Back at the Medjai village
"I have some things to tell you," Aeon told Nadia.
It was months later and Aeon and Nadia were still seeing each other. Nadia had just admitted that she'd fallen in love with the gentle healer, who had been very patient with her and helped her get over her grief at Azim's death, enough anyway, that she didn't feel guilty for loving Aeon. He had taken the time to truly get to know her, as they'd had a lot of long talks about their lives. He hadn't treated her as an object like so many men tended to do, even in this advanced time. That especially included Medjai men.
Aeon was keeping secrets from her however, but she hadn't asked, as she figured it was none of her business and that he would reveal what he was holding back in due time. It looked like now was that time.
"I knew you were keeping secrets from me as you and my father have exchanged a lot of strange looks and I couldn't decipher for one thing," Nadia said. "It was as if you shared a secret that I'm not allowed to know for whatever the reason that is. Also, father allowed you to take me into Cairo, even though technically, he doesn't have any say in what I do. Still he didn't even argue about it, which tells me he trusts you to look after me. Sure, Malik went with us, but that was more for protection then for him to spy on us and report back to father about what we were doing."
"Your father does know my secret, Nadia and it's one reason he trusts me completely, and comes to me when he really needs my help," Aeon said.
"So you finally going to tell me what you've been keeping from me?" Nadia inquired.
"I'm surprised you haven't asked," Aeon said, as he studied his mate.
"It wasn't my place to try to find out your personal business," Nadia said, and Aeon nodded as that was the answer he had expected. The Medjai didn't usually ask for someone to reveal their secrets if they believed that they were harmless and not a danger to the tribe, but still, it had likely been hard for Nadia not to ask. Despite how she had been raised curiosity was often the bane of a human's existence, and it was hard to not give into that urge to indulge in it for most people. "That my father trusted you, and also knew your secret reassured me that you didn't mean me, or anyone in the Medjai harm."
"Well, you're going to learn my secret now, just soon as we get back to your father's home, as I need his help revealing it."
"What kind of secret do you need help to tell?" Nadia wondered curiosity in her tone.
"It's not a matter of needing help. It's a matter of having complete privacy. No one who didn't belong there would dare invade your father's privacy, and if they needed him, they would knock on the door and not enter without invitation," Aeon answered, refusing to say anymore, as the two of them walked towards Nasir's home.
"So the rest of the tribe doesn't know your secret," Nadia said, and Aeon shook his head.
"Some Medjai might suspect what my secret is, but don't know for a fact what it is. It isn't the kind of secret that you tell to just anyone," Aeon said.
"So why tell me then?" Nadia inquired. "I won't say I'm not curious, because of course I am, very much so, but still, why tell me?"
"I would think that would be obvious Nadia," Aeon told her giving the hand he was holding a gentle squeeze. "You did just tell me that you had fallen in love with me and you knew what my goal was from the beginning. It's not the type of secret you can keep from your spouse."
"I never believed I could fall in love again," Nadia admitted softly, as they reached her father's house. "I suppose you proved me wrong about that. I never thought I could love anyone again after Azim was murdered. You even helped me get over my feelings of guilt for falling in love with another man, even though I knew Azim would want me to get married again and have children with someone else if that's what I wanted."
"I'm only glad that you could let yourself love again after you lost your husband, as that's the most important thing here. You shouldn't have felt guilty about having feelings for me, but I know that feelings aren't always logical and humans often feel guilty for things that they shouldn't," Aeon said. "I've met plenty of people over the years that lost their significant other, and never allowed themselves to love again. Sometimes that's out of a misplaced sense of loyalty to their dead spouse and other times it's because they loved their spouse so deeply that they feel disloyal if they allow themselves to love again. Also, sometimes they feel as if they can't stand to have their heart broken again if anything happens to their spouse."
Aeon gave a perfunctory knock on the door of Nasir's home before entering. It was more to warn him that he had company than anything else.
"Welcome," Nasir greeted his daughter and Aeon. His tone was grave and serious.
"It's time," Aeon told Nasir said giving him a significant look.
"Ah, I suspected this was coming for sometime," Nasir said calmly.
"I'll get the snacks," Aeon offered, and Nasir nodded. "Is mint tea good or do you want something else?"
"Mint tea is good with me," Nadia said and Nasir nodded.
Aeon headed for the kitchen and put the already prepared snacks, cookies, and little cakes on a large plate. He also got a pitcher of mint tea and poured three glasses. He then found a tray and carried everything into what was basically the living room where they would be having the discussion.
Aeon passed out the glasses of mint tea, and then offered father and daughter a snack from the plate he had prepared before he sat down himself.
"What I'm about to tell you, you will not to talk about except to me or your father," Aeon told Nadia seriously.
"It must be some secret," Nadia said, "if you want me to promise not to talk about it at all."
"It is, as you could put the whole tribe in danger if this information was to get out," Nasir told his daughter gravely.
"And also my family," Aeon added. "While this information might not ever get back to the states where they're living, I also know that it's very possible, especially with modern technology being what it is. Besides, people love to gossip, and you never know what kind of connections they have and some of those might be in other countries."
"Alright then, I won't say anything at all unless you tell me I can," Nadia promised, and Nasir nodded, and Aeon saying silently that his daughter was a woman of her word.
"You know about my magic already, but most people outside my family do not," Aeon began. "It is mostly only the Medjai that know this secret but that doesn't mean others don't know or at least have heard rumors. You see, there is something else that is unique to me and my family and that is we are immortal."
"Immortal?" Nadia asked with a question mark practically floating in her eyes.
"It's what we call ourselves because we live basically forever unless we are killed in a specific way," Aeon explained. "What that basically means is we don't age from the time we reach 30, we heal really fast from any physical injuries, and we never get ill with any kind of sickness, which is why I knew I would not get the desert sickness from helping Amira. Your father knew this, which is one reason he called on me."
"This is a secret that every chieftain of the Medjai has known ever since your so many times great-grandfather," Nasir explained. "The Bays swore never to reveal this information, except to the next chief, as it could put Aeon in danger."
"So Salman..." Nadia began to ask.
"No, your oldest brother does not know, and while he will likely be the next chief, it might be my oldest grandson. If I am not around to tell him the secret that generations of chiefs have been keeping, well, you know it now and Aeon can back you up if necessary," Nasir interrupted.
"I can demonstrate if necessary," Aeon added.
"How do you demonstrate something like that?" Nadia wondered, believing what she was being told, as her father wasn't one for practical jokes, and he would never go along with Aeon if he was trying to pull her leg.
"It's fairly simple actually," Aeon explained calmly. "I always carry a knife on me, which is really a necessary out here in the desert, so all I have to do is use it to cut myself somewhere non-vital, the hand or the arm. It will, of course, heal within a few seconds, which, for normal humans, would be impossible, especially out here in the desert, where things are still fairly primitive. If I got some sort of injury that bled, unlike most people, I wouldn't have to fear the wound going septic like it does in the heat if it's not seen to within a certain amount of time and I can't get any type of infection either like gangrene where a doctor would have to possibly take a limb in order to save the rest of body from getting it."
"I've never had such a demonstration, because it is a secret that has been passed down in my family for multiple generations," Nasir said, even as he took a sip of his mint tea.
"Alright, if that's true, I guess, I can understand why you told me," Nadia said. "We've gotten quite close over the last few months, and I never thought I could ever love anyone again after Azim, but you certainly proved me wrong on that front."
"I'm glad that you didn't deny your feelings for me Nadia," Aeon said, smiling a little. "However, from what I understand the mortal mates of one of my family, their feelings are so strong for that person that to deny them, is to make themselves miserable and most people won't do that, not unless they have a lot of serious hangups about getting involved with anyone. Those feelings, may start off slowly, but the more time that a mate is around their perfect match the stronger those feelings will become to where they stop, denying those feelings.
"I wasn't lying when I said, my parents have been together for a very long time. I just didn't tell you how long at that time, because you didn't know my other secret until now."
"So your parents I'm guessing are mates just like we are, but you also said that only your mother has magic," Nadia said. "So that means…"
"That my father was immortal when they met, and he's the one that gave it to my mother simply by making love to her over a period of months," Aeon filled in when Nadia paused. "I'll tell you the whole story sometime, but it would take several hours at least if it's told at all properly.
"Really, while I know the story, you need to ask my parents, as they're the ones that were at the center of it, as it is their story. It's basically their history, while to me it's just a story, as it didn't happen to me. I wasn't born for centuries and they had many children before I was conceived.
"I've even hidden with the Medjai a few times decades apart when it's times for me to disappear from society for a few decades," Aeon added.
"If you read the old manuscripts that we have, he will be mentioned in a lot of them as the healer, for that particular generation of Medjai," Nasir said. "Aeon, isn't a Medjai name or even an Arabic one and so it stands out, especially if it's repeated multiple times over hundreds of years. Normally, you would just assume it was different Aeon and the name had just been passed down through the generations, but in this case, that is not so," Nasir added.
"My name is unusual everywhere I go my friend, but I think that just makes me unique," Aeon said smiling.
"I don't believe I've never heard your name before," Nadia said look at Aeon with a raised eyebrow. "I would think your parents would've made you something more normal."
"You would think that wouldn't you," Aeon agreed easily never losing his smile, even laughing a little at Nadia's comment. "There is a reason that my name is so unusual though."
"What's the reason?" Nadia want to know and Nasir also looked very interested in the answer, but had been too polite to ask.
"My parents have children every few decades, and they simply ran out of the more ordinary names a long time ago," Aeon answered chuckling at the two Medjais expressions. "It doesn't help that my parents are good friends with a woman and her husband who are also immortal. The two women have been best friends ever since they were small children going all the way back to when they were ordinary mortals. I have numerous siblings, although to most people, they're just my cousins unless they are of my generation. As for the Hotchners, the family that has been friends with mine for centuries, the same thing applies."
"I never thought about that," Nadia said.
"And neither did I," Nasir agreed.
"You've had no reason to, because you've never met any of my family. Other than myself of course," Aeon said. "You want to know that ironic thing though?"
"What?" Nadia asked.
"My name, actually means eternity. There's only one letter difference the A at the beginning and it's silent," Aeon explained.
"That is ironic, considering you're immortal," Nasir said not having known the meaning of his friend's name until now.
"It definitely is," Nadia agreed with her father. "I wonder if your parents knew that when they named you."
Nadia's tone was speculative.
"Trust me, they did," Aeon said. "My mom often finds names for any new children on baby names sites on the internet, and I wouldn't be surprised if that's where she found my name."
"You don't know?" Nadia asked.
Aeon shook his head negatively, "She's never said and I've never been curious enough to just ask. You have to be creative when you're immortal and keep having children. Luckily, there are thousands of beautiful names in the world from different countries, though I won't claim that my family has never repeated a name, especially some of the more common ones."
"How do you hide the fact that you're immortal considering the technological time in which we live?" Nasir said, shaking his head in amazement.
"It's not easy my friend," Aeon said. "Let's just say, that we have to do some illegal things to stay under the radar. We don't have to harm anybody we just find a very good hacker and have them create new social security numbers for us so we can get the proper documents that you need to live in this society. My mother Jazz and my Aunt Shonda, then take the hacker's memory of ever having helped us so that he can answer any legal inquiry honestly and say he's never heard of us. As far as I know, no law enforcement agencies have ever found out about the hacker that helped us get new social security numbers, but still it's a good precaution to take just in case."
"We all do what we have to in order to survive," Nasir said serenely. "I can understand why your family has to do what they have to do, considering their rather unusual circumstances. I mean, when you think about it, the Medjai are myths to most people who don't even realize that we exist anymore. It's not quite the same thing I know that, but it's certainly similar in certain ways."
"At least you don't have to kill anyone and that's a good thing," Nadia added.
"My family doesn't believe in killing unless they have no other choice," Aeon said. "As for your statement of a minute ago, yes, in some ways, the Medjai are similar to immortals. You aren't like us, when it comes to living forever, but that your tribe still exists, even after many thousands of years when so many other peoples have died out is really amazing.
"Now that you know my greatest secret Nadia, I'm hoping you'll marry me," Aeon added
"Yes, I will," Nadia said, even as Aeon took her in his arms.
"This is a great day when my daughter is going to get married for the second time," Nasir, who had been watching them said smiling
"We need to go visit my family in the states so they can meet her," Aeon said. "Also, I need to buy you a ring Nadia and we can do that either in Cairo or in the states. They have some great jewelry stores in the states and in fact, my cousin Marcus owns a jewelry shop and he'll give us a discount."
"Well, you have a lot of useful family don't you?" Nasir said amused.
"Yes, I do and Marcus is a Hotchner not a Rossi, so we might not be technically related, but we still consider each other as family," Aeon said. "We should go see him and Emily before we go see my parents and buy you a ring if you're agreeable Nadia.
"Emily is Marcus's mate," Aeon added.
"The states is a long way from Egypt," Nasir commented looking rather sad that his daughter would no doubt no longer want to live in the Medjai village now that she was going to be married and for the second time. "You have my blessing to marry my daughter. You've been part of the tribe for generations anyway, and nothing would please be more than to make it official, even if that's only through marriage."
"We can have the wedding in Cairo so that you, and at least some of the other Medjai can attend," Aeon offered. "Also, we'll still be living in Cairo and this trip is only a visit, so Nadia can meet at least some of my family. We're not going to move permanently unless Nadia wants to."
"I don't think I could ever leave permanently, even if we need to go elsewhere for few decades," Nadia said. "I wouldn't mind exploring some other parts of the world, places I've heard about but never seen."
"That's doable," Aeon said, "but I believe it can wait until your father passes and then we'll spend a few decades exploring different parts of the world before we return to Egypt. I haven't seen many other places because Egypt has always been my home, ever since I grew up and finished college."
"Sounds like you're going to live a life of adventure," Nasir said lightheartedly, and Nadia nodded enthusiastically. She could hardly wait.
"It will always be an adventure with you at my side," Aeon told Nadia with a smile kissing her cheek, but it was clear that his words were deeply meant.
~~~Aeon and Nadia~~~