I thought it was all a beautiful dream one that felt too perfect to be real. The scent of fresh jasmine in the air, the warmth of silk against my skin, the silence,heavy, untouched by street chaos. Everything was calm and serene, I woke up to clean air, the air didn't smell of dust or dirt.when I blinked same golden ceiling stared back at me, my chest tightened.
I was still here. Still in the mansion of the Emperor of Zazu.
I sat up slowly, expecting Taji's voice to call out, or the sound of street vendors shouting in the distance. But all I heard was the rustling of silk curtains dancing at the window. The bed beneath me was wider than the road side mats I had grown up in. The sheets shimmered like water. Even the robe they had changed me into during the night was soft, a delicate blend of emerald green silk and intricate gold patterns stitched with beads.
I looked at my hands, it looked very clean and polished. My hair had been braided and adorned with golden clips that tickled when I moved.
This wasn't a dream.
The door creaked open, and two women stepped in, heads bowed. They looked like they belonged to the air itself, they were gentle and graceful.
"Princess Zuri," one said, bowing again, "the Empress awaits you for the morning meal."
Princess?
The word didn't sit right on my skin.
Still, I followed them through corridors carved with ancient murals, passing guards who didn't smile, servants who bowed, and golden arches too grand to believe. When we reached the dining chamber, my breath caught.
The emperor's table was long enough to sit fifty people. Chandeliers floated above it, burning without flame. At the head sat, the great Emperor of Zazu, stoic, with skin like aged bronze and eyes that seemed to see into the soul. But he looked so aged and ill. Beside him sat Empress Imani, regal, calm, a lioness in human form.
And then there was Prince Jabari and his mother. He didn't look at me at first. Just tapped a jeweled ring against the goblet in his hand like he was keeping time.
When I entered, I bowed low, just as I had seen the maidens do. "Rise my child," Empress Imani said gently. I took my seat near the edge of the table, trying not to make noise, trying not to embarrass myself. I copied what the Empress did, I used the right fork, touched the goblet by the stem. But my hand trembled. The food was strange but tasty, soft bread, sliced mango, grilled meat wrapped in herbs. I hadn't eaten like this in my life. I chewed carefully, quietly… or so I thought.
Then his voice struck like thunder.
"Must you chew like a goat?"
I froze.
All heads turned toward Prince Jabari Kiongozi, his jaw tight, eyes cold.
"I didn't..." I stammered.
"You have no table manners," he hissed. "You chew like a wild thing from the outskirts. Do you have no shame?"
"Jabari," the Empress warned, but he was already rising to his feet.
"I will not share a table with someone who eats like that," he said. "This is not a public feast. This is the Emperor's table. There is order, etiquette and dignity."
My chest burned, I tried to speak but the words stuck to my throat. And then the dining doors burst open.
All heads turned.
The Commander walked in, boots soaked with mud. And in his grip,Taji. He was wet, shivering and barely able to stand.
"Taji!" I stood up, knocking over my chair. He looked up and tried to smile, but his lips were blue. "What is this?" Jabari demanded. "Who is he?"
"My friend," I said, moving toward Taji. "He's my friend."
"You've not even been accepted into this family," Jabari barked, "and already you bring a man into the Emperor's household?" He looked at his mother as though waiting for her to scold me. "Into the sacred palace of Zazu?" he continued, voice rising. "Do you know what that means? Do you think this is a street corner? You bring a man, a man into our house? Unacceptable!"
"How dare you!" His mother snapped. "Take this thing out!"
Two guards began to step forward.
"No!" I shouted. "If Taji leaves, I leave."
They all turned to me.
I rushed toward Taji, placing myself between him and the guards. "He is the only family I know," I said, shaking. "The only person who has stood by me, bled with me, starved with me. If I'm one of you… then you must accept all of me."
The Empress didn't speak. Her eyes moved between Taji and me, calculating.
And then,
A choking sound.
The Emperor's cough, sharp and ragged, cut through the air like a blade.
"Papa!" the Empress cried, rushing to him.
The Emperor gasped for air, clutching his chest. His face turned pale. Servants screamed. Guards moved swiftly, lifting him from the chair and carrying him into the inner chambers.
In that moment, the table, the mansion, the rules. All of it faded.
And I stood there, arm wrapped around Taji, surrounded by gold and power, yet feeling like I was balancing on the edge of a sword.
I grabbed Taji's hand and pulled him into a desperate embrace. "Let's leave, Taji. Please. I don't belong here."
My voice cracked as I spoke, the weight of everything crushing me at once. "That man… Prince Jabari… he hates me. He looks at me like I'm a curse."
Taji's arms wrapped around me slowly, protectively, and then he gently pulled away. "Slow down, Zu. You're shaking."
"I don't care. We need to leave this place back to where we came from. I don't care about thrones or empires. I don't want any of this."
Taji gave a dry chuckle. "I'm hungry. These people think you're their heir, and all I can think about is food." He reached for a piece of toasted bread from the golden platter near us.
I rolled my eyes but managed a broken smile. "Exactly, they saw the mark on my back and now they believe it is the Seal of Bahati or something ridiculous."
"There's food though," he said with a mischievous grin, chewing slowly. "Eat first, escape later."
Despite the whirlwind in my chest, I sat beside him. For a few precious moments, we ignored the chaos echoing from the Emperor's chambers. Guards kept rushing in and out. The royal magician, doctors, and a crowd of servants were moving with desperate purpose. But we stayed still, eating slowly, pretending we were back in the street corners of Kigali where life was simple and survival was our only crown.
I tapped Taji's arm. "Let's leave now."
He stood, licking his fingers, and together we slipped out of the royal dining hall into the open courtyard of the mansion. The cool morning air hit my skin and for a fleeting second, I felt free.
Then, from the balcony above, the Empress's sharp voice tore the illusion apart.
"She shouldn't leave, Guards bring the princess to me!"
We didn't get far.
As soon as our feet touched the stone-paved streets outside the mansion gates, passersby began to bow before me. Me, Zuri, the orphaned street girl who had slept in gutters and stolen bread.
Taji and I looked at each other, confused, then laughed loudly as we kept walking.
But it didn't last. The guards caught up with us and dragged us back like fugitives.
I didn't struggle this time. What was the point?
Inside the main hall, the Empress stood waiting like a storm. "You just want to abandon your father in his condition?" she snapped.
"He is not my father!" I shouted.
The slap came fast and loud. My cheek burned from her palm, but what stung more were her words.
"Your father and I searched every city in Kigali looking for you. A wretched old witch kidnapped you during your naming ceremony. I never held another child again, never conceived. And still, he refused to marry another. We waited, we hoped, we wept. And now that we've finally found you, you think you can just walk out of our lives?"
I stood there, frozen.
Kidnapped? A witch?
I turned to Taji, needing something, truth, memory, anything.
The Empress pointed at him. "If you must stay with him, so be it. But you are not leaving this place. Not now. Not ever."
She turned away. "Now… to your father's chambers."
Taji took my hand again, and we walked together like shadows behind her.
Inside, the Emperor lay still, pale but breathing. Beside him, Prince Jabari stood silently. His mother, draped in dark crimson, gave me one final glare before the two of them exited without a word. Something in me whispered: this was only the beginning. There was more, much more, than anyone was saying.
When the Emperor finally stabilized, I returned to my chamber, Taji close beside me. My new maids trailed us with wide eyes and reverent silence, but I waved them off. I needed space.
Inside, I shut the door and turned to him.
"Taji… how did you find me?"
He sighed and sat on the edge of the royal bed like it was a stool in a back alley.
"You were a big baby," he said quietly. "I couldn't carry you well. My arms hurt every time."
I furrowed my brows.
He continued, his voice heavier now. "I was sitting in front of a kiosk, hungry as usual. A woman, she was very beautiful, the most beautiful I had ever seen, she was fair, she approached me with a man beside her. They were both so clean, so elegant. I thought they were angels."
He paused.
"She offered me food. Sat with me like I wasn't dirt. Her husband, your father, he went behind the kiosk to gather wood and make light. I guess they were travellers. Then... the shots rang out."
My heart skipped.
"She stood, gave you to me, and ran to see what happened. More shots. She never came back."
I sank slowly onto the floor, my chest tightening.
"I was just a kid too, Zu. Six, maybe seven. I couldn't even spell my own name, but you were crying very loud. I didn't know what to do."
He exhaled.
"People thought we were siblings. They pitied us sometimes. Women allowed us to sleep in their kiosk. I stole milk, bread, whatever I could. You stopped crying when I gave you milk or held your tiny hand. That's how we survived. No education, no parents, no home...nothing"
I stared at him, my eyes stinging. "You raised me... all by yourself."
He nodded.
"You didn't have to," I whispered.
"I know," he said. "But I couldn't let you die."
I looked at Taji again, not as the scrappy boy I'd always known, but as something more. A brother and a savior. Maybe even the only home I'd ever had.
I reached out and held his hand. This place, with all its gold and titles, might claim me by blood, but Taji? Taji had already claimed my soul.
"Taji, this story doesn't add up," I said, my voice rising with frustration. "It's not the same as what the Empress told me."
I stood up and paced across the room, my thoughts tangled and burning. "If I truly had parents, if I wasn't born to royalty, then why do I bear the Seal of Bahati? How do I carry something meant for a completely different bloodline?"
Taji glanced around cautiously and lowered his voice. "That… that's not the Seal of Bahati," he said quietly.
I froze. "What?"
He stood and walked toward me, his tone calm but insistent. "Look, Zuri. We've been given a chance, something we never imagined. A warm bed, food, safety and power, even. There's no point digging too deep or fighting this. Let them believe what they want."
He stepped closer and added with a faint smile, "You could just be… the imposter who inherited the Empire of Zazu."
I stared at him, stunned.
"Act the part," he said gently. "Be their princess. You have nothing to lose."