Spotted Eagle Mountain pomegranate

dawn broke and she asked for the ear and words of @Nazli.

something softly needy in her gaze. do you miss akashingo?

there was a distance she felt and she hated it.

a rift with her father that she had not ever sought to properly patch, but a rift with her lilac? she felt adrift and desperate.

they would be within mereo soon. from what nazli gleaned, it would be a month before she could return to the palace; what things might she miss? who might miss her?

makono's question weighed her down.

i do, and i.. don't. she answered, then realized how vaguely.

i miss tavina. i think i miss the work, though not all of it. it wasn't the whole truth but nazli dared not speak of senmut, given that she was forbidden now from any dealings with him.

she touched the bone amulet that hung from her neck, without thinking.

did and didn't.

her ears pressed forward, a pinch of her brows. to miss tavina was understandable. her gaze admired the amulet for but a moment before they flicked back to the lilac's face.

tell me the work you like the least, a soft wave of her tail. then we can celebrate how good it is to be away from it.

did nazli remember the first time they had made this trip together? the giggling and gossiping of girls.

caught then, in her fib. she loved all of the work; all the mindlessness, all the careful tending-to of things, the organizing, the silence. she thought a lot as she worked.

she thought now of senmut and paled when makono asked her question.

a smile appears upon her face, and she leaves the amulet alone.

i think... the wellspring, its cleaning. it can be pleasant during warmer days, but with the cooling of the air the water gets sharper and sharper. it is harder to clean. it is almost painful to touch, she says this with a small shake of her head before quieting.

nazli does not know what else to say, given the changes lately within their home, and within herself. she does wonder if makono has changed yet, if she has taken on some shift of the spirit after becoming the crown prince; but she feels compelled not to ask.

then we will sing to Ra, upon the mountain. his presence brings us the warmth and we will celebrate it away from cold waters.

but she did not speak this as a command. she spoke with warmth and curiosity, wondering if nazli found the idea comforting at all. they must lead their own prayers upon the mountains of mereo. there were no priests of their own there.

some part of her regretted not pushing for the presence of senmut, but she knew he still must study. and she could not be the one to teach him some things.

what do you wish to learn in mereo?

her lapis gaze simmered in the dawn's light.

her tail whisked at the thought of singing, though she stilled when her mind wandered to prayers and dawnlight, and the memory of sleeping beside the boy priest as he worked his duties. her face grew warm.

what do you wish to learn in mereo?

that was an easy one. i would love to learn their ways of hunting, nazli answered, not needing to think.

it would, um, also give me reason to watch the soldiers while you train.

once, makono had asked that much of her. to keep an eye out the last time they ventured to mereo. it would be easier now with the both of them engaged among the people there, if possible.

i would like to see you hunt then.

she encouraged. drifting for a small touch of their shoulders, if nazli did not pull away.

i have faith in you, your eyes and ears. she reassured softly. her tail swayed behind her with ease at this point in time. softly she moved ahead and encouraged the lilac girl to do the same with her.

never far from the imperator or khaba, but out of physical reach of both.

she recalled how they had ran through meadows and ignored the snorts of the mountain man who had escorted them last time. she missed simplicity, as much as she loved the new things all around her.

what? now? nazli was stunned, but she moved quickly to keep up with makono; it felt very much like they were children again, on their adventure with the surly guardian.

she looked over her shoulder and saw the bulky silhouette of khaba at a glimpse, but did not care how far they went apart.

it felt good to move! good enough that nazli was soon laughing, forgetting to be quiet or to stalk the mountainside as would be required by a hunt; somehow she thought makono would not mind.

they moved as one.

all at once they were two young girls along the mountainside, hunting their trail to mereo.

you will learn the hunting trails of mereo. she spoke between their shared joy. there will be so much to be learned about them through that! what prey they kept, how their caches stored, who provided the most.

her heart thrummed in her chest and she gently bumped into nazli.

a bird moved overhead.

she would learn, and she would report back all she gathered to makono, to strengthen her hold upon the warriors there. her friend would become entrenched with knowledge, shoring up her power; although nazli did not think in these exact terms, she knew it would be of value and she loved that she could provide.

makono was laughing with her. together they ran, and the slightest bump of the crown prince against nazli invited a game rather than a hunt; nazli felt suddenly overwhelmed by a warm flood of emotion that was the antithesis of the sorrow from the past few days.

she chased makono more than any scent, or sign of prey. bumping her shoulder-to-shoulder, or reaching to playfully nip at the girl's chin. these were carefully done, these movements - not to be misconstrued as attacks or any such thing - and always deferential in their placement.

nazli was stealing these moments while she could.

she was riled by it all.

as if akashingo washed off of her with each bump of nazli, each touch loosened the holds of home. she cared not if eyes watched them in these moments. at the worst it could be construed as forging bonds or poorly beginning her training.

she moved to carefully nip at a tall lilac ear.

she could not put into words (not yet, at least) her appreciation for nazli. the things she would do for the lilac! one of the few she would never give empty words to.

they ran, they played. like children! it was silly how they moved, less like their born-to roles and more like sisters.

nazli was breathless now as she ran. the nips of makono sparked something similar to how nazli felt when senmut stared at her, as his eyes were so intense, and her touch brought the same.

it was too bad they would be so far from home, in some sense. better for the two of them, though; away from those hallways and the many eyes, free to act how they wanted (within reason); to be who they wanted (so far as it would benefit them) — pretending, at least for the month ahead, that the whole world belong to them.

she did not feel the distance of nazli now.

it felt like whatever it was had been mended. as they moved and drifted along worn paths. soon she would be breathless. not accustomed to the mountain air, but the thought did not matter. what mattered was them.

this moment as vital as everything else would be.

i am glad you are here with me, she panted, offering one more nip at the girl's ear.

she felt warm all over. it wasn't a twisting ill-fitting sensation, either, which was nice given her recent stresses. things were somehow easier with makono.

her words brought a genuine smile to nazli that couldn't be stripped from her.

i am glad, she said as she breathed raggedly, trying to catch air as she ran, i am glad to be chosen.

her face was wind-whipped, her coat wild; a rival to the flashy golds and creams of the princess.

i will pick you. time and time again, nazli.

her voice wispy, lost to the mountain winds and air. but she found she did not mind it. not before the lilac. never did she mind these types of things before her.

i will become stone in mereo before the soldiers, but know i have warmth for you still.

did she understand her worth?