Daughter of the Gods (Gilgamesh x Reader)

Chapter Seven: No Place Like Home

"Ajamu," the queen called. "Why don't you go back into the main hall to attend to your fellow soldiers?" Sipping from her cup, she continued. "They may look dead but they're only unconscious."

She glanced to meet the eyes of Enkidu. Despite the trouble he has caused, none of the people were harmed. The queen observed in silence as this man fought with her soldiers. She knows he went easy on them. The chains were only used to cause confusion and panic and not to kill.

"They should regain their consciousness soon," the queen continued. "Afterwards, please go and find my sister." Ajamu was hesitant as his grip on his weapon tightened. He doesn't trust this man, not at all, but he trusts his queen's decisions. "As you wish," he said as he bowed before making his way out of the dining hall. 

The queen sat by one end of the long table as Enkidu sat on the other. "I believe you owe me an explanation," she calmly said. In fact, too calm for Enkidu. It was probably because he isn't use to such a leader with calm and collected demeanor. His king was obviously the opposite.

***

Once Ajamu reached the main hall, some of his men have started regaining consciousness. The maids were all around the place assisting the soldiers. "Ajamu!" One of the maids exclaimed as she rushed towards him. "The rest of us will look after the soldiers. Please go after the princess."

Between life and death situations, it was surprising how the people would prefer to look after you than themselves. Such is the strong influence of the gods and the myth to everyone. Ajamu gave a short nod before he found himself skipping down the flight of stairs.

He couldn't hide his frustration over the events that took place earlier. It pissed him that he wasn't able to be by your side in the face of such danger. He was more than glad to find you unharmed the moment he arrived. He was welcomed by the sight of your weapon on the ground as he entered meaning you had put up a fight.

It was one of his desires to see you fight in a real battle despite knowing such thing would never happen. It will only take place over his dead body. Yet today, things got out of hand. He was quite disappointed to not have witnessed the fruit of your trainings in action.

"Ajamu!" Someone exclaimed the moment he set foot on the ground. "Where's the princess?" He immediately asked the man running towards him. The man beckoned him to follow and he did as told. They ran a good distance before Ajamu finally found you.

A number of people gathered around you. Their eyes gleamed of joy as they spoke to you. Truly, you are this nation's ray of sunshine. The moment Ajamu has laid his eyes upon you, he was able to ehale the breath he never realized he was holding in.

He calmly made his way towards you. As conversed, you heard someone mutter Ajamu's name which made you turn your head to find the said man. There, he walked towards you in all his glory yet you could see the mixture of emotions in his eyes that contradicted his composure.

You gave a quick bow and excused yourself before meeting him halfway. "Thank goodness," was the first word he said. "Are you okay? Are you hurt?" He asked, looking at you up and down. You gave a small smile. "I'm fine," you replied.

He looked down, guilt filling his thoughts as you stand before him. "I'm sorry," he said. "If I arrived earlier, you wouldn't have to be in such danger."

Placing a hand on his shoulder, "You should be proud of me," you said. Ajamu's gaze moved from the ground to meet yours. "I put up a pretty good fight there, and I ended up unscratched." Your smile was able to lighten his guilt.

"I was only able to to fight back then because I had an excellent teacher," you added. This time, you saw Ajamu's lips curve up into a small smile. "My sister is looking for me, isn't she?" You asked. "Well, let's go."

The two of you walked back towards your home in a calm pace. Ajamu told you about the condition of the soldiers and you were glad they weren't dead. That foreigner somehow has kindness in his heart. That was one thing you overlooked because of the anger you felt earlier. Spending time with your people did a great job in calming you down.

Your mind's a mess at the moment, and you know your sister's is too. Her calm demeanor never stopped to amaze you. Even in a situation like this, she is still able to hold herself together and not get swayed by her emotions unlike you. Such is a trait befitting for a queen. You always long to be like her despite knowing you'll never get a chance at the throne.

To clear your mind from any more fog, you decided to tell Ajamu about your fight earlier. You got to admit, you could still feel your bones tremble at the intensity of those chains. For a moment, you thought your scythe was going to break. 

You remembered the way your cold fingers wrapped tightly around your scythe's snath. The pain you felt in your chest as your heart thumped wildly inside still feels fresh. Most of all, the desire to protect that rampaged through your system and made you jump into action despite the fear that embraced you.

You remembered the portals he opened and you wondered where those chains came from. Was it magecraft? If so, it was the first time you encountered something like that. Not even the high ranking mages of your kingdom could pull those off. Was he somehow a divine being? 

"Say, Ajamu," you said. He hummed in response. The both of you have now gotten back to your senses. "It seems as if you've met that man before," you continued.

"Oh, that," he said. Scratching the back of his head, he answered. "The trip I was telling you about earlier when we were at the oasis, remember that? I could've sworn I saw him there. I can't be mistaken. That unusually long and green hair is one of a kind; one that you'll never quite forget."

Then, was he enthralled by the things Ajamu and the other travelers spoke about Al-Simr? Is that why he came here? But if he's only interested in the nation, he could've just visited and not cause such a ruckus. He claimed he is from a distant kingdom. If he wanted to make deals with us, he could've talked directly to the queen. Why was he looking for me?

Your head throbbed at the questions that circulated in your mind. You didn't know what to think of first, much more of what you should do. The fatigue from the earlier duel is now starting to sink in. You just want to go straight to your room and rest. But this time's not the time to the rest. You've got a situation that is fighting to get out of control.

On your way back, you couldn't stop yourself from twirling a few strands of your hair around your finger. It has been a mannerism of yours to do so whenever you try to calm yourself. Such habitual gesture developed when you were a kid.

On times you find yourself in an uncomfortable situation, your sister would twirl your hair around her fingers and odd enough, it calms you. Since then, when your sister is not around, you unknowingly do that to yourself.

As soon as you reached home, the two of you immediately head to the dining hall. There, you saw your sister together with the man. Your sister noticed you the moment you entered. "(Y/n)," she called out. 

As you were nearing the table, you took a deep breathe to hold yourself together. The sight of the green hair that peaked just above the chair's top rail was enough to stir your blood to a boil. You sat beside your sister, avoiding the greenette's gaze.

You kept your mouth shut as you looked down on the table. You wanted to speak. You wanted to release your frustrations and you wanted to apologize yet there were no voice nor words that come out when you open your mouth.

"(Y/n)," your sister called again. This time, you swore you heard a crack in her voice. "Tonight, I want you to..." She took in a deep breath to keep her composure. "...pack your things."