Antiquity

Chapter 8--Vision


Menefer stared at himself in the mirror, turning his head from side to side. To just himself, he saw his reflection to be very plain. Plain skin, plain hair…he looked like anyone else on the street in these times. Running his fingers though his hair, he turned and shuffled out into the living room only to see Tep-Tep and Amonen messing around in the living room.

Amonen was scratching Tep's stomach, the dog guardian's leg twitching. Harley, at the table, shook his head and returning back to his newspaper.

"I'm bored."Menefer proclaimed, putting his hands on his hips. "Let's go out somewhere!"

"Like where Menefer? You're not dressed, and this town doesn't exactly have much…'cept for a park."Harley said as he looked back to his paper.

"Then let's go to the park. Tep-tep needs fresh air!"Menefer whined, fidgeting where he stood. Amon looked over his shoulder, Tep-tep popping his head up, both of them looking over to Harley.

"And do what?"Harley retorted, peeking over his paper.

"I don't know, Harley…You know this country better than anyone, what do people do in parks?"Menefer said with a narrow of his eyes. Harley gaved, shaking his head and putting his paper down, picking up his coffee cup in exchange.

"Fine. Go get dressed. Amonen, in the hall closet there's a basket and a red and white blanket. Grab them, I'm going down to the store up the street to pick up some food."Harley sighed, shaking his head and going to seek out his wallet in his bedroom. Menefer stood there, his eyebrows raised until he turned heel and retreated to go get dressed.

Slipping on some comfortable 'play' clothing, he sat in the living room watching the television. A sunny fall day was expected and a new episode of a not very interesting TV series. Tep-Tep nudged him, Menefer looking down.

"Do you know anything about parks?"He asked, Tep sniffing.

"No."Tep answered. "I hear 'park' people usually make it seem like they're moving their big contraptions into an open space between more of the same. They call it 'parking' as well."

"Oh…That seems very odd."Menefer mused, petting the sleek black head. The sound of feet stomping past them made Menefer cringe and sink down more into the couch cushions. Harley wasn't happy. It wasn't much of a surprise either…It had been months since they had arrived and it seemed mishap after mishap seemed to happen. First a small fire in the kitchen, some flooding in the bathroom and Tep-Tep had bitten Sophie on the tail.

Plus, the shop was busy as well. Harley rescheduled his shop to close every sunday so that he could take some time to recover from the week. Amonen stepped into the living room, setting the blanket and basket on the table. "Harley must be planning a picnic."He spoke up, sliding his sunglasses up his nose.

"What's a 'picnic'?"Menefer asked, intrigued.

"It's a packed lunch you take with you somewhere. It's nice to east somewhere other than home and when it's nice out, you can eat outside."Amonen explained, hearing the bells downstairs. "But you know…Harley didn't have to run down to the store. He had plenty of stuff in the apartment to make stuff."He mused, looking over his shoulder.

Menefer frowned. "Maybe he wanted things that were fresh?"He asked, Amonen shaking his.

"I think you need to think about what you're asking sometimes, Menefer…Sunday is his only day off. I think maybe today he wanted to relax, don't you think so?"Amonen asked, looking to the puzzled Egyptian. Menefer flushed, drawing his legs up and holding them.

He was right though…Harley was exhausted most days after work and he asked way too much of him. Amonen did his part and the days Tep-tep walked around on two legs, he also helped out.

What did he do?

Little to nothing if he could help it but he didn't know how to work a good majority of the technology of this era. Something either caught on fire or foamed at the doors overtime he touched it. Harley got aggravated with him and forbade him to help unless someone was with him.

The sound of the little bell on the door made him look up, darting his head towards the door. Harley walked in, but the bags contained more than just food. Menefer got up to help him, toting the bags over to where the basket was.

"A ball?"Menefer said, holding up a ball patterned in black and white hexagons.

"You can play with it at the park. I've got a few more things in the other ones. You'll see."Harley said, going over to organize things in the basket.

Harley piled everyone into his truck, Menefer tucked in-between himself and Amonen while Tep-tep rode in the small back seat with a change of clothes for he was planning to take his human shape once they reached there.

Menefer curiously peeked around Amonen and Harley, looking about the buildings that passed them. He was amazed how little they seemed to come together once they reached a wide open area, parking and climbing out of the truck. Menefer could see that it was just a wide, grassy area. A few people were out and about with their pets or someone by their side.

"It's so quiet here."Menefer mumbled. "Is it alright?"

"It's fine."Harley said, pulling the basket out from the backseat and allowing Tep-Tep to climb out fully dressed, with his tail in his pants and ears under a soft cap that had strings coming from the bottom that fell past his chin.

Harley lead them all along the park's smooth pavement path, looking around for a good spot. He found one on a flat area, bending down and spreading the blanket out, Menefer helping immediately to help straighten it out. "Do you want to play first or eat?"Harley asked.
d
"I'm starving…I hope there's coffee in there somewhere too."Amonen teased, Harley casting a grumpy glare. "Aaaannd, of course you didn't bring any."

"There's juice, water and sandwiches in here with some fruit. Help yourselves…I'm going to take a nap."Harley sighed, just flopping over on the blanket.

"Aww, bu--Okay…"Menefer was about to start though stopped himself. He was being selfish again. Rummaging through the basket, he pulled out a sandwich and a bottle of juice, sitting there quietly. Tep-Tep gave him little nudge, the God Key smiling a little. "I'm okay. After you eat, why don't you and Amonen go play?"

"I want to play with you."Tep-tep whined.

"Fine….Eat, then we'll go play with what we brought…"Menefer said, patting his head, Tep-tep smiling a fangy grin before rummaging through. It was a small lunch, Tep-tep tugging his master onto the grass and holding the soccer ball under his arm. Amonen laughed, watching them scramble further away and start to toss the ball, then kick it around.

"I talked to him about his behavior…"Amonen said, watching the two play. Harley opened an eye and peeked up.

"You didn't have to."Harley responded. "I'm still thinking of things for him to help out with."

"Understood…Still, you've got a lot on your hands…"Amonen sighed, lying back with his arms behind his head.

"Waaah! Master!"

Both of them sat up, looking across where Tep-tep and Menefer had been playing. Tep-tep was holding the smaller man up while he seemed to stare off into the distance. Amonen and Harley got up, running over to check on them. "What happened?"Harley asked, bringing his hands to Menefer's cheeks and feeling them. He was still warm but he removed his jacket and wrapped it around him just in case.

"He's having visions again. I thought when I hit him in the face with the ball I had knocked him unconscious but he didn't move until I touched him. Help me get him over to the blanket, he needs to let it run it's course."Tep-tep instructed. Amon scooped him up off the ground, walking over briskly and laying him down. He removed his own coat, rolling it over to stuff it under the unconscious being's head like a pillow.

"Does this always happen? I know he had one back at the airport in Egypt once before…"Harley asked, looking up to Tep-tep.

"He does, but not so bad as for him to fall unconscious. He usually just stops what he's doing and sits there…It must be a strong one, very vivid…"Tep-tep explained.

"We can only find out when he's back to himself. Come on Tep-tep, I'll play with you until he wakes up and feels better."Amonen said, patting Tep's back and getting up to fetch the soccer ball that they had been playing with.

Harley sighed, falling back on the blanket. Lulling his head over in the other's direction, he furrowed his eyebrows. He had never seen Menefer shake so much or sweat so profusely. Sitting up, he grabbed a bottle of water and a napkin, dabbing it with some cold water and laying it across his forehead.

Jade eyes snapped open, Menefer sitting up and yelling, Harley grabbing his shoulders. "Menefer!"He yelled back, the other's yelling stopping. For just that brief moment of time, the park fell silent.

"Wh-what?"Menefer panted, holding the jacket wrapped around him a little tighter.

"You just sat up and started screaming, and you're asking me 'what?'"Harley sighed, peeling the wet napkin off of Menefer's face. "What did you see?"

"They're coming…They're coming to find me and…and someone's going to get very seriously hurt, Harley…It hurt. It felt like I could feel my arm and leg breaking…The gun's metal was so cold…"Menefer whined, tearing up and shivering. Harley's eyebrows furrowing. Reaching up, he moved his hair away from his face.

"It'll be okay…Things like that can change can't they? You can't base the future just on your visions alone…Calm down and lay back until you feel like you can get up."Harley said as he gently pushed Menefer back down onto the blanket, the foreigner furrowing his eyebrows. He was afraid to close them again, to see those visions and feel everything. Rolling onto his side, he brought the jacket over his face and sighed. He could feel Harley lie back on the blanket with him, shifting a little in attempts to try to cuddle up to him.

Just how soon would they come true? Menefer mentally shuddered at the thought. What if was tomorrow? That night? Peeking up a little, he saw that Harley's sweater didn't match the vision he saw, breathing a sigh of relief.

Menefer let his eyes slip closed, exhaling slowly. An hour later, something hard whacked him in the back, Amonen shouting an apology while Tep-tep growled a little. Menefer sat up, rubbing the spot that he had gotten accidentally whacked with the ball, looking over his shoulder.

"Sorry, sorry sorry!"Amonen called out, going over to check on him.

"I'm fine. What happened?"Menefer winced, feeling the impressions of the shapes on the ball itself.

"I kicked the ball too hard and Harley missed catching it with his foot. I'm really sorry…"Amonen said, Menefer reaching up and grabbing the sunglasses off of his face.

"You could probably see better if you had these silly things off of your face. Really, you don't' have to wear them all the time inside and out."Menefer teased, putting the glasses on himself. Amonen blinked, furrowing his eyebrows and pouting.

"I thought they looked cool…"Amonen whined, getting up. Harley stood behind him, smirking some. "You my fine, pale friend are in trouble."

"Oh really…I'd like to see you try that fearless soccer kick again. You might be able to hit the tree and rebound it to that face of yours."Harley retorted.

Amonen narrowed his eyes, getting up and starting to chase after their caretaker. Menefer laughed a little, feeling a push on his shoulder. Tep-tep looked at him worriedly, whimpering. "I'm alright. Come on, let's go play."He said, getting up a little shakily and then starting to trot over to the other two, stealing away the ball with Tep right behind him.

By early evening, all of them were exhausted and dirty. Menefer's hair was a mess of hair and leaves, with the other two covered in grass stains. Back at the apartment, they drew straws for the bathroom, Amonen getting his turn first. Harley sat on his couch with a heavy sigh.

"Uggh…knowing him he's going to take forever."Harley huffed.

Menefer chuckled, leaning a little heavily on him. "He won't."He assured him. "Amonen can be a mean person sometimes but he's not going to do something like that on purpose."

"I figured…How are you doing? Any more visions?"Harley asked, looking over and down at him.

"No…but I have been thinking about it a little…The time and place…Little things about it that I can remember."Menefer said as he yawned, stretching a little. "It's not going to happen anytime soon…thankfully…."

"Good."Harley said, ruffling his hair.

"Harley…"Menefer spoke softly, moving and straddling his lap but his face was more worried. "Promise me if I tell you to run…you'll run?"

"I'm not stupid…"Harley said as he brought his hand to the back of his head, smoothing the hair there and pulling a little bit of leaf out of it.

"I know…It is just…I am extremely…"Menefer mumbled, pressing his forehead against Harley's and nuzzling him a little. A pair of warm lips on his cheek made him look up.

"Like I said…I'm not stupid…Menefer."Harley started, hearing the bathroom door open. "You had the second shortest. Go take your shower."He added, patting his hip. Menefer sighed, rolling his big jade eyes at him and retreating to go take a shower.

"WAAAHHH!"The small man let out a cry, running away from the bathroom. Harley got up, going to investigate why Menefer had let out such a frightful scream. He saw that Amonen had opened the door to let some steam out of the bathroom but also gave Menefer a full sight of his new hair cut as well. Harley raised an eyebrow, biting down his lower lip.

"Pffffttt, Wh-what the hell did you do to your head?"Harley said, trying to contain himself.

"Giving myself a haircut. I always do."Amonen said with a frown. "Why? Does it look that bad? Menefer ran away screaming just a second ago."

"Why don't you give me those scissors and I'll help you fix it a little better."Harley chuckled, making the man sit down on the toilet while he fixed it. Menefer peeked around the corner shyly, Amonen looking at him with a raised eyebrow.

"Does it really look that scary?"Amonen frowned.

"I've never seen you with your hair so short…You look really different Amonen."Menefer pouted.

"He was beginning to look like a shaggy dog."Tep-Tep commented, licking Menefer's hand. Menefer chuckled a little, stepping into the bathroom and running his fingers through Amonen's hair a little. Harley could see the guard blush as he finished up his hair and dried it with a towel some.

"Alright. Menefer, you hop in the shower and take Tep-tep with you. I guess I'll just take it last…"Harley sighed, bringing his hand up and scratching the back of his own shortly cropped hair.

"Harley…"Menefer mumbled, tugging on his sleeve. "You can take a shower first…"

"Your hair is all a--"Harley was about to retort but Menefer glared at him.

"Take. The. Shower…I may be short but I can hurl you in there if I have to."Menefer growled a little, Harley, Amonen and Tep swallowing pretty hard. The God Key smiled in triumph, walking out of the bathroom while also pulling Amonen and Tep behind him.

Harley sighed, rubbing his arm and started undressing.


Menefer had dragged Amonen all the way back to their bedroom, huffing and pushing his hair back from his face. Amonen was still red in the face, fidgeting a little as he sat on the bed still wrapped in just a towel. "M-Menefer? Can you leave for a moment?"He asked as he moved so he was turned away.

"Why?"Menefer asked. "You've changed in front of me before."

"It's not…Well…I need just a little privacy."Amonen fidgeted. His fidgeting increased when Menefer crawled onto his bed and hugged him from behind. He could feel his heart beat faster, his body shaking with excitement.

"Amon…I'm really scared…I'm scared that I might lose everyone if I stay here…"Menefer whispered.

The racing stopped. "Don't be…"Amonen answered, reaching behind him and touching the back of Menefer's head as it rested on his naked shoulder. "It's not your fault if anything happens…It's just that we weren't quick enough on our feet."

Menefer sniffed, nodding and rubbing his face on Amon's shoulder. It made him feel just a little better. The sound of someone clearing their throat at the door made them both turn, Harley standing there in a towel.

"Shower's free."Harley spoke up, Menefer looking over his shoulder and smiling. Hopping off of the bed, he trotted out and took Tep with him. As he sat in the bathtub washing Tep-tep, he had a small vision that not even his beloved dog guardian saw him have.

Harley was over him, kissing and touching along him gently. He could even smell the cleanly scent of him like he had just come out of the shower. It was so…comforting. Hearing his breathing and the warmth of his hands…The vision stopped but the blood rushing through him hadn't.

Menefer grumbled, Tep-tep looking over his sleek black shoulder at him. "Is there something wrong Master?"He asked, Menefer puffing his cheeks.

"Everything is absolutely fine. Hop out, Amonen is going to dry you off."Menefer said, helping him out and scooting him out of the bathroom with a pat on his backside. Huffing, he sunk down in the bathtub, bubbles rising out of irritation.

'In my thousands of years, I have never been this irritated…'Menefer thought, closing his eyes. 'Aubbey, I don't know what to do…Your Grandson is nothing like you. Why would you leave me with such a grumpy, distant…Oooo! If I had a Nile for every time he got angry I would have a flood!'

A knock on the door made him jump, peeking from behind the curtain. Harley stood there with a raised eyebrow and shirt off. "Is everything alright? Tep said you kicked him out."He asked, Menefer looking away.

"Everything is just fine. Get out."Menefer grumbled.

"Oye, mind your manners, Menefer."Harley said, getting a splash in his direction. "Hey! What the hell? You know you're going to clean this up when you're done right?"

"Go away!"Menefer shouted, standing up out of the bath. That was a mistake. His legs wobbled and he found himself falling over the edge of the bathrobe, landing on the tile floor. Harley went to grab his head before it hit the floor, rolling him so he could check him.

"Are you alright?"Harley asked, his eyebrows furrowed.

"Why…"Menefer mumbled.

"Huh?"

"Why aren't you like Aubbey…He was so kind and had so much patience…He wasn't mean…He wasn't aggravated all the time…"Menefer mumbled, sitting up on his own. His hair was matted, coiling around him and along the floor. "I want my Aubbey back…"

He didn't know what to say. Frowning, he just shook his head and scooped Menefer up off of the floor despite his protests. Instead of taking him back into the guest bedroom, he took him to his own, tossing him onto the bed and pinning him there.

"I'm not my grandfather…Grandpa lived in a world where a God Key is actually a Man and he's got a little talking dog that follows him around. I didn't. I got thrown into this, Menefer…I'm not happy with it, but I'm trying to deal with it. I'm aggravated and exhausted all the time but that's because I'm trying to feed three more people and run a shop. I didn't want to sell the Antique shop and I thought this would a break from those hacks at the company I worked for since I got out of college…Don't you DARE compare me to my Grandfather, Menefer, because he wouldn't be able to take care of you even if he was still alive."Harley said, looking down at him angrily.

Menefer stared up at him, his lower lip trembling. Sniffing, he broke down, crying and trying to cover his face. Harley stared at him, exhaling and leaning his head down to the crook of the crying male's neck. Menefer wrapped his arms around him, sobbing.

"H-Harley…"Menefer whimpered.

"You're upset and something is poking me…"Harley mumbled, looking down between them. Menefer squeaked, reaching up and grabbing Harley's head.

"I-it's nothing. I had a vision in the bathroom and it doesn't have to come true right? Ah ha ha…ah?"He suddenly felt lips along his neck, making him stop and shudder a little. Running his fingers through Harley's hair, he breathed out softly. "Harley…"

"If you cry, I swear I'll bite you…"Harley mumbled, growling playfully and slightly biting down on Menefer's shoulder.

"Right, right…"Menefer grunted, feeling Harley move his lips a little more along his neck. His hands slid from Menefer's shoulders, sliding down and running his fingers along the warmed skin that was still damp from the bath. Kissing lower, he reached down between them and gently stroked his member that was already hard.

Menefer moaned, running his nails down Harley's naked back. The tanned man reached one hand down, tugging and trying to remove his pants. Harley stopped kissing along his neck, unbuttoning and kicking off his pants. Menefer let a chuckle slip, pulling him by the shoulders and rolling so he was on top. Shimmying downwards he gripped the girth of his member, stroking him firmly.

'Well…If the vision comes true…Maybe things will get better…'He mused, lowering his head and swirling his tongue around.

"Hey…Turn your hips this way."Harley whispered, pulling on Menefer's leg. He moved so now his hips were over Harley's face with his head down by Harley's hips. Moving back to swirling his tongue around, he felt something hot engulf him, a low moan escaping his throat. Thrusting his hips downwards, he felt more of it surround him, running along the spongy skin.

It was new and invigorating. Harley moaned beneath him, thrusting upwards and massaging Menefer's cheeks. Running his finger along the crevice, he probed a finger through, making the muscles spasm around it. The smaller body above him shook a little, Menefer gasping and pushing against his hand.

'What am I doing?'Harley thought, running his tongue along the length of his member. 'I'm not supposed to make his mistakes. I'm not like him at all…I blame him for everything…but I can't…reject having the same feeling.'

"Uunn! H-Ha-Harley…"Menefer gasped, looking underneath him. "I'm going to--If you keep doing that…"

"Move up and lie on the bed on your back."Harley instructed, licking his lips a little.

Menefer was quick to do so, hopping up and lying on his back, his arms relaxed above his head. Harley climbed over him, leaning down and kissing him gently, his fingers lacing through his hair. He, with a little nudge, pushed his way through the entrance, Menefer keening with such a breech.

For the first time, they made love without Menefer forcing it. Harley was free to move his arms, in the privacy of his own room and choose their pace. It was blissful, unique in comparison to Harley's grandfather who had treated him so kindly but so frail. Out of the ordinary.

Harley lay on top of him, tired and de-stressed with the physical activity. Menefer pet his hair down, sighing softly and humming contently. "Harley…You're mean as Anubis but kind as Ra's heart…"He breathed softly.

"Stupid…old…fart…"Harley mumbled, Menefer raising an eyebrow.