“We
could take a break if you want?” The Princess offered, easily able to see how frustrated
her student was getting.
“No.”
The thief grouched, glowering at the hieroglyphs. They were beginning to make
sense, but it wasn’t as easy as she had thought it would be. She was actually embarrassed
at the amount of trouble she was having. The Princess made it look so easy, but
then the eleven year old had learned to read and write at a much younger age,
mostly by sneaking into her brother’s lessons. “I’m going to get this.”
Doing
so would make breaking in and out of tombs so much easier. She would be able to
read the warnings that the architects had left for themselves so they could
avoid traps. She would also be able to work out what scrolls were valuable and
could be sold to certain parties for a high price.
She
just had to understand what the hell each of the symbols actually meant. Hieroglyphs
were really complicated and symbols could mean different things if they were
paired with different symbols and the whole system of writing made no sense. Hieratic
script had been much, much easier to understand, even if she still struggled
with it a bit.
Still
she had a fellow student now. She was pretty sure it was Mahad’s revenge on the
Princess for dropping her on him. Mana, who had been the Princess’s best friend
and who had gone home for a while after the Anubis, had returned to the palace
to be there for the ‘Prince’ and Mahad. She, of course, had known the
difference instantly and had had to swear herself into secrecy along with the
rest of the Princess’s small group of confidents, but Mahad had decided that
she could catch up on her missed studies by learning from the Princess as he
didn’t have time to teach between his own studies and the investigation into
Akenaten’s misdeeds.
Frustratingly Mana already knew how to read,
but that was fine because Bakura was learning plenty from just watching the
Princess try and teach the other girl magic.
“I do have one idea,” Mana commented as the
Princess’s stomach rumbled, as she stretched, having taken a break, “What about
a trip to the kitchens?”
“Food?” The Princess perked up, having been
just as irritated as her student. She knew she was hitting a barrier with
Ba-Khu-Ra and she wasn’t sure how to get around it. She wanted to, but she didn’t
know how.
“Sure, whatever.” Ba-Khu-Ra wasn’t going to
object to a free meal. Money wasn’t too much of an issue any more, not when she
tended to make a slight detour each time she left the palace ground. However
she had lived with nothing for so long that she wasn’t above taking advantage
of free food. “I could use a break anyway.”
They quickly packed up, carrying their tools
with them as they made their way past the throne room and down to the kitchens.
They were nearly there, in fact they could smell the food cooking when they
bumped into the Pharaoh and a couple of the priests.
Well aware of Ba-Khu-Ra’s feelings towards her
father and the rest of the High Priests, the Princess subtly gestured to Mana as
she spoke with her father. Unfortunately Mana didn’t get a chance to pull the
thief girl aside before her father turned to the two girls.
“And who are you two?” He asked, looking them
over.
“This is Mana.” The Princess spoke quickly, gesturing
to the girl, “And...”
“I’m Ba-Khu-Ra.” The Princess only just managed
to keep any signs of distress off of her features as the thief girl stepped
forward with a bow and a surprising amount of deference. Still the Princess
couldn’t help but hold her breath as the thief straightened and continued, “Of
Kul Elna.”
The Pharaoh didn’t respond to the name but
Akenaten did. If the Princess had had any doubts about the fact her uncle was
involved in what had happened to Ba-Khu-Ra’s village, they vanished as she
watched her uncle turn as white as a sheet and backup slightly, staring at the thief
as if he had seen a ghost.
Now they just needed hard evidence and they
could take it to her father and get justice for the thief girl’s home.
“They’re Mahad’s students.” The Princess spoke
up, drawing attention back to her, “We’re learning magic together.”
“And where is Mahad?” The Pharaoh asked, “I
require a word with him.”
The Princess hesitated. She wasn’t sure where
Mahad was. He had spoke about needing to speak with some contacts and vanished
a few hours ago. “I’m not sure.” She said slowly, thinking, “Lessons are over.
We were just about to do some extra revision and get a snack.”
“If you see him, send him to the throne room.”
Her father nodded, looking thoughtful. “Something important’s come up and I
must speak with him urgently.”
“Yes, Father.”
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