Lion Head Mesa fair winds [wp]

The wedding was beautiful. Akhtar could drop all of his flimsy pretenses, he was having fun and he knew it. He weaved among the guests, odd in form to their wild, wolfish shapes. 

He was dressed impeccably in his priestly regalia, much like his apprentice, the sheer white coat of his mink fur stole still sat upon his throat, even with the bright shock of another pelt across his back. He didn’t quite know what it was, but the stark black contrast to his light coat was enjoyed.

He emerged from the crowd only to root about for refreshments. It was to be a long night, and he wasn’t one to waste a party.

"hem."

by now tavina was full of berrywine and rich meat; her eyes were dark with the inebriation. stars climbed overhead. 

she offered him the carefully prepared wing of dove she held, wrapped in soft sage leaves. "tonight is a welcome sight." 

someone laughed, not far off.

Sesh Tavina. Akhtar greeted in kind, offering a fanning wave of his curled, long furred tail. He accepted the dove with grace, resting it by his feet as he sought to catch his breath.

Quite. I am happy to see Akashingo in revelry again. One of his ears tipped towards the sound of the laughter, and his narrow face sought it out for a time, before deciding the crowds were too thick, and he had no ways of knowing what was going on.

It is also quite good to see Pharaoh pleased once again.

He was lying. He thought he was at least. The venomous hiss of the god who had plagued him had began to ebb when the mourning had passed. He gave a quick, ruffled shake, like he had just caught a chill.

tavina had spent enough time with the cultured dogs of akashingo to understand that sometimes their emotions made them twitch. 

not drunk, she might have questioned. as it was, she only stood regarding the holy man with open amusement. "he deserves it. we all do." he had kept them riveted to those seventy days.

"our crown prince is reticent. a scholar." it was better for akashingo, she felt.

she did not mean to.

sayf would certainly have her ear for it.

her trail of work often lined along with the trail of tavina. it stung her so bitterly to be apart on a night like tonight. love the main course, and nala was starved.

she scuttled by tavina and a priest.

eyes longing, but prepared to move along.

Akhtar caught the amusement and flashed a small, embarrassed smile.

Forgive me for that. It appears I will have to invest in heavier pelts soon. His eyes traveled from the woman, to the crowd.

He is a good boy. The scholars often make the best diplomats, when given opportunity. The royal boy would, hopefully, succeed his father in temperament as well as the throne. 

He pursed his lips. Ramesses was fickle, but, well, all royals were to Akhtar. Perhaps it came with the job. A crown and the temper of a schoolboy, a package deal fit for a king.

He did not notice the skuttling shape of the sanpin nearby. He was busy with his musings.

nala —!

oh! she wanted to reach for her love; she wanted — her eyes caressed the woman, and then akhtar was speaking and nala was gone.

tavina swung back helplessly.

"no need to apologize, holy one," she said. "i am only bolder tonight than usual, you must forgive me." a small, self-deprecating smile. "princess makono made her first visit on the work of an emissary, as i am sure you know. she took little nazli with her. it is good to see a royal so kind to fellahin as to culture them."

Akhtar gave a short noise, a little ha! that existed high in his nasal cavity for a split second.

It very much so is. A good rarity. Perhaps he should not have indulged so heavily earlier. His tongue was too loose. He would turn away in a moment and come back to find it spilling his life out to a crowd of gossipers next.

He was getting good at shoving away thoughts.

I hope the princess had a fruitful endeavor among our allies. He would need to either retire soon, or go stuff his head into something to block out the noise and political backtalking.

Deep brown eyes went to his paws, before the priest settled back on his haunches. He could sit for a spell.

Do you happen to know who all is here? I confess, it must have slipped my mind.

"i believe so. there is a suggestion that pharaoh means to send he and she out together." a bonding experience, of sorts.

"teya of brecheliant and her daughter are present. we have emissaries from kvarsheim here; i spoke with taktuq first. and there is a contingent from mereo here, though i am unfamiliar with their names."

her eyes closed for a moment against the noise. "would you care to retire to my exam room, holy one? i will be asked for a sleeping draught or rejuvenating drink against the berries, at some point. i should begin to mix them now."

Akhtar’s smile gave a downwards twist, turning rueful and jaded.

I would love to, my lady. But I doubt I can be away for long, I don’t want Pharaoh to come looking for me should he require my presence for anything more. He gave a little snort of humor, a joking gleam coming into his eyes.

Who knows. Perhaps I will be called upon to preform weddings for drunkards who are convinced they’re soulmates.

her heart ached for nala.

tavina stayed present with the hem. her lips curved in a smile to compliment his own. "shall we reconvene then?" she asked of him, warm no matter what.

"i would not dream of taking you from such services, holy one," the sesh said with a dry graveness, though her purple eyes twinkled as she said it.

Akhtar dipped his head in a short, silent bow of respect to the healer woman.

I believe we shall, if you do not mind. She was a fine woman. Akhtar enjoyed speaking with her, but he was to be back in the fray.

Ah, if that is my services, I believe I would be preforming some form of wedding every other week! His voice rose an octave, nose tipping into the air, before he broke into a soft spell of laughter.

<3

"until tomorrow, priest. or perhaps the next day." her teeth flashed in a grin.

"enjoy the party." she dipped her head to him and moved off, swallowed by the crowd as she searched for nala.

he was a fine man, perhaps finer than tavina had expected.