The pair zapped to Amneris' townhouse and landed on the carpeted floor of the living room with a thud. Amneris groaned. She was glad for the carpet. Teleportation had never been her forte. She used to fly wherever she needed to go, enjoying the feel of the air currents on her wings. Alas, despite the fact she could still use her power to fly, she was long since wingless.

Colt stood, looking around. She watched for his reaction, but nothing happened. "So, this is your place?" he asked.

"While I'm on Earth, yeah," she replied, hauling herself to her feet. "It's usually cleaner," she added, noticing the various book piles leaning against the walls. She had meant to take them back to Lyriumia but . . .

"I still do not understand why you suddenly trust me. You do not seem like that kind of person." I'm not that kind of person, she thought. Colt was looking at a small row of pictures on a shelf. She squealed and forcefully pushed him away.

"Knew I should've got one of those 'no touching' signs," she muttered, pulling a picture off the wall and pushing the button behind it. The floor they were standing on lowered. Colt whistled appreciatively. She rolled her eyes.

********

The pair approached a silver door after arriving below the house. There were a few others further down the hall. This particular door had a small indentation in it that was the shape of an ankh. Amneris pulled at the three chains around her neck until she found the right one and took it off. The charm dangling on the silver chain was a golden ankh with a small amethyst in the head. It also had a carved swirling pattern and several small emerald and sapphire stones covering the rest. She held it it up for Colt to see. Something like recognition crossed his features. Perhaps he's seen a similar one before. "I got this in Kemet."

"Kemet?" he repeated.

"It's the Egyptian name for Egypt. Well, for the ancients." Like me. "The Greeks renamed it Egypt, you know."

"I did not know." Liar.

She played along. "Well, now you do." Amneris placed the charm in the indentation. It glowed momentarily before the door swung open. She took the charm out and placed it around her neck once again. She gave Colt a dramatic bow as he entered. "Welcome to the portal room." she said, flipping a switch. The room lit up in pale yellow light. Inside were various large rounded doorways of many different colours. Writing adorned the circles and four different coloured buttons were on a small silver panel beside all. Sometimes, when she was seriously out of it, her first thought upon seeing them would be Since when do I own Stargates? It had taken a lot of effort to not tell the producers that they actually existed...

"I am going to go out on a limb here and say that these are the portals," Colt stated, pointing at one of them. She could almost hear him asking, Why do you even have these here?

She gave him a tight smile. "Yep." Amneris swept a hand towards the room. "Those are less than one percent of the multiverse's portals owned by my people." It's not like we actually use them, or anything. She gestured to a red button next to her. "Whatever you do, don't press that. Things will go boom and there will be no more of this Earth left."

"Should I be afraid?"

"Probably, but you're not." She swore in Kemetic, batting his hand away from one of the portals. "No touching."

He gave her a scathing look. "If I cannot touch, then why did you bring me in here?"

"To gloat." He gave her a harsher look and she threw her hands up. "Come on." She muttered under her breath in Kemetic as she drifted out of the room. When he did not follow, she grabbed his hand and dragged him.

She took him back down the hall to an onyx door which was where her study was located. Colt managed to pull free from her grip. "Why must you be so strong?" he whined, kneading his hand as he looked around the room.

"Because that's what happens when you've been around for as long as me," she replied, tugging off her hoodie and dumping it over a chair. She faced him, arms crossed. "What?" she demanded under his stare.

"You are definitely younger than I thought," he murmured. She could swear that his eyes glazed over momentarily.

Without the baggy hoodie covering her up, she had the body of a short, slim teenage girl. To most mortals, she looked no older than sixteen or seventeen. If only they knew. "Amuse me," she said with a sideways smile.

Colt circled her, looking thoughtful. "I know you are over one hundred," he muttered to himself. "Two hundred? Two fifty?" Amneris clapped a hand over her mouth, eyes bright with laughter. "I am way off, am I not?"

She nodded, catching her breath. "I'm okay. I'm okay," she wheezed, collapsing into a chair. "You're way off. I'm over five thousand."

"Over five . . . of course you are," he muttered. He went silent for a moment, as though processing what she had said.

"Oh, chill out. i don't bite. Well, that's a lie," she added, revealing her canines with a dark smile. She gestured to the seat in front of her desk. Amneris did not hide her smile at her guest's discomfort. "What do you know about Tara's plan?"

"Only that she wishes to release Enliatu."

She gave him a flat look. "You are no help." He held her gaze. "Why would I need your help if you know nothing?"

"I can help you, Amneris," he insisted. "I know of the ten items required for the spell you used to seal him. They are also used to break the spell."

She blinked, the only sign of her surprise. It made sense that Colt knew about the spell. It was one of the rare spells used for travel to and from Negative Space, the space between universes. It was mostly empty, there only being a few places where life thrived. Negative Space was used as a prison for the worst of the worst. Well, only in those particular places where it was truly empty. Amneris had been trapped there once. The thought was enough to make her shiver.

She looked over Colt, assessing him. She could sense his power. It was strong for a mortal. She frowned, looking deeper into his power. There's something else there. i can feel it. So, why can't I see it? It was ancient magic, that much she could see. Amneris rested her head on her hands. "The gods are going to hang, draw, and quarter me for what I'm about to do."

He grinned. "So, you accept my offer?"

She nodded reluctantly as her sight was drawn to the skylight. The sun was setting. She stood. "You can stay here for the night. We'll leave in the morning." She snapped her fingers and they appeared int the kitchen. "Down the hall on the left is the spare bedroom, on the right is the bathroom. You need a shower, no offence." She waved him off. "You get lost, just yell out."

"Thank you, Amnsy," he called over his shoulder.

"Don't call me Amnsy," she muttered, turning towards the kitchen to make dinner. It had been quite some time since she made something for more than one. At least, it felt like a long time. Pulling headphones where were resting on a shelf, she begun.

By the time her guest reappeared, Amneris had finished cooking, changed clothes, and had taken out her black contact lenses. She had decided it would be pointless to hide her appearance. Colt whistled appreciatively as she placed plates on the small table. Instead of eating straight away, Amneris found him watching her. "What?"

"You have beautiful eyes," he murmured. She felt herself go red. "I mean it."

For a moment, she thought he as going to reach across the table for a closer look. "My people are born with violet eyes. No one knows where the gold came from." Why am I still talking? She turned her focus to her food. Not a word was spoken until the end of the meal. Amneris took their plates to the kitchen, grabbing a bowl, and putting chips and m&ms in it. She collapsed with a sigh. She could feel Colt's stare as she ate. It sent a shiver down her spine. Even so, his stare felt familiar. She cocked her head slightly. "Have we met before?" she asked. "You seem very familiar."

"We may have crossed paths before," he answered with a shrug.

She watched him thoughtfully as she finished the last of her chips and the now-salty m&ms. She stood and stretched before placing the bowl in the sink. I'll wash up tomorrow. Amneris faked a yawn, not enjoying the tension in the room. "We should sleep." She spotted his mischievous grin and hissed.

He raised his hands in surrender and walked out. "Goodnight, Amneris."