Hello everyone!
The idea of this story came to me after finishing Assassin's Creed Origins: Desert Oath. I felt like there hadn't been a proper reunion between Bayek and Aya, and that a beautiful piece of story had been cut out... so I tried to write it myself.
I hope you enjoy!
Even though Bion was now dead, too many things were left hanging, too many matters still to be solved. What of my father's body, laying so far away, unfit for the afterlife? What of this Raia, supposedly still after the Medjay bloodline? And how about explaining to the village the need to kill this man?
My head spun, fatigue adding to my discomfort.
"Bayek" a familiar voice that hadn't graced my ears in a long time, accompanied by a soft peck on the shoulders, brought me back to reality.
"Mother!" I breathed out, taking her in a passionate embrace while hiding my face in her shoulders to conceal tears of relief.
"It has been too long... I was so worried..." my voice got stuck in my throat, words unable to describe the mess going on inside me.
She pulled back to take a look at my face with tears shimmering in her eyes. Her features had undergone an impressive transformation because of age and probably worry; whether once her lips were always stretched into a smile, now they were tightened in a line, and so were new wrinkles on her forehead. The biggest change, though, had surely been in her gaze, now pensive and drenched in a painful sadness.
"Father... he is dead" I whispered, as if words could help me digest such a tragic occurrence.
"I know... I think I've known that I would never see him again ever since he left, more than ten years ago... and I was afraid I would never see you either, Bayek. I got so angry at Rabiah the day you left" she chuckled, but her gaze was still sad.
"I am sorry. He missed you and was looking forward our comeback. As a matter of fact..." a lump in the throat didn't allow me to finish the sentence, and I just stood there, a sudden feeling of fatigue looming over me. Then a soft hand on my arm, and once more Aya's discrete presence silently supported me though my dark moment, easing the headache and exhaustion.
"But not all is lost" mother said after a little while, and this time her smile didn't look so strained as she took a step to rest a hand on Aya's shoulder, "your comeback has been a blessing in multiple ways, has it not? Is it true what Bion said, child?"
"Yes, it is true" her eyes met mine, and I saw tenderness and pride alongside a sparkle of worry.
"This is such wonderful news!" I exclaimed, and for the first time since the day of the attack on the camp, I let out a laugh. Of course, there were still many point to be settled, and we would have to talk though and untangle the mess we had created, but for now... for now, it was time to bury ghosts and let us rest, at least until our wounds healed.
The first thing I saw the following morning upon awakening was Aya's slender figure pouring water in two basins.
"You should get ready, half of Siwa is shuddering to see you, hear all about your adventures"
I sat up, groaning. "I have already been united with Hepzefa yesterday... he helped me bury Bion outside the city walls. You were sleeping when I came back"
"I would have helped you"
"You need to rest"
She looked away, distress clear on her face. "We need to talk"
"Of course" I got to my feet and slowly walked to the basin. I nervously stuck a finger in the water to test the temperature, unsure were this conversation would lead.
"I don't want to live like your mother did, stepping aside and remain at home waiting for you. This child... it won't bind me to that life, Bayek"
"Sure it won't"
"One day, when... our child is fully grown and independent, I will eventually go back to Alexandria and study in the Great Library"
I turned to take a look at her, my arms and chest still dripping with cool water. "Does it mean...?"
"It means that yes, I am accepting your proposal" I leaped forward, arms outstretched towards her, but she raised a hand just before I could close her into an embrace: "I want you to know this, Bayek: during these months we have been apart, I have discovered that your absence brought me nothing but misery, and that even though Alexandria is my dream... it could never be complete without you"
I grinned, a relieved sigh escaping my lips in delight. "I was afraid that you were marrying me because you felt trapped..."
"It is not a trap, and I want to raise our child" delicately, she took my hand and placed it on her tummy. Beneath the linen cloth, my fingers sensed a clear swelling that hadn't been there before. "I won't behave like my parents did"
"You will be a good mother"
"So I hope" she smiled, raising on her toes to kiss my cheek and then my lips. It was a passionate kiss, heavy with our relief and joy, deeper than any other we had exchanged during almost fifteen years of our love.
"I am so happy, Aya... so, so happy..."