Chapter 16 - Always, and never

Chapter 16



`Um, okay, this is really awkward.'

Kaede and Seto sat together on one of the benches in the park. Kaede leaned back, trying to think of something to say to him.

`It might not have been if you had looked behind you before going to sleep on me,' Seto smirked at her.

`I did not go to sleep on you, I was just resting,' Kaede said haughtily.

`And crying too? Do you normally do that while you rest?' Seto asked with a superior wave of his hand.

`Yeah, all the time,' Kaede snapped sarcastically. `Why, don't you?'

`I have better things to do that cry my eyes out to a tree, which isn't even a tree,' Seto smirked again.

`Shut up, it wasn't even to a tree,' Kaede whirled around so her whole body was facing him, and prepared to pounce at him.

`Whatever.'

Kaede sat back and folded her arms, fuming. He was just sitting there, smirking and taking the piss. She wanted to strangle him right then and there but couldn't some how. She just turned away from him and looked up to the stars in the sky.

Seto leant over and looked up as well, until she bashed him away with her elbow. `Cut it out, you could at least be discreet with your mockery!'

`Who said I was mocking you?' Seto said, and Kaede looked at him, expecting a smirk, a laugh, an evil grin, anything but what she got, which was a gentle, soft, smile that lit up hit face and forced Kaede to smile back.

`Kaede,' Seto murmured, and pulled her closer to him, wrapping his arms around her waist and buried his face in her hair. Kaede closed her eyes, slipping into a dream of him and her together, wishing with all her heart for it to become reality. She felt his hand softly stroking her cheek and his lips brush hers. She hung her arms around his neck as he kissed her and she felt herself melting in his warmth.

But she realised what she was doing and pulled back, breaking their embrace. She almost fell of the bench but caught herself just in time and stumbled to regain her balance. She looked around quickly, in case Joey and Marik had come back this way looking for her and had seen them together, which was too unbearable for Kaede to even begin to imagine. But luckily, there was no one else in the park, and Kaede glanced back at Seto, who was sitting on the bench staring at her, his eyes hurt and pained. Kaede felt her stomach churn and she felt sick at the horrible feeling in her stomach; guilt.

`I'm sorry, Seto,' she whispered, and not even knowing whether he heard or not, turned ad ran home, leaving him calling after her to stop, turn around, come back to him, but she couldn't. She ran back to her street and slowed to a walk as she neared her house.

She was still angry with her grandparents, but she felt like a spoilt brat for running away like that. She entered the house and prepared herself for the arguing that would inevitably meet her.

But it didn't come. Her grandparents were sitting in the kitchen, waiting for her. They didn't shout, or ask angry questions, they didn't say anything. Her grandmother took her in her arms and hugged her to tightly it felt like she would never let her go. Her grandfather did the same, and Kaede hugged them back. As she said goodnight to them, she knew that what they had decided about the inquest was for the best, she wasn't needed there and it would bring back her nightmares, the never ending nightmare of total blackness, the abyss of darkness, and the dust that choked her but was invisible in the dark.

No, she thought to herself, I don't need that again.

She pushed open her door and saw Joey and Marik asleep on the floor, still in the clothes that they had been wearing earlier. Knowing it was her fault, she got two foldable mattresses out from on of her cupboards and laid it out of the floor beside them, and threw two blankets and some pillows onto them. Prodding them awake, Kaede directed their half sleeping bodies to their mattresses and lay them down, pulling the covered over them. Both fell asleep again instantly, and Kaede watched them sleep as she changed for bed.

`I'll tell Joey tomorrow,' she said to herself firmly. `This has to end.'

And she fell asleep, still watching them.

And far to the back of her memory, something stirred.

Priest Seto, standing on a balcony over a vast garden, with a circular pool in the centre. He was looking down into the garden watching a young girl, dressed in a white dress, her wrists and ankles wrapped in white clothe bandages. She was completely oblivious to his presence and was humming a slow song that seemed familiar to him somehow, but he wasn't able to place it.

He smiled down at her, and rested his head on his hand as he watched. She began to walk in time to the music, slowly, and was turning her body ever so slightly as she stepped. She slowly turning around on the spot, and lift her arms above her head as she turned, ever so slowly, taking a step as she did so.

Then, she was still, not moving at all, barely breathing. Her body was twisted from the turn, on of her feet was off the ground save the very tips of her toes, her arms were still above her head, curled around each other. Silence.

Then her hands came together in a sudden clap. The clap ran around the garden, bouncing off the walls on two sides. She leaped through the air, humming again, this time the beat quicker, harder to follow. Her feet kicked up dust as she spun, her head whipping around as she pirouetted around the pool. She curved and twisted, following the sound of her voice and nothing else, eyes shut for concentration.

She whirled and spun, and leaped through the air once more, landing on her knees, airs spread out of either side, head bowed.

But her head whipped up as she sensed, rather that heard, him watching her. She stood up quickly, rage in her eyes. `Why were you watching me?' she demanded.

He looked rather taken aback. `I thought you wouldn't mind, you are used to dancing in front of people.'

Her hands tightened into fists, and her long nails dug hard into her hand so hard, blood started to pour through the gaps in her fist and splattered the dusty ground. When she spoke, her voice was tinged with fury. `My days as a dancing slave are over, and not even you can make me dance for you.'

She turned and ran out of the garden her white dress riding in the wind as she fled. Priest Seto yelled after her, calling for her to stop. `HEBENY! HEBENY, PLEASE WAIT!'

But she didn't wait; she didn't even look over her shoulder to look at him.

Seto cursed under his breath and ran back into the building, and down the first flight of stairs he came to. Slaves bringing fruit to the upper rooms were thrown out of the way as he sped.

When outside, he raised his hands to shield his eyes from the blinding sunlight, peering from beneath his hand, searching for any sign of her. He could see nothing but the desert around him. And a sudden flash of white and black. He took off again, sprinting towards her, realising where she had gone.

Hebeny looked over her shoulder when she reached the lake, out of breath and exhausted. She sat down underneath a tree, still looking back; scanning her surroundings to be sure he hadn't followed her here.

Satisfied he was nowhere near, she leaned back against the tree she was underneath and watched the light of the sun dancing on the surface of the water. It hypnotised her, making her eyes feel heavy, and she took a deep breath, and closed her eyes.

Approaching slowing as he knew she would still be angry with him, Seto crept towards the lake, searching for her. He knew she was here, but he couldn't see where exactly. Coming closer still, he saw her beneath one of the trees, sleeping against the trunk. Breathing a sigh of relief, he jogged over and stood beside the tree watching her sleep.

She looked so peaceful and he knelt down beside her, making himself more comfortable. Gently, so she wouldn't wake up, he lifted her hand closer to him, so he could examine the damage she did to herself.

She had deep gauge marks in her palm and her nails were bloody and cracked. He shook his head to himself, and went to crouch by the side of the lake, cupping some of the water in his hands. He brought it back to her and washed as much of the blood as he could off of one of her hands, and then did the same with them other. The white bandages around her wrists were now damp and stained red with blood, so he unravelled them and wrapped them around her hands to stop the blood flow.

As he did this, his hand brushed hers ever so slightly and she leaped up, roused from sleep and ready to attack.

`Stop,' Seto raised his hands, holding the bandages that he hadn't managed to tie yet. He swallowed and tried reasoning with her. `Look, now I know you're upset with me, but let's just try to sort this out-'

`What do you mean sort it out? You were spying on me,' Hebeny folded her arms, careful not to touch her blood covered hands to her dress.

`Spying? I wasn't spying on you!' Seto jumped up, enraged. `I was watching.'

`That's the same thing!'

`No it isn't. Spying implies it was dishonest.'

`Well it was.'

`No it wasn't, I was just watching you dancing. What's the harm in that?'

`The harm in that is that is all people have done since I was thirteen years old, ever since my first owner sold me. That, and force me to sleep with them and then sell me when I refuse because I want to keep the little pride that I have left.' Hebeny spit out these words like poison.

`I'm not like them, I don't want to hurt you,' Seto jumped up and confronted her.

`Is that so? Then why didn't you say something to let me know you were there, and save me the embarrassment of finally realising when it is so late?' Hebeny leaned forward as she said this, intimidating him. He opened his mouth to reply, but couldn't think of what so say, so he shut it again. Hebeny shook her head, a look of disgust on her face. `You see? You're just the same as every last one of them.

`I am not the same as them!' Seto roared at her. `I saved you, from the crowds who were stoning you, I saved you from prison when you mocked the Pharaoh, I saved your life again, and helped to heal you, so that one day you would be able to dance again. I brought you into my home, I fed you, clothed you, I bet I'm the only person who was ever kind to you in your life. So now, tell me, how I am like them?'

`You think you're the only one who's been nice to me? They're all nice until they get what they want. Then they tie my hands to a pillar and force me to dance in front of a crowd until one of them decides to buy me to satisfy his pathetic little needs because no self-respecting woman ever would,' Hebeny snarled. `You high class wealthy men are all the same, pathetic, desperate and cruel.'

`That's not true!'

`It is and you know it is. But don't worry, I'm leaving now anyway, to go and find myself a new master who will look after me and treat me with respect. I'll never come back; you won't ever have to see me again.'

Hebeny tried to push past him to go back to the temple, but he blocked her way. She tried to get round him, but he grabbed her arm. She scratched out with her nails, and he held her away so they missed him. Desperate, Hebeny lashed out with her free arm, but he ducked and she stumbled, off-balanced, and fell towards the water, dragging him with her.

They hit the water with a gigantic splash, and coughing and spluttering, she surfaced, and fighting to free herself from his gasp to get back to land. He held her arm tightly, and she dipped her hand in the water, hands open flat, and pushed the water with all her might into his face.

It hit him and water dripped off his face and he gave her the weirdest look, and then did the same to her, smiling as he did so. Laughing, she sprayed him again, and pushed his head under the water. She stood and tried to walk back to land, but he grabbed her by the ankle and she fell forwards, her arms in front of her to break her fall.

`Ow!' she pressed her fingers against the wounds in her hairs, which now had the grit and sand from the lake floor stuck in his. Biting her bottom lip, she washed it repeatedly in the water, trembling in pain.

Seto smiled and took her hand. He washed the cut with water he trickled from his hand, and he wrapped the wound in the bandage that he still had in his hand. After it was all bandaged and the ends tied of tightly, Hebeny looked back at him and smiled. He leaned back in the water, head turned to one side to look at her. She turned her head too, her face dead pan, and he grinned at her. She smiled at him and crawled towards him through the water. He reached out and put his hand on her shoulder, pulling her closer to him. She put her hands on his shoulders and knelt it front of him, leaning closer towards him. He closed his eyes and tilted his head.

And received another faceful of water.

Blinking the water out of his eyes, he smiled at Hebeny's innocent smile and shrug, and pulled her towards him again, his arm around her waist. Her arms slid around his neck and she smiled at him again, their faces just inches apart. She tilted her head one way; he turned his the other way, and closed his eyes. Hebeny hesitated for just a second, and kissed him delicately on the lips. He opened his eyes, surprised, and she blushed. He laughed, and kissed her, soft and long. He held her in his arms, kissing her, holding her, and loving her. Closing his eyes and stroking her wet hair, he mentally promised her and himself that he would protect her from every harm; every fear; every danger. He would make her his for always. Always, and never.

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