Hi everyone! Sorry for the verrrry late update. Was busy with getting back to Duel Links. So proud to have reached stage 21 already in a week XD small victories. Hihi

Please enjoy this chapter!

Chapter 6: Mistaken Identity

The Pharaoh continued to watch these visions.

While Aya was bathing in the Nile River, a boy observed the almost-naked Aya who was happily wading in the river alone. He seemed to be around her age as well. He was short, around 12 or 13 years old, had purple eyes, and crimson and black-colored spiky hair with gold bangs. He was wearing an ancient white dress for boys, gold tapestry on his neck, armlets on his biceps and those that covered his arms, a golden girdle on his waist, and a pair of gold, dangling earrings. Despite his highly-esteemed attires, he looks a little timid as he tried as hard as he can to conceal his presence.

He was starting to get nervous about his actions.

The sun was starting to rise higher and it was almost time to get out of the water. I wonder what excuse I'm going to bluff out for ditching those two? Aya wondered to herself as she turned to return to the riverbank.

She then noticed that the shadow of one coconut tree did not look right. It looked extra wider and had unnecessary hair-like spikes below it.

The boy noticed that Aya was looking at his direction. Nervously, he looked away at the girl and slumped his whole back completely behind the tree where he was hiding.

Aya's suspicions only grew when she saw the shadow move a little. It was enough a reason for her to rush back to her clothes.

Trembling, the boy fell and sat on the desert sand. He buried his head in his hands as he was gripped by anxiety. As he was murmuring to himself about what to do and how to escape from the predicament he was in, the scorching sun on his skin was suddenly blocked off, as if a shadow obstructed it.

When he looked up to see what happened, the girl whom she was looking at while ago was now standing right in front of him magnificently, her two hands on both sides of her waist and looking down at him furiously. He looked back at her piercing emerald eyes – which were sharper than ever because of evident rage intended obviously at him. His purple eyes gazed at her for a few second, as if he was gawking.

Aya drew in some air to prepare lengthy questions to him as to why her was hiding behind that tree while she was bathing. As soon as she inhaled, the boy snapped out of his short daze and immediately spewed "I wasn't doing anything, I promise! I didn't see anything at all either!"

He knew exactly what Aya would have said.

Aya furiously bent lower to the boy who was low on the ground. "Then what were you doing hiding here? Who are you anyway?" Aya yelled at the boy.

"This is where I usually take strolls when I'm out! I didn't know you were bathing here and no one's here usually!" The boy said, bowing his head low again as he states his defense. "I didn't look at you intentionally! Please forgive me!"

"Intentionally?!" Aya shrieked. "So you did see something?!"

"No! Nothing at all! I wasn't peaking at all, I promise!" They boy said while on the brink of bursting into tears

From afar, two women were shouting for Aya's name. It was Aya's two maids. It was probably almost time for her appointment with her mother.

"Tsk, I have to leave now," Aya disdainful said. "I better not see you again or you're gonna get it!" She then ran back to her maids.

As soon as Aya dashed away, the boy finally raised his head to look. When the coast was clear, he then stood up and let out a big sigh of relieve. He then remembered something and went off to leave.

Yami was hovering nearby as he continued to watch these vision. He held his head on his hand. "So this is where I first met Aya."

He then blushed. "What have I been doing around these parts?!"

In Atem's next vision, Aya and her mother, together with the two maids, are riding a well-embellished carriage that was entering the Palace of Egypt. Today, they no longer entered the castle wearing rags as first did.

Aya now wore a long clean and white dress to the ankles, golden bangles on her wrist, gold necklaces, a gold girdle on her waist, a thin, a golden hairband, and a pair of large, golden hoops as her earrings. Her blond, curly hair was also cut short to her shoulders.

Her mother wore a long, white, off-shoulder dress. Her neck was adorned with shiny jewels and her earrings were also hoops of gold. She also wore a golden girdle on her waist and kept her gold hair under a veil adorned with colorful stones. She wore an armlet on her right wrist with an embossed Eye of Horus on it.

As they were descending the vehicle, some aristocrats looked at them scornfully and were murmuring among themselves about the slave lineage of Khaira and Aya and some "dirty tricks they used" to enter the higher classes.

Aya caught a bit of the murmuring and was immediately ticked off, but Khaira, her mother, just softly held her hand and smiled at her warmly. Aya then quieted down.

The mother and child were then lead to the palace garden to wait for an audience with the king. It was located in the center of the castle and had fruit trees, bushes, and lush grass growing there. Aya marveled at the sight of such a fertile expanse in the middle of the scorching desert.

The Pharaoh, King Akhenamkhanen, had arrived and welcomed Aya and Khaira. After they both took a bow before the king, they were asked to raise their heads. Khaira then asked Aya to wait for her in the garden as the King and her talk in a separate room in the palace. Aya obediently agreed.

In the garden, Aya happily walked around. Birds were flying to the trees and the sun's rays didn't scorch as hot as she thinks it usually does. She then sat below a tree to rest where she dozed off from the shade.

After a while, Aya woke up and slowly opened her eyes. As she did, the timid boy she had met near the Nile was in front of him, staring at her again.

She was startled and immediately stood up. "W-W-What are you doing?! I thought I said I never want to see you again!"

The boy politely replied "I just passed by and saw you lying here and— "

"You're that pervert from the river this morning!"

"Miss, I told you I'm not a pervert! What happened a while ago was— " he was interrupted again.

"Wait, am I still on the palace? On second thought, what are you doing here?" Aya said after looking around to make sure she really still is on the palace grounds.

"I live here," the boy answered. "Here, I brought you some fruits from this garden. This is an apology for what happened a while ago.

Aya paused for a while to think. "So this is what you meant for 'when you're out', huh?"

She then accepted the fruits and offered him to sit beside her under the tree.

"You're a pretty kind pervert are you?" Aya said as she took the fruits from his hand.

"I told you! I'm not a pervert and I wasn't peeking that time!" the boy forced his reasons timidly. "I hid that time because if you saw me walking around while you were bathing, you'd mistaken me for a Peeping Tom."

Aya instantly asked another question, easily pushing away the former issue. "So, what's your name?"

The boy was astonished at her question, fell silent for a while, and looked down.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Aya asked.

The boy shook his head to tell Aya that there's nothing wrong. "It's just that no one has asked me that question before. You're the first one to do so," the boy said and smiled while blushing lightly.

"You mean no one calls you here by your name?" Aya, as a former slave, felt a bit sad for the boy.

"Well, kind of," the boy said as he folded his hands and placed them on his chest. "My name is Atem."

His name rang faintly in her ears. "Atem. That's a nice name." She looked straight at him and smiled. "My name is Aya. Don't worry because from now on, I'll call you by your name, Atem. I'll make sure you are respected."

Atem looked down on the ground again. "It kinda feels weird to be called by my name again." His smile widened. "But it feels great!" (Note: Do you doubt that Atem used to be timid? See Episode 208. He's soooo cute there!)

"I'm glad you like it" said Aya. "So, do you work here in the Palace? What do you do here— "

Before Aya could continue asking, Khaira and the Pharaoh came out of the curtains that covered the entrance to the garden. Khaira had called for Aya where she has been seen to be sitting under a tree with a boy whom she was eating with.

The king chuckled lightly, "Oh, I see that you are with my only son, Aya."

"Son?" Aya wondered what the Pharaoh was talking about.

The king then walked to their direction and held Atem's head. Aya was shocked at the sight. "Have the two of you gotten to know each other?"

Aya was stunned to know that the boy he was talking to so casually while eating fruits under a tree is actually the son of the ruler of Egypt who was revered as the incarnation of the gods.

The king's face then lit up. He had an idea. "Khaira, I promised you and your daughter that I am willing to give you anything in exchange for the Millennium Spell Book. Now that the spell book has already been collected, I no longer have anything more to anchor my promise to."

"My king," Khaira replied. "We have already received enough from you, your grace. Allowing me to continue to serve you is more than what I can ask for."

"We have no more basis for my promise anymore, Khaira," the king continued "That's why to bolster my promise to the two of you, I would like to offer my son to your daughter in marriage as a sign of my oath."

Aya was so shocked that he unceremoniously let out a protesting exclamation. "WHAAAAATT?!"

Yami Yugi, who was watching these visions from afar, was equally as surprised. "Offer to… marriage?!"

[To be continued]