Yami roamed aimlessly, lost in thought, through the winding halls of the royal residence. This in itself was not unusual; the pharaoh often found that he could concentrate far better on affairs of state while pacing his corridors. Tonight, however, it was not a corn shortage or a matter of diplomacy that occupied his mind. Yami was consumed with thoughts of his foundling princess, Tea. "How can I tell Tea that I'm the pharaoh? Her eyes burn with such contempt for him........oooh those gorgeous eyes..." Here Yami mentally kicked himself. "Stay focused. It would be too much of a shock for her to find out now. I'll have to wait till she recovers...." Satisfied with this plan, the god-king retired to a chamber usually reserved for visiting dignitaries. Lying down between the soft cotton sheets, he smiled and recalled the girl who currently inhabited his own bed.
A few days later, as the sun once again rose victorious over the darkness, Tea arose gracefully and stretched, cat-like, to welcome the morning. At least that was what she had intended to do. In reality, the princess awoke to find Yami peering down at her with a tray in his hands. Startled and shrieking, she sat bolt upright, barely missing the plates Yami was holding. Taking a quick step back, he apologized, "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have snuck up on you." Then, struggling to contain a snort, Yami snickered, "But you should have seen your face!" With mock indignation, Tea sniffed, "You'd better give me that tray now before I have you thrown out for your insolence." Now openly laughing, Yami settled himself and the breakfast fare beside Tea. The two kept up a stream of pleasant conversation as Tea ate. "I thought you might like to go out into the gardens today, if you feel up to it." commented Yami. With her mouth full of culinary delights, Tea could only nod and wave her hands around to express her enthusiasm. "Excellent, I'll send someone up here with some fresh clothes after you eat." was his reply.
The soothing sounds of a fountain in the distance and the chirps of birds relaxed Tea as she and Yami strolled through a lush garden. The plot had been allowed to grow naturally, watered by a tiny ditch fed by the river Nile. She and her companion had been wandering for hours now, but they never ran out of things to talk about. Tea found herself being more and more drawn to this young man. Abruptly, Yami stopped and put a hand on her arm. "A message was sent to your parents, informing them of your ordeal." He trailed off uneasily and seemed reluctant to continue. "And?" Tea prompted. "And they want to go through with the marriage as soon as possible." Secretly, Yami was glad of this news; now that he had her, he never wanted to let Tea go. The object of his affection was obviously less enthused. Sighing, she thought to herself, "I certainly can't marry the pharaoh now that I'm in love with Yami." The thought had crossed her mind unbidden, but now she did a double take. "I'm in love with Yami!" She peeked at him out of the corner of her eye and saw that his face was wrought with concern. Struggling to contain herself, Tea linked her arm through Yami's and slowly set off down the path without saying a word. Now was not the time to reveal her feelings. The mention of her approaching marriage hardly set the proper mood for a declaration of love. Yami could read his beloved's emotions through her expressive eyes, and he felt his heart sink as she clenched down on her emotions. "Why can't she love Yami and the pharaoh?" he queried silently. For the first time that he could recall, the pharaoh was jealous of himself.