Genesis [malexmale]

Chapter Twenty-Six

Chapter Twenty-Six

"Why did you ask me to call you Joxeia?"

I blinked my eyes open, staring up at the ornate gold ceiling before I turned my head to Set, who was laying beside me, staring up at the ceiling as well. He was a perfect, beautiful mess, even after we had taken our play into the bathing pool in order to clean Set. His damp hair was splayed across the pillow, his lips swollen, eyelids heavy with tiredness, but not quite enough to sleep.

I turned my head away to stare at the ceiling again.

"It is a name I have not used in a very, very long time."

"Why not?" He murmured. I was quiet for a while, debating whether to confide in Set or not.

I would feel foolish, asking for his trust, yet giving him nothing in return, but carnal pleasure. He needed more than sexual gratification, and advising. He needed to trust as well, he needed information as well. Strangely enough, I felt fine with the idea of confiding in Set. There was something particularly special about this god. Perhaps it was the lingering bliss of a night well spent, or perhaps I could sympathize well with his inner turmoil. I knew not exactly, but I decided it was safe, if the Source was not warning me against it.

If anything, the Source was quiet. Not absently quiet, but quiet in the way a lake was in the early morning, unmoving, at peace.

"It brings back painful memories of a time long since passed, a time when time itself was in infancy."

"Exactly how old are you?"

"As I said, when time itself was new."

"You come from the time of Ra," Set concluded. I smiled at his train of thought. I turned my head to look at him as he studied the ceiling for a moment longer before he turned his head to look at me, quirking a brow.

"You speak fondly of Ra, yet you bear the marking of a black sun. Care to explain that to me?" I asked. Set's features pinched, not in rage, but more in distaste. It was quite adorable, actually. He turned his head away once more, feigning disinterest in the topic.

"I thought you knew who I was, therefore, you should already know the answer to that," he said drolly. I rolled my eyes and sat up, propping up a few pillows behind me to lay back comfortably upon. He glanced at me when I raised an eyebrow and he sighed, disgruntled. He shifted a little, and I found myself sinking my hand into his soft hair. He relaxed at that, allowing me to stroke his hair.

"Ra has always been good to me," he murmured, lifting one of my hands in his, tracing my fingers with his, the movements slow and thoughtful, "He never partook in the actions of our pantheon, and he long since disappeared from the meetings. He refused to attend and refused to be apart of their actions towards others and themselves... But he met with me often. For years. He was the only one who did not treat me as a beast."

"You speak in past tense," I noted. Set ground his teeth together for a moment, and shut his eyes, lowering my hand to rest over his abdomen.

"He ceased visiting. He ceased contact with the entire pantheon shortly after the first war against the Greeks. He is... He is still with us, but he is hidden. He has not been seen for a very long time." His anger and his resentment, coupled with hurt and worry and sorrow, answered my question. His tattoo was black, not in protest, but in mourning.

"You miss him," I said softly, turning my hand over on him so he could rest his over mine. He stared down at our hands, our fingers slipping together and linking. He swallowed thickly.

"I know he is not passed, I feel his presence, but... Feeling it and seeing him are two different things. I want more than just to know he is alive, and well. I want to... I want to see him, speak to him. I need his guidance. I need to know he is there for me when I need him. It is selfish, and childish, but I cannot stop the way I feel."