High Priest Jahi
Jahi, the high priest of the temple in the Old Kingdom, was also the mentor of Zahur, the young prince. The prince was second born to the Pharaoh, born sickly and weak, not expected to survive past his first year. As such, the prince was named Zahur, which mean flower, and not declared heir to the throne, despite being the only male child of the royal bloodline. He survived and thrived, however, but as his older sister had already been chosen to be heir, the prince's position was to be that of a noble.
As the high priest, it was Jahi's duty to train the Pharaoh's children on diplomacy, politics and etiquette. It quickly became apparent to the older jackal that his prime student, the young prince Zahur, was destined to become more than a simple noble debating political implitcations at some minor function that served no real use to the kingdom, and furthered the boy's teaching to that of magic and religion, teaching him the ways of the temple and, over time, introducing him to the elements that would better serve him as a priest of the kingdom's religions. He'd not brought this to the attention of the Pharaoh, trusting his own judgement in such ordeals and waiting for the oportune moment when such could be breached before the King in such a manner that it would allow him to take the prince under his wing more extensively, making him a true neophyte of the temple rather than just a student residing in the palace.
This snippet of the story comes imediately after the last, but shows more of the priest Jahi's interactions with his servant, a young cheetah named Azibo, and the relationship the two have. As such, I felt it better to post seperately. There are underlying hints of more than that of the simple servant serving his master, and the two do have a very close bond. This is the last of what I currently have that's post-worthy from the story, as I never really liked how the rest of it came out, and haven't gotten around to expanding on the story or fixing the parts that I don't like.
The Pharaoh's Youth - Excerpt 2
Just then, the jackal's servant entered with a platter of food for the priest, bringing the plate over and setting it down on Jahi's desk. The young cheetah, not much older than the prince, swayed his striped tail about distractingly while he set about setting up his master's meal, fetching a goblet in which to pour the red wine the priest was so fond of. Jahi watched his servant quietly set about his task, his eyes moving over the spotted frame of the youth, tracing over his contours down to the pleated kilt of white he wore about his waist. The boy was used to such attentions, and often put extra sway into his hips and tail as he wandered about the priest's chambers.
After the place had been set, and the wine poured, Jahi approached the desk with a smile, nodding to the cheetah. "Thank you, Azibo."
Beaming with pride, the young feline bowed to his master. "If it weren't for me, you'd likely starve, master," he teased. The two were fairly close, and the boy knew he could get away with such jibes, for it brought a chuckle from the jackal.
"Likely, yes. Thankfully, I have my faithful servant to ensure that I am properly fed." He smiled as he spoke, bending down to give the cheetah a kiss on the forehead before sitting down to his meal. That sign of affection pleased the feline, whose tail twisted happily behind him as he beamed, smiling wide, and he brushed the short braids of his black hair over his shoulder.
He glanced towards the door the prince had exited through, then back to his master, whom had started in on his meal, savoring the flavor of the sweet meats that had been brought for him. Jahi had some parchment in his hand that he was rather focused on, so it took a few moments for him to notice his servant watching him. At which points he returned the look with an arched brow, his fork pausing halfway to his mouth with the morsel of tender meat still sitting upon it.
Azibo's ears tilted back and he lowered his gaze to the floor, hands resting at his side, though the agitated sway of his tail gave him away, and his master set down the fork. "Was there something you wished to say, Azibo?" he asked, leaning back in his seat, the parchment still in his grasp though forgotten for the time being.
Azibo shook his head, briefly, glancing up to the high priest, whom frowned in response. "I think there is, and I'd really appreciate it if you'd just tell me what it was, without playing games tonight. I have a meeting to attend and then I need to tend to some arrangements, and I haven't the time to coerce it out of you right now."
The young cheetah blushed and looked down, again, mumbling an apology, then looked back to Jahi. "I was just wondering why you'd never introduced me to Zahur."
"The prince," Jahi put emphasis on that, and the servant flinched at his error before the high priest continued, "is a very busy person, and doesn't have time to be introduced to every servant in the palace. I'm sure you'll become acquainted with him at some point, however, since he'll be taking more lessons with me in the future."
His servant looked dejected, at first, then seemed eager once the possibility of being introduced was mentioned. He gave his master a curt bow, though the jackal knew it was eagerness, and let out a low chuckle at his servant's antics. "Was there anything else, then, Azibo?"
The cheetah shook his head, "No, master. Thank you, master." After that, he went about his tasks, tidying up the high priest's chambers and ensuring his master's wine was refreshed whenever needed.
Jahi managed to finish the rest of his meal in relative peace, reading over that parchment. The notations on it were the schedule for the meeting he had to attend later that evening, which involved a gathering of the pharaoh and his advisors to discuss various diplomatic and religious matters that concerned the royal court. One of those was scheduling a birthing celebration for Zahur's sister, Zalika, whose twenty-sixth birthday was approaching. It wasn't for another few months, so there was plenty of time to prepare for the event, and it would be a big event what with her being the rightful heir to the throne. One of the notations made mention of marriage planning, and that made Jahi frown, since arranged marriages were common for the royalty in these parts. A groom had probably already been chosen, and he would likely be some snotty noble's son with the only benefit of marriage being to solidify some political arrangement between the boy's parents and the pharaoh. And he would likely just be a boy, not quite into manhood, despite the age of the princess, since most of the nobles the pharaoh had been making deals with only had younger sons.
Jahi sighed and set down the parchment, his servant already clearing away his dishes. Azibo knew better than to inquire as to his master's mood. If he wished to share, he would likely do so that when they retired for the night, which was when Jahi tended to share most of his worries and troubles with the young feline. He needed someone to confide in, and though the cheetah was just a lowly servant, he was loyal, and the only person close enough to his master for him to feel comfortable telling such things to.