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Chapter 7

Half a Year Later

Keket sighed. It was getting more and more difficult to find someone to train with. They all seemed to be afraid of her, with her enchanted weapon and heka that she didn't need a staff for. So she went to her study, hoping to get something to eat on the way in. She managed to snag a loaf of bread from a servant as she passed by, with much mumbling and bowing of course. She hated how the Pharaoh had made her a noble lady. She felt so much like a stuffed rabbit on display for someone to buy. It was useful though, sometimes. Tomorrow she was going to ride out with the others to find out what was happening in a village where many disappearances had been reported. Atemu, she blushed slightly, had finally become a full-fledged magician.

She leaned back on her bed(1), thinking about what had changed in the past three years of her life. She had gone from hating the Pharaoh and everything related to him, to being best friends with the Crown Prince and head-over-heels in love with him. She wondered how it happened. She knew that at first everyone thought she would try to escape, but this place…had seemed so…peaceful compared to a life on the run. There was also the sense of not belonging. Everywhere she went with 'Kura(Bakura, she reminded herself angrily) had seemed so distant, just another place to rob and leave. Here, she smiled, she had made friends, she had made allies, and she had found love.

She knew it was foolish to think that he would ever love her back. He was Crown Prince, even though she was a noble lady, he was better off marrying a princess from some far away country. She respected his privacy and did not dig through his head as she did with others. She had a faint suspicion that he could block her from his head though, or at least feel it when she went in. She was happy that Mana at least, was happy. She and Mahado had gotten together just two weeks ago. Some found it awkward, as Mahado was also teaching Mana magic, but Keket was happy for them. They had something she wanted very much.

Perhaps another reason she had stayed at the palace was because she had lost several years of her life to the Demon and she was keen on getting them back. She casually threw a knife up and caught it, repeating the process again and again. The palace seemed to be where most of the excitement happened, so it would seem plausible to think that she could relive some of her years there.

She reached under her simple dress(she refused to wear a noble ladies' clothing) and pulled out a pendant. It wasn't like the hammered gold necklaces of other royals, but it was just a stone on a gold chain. She had stolen it when she was nine, giving the other to her only friend at the time. It was blue, the color of a sapphire and had a small white dragon curled up in the center. Its sister, the other one she had stolen that day, was red with a small black dragon curled inside. They both pulsed to the others heartbeat. Keket held it in her hand, the only sign that her old friend was still alive.

Keket didn't notice when she fell asleep. She did notice, however, and woke up, when the pendant stopped pulsing.

The Next Morning

Keket rode out with the rest of them, at Atemu's right hand. She was still worried about what had happened to her friend. Was she okay? Was she alive? So many unanswered questions. If she wasn't alive she was going to kill someone. "Atemu," shrieked a high voice. "It's so hot! Is it always like this in Egypt?" Keket and Atemu rolled their eyes simultaneously before grinning at each other. Last night at dinner, a royal princess from some faraway country, that Keket didn't bother learning the name of, came to Egypt to sample royal courts from foreign countries. Keket rolled her eyes again. More like seduce the prince into marrying her. It was quite obvious though, that Atemu wanted nothing to do with her.

"This is Egypt." Atemu replied simply, as if she could not understand him well. Keket sincerely doubted she could. She couldn't even ride a horse right(2)! She was swaying from side to side, obviously discomforting her horse and keeping the rein in a tight grip, ruining the horse's mouth. She also seemed to want to keep extremely close to the prince and the horses kept on bumping together, ears laid back, but obedient to their master's wishes. The princess opened her mouth as though to speak. She tried to speak but nothing came out. She opened her mouth, then closed it. Keket and Atemu snickered. "Keket…" he said, pretending to be exasperated, "Please?" He looked at her with pleading puppy dog eyes. Keket shrugged, but with the motion she covered her face in a screen of magic which wouldn't allow them to see her blush, and undid the silencing spell on the princess.

"Oops. My most sincere apologies." Keket mocked. She performed a half bow to the princess and looked forward again. She cast a quick spell across her and Atemu's ears to protect them from the princess's shrieks.

"You can't treat me like this! I'm royalty!" she began a long, boring rant on how she was a princess and, despite her being a magician, she owed her some respect. Keket froze suddenly, feeling the familiar tug on her throat of the pendant. Its sister was near. Keket practically fell off of her horse in her desperation to get to the pendant. She scooped up what looked like a handful of sand, and letting the grains fall through her fingers, the pendant was revealed in all its glory. The jewel glowed bright red for a second before it faded. This is…nice. Fukayna said. What is this?

This is…the pendant my friend used to wear. Keket sighed. Why is this so difficult? She strode over to her horse and mounted again. "Let's Go."

Later That Day

They wandered through the village, looking at the charred remains of what used to be buildings. Keket beckoned them in one direction, she had heard a sound. She didn't dare use her heka, in case Bakura or one of his minions were there. It took a lot of effort to mask the bright blue glow of her heka but she was getting better at it with each passing day. She wandered cautiously into a building, certain it was where the sound had come from. There! The sound of quick, controlled breathing. From the closet. She held up a hand, telling them to keep away before she narrowed her eyes in focus. She proceeded to make loud, clomping noises before swearing. Everyone outside the door stared at her in shock. She had definitely not learned any of those words in the palace.

A tan hand shot out of the shadows, snatching Keket around the neck. She suppressed a grin. Feigning panic and surprise, she 'fumbled' around, pleading for mercy. Then reaching up to grab the hand, the knife she kept hidden in her sleeve shot out and cut the hand in a painful, but not deadly, slash. The person gasped in surprise and let go, and, before he knew it, was pressed to the wall with a blade pressed to his throat. She had the expression on her face that showed she was searching his mind, when she recoiled from him as though he were a leper.

"When did you last see Kisara?"

AN: Hey everyone! I almost forgot to update today! Please don't kill me for the cliffy! Oh yeah. Apparently they had horses and beds back then. It's in the anime. Jeez. They really screwed up. Review please! I asked nicely so can you please review? And it doesn't matter if you're flaming or not. I just want to know how to make my story better!