Author's Notes; Semi-mythological Egyptian AU. Plot. Backstory. Some Shounen Ai. R18. (Nudity until the end, showing and sniffing junks). Ok, I squeezed in a smidge of R18 here, but I doubt there will be room for so much more..My ideas for this fic aren't really allowing it at present point..Perhaps in a later chapter..For now, please enjoy..

X found the spot next to him empty the next morning. As he looked around, he spied Zero's loincloth before finding Zero in the waters of the oasis. X was puzzled. "I thought demons didn't like water, being creatures of fire and heat." Zero's eyes rolled as he looked to X. "Abandon your misconceptions and come into the water. If you reside here with me, then I will enlighten you about demons in the time I have left." X hesitated, looking at the water. Zero began to coax him. "It is not too warm nor too cold. If you must keep the loincloth on, it is fine. I made sure to temper it to water." X slowly came into the water, swimming further out towards Zero. "I still have much to ask you." Zero grinned a little, which let two long fangs peek from his upper lip a little. "You will receive many answers. Alas, you owe me a background story."

X sighed deeply. "I've been orphaned. My parents were killed. My mother was a modest produce vendor in Cairo. My father was a brilliant scientist. Some thugs decided they didn't like us and wanted to take everything we had. Mother's stand was looted before she was slain. The home I once knew was looted too and my father killed by the same crooks. Then, they made an attempt for me. I was able to slip away, but not without giving up the little I had. My father had supported the family. I had no other relatives nearby so I only wished to flee far from the thugs. The desert and its ancient monuments seemed the most ideal, though I had no idea I would find others out here." Zero's eyes closed. "Your kind have always been enigmatic to me. You do not sound like you were wealthy. You sound like a commoner. Surely, those thugs might have been desparate to come after you." X nodded gently. "I think so too. We weren't that wealthy, middle class just barely." Zero's eyes opened, looking at X. "You have my pity. And my sympathies. I shall keep you company if you intend to stay, for as long as I can. You are welcome to come with me on my patrols if you remain here." X looked at Zero. "I do want to stay here. But, why and how are you so sure your death is near?" Zero grinned again. "My exact age is 3400. 3500 is about how long a demon with a defective immortality gene can live, though to us, it is close to middle age. I may be ancient to humans, but to demons, I will die young. Though, one thing I can say is that not many demons see even a single millenium for themselves. I have been lucky enough to see almost 3 and a half millenia go by." X smiled a little. "Then, if you're right about a nearby death, you at least have to thank my ancestors. The way I see it, they've kept you safe. If you're truly 3400 years old, you've seen literally almost all of Egypt's history. You've a living record of Egypt's history. That's something nobody on this earth can attest to." Zero pondered. "Kept me safe? I suppose they have...I have not seen it in that light before..If I am right though, would you mourn?" X sighed. "If you truly were as humans see demons, tricky, malevolent, satisfying their own needs, then likely not. However, you've shown so far, you're far from that..The day of your death will be painful for me, I admit." X found himself embracing the demon, hugging him tightly. "If you are to be judged by the deities of old, I hope they're kind to you..You've done nothing wrong..You only came here to escape, but you did as you were told up here..I don't think you deserve any harsh judgment, Zero." Zero nodded. "I would so enjoy thinking such as well...though deities do not always use logic in their judgments. Alas, we can only hope."

Zero swam to the opposite corner of the oasis, sitting on a rock in the water. X was able to find a slightly smaller rock beside him, sitting down. "What kind of demon are you?" Zero looked at X. "I am a desert incubus. Are you familiar with incubi?" X nodded a little. "I've heard about them. Male demons that seduce women in their sleep." Zero nodded back. "That is correct. Though, I have never once done so." X looked at Zero. "Were there many women you found attractive?" Zero chuckled. "Do not understand me incorrectly. There were many beautiful women in the communities of old. Though, because of my duties, I never was presented with a chance at anyone." X tilted his head. "Would you have gone after someone, if given the chance?" Zero shrugged. "I am uncertain. I must admit, I have an...odd taste in partners. There are some physical traits I like, alas I am more interested in personality. If I could have a partner, I want to be deep. Someone that connects with me on an emotional level, mayhap even spiritual. It would not have to be strictly female. I am open to the idea of courting another male." X only grew more curious. "Were there same sex couples in ancient times?" Zero smirked. "Absolutely. I saw many couples of, as you say, gay men in ancient times. I found them to be rather inspiring, personally. It gave me the standpoint that I have now on the matter." X chuckled a little. "Would you seduce a male if you had a chance? Would you look for another after you're done with him?" Zero smirked more. "I would seduce a male. However, the latter would depend on how much we connect. Unlike most incubi, I am not much of an advocate for...giving myself to someone I ultimately do not find myself compatible with. I want a lasting union. Permanent, as it were." X leaned closer. "Your ideals for a companion sound much like mine. You are rather beautiful, though I want to see your personality too." Zero leaned towards X. "You would seriously consider courting a demon? Much less, an incubus? Back in ancient times, such a thing would be viewed as desparate." X grinned. "In modern times, it still would be. There is a saying though, 'Its what's inside that counts.' Be yourself. I know you're a guard so you must be firm and ready to fight, but I want to know what else is there." Zero chuckled. "Incubi and succubi bodies are purposefully meant to be alluring. It is how we attract our prey." X tilted his head again. "Would you prey on someone you truly love?" Zero grinned and shook his head. "There would be no logic in it in my eyes when we are among a bounty of nature, even in a place as unforgiving as a desert." X smiled. "One more thing, if you're tempered to heat and fire, why aren't you harmed by water?" Zero smirked. "It did burn at first, even trying to get a drink. Over the years, I have slowly made peace with my natural enemy. It is no longer my enemy. It does not burn anymore. In the short time I lived in the Underworld, I must have brought impurities with me that made me sensitive to water. Surely, they are gone now. Water calms me, gives me time for thought, and helps me forget about the wounds on my back." X had to admire Zero's tenacity. "Would you be invulnerable to fire or lava, even with your more recent adjustment to water?" Zero smirked. "One could throw a lit torch or lava at me and I would be unscathed, alas annoyed. Some graverobbers have actually threatened me with fire before. Their faces when they realized that it failed and that I was not human were priceless. Let us just say things did not end very well for them."

X felt more content and secure around Zero, hearing his explanations and tales from old times. Zero sensed this, though he didn't mind at all. "Any tales you would be interested in sharing with me?" X felt embarrassed now. "I'm but a child. Compared to you, I feel depraved of experiences like you've had. My life was rather humble. Just a low class kid, struggling in the streets of Cairo. I was never popular or anything. Though now, I have nothing." Zero nudged X a little. "It may not be much help, I am aware, but you can perhaps pull yourself together while you are here. Then, you can return and make a better life for yourself." X nodded. "Suppose I don't want to leave. Suppose I prefer it out here away from others." Zero smirked. "Then, you would become a desert hermit, as I am. Alas, you would not be burdened with my duties here and at the other ancient structures." X looked at Zero. "Suppose you're wrong about being close to death. Would you support my decision to stay here with you?" Zero nodded. "I would. And if I mayhap am wrong, then you would prove useful to me. You could help me with guarding the pyramids and the sphinx. I would give you a tour first, of course." X pouted a little. "Is that all I would be good for to you?" Zero gave X a smirk. "You want something more? If I am wrong, I could see myself falling in love with you, given enough time. You are a rather cute human." X blushed a little, hiding his face. The redhead chuckled. "You may be far younger than me, alas age is a mere number. None would suspect me to be as old as I am." X nodded. "You do look like a human teenager..." Zero nodded back. "Precisely. Few are around to judge as well. Though such judgments matter not in the end."

X rubbed against Zero's still wet upper body. "If I might ask, what physical traits do you find attractive?" Zero smirked. "I like hair on the body..and a rather feminine build, akin to yours. I like expressive eyes as well." X blushed brightly, knowing he had all of those things. Zero licked X's cheek with a grin. "So far, I think I like your personality. Humble, modest, curious. Very cute." X blushed more. "Thank you."

Zero slowly stood up and got out of the waters of the oasis. X couldn't help but notice Zero had a hard on. Zero's length and testes were pitch black, like the rest of his marks. X started to say something, but couldn't finish. "Umm.." Zero looked back at him. "Hmm? Oh. Do not worry. That happens every time I bathe and relax in the water." X nodded, slowly getting up. He tried not to pay any attention to the fact that he had gotten hard from both the water and Zero's black hardness. Zero smirked, noticing X's bulge in his loincloth as they sat on dry land to let the sun dry them a little. "You have one as well, I see." X blushed, covering his bulge. Zero giggled. "So shy. You were able to see mine. Let me see yours." X shyly moved his loincloth, showing Zero a hard but small length with a lot of foreskin covering its head. Zero giggled. "Very cute, alas you still have growing to do." X nodded shyly. "Do you have foreskin too?" Zero nodded, gently tugging his own long black foreskin. "None in the Underworld are circumcised." X blushed more. "This...might be a strange request. May I smell you? I want to know your scent." Zero nodded. "I want to know yours as well. I will allow it." X leaned his head to Zero's length, smelling his shaft and then his tip and foreskin. "You smell good. Like lavender." Zero blushed, taking his turn. "You smell like a sea breeze. You were closer to the sea once, so that is fair." X snuggled Zero's shaft a little. "Its almost like your hardness is a sprig of lavender. Its so comforting and relaxing." Zero chuckled. "I am pleased that I provide you with a sense of comfort."

Both sat up. X blushed more at Zero. Zero grinned before he stood up and shook off any lingering water, wringing his hair out. X enjoyed the sight before Zero put his loincloth back on. The brunette wrung out his own loincloth and shook off any lingering water. Zero chuckled, seeing X imitate him a little. X came closer to Zero, watching him tie his hair back into the thick ponytail it was in before. "So, where does your patrol start?" Zero pointed to the three nearby pyramids, Steppe, Bent, and Red. "These three are first. Then the Giza Pyramids and Sphinx. Then the temple of Hatshepsut. Then the Valley of the Kings. Then we repeat. I will take you around a few times so you know where everything is."