• Chapter 1. The mysterious stranger

    Makihara…Makihara. You heard someone call your name. You turned around and saw a stranger. He was wearing a black cloak and all you could see is his red eyes. “Makihara…” he called softly to you. You wanted for some reason to run into his arms, to jump and be happy. That’s when the knife came out and he plunged it into your back. You coughed up a little blood. “I am so sorry, I am so sorry Makihara.” he whispered into your ear as you fell down. Tears were pouring out. You fell into the cold darkness.

    “Lady Makihara!” you heard a maid say as she pushed your shoulder. Your eyes fluttered open. You looked at her expression and sighed. “Another Nightmare?” she asked timidly, knowing you sometimes had a bad mood after you woke up from your nightmares, which were becoming more and more frequent as weeks went by. You nodded holding your hurting head. “Maybe you should stay inside Lady Priestess…” the maid shyly murmured to you, half hoping you wouldn’t hear. You looked at her and sighed, “Saha, you know as Lady Priestess I cannot take a day off. Think of all the rumors that would cause. And besides, I don’t want people to think that their Priestess is getting sick and going to die off soon,” Saha nodded, but looked discontent with your answer. You smiled at her and whispered, “If I don’t feel good later on I’ll say I’m sick and get some rest.” She smiled a small smile before running off to go wake up some more priestesses. You rubbed your eyes. Yawning you got out of bed and went to your dresser and got out your usual outfit, a simple white sleeveless dress with a single gold band around your neck. The temple wanted something a little more lavish and for you to do more important things than sweep dust off the steps in the morning and light incense, but you felt that you needed to do simple tasks as well as lavish tasks. You quickly changed and headed outside. On the way you grabbed a broom from the closet and ran walked outside. The sun’s warm rays were quite enjoyable as you swept up some sand that made its way onto the step. You had been working for fifteen minutes when you heard a soft voice say, “Ex…Excuse me.” You looked down the steps at a boy about your age. He had white hair and soft brown eyes. He was wearing jeans and a button down T-shirt with a collar. “Yes sir?” you asked, softly as he had, with just a tint of confusion in your voice. “I am looking for a place called the ruby of Sahal, do you know where that might be?” he questioned. You nodded and then said “Just a minute.” as you ran inside. You saw Kirima and ran to her. “I am going to show a boy very quick to the Ruby of Sahal store.” you gushed and then raced back outside. You caught your breath and then said, “I can show you the way there, follow me.” You led him down a couple streets and then heard him say, “I am sorry, I didn’t introduce myself. My name is Ryou Bakura.” You smiled at him and smilingly beamed “Pleased to meet you Ryou. My name is Makihara.” He smiled shyly back at you. “So why are you going to the Ruby of Sahal store?” you asked in a small voice, though you were usually very loud. He blushed and looked down, “I…I’m buying a gift for my si…sister Amane.” The word sister brought back memories of long ago. You saw young boy about three years old. He was walking towards you as you were setting the table for supper with Mama and Papa. “Sister…” he called. You turned around and saw the boy with his shaggy brown locks hanging down in his amber eyes, a trait he inherited from your mother. He held out a ringlet he had made of the daisies in the gardens in the park. He always knew what flowers you wanted. You smiled that he made you one and knelt before him as a signal that he should put it on your head. He gently set it on your head and then smiled and said “Sister, you look so pretty.” You looked at the ground, reliving the memory you had of him before he was gone. “Your very lucky to have a sibling.” you remarked still not looking up from the ground. He looked at you and said “Do you have a sibling?” You grabbed your wrist and held it to your chest as you replied “I did…once.” He looked at you surprised. “What do you mean once?” He asked timidly. “My…brother…is dead, he died at age 3, when I was 5.” He looked at you with shock as you sped up a little, feeling a little bit of tears swelling up in your eyes. “I…I’m so sorry.” he stammered trying to catch up with you. You slowed down a bit and suppressed the tears in your eyes. “Its okay, really. It happened a long time ago. I can barely remember it.” you whispered looking at the ground. He put his hand on your shoulder and smiled a little. You looked up a little and then gave him a small smile that said you were okay. Finally you got to the Ruby of Sahal store. You walked in as someone threw a jeweled dagger you caught. You looked at Amin with a meaningful look. “Okay, no more throwing knives while High Priestess Makihara is here.” he yelled. Everyone stopped and stared at you for a little. Your tiredness made you a little agitated and gave them a glare. The hair on the back of their necks stood up and they turned back. You turned to Ryou and asked, “Okay, what were you thinking about getting your sister?” He looked around “I was thinking of getting her a necklace.” you steered him towards the necklace section. You looked at the necklaces a little and saw one that you were sure Amane would like. “Ryou what about this one for your sister?” you asked. It was a small ruby pendant hung on a gold chain. His eyes looked at it, then the price, then his eyes went big. You then looked at the price tag and then your eyes went big. 100 EGYPTIAN POUNDS!!!!!!!! You put a finger up to signal him that you would be back in a minute. You looked at Amin with the teary look and whimpered, “Why do you have the price on the necklace so high? A girl like me can’t afford it!” He looked at you a minute and said, “Well, for you I will lower it 75%. That should be enough.” You got perked up, laid the money on the table and said “SOLD!” He took it out and gave it to you. You grabbed Ryou’s hand and raced out of the shop. You ran til you almost ran out of breath. Panting heavily you gave him the necklace and said “Here…you…go…Ryou.” “Thank you very much Makihara.” he whispered as he took the necklace and then looked at you. “Will you come home to my home for lunch?” he asked with a hint of hope in his voice. You looked down and mumbled, “Maybe…I have to see if its okay with the other priestesses.” He nodded and happily said, “I’ll walk you back to the temple.” You smiled and nodded and let him lead the way. When you got back you told him to wait. You ran inside and ran into Priestess Ami. “Ami Can I go to a friend’s house for a while?” you asked like an eager puppy, knowing that because she knew you were still a young girl that you were still a little child-like. “Alright…” she sighed giving up on trying to talk you out of going before it had started. You nodded and gave her a hug. You ran back out to Ryou. “It’s okay!” you said as you ran almost into him. You walked back to his apartment. It was a little small, but it had a magnificent view of the Nile. The walls were all white with the occasional picture. There was a balcony with French doors and light white curtains that flew into the breeze like butterfly wings fluttering. “Wow…” you sighed as Ryou shut the door. “I know, it is breathtaking.” he said as he took out a Coke and tossed it to you. You turned to him and smiled. A small gust of wind picked up and blew around the curtains and your hair for a little bit. You closed your eyes and let the breeze feel cool and nice against your skin warmed by the desert sun. You took a small sip of the coke and began to feel dizzy. The walls started to sway around.