Asenath

by Anna Patricio

  "A special kind of perfume to make your skin glitter like the gods."

  I smiled. "This is rather exciting. Won't you even give me a hint on what's going to happen?"

  "No. You'll find out soon enough. But first..." She retrieved a large box from behind her and opened it. She drew out a large cloth and held it up for me to see. It was an elegant linen dress with a skirt that flared out prettily. "This is for you," she said.

  I gawked. She had to be mistaken. This was a dress worn by princesses and noblewomen. It was not the dress for me.

  "Well, put it on," she said. "It's not for you to look at."

  She assisted me into it. She tied a silver tasselled sash around my waist, giving me an almost womanly figure.

  She clipped and strung jewellery on me—a multi-stranded necklace with dangling lotus amulets, long earrings that looked like twisted vines and arm cuffs inlaid with turquoise scarab stones. She told me to add the lapis lazuli lotus from Mama.

  I happily obliged. I strung it over the fancy necklace she had placed on me.

  She opened the second box, revealing the wig I was to wear. It had dainty faience beads dangling at the tips. As she fitted the wig on my head, the beads clicked against each other.

  "Put out your feet Kiya. This is already the last step," she said.

  She slipped white-gold sandals with braided straps onto my brown feet. These were the first sandals I had ever worn.

  She took a step back and gazed at me, smiling. "Look at yourself in the mirror, Kiya."

  I was eager to see how the morning's lengthy ritual turned out. When I saw what she had done, I was shocked.

  The girl before me was not Kiya.

  This girl―this woman―was a noble lady who glistened in the finery of Pharaoh's Great House.

  This noble lady with paint-lengthened eyes and a beautiful dress was someone who commanded awe and respect. Someone people bowed down to.

  This noble lady was not me.

  I was still gawking at the lovely lady in the mirror when Irikara came up beside me.

  "I nearly forgot." She draped a shimmering gossamer shawl around my shoulders. "There. Perfect. You look more impressive than I imagined."

  "Irikara?"

  "Let us go now, Kiya. The high priest awaits."

  As Irikara hurried me by, many people stopped to stare at me. I grew embarrassed from all the attention. Though I loved how I looked, I wasn't used to it. For a while, I wished I hadn't been dressed so extravagantly.

  I slowed down a bit.

  Irikara nagged me as always. "Hurry, Kiya! We don't want to be late. Come on, hurry,"

  To my greatest astonishment, she led me across the courtyard and to the marble steps that led into the temple itself.

  I was stunned.

  I had never been inside the temple before. I never had any reason to. Only priests, priestesses and the royal family were permitted. But now Irikara told me to ascend the steps.

  I looked at her uncertainly.

  "Don't keep the priests waiting," she hissed.

  I climbed the steps. I felt as if I was sleepwalking.

  At the top I met a few of the senior priests and priestesses. They were flanked by khery-heb, lector priests who presided over temple rituals.

  The friendly priest who I had met on my first day approached me. "Iwi em hotep, Kiya. In peace."

  I bowed. "In peace, Holiness."

  "You look lovely." He smiled. "If you would follow me, please."

  The group parted as he led me into the hypostyle hall, the entrance to the temple. As I descended into the sacred dimness, I looked up. The ceiling was painted with stars. Shafts of daylight streamed in through the forest of columns that filled the hall.

  We approached a great golden door. Above it was a lintel carved with the image of a winged disc. The incense was nearly overpowering.

  The priest opened the door. He led me into a windowless chamber. In the orange-red glow of the torches, I saw tables of food and flowers.

  "Offerings to Atum-Re," the priest murmured.

  The walls of the chamber had an enormous mural of Pharaoh kneeling before the sun-god's many forms—the man Atum-Re, with his tall crown. The hawk Re-Horakhty, with its magnificent outstretched wings. The scarab Khepri.

  The priest led me out of the room and through a tiny dark passageway. It opened up into another chamber which was exactly like the previous one but smaller.

  We passed through this maze of shadowy chambers and corridors, each room smaller than the last. At the end, we arrived before a second golden door.

  The priest paused. "We have reached the Hall of Atum-Re, which is before the innermost sanctum."

  He opened the door. "You must enter alone."

  I looked at him uncertainly.

  He nodded and smiled encouragingly. "Enter, Kiya."

  I took a deep breath and went inside.

  The Hall was surprisingly vast, though its ceiling was low. Standing at the centre were Lord Pentephres and Lady Satsepdu. Their faces broke into smiles.

  It seemed unfitting for the temple's solemn air.

  I bowed. "Life, health and prosperity to you, my lord and lady."

  "Ah Kiya, you look lovely," Pentephres said. "You are probably wondering why you are here today. You are about to learn something that may surprise you. But do not be afraid, little one. Nothing bad will happen. In fact, we hope your life will become better from now on."

  My stomach tightened at yet another drastic change in my life, just as I had settled into the temple.

  "Kiya," Pentephres said. "Today, we wish to adopt you as our daughter."

  I was struck dumb.

  This astonished me to no bounds.

  I opened my mouth, but no words came out.

  "I know this is sudden and perhaps frightening," Pentephres said. "But do not be afraid, dear child. Please allow me to explain.

  "My wife and I longed for a child for many years. Alas, we could not have any so we hoped to adopt. The day I saw you in your village, I heard the gods whispering to me that you were to be the one.

  "As we got to know you more, we knew they had made no mistake. Your strength, goodness and beauty are unlike any we've ever seen. We spoke with our astrologers to determine the date of your adoption."

  Pentephres paused. "We know you have been through a lot, Kiya. Now, we want to give you a good life. We promise to love and care for you as long as we live. Please, dear child. Do not be afraid."

  I was moved. It was selfless of Pentephres and Satsepdu to be willing to make such a commitment. And in the time I had known them, I had discovered they were good people. They had shown great kindness to me and my friends.

  It was a dramatic change, indeed. But there was nothing to fear.

  "My lord and lady," I said. "I don't know what to say. But this is so kind of you. I would be happy to become your daughter. I am so grateful for everything you've done."

  I sank to my knees, overwhelmed by it all.

  Pentephres bent over and helped me up. He chuckled. "It was our pleasure, little one."

  "We would also like you to move in with us tonight," Satsepdu spoke up. "You will have a very big room, a library, a pool and beautiful gardens. Would you be all right to do that, Kiya?"

  "Yes. But will I still be able to see my friends?"

  "Yes. Until the end of this week that is," Pentephres said. "You see, they too will be leaving the temple."

  I stared at him in surprise. "Will they? Where are they going?"

  "You can talk about it with them later," he said. "But now, we must present you to Atum-Re. You will be joined to us. You will also be bestowed with a new name, which was determined by our astrologers."

  "Will I?" I felt sad at abandoning the name I'd had since birth.

  "Yes, my child. It is to mark your new life. It is also the will of the god. Now, let us come before Atum-Re."

  Pentephres and Satsepdu led me toward a door at the far end of the Hall. I expected to pass thr
ough another corridor.

  We entered a tiny room. This was the innermost chamber, the holy of holies.

  The walls were covered with precious stones. A large altar rose at the centre. Atop it was a small enclosed shrine.

  Pentephres approached the altar, chanting softly. He opened the shrine's doors to reveal a golden idol of Atum-Re. The god's eyes, which were made of sapphires, flashed in the light.

  Pentephres prostrated before the altar. He kissed the ground, stood gracefully and raised his arms.

  "O Atum-Re, Shining One, Wind in the Souls, Renewer of Earth. Be awakened in peace. Hear the words of your servant Pentephres, your hem-netjer-tepy, your Chief Prophet, your Great Seer.

  "Your Chief Prophet and werest heneret, Chief Concubine Satsepdu come before you today to present this beautiful child. We acknowledge she is a gift from you. Just as you are reborn each day, so may this child be reborn as our daughter and your Chief Daughter."

  Pentephres turned to me. "Come forth. Kneel by my side."

  He produced a small marble bowl and raised it above me. "This is water from the temple's sacred pool."

  He dipped his thumb in the bowl, then touched my forehead. A tiny droplet ran down my powdered nose.

  "From this day forth," he said, "you will be known as Asenath. You belong to Neith, the sun-god's mother, the warrior goddess. She shielded you with her sacred weapons and brought you to us. The name Asenath will give you power in days to come."

  Pentephres laid his hand on my head. "May you always be under the protection of the Shining One's mother. May you always have luck, health and joy in life. May the divine family of the Sun shine upon you always."

  He bade me rise.

  He took a goblet from the altar. Inside it, a dark red liquid shimmered.

  "This is wine, which has been dedicated to Atum-Re," he said. "We will each drink from it to seal our union as a family."

  He raised the goblet to the idol. "Before Atum-Re, we bind ourselves to you forever, Asenath. We pledge to raise, protect and love you. We honour you, beloved daughter."

  He sipped from the goblet and handed it to his wife. She drank from it as well, then passed it to me.

  The wine was bitter and warm. It nearly scalded my throat. I coughed slightly.

  Pentephres took the goblet from me. He placed it back upon the altar, lit some incense in a bronze burner and raised his arms again. "O Exalted One, your Chief Prophet and Chief Concubine thank you for the great gift of Asenath. We thank your divine mother for protecting her. We thank the

  Seven Hathors for the favourable judgement bestowed upon Asenath at her birth. You are truly great, O Shining One."

  He droned out a long hymn of praise and thanksgiving. Afterward, he turned to me and Satsepdu. "Let us bow before Atum-Re."

  The three of us prostrated on the cold marble floor. Pentephres bade us rise.

  I got up to see the priestly couple smiling at me.

  "Lady Asenath, you are now our honoured daughter," the high priest said.

  My new parents approached and embraced me.

  I returned their hugs. They held me tight.

  "Welcome to our family, Asenath," Satsepdu whispered.

  Pentephres approached the altar once more and closed the shrine.

  "The ceremony is now finished," he said. "We must return to the anteroom walking backward. We cannot turn our faces from the god."

  We backed up slowly. As we did, my new father dusted away our footprints.

  We returned to the Hall of Atum-Re. The priests and priestesses who had been at the entrance earlier met us. Standing in a row, their white robes glowing against the darkness, they looked like majestic marble pillars.

  They began chanting. A hidden flute played solemn notes.

  "O Lord Pentephres, he who has visions of the Sun. O Lady Satsepdu, Chief Concubine of the Sun. O Lady Asenath, Chief Daughter of the Sun. May Atum-Re, the Shining One, bless you on this day and days to come."

  They prostrated before us.

  "Arise," Lord Pentephres said.

  They rose and shuffled to the side, creating an aisle. My new family and I walked the length of it. The priests trailed behind us, resuming their chanting.

  We made our way back through the dim corridors, past the forest of columns and out of the heavy darkness. I blinked at the sudden flash of daylight.

  I saw the entire temple staff had gathered together in the courtyard—clergy, servants and labourers. They fell to their knees and greeted us.

  "Life, health and prosperity to you, Great Seer and priestly family of Heliopolis."

  My new father bade them rise. They dispersed to reveal long tables laden with food.

  I smiled with pleasure. This was a nice way to culminate everything.

  As I reached the bottom of the steps, someone tapped me from behind. I turned around.

  "Menah? Look at you!"

  My best friend had also undergone a startling transformation. He looked like a young prince. His eyes were cunningly painted as mine were. He donned an elegant pleated kilt.

  He bowed. "I am Khasekhemui now, my lady. I must say, you look quite lovely."

  I lowered my voice. "Menah, please don't bow to me. You may still call me Kiya if you wish."

  "I prefer Asenath, my lady. And again, it is Khasekhemui. No longer Menah."

  "Khasekh. Well, all right. Did Pentephres give you that name as well?"

  "No. I chose it myself. I heard about your renaming and thought I might do it as well. After all, new name, new life."

  "So I heard you'll be leaving the temple," I said. "Where are you going?"

  "The School of Life in Thebes. I am going to become a scholar of magic arts. Pentephres sent a recommendation for me." He smiled proudly.

  I gasped. The School of Life was the most prestigious academic institution in Egypt. The students there engaged in disciplines of their choice and graduated with a career at their feet.

  "Congratulations. I'm so proud of you." I hugged him. "But I wish you weren't leaving. Will you return after your studies?"

  "I don't know. I might find work at the Great House."

  My face fell.

  "But you will be going there a lot too," he said. "Doesn't Pentephres often meet with Pharaoh?"

  "I think so."

  "Come on, Asenath, cheer up. It will be good. I promise I will write you every day."

  I managed a small smile. "How about the twins? Where are they going?"

  "They will be in Thebes as well―and in the Great House itself."

  My eyes widened. "You're joking."

  "Not at all. You know how they are good in the kitchen and taking care of things? Nyla will be in the Palace kitchens. Lyla meanwhile will be handmaiden to a royal lady. Lady Ahmose or something."

  I felt a crushing disappointment at losing all my friends.

  Khasekh, however, did not seem to notice. "I can't wait for Thebes, Asenath. It will be so exciting. Imagine, your best friend at the centre of the world. And in the School of Life at that."

  Listening to this depressed me further. I sought some relief.

  "I shall congratulate the twins," I said. "If you will excuse me."

  They were quietly eating in a corner, keeping to themselves like always. They exchanged no words, but their faces were beaming.

  "I hear you'll be working at the Great House," I said. "Congratulations. That is quite an honour."

  "Thank you, Lady Asenath," they said together.

  I blushed. "Please, don't address me so. I am still the same person. You can still call me Kiya if you like."

  "Yes, Kiya."

  "Are you looking forward to your new roles?"

  "Yes."

  "Do write me, will you?"

  "Yes, Kiya."

  I paused. Even though I knew they would not be inclined to conversation, I wanted to talk with them a bit more. I wanted to make the most of it while they were still here.

  "Lady Asenath," someone said.

 
; The grouchy old kitchen woman and her daughter Itet approached. They both bowed.

  "Life, health and prosperity to you, my lady," Itet said. "My mother and I wish you the god's blessings in your new life."

  I stared at them, baffled. "Thank you," I said after a while.

  They bowed once more and left.

  "You never would have imagined, would you?" Khasekh said, coming up to us.

  I laughed. "Not in a million years."

  The celebration lasted nearly the entire day. At the end, Khasekh said, "I'll miss you, Asenath. I hope we'll see each other again someday."

  "I hope so, Menah. I mean, Khasekh."

  That was about the thousandth time that day I had made that mistake. He, on the other hand, had not called me Kiya since.

  My beloved best friend and I embraced. I fought back tears as I watched him being led away by a group of priests.

  In the female servants' room for the last time, the twins and I gathered our belongings. We would not be bringing much. We did not have much.

  My simple dresses would be left behind as I would now be wearing shimmering noblewomen's gowns.

  The twins left ahead of me. I embraced them before they went. This time, I allowed a few tears fall.

  "Good luck," I said.

  "You too, Kiya."

  After they disappeared, I dried my eyes. I sat on my mat, trying to gather my thoughts, reconcile myself with the events of the day. But it was impossible. So many astonishing things had happened in such a short amount of time. I could barely keep up.

  I clasped the lapis lazuli lotus. I rose and approached the mirror, as if I would find some answers there.

  However, all I saw was a stranger.

  I did not know this elegant noblewoman. Without doubt, she was not Kiya, the little village girl who played and frolicked in the village by the Nile.

  This elegant noblewoman had laid her to rest, underneath a layer of fine linen, precious stone, kohl streaks and fiery green malachite.

  This elegant noblewoman was someone I had yet to get to know. If I could even know her at all.

  This elegant noblewoman was Lady Asenath, the daughter of the high priest of Heliopolis.

  CHAPTER SIX

  Pentephres and Satsepdu's sprawling villa was but a stone's throw away from the temple. Because it was so near, I expected to walk.