy started to cry apparently frightened of what his Highness would do to him.
'Oh no! I didn't mean to make him cry!' thought Atem as he glanced over board at the setting sun on the Nile. He sighed, turned, and headed for his quarters.
When he got there he found the slave boy sitting on the floor looking down at it with his eyes filled with tears. "It's alright,' he stated gently 'I'm not going to harm you."
The boy seemed to calm down. "What is your name?"
"Yugi," he stated timidly.
"How old are you, Yugi?" the prince asked.
"I'm sixteen summers old," he replied.
"It's been a while since I was bathed. I want to feel clean." Atem stated
"Yes sir." Yugi quickly complied and went to fetch a bucket, a brush, and some water. When he returned he removed Atem's shirt before sticking the brush in the icy cold water and washing the prince's back roughly.
"Ouch. You're not very good with a brush are you?" the crimson eyed prince asked at bit annoyed. Yugi continued to bathe the boy as he sang.
No, you know nothing about me and care even less
How could you understand our emptiness?
You've plundered our wisdom, our knowledge, our wealth
In bleeding us dry
You long for our spirit
But that you will never possess
The past is now another land
Far beyond my reach
Invaded by insidious
Foreign bodies
Foreign speech
Where the timeless joys of childhood
Lie broken on the beach
The present is an empty space
Between the good and bad
A moment leading nowhere
Too pointless to be sad
Though time enough to lay to waste
Every certainty I had
The future is a barren world
From which I can't return
Both heartless and material
Its wretched spoils not my concern
Shining like an evil sun
As my childhood treasures burn
Shining like an evil sun
As my childhood treasures burn
With that Yugi finished bathing Atem. Then there came a nock at the door. Yugi hurried to dry and make the prince look presentable before answering the door and stepping aside to let the soldier on the other side in. The soldier however, just continued to stand there and stated "Sir, we've reached Egypt".
"Good," Atem said with a slight smile on his face.
'…Egypt…I already miss Nubia,' thought Yugi sadly. 'What's going to happen to me?'
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Well, I hope you guys enjoyed it! ^________^ Please R+R!!! LOL!!!
About the soldiers saying "Oh oh" when they stubbed their toes. I had to get them to
start singing it some way, even if it was a bit unrealistic.
Mock the grave means cheat death. I least I think it does…
By the way they didn't have soap in those days.