A/N: When I started this story, I really did intend for it to get updated faster, but due to some continuing chaos in my life (school, work, relationships, family, the works), things have been going very, very slowly, and I apologize for that.
Also, I believe that at the beginning of Iridescent's prologue I stated that this story contained only characters from the original series. While this is mostly true, there is one character who will be introduced in this chapter that is of my own design. But have no fear! He is not terribly intrusive, nor one of those rather ridiculous OC's. You'll understand what I mean when he makes his appearance.
I'd also like to point out as a reminder that this story is not entirely mine, as I mentioned at the beginning of the prologue. It was a joint effort between myself (Ottji) and my good friend (Hidaka666) who, as I stated before, has wonderful art on DeviantArt.
Thank you to everyone who has been commenting on and subscribing to this story! It really does mean a lot, I appreciate it greatly.
Now that I'm done rambling, lets continue!
Chapter Six Companion
Mahad walked through the streets of the city, numbly watching the busy, chattering lives around him. A part of his mind couldn't help but wonder why the civilians weren't still mourning, weren't still grieving for their fallen Pharaoh. He knew, logically, that their lives were busy, often hectic, and mourning couldn't take up all their time. But never the less, he felt stung at the sight of laughing couples, or the hearty sound of laughter mirrored by the cheerful calls of children. As he walked, being jostled by the hurried crowds, he didn't see the grief or sadness that had been wailed to the skies before. Had the days that had passed been enough for them to recover from the tragedy that had occurred? How had their hearts healed so quickly?
A soft, pitiful mewling caught his attention. Looking to the source of the sound, he saw a limping, bony cat staggering out of an alleyway. Its short tawny fur was matted with blood and dirt, the one paw it held off the ground injured and bloody. A bit of outrage flared in his numbed heart, seeing that the wounds were not from another animal. Who would dare assault one of Bast's holy messengers? He knelt down on one knee near the ally, holding one hand out to it.
"I will not harm you," he murmured soothingly. The cat crouched down against the ground, pinning it's ears back, clearly fearful and wary. Mahad stayed still, offering but unthreatening, hiding the anger that slowly tapping its way through the haze around his heart and mind. He is so frightened of me, when I have done nothing to him… Oh how I wish I could find who hurt him!
The cat kept watching him for a bit before his ears pricked up curiously. Mahad smiled slightly as the cat eased himself back up onto his feet. He limped towards the ex-Priest's hand, sniffing it before lapping his little tongue over his fingers. As he started to purr and rub the soft sides of his face against Mahad's hand, the man set his sleeping bundle down slowly so as not to frighten the animal. He slipped his hand into a small pouch on the side, pulling out small pieces of dried and salted meat, holding them out to the cat. The little animal blinked at him, his tail waving slightly, then he licked the meat before nibbling on it. He looked up at Mahad, then ate the piece quickly, purring loudly as he rubbed against Mahad's hand, now completely at ease.
"At least you are not completely broken," Mahad murmured, smiling a little, petting the cat slowly down his back. The scrawny feline mewed and looked up at Mahad, unnerving him a little. Never before had an animal met his gaze with such bright, focused eyes. Shaking his head a little, he looked around, then rested a hand on the animal's back. He has nothing… He picked up the cat carefully in one arm, holding the startled animal close against his chest, then picked up his bundle and balanced the cat on it, still keeping it against his chest, making sure it wouldn't fall as he shifted to hold the bundle in both arms. The cat looked up at him, it's gaze almost seeming affronted, then it moved around a little 'till it rested his head on the cloth, closing his eyes.
Mahad looked down at him, smiling at his soft purrs, then he walked down the street again. After a moment, he noticed that the people were no longer jostling him or pushing him around in the usual busy street crowds. They were taking care to side-step around him, giving him looks of wonder. At first he idly thought that perhaps his hood had slipped and they recognized his face, but then he saw that their gazes were directed towards the purring cat in his arms, somewhat hidden by his sleeping bundle.
"Blessed man…"
"Watched over by Bast…!"
The words made Mahad shift uneasily as he walked, frowning slightly, stopping himself from denying them to the speakers themselves.
"I am no blessed man," he murmured to the cat instead. The weight of his failure and shame crashed down heavily on his shoulders again. "If anything, I am a cursed man…" The cat looked up at him and flicked one ear, then lowered his head again and closed his eyes. Mahad sighed softly, looking down at him as he walked.
I could not save him, but perhaps I can redeem myself… if even just by the smallest amount… by saving you.
He followed the directions Seto gave him perfectly and eventually made his way to the little clay hut that had been built for him. All around it were empty fields, waiting patiently to be filled as planting season began. He looked at it for a bit, then walked down the dirt road, looking around, feeling calmed by the quiet and the nostalgic smell of dirt and wind-swept sand. The familiar scents had been masked by incense and perfumes within the Palace, and he was relieved that, out here, he could no longer smell the now heart-breaking scents of lotus flowers and sun-warmed gold, and rich but mellow spices that had lingered around Atem.
He walked up to the hut, the cat in his arms raising his head to look around curiously. Mahad shifted his belongings and opened the door with one hand, then walked inside. He smiled faintly. It was as simple as he'd wanted, and somehow Seto seemed to have known that without any requests being made. He'd always been perceptive. There was a small, barely furnished cooking area to the left, and a curtained-off sleeping space to the right. There was no furniture, but he'd wanted it that way; he wanted this home to be his, truly his, so he could finally have something to work for again, giving him the desire to make everything he could.
Sighing softly, he held the cat by it's belly and ribcage before setting it gently down on the floor. The feline shook himself as Mahad shut the door and walked over to the curtained area, where he set the bundle and his pack on the floor. The cat meowed and limped after him.
"Come here, messenger," Mahad murmured, kneeling down to face it, holding his hand out to it. "Let me heal your injuries." The cat limped up to him and he rubbed its face gently. When it started purring, he pulled out some more little pieces of meat and set them on the floor to distract the cat, who licked and nibbled at the meat again. Mahad smiled a bit, then very gently wrapped his fingers around the cat's injured paw, easing tendrils of his magic through it to heal the twisted muscles and tendons. The cat shivered and arched it's back up a bit but kept eating. When Mahad could feel no trace of injury in the limb, he pulled back, to the obvious relief of the cat.
"My apology, messenger," Mahad murmured, chuckling softly at the cat's reaction to his magic. Then he pulled his bag closer and took out a small saucer, part of a set that Isis had insisted he pack, and he set it down near the cat, filling the dish shallowly from one of his canteens. The cat's ears pricked forward and it moved over to the dish, crouching down in front of it to lap the water up. Mahad gently ran his hand slowly across the cat's back, healing it's scrapes and bruises.
Mewing softly and licking the water droplets from the fur around his mouth, the cat crawled up onto Mahad's lap, nuzzling his chest. The ex-Priest blinked in surprise and gently petted it's back, speaking softly.
"You are free to leave, messenger, if you have duties to attend to." I would never dare assume I could keep one of Bast's messengers in my house... The cat looked up at him, ears pinned back, then he went back to rubbing his face against Mahad's chest. A kind of surprise rose in Mahad's eyes. "You…wish to stay…?" His voice was cautious, hesitant, but even he could hear the faintest traces of hope in it. He didn't want to be truly alone. A lonely spirit was hard enough to bear. The cat purred louder and kneaded at Mahad with his claws. The man looked up at the ceiling as if to see the expanse of sky beyond it.
"Great Goddess Bast, does this messenger have a name?" The cat curled up on his legs, mewing and pushing at his calves with his paws, but there was no answer. "To make him a part of my household, may I give him a name?" Again, there was no answer, no sign of response. Mahad looked down at the cat, at his dirty, but still bright fur and bold eyes. …Did you send this cat to me, Atem? A shiver went through his heart at even thinking the name. He reminds me of you… So small, but so brave...The cat mewed and stretched a little.
Mahad blinked, then half-smiled and rested his hand on the cat's back. I cannot call you…Atem…because one already bears that name. He stroked the fur of it's back. Atem…et? Atemet? Atemu? To bear his name in likeness… perhaps it will keep his spirit alive here, with us…
"Atemet," he murmured. The cat blinked and looked up at him. Mahad smiled. "Do you approve?" The cat looked up at him, then started purring and lowered his head to his paws, curling his tail around himself. "Atemet is it, then."
A/N: Musical Assistant Remembrance by Audiomachine
So, I'm actually very nervous about how you, my readers, will take the appearance of Atemet, Mahad's new feline friend. I do not usually write characters of my own design into such... 'main character' slots, if you will. But he was not created randomly! He was invented because I felt that, after losing Atem, if Mahad was truly left on his own, completely alone, his guilt and grief would destroy him very quickly. So Atemet was created as a kind of buffer, a shield to give Mahad someone to keep him company so he would not spend all his time dwelling on his lost love.
I originally intended for his name to be 'Atemu', just as a rather humorous little shout-out to the more commonly used version of Atem's name, but then decided against it. There is very little room for humor in this story, I think, and 'Atemu' has a bit more of a Japanese spin on it, so I felt that 'Atemet' sounded at least a tad more Egyptian, and thus, more realistic while still maintaining it's root, 'Atem'. Feel free to let me know if you disagree.
Again, I'm very nervous about how this chapter will be received, and I am nervous about the upcoming ones as well. With Mahad out of the Palace now, things will start to be different than what I am used to writing when it comes to Mahad and the other Priests. I hope the changes don't scare anyone away, and thank you all for sticking with this as long as you have!
Please review if you have the time, it really means a lot to me when I see that someone took to the time to tell me what they thought of my work.