Maame Water: The Legend Of The Fish Queen

The Elder's Daughter

AUTHOR'S NOTE:
I know it has been long since I updated and I am really really sorry. I was kind of busy but that is still no excuse... so after my three month hiatus, I present you, my lovely readers with this update!! If you enjoy it, please, please vote! And if you have some advice for me, please comment!!

"Adotey?" the King asked, confused.
"What does he have to do with your... transformation?"

The Princess flashed another amused smile at her brother and said, "Why, he has everything to do with what I have become. You of all people know that I would not kill someone without reason."

She stopped talking and used her fore-finger to draw spirals in the dirt. Finally she sighed gracefully and said, "Elder Neequaye's daughter was my best friend. You of all people know how she helped me after my husband's death, although, she, like many others thought he had just disappeared. I could not tell her of his infidelity and death because I still feared what that woman would do, but it did not matter. The elder's daughter did everything she could to help me move on. She would come to my quarters everyday - you remember brother? - and she would goad me to talk and play games with her. She was even willing to engage in duels with me, though I knew she was no good with swords."

The Fish Queen smiled, genuinely. It was not like those cold, amused smiles she had been giving them since the King and his men arrived in the cave. No, it was how she used to smile before her husband died.

"Initially," she continued, "her presence annoyed me. I wanted to be left alone, to wallow in my grief, but she kept on visiting, each and every day and eventually, I anticipated those visits. She made me talk, she made me smile and she even made me laugh. The Elder's daughter was my light."

The Fish Queen sighed again and The King could sense the atmosphere around her darkening.

"O-one night," the Fish Queen's voice wavered and she closed her eyes. When she opened her eyes and spoke, her voice resumed its steely disposition.

"One night, the elder's daughter invited me to a local celebration at a nearby tavern. You see my best friend was a very humble woman, so humble, in fact, that she rarely associated with the proud noble girls of the kingdom. The only friend that she had in the royal circles was me. Most of her friends were locals, so when she was not visiting me, she would sneak out of the palace to visit her friends in the village. She knew that I felt uncomfortable around other royals so she decided to introduce me to her non-royal friends. After a short time spent convincing me, I relented and went with her to the celebration. She assured me that no one would recognize me as the princess, since I rarely showed my face to the public and I was not dressed in royal robes. We snuck out of the palace that night and went to the tavern. Of course," the Fish Queen rolled her eyes, "it was the same tavern my husband had visited on the night of his death and though it brought back bad memories, the elder's daughter and her friends made me forget about them. I had a lot in common with my new friends, and I was truly happy that night. My friends and I were still talking when the elder's daughter got up to get us some drinks and I followed to help her. As we were ordering the drinks, we were approached by the Pig and this little demon," she said pointing to Adotey's brother. "The Pig paid no attention to me of course and started talking to the elder's daughter. You see, he thought she was a whore and he wanted her to please him. She declined of course, and Adotey, being the Pig that he was tried to force her into one of the tavern rooms." The Fish Queen smiled, bitterly at the memory. "The elder's daughter slapped him and inadvertently drew all the attention in the tavern to Adotey and herself. Adotey held his stinging cheek, looking very embarrassed, and very angry. My friend on the other hand, when she realized that everyone had seen or heard the slap, looked very frightened. She knew of Adotey's reputation and she knew that he would pay her back for publicly humiliating him. She knew the only safe place for her was the palace so she dragged me out of the tavern with her. She walked very fast, her hands trembling and her eyes scanning for any sign of Adotey. After walking for some time, she stopped short and stared ahead of her. I looked up to see what she was staring at and saw this demon," she gestured to Adotey's brother again, "heading toward us. My best friend snapped out of her fear and started running in the opposite direction, pulling me along. It was a trap of course, though we did not know it at the time. The little demon was leading us straight to Adotey and we knew he had succeeded when we run into a dead end. My friend looked pained and scared. She turned abruptly and looked at me in horror as if suddenly realizing I was there. I will never forget what happened next."

***

They had been running for a while before they reached the dead end and they were both struggling to catch their breath. When they heard the footsteps, the elder's daughter looked at the Princess in alarm.

"No," she shook her head vigorously, "you should not be here. You have to hide before he finds us. I will not allow you to be hurt because of me."

The Princess looked at her best friend, her eyes pleading, "Y-You know I can't do that. I cannot leave you, I- I will fight, plea-"

"No!" the elder's daughter cut in, "not against Adotey. He will kill you!"

"And what if he kills you! I cannot allow you to die!" the Princess argued, with tears in her eyes.

The elder's daughter bowed her head and mumbled, "Better me than you."

"What?" the Princess asked indignant.
"One of us must leave here alive, my friend. I slapped him and so I must face him. You do not have to suffer for my mistake."

The Princess shook her head, her tears spilling across her cheeks, "But- "

"You know I am right. He did not notice you at the tavern, you have a chance. I, on the other hand..."
The elder's daughter did not continue.
She did not have to.

"Please, just... please." The Princess begged, "W-we can h-hide together, we can... we can..."

"You know as well as I that he would find us. You must hide alone."

The Princess chocked down a sob. "I-I can't."

The elder's daughter looked the Princess directly in the eyes and said, "If you truly love me you will."

The footsteps sounded closer. The Princess looked at her friend, panicked.

"Hurry up, hide behind those boxes. Do not come out no matter what you see or hear," the elder's daughter urged.
The Princess stared at the elder's daughter, her lower lip trembling, then she nodded in understanding and hugged her friend.

"Be safe," she whispered into her best friend's ear.

The elder's daughter chuckled bitterly, "I will try."

When the Princess had hidden behind the boxes, the elder's daughter turned to face the man who was emerging from the shadows.

"Where is the other one?" Adotey asked.

The elder's daughter kept her gaze fixed on him and in a steady voice, answered, "She run away. She wanted nothing to do with me after she realized it was you chasing me."

Adotey smiled darkly, "As expected of a whore." He looked around as if making sure no one could see him. Sure enough, he asked, "You are alone then?"

The elder's daughter gulped. Though she was mostly humble, she was still a royal and she had pride running through her veins and being the proud woman that she was, she had resolved to show no fear. So she clenched her fist and held her head high and answered, "Yes, I am alone."

Stay alive Princess, she thought.

Adotey attacked. ***