Lion Head Mesa 家 okaerinasai

this is dated for ??? what is time

the trio made good time.
one arch, then another, passing overhead; the sun having begun a steady creep towards the horizon, leading to a cooler wind than normal. the sunset erupted against a darkening sky, lending even the cool-toned @Germanicus with an inviting warmth.
satsu was glad to be home - more so to have @Crowfeather there, to show him what had been built, to flaunt this space that had become her shared kingdom with ramesses. she wondered how the fellahin would respond to these visitors and hoped they were not too lewd for the sake of her friend.

The dark wolf followed after Satsu with a trot to his step. Occasionally, Crowfeather would look to Germanicus. He had decided he didn't like the older man's stoicism when he could not decipher it. There were thoughts behind Germanicus' gaze that he did not understand, could not grasp on a glance alone. 

The mesa was large, stretching out before them impressively. Crowfeather breathed heavily as he looked to its shape. He would not have thought Satsu would pick such a home, not if he really thought about it. 

You surprise me, Satsu. I do not know why, but this is not the home I would have anticipated you'd select. Crowfeather smiled. Perhaps he saw more in one's desired home than he should.

germanicus had said little upon their journey.

he felt crowfeather's eyes upon him from time to time, and was swift to offer the boy a reassuring smile when it came. otherwise he spoke only when addressed.

the mesa too was not where he would have suspected a pack would make its home. the trees were dry and tangled. the mesa itself was a forbidding, visible mountain of red stone.

germanicus wondered what else satsu might be keeping behind her graceful eyes.

the doorway that led into the mesa's antechamber was occupied by maggie.
"what do you see?" ramesses inquired, lounging in a heap of feathers and flowers with jawahir. 
apprised of satsu's return, the pale beauty told pharaoh that their queen was not alone.
ramesses rolled reluctantly from the jewel's warm embrace and approached. he would be visible from this distance, a sentinel of milkwhite, flanked by maggie and soon, the spice-tones of jawahir at his other side.
pharaoh said nothing, nothing until satsu and her retinue of men had drawn closer. the older man captured his attention at once, and the cunning lapis eyes flicked over the figure.
the younger of the two was not recognized by the proud pharaoh, and well it should be.
ramesses' mouth danced with amusement. "have you brought us true custom, satsu?" he asked lightly, his attention belonging in full to her for a moment.

crowfeather's comments brought warmth to satsu's cheeks. she did not know how to take his words, and so tried to smile and brush them off as worries from a friend. beyond them was germanicus, who was silent.

it was less my choice, more my.. partner's. she explained.

i found it beautiful, though. we explored some of the landforms and... i suppose, we both fell in love with it. she did not find the heat too stifling, but then satsu was designed for such a place, according to her bloodline.

a glimmer of livid gold further ahead caught in satsu's eye, and she silenced. pharaoh did not leave the shadow of his catacombs, and instead waited for satsu and the men to arrive, before speaking.

satsu felt her blush recede.
my friend, crowfeather, has found us. he travels with the warrior germanicus, as she spoke both their names satsu moved and nodded towards them, as if to show them off; a little bit more flighty with the older man, with a lingering gaze upon crowfeather throughout.

when next satsu turned to regard ramesses she said, they are my guests.

It was good that Satsu and her partner had found a place that they both liked, even if it had taken her a short while to grow into it. The dark young shape did not know much about the founding of clans, but he did imagine that it was a vital piece for leadership to see eye to eye on those matters.

Germanicus had remained silent. This left Crowfeather with a worried lump in the back of his throat, one he could not swallow down. The older man was surely brimming with thoughts. The watchful scouring of his yellow gaze rarely missed things.

So transfixed by the muteness of the silver eagle, Crowfeather almost had not noticed the man they approached. When his gaze fell on the familiar shape, the worried lump in his throat felt as though it was strangling him.

Crowfeather knew him. That was the wolf who had called him pretty, had looked at him like some prize to be had. Now, though, he did not seem interested at all. The shadow shrunk in size, stepping until he felt he was no longer within direct view. It all felt like a trap. The seer did not wish to be near the sweet-tongued male, nor did he wish to have those lapis eyes upon him again.

wow sorry

the eagle had said nothing and missed nothing.

ahead of them there was a tall and pale figure. before germanicus arrived before the man, he had already ascertained who and what this man should be. arrogant as the day was long, with a pair of eyes outlined in kohl.

an egyptian.

the eagle already felt distastefully within himself at the prospect of these saints. satsu had been kind upon their journey but did not have his trust. she was striking, with the promise of fire beneath the ensnarement of her vivid eyes. deception was often had in beauty. 

the sensation was kindled, and with it an old prejudice. germanicus did not forget to note how crowfeather had become abrupt and shrinking and silent. he stepped in front of the shadow, flanking the woman of the saints as she named them beneath her favour. interesting that she did not say 'our guests.' he turned his gaze upon the creature of finest ceylon and amber at the indolent white side. and then the younger to the left, smiling openly and all but leering toward them, with a soft laugh that showed her cold and biting loveliness.

at this distance germanicus could breathe the scents of them, mingled, all three, in some way. he thought at once he might have finally puzzled out what such 'entertainment' satsu had meant. 

the wolves of egypt were the most indulgent, indolent rabble that he had ever met. all of their gods were devoted in some way to pleasure, and their conquering of land was not first ambition. it was said that their world had more priestesses than soldiers. but germanicus knew this not to be true. the gates of egypt were much admired, much discussed, some living testament to the power of wolves in the sand. that much was undeniable. and beneath the veneer of velvet there lurked a blade.

crowfeather knew this man somehow. he reminded himself of it.

"i am germanicus julius caesar, imperator of the emperor's first army. we travel as auxilia, and have offered our word to new allies in this region." the hard bite of his eyes were fixed upon the icy and jeweled glinting of the lazuli stare. "i have come to know whether akashingo wishes to raise an honorable head or if you have an asp's poison as your goal."

the silver man was unmoving. "i would hear of your dealing with the saints. they move to war, but you are here. both of you. why?"

he knew he was bold. he meant to be, meant to seize this jeweled little assemblage with his own control. if this egyptian dog was more than a pretendant noble, then he would know the sum of what germanicus had said. what each word of it had meant beneath. 

germanicus set carefully his last baiting with a low, swift murmur. in the language of the saltwater trade he ground out, "δεν υπάρχει αίσθηση ηθικής στη γη σου, ότι θα σήκωνες χαρέμι εδώ?"

ramesses listened. crowfeather. such a feral little name. he did not miss how her eyes lingered upon the boy, and jealousy began to burn fast and verdant in his belly. beside him, maggie simmered with her usual insatiable curiosity, a touch of snow so deep as to pull any man from any fever. jawahir gleamed in the long shadows cast by the mesa, gathering all light with the sandspice of silken fur and glowing with in Ra's gift.
recognition dawned in the lapis eyes, and then a deep, gliding amusement, one meant to mock the sable youth as he sought to escape pharaoh's eye.
germanicus.
at once pharaoh's attention was captured by the man made of iron and little else. this of course might have been explained by how the brute seemed to shoulder forward. satsu's guest had a voice gnarled as a sword's edge. beneath ramesses' impatience grew the steady climb of hatred, for he had known at once the sound of that name, and the untenable caesar following behind.
a roman cur, kicked dogs scouring an existence among wild forests and ledges of stone. had they not killed one of egypt's own princesses? sister to the pharaoh's own grandmother, given in hopes that rome might stay their ragged teeth in the eyes of such beauty blessed by Iset Herself.
but it had not been enough. nothing was ever enough to quell the ever-empty stomach of those pretentious soldiers. above all they wanted land, and the glory of taking land, of having enough dirt reek of roman piss that they might say it was owned.
imperator. this man wore the highest honor of his country's military. ramesses knew well what the name had meant: son of an emperor, surely given as little more than a suckling to the captain of the guard, to be trained and reared in that hard and violent world of men. it disgusted the mind; seti would never have dreamed such a thing for his children. 
now this roman stood before him and spoke of alliances already made, threatening pharaoh upon his own land with the hint of armies to come if he was not given what he wished. 
the serpent of the desert: the asp. germanicus insulted the Great One of the sands. when had his kind ever sought to respect those who had come long before they called themselves senators? 
it was an obelisk of pride to ramesses that he remained outwardly unmoved, as languid as if he had been fanned softly by plumes. the small, mocking smile had never left his lips, and now ramesses allowed it to deepen. he was starkly aware of his own beauty as he faced this germanicus, uncowed.
the sea-tongue that flowed forth pained the royal, if only for the simple fact that the cliffdog had butchered it with his heavy, forbidding voice: that of a man who expected ramesses to simper and rush as if he were a servant.
only the firming of his lapis eyes into their own set of harsh gemstones warned the soldier not to press him.
"you are so very bold, to speak to me in this way." ramesses kept himself conversational, tilting his head to one side as his eyes smoothed slowly to where crowfeather cowered some way behind. "forgive me, but i did not know an imperator could be ... demoted back to an auxillary." the sharp white teeth glittered in a soft laugh. "i understand. the saints have gained a name for themselves."
what sort of men had satsu brought beneath their roof? was it all for this boy, that she might — "akashingo is our own land, and we are no longer saints. ask your companion how terrifying their leaders appear to be, and how i played my part in this deception well against him. he was spared a savage's mauling upon my intervention." the smile smoothed bemusement into his eyes. "whoever has charged you to seek among us surely also seeks you to return."
pieces upon a game board; jackals keeping a pair of hounds at bay. "i would be remiss if you should review us badly. a palace such as the one satsu and i seek to build here must be seen. allow me, germanicus julius caesar, to plant akashingo so deeply in your mind that your report becomes an invitation."
"i am the Morning and the Evening Star. i am pharaoh. i am Userma’atre’setepenre, Keeper of Harmony and Balance." an arch of gilded brow. "and i say there will be no more talk until you have been treated to the honey and wine of our court."
he searched the man's face. the soldier had spoken in greek. but ramesses would choke this son of thieves on his own bile. "non mirum est quod romanus miles cum puero proficiscitur." ramesses notched a proud, heron-fletched arrow onto the golden and shining bow of his tongue. "omnibus gustibus hic servimus, imperator."
he leant a bit closer, perfuming the air as he murmured, "ne mireris. linguam hanc didici cum feminis romanis dormire."
ramesses turned away with a grand gesture. no man played more cunningly the role of courtier than he, and certainly not a dusty, sweat-stained emissary from some fickle land which loved blood more than pleasure. "satsu, please lead us." his tones were light, unaffected; but only she would know the truth of them.

attention focused upon crowfeather. aware that he shrank and all but hid alongside her, avoidant of the older man. there was no time to process; no sooner had satsu thought the change odd, that germanicus' beleaguered tone erupted.
the elder, now made more akin to mount vesuvius, flowed with molten words - so quick to voice concerns, assumptions, even languages which were purely foreign to her.
and then pharaoh; agile with his wit, barbed and lancing with his charm. satsu could at least tell there was some issue between them that they danced around; playing at friendship in the way a boy plays with a snake in the garden.
a look spared to crowfeather, to ascertain if he understood anything that now went on between the men aside from excessive measuring - but then pharaoh called her name.
if you would kindly follow me, she instructed to them both, then swept away a step.
whatever the issue between the eagle and the sun, it was not appropriate. satsu shoots a quick, pinched look towards ramesses as she slinks by him.
the catacombs start here in the shade. the path winds in to the mesa, splitting in to large and small rooms, other corridors, and some access points. my favorite room has a deep wellspring; if you would like to rest and bathe, you are welcome.
turning around in the opening of the catacombs - flanked now by a hungry-eyed maggie who is fixated on the mountain man - satsu steps out of the way of both germanicus and crowfeather, so they may choose their path.
while you rest from the travel, jawahir will fetch something for your belly, if it pleases you. the order was clear, and there was jawahir slinking in the dark.

Just a cameo

jawahir did not think they had ever seen pharaoh in such a state before.
the man of moon and silver had been silent enough. their eyes missed nothing, and they hoped that maggie would for once keep her biting tongue to herself.
the jewel was glutted and fascinated at once by the flare intrigue that suddenly burnt like a khamsin between the stranger and their lover.
they had always known that it was within ramesses, but to see it!
everything said had been collected. satsu moved to lead them all away. it was over. for now. ash smoldered in the air.
the young queen spoke again, dismissing jawahir. they bowed their head, irritated to be ordered so by this entitled innocent pharaoh wished to keep at his side. akashingo promised its own share of lessons.
they would go with the entourage as far as the flowery darkness spread. and then they would disappear, subservient under satsu's pomp.

Many things happened in a short time. The shadow did not imagine it was possible to make himself any smaller, but when Germanicus stepped forward to block his path from the lapis-eyed ruler, Crowfeather’s breath stopped.

The dark wolf had not seen the eagle this way before. There was a proud madness to him, a boiling that seemed to thrive just below the surface of his poignant yellow stare. The shadow balked, eyes darting between Germanicus and Pharaoh as though their fangs would clash at any moment.

The two men spoke words that Crowfeather had never heard before, words that only the other seemed to understand. The two men played at power and their tongues were sharp like swords.

When the men pulled back from each other, it was so that Satsu could lead them into the heart of Akashingo and share her territory. Crowfeather did not know how they had gotten there, how Germanicus had not fought with the Pharaoh for speaking the way he had-

The dark wolf’s mind was full of so many things, he did not speak. He merely trailed beside Satsu with his head hung low and his eyes trained to the earth. Perhaps he had misjudged the wolf with the lapis gaze. Had Pharaoh really saved him from the ruthlessness of the woman he had stood beside?

Crowfeather could not shake the feeling that he had lodged his limbs in a trap and that he would not shake free without a great loss.

pharaoh retaliated against him with a swift and hateful mien. and in the end, it was the eagle who was bested. he allowed none of this to show upon his face, but was scoured, irritated. he did see how satsu looked at the egyptian, but this did little to mollify him.

the man stepped after satsu, keeping close to crowfeather. the rock swallowed them into a petal-scent hallway. satsu explained that there was an expansive world below the mesa, including a bathhouse and rooms.

the pale woman watched him with a fixation he did not like. with a glance to the shadow, germanicus stepped quietly forward, his eyes exploring the water-way and the shafts of light that fed down through the crimson stone.

"it is a beautiful place you have chosen." not a slight, nor a lie.

ramesses had settled the issue between he and the roman cur quite well. no more came of it, though he hid more mockery beneath his tongue for a later time. "satsu has an eye for lovely things." his comment was conversement; he motioned maggie to his side, and then into the water.
it clung warmly to her flanks, smoothed the pale fur against her lithe and slender body. pharaoh meant to show her as an offering. "we will dine together," he decided, brooking no dissent from their 'guests.'
"i mean to laugh with you, soldier," he told germanicus, and leered toward him with a pleasant smirk. "i suggest that when you retire, you take with you jawahir. that one can feed a thousand hungers."
to crowfeather, and with full awareness that satsu meant to keep him for herself, ramesses moved jealously. "i think you are to receive a more — royal favour than your companion."
teasing; ramesses turned his back and went to kiss maggie in the water, looking back toward their visitors. "akashingo is a place of freedom. cease your endless patrols, and join me."

a fleeting warmth brewed beneath her breast to germanicus' words, hearing them as a brokered peace, the smallest of white flags ready to be plucked away should ramesses retain his lordly petulance.
they moved together to the wellspring and it was there ramesses spoke again. satsu was careful, measuring his tone and his length of attention spared, in case another correction was necessary; but he had been quick to cease his bantering.

harder to cull his teasing, which brought a warmth to satsu's face she tried to force away.
in the water he looked more narrowly built, certainly smaller than germanicus; the corners of satsu's mouth twitched as she thought, look at how quickly you shrink before another man!
but it was not right to put voice to this.

if you would like to dine first, that is alright. she addressed after the invitation by ramesses, looking to crowfeather, then germanicus, trying to read them (the older man much harder to discern).

it surprised me the first time i saw the deer in this place. they are not as flighty as the deer of the woods, and are golden and warm, like the sandstones. she spoke of the pronghorn that occasionally visited the mesa, but mostly were found on the steppe beneath.
she felt she was prattling on, but had to keep up conversation to make up for pharaoh's antics.

The dark wolf had almost ceased to exist in the rabble of their group.

Pharaoh spoke like a friend to Germanicus, so very unlike the tone he had used before when they had spoken that foreign language. Crowfeather did not understand how such things had transpired, but it did not help him to feel any more at ease in their strange world.

His lantern gaze searched Germanicus’ features pleading, praying that he might catch a glimpse of something that he could understand. Satsu was lovely and kind, offering the deer of the mesa as a dinner.

Crowfeather said nothing. He bowed his head obediently and trailed after the silver eagle. Wherever it was that Germanicus wished to go, his shadow would surely follow.

pharaoh felt appeased, but germanicus knew there was neither love nor trust between them. satsu had a place of high honor here, though the eagle could not see that there was any sort of romance between them. crowfeather's eyes were held with a steadying look, a small smile.

a guard must be kept up, but the egyptian seemed more bent upon compelling them both into sin than anything else. germanicus looked toward their warm hostess. "crowfeather is skilled upon the hunt. i would be interested to see how our talent fares against your golden deer, lady satsu."

pharaoh was ignored as well as he was able.

germanicus felt the press of snow-white fur against him, dripping with water. a woman's heady laughter sounded, and then the figure had joined the self-named king of akashingo once more.

what a den of vipers this was.

the boy was subdued. it was not the proper attitude for a man of this age, to have his blood run so coldly in the face of such beauty.
it would need to be rectified, or explored in only the ways he was able. such intrigue fed ramesses quite deeply.
"crowfeather." his voice was warm. "your companion tells us you know hunting. which do you prefer: forest or flatland?"
he wanted to hear the other's voice among them. he would force this, if necessary. his gaze traveled to satsu, and he arched a shapely brow. "i hope, imperator, that you will stop with me to sample what i have set to grow in our storeroom. i do not think you will be disappointed."

it seemed her comment had brought to mind a hunt, which satsu hoped would help unite them, or in the very least give a good impression to pharaoh of the man and his shadow. a better impression than what they had begun with.
satsu glanced at ramesses in time to catch his eye, his arched brow, listening to the conversation progress to include the reticent crowfeather. giving him time to offer his own words (as she did not wish to cut him off at all), satsu listened for this until a lull came.
if you are both interested in some sport in the next day or so, i will have someone go out and track the creatures for us, and we can arrange things. she thought of sabah, out on patrol. for now they could supp on the dried meats and assortment of goods that had been put aside already.

Pharaoh asked a question of him, but Crowfeather was too enamored with the praise that Germanicus had so willingly shared. Perhaps it was less praise and more of a boast on behalf of the quiet shadow. Still, it had left Crowfeather feeling overwhelmed. Even the older man’s gentle smile did little to quell the fright that had rooted in his stomach.

Fo- forests and water, I prefer forests and the water, Crowfeather answered the man with the lapis gaze.

Even Satsu was willing to allow them to hunt in their land. The niceties were all too much. The shadow did not know why they would willingly share their prey, their lavish pack, or the goods that they had gathered within. What would be expected of them in return?

crowfeather did not seem to know what he could do with himself. germanicus began to feel the crush of the fragrant company and its great arrogance. even satsu's kindness did not quench the cloying within the stone hallways.

"i will go with you now, pharaoh," the eagle offered. it was a gambit he knew the shadow would not appreciate. but silently germanicus asked that crowfeather trust him now. it was the presence of ramesses and the others who so had affected this meeting. and so he would remove them.

crowfeather would not like to be without him, but satsu's company appeared to be far less poisonous. for now.

his eyes flicked to maggie with an encouragement that killed him to display, a faux feeling meant to draw her away.

the boy prince spoke. he was truly a pretty thing, made of jet and gold. more well-traveled now, with harder muscles. but the innocence was the same. pharaoh glanced between the ganymede and his stoic companion, and wondered.
he did not expect the soldier's giving way. he studied germanicus a moment, then turned his darkgem eyes to satsu. "i will take the imperator to make merry," he told her, voice softened as for a moment the rest of the world seemed to dampen beneath her light.
"we will meet the two of you in a short while for a meal." by now jawahir would have already begun to lay it out in one room or another, bearing the best of their larder to be spread before the two.
satsu need only entertain. ramesses smiled, certain he had gained control of the soldier and thereby the enthralled boy.
but he seethed with foul green to think of them; alone!

the two men went off to speak, or to commune with maggie and jawahir, or maybe to bathe together and let their comparisons war in private.
satsu was left to tend to crowfeather. she was pleased to see ramesses depart and breathed a tense breath as she relaxed.
i worried their conversation would devolve to arguments, satsu murmured, then smiled to her friend. she hoped she could bring glee back to his face; he seemed less than pleased to be here, especially now that germanicus had departed for the water.

i am happy that you made it here. in the morning maybe we can walk, and i can show you some of my favorite places? but, the morning would not allow such trivialities - not with nyra's sudden appearance yet to come.

When Pharaoh and Germanicus’ voices shifted to something friendlier, it seemed that the pale ruler had spoken sweetly enough to lure the eagle away from his company – for merry making. Crowfeather watched the back of the soldier depart and his stomach lurched to go with him. When Germanicus had slipped from sight to spend time with Pharaoh, the dark wolf realized that he had been left with his friend, with Satsu.

I am happy we found you, Satsu. I was so worried- I am such a fool for not minding your directions better, Crowfeather responded, casting his gaze toward the ground where his paws sat heavily. There were too many things happening, he felt.

When the dark wolf returned his gaze to Satsu, it was with a sliver of a smile on his lips. Please show me your favorite places. I would love to see your home, Satsu. And tell me everything since we last talked. Crowfeather only wished to fill his mind with the sweet words of a friend. He hoped that her voice would chase away the sucking ache that had been left by Germanicus.

germ + pharaoh can probably pop back in soon!

satsu was glad. she felt warmth spreading throughout her body, a touch of light-headedness that she presumed was from the containment of the catacombs, or the steam from the hot baths. her cheeks were warmer still, and she was smiling.

i do not have much to share, really. she confessed.
after we met, i traveled along until we found this place for founding our home. there was a small stop to the caldera - which i imagine you passed too? i met a warrior woman there and she let me enjoy the sights for a bit, which was very kind. it is beautiful!

she thought to herself about what came after that.

then, one by one, we gathered people to akashingo. pharaoh's favorite, jawahir, followed us and met with us, and she brought maggie - the pale one - and, then came sabah; she is a fine warrior woman herself, who you might see when we go out and walk tomorrow. she works hard. satsu deeply appreciated having another wolf around.
there wasn't much else to say; akashingo had not become a bustling place, but lively enough. satsu did not think crowfeather would like to know of all the antics of pharaoh, or how often satsu had caught him enjoying himself in odd places or at all hours.

the only other thing was the obvious betrothal between herself and ramesses; yet she could not tame the words enough for her tongue, and would not speak of it before crowfeather. instead she let her information fill the space between them, and after a time, asked him: what of you and your journey?

Oh, yes, we went to Redhawk Caldera and we met Ruenna there. I also met the Sovereign Towhee, who was very kind, he shared with Satsu, pleased that she had found the company at the caldera to be acceptable. He had grown fond of the wolves there, even though he had only met a few of them. It had seemed the kind of clan that he would have liked for himself – one focused on family. The shadow of a wolf had even allowed himself to fantasize. What would he have been like if he had been born into a clan like that one? Would he have been braver?

Crowfeather listened still as Satsu explained how they had gathered their numbers, settled into the mesa as their home. It seemed a fantasy to him, of course. The seer had not known the efforts that it took to create a clan from nothing, and he felt a swelling of pride to know that his friend Satsu had been able to accomplish the task.

When she had finished, she asked about Crowfeather’s travels. The dark wolf blushed, fixing his gaze to his paws as they walked. He wasn’t certain what to tell her, really. Germanicus had led their charge across land and stone, Crowfeather had merely followed. Still, there were moments that he wished he could share with her. Thinking of telling her about Germanicus filled the dark wolf with a flurry of foolish giddiness. He opted instead to keep those moments to himself.

We have traveled a great distance, I feel. Germanicus is quite good at speaking to the other clans. We met wolves in Redhawk Caldera and Brecheliant and now we are here with you. Sometimes it feels like I have journeyed with him for much longer than it has really been, he answered her with a sheepish batting of his lashes.