Dreamer

Chapter 4 - Bittersweet

So sorry for the lack of activity! I've been extremely busy and some family isssues happened a little bit ago.

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Birdie. ♡

I had no idea how it was possible, but there I was, standing in a memory, lush green trees and wild undergrowth thriving around me. It was a forest, one from my early childhood, when my brother was not so interested in battle as he was when he was older. Our father had decided to take us hunting, just to teach us how to survive if, Heaven forbid, it came to it. I loved the little trip; it gave me a rest from being the dainty princess I was expected to be.

"Come on, Fayetta!" Seth called, looking at my younger self as she struggled to untangle her long hair from a branch on a bush.

"Oh, be quiet, brother! You don't have to put up a curtain of hair!" She complained about his impatience, freeing her hair at last.

The younger prince only laughed, running in a blur past me to catch up with their father, the small princess' eyes gleaming with determination to not lag behind. A smile found its way to my lips, a deep hole of nostalgia burying itself in my heart.

"A memory," a familiar voice spoke suddenly from behind me, startling me so much as to cause me to whip around to face him, my body twisting into a defensive stance as I turned. Upon realizing that it was only King Ahkmenrah, I let my muscles relax and a warm smile fell upon my lips once again.

"Yes," I mused, "One of the best."

He came to stand beside me, looking to where the little girl had just disappeared. "You have a brother?" He questioned, smiling softly.

"I did." I hated thinking about my father and brother; the memories always forced grief into me. Learning about their deaths was so difficult to cooperate with, and my kingdom was grieving just as much as I was, but I had to be strong; for my people.

King Ahkmenrah looked down at me, a sad look in his eyes. "I'm terribly sorry, I meant no-"

"It's fine." I interrupted him, but quickly corrected myself for my rude behavior. "I mean, I take no offense. It's just hard to deal with sometimes."

He nodded solemnly. "I understand."

I let out a huff, turning to him. "So, how did you get here?"

He smiled. "I thought of you." At the sight of my inquisitive expression, Ahkmenrah began to explain. "If you fall asleep thinking about a certain person, you can enter their dream. That is, if they dream that night."

I nodded, then decided to walk through the forest in the direction that the little royals had gone. Seth was going to kill his first rodent; a squirrel. This would be a sight I didn't want to miss.

Ahkmenrah trailed behind me as I walked, curiosity radiating from him. It made me smile that he was so curious about such small a thing as a memory.

"I did it!" A shrill voice called, some distance away. "Father, come look!" Ahkmenrah put a hand gently on my shoulder blade, giving me a questioning look.

"You remembered that this would happen, didn't you?"

I looked up at him, holding back a branch so he could continue walking with me. "Maybe."

He continued to smile, but said nothing more; his eyes were fixed on the scene before him.

The young prince was proudly holding a scrawny squirrel which he had shot through the abdomen. He had already yanked the head of the arrow out, which was then lying on a patch of grass in front of him, small trickles of blood dripping onto the soft green feathers. A grin took form on his father's features, warming his usually hard gaze.

"That's my son!" The delighted king announced, clapping loudly twice. His daughter, who had been staring at the arrowhead, suddenly looked back up to their father and began to clap excitedly. I smiled at the sound of his voice, the deep rumble bringing comfort to my heart and removing weight from my shoulders that I hadn't realized was there.

"It was such a rush! I was looking for you and the rodent crossed my path and before I knew it..."

I had no recollection of tuning out of the memory, but it happened. One moment it was there, then next, it vanished. In its place was the faded image of the arrowhead; bright crimson blood staining the once verdant strands of grass. Ahkmenrah was gone, but someone new was there, someone I didn't know or have any memory of.

The voice,though, startled me with how familiar and smooth it was. I just had a hard time believing that it belonged to such a face.

"Hello, Little Fay."