Lion Head Mesa twenty-fourth

teo tag for ref but feel free to throw him in too!

just as pharaoh had inherited the throne room and the spacious chambers of earlier ruling, so had princess @Toula been granted the lovely and expansive apartments once inhabited by queen satsu, an early gift from her loving sister.

he had overseen the transfer himself; he had ordered all bedfurs replaced, the floor sprinkled with sweet herbs, and all dust wiped from every surface, the long red shelves now standing ready to house her own treasures.

and he had put @Bayek at her own door, seeing fit to keep the medjay near the princess whilst the others were in protection of pharaoh. but toula too was divine and so her own guardianship must be assured.

in the front, a courtly little throne room of her own, and it was where he stood now in obeisance. "are you aware of what has been happening, amiirad?"

so much had happened! it all threw her; what had occurred, that Khaba was disloyal?! the young Amiirad understood very little of it, but was soon distracted by the movement of her things, all expertly done. the young Amiirad marveled at new trinkets brought in, and took suddenly to her lessons with more passion, for her beloved sister. 
if she was to be Queen, then she would be a worthy one! 
and yet still, some things were lost on her. she still could not grasp the betrayal of the Mazoi; and now rumors where whispered of Nazli’s leaving! a betrayal to her own heart; did the lavender flower not care for her? 
was it all to be believed? 
Toula had been groomed and dressed by those that remained; still she kept dark furs upon her, time something of a construct as she mourned perhaps longer than the rest. when she might step upon the throne fully as Amiirad no more, she would allow more joy into her heart once more. in the wake of her fathers death, it seemed more than just him would see their end. 
her gemstone gaze was soft upon Senmut. she hated to admit she did not! but she sought, then, to emulate her greatly charismatic Father and her fierce mother. explain it all to me, so that there can be no doubt in this, with a honeyed smile. this expression was from her heart, for she did adore Senmut!

"your late father dealt unfairly in some matters, sacred his title," senmut told the princess directly. makono suffered beneath the yoke in a way toula would not.

"therefore, pharaoh must now stretch out her hand and test those in akashingo who would betray her." the queen mother of this very child, gone now. and to the others toula could also attach this.

"she is carving a place in time for you and for she. akashingo has had two queens. Ma'at saw neither of them rule for long."

her first true test in all that she had ever learned came to her in the form of eleven words. to her credit, her expression did not falter, nor did it stretch into insincerity. her love for Senmut saw to the justification of the words: wise as he is, he does not know what he says! he is exhausted by his work…
were she not so well taught in the ways of both being a lady and of divinity, she might have failed the second as he spoke of betrayal. she could feel in her bones what she wished to do—but she remained still and calm, though her smile was now absent. her mothers name was absent in the list Toula had now made, comprised of the whispers she had heard. the fellahin, and the mazoi. traitors! 
Toula remembered how sick the fellahin had been. and the absence of the Mazoi now she recalled clearly. and to breathe became difficult as she realized what her sister must have uncovered—the sweet fellahin, oleander among them! the mazoi the rue leaves she hid beneath! 
oh, @Makono! how could she bear this all! 
with conviction, Toula said, She and I will change history, Hem—the Shabti were not long lived, but I am born divine. we will rid ourselves of these betrayers, and when I ascend We shall step into a new, golden age… together, and here she stood tall, believing it with all of Her heart! 
but she looked to Senmut now. for she trusted him, and his guidance.  how might I help Pharaoh now? she asked, voice soft and gentle once more.

toula spoke with the same strength inherent to their bloodline, and he hung his head in relieved dependence upon her holy word.

and she! so pious, a counterpart to the fate-changer born into her sibling's skin. 

"prevail upon her with your company. do not let her run herself into the ground." senmut smiled wanly. "she will not rest for me. perhaps she shall for you, great one."

"the fellahin are for you now to oversee. dinners, emissaries, greeting newcomers: these your tasks so she may attend those who seek to humiliate her throne."

his advisement was well taken. but she looks to him now with concern. you would do well to do the same, she urges, and then gestures to a fellahin to arrange furs for him to rest. you are important to us, Hem. before you complete your next task, would you humor me and rest with me, for a while? Toula smiles winsomely, though did not step down from her dais. the Amiirad did allow herself to lay, resting as she had heard the Sphinx would! 
but she would pose no riddles for him. instead she would say with a sigh, there was meant to be a winter feast. with all as it is… perhaps we could plan a grand one, for the Summer, her eyes glittered brightly at the idea!

senmut lay sedately, content to be at her very feet.

"i will do as you bid." the hem attempted to stifle a yawn.

"there is a task of great importance to be set during a feast. akashingo must befriend nobility to serve in your courts. there may be ample opportunity for you to move about the kingdom and the land beyond where pharaoh does not have the same mobility. most would open their doors to an emissary."

Toula listened with great interest. she thought of the boy @Emmerich as he spoke of befriending others, of acting as emissary. perhaps she might do so with his Paleo! she has not been able to, with the Dreadfathers own home. 
with all as it was, she would not mind such journeys–but neither could she leave Makono alone yet! there was much to do, but for now it was enough to dream of all that would be.
I would love to befriend others, she admitted to him in a quiet breath. she rest her head gently upon her foreleg, watchful of him. perhaps we could send elaborate invitations to packs near and far, she suggested, blinking softly, what sort of invitation, do you think, would prompt one to accept? she wanted to do well by Akashingo; surely Senmut had seen his own fair share of well done parties and the invitations that came before them!

"there is brecheliant, of course. mereo is no more, i have heard. there is talk of another pack in the mountains, two for preciseness. and i imagine both west and east lands have their own inhabitants."

much to explore.

to see where akashingo might expand.

"invite them to the coronation of a new pharaoh and a new queen."

Toula listened to him, rapt as ever in these lessons as all the rest. what are the things Brecheliant likes? and Mereo being no more—she lifted her head, surprised! the eagles son was among them… but where was the eagle that once had taught her?
should we not work to create another outpost, for soldiers? somehow she felt Mereo was also a part of her fathers legacy; it hurt her, to think it was no more. what would he think, what would he do? …she would speak with Him in prayer, determined to know! 
I wish to know of them all, and the things that they enjoy. oh! and I should like to invite @Ash Paw and her children, and @Ingram too. it pleases me that he speaks the words of Osiris, she hoped that the spreading of their faith would please Senmut, too!

"perhaps hunting. i do not know so much about them, great one," the hem admitted.

"we shall have them here. the more, the higher the joy," senmut said with a small warm look to his face. "the outpost belongs to a higher decision than mine. take it to your divine sister," he urged, bowing before her.

for she was to be queen.