Written after re-watching the end of the series. I thought might be fun if Atem had somebody else waiting for him, too. The woman who followed him across the sands of time.
Pharaoh, she too has been waiting for you.
Sun bore down from the cloudless sky, dancing off elaborate walls that were decorated with colorful flowers and reeds. As he moved towards the south garden, the waves of nostalgia in his heart brought a hand to his chest. He was back. It had been years since he'd seen her, but deep within the back of his mind, he could re-call that her skin had smelt of fresh lotus, a gift from the Nile river. Her silhouette was close, stretching across the floor. She had her back to him, and Atem took a moment to watch her brush strands of her hair behind her ear.
A garden like this was where he'd first laid his eyes on her, back when they were kids. She was kneeling by a patch of lilies, and since that day, Atem had always enjoyed gardens. They were private corners, a getaway from the hectic schedules of palace life, perfect for nature and romantic encounters. He found it fitting, that he should meet her like this, again.
"I've been expecting you."
Alerted, and shaking himself out of his thoughts, Atem is now in the shadow of her sharp blue eyes, outlined in kohl. It's then that he gets a proper look at her. From her linen gown, to her golden headdress that spoke in shadows and small rays of the sun. When she moves, so does her dress, pulling herself away from the pond she'd been gazing into, and he could see the linen ride up, exposing the length of her legs. It was as if he had been standing in front of Anzu once again, but this wasn't Anzu. This was a portion of her memory that had been wiped away, only sparked by the longing, happiness and agony that she had felt throughout her journey with Atem.
She knows what he's thinking already, and she smiles, moving towards him, carrying the scent of the afternoon myrrh that was burning from a nearby temple.
"It was hard, wasn't it?"
"Ana—"
"It's all right, Atem. I've been watching over you and everyone else the entire time." Her hands caress the sides of his face. She stands a few inches taller than him, and he could feel his heart inside of his chest tremble, just a little. Her hands were soft, a comfort to him to help with the dying chaos of his heart. "They'll be all right. Even her. A piece of me is inside of her, and a piece of you will always be inside of him. They'll write their own story—"
"—So we could finally have our own." Atem finishes.
He was right. They never did get to write their own story together. Not since that day that Atem tucked a lily behind her ear ("It suits you, always") and sent her underground. The kingdom had been destroyed alongside her. The dark nights of smoke, fire and war—replaced by a second coming of sunshine.
Years later, in present day Japan, Mazaki Anzu meets Mutou Yuugi for the first time in six months after being abroad in New York City. Yuugi is holding a single white lily, leaning up to tuck it behind Anzu's ear.
"It suits you, always." Anzu can't help but wonder if she's heard that same phrase before.