Erm… don't kill me? I'm aware that this is a slightly sporadic update, and want to warn you that it'll probably stay that way. I started writing this chapter about two days after I posted the first one, and completed it… well, ten minutes ago. Which is pretty bad. Sadly, I have a life, and it's not one that makes sense when I think about it.

I just want to apologise for the really bad nature of this update. I received a review and a favourite message today in my email, and I felt like I should thank the people (all of the people) who have actually read this. Sadly, I haven't had a chance to read it over, and I don't have a beta reader. If there are any errors, please just tell me! I'll happily go back and change them!

DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN. GOT IT?

Apollo rolled over. Something… Something was bugging him. The girl from Pride Week. He hadn't slept in weeks because of her, but something told him it wasn't because he wanted her anymore. Something about him… It was more curious than head over heals.

I will find her tomorrow, he promised himself, pulling himself off of the side of the bed. He might as well get up now, even if he had only slept about four hours. It was more than he had the last night, and even more than the night before that; at least there was little progress in his insomniac demeanour.

Outside was oddly warm, especially seen as the sun had yet to rise. He should know – he was the one who was meant to be pulling it. Running a hand through his hair, he became more and more aware of the fact he could very easily slip his consciousness and go back to bed. It wasn't often he slept, being a main god and all, but he would have been happy for the peace. It was his only practical break from the constant impatient search for answers. He finally understood how unclaimed demigods must feel every waking moment of their lives, and a rush of thanks swelled in his chest. The feeling of a never-ending wait was devastating; he'd never wish it on his worst enemy, never mind a helpless child.

If he didn't figure all of this out soon, he was going to drive himself insane.

"Oh, great," he muttered, standing to pull on a t-shirt. "Dionysus was right."

If she ever had to admit she hated anything, it would be the wisdom god's interest in the younger magicians. Thoth had been there, what, two days? And she already wanted rid of him. She was more than aware that others suffered from his endless curiosity, but that didn't provide much comfort. Ever since the magicians of Brooklyn House – all Blood of the Pharaohs in their own right – had been introduced to the gods at the end of the war, the ibis god had chosen to take one or two for a few days and spend some time getting to know their abilities and have them help on his experiments. It wouldn't have been too bad, except he'd taken a strong liking to the blonde haired girl, and now seemed to be rather insistent that she help him with most of his experiments.

"Now, Noemi, I hope you aren't finding those papers to be too much trouble," she heard Thoth laugh as he poured over the instructions in front of him. In his hand was a vial containing a few blobs of potassium. Normally, the British girl wouldn't have minded helping with deadly chemicals, but she could practically see this ending in disaster.

"No, of course not," she shook her head, turning back to the papers scattered around her desk. They had been up almost seven hours, however, and her head was pounding. One glance at the reports from First Nome and the words began to double over. "Erm… actually…"

Before she could finish her sentence, there was a loud POP!

Yep, she completely saw that coming.

"Ah," was all Noemi heard from the god before she burst out laughing. Exhaustion didn't do her well, and manic behaviour was too be expected.

"I told you, didn't I!" she managed say between giggles, noting the shocked look on the face of the supposed wisdom god. "The only reason I've never done the reaction is because it causes the container to explode!"

Thoth frowned, brows furrowed in annoyance. "Now, I would hardly call that 'exploding', Noemi -" if it wasn't for the fact his hands were full of pieces of glass, she was sure he would have placed air-quotes in all of the necessary places, as well as using the tone of voice she and some of the others had named 'don't-be-such-an-idiot-child' "- after all, there was very little shrapnel for an explosion, trust me. 'Rupture' would probably suit it better. Trust me!" he added with a slight edge of annoyance. The blonde girl decided it would probably be best to keep her mouth shut.

There was a slightly clatter, as Thoth moved to place what he could pick up of the glass beaker into the bin. The rest were small, unnecessary dangers that would probably only end in the magician cutting her hand open. He obviously didn't see that as a problem.

"Why don't you just use hi-nehm?"

"Because that would involve using unnecessary amounts of magic on something that is passed its time and done its job," the scruffy looking god noted, placing a piercing gaze on Noemi, which made her look away quickly. He did this sometimes. She wasn't sure what it was, but it was almost as though he was examining her soul. It wouldn't surprise her if he was. After all, there was an underlying evil to the god, even if he wouldn't show it, and a second meaning to his fascination with the surviving Blood of the Pharaohs.

Shuffling slightly to help wipe up whatever it was he had dropped, she muttered in a quiet voice "still no luck finding Ma'at, then?"

"No, none."

End of story. Nothing more. Always the same. He was just so stubborn, and it made her heart flutter with annoyance. Surely as wisdom god he couldn't be that closed minded. "But there has to be some kind of lead on why Ra hasn't brought her back!"

"Be quiet Noemi."

Oh no. That's not going to work.

"I don't think-"

"I'm warning you…"

"But-"

"I said be QUIET!"

She flinched. Thoth, while being the completely nuts, more than likely to start yelling kind of god, was the nicest one she'd ever met, excluding Anubis, who has someone been wrangled into the schemes of the wisdom god (and who, she had to admit, was only nice because he was so polite, and even that was out of duty). But here he was, looking ready to burn her alive, all because she had such hope in the idea of finding his wi… consort. Yep, his consort. Not his wife. Nope.

"I'm sorry…"

He sighed, pushing her away from clearing up. "Go and fetch that book of yours. Sit and read for a while. Just be quiet."

Raising slowly, she turned back to the place her bag had been dumped. Sitting in the top was the mythology book she'd owned ever since she'd found the recording. The only problem was, it didn't seem to have much in the ways of Egyptian mythology. It was mostly Roman and Greek. Still interesting, though. Now, where was that page on Niobe…

The story was a thrilling one. Apollo and Artemis willing to run off and kill the children of a queen to defend the honour of Lady Leto. It was the classic fairy tale with a twist of blood, guts and gore, ending in the tragic creation of a river from the tears of a mourning mother trapped in the rocks by the gods.

And, really, what more could you want?

Except… well, you know, reading about other gods when you recently found out that a whole bunch of mythologies exists in the modern world. It's was a little bit freaky, if Noemi was honest with herself. Which, most of the time, she wasn't.

"There's so little chance of survival when under the attack of a Greek god…" she muttered to herself, flicking a few pages back to find the name Perseus. "And so little chance of escape when one takes an opinion of you…" That had to be one of her favourite things about it being the Egyptian pantheon that was real. They refused to have children with mortals. They were people – Pharaohs, mostly – who called themselves a son of a certain god, but it would never be true.

There was a clatter from the other room as Noemi skimmed the third column of writing on the Greek hero. "Thoth?" she asked, not looking up from the words.

"Yes, child?"

"Are you alright?"

There was an odd sound, and the magician couldn't tell whether it was a laugh or a huff of annoyance. Other than that, however, she received no response. "I'll take that as a yes, shall I?"

Footsteps cut through her thoughts, just as she began to turn the page. She didn't need to look up to know that she was once again in the presence of the wisdom god. "It's time for you to be heading back to Brooklyn, I believe," he pointed out, not looking too impressed by the way she was acting.

Closing the book, Noemi kept her pointer finger between the correct pages, squeezing it shut with the rest of her hand. "I'm not going back to Brooklyn…" she said slowly, wondering why it was expected of her to do so. She did not live there, and only visited when she needed to check up on her friends who lived in the twenty-first nome. "I think I might go back to London for a bit; explore the capital before I head home…"

Instead of reacting in any way she expected, Thoth gave her a pointed look. "You cannot go back to England, Noemi. You know this."

The blonde rolled her eyes. "I don't care what the House says, Thoth. You know that."

"You have been stationed in Brooklyn-"

"But my home is England! They just don't get the feeling of displacement," she huffed, not enjoying the turn the conversation was taking. Did the idiot bird really want a conversation about politics?

In the middle of preparing her next argument, however, the wisdom god nodded. "Do as you wish. Just don't involve me in the decision."

With that he muttered something in Egyptian, and Noemi hit the concrete outside. Hard.

She blinked twice, glancing around. What the hell had Thoth put her out on the streets of Memphis? Was what she was doing really that bad? Well, yes, according to the current state of the House. But that was irrelevant.

"Well…" she began, standing up and stretching her legs, a stray hand brushing away the dirt, "at least now I get a vacation…"