CHAPTER 11 (Part one)

The next day at dawn, Mahnu watched as King Richard slept. He was still holding her and his legs were entwined with hers. He looked possessive, even though he was sleeping. Trying to escape his hold of her, she felt him hold her even tighter.

Sighing, Mahnu poked him with her finger, "Let me go, Richard."

"...mmnnoo..."

Mahnu chuckled at his sleepy mumbles, "Yes!"

"Never let you go!" His small voice made her chuckle again.

Mahnu pushed him with all her strength, only to have them both fall off the bed.

"Oww! Dam!" The King said, touching where he hit his head.

Mahnu got up, laughing, "Well, you should of let me go!"

"Oww. I"m sure  you could have made it happen another way...Other than pushing me off the bed!"

Mahnu stopped, hearing words coming into her head. "Another way, other ways. What other ways could I try? Did I try them all?"

"Mahnu?" The King"s voice not quite reaching her.

It had been my own voice, she thought, and it had sounded...Sad. What was the previous me trying to do?

"Mahnu!" The King yelled, snapping her back to the present.

"I feel like...I"ve forgotten something extremely important."

King Richard sighed. Things were already very strange, he thought. He remembered her screaming and not breathing. She knowing about the tablet, when it was known she could no longer hear thoughts. And now she seems sure to have forgotten something that seems to be important. But it is interesting that she feels that way. She was trying to get the tablet over two years ago. Does she have that much obligation to finish what she started?...Or is it something else? He sighed, I would be lying if I said I wasn"t worried about her.

"But what are you worried about? That I might actually remember what it is that I"ve forgotten?" Mahnu stared at him. "That I can read your thoughts? That..." She looked down at her hands, "That I used to be a G.o.d..."

King Richard pulled her into his arms, "You"ve remembered? All of it?"

Mahnu shook her head, "No...Just glimpses that seem to make sense. But my mind is filling up with them, even right now."

The King sighed and wondered if it was okay, even if she did remember. "Do you remember me?" He asked.

"Only from two memories...three. One was when you were alone and I was...snapping necks."

"Right! You were really strong...and angry at me. But I was angry at you too!" The King pointed at her.

"Why were you angry with me?" Mahnu asked innocently. She honestly couldn"t remember.

"You...you went to them! Honestly, you would have known they were going to torture you! You shouldn"t have bothered! I mean..." He gathered her closer to him, "You had a nightmare about it, didn"t you?"

Mahnu was silent as she pieced his information to her dream. "Yes, I remember. I put them into the box myself..."

King Richard interrupted her, "Another reckless act of yours! Why couldn"t you just..."

The King stopped. He knew that without her help, the two G.o.d"s might even still be here or there might have been human deaths. Sighing, the King said, "I"m glad you are still here..I started to think you didn"t exist anymore and..." He sighed again.

Mahnu put a hand to his face and smiled. A flash of more memories. .h.i.t her and her head started to ache.

"Mahnu?"

"It"s fine, my head..."

"I"ll call the doctor!"

She stopped him and said, "I"m fine, really. It"s just slowly all coming back to me."

The King stared at her in silence. His most treasured person was in pain and he never wanted her to go through anything terrible again. But here she was accepting that pain easily.

"Mahnu...if there"s something I can do for you. You will tell me?"

Mahnu smiled at him, "You have already done so much. When I went back to Conrella with you the first time, you changed my entire existence."

She was remembering him now and what she had received.

"What do you mean?"

His question made her laugh and she replied happily, "Beforehand I didn"t want to eat, I didn"t have any friends. I didn"t laugh or smile, I didn"t let people see me, let alone touch me! The sufferings were foremost in my mind and I never thought that I could love someone or have somebody love me in return. You gave me so much, Richard."

Mahnu had never really been so open with him before. It felt really good to know that I have been able to give her something. He smiled at his own thoughts and kissed her on the cheek, "I love you Mahnu, surely you must know that."

"Yes, I do."

Mahnu got up and started to walk away. What do I do when he does that? It scares me a little...

"Wait!" The King got up and grabbed her and saw her eyes were shining when she turned back to him. She was smiling and even a small laugh escaped her lips. She was happy that he stopped her, he always made her feel special when he did.

"You were...teasing me just now. Weren"t you?" King Richard put his head to her shoulder, a smile on his own lips.

Mahnu, he thought, I"ll never stop chasing you!

"Are you mad at me?" She asked. It wasn"t really her intent to have teased him, she just wasn"t sure how to respond to his affection.

"Yes! Very mad! I was having a sweet moment!"

He put his hands around her bare waist as she breathed out and said. "I never knew the feeling of being in love."

Mahnu"s memories had very little black spots now. Her past before meeting Richard...The bleakness of the world. Then being with Richard and how the world and her had changed. "But when I was with you. I felt like...maybe it"s that feeling..."

Mahnu took a deep breath, why was it so hard to express herself? Was there something wrong with her? Did her head hurt too much?

King Richard let out a chuckle and looked at her, "It"s okay, tell me when you"re ready."

"But I am ready! It"s...hard to say...Why is it hard to say?"

He smiled at her and put his forehead to hers. "Mmm...maybe you"re embarra.s.sed, or shy? You were when we first made love."

Mahnu looked away from him and breathed in. He was right she hadn"t felt embarra.s.sed or shy until she had met him, obviously though, she wasn"t so shy anymore.

Silence filled the room and the King moved her head gently towards him. She didn"t have to tell him anymore, he thought as he put his lips to hers.

***

When it was no longer dark outside, the King got into business because they had made it to Bena the previous day. They were staying at a luxurious house that the King said he had in most of the towns outside of Conrella. Mahnu didn"t know how she felt about that...There are many people without homes, yet, he had homes s.p.a.cious enough for at least four families!

Mahnu could not remember getting here as she had slept a lot the day before. Her dreams and memories had started to flood into her since her nightmare on the carriage ride on the way here.

But, apparently, a doctor had treated her already and that he was coming back for the second time.

He checked her pulse and breathing. Her temperature had fallen slightly and he was giving her cold medicine.

"Ah, Sir. I don"t think that I have a cold."

The doctor looked at her and sighed, "To be honest, I wasn"t entirely sure. Your temperature seems to be the only thing wrong. Your pulse doesn"t indicate any other problems and your breathing seems to be normal. It is peculiar."

"Then I would prefer against taking medicine."

The doctor looked worried. "But...The King."

"It is okay. You have done well. I will say that to the King."

"Yes...Your High..."

"Stop! Don"t say that!...I am Mahnu."

The doctor looked at her astonished, "But the King had said that you were his..."

Mahnu sighed.

"Yes...Mah...Mahnu. I will take my leave."