30.12.2014, Duat
Isis
I am going to regret this so much.
"Evil Day!"
Set appears in my office in a cloud of red smoke. Thunder booms in the distance. The theatrical effect he is going for might and work, if he's not wearing that ridiculous red disco suit.
I sigh. "Do I want to know what you were doing before I called you?"
"Why, celebrating your birthday, of course."
I raise an eyebrow.
Set grins and scrunches his nose, an annoying habit from when we were kids. His fangs make it seem morbid now. "Okay, that's a fib. But I could have been. Happy Birthday, my dear little sister! Now, can we get…" he waved a vague circle in the air. "whatever the fuck I'm here for asap? Khonsu is waiting for me with a bottle of tequila."
I smile. "Of course. Though I have the feeling you will want to help me."
He snorts. "Yeah, right."
"Set, help me find Nephthys."
It's so satisfying seeing the smugness leave his face.
31.12.2014
13:43 pm, Brooklyn
Carter
Ayanna is waiting for me at the entrance of Grand Ferry Park. She smiles and waves when she sees me. I wish Sadie had come with me, but we both didn't feel right leaving uncle alone with a baboon for a couple of hours. So the task of picking up my little cousin falls on me. Offf. She seems so happy, I really don't want to ruin her mood.
"Hey! Long time no see." Ayanna hugs me.
I smile. "Hi, shorty."
"I'm not that much shorter than you anymore!"
"Details."
Aside from the obvious 6 years deference, Ayanna hasn't changed much. An eleven years old ray of sunshine is the only way I can explain this girl. I don't think I've smiled soon. You know, I needed this. To get out of the mansion, get away from all the sorrow. Maybe things will start looking up again, once the house is fixed. If the world doesn't end before that, of course.
Ayanna grinned. "C'mon! Just eight minutes walking straight down the street and we can all catch up on the last six years together!"
I exhale. Here we go. "The thing is, there are some things I want to tell you before we go… home. We can sit on one of the benches in the park, if you want to."
"Like I said, it's an eight minute walk, Carter. Can't we talk on the way?"
"I'm afraid it's going to take me way longer to explain everything."
Ayanna
When I was little dad used to get upset at me for running up the stairs to the mansion.
"We are 30 feet in the air, Aya! What happens if you fall?"
What happens if I fall? My answer was always "You'll catch me."
Before I've even reached the doorway, Khufu blocks it.
"Agh!"
"Khufu, let me in!"
"Agh."
"I won't calm down! My dad-"
"Agh, agh."
The good keeper he is, Khufu doesn't back down.
"Hufy, please let me in! Please." I'm surprised at my own desperation.
Khufu sighs, shoots Carter a look that says 'Mention that nickname and I will gut you alive', then points to me. I know who I would like to gut alive. Too bad gods never really die. Carter nods and offers me a hand.
I roll my eyes and take it. "If it's gonna make you feel any better. I'm not five anymore, you know?"
Carter nods. "And we're not letting you face this alone, you know?"
"Agh!"
Khufu moves away from the entrance. A part of me wishes he hadn't. The house looks worse on the inside. The entire mansion is burned out. The walls are blackened. The ceiling is crumbling. The furniture is all gone, too, aside from a single sofa. And the fireplace, of course. It's hard to burn through stone. The ibis head of Thoth's statue stares at me from the floor. His hands have broken off. The tablet and stylus lay shattered on the ground. Are those Cheerios boxes in the fireplaces? In the clearest part of the living room, under an intact section of roof, have been set up mounds of pillows and sheets. Sadie's cat is sleeping on one of the pillows. What was its name? Cupcake?
And then there's dad. He's sitting on the bottom of the stairs, knees to his chest, and staring at the floor. I walk up to the stairs and sit next to him.
"Dad?" I whisper.
He looks at me. There is so much pain in his eyes. I breath out shakily. I want to say something, but I don't know what. And even if I did, I feel like my voice is going to break when I try to speak. In my head, I'm screaming. How do I help you! How do I make it all better! How do I make things right again! I want to hug him, burry myself in his chest till the world goes away. But a part of me is afraid he is going to fall apart if I do. "I'm sorry" is all that comes out before the lump in my throat fully closes it. His face turns back to the floor. It's been a very long day. I lay my head on his knee and close my eyes. I am vaguely aware of his hand resting on my hair before I drift away.
