A/N: Hi everyone! Kari here with a new story! Yay! Well, this story was
inspired by CrissyKitty, whom had wanted a Yami/Tea pairing for my first
story (Hidden Secrets), but that turned out to be a Seto/Tea story instead.
That story is still in progress, by the way. I just thought it'd be nice to
have a new story out. So, this story is for all you people who had wanted a
Yami/Tea pairing before! Hope you like it!
Special and much thanks to my beta reader, Arya! Much thanks to her help!
Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!
Chapter One: Beginning Again
Anzu sighed as she looked out over the small garden. She was actually content for once in her life. She had had a mixed up childhood, unsure of what actually had happened to her. She had only been seven years old when guards of the king of Libya found her near dead in the desert. She had no memory of what happened before she was brought into the palace of the king. It was really lucky that the guards that found her had pity and were questioning what to do with her, so they brought her for the king, Pegasus, to see. He had decided to keep her, knowing she would be of use to him in the future.
So Anzu lived in the King of Libya's palace, as an adopted Princess, for another six years. She was well known around the palace, for she was very intelligent and a fast learner. But she was also well known for her sharp, flaming temper, and her defiance to those who opposed her. She would take orders from no one, and so she ruled herself. She had demanded and threatened many of the royal trainers, but in the end she did get the lessons she loved for hand-to-hand combat, sword mastery, archery, horseback and other martial art type things that she enjoyed. But in exchange for that she had to master many different languages and how to read and write them too, proper court manners, and other things proper royalty should learn.
She befriended two servants, Rika and Keira, and her friendships were slightly looked down upon as royalty was not supposed to interact with servants, but of course Anzu could have cared less of what others thought. As she had grown older, the princes of the palace had begun to look at her in a different light. But whenever one would approach her, she gave them a piece of her mind, and so they basically stayed away from her.
"Princess," a guard called to her, breaking her train of thought, "The King requires your presence now."
"Please leave, I shall meet with Pegasus in a moment," Anzu replied. Another one of Anzu's own rules was that she addressed everyone by their first name, no matter what. She never used their proper titles, just treated them normally, like her equal. She wondered again why Pegasus needed to see her. It was her 14th birthday, but he had already wished her a good coming year at their morning meal. It was now a bit past noontime. She fingered a silver moon-shaped pendant that hung from her necklace. It was the only thing she had left of her life before arriving at the palace. She treasured it beyond anything else she had and she felt a connection to something when she held onto it and concentrated. She then gracefully rose from her seat and went to see why Pegasus had requested for her.
Anzu entered Pegasus' main sitting room. He smiled at her as he looked up from the papyruses he had been reading.
"Ah, Anzu," Pegasus began, "You're now a prime 14 and have developed into a fine young lady." Anzu didn't like how the conversation was going, but didn't say anything as he continued a bit nervously, "As you may have known, our neighboring country Egypt has been a constant threat to us, and everything Libya is. Their Pharaoh, Yami, has forever been a friendly rival of mine. But, lately it seems like they're becoming more hostile towards us. We need to dazzle him with a splendid present to show that we are his friends. Anzu, you've come of age. You know that you cannot live your life here forever. You've always felt like you didn't belong here."
Anzu glanced at the mirror hanging on the wall she was standing by. He was right, she had always felt like she was different, an outsider. Her reflection really told it all. Amongst the wave of black haired people, her beautiful long chocolate colored hair stood out. In a sea of dark brown, almond shaped eyes, her wide, light amethyst colored eyes stuck out like a sore thumb. She had no idea where she came from and what her past was really like. She never fit in amongst everyone else.
"And so we've decided that you shall be the magnificent gift from us," Pegasus continued. He paused, waiting for her reaction.
"Um, and for how long will this be?" Anzu asked uncertainly, not wanted to face the truth.
"Anzu, you're going to be serving him until he dies or you are released," he explained, "It's nothing bad really, he has many servants in his palace."
"So you want me to be his slave?" Anzu asked, disbelieving, "And why does it matter to him then, if I am just one servant amongst many others?"
"Anzu, you know you stand out from all others. No one can resist you now, my dear. The Pharaoh himself is not unlike you, different and unique in his own way," Pegasus said, "Do you not think you owe us for saving you as a child? You could be dead by now, had it not been for my guards and myself. Now it's your turn to help save us, your country. You must think of this as an honor. A great honor."
"You've been planning this since the beginning, haven't you?" Anzu accused.
"I'm sorry, but that's the way it has to be," he said, "Trust me, I wish it could be someone else, but it's not. Anyway, now there are some rules you must follow when you are there. One: Always address the Pharaoh as 'Your Highness', and be sure to show respect. Two: When in his presence, always kneel and bow, with your forehead to the ground. Three: Always address the others..." Pegasus continued on, but Anzu only listened with half an ear.
She was going to leave the place she's grown to love. To become some most likely cruel Pharaoh's slave, where she would suffer and live a short life. She'd never be able to find out her true past and live out her life to its fullest. She was going to leave Rika and Keira, the closest friends she ever truly had. She was going to start all over.
*****
Rika and Keira were in tears when Anzu told them what she had to do. They were all miserable as they helped her pack the necessities she had to bring with her. Rika held up the outfit she was supposed to wear as Pegasus had requested it, and Anzu stared, about to rip it apart. To start off, it was a dress, something she never wore. Dresses were difficult to maneuver in, especially when doing various athletics. It was midnight blue in color, made to match her eyes. Framed with silver, she thought that it must have cost a fortune to make; after all silver and such colored fabrics were expensive.
"I'm supposed to wear that?" Anzu asked angrily. Never wearing dresses was another rule of hers that everyone looked down upon, but no one had ever argued against her.
"You must wear it, Anzu," Rika said gently, "The King gave his specific orders that you must."
"Anyway, you are going to be a gift, you know?" Keira said bluntly, "The Pharaoh of Egypt must be pleased with you anyhow. You must cause peace between us."
"Screw the cursed Pharaoh, screw Pegasus and his decisions, and screw my entire life to the depths of eternity!" Anzu burst out as her friends visibly flinched, "Pegasus has been using me all these years. He's taking my entire life away from me!"
"I'm sorry, Anzu, but you know that there's nothing we can do to help you," Keira said, "We're going to miss you so much though."
"At least we'll be accompanying you there to Egypt," Rika said, "The King was kind enough to let us be with you until then. Come on, Anzu, just try this dress on now so we can make sure it fits you. Then we can all go for a nice long walk somewhere, okay? You still have a week here with us; so don't dwell on what's to come. Embrace the future when it comes."
Anzu sighed in defeat, and sullenly tried on the stupid dress.
*****
The last week Anzu had at the palace flew by too quickly. She wished she could freeze time, or better yet; alter her life. She was astride a beautiful horse, with Rika and Keira flanking her on either sides, five of the palace guards a few strides behind with supplies necessary for the weeklong ride to the Pharaoh of Egypt's palace. They had already entered Egypt a few days back and were riding ever closer to the palace. Anzu thought she would have really enjoyed being in Egypt, if not she was going there to be some man's servant. Egypt was alive with market stalls lining the roads, smells of freshly baked breads wafted over, sounds of music and laughter came from areas of entertainment. It was actually quite a beautiful place, but Anzu really didn't have the heart to enjoy it.
Anzu was wearing that cursed dress, and it would billow out behind her annoyingly whenever a light breeze blew about. Her moon-shaped necklace was hidden from view beneath the dress. Her long hair was down, instead of being pulled back into its usual ponytail. If she had been someone else and had seen a picture of herself just then, she would have admitted that she looked really pretty. But given the circumstances she cared less on her appearance.
They finally arrived at the Pharaoh's palace at sunset, and they could see the vivid picture the sun painted across the sky. The palace grounds were huge but empty save for guards as everyone was probably inside eating the evening meal. They finally reached the gate that would bring them to the entrance of the palace. It was there that Rika, Keira and the guards had to leave her with the Pharaoh's own guards and servants. Her guards began talking to the Pharaoh's and it was that time that Rika and Keira took to say their final farewells.
"Anzu," Keira began slowly, "We're never going to forget you."
"You'll always be our best friend," Rika added, "Don't let anything get in your way. Please try to adjust to your new life here. Realize that it doesn't matter where we are, we'll always be in your heart."
Keira took a small box out of her pocket and handed it to Anzu.
"Please don't open it now. Wait until later," Keira said.
Anzu also had something for them. It hadn't been much trouble to get it done, and she pulled out two boxes as well, handing one to each of them.
"Please wait until later as well. But keep it with you always, okay?" Anzu said.
The three of them stood in awkward silence for a few moments. Then the rushed to each other and hugged tightly.
"I'm going to miss you so much," Anzu muttered tearfully. She knew, as they did, that they would never meet again, servants in different palaces. They slowly drew apart, knowing that it was time to go their separate ways.
"Farewell," Anzu said softly. They nodded in reply and echoed her goodbye. Pegasus' guards remounted their horses as did Rika and Keira and with one last look back, they rode slowly back off to Libya. Anzu was left clutching the box they had given her. She stood until she could no longer see her friends and then she too slowly mounted her horse. The palace guards slowly flanked her on foot and pushed to gate open to the palace entrance.
A new future, a new start. That was what was about to happen as she entered the palace. Anzu fingered her moon-shaped pendant. Well, it wasn't really a full moon-shape any more. She had gotten it split into three pieces. That was what she had given Rika and Keira. They knew how important the pendant was to her and would forever cherish the piece they received. She had given them the top and bottom part of the pendant, keeping the center piece for herself. They would never fit together without the center piece. That was how she felt, broken and incomplete. She straightened up as they entered the palace itself. It was to be a new start, and she was determined to make the best out of it, as Rika had told her. The horse's hooves delicately clinked upon the marble floor and Anzu couldn't help but wonder what was to become of her.
A/N: I really like this story so much than my other one. Well, please review! I'll be updating Hidden Secrets soon as well. And for those who didn't know that I updated Hidden Secrets I did like two weeks ago – Chapter 9: Ponderings. Thanks! ~Kari
Special and much thanks to my beta reader, Arya! Much thanks to her help!
Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!
Chapter One: Beginning Again
Anzu sighed as she looked out over the small garden. She was actually content for once in her life. She had had a mixed up childhood, unsure of what actually had happened to her. She had only been seven years old when guards of the king of Libya found her near dead in the desert. She had no memory of what happened before she was brought into the palace of the king. It was really lucky that the guards that found her had pity and were questioning what to do with her, so they brought her for the king, Pegasus, to see. He had decided to keep her, knowing she would be of use to him in the future.
So Anzu lived in the King of Libya's palace, as an adopted Princess, for another six years. She was well known around the palace, for she was very intelligent and a fast learner. But she was also well known for her sharp, flaming temper, and her defiance to those who opposed her. She would take orders from no one, and so she ruled herself. She had demanded and threatened many of the royal trainers, but in the end she did get the lessons she loved for hand-to-hand combat, sword mastery, archery, horseback and other martial art type things that she enjoyed. But in exchange for that she had to master many different languages and how to read and write them too, proper court manners, and other things proper royalty should learn.
She befriended two servants, Rika and Keira, and her friendships were slightly looked down upon as royalty was not supposed to interact with servants, but of course Anzu could have cared less of what others thought. As she had grown older, the princes of the palace had begun to look at her in a different light. But whenever one would approach her, she gave them a piece of her mind, and so they basically stayed away from her.
"Princess," a guard called to her, breaking her train of thought, "The King requires your presence now."
"Please leave, I shall meet with Pegasus in a moment," Anzu replied. Another one of Anzu's own rules was that she addressed everyone by their first name, no matter what. She never used their proper titles, just treated them normally, like her equal. She wondered again why Pegasus needed to see her. It was her 14th birthday, but he had already wished her a good coming year at their morning meal. It was now a bit past noontime. She fingered a silver moon-shaped pendant that hung from her necklace. It was the only thing she had left of her life before arriving at the palace. She treasured it beyond anything else she had and she felt a connection to something when she held onto it and concentrated. She then gracefully rose from her seat and went to see why Pegasus had requested for her.
Anzu entered Pegasus' main sitting room. He smiled at her as he looked up from the papyruses he had been reading.
"Ah, Anzu," Pegasus began, "You're now a prime 14 and have developed into a fine young lady." Anzu didn't like how the conversation was going, but didn't say anything as he continued a bit nervously, "As you may have known, our neighboring country Egypt has been a constant threat to us, and everything Libya is. Their Pharaoh, Yami, has forever been a friendly rival of mine. But, lately it seems like they're becoming more hostile towards us. We need to dazzle him with a splendid present to show that we are his friends. Anzu, you've come of age. You know that you cannot live your life here forever. You've always felt like you didn't belong here."
Anzu glanced at the mirror hanging on the wall she was standing by. He was right, she had always felt like she was different, an outsider. Her reflection really told it all. Amongst the wave of black haired people, her beautiful long chocolate colored hair stood out. In a sea of dark brown, almond shaped eyes, her wide, light amethyst colored eyes stuck out like a sore thumb. She had no idea where she came from and what her past was really like. She never fit in amongst everyone else.
"And so we've decided that you shall be the magnificent gift from us," Pegasus continued. He paused, waiting for her reaction.
"Um, and for how long will this be?" Anzu asked uncertainly, not wanted to face the truth.
"Anzu, you're going to be serving him until he dies or you are released," he explained, "It's nothing bad really, he has many servants in his palace."
"So you want me to be his slave?" Anzu asked, disbelieving, "And why does it matter to him then, if I am just one servant amongst many others?"
"Anzu, you know you stand out from all others. No one can resist you now, my dear. The Pharaoh himself is not unlike you, different and unique in his own way," Pegasus said, "Do you not think you owe us for saving you as a child? You could be dead by now, had it not been for my guards and myself. Now it's your turn to help save us, your country. You must think of this as an honor. A great honor."
"You've been planning this since the beginning, haven't you?" Anzu accused.
"I'm sorry, but that's the way it has to be," he said, "Trust me, I wish it could be someone else, but it's not. Anyway, now there are some rules you must follow when you are there. One: Always address the Pharaoh as 'Your Highness', and be sure to show respect. Two: When in his presence, always kneel and bow, with your forehead to the ground. Three: Always address the others..." Pegasus continued on, but Anzu only listened with half an ear.
She was going to leave the place she's grown to love. To become some most likely cruel Pharaoh's slave, where she would suffer and live a short life. She'd never be able to find out her true past and live out her life to its fullest. She was going to leave Rika and Keira, the closest friends she ever truly had. She was going to start all over.
*****
Rika and Keira were in tears when Anzu told them what she had to do. They were all miserable as they helped her pack the necessities she had to bring with her. Rika held up the outfit she was supposed to wear as Pegasus had requested it, and Anzu stared, about to rip it apart. To start off, it was a dress, something she never wore. Dresses were difficult to maneuver in, especially when doing various athletics. It was midnight blue in color, made to match her eyes. Framed with silver, she thought that it must have cost a fortune to make; after all silver and such colored fabrics were expensive.
"I'm supposed to wear that?" Anzu asked angrily. Never wearing dresses was another rule of hers that everyone looked down upon, but no one had ever argued against her.
"You must wear it, Anzu," Rika said gently, "The King gave his specific orders that you must."
"Anyway, you are going to be a gift, you know?" Keira said bluntly, "The Pharaoh of Egypt must be pleased with you anyhow. You must cause peace between us."
"Screw the cursed Pharaoh, screw Pegasus and his decisions, and screw my entire life to the depths of eternity!" Anzu burst out as her friends visibly flinched, "Pegasus has been using me all these years. He's taking my entire life away from me!"
"I'm sorry, Anzu, but you know that there's nothing we can do to help you," Keira said, "We're going to miss you so much though."
"At least we'll be accompanying you there to Egypt," Rika said, "The King was kind enough to let us be with you until then. Come on, Anzu, just try this dress on now so we can make sure it fits you. Then we can all go for a nice long walk somewhere, okay? You still have a week here with us; so don't dwell on what's to come. Embrace the future when it comes."
Anzu sighed in defeat, and sullenly tried on the stupid dress.
*****
The last week Anzu had at the palace flew by too quickly. She wished she could freeze time, or better yet; alter her life. She was astride a beautiful horse, with Rika and Keira flanking her on either sides, five of the palace guards a few strides behind with supplies necessary for the weeklong ride to the Pharaoh of Egypt's palace. They had already entered Egypt a few days back and were riding ever closer to the palace. Anzu thought she would have really enjoyed being in Egypt, if not she was going there to be some man's servant. Egypt was alive with market stalls lining the roads, smells of freshly baked breads wafted over, sounds of music and laughter came from areas of entertainment. It was actually quite a beautiful place, but Anzu really didn't have the heart to enjoy it.
Anzu was wearing that cursed dress, and it would billow out behind her annoyingly whenever a light breeze blew about. Her moon-shaped necklace was hidden from view beneath the dress. Her long hair was down, instead of being pulled back into its usual ponytail. If she had been someone else and had seen a picture of herself just then, she would have admitted that she looked really pretty. But given the circumstances she cared less on her appearance.
They finally arrived at the Pharaoh's palace at sunset, and they could see the vivid picture the sun painted across the sky. The palace grounds were huge but empty save for guards as everyone was probably inside eating the evening meal. They finally reached the gate that would bring them to the entrance of the palace. It was there that Rika, Keira and the guards had to leave her with the Pharaoh's own guards and servants. Her guards began talking to the Pharaoh's and it was that time that Rika and Keira took to say their final farewells.
"Anzu," Keira began slowly, "We're never going to forget you."
"You'll always be our best friend," Rika added, "Don't let anything get in your way. Please try to adjust to your new life here. Realize that it doesn't matter where we are, we'll always be in your heart."
Keira took a small box out of her pocket and handed it to Anzu.
"Please don't open it now. Wait until later," Keira said.
Anzu also had something for them. It hadn't been much trouble to get it done, and she pulled out two boxes as well, handing one to each of them.
"Please wait until later as well. But keep it with you always, okay?" Anzu said.
The three of them stood in awkward silence for a few moments. Then the rushed to each other and hugged tightly.
"I'm going to miss you so much," Anzu muttered tearfully. She knew, as they did, that they would never meet again, servants in different palaces. They slowly drew apart, knowing that it was time to go their separate ways.
"Farewell," Anzu said softly. They nodded in reply and echoed her goodbye. Pegasus' guards remounted their horses as did Rika and Keira and with one last look back, they rode slowly back off to Libya. Anzu was left clutching the box they had given her. She stood until she could no longer see her friends and then she too slowly mounted her horse. The palace guards slowly flanked her on foot and pushed to gate open to the palace entrance.
A new future, a new start. That was what was about to happen as she entered the palace. Anzu fingered her moon-shaped pendant. Well, it wasn't really a full moon-shape any more. She had gotten it split into three pieces. That was what she had given Rika and Keira. They knew how important the pendant was to her and would forever cherish the piece they received. She had given them the top and bottom part of the pendant, keeping the center piece for herself. They would never fit together without the center piece. That was how she felt, broken and incomplete. She straightened up as they entered the palace itself. It was to be a new start, and she was determined to make the best out of it, as Rika had told her. The horse's hooves delicately clinked upon the marble floor and Anzu couldn't help but wonder what was to become of her.
A/N: I really like this story so much than my other one. Well, please review! I'll be updating Hidden Secrets soon as well. And for those who didn't know that I updated Hidden Secrets I did like two weeks ago – Chapter 9: Ponderings. Thanks! ~Kari