[Updated 22/03/2017. 11:03pm Philippine Standard Time]
…aaaand because I was irresponsible enough to update for more than two weeks, I give you a 7000+ word update. I can't find a way to split it into two separate chapters. Sob.
Anyway, enjoy!
-Yuhiri
P.S: Care to tell me your thoughts about the end of this chapter? :3 *squeals*
CHAPTER 8: His rival, classmate, best friend, and bride-to-be
The battlefield was near a cliff.
The hot, midday sun shone above the two warriors who stood there with their swords. They both sweated profusely and panted not just from the heat that almost made the ground parched, but also from their heated battle.
"Prepare yourself!" Aya roared as she gripped the hilt of her sword with both hands.
With fiery blaze in her eyes, she charged at Atem and swung her sword will full intent to strike him down.
"Aya, please don't do this!" said Atem said, huffing as he reluctantly blocks Aya's attack with his sword. He was sweating and was nervously standing his ground.
Even in her long dress, Aya stretched out her legs to get better balance on the ground and press her sword harder on Atem's.
"I won't let you win, Atem!" said Aya while gritting her teeth and trying to huff in between. Sweat was dripping from her eyebrows. "Give me all you've got!"
Aya's sword inches closer to Atem. At that moment, as he holds his sword firm against Aya's, the young girl's attention shifted to the sudden change in the prince's eyes. His eyebrows narrowed and his amethyst eyes burned with determination. His dark, thick eyelashes highlighted his strong eyes even more.
It was a sight she rarely gets to see; only during their exchange of blows, when their lives are on the line. His eyes were different from his usual innocent and kind ones. His look pierces the soul.
It was a valiant and brave warrior's eyes.
Because of Aya's daze, the young prince found an opening in Aya. He fainted sudden weakness by withdrawing his sword momentarily. When Aya was caught off-guard, he quickly pulled back his sword, then struck it to another angle towards her.
It was probably by sheer luck that Aya was able to dodge. The distance of Atem's sword and her head was almost as thick as a hair strand's. Aya's eyes turned glassy from Atem's strike. She turned pale momentarily.
Two claps suddenly resounded not too far from them.
"Alright you two, break it up," said Mahad. He was supervising the face-off between Aya and Atem. "You almost got each other. Great job."
"You were too rough Aya!" Atem protested.
"We're practicing Atem, not playing around. Of course I have to simulate real battle situations as much as I can," Aya complained back. "You were even more ruthless than I was! You almost skewered me with that sword!"
"How could I skewer you with this wooden sword?!" Atem refuted. The two are close to brawling into a cat fight.
"Enough you two," Mahad injected with slight annoyance at the two youngsters' tenacity. He then began with his assessment of the combat earlier. "The two of you have been learning the sword now for two weeks. Yet your improvements have been rapid for new learners,"
Aya and Atem secretly came to Mahad a few days after the palace incident to ask him to train the two of them in combat and sorcery. He had just been assigned as Aya's Mother's right hand man as well as apprentice.
At first, Mahad refuses. He knew that the Pharaoh would object to teaching Atem about the sword until he turns 15 and that the Pharaoh would already have a trainer for Atem in mind. Both Aya and Atem are still to turn 13 this year.
As for Aya's case, he imagined Aya's mother, Khaira, to lose her mind if she were to learn that Aya had been indulging in unladylike activities, such as learning how to fight with a sword. He also doesn't feel worthy to train his master's daughter.
Aya and Atem pressed their secret pleas to him day by day, promising that their training would be in secret – and that they would never complain no matter how strict or harsh the training would be.
During Aya and Mahad's talk, Aya poured out her heart to Mahad about how frustrated she was for failing to protect the young prince during the attack. She said that the time her mother has to instruct her is not enough – and that just bearing magic alone is not enough as well.
She had to learn how to use her bare hands.
Because of the constant and annoying persistence of the two, and Aya's clear determination, Mahad finally agreed.
He would train the two on his free times when Khaira is not training the magicians of the country and is out busy in checking the protective barriers of the kingdom. Her time also goes to seek audience with the Pharaoh and other country officials, being the head magician and one of the advisers of the kingdom now.
The three secretly meet in a cliff near the Nile River. Their secret hideout is hidden away from the palace's sight by the lush, thick leaves of the trees of the Nile.
After Aya and Atem's sparring, he calls the two to stand before him. Mahad now gives his assessment to the two. The two kids listen intently.
"Lady Aya, you are definitely faster than the Prince, but you have to work out on your aim. Don't be too impulsive to land a hit on your enemy. You're too focused on striking him that you do not even notice that his blade is already too close."
Aya could only accept with her head bowed down in shame.
"See? I told you so," Atem remarks with subtle teasing.
Mahad continues with Atem's assessment. "My prince, that faint was splendid. But as much as you have the ability to block an attack and find an opening to attack your opponent. You also have to work on your speed in attacking and dodging. You flustered a while ago when Aya charged at you when you could have easily dodged it instead."
Aya looked at him wryly with a snicker, "You were saying, Atem?"
Atem narrowed his eyes out of irritation from Aya's sarcasm.
"Lady Aya, couldn't you wear a better garment that allows easier movement during practice? I don't think your dress serve you well," Mahad asks.
Aya is wearing a long dress that makes it hard to run around without lifting her skirt up a little. Good thing it has haltered sleeves to allow her to swing her sword easily. She also put down her gold necklaces, headband, and girdle to one side of the training grounds, and tied her shoulder-length, gold, curly hair into a low ponytail using a vine she had found near the riverbank.
"Sorry Master. I cannot change into more befitting clothes because it would be suspicious to leave the house without wearing anything presentable to an audience. I have no choice but to bear with this clothing," Aya said apologetically.
Mahad just sighed deeply.
"Alright, tomorrow, you're going to start practicing with the weight of real swords. The two of you are to do 100 straight swings of your swords in the air in preparation," Mahad said authoritatively.
The two are clearly tired, but they just brushed off the sweat in their foreheads with the back of their hands. Almost simultaneously, Aya and Atem inhaled deeply, stood straight side by side, and started swinging their swords forward repeatedly, while counting aloud for each strike.
From afar, in a translucent form, Yami Yugi continues to watch the vision from afar.
"So this is where I learned combat?... And it was with her?" the present Atem said to himself with amazement. The guilt still looms within him on how he had forgotten these memories.
As the two kids in his vision continues to swing their wooden sword, with eye full of determination, he focuses his eyes on young Aya. Despite her feeble build, she tries to swing her sword the best she can with solid determination.
He remembered his previous vision where Aya, who had just woken up from being knocked down after ruffians tried to invade the palace. Her words resounded in his mind: I resent my weakness, your highness. I was barely able to protect you that time. I felt almost… useless.
As Yami Yugi continued to watch, the two younger versions of Aya and himself now are facing the edge of the cliffs of their training ground, stretching their hands to the Nile. Mahad continues to dictate his instructions.
The two focus on accumulating energy in their hands. Light starts to accumulate from their fingers and is slowly creeping up to their palms thinly.
This practice went on until before sunset, where Mahad finally dismissed them with two resounding claps.
At the sound of Mahad's hands, the two kids tiredly put down their hands and sighed with relief. They then looked at each other. They then proudly smiled at each other's hard work.
Aya puts back her jewelry again and freed her bound hair. She and Atem then ran to the side of the Nile and washed away the dirt and sweat on their faces and feet from the practice. Just before Atem finishes, Aya splashed a bit of water on the young boy. He then cried in annoyance at her, and Aya would just snicker.
"Watch out Atem. You may be a guy, but I bet I'm gonna get better than you," Aya said mockingly.
"Not on my watch, Aya," Atem said with grin.
At night, they retire to their homes; young Atem to the palace and Aya, to Khaira.
Upon arrival, her mother hands to her scrolls that the young girl had to study and another scroll of papyrus to write on. This has been a daily routine for her. Her mother wanted her to live a life of a noble who is also familiar with medicine and mathematics, and educated in the arts.
At first, for Aya to learn magic and medicine from her would have been enough for Khaira, but Aya insisted this in order for her "to live like a true aristocrat," as how Aya told her mother.
She sees that Aya is still struggling to be accepted as a noble and how other people still see her and her family as a former slaves who have just gotten to the Pharaoh's good side; and so, agreed to Aya's request.
Usually, after finishing the scrolls and dinner, she would then slump to her bed.
Today, in the middle of her writing, Aya felt her sharp, emerald eyes heavy from exhaustion until they shut close unwillingly. She fell asleep under the lamp.
When Khaira passed by Aya's table to hand her some dates to snack on, she noticed that Aya's head is already slumped flat on the furniture's surface. With a gentle finger, she moved away some of Aya's gold, unruly hair away from her face and saw her innocently sleeping. A smile formed on the mother's lips and kissed her daughter's head lightly. She then wrapped a blanket at the young girl.
Yami Yugi saw that exhaustion is apparent in the young girl. She had been trying to keep up this routine for a good two weeks now with much hard work. She now sees the girl almost helpless but peaceful in her sleep.
Her words rang in his mind again:
I've decided. I'm going to take up a sword and double my study on magic so I can support this country. I am ready to lay down my life to secure the safety of the throne.
He felt as if Aya's words from then – from 5,000 years ago – still lives to this very day. It breathes from her sheer determination.
A gentle smile formed on the former Pharaoh's lips.
That night, in the palace's secret chambers, Akhenaden met once again with the senior mages of the kingdom. They have been the first mages even before Khaira had arrived in the palace.
The room was dark and is only lighted by a single lamp in the middle of the table. About five middle-aged men are sitting in the rectangular table, stern and silent even before Akhenaden arrived.
When the king's brother finally took his seat, one of them finally started the meeting.
"Lord Akhenaden, with the aid of Khaira's magic, our kingdom has never had another trespassing incident again, and three other attempts to conquer Egypt have been thwarted. Over the past 14 suns," the old man said. "But how long are we only going to be contented with standing our ground?"
"We are growing tired of this decades of continuous attempts to conquer Egypt!" How long are we going to put up with this?!" other man cried. "Isn't it about time we put an end to all of this and send a definite shiver to our enemies' spines for them to no longer dare come to Egypt ever again?!"
"We already have in our grasp the promising powers of the Millennium Spellbook! Why can't we invoke its power now?! We are tired of the wars and those that are yet to come, Lord Akhenaden!" another magician expressed.
"The Pharaoh has placed Khaira as head of all matters about magic and sorcery. Nothing could be brought before to the king about magic that Khaira will not allow," Akhenaden finally spoke.
After Akhenaden spoke about their protests, all in the room fell silent.
Akhenaden continued, "Upon learning the conditions that the spells of the Millennium Spellbook requires, Khaira had that book from her ancestors locked away and had never mentioned about it again to the Pharaoh. She had instead focused on the research of new protective spells and training more mages to protect the kingdom."
"That witch is a coward. She keeps on pressing on defense rather than offense to finally shake all of our enemies in fear," Suhen, one of the magicians in the room, said. "If we do not find a way to permanently strike fear to our enemies, we cannot hope to bring an end to this war – and that sorceress is preventing us from doing so, Lord Akhenaden!"
Akhenaden's eyes widened upon the realization.
"That's right. We should find a way to get rid of that wretched slave so the Pharaoh would listen to us!" one of the mages spoke.
Ann eerie silence filled the room as the members contemplated on the proposal.
The morning of the next day, Aya is at home with her eyebrows furrowed: She was trying to finish her writing assignments as her teacher has his arms crossed and a foot-long stick inhis right hand while sternly watching her write on the papyrus. It was almost time for her to meet with Atem and Mahad in the castle.
In her rush, she accidentally slipped her hand while writing hieroglyphs and smudged the brush on the paper, leaving some of the paragraphs dirty.
Her teacher immediately whacked her writing hand with the stick and harangued at her: "Lady Aya! Do not waste the precious ink and paper and my time by making clumsy stunts like this."
The teachers in Egypt were strict. This kind of Egyptian culture of teaching is called "seba". But the teacher is sterner to her than his other students. Aya could see in his demeanor and snide remarks that it is because he was ordered to teach someone who came from the lowest social level, someone with a lower rank than him.
The rumors of them getting inside the nobility because of getting to the good side of the Pharaoh is still prevalent among all classes.
Aya could only quietly complain. Nonetheless, she immediately brought out a new page of papyrus and continued writing.
Several minutes later, she was finally finished and after bowing down to her teacher, she gracefully left to the door, solemnly saying that she must accompany her mother in the castle once again.
Once she completely got out of the house, she made sure that people, including her maids, were outsight. The coast was clear and so she dashed as fast as she can to the castle while wearing her heavy ornaments and long dress. Life returned to her eyes as she panted while running to the castle.
When she was nearing the castle gates, she stopped to hide behind a tree to compose herself. After panting heavily, she took a deep breath, pat away her sweat with a part of her long skirt, and sorted out her hair. She then cleared her throat and clasped her hands together, then walked to the gate as gracefully as she can.
She guards of the gate immediately recognized her. "Lady Aya, please come in."
"May I ask if my Sir Mahad and the prince is in the castle?" she asked, making her refinement show.
"According to the maids, the prince is in his study room, while Sir Mahad is out with your mother for an extended training, my lady," the guard said.
Aya was disappointed, but did not show this outwardly and maintained a regal poise.
"I see. I would like to seek an audience with the prince instead. Thank you," Aya said and fluidly walked herself through the castle gates.
The guard who was talking to her was about to stop her, but the other guard held his shoulder to stop him. "She has permission to see the prince anytime. Her mother's the new head of the security of the kingdom," the guard whispered to him.
"No way? These former slaves rose higher than us again? We used to have a higher status than them. Now, we're under these two?!" the guard whispered back with a look of sight disgust in his face as they followed Aya with their eyes as she walked.
Aya heard them, but decided not to bat an eye and suck everything up instead. He just released a soft sigh.
As Yami Yugi watched, he can't stop but feel bad for her.
This is probably one of the reason she's been pushing herself too hard to learn and to fight, he told himself.
At the study room, young Atem was reading scrolls of papyrus about Egyptian mythology. The room was lit by the midday sun that passed through the room's stone windows, illuminating the shelves of papyrus which contained texts of different genres such as literature, religion, education, and politics.
The text on the scroll that Atem reads about three guardian gods that watch over Egypt, but their names are yet to be known. Rough sketches of blue, yellow, and red beast-like figures were depicted in the brown and seemingly aged papyrus.
Three soft knocks at the room's door broke Atem's concentration on the text. When he looks to the door's direction, it was Aya, who immediately bowed down to him at the door when their eyes met. Atem replied with a smile.
"Your Highness, is anybody accompanying you right now?" Aya asked, looking around for people at the corner of her eye.
"No, Aya. My teacher had just left," Atem said as he was putting down the scroll.
When she confirmed that no one really was in there, she let out a big sigh of relief, then looked at Atem with an even wider smile and more like a grin, the hands on the sides of her waist.
"So, what are you reading about, Atem?" Aya said as she walks to Atem who was sitting at the fancy-looking table. She then took a peek at the paper the young man was holding.
"Geez, Aya. You're still scared about people knowing that you call me by my name when no one's around?" Atem scoffed.
Aya's gaze lowered. Her sharp eyes were tinged with melancholy.
Atem, curiously about the sudden drop in Aya's interest, probed her face while sitting. He wondered if he probably said something to upset her.
"People will never ever think that I deserve to call you by your name, Atem, nor will they accept that I deserve to stand where I am now," Aya said. She then made out a forced smile, "So please, bear with me a little longer, okay?" Her smile didn't even reach her eyes anymore.
Atem felt the hint of sorrow in her words. "What do you mean, Aya?" he asked.
Aya just chuckled wryly in attempt to distract Atem from probing her any further. "Never mind that. So, I heard Master is busy with extended hours of training with mother. What should we do with today's practice?"
Atem was confused with Aya's sudden change of mood. Still, he just went along with it and dismissed his former question. "I don't know. We can't ask him in the open too."
Aya agreed with a sigh. "So what should we do now?"
"Maybe we can train on our own?" Atem suggested.
"We can but…" Aya's gaze moved around the room, when an open scroll lying on the table caught her eye. She went near it, and in a loud, excited voice, called Atem's attention to the scroll she was pointing out scroll.
"Atem, let's do this!" Aya excitedly squealed in her ah-ha moment.
Atem took a closer look at the paper and saw drawings of Egyptians on boats, catching fish with nets in the Nile River. "We'll… fish?"
"Yeah!" the energy in Aya's voice was all the more outward. "I bet you haven't tried fishing yet! It's been so long since I went fishing with mother."
Atem's eyes practically sparkled at the idea. "Let's do it!"
"Alright, let's go!" said Aya while raising a fist in the air. "We have never been out to play around yet other than train under Master."
"Wait, Aya," Atem worriedly injected. "How are we supposed to get out of the castle if we aren't with Mahad? I don't think they'll simply allow me to get out. Father would be furious."
"Don't worry. Last week, I found a secret passage in and out of the castle grounds. There's a small hole in the corner of the gardens near the castle wall," Aya assured him. "No one's been able to find it because it's behind the bushes. Once there's no one in the garden, we'll get out chance to pass through it."
Atem's eyes widened, thrilled with the chance to get out of the castle to play.
For a moment, Aya dazed at the sight of Atem's happy face. It was pure innocence and joy that he saw in his expression.
She broke from the ephemeral trance when Atem called her out of the room to get their plan into motion.
The two immediately ran to the palace gardens and hid behind the columns to watch out for any passing person. After a while, the maids in the gardens left for the afternoon duties to clean the throne room. The guards were about to shift duties as well.
It was as if everything was orchestrated to make way for the two youngsters' escape.
Aya ran first to the bushes that hid the small hole to outside the palace walls. Atem followed suit. After Aya squirmed out of the hole, Atem looked around first if anyone would see them.
A palace guard was approaching. He immediately jumped to the bush and into the hole.
When the two were out from what seemed to be a mouse hole, they were both covered in dust. Aya's dress, with her golden ornaments, and Atem's skirt and top were soiled. She then patted away the dust in her dress and rubbed her face.
It was the first time Atem had ever had dust in his face and was disgusted with himself. He felt dirty.
Aya laughed at his ignorance and dusted off his clothes for him, then rubbed the dirt on his cheeks with her hands. He was uncomfortable, but thanked Aya otherwise.
The two then ran to the riverside. When they reached the edge of the river, a problem met them: How they are going to start fishing without a boat nor a net? Atem was starting to lose hope.
Moments later, an old fisherman was just coming from the river, tugging his small boat back to shore together with his catch of the day. Aya had an idea. She rushed to the old man, leaving Atem by himself.
He was about to ask her where she was going, but Aya had already ran away.
Aya and the old man's conversation is inaudible, but Aya looked like she was bargaining with him, while pointing to the river. The old man slid his hand behind his neck, but then eventually nodded after a while.
Aya then handed him some gold coins and a sincere bow in thanks. She then ran back to Atem with a mischievous grin while waving to the old man. Her gold, unruly hair swayed as she ran. The afternoon sun poured in its sheen.
"Come'on, Atem! I found us a boat to borrow!" Aya said and happily tugged Atem to the boat.
They took over the boat that the old man was pulling ashore a while ago. It was a small boat made of straw, unlike the palace boats that is made of strong lumber and embellished with mythical figure.
Nonetheless, young Atem was ecstatic to get in the boat.
Aya assisted Atem to the boat. She also did the rowing to the deeper part of the river. He was filled with wonder as Aya paddled, his smile plastered on his face as they drift further.
He wanted to get a closer look at the water they were floating on when the boat suddenly rocked, causing him and Aya to slightly panic.
"Watch it, Atem! You're gonna capsize the boat and get us both wet! Don't ruin the moment by throwing the both of us out to the water!" Aya scolded in panic.
Atem apologized, but his amazement did not waver and almost ignored Aya's reprimand.
Atem then dipped his finger to the water. Its coldness tingled his fingers at first and made him pull it back from the river. But returned it back there again and finally enjoyed the refreshing temperature.
"Geez, Atem. You're like a child," Aya teased. She was nonetheless happy to let Atem experience this.
"I haven't been allowed to leave the castle very much, much less to ride a boat to travel because of the wars," Atem said. "I'm just so happy that I finally get to ride one."
Aya smiled sympathetically at him. "Maybe, even just a bit, we non-royals still had it better. We were freer to do more things – and without the nuisance of a guard or rules to hold us down."
She paused for a while.
"Maybe slavery was even a bit better. We had it hard, but no one tries to remove us from our place…"
Atem sat up straight to look at Aya. Her eyes looked down in melancholy again while still continuing to gently row through the river. He hesitated to ask what was wrong and just felt bad for her silently.
When Aya realizes the mood she had just set, she suddenly snaps back to her happy mood. "That's right! The old man said we can use his fishing poles, Atem. He also had extra fish bait here."
Aya handed a fishing rod with bait to Atem. It was made of strong wood available around the Nile and were cut into slim, long poles. She then carefully explained how to fish. The two then tossed their hooks (ancient Egyptian fish hooks used to be made of fish bone) to the water.
At first, Atem complains at how long it has already passed and complained why no fish had yet pulled their rod. Aya comforts him and just tells him to enjoy the sun and the sky. He came to realize how good the wind was blowing on his face.
Moments later, the two found themselves in long conversations; about fun things to do, about hobbies, pets, fruits, pyramids, and others.
Eventually, Atem finally gets a bite, and Aya helps him reel it in. When he takes it out of the water, Atem's eyes marvel at the flopping fish before him as it bites on the hanging vine of his rod.
Aya raises her thumb and grins widely at him in congratulations. The boy giggles at his accomplishment.
They cast their rods again and wait for another bite, and talked while waiting for it to tug. They would then return to their conversations about anything under the sun, what is there beyond Egypt and the Nile; about how strict their teachers can be, their plans and dreams, and also, what they plan to do when they finally become good with the sword and staff, all with laughter in between.
The fish that they have caught have started to pile up. Every so often, they'd laugh their hearts out at each other's tales.
"I've never talked this much to people with the same age as me before, Aya," Atem said after a belly laugh.
"I've only been around adults recently and was always clinging to mother," said Aya as she wipes a tear from her eyes from laughing too much.
Another tug came from Atem's fishing rod. This time, it was quite a powerful one. The two felt their balance on the boat shake a bit.
"Uhh, Aya? Is it still normal to get this strong a tug from my rod?" Atem asked, worry was in his tone.
Aya instantly gets the message that the strength of the fish wasn't average anymore. "Atem, that could be a really big haul!"
Aya immediately puts down her rod to help Atem with his. The two now struggles to haul in the resisting fish.
Aya, out of irritation, stood up from her seat to reel in the fish. She gritted her teeth as she pulled with all of her strength.
Suddenly, the fish seemed to have doubled its strength, and instead, reeled in the two youngsters to the water, capsizing their boat. The giant fish got away.
The two swam to the surface and looked at each other. They then bursted into laughter.
"We can't go home wet like this. We're both gonna get it from our parents," Aya said while giggling. Aya pointed to the cave nearby. "Let's go make a campfire there and hope we get ourselves dry before sunset."
The two returned the boat to the old man together with the rods. Aya then instructed Atem to collect dry sticks so she can make a small fire to help their clothes dry faster. The breeze from the river was chilly, and so they decided to build the fire inside the cave.
On the process of making the fire, Aya also showed Atem how to make fire first-hand. Moments later, the sparks from the flint stones Aya struck together eventually grew into a fire that consumed the dried leaves and twigs Atem picked up moments ago. Warmth filled the cave and the two sat by the crackling fire.
There, Atem took off his top and hanged it in a rock near the fire to have it dry faster. Aya, on the other hand, couldn't get an article of her clothes off, so she only put down her ornaments and sat close to the fire. She could only wring out the water on her hair and skirt.
Out of the dozens of fish the two caught, Aya was only able to save two. She skewered it and had it grilled in the fire they made.
The smell of roasted fish wafted inside the cave.
"It smells good, Aya," Atem said while observing the fish being cooked. "It may not be served in a plate with fruits like in the palace, but I really want to try out the fish I caught myself."
"Don't worry, Atem. This will be ready in a minute," Aya chuckled.
She suddenly paused and looked morose, still tending to the fish. She looked like she was no longer looking at the fish. Her emerald eyes that glinted in the light of the fire were misty and far away.
"You know Atem, I really am thankful to you and your father, the Pharaoh, for setting my mother and I free, and making us part of the nobility. Being a noble is nice and all, but I miss the simple life when my mother and I used to live peacefully by the far part of the Nile, far from the castle. I miss it so much."
Atem sat silent, sympathetically listening to Aya. All his attention shifted from the fish to the girl who is spilling her heart out.
"We weren't always slaves, Atem. I and my mother. We used to live a quaint and peaceful life in the boarders between Egypt and Kush (modern day Nubia), by the river together with our clan who, as you know it, were magic scholars. I had some memories there before our slavery."
Aya continued. "There, I had my kinfolks. I played, lived, and studied together with my cousins who were close to my age. But one day, mother said enemies of Egypt raided our small town and slaughtered all of the inhabitants."
She continued to talk. She no longer needed to look at the prince and just continued to tend to the fish.
"Mother tried her best to fight back and protect me. The forces were too strong, and my mother, who was weakened from the battle, only managed to flee to the boarders of Egypt. In our two-day journey through the deserts of Kush, we found a caravan that sold slaves. In order for mother and I to survive, my mother swallowed her pride and surrendered ourselves to slavery. We were then sold as slaves to the capital."
After a brief silence, Atem finally spoke. "So you used to be a mighty clan of free people." Aya silently nodded. "How was your life as a slave, Aya?"
"A bit harsh. I and mother endured a lot of whippings. We have forgotten our comfortable lives with our kin in the boarder," Aya said, her gaze still down. She then looked at her palm. "It's been months since your father has set us free, but the callous in my hands and feet from all the labor under the hot sun is still there, hard and thick."
Aya moved her left leg forward then slowly lifted her dress up to above her knees, revealing her thighs. Atem turned red.
"W-w-what are you—"
Before young Atem could continue to stutter in misunderstanding her gesture, he suddenly stopped in shock when he saw dark marks that circle the part just above Aya's ankle. It was the marks of Aya's chains that she wore for many years. There were also some long scars, probably former wounds inflicted by whips.
"Even if I'm wearing gold ornaments now with maids to attend to my every need, I can still feel the cold, heavy chains in my feet, Atem."
His heart sank at the sight.
"But to be honest, my life before may have been better than today," Aya said as she turned the two fish for its other side to be cooked. "When I was still a slave, I get punished every so often, but no one would question why I was there. No one would bat an eye at me. Now that I am fed three times a day with gold ornaments adorning my neck, I can feel the tight grip of my discrimination on my neck like a tight necklace. Like a noose around my neck."
Aya continued. "Your people keep on questioning why we are where we are now. It seems like we don't belong anywhere near the palace. I'm trying to get by because I'm thankful of the freedom, that was returned to us. But still it's… suffocating."
Atem contemplated, looking at the ground as he did so.
He then stood up to move to the same rock where Aya was seated while she was busy turning the fish in the flame.
"Aya…"
Atem called her to signal her to face him. When she turned his head to him, she almost gasped at the look in the eyes of the young prince before her: it was full of strength and determination again. He had that look when he was in battle and was fighting for victory.
The light of the flames further illuminated the flame in his eyes. As Atem and Aya were seated side by side, the look in the young prince's eyes left her momentarily awestruck – and somehow breathless.
"Aya, in the name of the Pharaoh, I promise to protect you and your mother's honor, as my father had also promised you. No one will touch even a single hair from your head as long as I am here. I will be your ally from this day forth," Atem avowed, his voice commanding and compelling. It had the power to empire bow to him.
Aya's eyes widened.
"That's why set your mind at ease. As long as my father and I are on your side, nobody will ever be able to remove you from where you are in Egypt. Whoever will be against you will also be against the Pharaoh and the gods of Egypt," Atem continues, his tone unwavering and eyes full of resolve.
His words definitely made its way into Aya's heart.
"Thank you, Atem," Aya said as her low expression was replaced with a soft smile. She then turned to the prince who was sitting beside her and placed her right fist to her left chest, following it with a small bow. "I also pledge my loyalty to you and the throne, Your Majesty."
Atem returned her gesture with a smile. "I've already told you, haven't I? Call me by my name when it's just us and Mahad."
"But I was just trying to play along with your act a while ago!" Aya jokingly reasoned out with a chuckle. The mood shifted to a jolly one, once again.
"An act?! You think everything I said just now was an act?" Atem said in an attempt to deflect Aya's gag.
"Yeah. How could you say all of that without your clothes on, Atem?"
"Do I really need to put something on to get serious?!"
Aya just laughed heartily. She then gave Atem his cooked fish. His delight over the skewered food immediately extinguished their brewing debate.
She noticed that his strong eyes from a moment ago had vanished. His kind eyes are back.
Atem, excited over the food, blew the heat of the fish and then took a bite. "Even if it was not cooked the way the royal chef does, this is still really good. I have never had something like this before!"
Aya just teased him and then laughed as he started chewing down her own fish.
As they ate, she pondered upon Atem's words. In the middle of their informal meal, a smile formed on her lips.
He then looked at Atem from the corner of her eye, then back to the fish on her hand. Even if he's the Pharaoh's son, he really does have a good heart. He's one of a kind.
Then a memory struck her silently.
What if the Pharaoh really were serious about making me marry Atem?!
She almost dropped her fish at the thought. Aya's mind scrambled as she continues to chow down her fish in attempt to distract herself from her own thoughts.
Me? Marry Atem? Her face twitched Not a chance. After all, I'm just one of the many nobles. There are a lot of pretty girls out there, I suppose. Maybe. She bit her lip at the thought.
As her thoughts continued to whirl, Atem was just sitting beside her happily eating.
She looked at him again secretly as he sat just beside her. His bare chest took her attention.
Wait. I just realized that he doesn't have a top on! She freaked out silently.
But then, her eyes started to survey the features of the prince's uncovered body parts secretly as they ate. Aya noticed the smooth texture of Atem's dark skin. His abdomen was illuminated by the flame's light. Rock-like rifts are starting to form there. About six in number.
His skin slightly reflected the yellow light of the fire. It looked smooth and soft, free of any wound or scar, like varnished dark wood. He really was a sheltered royalty.
She stole glances of him again.
His biceps are also a bit muscular. Its hard appearance become more apparent as Atem bends his arms a little to bring the fish near his mouth to bite on it, making his arms flex a little. His elbows rested on his knees. Maybe his arms started to look well-toned because of their trainings, Aya thought in a fleeting trance.
The he thoughts of marriage to him came back again. Her brown cheeks slowly started to feel hot and were then tinted with a light red color.
She was starting to sweat. As she was eating, her hands quivered a little because of the thought.
In silent fret, she suddenly slapped her cheek lightly and immediately rose from her seat to move to another rock away from Atem.
"Huh? What's wrong? Why did you move, Aya?" Atem said, confusion on his face. His eating was interrupted.
"Uhh... I just feel a little cold over there, that's all," she replied followed by an awkward laugh.
"Hey, your face is a bit red. 'You sure you're okay? Are you sick?" Atem's expression is now a little worried. "If only you can take your dress off to get it dried near the fire."
Take my dress… off?!
Aya's thoughts were in a mess, and was scrambled even further. But she still tried to answer while wearing a weird grin. "Ah, ahahaha. I'll be alright Atem. I'm a strong girl. This is nothing too big to handle."
Suddenly, Atem let out a sneeze.
Aya jumped from her seat in panic, or more like terror. "Wait, might you be the sick one?!
She panicked with comical horror. "Your father's going to kill me if he finds out that I snuck you out of the palace and got you sick!"
"It was just a simple sneeze Aya. Nothing to worry about," Atem said while waving off the matter.
Aya was still irrationally hysterical. Atem could just laugh.
The present Atem laughed as well.
[to be continued]