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She was at the pool filling up her goatskin bags with water for her father. It wasn't her favorite part of the day, but it gave her time to spend by the water. She savored her time by the water; she liked it best when she and her father could go out on his boat and sail down the Nile to Thebes.
A slight breeze started and she closed her eyes and let the coolness surround her. When she opened her eyes again, there were shadows over her. She looked up to see two men sitting on horseback looking down at her and smiling at her. Fear was the first emotion to strike her: these men were here to cause problems for her. The men climbed down from the horses and sat next to the water; using their hands as cups, they drank in the coolness.

She just sat and watched the men converse with each other. From their clothes they were military, and they seemed to only want to drink the water and not cause her any troubles. Eventually the men rose from their spots and walked over to where she was sitting along the bank.

"Excuse me, miss, but my colleague and I were just discussing your beauty," the light-haired one said.

She smiled and bowed her head in gratitude for their compliment. The men got back on their horses and began to ride away. The dark-haired one turned back and winked at her before riding off. Something about this man's wink made her feel uneasy.

It was later, later day, later time. She was back at the riverbank; this time she was sitting on a rock under a tree. Both of the men she had met at the riverbank before were now making visits to her at this spot on a regular basis. Both were fairly attractive, and they were both kind and sincere. She knew it was only a matter of time before one of them would approach her father about marriage.

Today she was meeting Anthony. Though she enjoyed her time with him, he wasn't as great a companion as his friend, the light-haired one that had made the compliment about her beauty the first time they met.

"There you are," she said as she saw Anthony arrive. "I was beginning to wonder if you were going to show at all."

"And miss out on your company and beauty?"

They sat talking for several hours, until it was time to make her way back to her house to prepare the evening meal for her father. "It was a pleasure talking with you, Anthony," she said as she stood to make her exit.

"As always, the pleasure was all mine." Standing as he responded, he took her hand and kissed it, looking at her longingly. Slowly, he moved in towards her to kiss her. She shrugged away, not feeling comfortable with his face close to hers in that manner.

"I think I should be going." She pulled her hand from his and walked back to her house, where she was surprised and overjoyed to see her father sitting with the man that she liked more out of the two.

"Daughter, you will be pleased to hear that you are to marry this fine man. He has asked for my acceptance and I have given him that. You are to be wed; tonight you shall sleep under the same roof and tomorrow you will be announced man and wife."

That night they shared a passion and desire for each other that they knew was evident when they would talk. When the sun came up over the mountains to the west, she was already awake, watching her new husband sleep soundly. She watched as his eyes fluttered awake and met her face with a smile. "Are you ready to celebrate?" she asked.

"That's not what we did last night?" he asked, laughing as he leaned over to kiss his wife.

The morning sun flooded in their room as they got dressed to meet with family and friends today to celebrate their marriage. Relatives had gathered early and were in the middle of making a feast when the lovers joined them in the kitchen. Smiles greeted them and objections were flung when the young couple asked if they could be of any help.

The day was filled with happiness for the newlyweds as they were presented with presents of furniture for their house and many different items for protection and worship.

Dawn fell and the celebration was still going strong. Everyone's stomachs were full from the feast and many were drunk, even though the beer they drank was weak. No one could predict that there would be trouble in that same evening. He came charging in on the crowd, obviously angered.

"How DARE you!" he screamed, pointing to the couple.

Frightened, she hid her face behind her husband; she could not bear to look at the man that stood before them.

"She was to be mine. You," he continued to yell, pointing at the new husband, "you have stolen my job, my rank in society and now the woman who was to be my wife. You will pay deeply for this! She will be mine one day, and then forever, you can count on that!" With his last words stinging in everyones ears, he made his exit. Confused, the people gathered in celebration could only wonder what to do, and eventually left the two to wonder alone.

"Would he really do anything like that?" she asked.

Sadly, he responded, "It would not be a surprise to me. We must be cautious; it would be wise to move to the Upper Egypt. Under the dark of the night we shall move. He thought he was in love with you, but he only wanted the power and advancements that your family could get him. I, on the other hand, love you more than that and will never let him have you."

Quietly they packed up the belongings they could fit on their donkeys and made their way to a new life, unknowing that they were indeed followed.

Breathing heavily, Nick awoke from his dream.