Confusion

~Good habits result from resisting temptation.~ Egyptian quote.

In the second day of the fourth month, the Prince Regent arrived.

Aria was lying on her bed at the time. Her heart sped up but she couldn't bring herself to stand. She hadn't seen him in four months, she was afraid of what their meeting would be like. She sat up and was about getting out of bed when she heard the commotion, it was the warning gong.

Aria's eyes widened. The Prince had gotten injured. The commotion that ignited in the Palace was so great that the news had spread far and wide. The prince was ambushed after a peace treaty as retaliation against the previous slaughter in an ally nation. He was taken to his private chambers, the Royal Physicians following in cue.

Aria had long since run out of her room to catch a glimpse of the Prince. She gasped when she saw the crowd that had gathered in the halls. She caught a glimpse of the woman that had arrived with him the last time-it was Pharaoh's god-daughter.

It seemed to Aria that they went everywhere together.

She just wanted to know if he was okay.

•••

Akhenaten and Ahmes stayed alone in his private chambers. Ahmes walked to his bedside and placed a hand on his forehead, her eyes were filled with so much worry.

Ahmes had never seen him that hurt. His entire body was wrapped in cotton, coated with traditional medicine but he was unconscious. The Palace physicians had done all they could and have left the rest to him. Ahmes sat by him and prayed to her God that Akhenaten recover.

•••

Three days had passed, three days since the Crown Prince had returned back to Egypt near the brink of death. Aria found herself worrying about him—a great deal.

She was anxious and worried at the same time. From the rumours that passed round the Palace, she'd heard that he'd gotten worse and the future was uncertain. She'd seen the restlessness and fear in Pharaoh's eyes. Aria knew it was fear of losing his only heir and son. She still kept her visits to the lake.

Hoping, praying, he would miraculously show his lean build and expressionless eyes.

But he never showed.

•••

Akhenaten stood afar off and watched her. He was surprised to see her by the lake, his secret place.

He took a step towards her but stopped short.

She couldn't see him, his body was still lying unconscious in his private chamber.

He was astral projecting. He stared at her and he couldn't look away.

She was innocent and he was drawn to her. The pull was so strong and almost uncontrollable that he had to really hold himself back most of the time.

Her short hair called to him, her slender frame affected him in a questionable manner and her voice...

Her voice always seemed to resonate into his very being which was why he hadn't recovered from her words. She had called him 'a monster'. He knew he was but she hadn't even seen half of the darkness in him, didn't know half of the things he'd done.

If she knew, she would run from him.

He found himself moving towards her, he wanted to stop but his want was far greater than any rational thought in his head. He saw her straighten and look around. He stopped. He was right behind her.

She stood and turned around.

Akhenaten's heart had never sped that fast in his life. They now stood face to face. She was looking around and she had an uneasy look in her eyes, almost as if she could sense he was there...

But he knew she couldn't see him, she was looking right through him. He was enamoured by her delicate features, her eyes, hair...lips. He averted his attention back to her eyes. Those eyes called to his nonexistent soul-but he had to resist.

He closed his eyes and turned around and started walking away. He heard her sigh ever so softly. He halted in his steps and turned around. He noticed her sullen expression, her eyes were sad—almost remorseful.

"I'm sorry Akhenaten. Please, don't stop fighting." She whispered to the air.

Akhenaten's eyes glued to her as she walked past him out the sanctuary. He looked down at his hand.

It was time he woke up.

•••

Aria wandered around the impossibly large Palace. It's been five days since he'd arrived.

She'd heard more rumours that he was awake, but she didn't know what rumours to believe anymore.

She found herself outside, the sun shined on her face and she discovered she'd missed the sun on her skin.

She kept passing by several people until she found herself near the stables.

The number of horses was awe-inspiring and these were just the Royal stable not to talk of the thousands of chariots they possessed in the chariot cities.

She heard clanging of swords from a distance. She moved closer and after she'd walked a while, she found herself in the training court.

Her eyes widened at the sight before her.

It was him—Akhenaten—and he was sparring with a well-built man, who from Aria's standpoint, looked formidable. As if sensing she was there, he stopped suddenly and looked her way.

The momentary distraction made him lose focus and his opponent almost succeeded in landing a blow, but at the last second, he blocked it and in one swift movement, slashed him across the chest, making him fall to the ground.

Aria took a step back in shock. He started towards her, sword in hand. Her eyes widened, she wanted to move but her legs were glued to the earth. Aria stared at him as he walked towards her, he was awake and apparently well enough to train.

She remembered their last meeting, the horrible words she'd said. She turned around and wanted to leave, she knew she was a coward. She wasn't ready to face him. But before she could take another step, he came to stand right in front of her.

She jumped a little at the suddenness. She didn't meet his eyes but Akhenaten stared at her, he grafted every single detail of her features into his mind. He never wanted to forget.

She still didn't meet his eyes so he said what he knew would catch her attention.

"Aren't you going to apologise?" He questioned, his voice deep and quiet.

As expected, her eyes shot up to his. As she was about saying a word, he leaned down and kissed her. He drew back after a moment and stared at her.

Aria's eyes were wide as she stared up at him.

'Did he just...kiss her?'

She let out a strangled breathe. Her insides trembled. Confusion and terror clouded her mind all at once.

He stared into her brown orbs.

"W-Wha-?"

He caught her by her waist and dropped the sword. He pulled her to him and kissed her more deeply.

He bit her lip and withdrew slightly. He stared into her eyes with his expressionless ones.

She was breathing heavily and he could see the fear and panic in her eyes.

He knew what he did, he knew it would hurt her, and that was exactly why he'd done it because she'd done the same. He released her and stepped away from her.

"Now you know how it feels." He said looking into her teary eyes.

He walked right passed her, back into the Palace leaving her hurt and confused beyond words.

•••

Akhenaten remained in his private chambers for most of the next day. He realised his body needed rest. Ahmes had stayed with him all day. They talked about anything and everything.

Ahmes didn't want to seem stuck upon him but she'd seen Akhenaten and the servant girl-whom Ahmes had found out to be Israeli. Like always, she'd been watching him spar.

Ahmes had seen him kiss her...twice. He knew she'd been watching him, he'd done it knowing she was watching. It'd hurt her so much that she hadn't eaten for the rest of the day.

'How could he?'

She couldn't help but think he'd done it to further make clear his point-that they could never be.

'But neither could they.' She thought.

"Who's the girl?" Ahmes asked casually combing his midnight locks while he laid on her leg.

"Hmmn." He murmured sleepily.

"What girl?" He asked his voice low.

Ahmes sighed and answered.

"The servant girl—the Israeli one."

Akhenaten's eyes opened slowly.

"What about her?" He asked her.

"Who is she?" She questioned.

"Nobody." He stated and closed his heavy lids again.

Ahmes stopped combing his hair.

"What's wrong Ahmes?" He asked her without opening his eyes.

Akhenaten felt her let out a shaky sigh. He sat up and faced her, she was looking down at the comb in her hand.

"You said she was 'nobody', then why did you kiss her?" She questioned him.

She looked up at him at that moment. He stared right back into her eyes for a moment trying to read her emotions, before looking away.

"It didn't mean anything."

"So you've added her to your long list of lovers." She stated.

Akhenaten stood.

"She's not like that." He stated.

Ahmes brows furrowed in confusion.

"Then what do you want with her if not—"

"I need to be alone." He walked away from her.

He removed the bracelets on his wrists and the collar on his neck. Ahmes stood and walked to the entrance, she knew he was done talking.

She paused and looked back at him.

"She's human Akhenaten, don't break her." She said quietly to him before exiting his chambers.

Ahmes knew the kind of person Akhenaten was, she'd grown up with him, seen him at his lowest. She knew what he was capable of. She knew he was dangerous—very dangerous. And all of a sudden, she felt sorry for the girl.

Ahmes doubted she knew what she'd gotten herself into.

...