"I will ride with all haste, your majesty," the messenger said, mounting his chestnut mare. Atem watched as he rode south out of the gates, on his way to the village of Beni Suef. Turning, the prince made his way back into the palace. As he walked lazily though the halls, as he had no reason to hurry that day, his father approached him.

"Good afternoon, my son. What is on your mind?"

"My 'birthday present' as you put it," he said, letting a hint of annoyance into his voice. "What do you know of her?"

"Nothing. She is a slave girl given to me as tribute from poor thieves."

"She has not been a slave more than three days," Atem said, walking beside his father. "She told me of her history. She was taken from her father's home by those wretched worms. She was not even of the poorest class. She is the daughter of a respectable merchant."

"Her past does not matter now," the pharaoh said. "You are a prince, and therefore can have the daughter of the wealthiest noble if you so wished. You are too compassionate for these people. We are Gods among them. We should be feared and respected."

"Those are to entirely different things," Atem said, his brow furrowed. "Fear does not mean that you have respect. Nor do you have to be feared to be respected."

"She is your slave," the pharaoh said, waving his hand casually. "Do with her as you wish."

The pharaoh walked away towards the throne room. Atem decided to check on Nefret. Quietly, he opened his bedroom door, and saw her lying in his bed. He smiled, noting how she lay curled up like a cat, the sheets wrapped around her tightly. He closed the door gently, and decided to go down to the courtyard. He was sure Mana would be in some predicament that he would find entertaining. She always was.

As the moon reached its peak in the sky, Atem made his way back to his chambers. He wondered if Nefret was still asleep, or had managed to hoist herself out of bed and take off for home. He was mildly surprised when he found her still curled up in his bed. Smiling, he passed the bed and went into a side room, where he changed into a plain, light tunic. Returning to the bedroom, he lay down on a velvet couch near the balcony.

Looking out at the stars, he wondered how things were to change. In two days, he was to turn 18, be recognized as an adult, and have to accept all the new responsibilities that came with it.

When he awoke the next day, Atem noticed Nefret had moved. She was now sitting on a large cushion, a blanket wrapped tight around her. Looking over to the bed, he noticed the bed had been made. She must have woken up after he'd returned, and moved out of his bed, thinking he would want it back.

Standing and stretching, he looked out across the Nile, which could be easily viewed from his window. It was reflecting the sunlight in all different directions as the water moved steadily north. He would have loved to just dive into the cool water then and there, but he knew that would be frowned upon. With a sigh, he turned away, and went down to the hall for breakfast.

"Miss, I was told to bring you up some food."

Nefret looked up from the scroll she'd been investigating, and saw a young woman standing in the doorway, holding a tray. Smiling, Nefret stood up and took the tray.

"Thank you…" she said, waiting for the servant to supply a name.

"Alati, miss," she said, bowing slightly. Nefret was surprised. She was not of a high status, and did not merit the respect she got from Alati.

"There is no need to bow, Alati. I am not a noble, just, Nefret."

"You are looking better than when you came in yesterday, Nefret," Alati said softly. "If you don't mind me saying."

"No, it's alright. I feel much better, now that I know my father will know what happened. The Prince is very kind to allow me the privilege to stay here."

"Prince Atem is very kind," Alati said, looking down, but smiling warmly. "He treats us as people, not servants or slaves, depending on the situation."

"I guess I am lower class than you now too," Nefret said sadly, sitting on the cushion again and eating a fig from the tray. It was sweet, but not like those from her own orchard. Things always taste better when you grow them yourself. "I used to enjoy my freedom, take it for granted. Now I am a slave."

"Do not fret much about that Nefret," Alati said, hand on the doorknob as she prepared to leave. "With the Prince, you will hardly feel like a slave."

Alati left, leaving Nefret to eat in silence. After she was done, she set the tray near the door, and walked over to the balcony. She would have returned the dishes, but she did not know if she was allowed to leave, and didn't know where the kitchens were anyway.

Looking out over the Nile, she saw little boats floating along purposefully. Men in them were either chatting animatedly as they transported goods to town, or were shouting orders as they pulled in full fishing nets. Nefret smiled, watching them go about their daily lives. What she wouldn't give to be down their, talking with the people as she once did.

With a sigh, she rested her chin on the railing, looking out over the sands across the desert. Suddenly, a thought struck her. She went over to a table near the door, where she found a piece of papyrus and a piece of charcoal. Sitting down on a chair, she began sketching.

Around noontime, the prince returned. Looking around, Nefret smiled as he walked up behind her.

"What's that?" he asked, looking over her shoulder at her work.

"Your people," she said softly, standing up and handing it to him, walking back into the room from the balcony. He took it and looked at it curiously. It was a beautiful depiction of the Nile River in all its glory. Sketched out were fishermen and traders, their facial features carefully captured, laughing at a joke or cursing lack of luck. In their eyes shown something deeper though, and the prince could not tell what it was that drew him to those charcoal figures. Turning, he saw Nefret sitting on the bed, her back to him, just staring at the wall, and her dark hair over her left shoulder. Her behavior was curious, but the prince dismissed it, coming over to stand beside her.

"I am sure you are tired of sitting in here. Come," he said, holding out his hand. "I will show you the palace."

Nefret looked up at him with her deep brown eyes, but took his outstretched hand. He led her to the door, and opened it, gesturing for her to exit first. She did, and looked up and the down the corridor curiously.

"This way first," Atem said, starting to the right. Nefret followed obediently. She looked around at everything, absorbing every detail of the palace. She didn't really know where they were going, so she just followed the prince until they reached a courtyard, where there were several other people. Looking around, a dark haired girl bounded over to them as they approached, launching herself at the prince.

"Hey Atem! Want to see my new spell?"

"Sure Mana, but-"

"Okay! Watch this!" The girl closed her eyes in concentration, and vanished. But not completely. Looking down, Nefret saw her shoes still visible.

"Oh darn," said the girl's voice from nowhere. "I just can't make myself disappear the whole way."

"I'm sure you'll get it eventually Mana," Atem said, smiling as the girl again became visible. It was then that she caught sight of Nefret, standing quietly behind the prince.

"Hello! Who are you?"

"Nefret," she responded quietly, smiling at the excitable girl.

"I'm Mana. Nice to meet you."

"Hello Mana. Are you a magician?"

Mana opened her mouth, but was cut off.

"She is in training, and should be practicing, not socializing," said a firm voice behind her. Looking past Mana, Nefret saw a tall man dressed in long robes.

"Nefret, this is priest Mahado," Atem said as the man approached. He bowed his head to Nefret.

"It is a pleasure to meet you, Nefret."

Nefret was just about to reply when a guard came in, looking rather flustered. He approached Prince Atem, looking nervous.

"Your majesty, there is something for you in the throne room."

Puzzled, Atem followed the guard, with Nefret, the priest Mahado, and Mana taking up the rear.

Upon reaching the throne room, it was immediately clear what had caused the guard so much agitation. In the middle of the room sat a cage, with the guards standing a safe distance from it, watching it warily. Inside was a ball of tan fur, which was emitting a loud hissing sound.

Nefret, upon catching sight of the cage, gave a sharp intake of breath. Though it was tightly imprisoned, she could tell the ball of fur was in fact a lion cub.

"What in Re's name…?" Prince Atem asked quietly.

"A birthday present for you, my son," said the Pharaoh, sitting on his throne, watching the situation before him, amused.

"Poor thing!" Nefret said, rushing over and kneeling before the cage. The onlookers watched with baited breath as she undid the lock on its cage.

"Nefret, what are you doing?" Atem asked hoarsely. She ignored him, opening the door. The cub backed as far into the cage as it could, hissing at the girl. She began talking softly in a sweet voice. No one made a sound, fearing that the cub would attack the girl if they did.

Slowly, the lion cub calmed down, and inched towards the door of the cage. Nefret held out her hand, and the cub sniffed it warily. To everyone's surprise, the cub began purring, coming right up to Nefret.

"How did you do that?" Mana asked in awe, watching as the girl picked up the content cub. It purred happily, hanging over her right shoulder. The guards, now that their job was done, began filing out of the throne room, giving the girl and the lion a wide berth.

"I have always had a connection with cats. I don't know why. We have three at home."

"That is quite the gift," Mahado said, coming over and gently stroking the large cat's head. It wrapped its paws around his arm playfully. Mana giggled.

"He likes you Mahado!"

"It's a she, Mana," Nefret said, stroking the cub's back. "Any ideas for a name?"

"How about Sekhmet? After the lioness goddess of power. I think it fits, don't you?"

At that moment, the lioness cub had decided to bite Mahado's hand. He was lucky she was still little, or he would have lost a finger or two.

"I like it. What do you think, Sekhmet?"

The cub looked around at Nefret, dark eyes calculating. Smiling, Nefret put the cub down. It sat on its haunches, and looked around at those assembled.

"I am impressed, Nefret. For a slave girl, you are quite gifted."

At the Pharaoh's words, Nefret's face fell. She had almost forgotten she was now a slave. Atem seemed to notice her distress. For he quickly crossed the room and bent down in front of her, examining the lion cub.

"Sekhmet, hmm? That will do just fine." He reached out towards the cub, which rolled over onto its back, attacking his hand playfully, her tail twitching eagerly. Atem laughed, rolling her around and letting her chew on his fingers. "I think I'll need gloves soon though. Her teeth are sharp enough already."