Anaya's Creator: Howdy again people! Well, I've updated and here's where more stuff happens and the ball really gets rolling! So... R&R!
Seven Years Later:
Years later, Akina entered the market place of Thebes, Egypt's capitol city. She was now fourteen summers. In the seven years that had past she had grown quite marvelously. Her green hair now reached her waist and it was kept in plaits in the front, but the rest hung loosely around her. She was tall, muscular, and now had several scars on her body from the myriad of street fights she's get mixed up in occasionally. The clothing she wore was a caramel skirt that was just past her knees, but had slits up the sides a little to allow movement; the top was white and only encircled her torso. There were several bangles around her wrists and ankles that jingled as she walked. Around her neck she still wore the gold necklace with the eye of Horus amulet she had been given to her long ago. One her shoulder was Aden, who had grown with age, but still had his bright red and grey colors.
The market place was crowded and smelly. Everywhere you turned was someone trying to sell you something. There were fish sellers, fruit sellers, make-up and wig sellers, and just about everything else under the hot Egyptian sun with some sort of value was being sold. One stand even had a selection of finely crafted children's toys and games; however, the only item Akina bought was a bright pomegranate for later.
She reached an empty place in the market place she began to dance wildly, as Aden flew around her and through the crowds of consumers attracting their attention. People gathered to watch the green-haired enchantress. When a good crowd had gathered she ceased her dance. There was a puff of green smoke and Akina appeared in a long flowing dark green robe.
"Good people, before you, you see one bird," she announced pointing to Aden who was now flying slowly around her. "But now there will now be more." She waved her arms intriguingly and in a cloud of green smoke two doves appeared. The crowd cheered enthusiastically as the smoke cleared and the doves were visible. A few threw a coin into a bag she had placed on the street.
Akina walked up to a muscular older man in the crowd and walked up to him.
"Sir, do you believe you are stronger than I?" she asked politely.
"Of course I am stronger than you, child." he said gruffly.
"Would you care to prove it?" Akina requested placing her fingers together in front of her chest.
The man nodded once more.
"Let's see if you can pull apart my fingers apart, seize my arms just above the elbows and just use steady force to pull them apart. No jerking," she instructed in an innocent voice.
The man grabbed her arms and tried to pull them apart. He pulled, and pulled, and pulled, but to no avail. In the end he gave up in utter defeat.
Akina held up her hands and the crowd cheered. Then she pointed to a small child in the crowd.
"Come here little one," she requested gently. The child came to her. She withdrew a piece of rope and handed it to the child. "Could you put this around your waist and lie down on this please?" She pulled a big piece of brown cloth from nowhere and laid it in the street; the child did as she asked. "Just lie there for a few minutes okay." she said gently patting the child on the shoulder. The child nodded and Akina turned to the crowd.
"Everyone, you may not believe me, but I will now pick up this child with the rope using only my teeth," she announced. The crowd gasped and muttered among themselves disbelievingly. Akina bent her knees and placed her hands upon them. "Okay child, fold your arms across your chest and keep your body firm." Next she put some of the rope in her mouth and began to stand up taking the child with her.
The crowd burst into applause. Akina placed the kid back on the ground and took back her rope.
"Thank you for your help," she told the child. "And to reward you," she waved her arm around and the pomengranate that she had bought earlier appeared in her hand, she gave it to the child, who ran to his mother.
Akina turned to the crowd once more.
"That is my final trick," she announced, "If you all have enjoyed my performance, I pray that you will leave me a token of your appreciation in my bag, so that I may be in full health for my next performance." In another burst of green smoke, she had changed back into her dancing clothes and began to move once more with Aden flying around her, occasionally giving a loud screech.
When the crowd had dispersed Aden fetched the money bag and dropped it in Akina's hand. She counted up the coins.
"Four copper coins and two silver, that's all I've earned?" she muttered in amazement. Then she looked at Aden curiously. "No one stole any, did they?"
The bird shook his head.
"You're right, you should have recieved more. You certianly deserve much more than that," someone said in a deep voice. Akina felt a hand on her shoulder, so she turned and saw none other than the prince. He had apparently attempted to disguise himself as a commoner, but he had done a very, very bad job.
"Good day Your Highness," Akina said tonelessly. Unlike many girls in Thebes, her eyes did not grow very wide nor did she get very nervous or excited if she saw the prince. To her he was just another person on the street; however, since he was royalty, she got on her knees and reluctantly bowed to him .
"So my servants speak the truth, the green haired Street Gypsy is beautiful," the prince said, as Akina got to her feet again. She stepped back slightly and took a good look at the prince.
He had changed very much in seven years. No longer was he the scrawny pale little boy she had known. He was now tall and thin, like his father. His smooth black and purple hair still stood up, and he had completely grown into his ears.
"What is your name?" he asked. He was studying her, as if he thought he knew her from somewhere, but couldn't quite remember where.
"Akina, Sire," she said coldly. She heavily disliked how the kept running over her body with his eyes as if they had been his hands.
"Your lovely name suits you. Take this," he said. The prince shoved a small leather bag into her palm and walked off.
Hesitantly, almost suspiciously, Akina opened the bag; inside were several shining gold coins. She felt her eyes expand to the size of the pomegranate she had given to the child who had helped her moments before.
"Aden," she whispered hastily to the bird on her shoulder. "This is more than enough. We must go tell Kesi." And she ran off through the street, not knowing that the prince was following her with his eyes.
Around noon, Akina reached a pub. It was made out of sand and mud bricks, but before going inside she ducked into the stable in the ally and in another blur of green smoke she changed into a brown hooded robe. She tucked her necklace under her robes and just as she was to go to the pub, there was a loud snort from one of the stalls. Akina went inside the stall and smiled at a young unicorn stallion.
He was about three years old. The coat was a rich honey color, and his mane and tail were a creamy white. And in the center of the white star on his forehead was a shinning crystal horn.
"Hi Joshua," she greeted; the unicorn nudged her expecting a sweet. "You silly unicorn, I don't have anything for you now; however, Aden and I earned quite a bag of money today. Will you up to another journey to Canaan tomorrow morning?"
Joshua tossed his head and stamped the ground excitedly, his mane flying everywhere.
"Wonderful," Akina said with a slight chuckle, knowing this meant yes. Joshua was always up for a long journey.
"May I help you Miss Akina?" asked a small boy. He skin was a deep tan and his hair was cropped short amongst his ears. This was one of Kesi's younger brothers: Atsu. His name meant twin. He was the youngest at age six and littlest when lined up with all his siblings, even his twin sister Kakra was taller than him, her name also meant twin.
"No Atsu, I'm just telling Joshua what happened today. He hasn't been too much trouble today, has he?" she asked.
"No Ma'am, no trouble at all. It's amazing how you can talk to animals."
"Tell that to the people of my former village." Akina muttered loathingly.
"Pardon?" Atsu asked at her indistinct muttering.
"How many times must I ask you to call me Akina?"
"Always just one more time; besides Mama and Papa said so." Akina gave Atsu a sweet smile she reserved just for children. As he blushed she gave him a rough pat on the head and headed inside the pub, drawing the hood of her robe to hide her vibrant hair. She didn't want to attract unwanted attention from slave traders.
Inside there was an assortment of people. All of them were in some sort of linen clothing, varying in condition, style, and length; some people even wore hoods like she did, but you got used to that sort of thing at the Memoshep Pub.
Akina went over to the bar of the pub and caught the attention of a black curly-haired girl in slightly shabby linen clothing with dark eyes. Her body and face were thin and freckled, and judging by the light black and blue on her arms crowds had gotten rough recently.
"Cattle's milk if you have it Kesi," Akina muttered.
"There's always some for you Street Gypsy," Kesi answered putting a small cup of milk in front of her best friend. "I'll ask Mama if I can take off for a while so we can chat."
"Sure," Akina suddenly grabbed her friend's arm. "If anyone here gives you a hard time let me know. I'll set them straight." She gestured to the black and blue on her friend's arm.
Kesi smiled appreciatively at her best friend.
"You should have been here last night, Father clobbered the guy who gave me this bruise." she said.
Akina tried hard to stifle her laughter.
At that precise moment two palace guards entered the tavern. One was carrying what looked like a message in his hand. The other turned to Kesi.
"Is this where we can find Akina the Street Gypsy, Lass?" he asked.
Kesi didn't need to reply because Akina stood up taking off her hood.
"Aye," she said with a note of irritation in her voice.
"We come bearing a message for you, handwritten by the prince himself,"
"So," Akina retorted impatiently, walking toward the guard.
"Hmm, hmm..." the guard with the letter cleared his throat.
"Don't waste your breath," Akina said, taking away the letter. "I can read."
The soldiers left without another word.
Akina's eyes widened slightly as she scanned the scroll.
"What does it...?" Kesi started to say, but Akina cut her off by placing a hand over her mouth.
"And I think we should discuss this in private." she said through gritted teeth.
Kesi nodded and led her friend back behind the bar into a secluded room.
"What's it say?" Kesi asked as she looked at the parchment in bamboozlement. Kesi couldn't read.
"Dear Akina," Akina whispered so softly that only Kesi could hear her. "You are truly a beautiful and talented young woman. Someone like you should not be on the streets begging for money, so I am offering you a place at the palace with me. If you have any family they are also welcome. I am only thinking of what's best for you. I pray to the Gods that you will reply to me soon. Come to the palace and tell me your answer in person. The prince"
As Akina finished Kesi's eyes grew to twice their usual size.
"I don't think I should completely accept this offer." Akina muttered slowly.
"Aki, you'd be a fool not to take it," Kesi said in amazement. "Where has all your sense gone?" She grabbed Akina by the shoulders and shook her roughly, making her best friend's head flop back and forth.
"First of all stop shaking me; no wonder I can't think straight." Akina said prying Kesi's hands off of her shoulders. "Second, you know men cause me nothing, but trouble."
"But Aki, this is the prince we're talking about..."
"And your point is?"
Kesi thought for a moment then snapped her fingers.
"You said you knew the prince when you were younger, so maybe he recognized you..." she proposed.
"Kesi it's been seven years do you honestly think that the prince would recognize me after all that time?!" Akina said growing exasperated.
"So you're not going to take his offer, then go up to the palace and tell him that, but I'm telling you this is a chance most girls would die for!"
"I never said I wasn't taking the offer, I just said I wasn't sure if I should."
Kesi gave Akina a suspicious look.
"What I mean is," Akina continued. "Tomorrow at sunrise I'm leaving for Canaan, I'll go to the palace and tell the prince that I will only stay when I can, which will be very rare."
"What if he invites you to stay tonight?"
"That's a big might, but in case he does I'll think about it." Akina gave Kesi a big hug and left the back room.
A while later Akina was back on the streets leading Joshua towards the palace and Aden flying ahead of them. Joshua had a sack over his head with holes of his eyes so his horn wouldn't attract unwanted attention. After about a half and hour of walking they reached the palace gates.
In her seven year absence the 'palace folk' built a wall around the palace to keep out raiders and thieves. The gates were much taller than she was. The walls were made of a white rough stone and mud bricks. The gates themselves were made of some kind of dark foreign wood.
"Ho there Green-hair," called one of the guards, "Where do you think you're going?"
"I have business here at the palace," Akina replied.
"Oh really missy," he asked.
"Yes really," Akina retorted tonelessly.
"Akina is that you?" implied a deep voice. Akina knew it belonged to the prince.
"Sire..." Akina said; she turned and saw the prince standing in the shadow of a nearby wall.
"It is good to see you again," he told her as he approached her.
Akina merely nodded with a look of solid stone on her face.
"Let her in, she's with me," he ordered as he put a strong soft hand on Akina's shoulder.
"Yes, Your Highness," the guards complied, and soon the large gates were opened.
"Please remove your hand," Akina requested coldly. The prince looked at her slightly abashed, but he removed his hand all the same and they walked inside.
As they walked toward the palace Akina took a good look at it. There was no doubt that it had been built to impress. It was very large and made of white creamy alabaster bricks. There was a pair of large gold sphinx statues at the main entrance. From here the prince called a young servant to take Akina's horse.
"Well actually Joshua's not a horse," Akina interjected. She removed the sack from Joshua's head and the prince saw a unicorn standing before him.
"Where did you find it? Unicorns are really rare in these parts. How in the worlds did you capture it?" he asked in amazement.
"It's a gift," Akina replied as the young servant took Joshua. She had decided to keep her gift with animals a secret and only use them when she absolutely had to in order to avoid awkward questions.
"May I escort you inside?" the prince asked, extending his arm to her.
"No means to be rude Your Highness, but I can walk inside on my own." Akina said keeping her arms firmly at her sides.
"Oh don't bother with that 'Prince' or 'Your Highness' such and such. Just call me Yami," with that Yami retracted his arm and led Akina inside.
Inside, the palace was white alabaster and the strong smell of incense hung in the air. Several rooms were colorfully painted.
Without warning Akina became overwhelmed by the strong incense and passed out.
When Akina awoke she was on a large bed of what felt like hay sewn inside a soft thin silky cover. The bed was large, made of ebony, and some of the carvings were filled in with gold. A thin smooth linen sheet covered her. She turned over and saw that the headrest she laid upon was also ebony. There were dyed purple curtains surrounding her on almost all sides. Through the semi-transparent curtains she saw someone standing beside her. The person reached back and pulled one of the curtains back. The prince... I mean, Yami stood before her.
"Are you alright?" he asked as he sat down beside her.
"I'm fine; the smell just overpowered me," she replied tonelessly. Yami nonchalantly came nearer and sat on the edge of the bed.
"Have you made your decision?" He slowly put a gentle hand on her cheek.
"I have," Akina backed away from his hand, her eyes becoming icy.
Pretending not to notice Akina's eyes growing steadily colder, he slid an arm around her waist and roughly grabbed her upper neck with the other.
"What is your decision?" he asked impatiently, strengthening his hold on her.
"I... I'm hardly ever in Thebes much, so... I'll stay when I can..." A solution of anger mixed with panic began to swirl rapidly in her stomach. She had to try very hard not to throw up, but them again that would show him not to mess with her! The prince's face was now a finger width away from hers. She muttered something in an indistinct dialect and without warning the prince found himself slammed against the back wall of his room.
"So" Yami groaned, "You're a mage," his right shoulder was now stinging vaguely. He pretended to wince from pain.
Akina immediately leapt out of the bed and went over to him.
"Does it sting horribly? Are you bleeding?" she asked, vague concern replacing the coldness that had once filled her eyes.
"I'm fine," he grabbed Akina around her elbows and stood up abruptly, dragging her with him. His arms encircled her waist and upper back and forced her against him. Then he buried his face in her neck and hair, rubbing his lips gently across her neck as she squirmed incessantly in an attempt to get away.
"Umm... Am I interrupting something Your Highness?" a strange voice asked. Yami let go of Akina instantly.
"No, you aren't Jonouchi, and what did I tell you to call me?" Yami said.
"Sorry Yami; I keep forgetting."
"Could you possibly take Lady Akina on a tour of the palace?" Akina's eyes grew wide. The prince of Egypt was addressing her as if she were royalty herself.
"Who... Miss Quiet, over there?" Jonouchi pointed to Akina who had remained silent and facing the wall this entire time.
"Yes me, what other girl is standing here in this room?" she retorted. Akina slowly around, and saw that Yami had been addressing a young brown boy clad in soldier's garb with honey colored hair. He had rich brown eyes.
"Sorry," he said in a careless tone. "Anyways Yami, the pharaoh wants to see you right away, he says it's important."
Yami sighed, "Fine then." He turned to back to Akina and put a hand on her cheek, "I will be back for you my lovely," he whispered softly in her ear. Not noticing that she had winced a little when he said that he turned and left the room.
"Sorry about Yami, Lady," Jonouchi apologized. "There was a girl he knew long ago that had the same name and looked similar to you. I suppose that's why he likes you."
"I am her, Jonouchi," Akina said slowly turning towards a window, letting the sunlight fall on her skin.
"Oh yeah, there's not many girls wandering around with green hair are there?" A foolish grin split across Jonouchi's face as he said this.
"No," Akina sighed, "I guess not." If the prince has turned out like this I wonder how Marik and Seth have grown up, she thought.
"Well, we'd better get to that tour, eh?" Jonouchi said, jerking Akina from her thoughts.
"Yes," Akina turned and followed Jonouchi out of the room.
"Well, that's pretty much the palace," Jonouchi said about an hour later. "Is there any where you want to see again?"
"I'd like to go back to the gardens," Akina said. "I like the outdoors."
"Very well then, to the gardens,"
As they entered the gardens Jonouchi and Akina heard two men talking very seriously about a topic.
"My son," said one voice. Akina could tell it was the voice of the pharaoh. His voice was still very deep, but instead of booming it now croaked with age. "You are now fourteen summers and still you have found no one suitable for a wife. You must have at least one wife to bear you an heir while you are on the throne. That way if, Gods forbid, something should happen to you the throne is secure. You asked me that if I allowed you to move about our people in disguise, you would consider possibly choosing one of our girls... Tell me have you chosen someone?"
"I have," said the other voice. It must have been Yami, who else could have it been?
"And she is?"
"I have chosen," he paused, obviously trying (pathetically) to be dramatic.
"Just tell me all ready, time waits for no man, and mine grows short,"
"Fine, fine, ruin all my fun. I chose the peasant girl Akina."
"Akina, isn't that the Hebrew girl who saved you from drowning in the river seven summers ago?"
"She is, Father; unless there is another girl running around with green hair and that exact name."
"My son, she is a Hebrew,"
"Father, you said I could choose whom I wanted to marry..."
"She is not an Egyptian, our people despise Hebrews."
"Our people don't need to know,"
"What if she disapproves of wedding?"
"If she disapproves now then I will wait until she is ready, but we will tell our people that we have married."
"What if she disapproves of marrying you at all?"
"Then I will give her no choice. I will make her my property and take away her innocence before we wed if I must."
CA-BOOM! The pharaoh and Yami turned and saw Akina standing in a pile of rubble, which had before been a wall, Jonouchi had hidden himself (smart move, dude... very smart).
"How... dare... you?!" Akina growled.
"Akina wait... I can explain," Yami pleaded. Akina didn't wait to hear an explanation, she just turned on her heal and ran.
Anaya's Creator: Well, I hope that pertty much sets the ball rolling. The third chapter should be posted soon... I just wish I could say the same about the other chapters, they may take a while. Anyways R&R mortals!