Lion Head Mesa fifth

the priest woke at nightfall with an aching neck.

he had fallen asleep atop the mesa. now he groaned and stirred numb limbs, half-covered in reed fragments. there was no sign of nazli and yet he remembered her with a start of embarassment.

senmut piled his work to the side and descended down into the palace, hungry and searching for a drink.

she had been scolded by the man in charge of her tasks.

so her whole day had been composed of redoing tasks again, then tidying after the tasks of the fellahin. tidying after the mazoi even.

she could not wait to return to her corner of the palace with tavina. her bones ached in ways she had not known them to be able to. her hips felt out of place, worn by the sudden intensity of her life.

but on her way back, she caught sight of a man, moving about in a searching manner.

she was not fellahin, but she too was here to serve.

all at once she moved to him. small, tiny. she always shrunk before others who were not her lover. she had not met this man before. which meant either more scolding would await her — or he was newer than even her! the first seemed more likely.

sir, she hummed with a small dip of her head. may i help with anything?

having met gucci, senmut was not unfamiliar with the fact that more than wolves resided inside akashingo.

he was, however, woefully unprepared to see how striking the disgraced woman was. he had expected her to be a hag of sorts, someone twisted by the evil which had brought this punishment.

how odd to find a normal creature, and one quite dazzling in her own right. "s-sanpin," senmut greeted, attempting to remind himself of his role above her. "i am hungry." there was no order to follow, only an awkward silence.

he had no specifications, but nala had seen the divine ways of food in akashingo. that it seemed go beyond the need for mere intake.

presentations, flavors, colors.

of course, sir. another low bow of her head. where would you care to eat?

she was prepared to mentally map out the grand expanse of akashingo at his next words.

"outside, i think. thank you, f-fellahin," senmut said, unsure of how to address her.

she was curious, one of two unwolves in the palace. and yet where gucci was a noble, she was a servant. lower than them.

senmut wanted to know what she had done. "what is your name?"

fellahin.

something she would never be, not according to the words of tavina. for good reasons. nala was not blind to how some of them weaved in ways of servitude she could not fathom.

i am but sanpin, sir — but i am...nala.

soft and small. some part of her always prepared to catch the trained gaze of sayf or even the hawkish gaze of pharaoh!

i can prepare meats and berries. unless your tastes are elsewhere today.

her tongue pushed hard against the roof of her mouth.

unless his tastes were elsewhere? what did she mean? but of course senmut knew.

"no. no, that will be all right, nala. meats and berries."

the young priest waited helplessly now, knowing she would go and come back, and there was nothing else for him to do.

she returned as swift as she could.

clutched between her teeth as a palm, holding the contents of a meal in its folded pouch. she was prepared to lead him to a fine dining spot in the fresh air.

then lay the palm down, organizing the meat onto one side and the berries on the other.

shall i stay in case you need anything? i can offer stories, songs — o-or i can go, so you may have silence.

her gaze fluttered, tall batty ears swept like radars.

food was brought but senmut found he had no appetite. he swallowed and tried several bites for nala's sake.

"very good. i — uh," he stammered, looking at the woman's odd, vibrant features. "i want to know more about you. where you come from. who you want to be."

"i want to know more about you."

she paled all at once. mainly because her duties so far had not included such casual conversation! she had entertained neb gucci, but that had been more as friends! tavina had been there as support.

she could hardly talk about where she had come from. the memories so far removed from her now.

i am not certain, hem. she bowed deeply. nearly apologetic! i...i try to stay focused on the tasks of sanpin. but i have learned plenty from the sesh tavina —

her flesh suddenly hot and her gaze turned away from him and his meal.

ah. yes. tavina. 

senmut had seen relationships such as theirs before. they were guarded in a way that men often were not. 

he lightened to hear of the sesh. "she seems fascinating. i am glad you are both here." nala did not want to talk of her past, so he would not press.

senmut picked at his meal. the wind was fresh upon them, holding the crispness of a cooler season. he was not sure what to say and his eyes darted away.

fascinating!

nala felt reserved, on behalf of her lover. the man picked at his meal.

and i am glad to have met you, hem. for it felt right to say. she bowed deeply, holding it for a moment.

she wished to be dismissed, but she did not speak such. it was not her place!

senmut looked up and cleared his throat. "um, i am well — now, nala, thank you."

he faltered with ordering her about. the priest could not even think of dismissing her, and so he only dipped his muzzle awkwardly and hunched over his meal once more.

was that a...dismissal?

it did not match the usual way she was ordered. she faltered some. nearly tripping over her own paws as she stood on her toes.

a fellahin caught her eye not far off.

please, um, please call me if you need me. hem.

she bowed once more. low and deep as she had come to know. prepared to see herself off at the beckoning of another fellahin, if he said no more.

if she did not understand it, she might as senmut fell into pointed silence as though she no longer existed.

which was not what he meant to convey!

but when he turned she was gone, and senmut sighed in great relief.