Sanctuary
A/N: Pat-reon: HelloDarkness07.
---
Floating over what I assume is Mt Kilimanjaro's Volcanic cone, I enjoy the heat for a while. This is nice, the feeling of warmth.
I had spent two days roaming all around the mountains of Africa, to see if I can find more Dragon corpses. And sure enough, I had found a total of 8 dead dragons, all of them mostly intact. Sure, some flesh was missing from all the animals eating it. But their hearts were completely intact.
Dragons are violent creatures, and if you're not family, you're a threat to that family. They don't need too much of an excuse to attack each other, which while unfortunate, gave me a total of 8 Dragon hearts to use.
Summoning 9 Hearts from the Nowhere, I throw them all down into the lava, while keeping a Telekinetic.. string attached to them. With a plop, the 9 hearts, one belonging to the Basilisk I had killed, and the other 8 to different Dragon corpses I had found around the continent, fall into the lava, and are summarily submerged within a few seconds.
I wait exactly 10 seconds, and then, pull at the Telekinetic strings, making the 9 hearts rush out of the burning hot lava, towards me. As they fly at me, I point my hand at the hearts, and throw conjured Water at them, to cool them down rapidly. I keep it going for a minute, not stopping the Aguamenti spell at all.
Remember the Science lesson? Quickly cooling down hot lava causes it to turn into Obsidian.
And so, floating in front of me, are 9 orbs of obsidian covered Hearts, almost Spherical in shape.
Heartstones, they're called. Hearts of different Magical animals dipped in hot magma, and rapidly cooled down. The Magic within the hearts protect them from burning completely, or melting even, while the surrounding Obsidian keeps the hearts intact for a very long time.
Dragon Hearts are the most common Hearts to be used as Heartstones, because they're one of the most Magical animals around. But, other creatures can be used too, although the scale of the Magic they can channel will be vastly low.
The Basilisk was at least 900 years old when it died, and so, its heart has the most Magical value in between these hearts. The dragons, meanwhile, were around a couple centuries old at most, but still they weren't too inferior.
Heartstones were used in old times, well, these times, as Wardstones, to keep the Protective Wards grounded. They connect the Wards to the very Earth itself, creating a tendril of Magic that goes towards the closest Leylines, to feed it. This is how Enchantments can stay for a very, very long time, powered by the Leylines.
Placing the Heartstones in Nowhere, I create a portal to my Island, and begin with my work. Before I can do anything else, I was going to protect it. I drop down on the ground, in front of a green tree filled mountain. The area is completely forested, but this is the place that is at the centre of the Island.
Well, the Island isn't round, or uniform in shape, so the estimate was.. rough. But, if I create four quadrants with this point in the centre, the area of land in each quadrant will be about eaual.
I don't care about accuracy, the Ward is going to encompass a lot of area anyway.
Extending my right index finger's nail, I draw a circle on the ground, and draw eight 7 inch long lines extending from the circle. These eight lines point in the 8 Ordinal Directions. North, Northeast, East, Southeast, South, Southwest, West, and Northwest.
Placing the eight dragon Heartstones at the end of the eight lines, I place the Basilisk Heartstone within the circle. Then, I place my hand on the Basilisk Heartstone, and send my magic into it. Immediately, 8 tendrils of magic exit out of the Basilisk Heartstone, and slam into the eight dragon Heartstones, as my magic starts flowing in them too.
And then, with a snap, the eight dragon Heartstones shoot into the air, going towards their respective Ordinal directions. The Basilisk Heartstone, meanwhile, starts getting pulled into the earth, as if the ground was liquid.
Similar occurrences were occuring in the eight Directions the Dragon Heartstones flew to, with each heartstone stopping at one hundred meters short of the Island borders. These Heartstones too start getting pulled underground, with a single tendril keeping them all connected to the Central Heartstone, as well as each other.
I keep my eyes closed, and keep feeding my magic to the Heartstones, even when it completely moves underground. Finally, when the Heartstones stop, they're around 100 meters underneath the surface, too far for anyone to mess with them.
Standing up with a smile, I conjure something else from the Nowhere. The Elder Wand. I wanted my Protective Wards to be as strong as possible, and what better Focus to do that, than the Deathstick?
Holding the Elder Wand in my right hand, I place its tip on my left palm, and cast a very weak Lacero, the Dark Cutting Curse. The Dark Magic within the Curse stops my hand from healing immediately, and blood keeps flowing from my palm, into the ground.
A few months ago, just the first part of this would have tired me out completely, left me without accessible Magic for a few hours in the least. But now, it just took me to half of my strength. My Magic was improving, getting stronger, and I think that my journey into the Past has something to do with it. The Magic here, in this time, is.. purer.
Holding my bleeding palm over the still visible circle, I point my new Wand upwards, and start casting spells. "Protego totalum, Cave Inimicum, Fiantu Duri, Intrusor Erecti, Repello Muggletum, Muffliato.."
On and on the spells went, a cycle repeated over and over again.
With each Protective spell, a beam of light was emitted by the Elder Wand, that flew into the air and formed into a transparent piece of a barrier. Each new spell made the barrier bigger, and bigger, until finally the multilayered barrier covers the entire island, and more.
With the Basilisk Heartstone as the absolute centre, are two spherical barriers, both of them multilayered, all around the island. The Inner Ward had the eight dragon Heartstones on its curvature, while the outer Ward had a radius one mile bigger than the inner one.
The outer ward would make the island completely invisibile, make it impossible for muggles to come here, even accidentally, make everything that happens here silent, and overall hide the entire island. It also prevented anyone from Magically seeing inside, even with Scrying, but I doubt any competent Wizard would be stopped by not being able to see here. Which is what the Inner Ward was for.
The Inner ward stops all manner of Apparition, Portkey, and even Portals. It also absorbs almost all spells thrown at it. Of course, the only exceptions are the three Unforgivables, and other similar level spells which just cause a small hole to be formed in the ward, which will be repaired right after. Divine or Demonic Magics are a different thing altogether, though. But, I doubt any of them have any interest in my Island.
If anyone wants to teleport to the island through any means, they will be dropped outside the inner ward, but inside the Outer ward. They won't be able to enter the Inner Ward though, unless they break it down, or I allow it.
The Wards then flash once, and then disappear, now staying invisible. I could feel them though, they were still very much intact and connected to all the Heartstones. But, this is not enough.
Sighing, finally feeling a bit tired from all the spells I cast right now, I fly up into the air. Lets bar everyone else from using Magic when on the island.
Pointing my wand at the invisible inner ward, I use the modified Flagrate spell to send Runic symbols flying. Four Symbols, in four cardinal directions fly out of my Wand, and slam into the ward, merging with it. They stay there for all of 5 seconds, before they too become completely invisibile, now part of the Protective Wards of the Island.
The Runic symbols make me the only Wizard, or Sorcerer, capable of using Magic on here. Everyone else's spells will just.. fizzle out, their Magic absorbed by the Ward.
The Island is too big for me to use the Fidelius Charm on, as of now, so this is the best I can do for now. Besides, I want this to be a Sanctuary for the Magical Animals, Fidelius will prove to be counterproductive to that.
Huh, Sanctuary. That's a nice name for my Island. The Sanctuary.
Smiling in satisfaction, I create a portal to the centre of the Ward, where the Basilisk Heartstone is buried. Floating through, I cast a few spells to make the ground more comfortable, and a few more to make wild animals not eat me. And then, I lay down to go to sleep.
I've already hidden an entire Island away from everyone else, I'm fucking tired. Besides, nothing can harm me when I'm on the Island.
--
"You sure took your time." Master Onuris says as soon as I enter the Magical Library a week later.
I rub the back of my head, and say, "I was travelling, trying to find my Staff's core."
Well, that's a lie. I've just been busy setting my Sanctuary up, I didn't even have the time to look for a Staff core. And none of the dragon hearts I found were a match for me, so there's that.
Master Onuris snorts, and goes back to the book he was writing. Probably another translation, because copying books is pretty easy when you have Magic.
I turn towards the left, and go towards the Ritual Magic shelf. We spend a few minutes in silence, when suddenly a soft bell chimes from everywhere around the Library. Master Onuris immediately slams his books shut, and walks forward to stand in the middle, facing the door.
He just glances at me, and says, "Come here, stand still, and keep your head down."
I keep the book I was reading back in its place, and stand by his side. I ask, "Someone's coming?"
Nodding, Master Onuris says, "The Royal Mages. They're either coming to drop something off, or for some knowledge. Do not, under any circumstances, look them in the eye."
Well, well, well. The Royal Mages. I've been in Egypt for almost a year now, and I haven't seen them ever. Heck, the only trained Wizards I've ever seen are Priests of the Egyptian Gods, which includes Master Onuris, and I. And even the Priests I've seen just in passing.
The Royal Mages are Wizards and Witches under direct command of the Pharoah. They guard the Pharoah himself, from any and all threats that can harm him. Obviously, they're not entirely loyal, since Ptolemaic Pharoahs die every 50 years or so, at the most. Loyal to their family, the Pharoahs aren't.
Within a minute, the door slams open, and I look down, having gotten used to seeming… weak. My animal side hates it, but my Slytherin side knows that laying low is the way to go. Why antagonise the Royal Mages, and through them, the Pharoahs when you can wait for the right time to do so?
Seven people walk inside the room, most of whom go towards various shelves, to begin reading. One of them, however, approaches us, and I just feel the person staring at me. In a distinguishably female voice, the person asks, "Who is this, Priest Onuris?" In Greek.
I could see her legs, and her torso, but her head was not visible to me thanks to me bowing down. She wore just a plain, transparent cloth around her upper body, and the cloth on her lower body just hid her privates, leaving her legs open for all to see. It sort of reminds me of Princess Leia's bikini. Except with her tits openly visible to me.
Not wanting to offend her, I keep my eyes at her feet. She hasn't antagonised me yet, so why do it first?
Before I can say anything, Master Onuris answers, "This is Athreos Aetos, a commoner scholar from Greece, High Mage Tatiana."
The woman raises her hand, and I see it approach my face. Holding my face with her hands on my cheeks, she lifts my head up, none too gently. As she observes my face, she says, "It was your duty to inform us about him, Priest of Osiris. The Royal Mages need to know when there's another Mage in Alexandria."
Now that my head was raised up, I could see that the woman wore a pair of earrings which definitely protected her mind from intrusions, and a nose ring. The nose Ring's purpose was unknown to me, but I can guess. Smell poisons easily, smell deception, etc.
I keep staring at her eyes, even if Master Onuris told me not to. Because Goddamn this woman is beautiful. A soft brown skin, with short black hair and brown eyes. I was definitely attracted to her, at least a little bit.
Master Onuris nods, and says, "I didn't feel the need to, High Mage. Because this one here doesn't even have a focus. No rings, no wand, and not even a staff."
The lady sniffs, as she drops my head, and says, "It is of no importance then, an untrained Mage is of no use to the Pharoah." She then waves her hand, conjuring a few books from somewhere, and places them on the table. She says, "Translate these books into Greek and Latin, Priest Onuris. We need this knowledge within a week."
She then turns towards me, and says, "And you, when the Priest is done translating, bring the books to the palace. And you better hope that you aren't a spy. Or.." she smirks, and adds, ".. well, there are many old curses I would like to try."
Bowing my head down once again, I say, "I am here just to learn, High Mage Tatiana. I do not have any other goals, nefarious or otherwise."
Tatiana nods, and turns away from me, her big earrings swinging with her hair. She then joins her fellow Mages near the shelves, and begins perusing the books. All the while, Master Onuris and I just stay in our spots, in front of the door.
Finally, half an hour after they came in, the 6 men and one woman leave the Library, closing the door as they go. As soon as they do, I turn towards Master Onuris, and ask, "Not that I don't appreciate it, but why did you lie to her?"
Master Onuris taps his staff on the ground, emitting a wave of magic from it, and says, "I didn't lie, I just didn't correct her misconceptions. I never said you're untrained, only that you don't own a focus."
This time I manage to sense the Magic he pushed as one of sensing, the non-spell he just used checked for any hiding people, or spells. Huh, useful spell that one.
Rolling my eyes, I smile and ask, "Still, why do that? Are they dangerous? Do I need to worry when I go there?"
Master Onuris sits down on his desk, the one where Tatiana just left a dozen books for emergency translations, and points me towards the chair on the other side.
As I sit down, he says, "The Royal Mages are very much dangerous, there is no doubt. But the reason I.. omitted the truth, is that the Mages are selfish. They are afraid of other Mages becoming as strong as them. Despite the Law stating all books should be stored in the Library of Alexandria itself, the Royal Mages have a private Library of their own, sponsored by the Pharoah himself. They use the knowledge to protect the Kingdom, sometimes.. from threats that don't exist. Like other Mages. And the High Mage Tatiana is the strongest of them."
I humm, making a noise of understanding. The Royal Mages are like the Ministry of Magic, they try and limit the knowledge the public has access to, so that the Wizards here don't become strong enough to contend with them.
"I had wondered why we were the only two Mages in the Library, despite there being hundreds of Mages in Alexandria itself." I say, implying something very nefarious, and stand up.
"Don't let them hear you say it." Master Onuris warns, and begins working on translation.
This is not my problem, the Library was going to be destroyed in a few centuries anyway. The Pharoahs were going to be a thing of the past within 50 years, max. I already have two shadow organizations to take care of, I'm not adding a third to that.
Besides, I already have plans to channel one of my ancestors, to gain all Magical Knowledge in Egypt. But, it won't happen yet, I need at least a decade for that. And since I still don't have any Sands of Time, I believe I do have a decade here.
5 days is all it takes for Master Onuris and I to translate all the books into Greek and Latin, after copying them down for the Library. The books were originally Chinese, having been confiscated from a recent tourist from China. They were then copied, the copies given back to the tourist. The originals, meanwhile, were given to us, for translation and storage. The book described a number of Rituals that could be used to gain affinities to either Spirit animals, or to elements. There were also some techniques that anyone could use, without need for any Ritual.
Taking the Greek and Latin translations, I place them in an enchanted pouch, and start a leisurely walk towards the Royal Palace of the Pharoah, while seeing the sights.
Alexandria is a beautiful city, with amazing architecture, and moderate cleanliness. The only thing that could mess with the image of the beautiful city, were the people. Even in the Greek quarter, where both the Library and the Palace were based, there was no shortage of poor people.
Technically, I was one of the poor ones, with just a single room house to myself. But, I do have an entire Island, and I also don't have to spend any money for food. I can just go to the Island, or even the African forests for food.
Ah, I need to create a small greenhouse too, maybe two, one for food and the second for potion ingredients. Can't believe I almost forgot that.
Shaking myself out of my musings once I reach the palace gates, I nod at the guards, and enter through the open gates. The entrance gates are open to all, since the Pharoah does meet with some people everyday, to hear their troubles, to solve problems.
As I climb the stairs towards another gate, this one too large, I stop near the guards, and ask, "Where may I find the High Mage, Tatiana?"
The guard snaps to attention, and gives me the directions to the Royal Mage Chambers, which I had already found out by using Telepathy. But, plausible explanation and all that.
Reaching the door to what I had seen in a servant's mind as Tatiana's room, I knock, and wait. I don't have to wait long, however, when the woman opens the door without a care in the world, wearing just a simple robe fastened around her hip. She looks, as well as sounds, a bit annoyed, as she asks, "What?"
I bow to her, after a short moment of admiring her beauty, and say, "I am Athreos Aetos, High Mage Tatiana, from the Library. Master Onuris sent me here with the requested translations."
"I remember you, the untrained Mage." Tatiana says, as she gestures with her fingers to raise my head. When I do so, she asks, "Well? Where are the books?"
I show her the pouch in my hands, and say, "Master Onuris lent me this Enchanted pouch, so that I don't get robbed on my way here."
And it was the truth. Kinda. There were 24 books in total, and we wanted to keep my Magical talent a secret. So, the pouch.
Tatiana nods, and turns around, walking into the room. Pointing towards the shelf in the corner, she says, "Place the books in the shelf. I will deal with them later."
And then, she shrugs her robe off, becoming completely nude, and starts walking towards the bathtub filled with warm water in the balcony.
Well, no wonder she was annoyed, she was having a soak when I came here.
Not unused to the nudity in Alexandria, although not all women I've seen nude were this gorgeous, or strong, I turn towards the shelf. The shelf contained a few dozen books already, most of them dealing with Elemental spells, but one of them was about Soul. Huh, this book is definitely not a part of the Magical Library.
I put my hand inside the pouch, and take the books out one by one, placing the 24 books, half of them Greek, and half Latin, in an empty space. I can't help but stop and stare at the Soul Magic book once again, before I start walking out.
"Wait." The High Mage calls out, just when I'm about to walk out. I turn towards the bathtub, where she sat with her arms on the edge, as she says, "I haven't dismissed you yet, commoner."
Nodding mutely, I stand to the side, with my back once again turned towards her. Something catches my mind, however, when I clearly hear something.
'He is.. attractive, his Magic is stronger than most, even if untrained. What to do.. what to do?'
Well, well, well. Looks like someone doesn't bathe with her portable Occlumency on. I take the opportunity to enter her mind, making sure to stay undetected. And considering that the actual Phoenix Force is the one that taught me, well, I'm definitely undetectable.
If Nathaniel Essex couldn't sense my intrusions, then this normal, if strong, Witch definitely won't.
Her memories gave me a tale of her life, and it did not paint a particularly good picture. Born in the Greek quarter of Alexandria, Tatiana was the daughter of two Greek fishers. The parents were both Mages, and they raised her with some.. biases.
Egyptian Magic is inferior to Greek Magic, Roman Wands are good, staffs are unnecessary weight, etc. Considering that Egyptian curses are even present in my era, that can easily be proved as a lie.
Then, women aren't supposed to be anything but objects of sex for the men. If the Pharoah orders her to have sex with him, she should do so with a large smile on her face. She was 8 when they told her that.
Talk about shitty parenting.
Her parents died during the last civil war, when Ptolemy and his brother Ptolemy fought for the throne after Ptolemy's death, and Tatiana was left alone. She had some books on Magic, and her mother's wand, which she used to learn Magic.
She then kept on visiting the Library of Alexandria, and learned a lot more Magic under Master Onuris's watchful eyes. Then, she caught the eye of the last High Mage. He took her under his wing, as his mistress and his student, and taught her more Magic. For every piece of Magic she was taught, another piece of her dignity was torn away by the High Mage.
So, she poisoned him.
And when he died, she won the title of the High Mage, since she was the strongest amongst the other Royal Mages. The first Woman amongst the Royal Mages, Tatiana was also forced to be a Mistress to the Pharoah.
From the poorest of Alexandria, to the city's strongest people, Tatiana had come a long way. But, not all was good.
Tatiana was forced to be a Mistress to not one, but two powerful people. But, it seems the Pharoah hadn't visited her for a few months, which gave her some peace. He had a lot of other mistresses, though, not to forget his wife/half sister, Cleopatra V.
She couldn't make friends, since the Pharoah disallowed contact with anyone not the Royal Mages, or the Royal family. Even the guards and servents weren't allowed to talk to her. The only reason she was allowed to speak with Master Onuris and I, was that we work at the library.
There's no way to carry out tasks if she doesn't speak with us in her capacity as the High Mage.
Thanks to that, Tatiana didn't have much respect for the Pharoah, and not even a little bit of love for the Royal family. They were just a job for her, a way to earn money, and respect.
The only good thing about her life, for her, was that she got to read through the Hidden Library of the Royal Palace, which is the name for the Magical Library here. And she had a blanket permission for punishing those that insult her.
It takes barely a few seconds for me to go through that all, and I can't help but sympathise for her. Sure, she has killed quite a few innocent people under the Pharoah's orders, but she didn't enjoy it.
She felt she was doing her duty. Exactly what she did during her former sessions with the Pharoah.
"You.. Athreos, right?" Tatiana calls out, as I slowly exit her mind. She's not evil, I'm not going to change anything inside her mind.
Obviously, I copied all of the Magical knowledge she has stored away in her mind.
Nodding, I keep staring at the stone wall, and say, "Athreos Aetos, High Mage."
"Hmm.. turn around." She orders.
I do so, and see the woman sitting on the edge of her bathtub, her legs crossed over. She looked like the epitome of beauty, having just gotten out of the bath. Her hair and skin were still wet, with water droplets flowing down her skin.
I blink, and move my eyes away. I don't need a fight this soon in my time here, in the past.
Chuckling, Tatiana says, "Come here, and you may look." 'Zeus knows I have gotten used to being stared at.'
I look up at her, keeping my eyes on her face with some effort, and slowly walk towards the bathtub. I climb the two stairs that led to the open balcony+bathroom, and stop.
She asks, "What Magic do you know? You must know something, even if you don't have a wand."
I nod, having prepared for the question, and say, "I know some Elemental spells, High Mage. Most of the old Egyptian spells don't need a Focus to cast, and so, I learned some of them."
Tatiana scowls, some of her bias resurfacing, as she says, "Yes, I've read those same books a few years ago. But, I myself find them to be a bit hard to control without a.. staff. Let me teach you a simple spell, something I invented during my studies in the Library."
'He is untrained, and strong. If he can cast even a single Egyptian spell, then he has control on his side too. If the Pharoah finds out about him, then he will be hunted down, killed. He's too pretty to die this young.' she thinks, her loud thoughts clearly audible to me, making me internally frown.
She thinks I'm pretty? Too pretty? Damn, I'm flattered.
The reason for my frown, however, the Pharoah, being a muggle was afraid of Magic. The only Magical people he trusted, were the Royal Mages, and the few Magical Priests of the Egyptian Gods. And there weren't many of those, only about a dozen. Most of the Priests were actually muggles, who had gotten a blessing or two from their Gods.
He had killed a lot of trained Wizards in Alexandria, and so did his predecessors before him, afraid of being overthrown by stronger wizards. I'd already known about this from my history readings back home.
The Ptolemaic Kingdom was where Witch hunts actually began, although in a very low number, which the Roman church later got inspired by. Most of the History was actually lost, but some facts did make their way through the harsh times of War and burning libraries.
I bow, and say, "I will be extremely grateful, High Mage."
The woman nods, and walks towards me, still completely nude. She says, "This one spell doesn't need any focus, so even you can cast it. I haven't taught it to anyone outside the Royal Mages, so do be grateful I'm doing so."
I nod once again, not saying anything. Tatiana then holds her hand out, and says, "First, I will show you how the spell feels, so that you may understand how difficult it is. Hold my hand."
I look at her, and hesitantly ask, "My lady..?"
Rolling her eyes in annoyance, the woman holds my hand, forcefully pulling it towards herself. She then says, "You've already seen me naked, and you've taken more than a few peeks at my privates, Commoner. Now, take a deep breath, and don't panic."
And then.. she twists on her feet, taking me with her through a narrow tube. And then, we appear on the other side of the room. Having expected it, I force myself to stumble, as I drop down on the ground, dry heaving.
Holy crap! Apparition was invented now? In this era? What the fuck did other Wizards do then? Holy shit, I'm in the presence of the inventor of Apparition!
I look up, not needing to pretend to be astonished, amazed, awed, and ask, "What.. was that?"
The woman turns her head away, her cheeks a bit darker, as she folds her hands under her breasts.
Wow, she's cute. She doesn't care that she's nude in front of a literal stranger, but getting complemented on her accomplishments is what makes her blush?
She sounds hesitant, as she says, "I haven't officially named it yet, but we call it εμφανίζομαι and εξαφανίζομαι."
So Appearance and Disappearance? Works well enough.
Coughing a lot, to make it seem like I'm regaining my breath, I ask, "How do I learn? Wait.. why are you teaching me?"
I could take it from her mind, but I've already taken a lot from there. Besides, I want to see if she'll actually tell me.
Tatiana stares at me for a few seconds, and then says, "The Pharoah is a dangerous man. He might not be a Mage like you or I, but he has more power than both of us. If he finds out, that a Mage as inherently strong as you is in the city, he will become afraid. Afraid that you will plot with his enemies to overthrow him. And then, he will send us after you, to kill you."
Pausing, she holds her hand over my cheek, and says, "You have promise, Athreos. You have the capability to become a strong Mage of your own right, maybe even stronger than me, stronger than Priest Onuris. I do not want the fear of one man let such promise go to waste. This spell will help you escape, if you do get found out."
Well, this is nice. Tatiana does have morals!
It seems killing so many people, innocents, has changed something within her. I just hope she doesn't try anything foolish.
I nod, smiling in appreciation, as I hold my hand over her own hand on my cheek.
Tatiana immediately takes a step back, blushing a bit, as she says, "Right, the spell. Focus within yourself, focus on where you want to be, and then tell your Magic to take you there. Simple. Now you try."
Well, this is better than the three D's that Twycross taught us.
Turning my back towards Tatiana, I look at the door, and get a brilliant idea. I take a moment, pretending to focus on my "first" apparition, and squint my eyes at the door. Then, I whisper, "Take me next to the door, take me next to the door.."
All the while I can feel Tatiana's amusement, as she stares at me.
And then, I twist around my feet in an exaggerated motion, as I disappear from my position. I reappear with a loud crack, high up in the air, and comically widen my eyes, as I start falling down.
Tatiana sees me disappear from my position, and appear in the exact opposite direction of where I was saying I will go. She sees me appear above the still filled Bathtub, rose petals and all, and then with a splash, I fall in, sending water flying all around.
I raise my head up from the bathtub, now completely soaking wet, and see Tatiana with her hand on her mouth, suppressing her laughter.
As soon as I get up, causing water to drip from my clothes, Tatiana loses it, and starts laughing loudly. I put my hand on the back of my head, as I step out of the bathtub.
"Hahahahahah!" Tatiana keeps laughing, her laughter floating through the air like a sweet melody, causing me to smile.
She looks good when smiling, absolutely gorgeous.
Finally, a minute after, Tatiana looks up at me, still chuckling, and says, "I'm impressed, Athreos, you succeeded in your first attempt. Although.. your destination could use some practice." She once again chuckles, as she approaches me.
Well, at least my plan to cheer her up a bit, while at the same time becoming somewhat her friend worked.
Now just a foot away from me, Tatiana puts her hand on my head, and whispers, "Travíxte Neró." Which causes all the water in my clothes, as well as on my body, to get pulled towards her hand.
The water forms into an small orb, that Tatiana throws into the Bathtub, sending the water back to the source, and making me completely dry.
I smile at her, grateful, and Tatiana smiles back, looking up at me, as we unknowingly start closing the distance. We are just a few inches short of touching, and I raise my hands touching her on her cheeks.
Tatiana closes her eyes, and opens her mouth a tad bit, allowing me to lay a small kiss on her lips. Tatiana reciprocates, leading to the best 5 minutes of my life in Ptolemaic Egypt.
We just kissed, for five whole minutes, my hands on her cheeks, while her hands were on my hip.
Finally, when we separate, Tatiana smiles widely, and whispers, "You should leave now, before anyone gets suspicious."
I nod, kiss her lips once more, and say, "May we meet again, My Lady Tatiana?"
Tatiana licks her lips, slowly, sensuously, and says, "We shall see, Athreos. Now, leave."
I nod, and turn around, walking out the door. It was an impulsive kiss, for both of us. I never planned it, and she didn't either. She just wanted to give me a spell to escape, while I just wanted to make her smile for once.
But, as I remember the taste of her lips, the taste of rose petals from the water she had bathed it, I can definitely say that I don't regret it.
Damn it, I didn't want to make connections in the past, just in case I find a way back. But.. it seems I subconsciously do crave some physical contact.
Sigh, let's just go back to designing my House.
---
A few days later, Master Onuris approaches me as I'm reading about Egyptian Curses while munching on an apple, and says, "I will be leaving for the Temple of Osiris tonight. The High Priest has summoned me and all the other Priests for a summit."
I look up, my chewing stopping halfway, swallow the still solid apple, and ask, "What about the library?"
Master Onuris says, "The Library is secure enough, but I would appreciate it if you protect it when I'm gone. I know you're more capable than you like to show to anyone."
"Don't worry, I'm not stronger than you." I drily say, wondering is he too is afraid of me getting stronger.
Master Onuris snorts, and says, "I am five hundred years old, boy. If a 25 year old could become as strong as I, then I wouldn't have been alive this long."
Well.. damn. I didn't know he was this old.
I nod at him, a bit dumbfounded, and say, "Don't worry, Master Onuris. I'll protect the Library."
Nodding in satisfaction, Master Onuris starts walking out of the library, his staff tapping on the floor with each second step.
Huh, this is the first time I'm seeing him actually leave the Library. He even lives in a small apartment he carved for himself in the walls, magically expanding the walls to accommodate his every need.
Shaking my head, I return to reading about the curse of the Hom-Dai. A curse so bad, they never even used it. Flesh eating beetles? No thank you. I'll stick to killing my enemies myself.
---
A/N: No, Imhotep or the other characters from The Mummy won't make an appearance. It was just a silly little Easter egg.
Thank you for your support! Tata!