Cleopatra I

Bong…Bong…Bong…I knew that sound. I had heard it many times before, the only difference was that I was the one being summoned into the Pharaoh’s hall to the great celebration. Silence rippled through my body like the snakes in the Nile that I had sailed through earlier that same day. I stepped down the great, white, stone steps, the only noise was that of my fine leather sandals, and I walked to where my mother, Queen Nefetia, stood in her hello kitty, white gown, the lemon twist necklace adored her neck and the golden crown gently placed on her bitter, bean black hair. She looked straight at me and smiled as I came to my father, the Pharaoh of Egypt, or as his people called him the morning and the evening star. He smiled through his self – righteousness, too. ‘What was going on here?’ I stood next to my mother automatically and looked around the great hall. A head started to immerge from the steps to the outside.

A head guard came running like a Sasquatch. “Pharaoh! Pharaoh the Ethiopians have come with Prince Luke,” he said as four people came into the palace. In the middle stood a young man probably in his twenties, dressed in a fine wine red outfit, very handsome, but very sullen. Next to him on his left was a very pretty girl in her early teens, then a man with a with egg white robes on with a multi – colored sash and an amulet right in the middle. Right beside him was a gorgeous woman in her early thirties and having a daisy yellow crown on as well. However, Cleopatra’s (the first) eyes were locked on the new man in the room. “I wonder what his character is like.” she thought to herself as she became neurotic. Suddenly the high priests (Lenny and Bill) began the ‘show’, making things disappear, reappear, and making things appear that they said the gods sent as they calling out the names of the gods to do it the magic. It was all they did and I was so bored from seeing it repeatedly. While the ‘show’ was going on, (I knew it would be a couple of hours long), so I sneaked out to the garden outside these alabaster stonewalls that felt like a prison to me. I walked right to my favorite spot the circler mini-stream. Here are my ibis’s (a bird that only comes once per year), my fish, and always my cat Tut. I used to think that my friendly, bitter chocolate cat just sat there admiring her golden earring in her left ear; until I came out here two weeks ago and found her eating one of my fish. I put her down on the camelback tan floor tiles and patted her butt for her to go to my room even though it is futile. I sat on the edge of the enclosed water and look at my reflection and think, I close my eyes and reopened them to see someone standing next to Bastet and looking at me as though the Ra has put them into a trace. I look up and see none other than the young man that came in a while ago.

“Hello?” I said unsurely as I tried to commence the conversation. “Hi, my name is Luke. You must be Cleopatra. You are much prettier than my people told me.” he coolly said. Of course, my face blushed immediately after he said this. I…Pretty. He comes forward and with carriage sits next to me. “Do you know why I am here?” he asked me quizzically. “No. Do you” “Yes,” He said sad, “I can’t believe your family has not told you. Me and you are going to get married in 3 days.” “A planned marriage!!! With out even asking me. How dare my parents even think about doing that!” I shouted suddenly with indignant and stupor, getting up and walking around thinking about all the times my mother and father could have told me, but some of me contradicting the truth. I beseechingly told him, “Tell me this is not true.” “I’m sorry but it is the true. I know. I know. This problem will continue to fester like a sore unless we do something about it. I thought that if I could see you and get to know you that maybe we could make this wedding thing work out.” Luke stated as if he could see into the future on what this day might hold.

He can over, took my hands, and led me the ‘pond’ as he called it and had me sit down. He looked at me with that big envy green eyes and slipped something on my left index finger, it was warm and heavy, as I started to look down Luke kissed me gently but hungrily and quickly took off for the palace. Half of me was in complete shock and the other half was falling in love. I looked down and saw not just a ring but also the ring that made him the prince of Ethiopia. Only a man that loved a person would give you a present that important. But why me? The gentleness he had in his eyes was as if I could see his soul. The true him. I hurried back the ‘show’ and sat by my mother, for there were only a couple of minutes left then I could go to my room.

Finally, the ‘show’ came to the end and I with as much grace as I could quickly left and went straight to my room to think things through, but each time I tried, I could only remember the kiss graphically. I deferred the facts and told myself that this was not true. How could any one love me? Looking at my disheveled hair, I kept getting this feeling that someone was watching me. I looked around but no one is there. “Calm down Cleopatra, calm down. You are acting erratic. Stop.” I told myself with as much confidence as I could gather up from nothing. A mismate this had to be. Grudgingly I glimpse at my wardrobe, exasperated but pick out my best outfit a frostwork white dress with a crème white silk drape around my shoulders. I put on a new caviar black wig, and reapplied my makeup around my eyes and lips.

Doggedly I put on my small honey gold crown and went out of my bedroom out in to the front of the palace and stated, “Hoy I what my boat. We are going to take a sail.” “With whom my princess?” “Why, with Luke of course. I will go and get him and when I come back, I want that boat on the Nile. You hear me?” “Yes princess” he stated lowering his voice incredulity. Furtively I went to his room and was about to knock on his door when I heard two people talking. So I unobtrusively listened and heard a terrible graft. I could hear Luke’s voice and the voice of an unknown man whispering about how they were going to over through my father after Luke married me and then have Ethiopia take over Egypt. The unknown man said, “The vengeance will be sweet.” “Yes, but you will not harm any of the royal family especially Cleopatra. Do you hear me? Not a single hair.” Luke said. “But your highness, we must take down the pharaoh or the entire plan will fail.” “Fine but if you harm Cleopatra, I will harm you personally.” “Yes your highness. I…I must go.”

Quickly I ran down the left side of the hall, and then started to walk back slowly to Luke’s door. The unknown man can out with devilment all over his face, and smiled unknowing that anyone had heard the entire conversation. I walked in and slammed the door. Luke jumped up startled. “You are the worst person I have ever met and I never want to see you again. You and your people are heathenism.” I screamed at him in indictment, crying. Then my entire world went black as I had a falling sensation and somewhere someone caught me. I woke up on the ground with pillows around me, I sat up, and Luke rushed to my side and asked me “Are you okay? What was that all about?” “Oh you should know. Wait until I tell my father. And to believe I actually believed I loved you.” “ You…You loved me. I loved you very much too. But why…” he said as the realization can across his face. He slowly sat down and for the first time in my life, I saw a man cry.