Page 7 of Ra (The Scarab Prophecy #1)

Azi did her best to finish her shower quickly, not wanting to leave Ra on his own for too long.

Instead of lingering under the hot water as she usually would, she washed everything that needed washing, ran some shampoo through her hair, and got out.

She wrapped a towel around her head and hurried into her bedroom to pull on a pair of leggings and an old t-shirt.

Somewhat rejuvenated, she started downstairs, but then thought better of it and went to her father’s bedroom, tapping on the bedroom door softly.

When there was no answer, she let herself in and smiled at the sound of Ra humming to himself in the shower.

He was obviously enjoying the warm water pouring over him.

Opening the door to her father’s walk in closet, she purposely overlooked his more recent clothing, as he’d gotten a little shorter and rounder with age, instead focusing on the clothes he’d long ago outgrown.

She found several pairs of trousers, a few collared pull over shirts, and a couple of button down dress shirts.

She laid them all out on the bed, along with several pairs of socks and a pair of her father’s slip on sandals.

She left the door to the closet open so Ra could easily find it, and after another quick inventory of the clothing she’d chosen lying on the foot of the bed, she went downstairs.

Azi chose the leftover Moussaka, ran it through the microwave, grabbed a fork and settled on the sofa to find something to watch on TV.

She’d finished the Moussaka and started in on a leftover salad by the time Ra actually made an appearance.

She’d just taken a big bite of salad and was doing her best to shovel the lettuce falling out of her mouth back in when she realized she wasn’t alone.

Freezing with the fork still in her mouth, she looked to her left and almost choked to death.

The most impressive male she’d ever seen stood before her.

His clothes fit a little tighter than they were made to fit, but some men wore that look well.

Ra was one of them. The shape of his upper thighs, shoulders, chest and waist were somehow accentuated even more so than when he’d been nude from the waist up.

He was not beautiful in the sense of femininity, but was instead perfectly sculpted, chiseled jaw, cheekbones, and lips.

“Is this acceptable?” Ra asked.

“It is. You look very modern.”

“Of course, I do. It was my intention.”

Azi watched as his nostrils flared, but she refused to say anything about it until he did.

“What is it that I smell?” he asked, his brows bunching up over his eyes as he sniffed the air.

“It is food. Would you like some?”

“I do not think so. I have no desire to wash myself again.”

“No, you don’t have to wash yourself again just because you might have to use the bathroom. There is a toilet for you to use rather than getting your entire body wet.”

Ra watched her accusingly, before he finally voiced what was on his mind. “You placed me in the waterfall intentionally, knowing I could have used other means.”

“I did. Because you were being stubborn and wouldn’t go.

And it seemed to be based on the fact that you think relieving your body when you need to go to the bathroom is filthy.

It might not be the most fun thing in the world, but it is a necessity that every single living creature must see to.

You must eat to live. When you eat your body uses the nutrients and rids itself of waste.

Waste is what you release from your body.

Just don’t get any on yourself, and wash your hands well, and you’ll be good. ”

Ra seemed aloof for several minutes before settling on the sofa beside her. “You will have to show me the proper way to do so without using the waterfall.”

“I will.”

“Gods do not have need of such things.”

“Did you not eat?”

“Not for sustenance. Just a taste here and there for pleasure. Even so, our bodies had no need of such human requirements.”

“Well, now that you’re human, you will. I will ask you again, are you hungry?”

“I believe so. My stomach rumbles.”

“You’re hungry. Come in the kitchen and we’ll find you something to eat.”

Azi went into the kitchen with Ra following closely behind and watched as she opened take-out container after take-out container.

“This is a cheeseburger. It’s got grilled onions and mushrooms on it.

This is a meatloaf, it has mashed potatoes with it.

This is kibbeh, it’s got lamb and wheat and pine nuts and garlic and onions in it.

This is the rest of the salad I’m eating.

It’s got lettuce, black olives, sun-dried tomatoes, red onion, feta cheese, and walnuts in it.

This is a vegetable plate with hummus and eggplant.

You are welcome to any of it you wish to eat. ”

Ra picked up each Styrofoam plate, sniffing its contents before he settled on the vegetable, eggplant and hummus plate, and the meatloaf.

“Let me warm the meatloaf up for you,” Azi said, taking the plate from his hands and putting it in the microwave. While she waited for the bell to ring signifying it was ready, she pointed to the hummus. “That one can be eaten cold or warm. What do you prefer?”

Ra sniffed it and looked over at her. “I do not know. Which do you prefer?”

“I like it warm, it has more flavor, for me, anyway.”

“I will have it warm.”

The microwave dinged and Azi took his food out and handed it to him. She placed his second plate in the microwave and started it, before opening a drawer and handing him a fork.

“What is that?”

“A fork. You use it like this,” she said, taking a bite of the salad that was still in the kitchen.

He nodded and took a small bite of the meatloaf. He chewed experimentally, then swallowed and eagerly placed a bigger bite in his mouth. “I must eat this every night.”

Azi laughed. “There are so many things to eat, you don’t have to eat it every night. But if you decide you want to, you can.”

He nodded, chewing, as he eagerly looked at the microwave when it dinged.

“Here we go. Hummus and eggplant vegetable plate.” She placed it on the kitchen island in front of him and he sampled it, too.

“Very good. Excellent food. I think needing to eat may be a good thing,” he said, mixing some of his eggplant with a bite of meatloaf and chewing appreciatively.

“I also have fruit, which I like cold, so I keep it in the fridge. And cheeses and preserved meats. I have eggs and bread and butter. There is no shortage of food. If you want something, help yourself, or ask me and I can show you how to eat it if you’re not sure.”

Ra nodded as he took another bite and peeked into the container holding the rest of the salad she’d left when she’d made her own plate.

“You want that?” she asked.

He nodded.

“This is eaten cold. I’ve got it, bring the rest of your food and we’ll go in the living room. I have an idea.”

He didn’t argue, just kept eating as he held both Styrofoam plates and followed her.

She sat down and placed his salad on the coffee table in front of them, then picked up her own salad and started eating.

“Okay, now, I was thinking that rather than watching a movie, there are several news channels. I thought we could watch the news from several different areas to give you a look at the world in general, and then if we’re not sleepy yet, there’s a channel all about history.

We can watch that if it’s something you’re interested in. ”

“Okay.” He coughed a little and she realized she hadn’t given him anything to drink.

“Hold on. I forgot to get you something to drink. I’ll be back.” Minutes later she was back with two bottles of water and two bottles of sweet peach tea. “Here. This is water. This is tea with sugar and peach juice in it.”

Ra didn’t question her, he reached for the tea, hesitating only momentarily as he watched her twist the top off a bottle of water before doing the same and taking a drink. “This is the best drink I’ve ever tasted!” he exclaimed.

She smiled at him and nudged her tea his way. “I usually drink water unless it’s breakfast, then I’ll have coffee or milk. Sometimes a hot tea, but coffee is so much easier. Everyone sells it. And I have a coffee maker so that makes it simple.”

She flipped channels for a few seconds until she found what she was looking for. “Here we go. The local news,” she said, turning to the appropriate channel and sitting back to watch the program with him.

Surprisingly, he didn’t ask any questions. He just watched, his eyes taking in everything he saw.

When that program was over, she turned to another and another, finally showing him a news program from the United States, followed by one on the BBC, and another from Europe.

“So, do you have any questions?” she asked.

“No. It seems to me that not much has changed. Except that humans no longer look for the intervention of the gods. They no longer fear the wrath of the gods. And even worse, humans still kill other humans. Some are still left starving, while others pretend not to notice. It doesn’t matter which land they live in, there is hunger, thirst, sickness, not enough shelter, and through it all, those who are strongest continue to ignore those weaker.

It has always been the way of the powerful.

It’s the reason we decided to rule — to keep the peace. To maintain accountability.”

“Hold on, though. You keep threatening to smite everyone from the face of the planet because they don’t recognize and pay homage to you. Me included. How is that any different than those who are in power today?”

“Those in power today are not gods. They are not immortal. They do not have unlimited power over life and death, feast and famine, peace and war. They are simply human and have made wiser choices than those around them.”

“So, you’re saying, if you’re born a god you have certain rights.”