Lion Head Mesa electrum

princess @Toula had been given the same education as her sisters and brothers. when he summoned her that afternoon to join him, he expected the same poise exhibited by her elder siblings.
unfortunately for toula, it was makono who had come to set the standard for the trio of princesses.
but both gentle ashikaga and her ambitious sister were in reach of the throne. little toula might never carry the heavy burden, expectation, and threat of divine rulership. 
and so pharaoh was perhaps more doting with her. he lay among scattered flowers out of doors beside the serpent, watching its lazy waters as he waited.

toula was happily whisked away, her joy especially evident as she learnt whom had summoned her. she was always so thrilled and happy to be in the company of her father, who she would listen to endlessly. toula had begun to absorb so many lessons, and her favored times were when she was able to share with him what she had learned. even better when she could listen to him; her father had so many lessons to provide himself! 
when she saw him, it was clear that the young toula had at last learned restraint to not leap and bound into his arms.  the desire to was there, but well-leashed. still toula’s education in hiding such was incomplete. though she was as still as untouched water, the amiirad was an otherwise open book as she beamed at the languishing pharaoh. the young princess greeted him with a warm, perfectly enunciated hello, father, with a warm gaze. she would wait to approach him this day, until he asked. that she wished to be nearer to him, at least, was not so obvious!

toula spoke clearly and pharaoh rewarded her with a level look and a wreathing smile. she was every bit a princess as ashikaga and makono had been at her age, and only a short time away from being sent upon her own missions, to find her own footing.
"come. sit with me." he gestured to a spot among the flowers. "tell me what you have learned of the gods." for they would always rule her life; an understanding of Ma'at and Its Purpose was integral to every member of akashingo, especially those who carried the divine responsibility of speaking for said deities.

toula did as she was bid with ample grace. his smile was answered with a gentle one that was unabashed, and truly happy. drawing alongside him, toula seated herself with grace that came from her teachings and her good breeding both. toula had come to take great care in all that she did, so that she might earn more smiles from both mother and father. it was a reward as great as any in this lifetime that she knew, and for now these things fulfilled her.
his question asked was answered with a knowing smile. she drew in a quiet breath and considered her answer carefully, before challenging him as only a young daughter might: who would you like to hear of first, father? with bright eyes that regarded him with plain adoration. she hoped to surprise and please him both! for there were so many. and perhaps in this way, she might learn of his own favorite. would that not be who he might list now?

"tell me of the goddess Iset then," he urged. the servants moved around them; the breeze was gentle. he smiled at toula. all felt right in the world, despite the redstone tomb of his first queen far in the distance.
the land was theirs. the river was sweet.
she was already so elegant, this child that he and treva had made. ramesses was seized with sorrow for his first three, that their own mother was not here to watch them grow into their hallowed selves.

Iset. toula changed at once, as though the spirit of the woman was within her rather than her own. she sat taller, and her eyes seemed imbued with Her divine power. She is the daughter of Geb and Nut, and sister to Osiris, Set, and Nephthys, toula began, reciting from rote but speaking with her heart, given her own affinity and devotion toward Her. she continued: She was wed to Osiris. Iset loved Him. but Set killed His brother. for which toula reviled him for, being unable to understand fratricide.
she continued: even though Set scattered the pieces of Him, Iset and Her love prevailed. it was Her tears that made the Great River rise so that the broken pieces of His body could be found. Her magick brought Him together again, for a time, and He was neither living, nor dead. But Her power was so great that together, They two had a child in this time--Horus. and Osiris then needs must go to the underworld, where He became King, she continued, not once stammering. she told the story of Iset as if it were a memory of her own, falling passionately into the words as though she herself lived it. toula paused, now, waiting for instruction to continue on, or perhaps to speak of another God. but first, she thought to say, father, would it be wise to build something for Iset? for She is a great protector, she marveled. and to be close to Iset in this way during prayer warmed her spirits to think of!
what would her father think? she searched his visage for approval, praying to Iset then... and Renenet, too, for good fortune!

toula answered with precision, and received the fond shining of ramesses' eye in return. she was finely formed and truly blessed by the gods; the amiirad had great respect for her tutors and a striking reverence for the gods even now. 
he was reminded of his father's holiness and devotion, how he had never missed a feast day nor an opportunity to celebrate with his people. and he wondered if fierce seti looked down upon his grandchild even now, and favoured her in his own light.
pharaoh too noted how the story of Iset was so close to heart for his toula; he smiled indulgently when she had finished and crossed his forepaws. "yes. i would like this to be your first courtly task. take whomever you like; discover inside or outside the palace a proper place for an altar."
he pondered. "we must have a ceremony for nebet maegi in winter, to commemorate her passing."

her happiness was a thing she could not hide. her smile was as full as her heart then felt. i will find the perfect place, a place She would love, she dreamed aloud, mind already working to remember places worthy of Her that would also please her father.
toula considered Iset for another moment in silence. and then she asked, father, can I be wed to brother, too? like Iset a girlish fantasy, the idea borne of her idols own actions. she wondered if Iset would approve! i love him very much, she said with a soft smile that was all guileless innocence. her love for her brothers was truly fierce, though it was the same love she shared for her mother, her father. but in the story, it was her brother Iset wed, and this was why she asked.
and as for his next words, toula lowered her head a measure in respect for the late nebet. it was something toula saw others do. what sort of ceremony? she inquired, tail neatly wrapping around her hindquarter as she looked up to her father. can i help? she wondered, hopeful.

ramesses laughed a little at that. "you want to marry studious young sethnakht? would you not care for a warrior?" he teased, batting a little flower her way. but he approved of her own studied nature. "it is good that you love your brother, as Iset loved Osiris. They are why lovers call one another 'sister' and 'brother.'"
"but i have not yet decided to whom you will be wed."
that would be a conversation to have with the priests and her stately mother.
"yes, you may help. we will speak of her, and sing prayers to where her spirit lies."

i love sethnakht, she said innocently in answer, though tacked on, and i love siptah, too! she smiled sweetly. sethnakht she perhaps loved best, as he was half of her. as he spoke on warriors, toula tilted her head. she had not thought much more on marriage at all, except for her brothers then. are you a warrior? could i marry you? guileless again, toula merely knew who she loved. it was not a thing intended to insult her mother, who she loved equally! it was with a daughters loving devotion that she asked, as toula did not yet understand there was any other sort of love.
to his next point, toula nodded. to her, there was nothing wrong with this; she approved of all he had done in her life, and all he had said.
including that she may help! toula, thinking on this, asked, would you tell me of her?

ramesses regarded her with gentle fondness. "it is said that the gods have married one another as sister and brother, and as father and daughter. but never mother and son, that is forbidden by Ma'at." that he spoke so idly of topics which might be elsewhere charged spoke to how much of his ways he had brought with him.
"i am a warrior. your brothers will be also. but do not think of marriage, my toula! you are very young, and Iset has great work for you to do, i am sure."
he sighed, closing his eyes. "she was a cool woman. she knew the ways of plants and of poison. she was filled with pain, and though i loved her heart she wished to give it up. she bore neb gucci two children, as you know." for he had decreed that the man was their father.
"she returned to her home to die." his eyes remained dry, though his jaws tensed. "she was one of the bravest souls i have known."

this was the way in which she had been raised; none of this was strange to her to hear! though the feelings in her were the feelings of a child, who knew love and only love for her family. and she knew that if the gods willed it, she would happily wed them! but as she idolized Iset, it was no wonder she thought firstly of her brothers.
Ma'at, Her name echoed in her mind. toula knew much of Ma'at, but was still coming to learn and memorize each law. she felt it wise to be reminded, what else does Ma'at forbid?  i should only wish to do right by Her, toula breathed. it was not in her heart to change Ma'at.
but it was to be recognized and seen by Her!
what of your heart did you love, father? she wondered aloud. she sounded a wonderful woman, truly. and toula wanted to do right by the nebet, to properly respect and preserve the proper memory of her. toula was sad, truly now, to not have known her. was this not her home? she asked next--for toula thought all here had been born to it! her mind was ever growing.
her children. medusa. midas. the girl she had seen in lessons. quiet, but so was toula in that environment unless she had questions!

ramesses sighed and it was one of memory. "maegi melonii and i met beside the sea. i had just come to these lands. we were not kind to one another at first."
and he had been even more arrogant than before.
"when i left that place i did not expect to see her again. but she came to these lands. and she made akashingo her home for a time." his heart ached beneath the royal veneer.
to the law — "Ma'at decrees: do not pollute. do not act in rash anger. do not seek to kill without cause. do not  take from the gods what is theirs. do not work evil."
he shut his eyes. "these are part of the Laws of Ma'at. there are forty-two." akhtar would have them all memorized, or that brash pupil of his.

toula sat in contemplative silence. maegi had, at first, not been kind to her father. but then her father said he too had not been kind to her. somehow, in the end, they two had come together. she had become more to him. toula could sense his sadness, and so pushed no further. she understood what mattered: maegi was loved, long before the end of her days.
he spoke of Ma'at. and toula pondered more. yes, she would indeed ask her tutor for further wisdom. but in her heart she felt at ease to know she would do none of these things. naively, she believed in earnest the same of her father.
she looked upward at him with soft eyes. father, she started, curious, what was your favorite lesson you have ever been taught? her smile was soft, and as only a child might be permitted she settled nearer to him to learn her chin against the marble pillar of his leg.
these things she would know not to do someday, in the spirit of decorum, but for now she was still just a little girl who knew above all else that she loved her father and was happy to be near him.

ramesses sniffed a bit and then looked at little toula with a smile. she was so apt and sweet, and perhaps easily his favourite even if he would never admit it. she knew her place and was happy in it.
hatshepsuun had taught him valuable and bitter lessons. but such wormwood had no place for her gentle ears. "i enjoyed being among the soldiers as their captain. i enjoyed learning to come to battle, and the prayers before you rain down upon your enemy."
he laughed softly, wondering if toula would find this odd. her father was not so warlike in practice!