Six |

The Stars Shine Brighter at Night

It was the middle of the night, when the man woke up to use the bathroom. Perhaps he shouldn't have drank so much water before going to bed. On his way back to his chambers, he overhears some sniffling. Is someone sick or crying? Is it Isis? Or Mahad? Quickly moving to each of their chamber doors, the man doesn't hear the noise coming from neither chambers.

Of course. They were still out late in some meeting with the Pharaoh.

But then, where was the noise coming from?

He curiously follows the whimpering to the center of the hallway, Anippe's chamber door, causing the man to freeze. Maybe he should get a servant for this? Unless by some miracle Isis was back now? But what if something was happening to her right now?

The Priest sighed as he looked both ways.

Not a single sign of life nowhere.

The cries of the small infant continued.

Finally, out of immense concern, he opens the door to check on the crowned princess. Blinking in the dark room, though there is a small night light near the bed, from the opened balcony.

The priest continues to stand in the doorway. What is he supposed to do? This is his first interaction with her, and he's not the ideal at comforting people, especially children. Why is she crying? The Priest's gaze lands on the moon, shining so brightly from the balcony.

"What?" he asks. It was as if Khons, the god of the moon, was telling the Priest to do a better job of comforting her. The Priest hesitates.

Is it too late for him to slip out and get a servant? Is the Pharaoh back yet?

The princess continued to weep and with a deep sigh the Priest approaches her nursery. He rests a comforting hand on Anippe's head. He isn't quite ready to hug her, so this will do, right?

He starts patting her head, gently.

"Hush now Anippe." the Priest said.

He did not sign up for this. Why is he constantly babysitting the princess when he's uncertain he even wants children of his own?

Hearing Anippe's crying get louder, the Priest lifts her up into his arms. He's held children before, though it's been years. It was before he arrived at the palace.

Holding her in his arms, the Priest takes notes on the infant. Anippe is small, so she's very light. Her small hands tightly wrap around his finger as she studies his face. The warmth radiating from her body helps put at ease the Priest as he gently rocks her back and forth. Still hearing her sniffle, despite her sobs slowing down, the Priest starts, "Happy Khons?"

Deciding to pace around the room, the Priest continues gently rocking Anippe while lost in his own thoughts.

She continues to look at him. "What are you staring at?" he snaps, a bit grumpy at the time of sleep he's losing. Anippe whimpers at his harsh tone.

Tears threaten to fall making the Priest panic. "No no no. Please don't cry. I was only joking. You can stare at me just please don't cry."

He hummed trying to make Anippe calm down.

"And Kisara wants to start a family." he thought to himself as Anippe calmed down and continued to stare at him.

Relaxing his attention on her aquamarine eyes, Seto thought to himself, could he really be a father? Anippe made soft noises, making Seto's body relax.

If this is what it took to calm down a baby, it wasn't bad, though he really doesn't want that responsibility. Nevertheless, if Kisara was alright into having to start their own family, Seto would be there for her. There's no doubt about that.

Anippe's movement began to slow, and her eyelids fought hard to stay open. She snuggled closer to Seto's body, smushing her face onto his chest. Seto sighed. "I admit I was wary when your father and mother told me they were expecting a child. I should say, I was wary of your mother's genes. I mean no offense, but truly, I did not think our world was ready for you just yet."

Walking outside of her chamber's balcony, Seto studied the night sky. Was it him or were the stars shining brighter tonight?

Anippe had fallen asleep, her tiny fist still around his finger. Smiling softly, Seto studied the sleeping princess in his arms. "But now I see that you are exactly what our world needed. You're everything and more."

Yes, perhaps this wasn't so bad.

He chuckled to himself when he nodded at the moon and returned inside the chambers.

"Thank you Khons." Seto thought.

He didn't know how long he had been pacing around the princess's chambers.

The man had been so deep in thought that he didn't notice someone approach the doorway until they spoke.

"Seto?"

Looking from Anippe to the doorway, Seto scowls lightly at his cousin. "She was crying."

Atem had just returned from a late conference and seeing Anippe's chamber doors open, he decided to check in on her. He didn't expect to see Seto walking around and rocking Anippe in his arms.

It warms Atem's heart and brings a knowing smile to his face.

Though his cousin was certainly not the most affectionate person, he was constantly stepping up to help people. His helpful nature will never change, and that will lead to him overcoming a lot of the limitations he places on himself, like being involved with children.

Carefully taking his daughter from Seto's arms, Atem gently places her back on her nursery and tucks her in.

"Still don't want to have children of your own?" Atem softly teases. Seto glares at his cousin.

"I'm going back to sleep." Seto snaps back, avoiding his cousin's question.

Chuckling, Atem pats Seto's back. "Goodnight, Seto."

Atem didn't need an answer.

Author's Note:

Hi there. The reason why I posted next week's chapter earlier is because I have final exams. University is no joke and I'm exhausted to the core. Thank you and I'll see you all next Saturday!