Lion Head Mesa okurimono

arriving by way of the steppes, taking the long and winding route among the scrub grass, satsu hoped to tire @Jawahir and impress upon them how desolate the space was; to make it seem more work than play to live among the wolves.
as they climbed the angled earth together and came to the first of many spires of red rock, satsu was the one who felt out of breath. a small archway afforded some shade. beyond that came another winding path - this one more familiar, as it was part of the main promontory.
satsu decided not to call for @Ramesses immediately. she had to think of what to say to explain herself, as she was known to harbor dark thoughts towards vermin and a lack of understanding towards the carnal tastes of pharaoh.
what would he think, seeing them together?

the woman satsu chose their path.

jawahir followed, pleased to have outsmarted the wolf and gained the upper hand. such things were rare for her kind, and rarer still: to win against a girl surely destined for wifehood.

the two of them passed along flat land and came to the crimson stone, which arched and wheeled overhead with breathtaking height.

jawahir cast their gaze about for the pristine, proud form of her royal lover, but he had not yet come to meet them. what beauty do you both find in this place? so rough, not at all the palatial halls the courtesan had half-expected.

much as she would have preferred waiting for the return of pharaoh in silence, there was no quelling the voice of jawahir. every fibre of satsu's being wished to chase her out from this place, let her go back to living in the dark corners rather than the light.
she almost ignores the question, but seeing as they are alone together and there is no telling for how long, satsu must at least attempt niceties.
i like it for the solitude, and the view. i imagine he likes it for the sun.
satsu settles to her haunches, the silver of her belly having become tarnished by the grit beneath. she looked more and more like jawahir the longer they were together.

"satsu, i think that we should —"
pharaoh, returning back to their new redstone bower, with pronouncements of allyship between themselves and the ones closest.
"blessed am i among men!" he praised instead at the sight of them together, two beautiful faces looking bac upon him. ramesses went at once to jawahir, pressing her with kisses until she laughed and unsnarled herself deftly from his embrace.
pharaoh glanced between the two of them, half-lidded and roused. "have you two made ... the acquaintance of one another?" he inquired, the implication base and direct.

jawahir had nothing to add, and it was with luck that he appeared now, in his pale robes and with a great show of affection for their face.

they allowed the display to go on until it became unseemly, and deftly unwound from pharaoh.

i am told this is your new domain, they said softly, glancing toward satsu. it is plainer than the rest of your tastes, my sweet.

pharaoh burst from the cover of red rock, foreshadowed only by his voice. when he set his eyes upon the two women it was jawahir that drew him in, immediately the center of his focus. satsu's eyes lingered on the two of them a moment before averting.
it was one thing to find the man stinking of the creatures, another thing altogether to see them so blatantly together.
she looked sharply at jawahir when the question was posed and felt an immediate spasm of worry, unsure of what the creature would say; but they spoke of the new home, leaving satsu to answer.
ah, yes, she... she came asking for you.
the man was pleased, of course. no doubt he would be celebrating the arrival of the creature alongside the joy of finding himself some land, leaving satsu to her lonesome now.

ramesses had traveled with satsu long enough to recognize her hesitance, to see how her countenance became threadbare and aloof.
thus, despite how swiftly his body had tightened in delicious anticipation, ramesses left off it now. he would use his tongue in another way, for the time being.
"i mean this to also be a home for you and yours, jawahir. bring your tribute here, and know you have the protection of pharaoh, even when you are away."
his face swept into a handsome grin. 
"there are many bedchambers beneath our very feet. i will show you to them, but first — satsu, please tell her what we have chosen to call our palace."

satsu did not want them here. the arrival of their royal counterpart had stayed whatever foulness jawahir had wished to say. another time. they would speak all the rest of it.

he offered solace to jawahir and their followers. at first the courtesan only wished to lightly scoff. freedom could only be had beyond such gates. as much as this man was well-liked, jawahir did not want to be kept even by him.

satsu. a debt to be paid. how could the honeyed creature be given payment and maintain their agreement from far across the land? a choice to be made, and soon.

show me. i may choose to shower you in jewels. soft grin, velveteen laugh, a reason to look expectantly in satsu's direction.

bedchambers.
was that what he called their hideaway? though it did not play upon her face this time, satsu felt a burning in the back of her throat, a stinging sensation in her chest, as he shared this secret place. it was childish of her to be possessive of that dusty hollow; if this was to be their home then others would surely know if it.
—but jawahir was too much an other.

—tell her what we have chosen to call our palace. pharaoh segued, eyes only for jawahir. the vermin watched satsu with a grin that the dancer found displeasing.

akashingo, she answered curtly. where everything is red, from the sand, to the light that dawns across the stone.

"is that not so clever?" he jested to jawahir, though his look of approval was for the dancer alone. "akashingo," he said again, and sighed aloud. pharaoh was more than smitten with the dry, remote place, for it was those who inhabited as gems which made the earth rich.
"come, i will tour you below," ramesses purred, nipping the coyote's ear with a controlled seize of his teeth. 
his gaze shifted back to satsu. she need not accompany him for this portion.
laughing, singing notes of a song, pharaoh melted below-ground with his jewel.

akashingo, and jawahir laughed aloud. the sound was for satsu. the glow of her body was for the royal man. how witty. how pleasant!" the courtesan breathed in answer. show me what sort of red blood stirs in your catacombs, pharaoh.

with that they were gone, fully ensnared by the pale man, and happy to be rid of satsu's sour expression for a while.

the name flowed from pharaoh's tongue.
it tumbled from jawahir's, far less enjoyable to listen to.
laughter from them both — and satsu was glad that there was pleasure to be found between them, she told herself, even as they pranced away, ensnared by one-another.
leaving her with the dying ember of their togetherness, until satsu began to draw along a different ridge and find a use for herself elsewhere.
she would try not to think of them together—but that was foolish, and only resulted in the opposite as she picked her way along.