[center][sub][sub][sub][sub][sub][sub][img]https://i.imgur.com/nWYr6Sv.gif[/img][/sub][/sub][/sub][/sub][/sub][/sub][sup][h1] [color=21201f]B A S T E T , G O D D E S S O F P R O T E C T I O N.[/color] [color=241b18]𝒂 𝒎 𝒎 𝒂 𝒖 𝒃 𝒂 𝒔 𝒕 𝒆 .[/color] [color=7d694f] 𝒂 𝒎 𝒎 𝒂 𝒖 𝒃 𝒂 𝒔 𝒕 𝒆 .[/color] [/h1][/sup][/center] [right][sub][b][[/b] 𝚋𝚊𝚜𝚝𝚎𝚝'𝚜 𝚊𝚙𝚊𝚛𝚝𝚖𝚎𝚗𝚝 [color=241b18]◆[/color] 𝚜𝚝𝚛𝚎𝚎𝚝𝚜 𝚘𝚏 𝚜𝚎𝚊𝚝𝚝𝚕𝚎 [b]][/b][/sub][color=#2e2c2c]............. [/color][/right][center][sub][color=241b18]████████████████[/color][color=2e2c2c]. . . [/color][color=34241c]████████████████[/color][color=2e2c2c]. . .[/color][color=ae3b19]████████████████[/color][color=2e2c2c]. . .[/color][color=b18d5f]████████████████[/color][color=2e2c2c]. . .[/color][color=ccba9b]████████████████[/color][/sub][/center] [indent][indent][color=9c9691] So, a Grecian was dead. Yet life still carried on. It was a testament to these intricate fabrics of fate and time, wound and bound as they were, and refusing to surrender and still submitting life unto the crease of cruel irony. That day, children had been brought into the world and somewhere betwixt towers of steel or perhaps lost to decrepit alley ways or drowned channels, a body was waiting to be found. The Conclave had given nothing save for the confession of loss and the unknown; a faceless reaper haunted after the Gods and Bastet had turned her felines to the streets in response -- gather secrets far and wide, look to the crows, she commanded, and follow their beating wings. That night she had toiled among ivory sheets, twisted them among her calves and wound a fist around lonely cotton as a leftover haze of rose had invaded her mind accompanied by a keen penetration of yearning and desire. Bastet had breathed his name to the stars and was rejoined with silence: a mute shelf of ice there was, a coldness that she knew as he turned away, yet again, for that was their damnation and their [i]game.[/i] If only her own thread of fate could be sheared away from the weeping red it was undoubtedly drenched in, tinged in obsidian ends and initial knots of gold. Her evening wasn't made any better, as she worried after her sister's emotional foundation and loomed her soft gaze upon the message that had found way to her inbox. She had read the contents more than once, hesitant to respond, uncertain of her participation and thus, Bastet never answered. Instead, she had pinged another, perhaps her dearest friend and summarized the events of the gathering the best she could. It did little justice for the dead, but she also knew that Themis would be looped and twined within the arms of her lover [another Nordic lover, Bastet had pointed out once, but who was she to judge] or taken away by obligation to her career. Such was the circumstance for those nearest to her heart. They were duty bound and she a passing fancy. Perhaps such was for the best, for there were no curious eyes prying upon her home or inquiring after her affairs, and her familiars could travel unhindered or pursued. For who would spare a simple stray in the city of Seattle a secondary glance or thought. Cats had fallen from grace, but, in exchange, the many held sway over the hidden natures of the world. More than once she thought to contact The Morrigan to offer the eyes of her most beloved of companions, however there were a few statements that had struck out to her the most among the Conclave. Instead of offering such services to the Goddess, Bastet deemed it proper to conduct her own search for answers, and the tales proffered were [i]interesting[/i]. [color=000000][sup]oceans returning. moon light learning; seeking what is lost. fallen kingdoms and their lost kings. a soul has signed itself to the devil. and hearts -- so many -- weep.[/sup][/color] Bastet twirled a crow's feather delicately pinched betwixt forefinger and thumb and met the golden glare of Khufu, the Caracal looked upon her expectantly, seemingly awaiting praise. Upon either side of him preened both Hatshepsut, and Cleopatra, their tails swishing carefully in hypnotic tandem. [color=7d694f]"You've all done well,"[/color] she blessed, her voice of sweet whispers. [color=7d694f]"We can allow others to follow the crows. For now I want you three to keep close to the shadows as I make deliveries."[/color] Here, Bastet paused, her fleeting eyes landing once more upon her mobile still and silent like a prophesied specter. She had clients and patients, appointments to keep and worries to soothe of young mothers, and weekends were her only days away to shed away the layers of Amma Ubaste that encumbered her through mortal allegiance. There was no viable reason she couldn't attend to her pantheon, perhaps it was time Bastet to come away from avoidance to simply [i]live.[/i] [color=7d694f]"We'll make the tea house our last stop,"[/color] such is a near painful utterance, but she keeps to her promise this time and answers Imentet with her intentions to [i]at least stop by.[/i] It's the least she can do, though in her departure she secures a particular bundle of incense for their evening at the tea shop. It's a specially crafted batch intended for all of them and designed with each of them in mind, a brief little flicker of haze and smoke that'll bring memories of home and worship and festivals. Of life, and of death, and wasn't that to be fitting, Bastet considered as her trio of familiars eagerly trotted among her heels. She made her deliveries on foot, a preference she had claimed many times in comparison to being driven or taking herself to each household or establishment. Such was easier for her companions who fled to the shadows the instance she stepped out from her complex, following their eager bodies till they vanished, but Bastet knew they'd remain close and eager to answer her call. The thought leaves the smallest of graces upon her lips as she teases her fingers through her braids, tossing them among the delicate line of her shoulders. [/color][/indent][/indent][center][img]https://i.imgur.com/9IEk1c3.png[/img][/center][sup][sup][right][color=black]mentions & interactions:[@Icy Hot], [@Akayaofthemoon], [@Gothelk], [@Venus], [@fledermaus].[/color][/right][/sup][/sup]