it had been ages since she'd ventured to the catacombs. it felt like coming home, in a way. it also felt taboo, somehow - as if she were crossing over a patch of holy land where she was not welcome. there was nothing inscribed within the floor, no sign of anyone having blessed or cursed this place. nazli had a feeling of trepidation until she was faced with the yawning mouth of the catacomb's entryway.
there, she looked down the hall. she spied the shadows, in case anyone might traipse close, but it was a quiet moment within the palace while everyone continued to mourn. for once in a long while, nazli did not draw attention. she tipped her chin down, as if to pray, and murmured:
brother, are you -- well?
once it had been habit to come and visit
@Zakariya here, or in his own alcove. the boy had since retreated to the darkness where he felt the most comfortable, and nazli's life had become its own obstacle. she had not forgotten him - or so she told herself, feeling the constriction of guilt at her throat.
Zakariya felt the guilt too. He had rejected the life of a fellahin, retreated into the darkness to escape the path that was meant for him while his sister bore the weight of both of their fates — alone. Solitude was his only companion as Nazli's visits dwindled, but Zakariya had hardly noticed. He was so detached from her, from the realities of her life, that it didn't make much of a difference in the end. He loved her, but it felt at times as if they existed in different worlds entirely.
His fault, as he had known for a long time, and now he knew regret as well. Her familiar footsteps stirred him from the pensive silence he spent most of his days in. It had been so long since she'd visited him. Nazli,
He greeted, surprised that his voice came to him so easily. It was rare that he spoke at all. I am not well, no. I am a wretched creature, to have abandoned you for so long! I should have come out to see you, but I... was afraid.
Zakariya reached out to touch his nose to her cheek. Tell me how you have been.
oh! she was surprised by how welcoming he was. how dearly she had missed his voice. he reached for her in the dark and for a moment she glimpsed his snout, caught in the light, and felt the tender brush of his nose against her face. immediately nazli felt overcome; she stifled her feeling, swallowed it.
no doubt her brother had been listening from his hiding place. he likely had more knowledge of the inner-thoughts of the palace than anyone! had he heard of ramesses' death? everyone knew of it, everyone spoke of it and they mourned! had he heard the rumors of her own situation? but he asked now for her story, and nazli breathed a deep, weighted sigh.
i have been ill. i have gotten -- i am fat, now!
she could not help the girlish laugh that sprouted when she said this, darkened as it was by her worry. she wished she could explain the changes to him. i have missed you.
again her tone shifts, her eyes gloss. tavina cares for me while i recover. i'm on reduced duties, it is... strange.
all she wished now was for things to go backward; to mend what had been broken, to undo the many choices which had led her to this point. but that was futile, wasn't it?
Whatever Zakariya might have heard, he had done his best to put from his mind. He wanted no part of the danger he sensed in this place, the only home he had ever known. Why did he stay?
He pulled his sister a little closer if she allowed it. He knew why he stayed. I have missed you too,
Zakariya said, but he was frowning. Ill? Fat? What do you mean? What have they done to you?
Why did she wait so long to come to him? Could it be spread? Fear chilled him, but he didn't think to pull away from his sister. If she was ill, it was only right that he should be too.
she worried him. his face contorted with concern and his voice tinged with the same inflection of nala or tavina, which nazli found gratifying in a dark way; she should not have played with her brother's emotions in this way, and she knew that, and felt badly for it. nazli did not like being fussed over at the best of times; she hadn't anticipated that zakariya might do the same.
tavina says it will pass,
she lied. neither tavina or nala had given her the straight truth about this, not in any great detail, perhaps to spare her some kind of horror. nazli did appreciate that. it... it began after i saw the pharaoh; um, the holy ramesses.
she felt her face flush with warmth and she averted her eyes, forgetting her brother's blindness for a time.
blessed be his name, ah,
ramesses was gone now. she did not want to confuse her brother. i'm sorry i have not been visiting. i promise i will visit more often. my duties have become less and less, so... i think it will be acceptable to sayf and the others,
she was rambling a little bit, feeling suddenly out of place with her sibling. to make up for it, nazli nuzzled against the side of his neck with great affection. maybe we could go for ... walks? outside. there are beautiful places beyond the palace. i could describe them to you.