Redsand Canyon sycamore

vague but figure they'd be here now (10/19) seeing as it was a two day trip

she was submerged in the oasis.

between the journey itself compounded by two spars, her body ached. no growing pains compared to the ache of muscles being used that had never once been touched.

she kept @Nazli close for this, even extended an invitation to submerge with her. khaba no doubt patrolled the oasis while they were here. softly she moved through the cold water nearest to wherever her lilac may be.

whether that was in water, or out of it.

how does it feel to see the canyon again?

in all her days as fellahin, which was by happenstance all her days, nazli had not once been invited in to the wellspring; that was something reserved for the mature, the divine. it was a blessing none had taken a fancy to her in such a way.

a blessing also, that it was makono who now invited her. but this was not the wellspring; perhaps that alone was what drew nazli to joining the crown prince within the water.

it was her first time. she tried not to feel too giddy, and focused on cleaning the tangles and the dirt from makono's coat as she'd witnessed tavina do for others.

it is much colder here than home, nazli had noticed.

how long is your visit?

she was soothed to have her lilac in the water.

the oasis would be just that for them. a hidden place of wealth among the canyon walls.

at least a month. she hummed in deep thought. the roman said six in earnest, but i do not believe such a stay will be permitted. nor wanted. far too long to be away from those in akashingo she still clung to.

did senmut pray for them in her absence?

she pushed the thought aside, leaning into the grooming of nazli. i must send a scout back to akashingo and inform pharaoh of my arrival and the timeline of my stay. it may have sounded like idle chatter, but she felt it important that nazli know all these things!

they were once more woven as one under the eyes of mereo and she would not let the lilac girl fall out of the loop.

a month sounded long, but six! that was a lifetime to the girl. it was her whole life, from the first memory she could recall to this new one she now formed with makono.

what kind of person would the crown prince be in six months time, if she stayed and trained among these men for so long? —i do not believe such a stay will be permitted. she admitted.

the sound of the water moving was all that answered makono, as nazli adjusted and worked quietly. it was good to know the plan even though she did not feel qualified to hold such an audience; but this was her friend first, the crown prince second, so long as they were within the oasis.

are you... excited? the girl asked of her mistress. if it were me, i think i would be nervous, but that is like excited - both, perhaps. she did not doubt that makono, of divine blood, could handle whatever the soldiers had her do. she would astound them.

"are you... excited?"

an ear swept, sending a droplet out into the oasis. her lips lifted in a smile, more natural than it was trained. the tell was the way it reached her eyes.

she was horrified in a sense. she would be humbled time and time again until something broke. until she moved beyond being a proper princess and relished the harshness of a soldier. her admiration for them had not translated into knowing how to work like them.

i do not know. she whispered, voice dripped with honey of honesty. she dropped into the water deeper. chin hovered over the top of the water, collecting droplets.

i will face physical challenges beyond anything i've seen. and she felt humbled all over again! and khaba is proving horribly protective. some humor edged into her voice.

the princess descended. she seemed to be steeped in doubt for that moment, yet lingered crocodilian at the surface with an ominous, curling smile which appeared as she mentioned the mazoi.

maybe he likes you, nazli jested in the manner of a girl, sister-to-sister. the very idea was repulsive to the fellahin for all the knowledge she had gained prior to this trip; things she kept hidden from the crown prince, as she was told. or maybe your father threatened his head if anyone touches you.

nazli wondered what having a father was like.

he was not divine.

if he favored her in some sort of...beastly way, his head would be had by her father, no? then she remembered that she had threatened the same of any soldiers of mereo who did anything unforgivable to nazli.

her heart settled somewhere in her throat.

will you tell me if anybody here bothers you? in...any way?

her voice dared to teeter into a tremble.

sister to sister.

bothers her? nazli blinked. she felt water on her lashes.

the focus of the trip would be the crown prince, of course. makono was the valuable target and not her maidservant, so this concern shown for nazli was an oddity. besides, why would anyone take any interest in her?

but she would speak quickly, and agree — of course, — as if that would be enough to appease.

there was then a lull in the conversation. nazli moved in the water to finish her washing, then sank within the water to soak the muscles of her shoulders, which were sore from their travel.

she could let the silence settle, following nazli with ease.

weaving serpents in the water.

it would be a rare thing, but they were hidden from eyes. khaba patrolled the oasis. akashingo's eyes did not lay here in mereo. so she took this privacy to groom nazli in return. they were both images of akashingo.

and nazli was her...jewel. her lilac. treasured and cherished.

makono did not speak to the tearful welling of emotion in her eyes that moment.