Shades of Panic

Abby Ebon

(*aka: AbeoUmbra)

Disclaimer: 'Ello again darlings, as you've decided you approve, I shall continue. Just remember, I'm nobody famous, and if you send letters or e-mails to them about my work, you could get my ass in a very large frying pan under a bonfire- think Jack Sparrow barbeque – or you could get me published. Either way, it'll be a risk to fic updates and its best not to do it.

By the way ducklings, I'm an Ancient-Egypt nut, and most of the things here are true – according to "What Life Was Like: ON THE BANKS OF THE NILE. Egypt (3050-30 BC)"

-Universal Translator-

"Speaking Ancient Egyptian, Yet?"

"The Stuff That Is Known By All"

"Other Languages Harry Understands."

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In Which We Learn To Act Like A Egyptian

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"Seti…" Harry found himself echoing, the other man- the Pharaoh Seti, looked down at him in surprise. Harry – Harii, had spoken his name as one of Seti's people might. Nefertiri looked very pleased indeed, and her father chuckled at the smug look on his daughters face.

"You see, Father? He can speak correctly." Nefertiri insisted, and Harry blinked up at her- he understood her, yet every word echoed upon itself into warped English.

"We shall see, Daughter." Seti glanced at the door. Harry watched wide-eyed as a man, imposing, tall- and bald, entered the chambers. The others looked upon him with mild distaste; not for whom he was, the High Priest, but that his appearance was objectionable in their eyes- baldness in this land, was frowned upon.

"This is the man who saved you, Harii." Nefertiri whispered into his ear. The man, Imhotep, looked down upon him, and something inside Harry screamed that he should get away. Harry shoved it down- later he would have wished he'd obeyed it. Harry nodded very carefully to Imhotep, who looked him up and down, carefully, and something alike to approval and lust flickered in his dark gaze.

"Thank you." Harry found himself saying, Imhotep nodded acknowledgement. Harry wondered what they heard when he spoke- was it like when they spoke to him, he hoped he didn't echo and warp it.

"I trust you are well rested, Harii?" Imhotep softly to him, kohl lined eyes dark. Neither Nefertiri, nor Seti, seemed to think anything was wrong with the High Priest asking this. Nonetheless Harry nodded, otherwise silent, and frowning only slightly, Imhotep addressed him again.

"Where do you come from?" Seti questioned, clearly suspicious of a man who had wondered through the desert at night- only to collapse on the palace steps in the morning. Harry sighed; he knew this question would have came up- although he had hoped he wouldn't be asked it while resting prone and defenseless, in a chamber surrounded by the guards of an ancient ruler.

He should have known better.

"It doesn't matter, I am alone." Harry muttered, slightly bitter in this; Nefertiri looked down at him with sorrow in her eyes. Harry was just glad it wasn't pity; Seti looked down at him in surprise.

"You are an outcast?" Seti asked in disbelief – for one did not travel in the desert with no destination unless they were outcast or bandit. And despite Harry's clearly foreign appearance, he did not look like a bandit, thief, or outcast.

Harry laughed, and really – he couldn't help it. Ironic, he knew, to be the hero of his time, and thought an outcast in another. Nefertiri and Seti looked between each other, and then to Imhotep, who frowned down at the teenager. Seeing their looks, Imhotep shrugged.

"Perhaps some form of sun-sickness." The High-Priest attempted to enlighten them of the stranger's odd behavior. The odd behavior explained; they let the teenager finish in his laughter. Although, both Nefertiri and Imhotep thought something was off in the way he laughed- as if it pained him. They did not question him, although Nefertiri tilted her head down at him.

"Perhaps… it would be best if we announced his arrival during the duel tonight." Nefertiri said, Seti looked to his daughter and frowned slightly. The guards knew of all the royal family held within the palace, and to announce a stranger in the presence of so many, was to invite him to stay for far longer then some of the ambassadors from foreign lands were allowed.

"If you are sure Daughter?" Seti probed, and Nefertiri nodded, quite firm in her decision. Harry, it seemed, wound not get a choice in whatever either of them were planning. Which, honestly, was to be expected- rulers were not in the habit of considering strangers from no-lands equals.

"We should get him cleaned up, if, as your Daughter insists, he is to watch her duel with Anck-su-namun." Imhotep told them, Nefertiri nodded in agreement- yet still clearly wary of the High Priest. While Seti merely grinned, and clasped Imhotep on the shoulder.

"I trust you and your fellow priests shall do a fine job!" Imhotep nodded solemnly, and Seti motioned for Nefertiri to follow him out.

"Come Daughter, let us go greet my Future-Wife." Harry watched them leave, and their guards- until all that remained were Imhotep, and four of his priests.

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Harry had never been more uncomfortable and embarrassed in his life – a fact Imhotep still seemed to take great amusement in, standing beside Seti- and watching Anck-su-namun and Nefertiri duel in cat-masks.

I guess I know where the term 'cat-fight' came from… Harry was more then slightly amused by this.

Imhotep caught his eye, and Harry blushed- a fact most of these people took great amusement in. For, because Harry was so much paler then those around him – his blushes were the most noticeable.

Unwillingly, Harry remembered what had happened in the chamber after Seti and the others had left. Harry made a point of watching Anck-su-namun and Nefertiri finish their duel – all the while remembering.

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"Stand please." Imhotep had asked, although Harry knew it was more of an order. Imhotep gave him something to drink- his face expressionless. Harry, suspicious smelt it- it smelt of some herb.

"It will help with the sun-sickness." Imhotep told him, a mild rebuttal to Harry. Harry, swallowing down his suspicions- and drowning the voice inside his head that sounded like Mad-Eye Moody yelling at him for his stupidity, drunk the substance.

He felt the effects quite quickly, time seemed to blur and slow, nonetheless Imhotep's priests descended upon him. Striped him of his robe, his baggy clothes, and everything else underneath- and Harry tried to struggle, tried to yell- but couldn't. They had swiftly applied a skin cream- and Harry did not want to know what was in it.

He looked wide eyed at Imhotep – asking with his eyes what they were doing- why they were doing this to him. Then, taking out a thing that would have looked like a hatchet, if not for the curved handle, Imhotep stepped into Harry's personal space. Harry found he held his breath, and Imhotep – seeing his, smirked.

"Stay still." The amused High-Priest ordered. Then, much to Harry's shock, Imhotep started to use the 'razor' to shave off every little bit of hair Harry had. As Harry didn't want to end up with cuts- Harry stood stone still, in a drugged daze, the priests keeping him still where he would have struggled.

By the time Imhotep was through, or Harry thought he was- everything from underarms to his arms, chest, and legs – and a lot in-between had been shaved. Then Imhotep started to go down there, and Harry tensed, squeaking out a whimper, Imhotep noticed (how could he not?) and looked up at him with a raised eyebrow.

"Do you want lice?" Was the High-Priest's droll question, while Harry didn't in fact want lice, he did insist (by pointing his eyes in their direction) that one of the other priests do that. One of the other priests, who, Harry didn't think, wanted to screw him quite as badly as Imhotep did.

It was quite obvious (what with the firm touches, and deadly razor-blade caresses) that Imhotep was more interested in Harry then Harry thought he should be allowed to be. When they were quite finished (having also decided at last minute that his eyebrows and nose hairs needed a trim) with shaving his body (except his head-hair, Harry was relieved to know they left all of it) - they started on the makeup. Harry felt the effects of the drug slowly lifting, though he knew they weren't gone completely. He had no idea how much time had passed…

Harry found out later that they had some very good reasons for using the eye shadow-like stuff and skin cream. Apparently, the kohl protected their eyes from the sun. Although Harry didn't see the reason why his kohl had to be grey on the eyebrows and eyelid, and blue on the bottom – it made him look even more feminine.

The skin cream, he learned rather uncomfortably, was a mix of alligator fat and plant extracts- it was supposed to smooth and soften skin. It served to make Harry itchy…although to be fair, it was 'improved' with the pungent scents of some flowers and herbs – so that could have been a part of the reason it irritated his skin.

It was also supposed to hide body odor – Harry thought it worked rather well, if you didn't mind the slick cream that made holding anything a potential hazard. Though, that too may have been why Harry thought he heard one of the priests whisper that he had soft hands, and must be very important where he came from – because soft handed people didn't need to do work.

Harry was then dressed (finally) in white linen, which was more then slightly see-through, enough that he might as well have not been dressed at all. Harry didn't protest this though; because he reasoned that some fabric between his body and Imhotep's eyes was better then none at all.

He was then ornamented in a necklace of colorful jeweled stones, gold bracelets and armbands, and an ivory ring with a gold beetle atop of it. Imhotep explained that it showed Seti's – and the rest of the royal family's approval of him.

Then, as if to mock him, Imhotep put him in a wig of human hair, straitened, which fell to his shoulders. Then a cone of ox tallow scented with myrrh was placed atop that, and because Harry could now feel his lips and tongue- and his body was beginning to tingle uncomfortably, he made an effort to speak.

"Why?" Harry crocked out, Imhotep smirked at him. "It was perfectly harmless, Harii, I assure you, and the effects of the potion are short-lived. Tonight there is to be entertainment followed by a banquet. The cone will melt, and instead of getting into your hair – will go onto the wig, face, and clothes. You would not want to embarrass Seti or Nefertiri, now would you?"

Imhotep then looked him over, and gave him sandals, and then he and his priests led Harry to where Seti, Anck-su-namun, and Nefertiri awaited them with the others of the household. Harry was careful to sit as far from Imhotep as he could.

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(Possible Future Pairings aka The Stuff You Can Have A Vote On)

Ardeth Bey/ Harry (What? Ardeth is hot…erm, yummy…)

Rick /Harry (I'm a Rick/Evelyn fan, honest, still- 'tis a cute thought)

Harry/ Jonathon (Don't make me do it…please don't make me do it…)

Sirius Black/ Harry (Um…he shows up? –coughs-)

I'm really leaning on Ardeth Bey the Ma-jei…-whistles innocently-

(Ones You Really Don't Have A Choice On)

Imhotep/ Harry ('Tis pretty one-sided really, still might make them kiss for the hell of it- got to admit loves; he is hot as a man)

Death/Harry (That is unavoidable really, and you have no choice in that, 'sides the thought of Harry in love with Death is amusing…)

Harry is not bald! The Egyptians really did put hair wigs on top of their own hair. Probably as a covering for their own hair from the cone of ox tallow scented with myrrh, tangles were no fun to get out even some 3000 years ago.

How I count votes is that is if you mention a pairing you'd like to see, it will likely show up, in some why, in the fic – I really can't help myself when it comes to slash…yes, you can in fact have more then one vote – yet your vote will only count for one for each pairing you want to see. So no going '10,000 votes for such-and-such pairing' for I shall laugh…