Chapter 6
"The First Day"
Through the halls of the palace, the guests take a moment to observe their new surroundings. Along the walls are hieroglyphic stories of the previous rulers of Heliopolis. Stories of their birth, their ascension to the throne, biggest accomplishments, and their deaths.
"Whoa. Who needs to go to Egypt when you can just come here," wonders Botan.
Kiyoni raises a hand, "I do! Egypt's the backstory of the backstory. Visiting that country is on my bucket list," she turns to Kurama, "You'd come with me right, Suu'chi?"
"Of course, sounds like fun," he answers. Kiyoni's delighted.
"How cute. She still uses that nickname," Ava whispers to her husband as they bring up the rear.
"She may be turning eighteen, but with him, she's still a child," Akio comments, "I still think we should keep an eye on her. You saw how she was on the courtyard."
"Yes, but that was out of excitement. Think about it, it's been seven years since they've seen each other and the first time he's visited this world. Remember how excited I was when I witnessed your first arrival here?"
"Yes, but we were a bit older than they are, had two children with us, and were here to witness your coronation, last time I checked."
"Either way, I was just as excited as she is," Ava observes her daughter's interaction with her friends, "This year marks her eighteenth birthday. If we want her to be a proper, respectable adult and ruler, we have to let her make adult decisions. This holiday is a test run."
"You say that…"
"But…"
A grin comes across Akio's face, "You're just as nervous as I am. Mentally, at least."
Ava pouts, "I really wish you'd take a vacation from mind reading."
"Should've never kissed me."
Another handmaiden approaches the group, engaging herself in a private conversation with Ayesha. "Apologies, everyone," she announces, "It seems will meal time will be delayed for a little bit."
"Awesome! I can show everyone their rooms in the meantime," Kiyoni exclaims.
"That's a great idea, Kiyoni. You do that while your father and I wait for you in the throne room," Ava suggests, "Ayesha, accompany her, please."
"Yes, great pharaoh," Ayesha responds.
"With the palace halls looking like this, I wonder what the bedrooms look like," Koenma admits.
"Your rooms are down this way," Ayesha directs, "They're close by so you don't have to worry about getting lost."
"Now when planning everything out, I wanted to make sure that everyone's bedrooms matched everyone's personality," Kiyoni informs, "So if there's anything that makes you feel uncomfortable, don't be afraid to say so."
The group is led to Yusuke's room first. As Kiyoni promised, the guest rooms are in sync with their individual qualities. Upon opening the doors, Kiyoni reveals, "Here you go, Yusuke."
"Whoa, this is my room," Yusuke steps inside. His guest room has a modern, athletic feel set to a few shades of grey. One part of the room includes a king size bed and dressers to place his things. The other part is reserved for physical activity, including a standing punching bag and weights. "This is awesome," he comments as he jumps onto the bed, "This definitely works for me."
"I'm glad," Kiyoni smiles, "Onto to the next room."
Shizuru's chambers is spacious and contemporary with a great view of the shoreline. There's even space available for her to use as a smoking area complete with an outdoor fireplace. A set of mirrors catch her attention. "I'm loving these mirrors," Shizuru marvels, "Perfect for testing out new hairstyles."
"I didn't have much to go on about you so I'm relieved you like it," Kiyoni responds, "Your brother's room is actually across the hall."
"Ooh, I wanna see! I'm hoping for a big screen TV," Kuwabara chimes in, "I brought my X-Box just in case." Kuwabara's room is rustic and laid back. The windows of his space give him a partial view of the forested lands behind the palace and the residential area. "Hmm, neat. No big screen TV, but neat," he concludes.
"Perhaps this is a good thing. Too much television is bad for your brain, so I've heard," Ayesha claims.
"Huh, then I guess we should've never had a TV," Shizuru jokes to everyone else's amusement.
"Yeah, yeah very funny, sis," Kuwabara pouts.
Across the hall is Yukina's room. What makes this space stand out are the colors. A mixture of ice and oceanic blue and snow white fill the walls. Thin fabrics, designed in white lace, hover over her bed; its blankets, soft as fresh white snow. A small pool in the bathroom is reserved for her in case the weather makes her feel too uncomfortable. "Thank you for the room, Kiyoni," she appreciates.
"It's my pleasure, Yukina," Kiyoni beams, "Should you ever feel the need, that tub is just for you. You can adjust the temperature to whatever eases you."
"I wonder what my room looks like," Keiko hints.
"It's over here," Ayesha instructs. Keiko's room is a two-parter as well with space for her to relax and do some reading. The extra area is lined with books covering history, modern literature, romance, and fantasy. She immediately runs to the mini library.
"Be careful with those books, Keiko. A major hunt was conducted to find them in the right language," Kiyoni warns, but is ignored when Keiko sits down to read. "Well, looks like she's happy," Kiyoni tells herself.
Botan's room is cloudy and pink. Even her bed resembles a giant cloud. She hops on and is instantly relaxed. "Oh, I like this very much," she utters as she hugs a pillow.
"As much as you like to be in the air, this room seems fitting," Koenma determines, "How's my room?" Koenma finds out the answer when he steps inside. The theme of his bedroom is "modern bachelor". A fireplace sits in front of the bed with a ceiling window that allows him to see the sky. Sliding doors, near the bed, open to reveal a meditation room. Something Koenma really needed. "This will do nicely. You have my thanks, princess," Koenma bows to his hostess.
"I aim to please," Kiyoni bows back, "Since Hiei ran off, I guess his showcase is put on hold," she turns to Kurama, "That just leaves you."
"I'm right behind you," he affirms.
Kurama's quarters is among the most spacious of rooms mainly because of the detail. To the right is a fireplace of his own with two reading chairs. In the back, is another king size canopy bed with fine threaded and plant based fabrics. The scent of cherries and apples fill the room due to the wooden frames and furniture inside, highlighted by honey yellow walls and stone flooring. The floors itself appear cool to the naked eye, but are reactive by touch. Making barefoot walking comfortable. "Step inside, Suu'chi," Kiyoni suggests. He does.
After a thorough examination he gives his remarks, "It's exquisite. There isn't one thing I would change."
"You haven't seen the best part, yet," Kiyoni heads for the front window and grabs a certain, "Ready?" Kurama nods. Kiyoni pulls back the Cherrywood red certain, revealing a marbleized balcony and a breathtaking view of the forested terrain and snowy highlands of the country, including the two volcanos.
"Superb!" After placing his things on the bed, he steps onto the balcony for a closer look. Kiyoni joins him. The sight of such lush terrain gets his heart racing.
"Out of all the guest rooms, yours took the most time to prepare. I wanted to make sure you get a great view of the green here," she confesses.
"It's wonderful."
"Really? You think so?"
Kurama looks at her with satisfaction in his eyes, "Absolutely." Kiyoni's delighted once again.
They inch closer to each other for another kiss, but Ayesha stops them, "That's enough, you two. Kiyoni, why don't you let your guests take some time to relax? You have other matters to attend to."
"You're right, I do," Kiyoni relents and takes her leave, "Oh, one more thing. Wear something nice for tonight. We're having a welcoming feast in your honor. Could you let everyone else know?"
Kurama nods his head, "Sure." Kiyoni makes a request for refreshments to be delivered to her guests as she and Ayesha exit the room, leaving Kurama alone to take in the sights again, "I can't believe she's in line to inherit all of this. Why in the world (in any world) would she want to throw this away?"
As the sun sets on another day, parishioners visit Divinity Village to praise and worship their gods and goddesses of nightfall. On Elite Island, nobility gather at the royal palace for the welcoming feast. It's the perfect opportunity to mingle with the new visitors. The guests of the party in arrive in formal fashion followed by the most trusted of their entourages. Two of the guests include Jaya's parents with news of their daughter's recent demise a bit fresh on their minds. Representatives of Alena's family show up to the event as well. Now that the entire clan is wiped out, this group of master-less employees are now worried about their positions.
The size of the grand ballroom is typical for a royal setting. Underneath a golden framed dome window and in the middle of the onyx, marble, and golden patterned floor lies a giant fountain with several models dressed as statues, interchanging their poses from time to time. The buffet table, with foods such as hors d'oeuvres, dishes, meats, fruits, vegetables, and desserts; line one side of the hall while musicians line the other.
The Pharaoh Queen and King's throne lie in the back underneath a headshot impression of the Egyptian creator god, Ra, with a stairway provided for each royal. The armrests of the obsidian and pure gold thrones are decorated with golden collared, black lionesses for the queen and golden body and fanged black cobras for the king. Stairs sit in front of the special seats lined with plenty of cushion for the guests of honor, essentially making the entire area a pyramid with the thrones on top.
Inside a much smaller room is where Kiyoni's friends await the actions of her parents. Meanwhile, the queen and king are in the middle of final preparations (mostly for looks). Ayesha keeps the teens company in the meantime. "So, what's taking so long? I can't wait to try out the food," Yusuke sneaks a peek into the commotion out front.
"Geez, Yusuke, don't you have any manners or patience at all," answers Koenma, "We step out after the king and queen."
"Does that mean after you, too?"
Koenma face palms himself, "Yes, Yusuke. That includes me as well, after them."
"Hey, has anyone seen Kiyoni? Shouldn't she be here by now," Kuwabara looks around for the princess.
"She'll be joining us later," Ayesha informs, "She still has other things to do."
In another part of the palace, Kiyoni is in her own state of arrangements along with a small multitude of dancers and performers. "Bangles! I got bangles, here! Who needs some bangles," shouts a male performer with a box of golden arm jewelry in his hands.
"Over here, buddy!"
The performer kneels before his future queen, "My princess."
Kiyoni looks inside the box and selects a few bracelets, each, for her wrist and opposite arm, "Thank you, my good sir." The performer nods and offers his services elsewhere.
A female dancer enters Kiyoni's space with another, "So, is he here?"
"Which one is he," asks the second.
Kiyoni smiles and blushes as her pendant glows again, "You'll see. It won't be too hard to figure it out, considering how slow the two of you are."
"Hey! I'm not slow," argues the first.
"So says the girl who can't keep track of a simple eight count," the second makes her exit.
"You take that back," demands the first as she follows.
Kiyoni returns to her beautification ritual which involves encasing her curls in a mixture of lotions, creams, and fine oils. Brushing her hair with a wooden brush, thoughts go through Kiyoni's mind, "Here goes nothing," she stops brushing to look at herself in the mirror, "Time to show them the real you."
Horn players put their instruments to use, signifying a call for attention. The nobility stand in front of the throne area as Kenichi approaches them. "Noble lords and ladies of this great country, accompanied by guests of the princess, I present your pharaoh queen and great king," he finishes with a bow. Everyone is escorted into the grand hall led by a group of flower bearers. The girls follow Ava and Ayesha on one side while the boys follow Akio on the other. When Akio and Ava reach their seats, the gang is led to theirs by the flower bearers. The young women sprinkle fresh rose petals onto the reserved area for decoration. All the while, the nobility of Heliopolis are on bended knee. After taking their seats, both Akio and Ava motion for the gang to sit and the royal subjects to rise thus ending the entrance ceremony.
"All hail our great Pharaoh Queen! All hail, our great King! All hail, our princess! All hail our royal family! All hail," shout the nobility as they bow once again.
"Well that was a bit much," Yusuke mumbles. Kuwabara taps him on the shoulder.
"Noble lords and ladies of this land, on behalf of my family and myself, I welcome and thank you all for your attendance tonight," Ava goes on, "As you can see, our daughter has made quite a few friends during her time in the human world. This feast is for them so, please, take some time to get to know them." With a couple of hand claps, the musicians resume their play and the party is, once again, at ease.
"So, what do we do now," asks a confused Yusuke.
Kurama gets up and adjusts his clothing, "What people always do at a party. Mingle."
"Oh, well okay then," Yusuke rubs his hands in anticipation, "Just let me get to that buffet table first. I'm starving."
Kuwabara tags along, "Wait for me!"
It doesn't take long for guests to socialize with other guests. Each high class family made sure to bring a translator with them to avoid the language barrier problem. Kurama is in the middle of conversing with a couple of guests when he's approached by Jaya's family. "Excuse me, young sir," calls a translator.
"Yes?"
"Allow me to introduce the noble family of the south. Their daughter was one of the vampires who attacked your world."
Kurama instantly thinks of his fight with Jaya. In his mind, her death was gruesome but necessary, considering it was him that was a part of it. "Good evening to you both," he takes a bow. The parents do the same while listening to their translator. "I'm sorry for your loss. I heard about her upcoming nuptials," he states.
"Yes. It was originally arranged to Jaya's chagrin but, she accepted it after his rebirth," claims Jaya's father through the translator.
"The Bath of the Fallen?"
"Yes. We want to extend our apologies to you for our daughter's behavior in the human world. We supported our Pharaoh's decision to have the princess as her successor. Jaya was the only one within our house who was against it." At this point, Kurama is wondering why Jaya's parents are coming to him with this information. The only conclusion he can come up with is that Jaya's parents know that it was him that was responsible for her death.
"We're aware of your relationship with the princess. Our queen mentioned how close the two of you were. So it's only fitting that we speak to one who's close with her majesty the same way our daughter was close with the prince." Jaya's father takes another bow. Kurama does the same, somewhat relieved and proven wrong.
Within the halls leading to the throne room, Kiyoni peeks inside to observe tonight's activities.
The two dancers that spoke with her earlier, pester her again. "Which one is he," asks the first girl in a sing-song tone.
Kiyoni responds in a mockingly sing-song tone, "I'm not telling you," she peeks inside again, "You'll see when we get inside."
"Aww, but we wanna know," whines the second dancer.
"I highly suggest you two work on your patience."
"Your highness, everyone is ready. It's up to you to make the call," informs a palace guard.
"Very well. Inform my parents and Kenichi," she instructs, "Alright, everyone. Get into place. It's show time."
