Lion Head Mesa lyre

set whenever! i wasnt sure what ur plots were so if this isnt game lmk! <333

"@Crowfeather."
the pale wolf stood framed in the entrance to whichever room he had been led after ordering entry into the prince's chambers. he would have announced himself after all, waited for the boy to compose himself before he arrived.
and now he stood looking around the fine rooms before his blue eyes rested on crowfeather once more. he was in a fine mood; it showed as he settled himself a polite distance away.
"akashingo waits for your influence."
a blink.
and then why he had actually come;
"i believe you would be most legitimized through marriage. i have come to tell you that a match has been found" — a lie — "and if the stars prove auspicious, she will be brought here indefinitely."
ramesses expected resistance and only smiled sweetly as he waited.

you got a brand deal. skip skip 

He accompanied the dark boy wherever he could, yapping enthusiastically at his stalwart progress. The chihuahua himself couldn't be of much physical aid, so he opted to be the moral support instead.

When the Pharaoh announced himself, Gucci scurried to fix his appearance, which had turned unruly over the weeks without human care. Now he smelled of the Mesa and it's inhabitants, but especially of Crowfeather.

The toy male dipped his tail and head when Ramesses entered. He stood, politely silent, as the royal spoke of marriage. Still, the increasing velocity at which his tail wagged showed he wouldn't be silent for long.

A wife for dear, sullen Crowfeather! Just what he'd need to cheer himself up! The concept of monogamy was still strange to the diminutive man, but it promised a companion who'd be closer to his charge than Gucci himself could ever be. What joyous news!

He eyed the youngest. Would he be as elated by these news as the dog was?

Anything is game! My plans are always fast and loose and easy to crumble, which is exactly how I like them. ^^ You can throw anything at me, anytime!

Foxfur had left Crowfeather with words that loomed over his head.

The warrior would return when the first sun of summer had fallen on their lands. He had found another clan who had allowed him to stay with them. The dark yearling might have found it odd, had he not been faced with the impending upheaval of the life he had begun to construct. Summer was still many moons away; he knew this much. He had grown stronger on his mangled ankle, and he could navigate for a short while without the assistance of Tavina or the Fellahin who had been assigned to him.

When Ramesses entered his quarters, Crowfeather regarded him with uncertainty and surprise. He had not thought the Pharaoh to be a visiting man. As the ruler spoke to him, the shadow’s feelings spiked wildly out of control. Panic overcame him, the urge to run away again, but he stared blankly at the gold-touched man.

Legitimized? By some stranger you’ve found?

Crowfeather thought of Germanicus. Anger rose in the back of his throat.

Where was he?

What’s the meaning of this, Ramesses? I… I don’t understand what you’re saying.

Crowfeather looked to Gucci, almost pleading the small figure to chime in.

woo same!! <333

gucci's approval did not go unnoticed. pharaoh smirked, favoring the canine with a lingering look before his attention returned to crowfeather. "you are a prince in name only. titles such as these are held through marriage. what legitimizes you," the man purred, "is my sanctioning of your match. you will then be considered royal, with your own power and wealth."
explaining the matters of court was rather dreary. crowfeather had begun to gather his own retinue, whether or not he understood or appreciated it. the notable next step was betrothal.
ramesses thought of @Jawahir; he hoped the jewel would bring his next lie to fruition. "she is beautiful and well-spoken. not at all a burden, prince."
that this as of yet undiscovered wife would be from their allies did not bear explanation. but tying a lesser pack to the palace through marriage meant a lasting bond that would expand the reach of pharaoh and soldify his grasp so long as crowfeather was a noble of akashingo.
and were the sullen royal boy to sire children, the blending of bloodlines would permanently empower ramesses. everything in the mesa was done for his own might — and for the heir he expected that satsu would carry.

Crowfeather's reaction confounded him. All the words Ramesses spoke were good and promising. Why the apprehension? Why such confusion? The little man looked between the pair, catching his charge's look, then turning to Pharaoh Ramesses, hoping their beautiful superior would offer words of reassurance, would make Gucci understand why it was that the dark didn't enthusiastically leap at this offer.

Again, his words seemed to promise only good things. Power! Wealth! A beautiful, well-speaking woman to be with him even when the chihuahua couldn't! 

But still, that look Crowfeather gave him... he simply had to interject.

"Um, Pharaoh, apologies, but what if Crawfeather doesn't want t' marry...? Or, well, if he's nawt intrasted in a wife, specifically?" 

Surely, the ruler had simply failed to consider the possibility of the other neb declining.

But I am a Seer, Pharaoh, his voice was almost pleading, whining. In my home, we are not to take mates. If I were to do so, I would no longer be a prince or a wolf of the Starsea. Warriors would be sent to claim my life.

Now, Crowfeather wasn’t certain if he had a place among the stars, as it was. He had run away. He had left the wolves of his homeland. In many ways, he had abandoned the customs of his people. The young shadow had lived more of a warrior’s life than a Seer’s. Though, he knew that the dreams still cluttered his thoughts. He knew that the wolves of his clan needed him.

Gucci chimed in to say that perhaps Crowfeather did not wish to take a wife. The dark young figure glanced toward his small friend with a grateful glitter, eyes filled with tears The shadow had not truly thought about if he would ever return to the Starsea. Knowing that he would never have that choice was frightening.

I know that my ways are not the same as your ways. It is not my intention to push against your ways. I wish to leave when I am healed. I understand that many resources have been spent to heal me. What must be done to pay back the care I have received? Crowfeather worried. He did not know how the Pharaoh would take being declined. The shadow could feel the room shrinking on him. He struggled to catch his breath.

ramesses did not like the querulous tone which had entered crowfeather's voice. he looked slowly between the stricken prince and gucci with an inscrutable expression. why did the prospect of royalty and marriage so affect the boy? 
"you are a seer." the lapis eyes sharpened and rested like the twin points of jeweled spears against the handsome young face. "you know the stars." an egyptian court held high regard for astrologers. they worked with the priests in order to pick the most auspicious dates, and they were denied nothing.
"you told me if i was to visit the starsea, your people would not welcome me as pharaoh. if they raise their teeth against akashingo, i will put them to the edge of the sword." his voice hardened as he spoke; ramesses became as marble. "likewise, the laws of the starsea do not apply here. i honor you as a noble and a seer. and i will place you in such a rank as reflects this."
none of the richness within the mesa had appealed to crowfeather. his new status as respected prince inside akashingo did not matter. the things that ramesses had offered held no interest, and it was enraging.
pharaoh was unused to being denied.
he would not be denied.
"if your master does not wish to marry," he said to gucci, voice firm in the richstone room, "then i will find another match for her elsewhere. but it is done, crowfeather. she is already on her way." another lie but it did not matter. ramesses trusted in jawahir.
the sun god rolled his shoulders in faux exhaustion. "meet her at the very least. this is what you can do for me, prince. this is how i am to be repaid. your marriage is an alliance and if it should bear fruit, then akashingo benefits."
another slow glance between the pair.

Crowfeather found himself shocked that Ramesses understood his role – that he knew the importance of a seer, even in his own way. The dark wolf bowed his head.

As the Pharaoh continued to speak, he mentioned words that the shadow had previously shared with him. Crowfeather felt his cheeks grow warm at the memory. He had been upset and Ramesses had made it more difficult.

I- I spoke harshly… the warriors are strong and quick to attack, but if you were a guest to our people, they would not cause harm to you. I do not believe they wish to attack Akashingo. The Starsea is bound to its land. To leave was a great risk, a great dishonor.

Ramesses did appear to be trying. Crowfeather could not fault him for sharing the wealth and luxury he had with those he deemed worthy. The dark figure simply did not feel he was worth the fuss. A part of him wondered if it truly would have been best if the Saints had killed him. All of that trouble would have been erased, fixed.

I will meet with her, of course. I would not simply turn her away… I- I do not know what my plans will be. The warrior Foxfur says he will return in summer to check on my ability to travel. I do not know that I will go with him. I do not know that I will stay, either.

A sigh fell from his lips. Crowfeather glanced to Gucci again, grateful to have even one soul who had not vanished from his side.

I will meet with her and will be respectful and good. You can trust that.

Crowfeather dipped his head. He wished he could speak to Germanicus. Worry clouded his mind and made his chest feel tight.

wrapping bc gucci is afk <3

ramesses wanted no more to comment upon this starsea. it did not matter. crowfeather was here now, no matter what that vulpine man wanted with him. "you are a prince of akashingo. whether or not you care for this truth, it is indeed the truth." his lazuli stare was a scythe. pharaoh would not be stood against.
in the next moments his countenance smoothed. he moved elegantly to his paws and nodded at the pair of them.
"tavina informs me you are able to walk more. this is good. i expect you in my throne room to discuss the future of akashingo."
if he needed a guard or a fellahin it did not matter; ramesses pondered both crowfeather and gucci with an inscrutable look before he turned away, sweeping grandly from the rooms.

The dark wolf flinched at the Pharaoh’s words. A Prince of Akashingo – the sound of it kicked his heart to a racing speed. Crowfeather had done nothing to earn that title in the Pharaoh’s court. He did not believe that the man would allow him to say anything else on the matter, though. Even if he did, the shadow was not certain that he would want to. If he could avoid the Pharaoh’s stare upon his face, it would be best.

Y-Yes, Pharaoh, Crowfeather answered with a small bow of his snout.

Why on earth would the ruler want to discuss the future of his kingdom with Crowfeather? The seer could not imagine anything that he might be able to offer to a king who had everything. Still, he would not disobey the lapis-eyed wolf. Ramesses had a cool face and a sense of calm in most situations. Crowfeather did not wish to see if anger existed beneath that veneer.