After: An Atlantis Fanfic

Two Weeks Later...

Milo Thatch woke up to the sound of water roaring and exotic birds chirping. He smiled, finally feeling content after a long night's rest. His eyes opened to beams of bright light coming from the balcony of his high-ceilinged room.

"K-Kida?"Milo rubbed his head, still feeling groggy. His dream from the night was quickly leaving his mind, as reality gripped him once again.

"Oh..." Milo's smile quickly faded as he realized that she had never been by his side. He stared at the empty side of his bed, longing for it to be filled.

Still in a depressed haze, Milo stood up and walked to the other end of the room to change. The Atlantean atmosphere didn't seem very comforting anymore. Once he had his robes on, Milo stared at his reflection in the small waterfall coming from the ceiling. He looked at all his new tattoos, his strange Atlantean clothing, and how long his hair had become.

"This isn't me..." He whispered to himself, fingering the glowing crystal around his neck.

"What do you mean this isn't you?"

"GAAh... oh, it's just you, Mrs. Uneoa." His kindly maid stood behind him, breakfast tray in hand, smiling. "By any chance... did you see me... uh..." Milo pointed to where he had changed.

"Oh, goodness no, Thatch. I'm not that intrusive, am I?"

"N-no, you just startled me, that's all." Milo rubbed his neck uncomfortably.

"Well, Thatch, you've got a big day ahead of you" She set his tray down at a table near his bed, and beckoned him to come eat. Milo followed, the aroma of fresh whatever filled his nose and made him feel even hungrier.

"Alright, what's the lineup?" He started to dig in, still struggling to use the Atlantean utensils. Mrs. Uneoa began to straighten Milo's bed while briefing him.

"Well, you know that mural they pulled from the lake? Well, you have to finish translating it this morning."

"Oh, I'm almost done with that. Kida won't belie-"

"Which brings me to my next point. Queen Nedakh has specially requested that you meet with her over a private lunch to discuss the mural."

"Thi-Today?" Milo smiled, feeling hopeful for the first time in a very long time. "Aw, Mrs. Uneoa, this is great! Do you know how long it's been since-"

"Careful, Milo. Her Highness specifically pointed out that it is to be a business only meeting. Nothing else." She aggressively shook his pillow, fluffing it up.

"Eh... Anything else for the day? I-I'm sure K-Kd-Kida will want to... you know... if she has some free time... maybe?"

His maid sighed, put the pillow down, and put her hand on Milo's shoulder. "Milo, I know you love the Queen, but-"

"No... you don't necessarily know tha-"

"MILO! Listen to me. The entire city knows. You don't exactly hide it well..."

"Well, what am I supposed to do?" Milo stood up, feeling very frustrated. "I mean, when I came here, Kida spent lots of time with me! We held hands! We hugged! For goodness sake, she even trusted me with her LIFE!  I don't know why all of a sudden she's... she's avoiding me..." Milo moved towards the balcony, and gazed out at the city stoically.

"She never loved me, did she? She was just... using me to save her people. How could've I been... sooo... stupid?!" He slumped over onto the railing, feeling defeated.

"Milo, you can't just assume her feelings for you. She is also a Queen now, and has duties to fulfill. As do you, as the only translator of old Atlantean text. Give it some time, maybe she'll come around."

"Well, Mrs. Uneoa, if I give it some time, whatever we had two weeks ago... it might just fade completely. I... I chose to stay down here because... well, because I thought Kida loved me. I thought... never mind. It's useless."

"What? Milo, if you need to get it off your chest, just tell me." Mrs. Uneoa looked at Milo, an expression of genuine concern on her face. Milo sighed, then began again.

"Well, I had hoped that we could star-start a... a family. When my crew left, I-I expected Kida to welcome me into her life! Not seclude me to the other end of the palace, and put me to work without a second thought! I didn't think that I'd get to see her maybe once a week on a professional basis. I feel like I'm back in DC again... except this time, I actually care about the person that's ignoring me," In that moment, Milo felt very exposed. He had never told anyone else how, or why he felt that way.

"Well, if you want to do something to move the relationship along, why don't you just start small? Think about what you two have in common, or things you enjoyed together when you first met. Milo, don't give up all hope, it will get better, You'll see!"

"Thanks, Mrs. Uneoa. I don't know what I would do without you..."

"It's no problem Mil-Oh!" She held up her crystal, which was flashing repeatedly. "Looks like her highness herself is summoning me! Well, I'll see you around, Thatch! Take care!"

"You too Mrs. Uneo-" She had already closed the hallway door shut.

Milo sighed, and looked out at the city once more. Even though Mrs. Uneoa gave him some pretty valid advice, he still felt completely hopeless.

"Gee, I wonder if this is how Romeo felt after meeting Rosaline, all depressed, and hopelessly longing for at least some interaction with her." A bright, slender bird swooped down from the floor above and landed right next to Milo, chirping melodiously.

"Yeah, little guy," Milo smiled, "It is too bad all the good books are left on the surface world. Kida would've found Shakespeare amusing. Probably would've liked Jules Verne too..." Milo sighed, and the strange bird chirped some more.

"I only wish I could show her my old world... I mean, I didn't ever feel like I belonged there, but I still loved it, and... wait! That's it!" Milo stood a little taller, the idea setting a hopeful fire to his brain. "You are a genius, little guy! I'll just invite her to tour the world with me! I mean, everyone needs a break from work, even Queens, right?" The bird flew around Milo's head, cheerfully singing once again.

"Yes! The best part about this is that she won't be distracted by her duties, so we can FINALLY be together! I have to go finish translating, then I'll break it to her over lunch. This is gonna be so great!" Milo ran back to the table, snarfed the rest of his breakfast, hopped onto a FlyingFish vehicle, and sped off to finish the translations.