To Love Is To Die

Family Love

I felt dirt and dust gather on my hands and feet as I crawled through the narrow space. I didn't know where I was going, but when I saw the light at the far end happiness surged through me. I crawled even faster towards the magnificent light, wherever I was I felt cold and algid. When I reached the light I saw that it led to a room, a small area, but big enough to where I could stand. I stretched out my aching limbs and looked around. there was a small table surrounded by two chairs in the right corner and a cot next to where I had come from.

I turned around to see what I had come out of when I saw that it was a fireplace. Too. What? A fireplace too? What did that mean? It seemed my mind was trying to tell me something but I couldn't grasp it. What else was a fireplace? I turned back to the room and tried to figure out what I was doing here. Something caught my eye on the bed, it looked brown and it was folded. I reached down and picked it up, and read it.

To Love Is To Die

What did that mean? It didn't make much sense, but the words seemed familiar.

"To love is to die." I whispered. Just then I heard a swoosh and soft click, I whipped around to see the fireplace entrance was now closed. I bent down next to it and tried to push it open, but it was locked. I began to pound on the door screaming for help, I heard someone on the other side, but they sounded like they were getting father and farther away.

"Help! Please help!" I screamed.

"Help." Another voice came out of nowhere. I turned my head to see Bennu standing there. Her large eyes fixed on me. She slowly turned her head to a lump in the corner that I hadn't noticed before, I stood up and walked over to it. I took a handful of the black cloth and pulled on it. I screamed at what I saw, Bennu lay on the ground in her human form, eyes looking into nothingness her lips parted and white from dehydration. Beetles crawled out of her mouth and nose at the sudden movement.

I woke up screaming and being shook awake by Dalila.

"Your Majesty wake up! You are dreaming!" She screamed at me. I sat up panting, what had I just seen?

"Are you alright, Your Majesty?" Dalila looked at me with concern. I didn't answer her as I looked around me. I was now in my huge four poster bed cloaked in silk sheets with Dalila kneeling over me looking exhausted.

"What happened?" I asked.

"First you started to scream for help, then you started to beat on the bed, finally you didn't cease screaming, while your hands trembled. Your Majesty, what did you dream about?"

"I don't know." She drew her eyebrows together and stared at me for a long time. "Go back to bed, Dalila, all is well." She shrugged and went back to her cot at the foot of my bed. I settled back in to my sheets and stared at the ceiling. I honestly had no idea where I had been, or what Bennu had wanted me to see. Or why she had wanted me to see it, all I knew is that I didn't want to see it again.

**********

The next morning as I got ready for my day I was still thinking about the previous night, it had all felt so real. It felt like a memory. I shook my head, there was no way it could be a memory, I had never been in that room in my life. It was probably Bennu's memory she placed into me. I walked downstairs for breakfast when I noticed a red beaming light floating before me. I stopped and stared, could it be Bennu? Did she like to take different shapes?

Even so, I had had enough of these odd occurrences. All I wanted was to have a normal breakfast and have a normal day. I walked away from it feeling a little bit of freedom with every step I took away from it. I rolled back my shoulders, took a deep breath and pushed through the doors to the dining hall.

My sisters sat around a large oak table that had been a gift from Europe.

"I heard you had a rough night, sister." Ife said looking at me with her head cocked to the side.

"You sounded like a banshee from my room. I couldn't get my beauty rest." Halima sniffed. I rolled my eyes at her. Hafsah kept on eating, usually she would ask if I was alright.

"I expected no less from my darling sisters to give such care and concern." I sneered at them. A bunch of old maids they were.

"Relax dear, we were only kidding. You're too sensitive." Halima said spreading jam on a piece of wheat bread.

"So what did happen last night?" Hafsah asked.

"I had a nightmare was all." I shrugged. We ate in silence, forks clanking on the wood table and soft chewing were all that was heard. Suddenly Ife grabbed her throat and began coughing hysterically. We all stared at her unsure of what to do. Hafsah was the first to take action and ran over to Ife and started to beat on her back.

A piece of pork flew out of Ife's mouth and onto the table. We all stared at it, yellow sploshes of color dotted the piece of pork showing the notorious yellow flower Attor. Ife's head snapped up and she glared at me and Halima.

"Which one of you foul things did this?" She assessed both of us. I looked at Halima and could tell she was the one who tried to poison Ife.

"What would make you so sure it was one of us?" Halima asked.

"Why wouldn't it be one of you? With me out of the way it would be a straight shot for you to take the throne, and one down and one to go for you." She glared at me.

"What if one of the servants did it, because they favor me over you?" Halima smirked.

"They wouldn't do that! They kiss the ground I walk on!" She snapped. Halima and I gave each other a look that said we knew better. "They do! Just wait! I'll prove it was one of you two!" She abruptly stood up from the table and turned on her heel stomping towards the door.

"Damn." Halima murmured as she started to pick around Ife's food. I watched the door, making sure Ife didn't come in at that moment. "Now she's going to have a food tester. I'll have to figure out how to get something that takes awhile to do its job." Halima was still talking to herself.

"You could use the Coatl." I said, Coatl was snake's venom that took at least 48 hours to sink in.

"Where do you think I could get that?" She asked tapping her finger to her lip.

"There is this traveling merchant that comes into town every year and she has a lot of Coatl. It's pretty cheap too." Halima nodded.

"Has she already come and I have to wait another year or what?"

"She's due in 3 months hence." Neither one of us notice Hafsah in the corner looking horrified at what we were planning.

Halima's lips quivered into an evil smirk, just then Hafsah decided to make a move for the door and caught Halima's eye.

"We have a mole among us." She observed. I looked to where Hafsah vanished.

"You think so?"

"I know so, and you know what that means don't you?" She said looking at me. I nodded and sighed.

We were going to have to kill Hafsah, before she killed us.