[Given what Benjamin had told him about what he was, the question gave Ahkmenrah a deep chill. Part of him didn't want to think that Benjamin could mean it, but the rest wondered what else he could possibly mean, when he didn't have anything so powerful as the magic of the gods at his fingertips. Unique abilities, yes, but nothing like what his father had channeled to make the tablet.
When he finally looked back to meet Benjamin's eye, he found himself startled by the intensity of his (blood-)red gaze. Surely he himself didn't look at people that intently without realizing it... did he? It made his heart flutter strangely in his chest.]
[Benjamin gave a small smile. His story contained a little less choice in it but that was no matter now.]
Yes.
[It was clear what he was offering even though it was left unsaid. He wanted to reach and touch Ahkmenrah but there was still a part of him that felt he was untouchable, a god before him. Would he make him less so if he agreed? His brow creased at the thought and only then did his gaze lower away from his face.]
[The sudden change on Benjamin's face surprised Ahkmenrah, and concerned him. Had his unease at the question showed on his face and offended him somehow? Ahkmenrah was mindful of the distance Benjamin seemed to keep around himself, never really making any physical contact, and he respected it without ever realizing that it was about him - because who had ever shown him respect since his death? - even as he leaned slightly forward and in to try and catch the man's eye again.]
It doesn't bother me. Your being a vampire. But never having known another one, and only having seen you here, not in your actual life... [He laughed to himself when he realized what he had just said.] ... then again, you've got an actual life that doesn't end quite as literally at sunrise.
[There was more, though. So much to consider if things changed that much.] Where would I live, if not at the museum? What would I - do?
[Benjamin knew the other was trying to catch his eye again and after only a few moments of reprieve given to himself his face was schooled neutral again though a warm smile spread over his mouth.]
You would live with me. If you wanted... though you could do anything, be anyone that you wanted to be. We could go anywhere. [His words were earnest. He remembered a time where that hadn't been the case for himself.] We'd have all the time in the world to figure it out.
With you...? [That sort of generosity seemed extreme, even for someone whose company he'd come to enjoy. It warmed him from the inside out, bringing a bashful smile to his lips, bottom one caught between his teeth.] And you'd travel with me?
[There was just one more thing to consider, which had him up on his feet and racing for his tomb exhibit in a heartbeat, waving for Benjamin to come follow. The 200 ft tall jackal statues guarding the exhibit deferred immediately at the sight of Ahkmenrah and close enough to Ahkmenrah, allowing them to enter far enough to see the tablet.]
My father made this for me. He entrusted it to me. It's given a lot of people here - not everyone would consider them people, but I do - wonderful lives. If i no longer need it, I can leave it here, and they still...
[But he's still giving up that powerful gift from his father.]
[Benjamin nodded, the other's smile warmed him and perhaps that's one of the things that drew him so much to Ahkmenrah. He felt the urge to touch him again, run his fingers over his cheek but he couldn't. He was from a time where the Pharaoh's lineage had been well respected.] Yes.
[He got up quickly to follow the other through the museum. His eyes fell on the tablet and then returned to Ahkmenrah. He knew what he was asking him to give up.]
I know it wouldn't be easy but... [What was an adequate and appropriate thing to say? Centuries of life and he was still ill-prepared.]
[Slowly, Ahkmenrah crossed behind his sarcophagus and moved to touch the tablet he'd guarded all his life, with varying levels of success. There was someone at this museum who respected it now, another guardian for the priceless heirloom. And when he thought about it...]
Everyone moves on to find their own lives eventually, don't they? From parents, from schooling, from - museums and familial magic - [He turned to look at Benjamin, something more eager in his expression. His tablet cast a soft golden light across his skin, almost making him appear lit from within.] - I'd like to. I want to. I still can't quite believe you'd offer me all this.
[Benjamin watched him and for a moment he wasn't sure he wanted to give it up and Benjamin also was not sure he should have asked him to. Perhaps it had been unfair. A part of him was not sure it could work and the disappointment that he'd see in Ahkmenrah's eyes if he agreed and that happened... That image settled like the weight of the world on his shoulders.
But the chance to leave the museum and explore the world with someone he'd chosen, that'd chosen him...]
Yes. [Benjamin gave a slight nod. After all, he had been turned, staying with his Coven and Creator for so long before they had parted ways and now he was making another transition -- he hoped. He stared at Ahkmenrah, for all their similarities he was certain that he was not nearly as beautiful as he was and while he was kind and often too compassionate for his own good he didn't think he was nearly as good-hearted as he.
It was difficult to do much but stare in his presence and especially just now. He'd nearly missed what he'd said but his eyes widened as he focused his gaze onto Ahkmenrah's eyes.] You deserve the whole world at your feet, not a single building.
[What a feeling, not new but long-forgotten: Benjamin quite nearly worshiped him. It had been so long that Ahkmenrah hadn't seen it until it became too obvious to ignore, but those words - you deserve the whole world at your feet - took him right back. A pampered life surrounded by love and idolatry and luxury, with which his elder brother only made the most glancing contact until the fury of that fact drove him to eliminate the boy who he felt had stolen it all with his very birth.
It wasn't exactly what he wanted from Benjamin, who he saw more as a friend than a subject, but the way that feeling swelled inside him until his shoulders were straighter, his head higher, could not be denied. This was a future that had first seen his sacred tomb raided for "education," then seen him trapped in his sarcophagus for decades by men ignorant or uncaring of his true station. Regaining a piece of the past was fiercely satisfying under those circumstances.]
I'll do it. I'll take what you have to offer. But I only need to see the world, really, I don't know a thing about it anymore. That doesn't make a decent ruler.
[Moving back to stand closer to Benjamin, his serious expression grows stiff around the edges: not just solemn but nervous.] How - how exactly do you -
[Benjamin gave the minutest of nods. They were far past the days of the Pharoah's, though maybe a return to rulers such as them would have been an improvement on the current day. And perhaps Benjamin was merely nostalgic for the bygone era.]
I can't be sure that it will work. [He finally admitted out loud, his eyes lowered from his usual stare as he thought to explain it.] I'll drink from you, drain nearly all you have to offer and then you'll drink from me. It's not an easy transition but I will take care of you. [It felt like warmth emanated from the other and a part of him didn't want to pull that away from him. One could dream that his warmth would remain but that would be foolish.]
... I'm not sure it will, either. I'm not even sure I still have blood. [That was the sort of wry comment the others in the museum would look at him strangely for making, a bit too stark and blunt even for those from much deadlier periods in history, but he knew Benjamin would understand. He'd definitely had his organs removed, given that he was fully mummified, and a magical tablet that could bring wax and stuffed pelts to realistic life didn't leave room for any assumptions about what it did to him. He was real, he knew that much, but what did that mean beyond flesh?]
My father never had the chance to explain the full working of the tablet before I was - died. [There was a telling slip and correction of the tongue. Did Benjamin know his story, he wondered? Were many stories told of him at all?] I'm not always of much help.
[There was the pressing question. Was he sure. Was he sure?] Do people often know for certain when they make this change? [Again, his tone was making light of it in a sardonic sort of way, but he also hadn't answered.]
Edited (MISSED A LINE IN HIS TAG SORRY) Date: 2016-09-19 07:35 pm (UTC)
[Benjamin's eyes shifted back to Ahkmenrah's at the statement, the shift of words that was all too noticeable. He shook his head. It was one of the rare moments -- more often since he'd met Akhmenrah -- that he felt speechless. It wasn't a choice not to speak but the utter lack of what words to say.
Instead he shook his head minutely at the comment about not being helpful.]
We will see what happens.
[Perhaps, if Ahkmenrah was truly serious about this, part of Benjamin worried it might be a whim that would change and that was part of why he questioned.]
Many, if not most, have little choice in the matter.
[Lips pursed thoughtfully, Ahkmenrah nodded. That was about what he'd expected to hear.]
My father wanted me to have eternal life. But he also wanted all of us to be together, and we were separated when our tomb was found, so they've never returned. There may be no way for things to be as he wished. The best thing I can do now is live, isn't it, something more like a real life?
[Even though this was Benjamin's idea, and he was encouraging it at almost every step, Ahkmenrah still trusted the man to give him an honest answer rather than steer him in the most personally favourable direction. One could see the sort of leader he was in that moment: caring and earnest but much too trusting and dangerously naive, viewed as benevolent by some and spineless by many more, all too easily overthrown.
Quite suddenly, forgetting the distance he always tended to respect, he reached out and took both of Benjamin's hands in his. Oh, his skin was so cold.]
Well, I'm taking the choice. I leave the rest in your hands.
[That was a weighty thing to advise on. There was always a subjective sort of feeling to what 'real life' even was. There were many that would have scorned the life Benjamin had lived and even himself at times had grown wary of it.]
I would say yes, if it were me, but only you can really answer that for yourself.
[His words were soft, tender and he wished he could give a definitive answer but that wouldn't have been fair.
Benjamin's eyes widened again when Ahkmenrah took his hands, staring down at them. The warmth that didn't really sink in but that he couldn't help but enjoy just a little. They were talking about taking it away but there was still plenty to gain.
The Pharaoh was touching him, his lips parted to speak but no words came out. Honestly, if he was to turn him he'd have to have touched him at some point so perhaps it was best to get this shock out of the way.]
[He'd gotten a little too excited there, and hadn't even realized it until Benjamin looked so startled; embarrassed, he withdrew his hands and wondered if the chill was why Benjamin never wanted to touch him. It certainly didn't bother him, given that people made of wax tended to feel a bit unusual when brought to life as well.
Now he wasn't quite sure what to do with himself - he'd made the choice, but there were still questions in his mind, he just felt a bit childish spilling nothing but questions while Benjamin answered so patiently.]
[Benjamin explained quickly at the apology that had followed Ahkmenrah letting go of him. His eyes searched the other's face again. Was this the right thing to do or would Ahkmenrah come to hate him for doing this to him? He was so kind and happy in Benjamin's mind.
What if the realities of the life they would share weighed on him? Changed him? Of course it would change him, rarely does anyone not change at all when they're altered in such a fundamental way. But he trusted Ahkmenrah's judgement and his decision -- who was he to argue, truly. And selfishly he wanted him to so they could see the world together.]
[Oh, oh no, was that it? Was that why Benjamin kept his distance? Ahkmenrah couldn't help but laugh, even though it probably wasn't the kindest response, because it was just so strange to have someone point out his title with such awe in this day and age. Benjamin himself was still millennia ahead of his family and the culture he'd known. What incredible respect for history, which is what Ahkmenrah is now.]
I was the Pharaoh. I was a Pharaoh. You needn't show me special treatment for that, Benjamin, just knowing the depth of your respect is enough.
[The smile stayed on his face even as he considered whether or not he was truly ready for this. He couldn't seem to shake it off. You're just... the Pharaoh. The words felt as though they were caught inside him and glowing, like fireflies in a net.]
I - [No. He wasn't ready.] - I must speak to Larry first. I know he'll guard the tablet well in my absence, there's no doubt in my mind, but... [He just gave Benjamin a pleading look, hoping he'd understand why Ahkmenrah still needed reassurance before he could say a true goodbye.]
I can make no promises. [Benjamin highly doubted that he could stop giving the other special treatment even at his request. He'd grown up to stories of Pharaohs and had a deep respect for the history of his culture and home country. Ahkmenrah was an embodiment of all that and much closer to the ways he was used to in his early life than many he had known since.]
You should settle everything that you need to. [He said, bowing his head slightly.] I would not have this any other way.
no subject
Date: 2016-09-19 07:48 am (UTC)When he finally looked back to meet Benjamin's eye, he found himself startled by the intensity of his (blood-)red gaze. Surely he himself didn't look at people that intently without realizing it... did he? It made his heart flutter strangely in his chest.]
The sort of chance you had?
no subject
Date: 2016-09-19 08:29 am (UTC)Yes.
[It was clear what he was offering even though it was left unsaid. He wanted to reach and touch Ahkmenrah but there was still a part of him that felt he was untouchable, a god before him. Would he make him less so if he agreed? His brow creased at the thought and only then did his gaze lower away from his face.]
i don't have enough srs icons
Date: 2016-09-19 08:57 am (UTC)It doesn't bother me. Your being a vampire. But never having known another one, and only having seen you here, not in your actual life... [He laughed to himself when he realized what he had just said.] ... then again, you've got an actual life that doesn't end quite as literally at sunrise.
[There was more, though. So much to consider if things changed that much.] Where would I live, if not at the museum? What would I - do?
no subject
Date: 2016-09-19 09:32 am (UTC)You would live with me. If you wanted... though you could do anything, be anyone that you wanted to be. We could go anywhere. [His words were earnest. He remembered a time where that hadn't been the case for himself.] We'd have all the time in the world to figure it out.
no subject
Date: 2016-09-19 09:48 am (UTC)[There was just one more thing to consider, which had him up on his feet and racing for his tomb exhibit in a heartbeat, waving for Benjamin to come follow. The 200 ft tall jackal statues guarding the exhibit deferred immediately at the sight of Ahkmenrah and close enough to Ahkmenrah, allowing them to enter far enough to see the tablet.]
My father made this for me. He entrusted it to me. It's given a lot of people here - not everyone would consider them people, but I do - wonderful lives. If i no longer need it, I can leave it here, and they still...
[But he's still giving up that powerful gift from his father.]
no subject
Date: 2016-09-19 11:15 am (UTC)[He got up quickly to follow the other through the museum. His eyes fell on the tablet and then returned to Ahkmenrah. He knew what he was asking him to give up.]
I know it wouldn't be easy but... [What was an adequate and appropriate thing to say? Centuries of life and he was still ill-prepared.]
no subject
Date: 2016-09-19 04:53 pm (UTC)Everyone moves on to find their own lives eventually, don't they? From parents, from schooling, from - museums and familial magic - [He turned to look at Benjamin, something more eager in his expression. His tablet cast a soft golden light across his skin, almost making him appear lit from within.] - I'd like to. I want to. I still can't quite believe you'd offer me all this.
no subject
Date: 2016-09-19 06:37 pm (UTC)But the chance to leave the museum and explore the world with someone he'd chosen, that'd chosen him...]
Yes. [Benjamin gave a slight nod. After all, he had been turned, staying with his Coven and Creator for so long before they had parted ways and now he was making another transition -- he hoped. He stared at Ahkmenrah, for all their similarities he was certain that he was not nearly as beautiful as he was and while he was kind and often too compassionate for his own good he didn't think he was nearly as good-hearted as he.
It was difficult to do much but stare in his presence and especially just now. He'd nearly missed what he'd said but his eyes widened as he focused his gaze onto Ahkmenrah's eyes.] You deserve the whole world at your feet, not a single building.
no subject
Date: 2016-09-19 07:06 pm (UTC)It wasn't exactly what he wanted from Benjamin, who he saw more as a friend than a subject, but the way that feeling swelled inside him until his shoulders were straighter, his head higher, could not be denied. This was a future that had first seen his sacred tomb raided for "education," then seen him trapped in his sarcophagus for decades by men ignorant or uncaring of his true station. Regaining a piece of the past was fiercely satisfying under those circumstances.]
I'll do it. I'll take what you have to offer. But I only need to see the world, really, I don't know a thing about it anymore. That doesn't make a decent ruler.
[Moving back to stand closer to Benjamin, his serious expression grows stiff around the edges: not just solemn but nervous.] How - how exactly do you -
no subject
Date: 2016-09-19 07:16 pm (UTC)I can't be sure that it will work. [He finally admitted out loud, his eyes lowered from his usual stare as he thought to explain it.] I'll drink from you, drain nearly all you have to offer and then you'll drink from me. It's not an easy transition but I will take care of you. [It felt like warmth emanated from the other and a part of him didn't want to pull that away from him. One could dream that his warmth would remain but that would be foolish.]
You truly want this? It cannot be undone.
no subject
Date: 2016-09-19 07:30 pm (UTC)My father never had the chance to explain the full working of the tablet before I was - died. [There was a telling slip and correction of the tongue. Did Benjamin know his story, he wondered? Were many stories told of him at all?] I'm not always of much help.
[There was the pressing question. Was he sure. Was he sure?] Do people often know for certain when they make this change? [Again, his tone was making light of it in a sardonic sort of way, but he also hadn't answered.]
no subject
Date: 2016-09-19 08:37 pm (UTC)Instead he shook his head minutely at the comment about not being helpful.]
We will see what happens.
[Perhaps, if Ahkmenrah was truly serious about this, part of Benjamin worried it might be a whim that would change and that was part of why he questioned.]
Many, if not most, have little choice in the matter.
no subject
Date: 2016-09-19 08:54 pm (UTC)My father wanted me to have eternal life. But he also wanted all of us to be together, and we were separated when our tomb was found, so they've never returned. There may be no way for things to be as he wished. The best thing I can do now is live, isn't it, something more like a real life?
[Even though this was Benjamin's idea, and he was encouraging it at almost every step, Ahkmenrah still trusted the man to give him an honest answer rather than steer him in the most personally favourable direction. One could see the sort of leader he was in that moment: caring and earnest but much too trusting and dangerously naive, viewed as benevolent by some and spineless by many more, all too easily overthrown.
Quite suddenly, forgetting the distance he always tended to respect, he reached out and took both of Benjamin's hands in his. Oh, his skin was so cold.]
Well, I'm taking the choice. I leave the rest in your hands.
no subject
Date: 2016-09-20 02:40 am (UTC)I would say yes, if it were me, but only you can really answer that for yourself.
[His words were soft, tender and he wished he could give a definitive answer but that wouldn't have been fair.
Benjamin's eyes widened again when Ahkmenrah took his hands, staring down at them. The warmth that didn't really sink in but that he couldn't help but enjoy just a little. They were talking about taking it away but there was still plenty to gain.
The Pharaoh was touching him, his lips parted to speak but no words came out. Honestly, if he was to turn him he'd have to have touched him at some point so perhaps it was best to get this shock out of the way.]
no subject
Date: 2016-09-20 05:59 pm (UTC)[He'd gotten a little too excited there, and hadn't even realized it until Benjamin looked so startled; embarrassed, he withdrew his hands and wondered if the chill was why Benjamin never wanted to touch him. It certainly didn't bother him, given that people made of wax tended to feel a bit unusual when brought to life as well.
Now he wasn't quite sure what to do with himself - he'd made the choice, but there were still questions in his mind, he just felt a bit childish spilling nothing but questions while Benjamin answered so patiently.]
Should we... right away, do you think?
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Date: 2016-09-21 04:01 am (UTC)[Benjamin explained quickly at the apology that had followed Ahkmenrah letting go of him. His eyes searched the other's face again. Was this the right thing to do or would Ahkmenrah come to hate him for doing this to him? He was so kind and happy in Benjamin's mind.
What if the realities of the life they would share weighed on him? Changed him? Of course it would change him, rarely does anyone not change at all when they're altered in such a fundamental way. But he trusted Ahkmenrah's judgement and his decision -- who was he to argue, truly. And selfishly he wanted him to so they could see the world together.]
Are you ready?
no subject
Date: 2016-09-21 04:18 am (UTC)I was the Pharaoh. I was a Pharaoh. You needn't show me special treatment for that, Benjamin, just knowing the depth of your respect is enough.
[The smile stayed on his face even as he considered whether or not he was truly ready for this. He couldn't seem to shake it off. You're just... the Pharaoh. The words felt as though they were caught inside him and glowing, like fireflies in a net.]
I - [No. He wasn't ready.] - I must speak to Larry first. I know he'll guard the tablet well in my absence, there's no doubt in my mind, but... [He just gave Benjamin a pleading look, hoping he'd understand why Ahkmenrah still needed reassurance before he could say a true goodbye.]
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Date: 2016-09-22 09:38 am (UTC)You should settle everything that you need to. [He said, bowing his head slightly.] I would not have this any other way.