Greatwater Lake weightless

Nazli slept for two straight days after curling up in her new den, and woke up to a wave of confusion. It was the kind of dead, dreamless sleep that hits a person after an episode of intense stress; when waking, there was a span of time wherein Nazli wasn't sure where she was, or how she had gotten there. She smelled the moist earth and pine of the grove where the den had been excavated, and the crisp notes of fresh water.

As she rubbed sleep from her eyes, she peered around at the interior of the den. It was a damp dark hole, not the cool stone of Akashingo, and wasn't familiar - but gradually the memory of escaping with Khaba did return to her.

She unfurled herself, and then tried to arrange her fur so that it wasn't such a chaotic mess - sticking up in odd places, muddy in others; but there was no fixing this. The more she tried the more tense she got, until she was so frustrated that she gave up with a small huff.

There was a rustling within the small burrow.

Khaba peered his head within, eyes shadowing over the girl carefully. 

I take it you slept well? Tone low, a rumble almost, he spoke with light humor. He had promised to be here when she woke, and so here he was.

Tag for mention!

Usually she woke with the dawn, or just before it so that @Senmut could make his prayers and she could attend. This day was very different. Nazli had no duties here, no expectations, and it was... unsettling, for someone so accustomed to being busy.

I need a bath, she murmured with some grogginess; as she looked over to where Khaba lurked (for lack of a better term), she stretched out her body cat-like and lean.

...Have you been watching me? It was an observation of her own, but Nazli felt embarrassed.

I need a bath.

Interesting first words after waking, but viable. Though, Khaba couldn't say much. He didn't exactly keep a groomed, sleek appearance. 

A part of him wanted to taste a lick of humor by her embarrassment, but then he thought it too crude. I only arrived a few minutes ago, He assured her, a haughty grin teasing at his lips.

Then, with his nose, he gestured to a fresh rabbit just centimeters away. Eat. Then I will take you to the lake to wash. And without allowing a spare moment to hear words of rebuttal, Khaba shuffled himself a foot or two away to give her privacy to eat. 

To her, his back would be turned for the time. But his ears remained alert, swiveled back slightly. A tone statue, yet again.

He gave her a plan, rather than mockery. At least he hadn't been watching her sleep this whole time (if she trusted him - and so far she had no reason to doubt his word).

The rabbit smelled very good and made her belly groan. As Khaba moved away, Nazli drew it close and began the careful, practiced work of efficiently butchering it. She ate sparingly, out of habit. There would be a lot left over.

Can I ask... why, um, she licked some blood off her lips, and didn't take her eyes from her meal; even if she did spare a glance she would only see his broad, dark back. What caused the -- banishment?

She swallowed a lump of rabbit meat which felt heavier than it should.

He had hoped that this time would be of silence, but Nazli did not allow to be so.

Staring off into the dim distance, his ears were risen by the sound of her question.

Sighing, his shoulders shifted slightly, rolling in contempt. But he would answer none the less. Makono made a decree that I was to bed the nebet Diantha and conceive her season's brood. Perhaps I would have even been made to marry her. The topic created yet another lump in his throat. It was a bitter taste, and difficult to swallow. I refused. I told Makono that I would not bed a woman I did not love. There had only been two he had ever loved, and Diantha was not one of them.

Words were shared... foul ones, at that. But I will spare you the boring details. Whether he regretted what had been said or not, he would not dwell on it now.

Rising, he would turn to face Nazli. As if the conversation had never occurred, his facade glazed over, hardening. Come, and stay close— He intended to escort her to the lake so that she could bathe, as promised. The hour will grow late soon. I don't know who else has stuck with the lake claim, but I don't trust any of them. Not unless they had been put in their place by him.

He seemed reluctant to share and Nazli felt a tension in that moment that she regretted. What right did she have to ask? Only that his fate now infected her, and she worried selfishly for the two of them.

What he shared was not so surprising. Nazli found his refusal of the pharaoh the most shocking! His sentiment about love made no sense to her; it barely registered except she grew more thoughtful and slowly stopped chewing at her meal. Nazli found her appetite fading.

They had been made to perform in the same way, she thought - only Nazli carried through with it. She could remember with great clarity the intimate moments with Ramesses; he had given her a choice, and there was power within that.

Khaba was ready to go. He moved, and Nazli quietly rose to follow without any further questions.

fade here maybe?

She followed without further words.

To the lake they would go to where Nazli could have the time to freshen up.

When they arrived, Khaba would allow her plenty of space and privacy. And whenever she was done, he would be there to take her back to her den.