Beauty and the Pharaoh

Chapter 43 - [Beauty and Maintaining Maat]

I didn't doubt her promise as well.

Atem's mother was one of the kindest and most honest women I've ever met. In fact... she kind of reminded me of Aunty Maya.

Maybe that's why I liked her so much.

When night came, I slept in Atem's room... though I technically had a room for myself. But I wanted to sleep in the room that Atem stayed in because I felt more comfortable there.

I missed him a lot, obviously.

And if you think about it... since I met him over a year ago, this was the longest we had been apart. We saw each other every day for over a year.

Of course I would miss him now.

But now that I really thought about it... now that I had so much time to myself to think about it... I wondered about this whole situation of going home.

Of seeing my friends and family again.

I wish there was some way of knowing how they were. There wasn't. And when I asked Lord Hepu if he was sure, he reminded me that we were in the past and that everyone I knew hadn't even been born yet.

So no... I could never know if they were alright. But what would happen if I stayed here? Would that change the future? Surely it would!

Even Atem rescuing Egypt from the Sea People would change the future. I mean, for one, if Atem never disappeared and Egypt never fell... then what would Aunty Maya do her PhD on?

And what would society be like if Egypt never fell? With that kind of power... what if they pushed on for thousands of years? What if they became the new superpowers?

Would there have ever been colonialism? A world ruled by the superpower known as Britain? Would World War I or II have ever happened? Would there even be a Canada or a United States of America? Or would the Natives have rightfully kept their own land because there was no European exploration?

All of these questions... I would never be able to answer. Not if I was stuck here.

I sighed loudly.

The only question I knew the answer to was this: would I miss Atem if I had to leave him?

Yes.

Hell yes.

And I didn't want to leave him.

-----

I managed to fall fast asleep though my mind was filled with confused thoughts and something felt strangely off. It was easier to fall asleep here. The nights were so comforting... super dark and super quiet but not so dark and quiet that it was scary.

I would never hear gangsters driving past my place with their music blasting.

Nor would I hear police sirens wailing, causing me to wonder if Blake was okay.

It was just silence.

But despite this peacefulness, I found myself holding my aunt's necklace when I fell asleep... I always held it when I was nervous.

But it was after I fell asleep that I realized I must have been nervous for good reasons.

In my dream, I was in that place again. The sky was orange and there were pyramids in the distance.

I was in the same place I was a year ago... when Aunty Maya told me to help the Pharaoh who shake my world and change my life forever. (Of course, she didn't actually mention that last part)