Chapter 46: Dedyet's past
The next morning, Dedyet woke up in her husband's arms.
He kissed her cheek a second later. "Good morning, Beautiful."
She rubbed her eyes. "Good morning, Honey."
"Did you sleep peacefully?"
"Yes..." Dedyet looked around and saw something missing. "Where are the servants?"
"We've woken up quite early this morning," Ramses informed her. "They aren't here yet."
Being fine with that explanation, Dedyet turned to her husband and kissed his lips. "I've wanted to talk about something way different yesterday. We must have somehow drifted off."
"What did you want to talk about, my love?"
"About our future wet nurse."
Ramses nodded. "Do you have someone special in mind?"
"No. I have no one in mind. Do you?"
"I don't either. But it is fine, we'll find someone who will then move in here and live with us."
"L-live with us?"
"Sure. That's what wet nurses do. Didn't yours do the same?"
"Honestly, I can't remember if I had one…"
"Oh. Well, I remember mine. Her name was Ipwet and she did an excellent job, always polite and respectful, yet above the attitude of a simple commoner. But there is no need to wonder – she was the daughter of a high priest my father knew well."
Dedyet smiled sadly. "It's nice that you remember that."
"Don't you? At all?"
"No..."
"So, there was no woman living with you and your family?"
"I don't think there was."
"You have only told me about your mother once. Do you mind talking about her this fine morning?"
"No… I don't mind."
"I think as a married couple, we should not have any secrets."
Dedyet nodded. "I fully agree, Hun."
"So, did your mother have all the royal rules in mind? Or was she rather good-hearted and kind like you?"
"Like me..."
Ramses looked at his wife. She was staring into the distance, tears in her eyes.
"I still remember the night I came home. A nanny had been spending the day with me outside."
"...And then?"
"My parents. They were both gone."
Silence.
"My brother stood in the main hall, tears in his eyes. He said that our father had been…murdered."
"Murdered?!"
Dedyet started crying.
Ramses placed a hand on her back. "Dear..."
"I made my way upstairs to...see him."
"Dedyet… You don't have to cont-"
"There was blood all over his body!" More tears rolled down her cheeks. "He had been stabbed so many times…" She then sobbed terribly.
Ramses hugged his wife tightly. "I'm so sorry, Dedyet, that you had to see something so terrible."
He didn't want her to talk about something that made her so sad, so he quickly continued the conversation from before. "My people will find us a great wet nurse, I'm sure about it."
"Rammy?"
"Yes?"
"I've thought a lot about this and… I want to breastfeed myself."
"What?!"
"Yes."
"But… That's a thing commoners do!"
"I don't see why."
"You are too good for that."
"Why? What makes me better than a servant?"
Ramses gasped in shock. "Dedyet!"
"I'm serious!"
"But-"
"I will do it myself."
"You can't!"
"Why not?"
"Because I don't want you to!"
"It's my body, so I think I should be the one deciding it."
"Honey," Ramses mumbled, "I just want the best for us."
"I know. But I couldn't stand to see another woman feed my child when I could do it, too. For such a long time, even!"
"Three years isn't long at all! Time will fly by, I know it."
"I don't know about that…"
"I think that you will feel different about this topic in a few months."
"Hm. We will see."