The weekend was sunny and warm.
Okay, I’m being careful with my words. Let me correct. This weekend was hot, so I did the only logical thing– I turned off the heater.
Fast forward to today and it’s freezing cold in the mornings. The house is a chilly 63 degrees and I’m thinking of turning the heater back on for the small children and dog of the house.
*sigh*
The warmer weather has me dreading the summer heat already. Around here the part of the year that’s too hot for my liking lasts about 6 months and precedes the season formerly known as fall but currently known as “Fire Season.”
All that heat had me picturing vast desert scapes. I was primed to think of deserts because I was doing some research about penguins for another story and reading about arctic deserts…
So, with all the ideas bouncing around in my head I came up with this story about a dog from an ancient Egyptian order that has a job to do that humans couldn’t possibly understand.
Originally the story was juxtaposed with a mother-daughter story, but I ended up having to edit it down because 1000 words isn’t that many.
I’m pretty pleased with the end result and I think you will be to.
Pharaoh’s Pact
Jill N Davies
Pharaoh let a nervous whine escape as he peered out the car window at all the things zooming by. Everything was different now—even him. That’s what made this so hard. He looked over at his new owner and whined. Jamie lifted a hand from the steering wheel and gave his narrow head an affectionate tousle.
“It’s gonna be okay, Buddy. My mom’s nice. She’s gonna like you,” Jamie reassured.
But Pharaoh knew things that Jamie didn’t. She knew he was a Saluki, born from a long line of hunters, but she had no idea what it was that the Saluki had been hunting for thousands of years. She had no idea what he was there to do.
After years of training and waiting, pacing the outskirts of the temple of Karnak and stalking passers-by in the Valley of Kings, the order had led him to Jamie. She was the one that would fulfill the prophecy. It was supposed to be as simple as that, but Jamie was far from simple. Pharaoh hadn’t expected to love her.
Having a master meant a whole new life. Together they traveled from the desert sands to a new place. Here the land was green and alive, with miles of running trails that Jamie diligently took him on. She was a good master, but the day had finally come.
“Baby! You don’t look a thing like yourself! You’re as thin as your dog!” Hildy exclaimed, watching the pair trot up the driveway.
“Good to see you too, Ma,” Jamie said.
Hildy held the door, pressing herself against the wall so Jamie could squirm past. She seemed nice. It was clear that she was also wild about Jamie, which only served to make Pharaoh ache more.
A sneaker toppled from the bag, landing on the entryway rug. Pharaoh used it as an excuse to linger, his whippet-thin tail swishing with good humor at their scent. He moved on from the sneaker, sniffing along the frayed edge of the entryway rug.
“He’s not going tohunt the cats, is he?” Hildy asked, giving the dog a false-stern look.
“Sighthounds hunt with their eyes,” Jamie reassured her, looking over at him with an owner’s pride.
Pharaoh, swelling from his master’s boast, was following his nose from the rug over to the sofa.
Hildy watched him work. “He’s acting more like a scent hound, if you asked me.”
“He’s still a dog, Ma. And you’ve got cats,” Jamie shrugged.
She started to step away from her pile of stuff when Hildy raised her voice and finger with motherly authority, “Don’t you dare leave that pile of junk in the Parlor young lady! March it straight into your room.” Her voice softened as she stepped into the kitchen, “come back after you’ve tidied. I’ll make you some tea.”
Jamie gathered her things with dutiful compliance, “Yes, Ma,” she said, before waddling off down the hall.
Pharaoh was able to make out a lot about the seriousness of the situation from the state of the house. The carpet was frayed and there were thick scratches on the sofa. Balls of hair danced across the floor like wicked little dust bunnies … Then there was the smell. An unholy stench. He had no doubt now that he was in the presence of his mortal enemy.
Pharaoh lasered in on the hiss and pat-pat of pompous feet.
Two cats emerged from the hall. The first was a Russian White, too fluffy and delicate to wreak any real havoc. The other, however, was a medium-bodied and muscular bronze Mau. It bounded up onto the countertop, long hind legs making the jump look effortless. He landed with smug grace.
“Apopsis!” Hildy tsked, noting her pet’s ascent onto the forbidden space. But before she could get a scolding out the Mau began his enchantment. The air filled with his musical tones. He chirped and chortled, waggling his tail. Hildy’s face went slack. With a placid, dreamy smile, she went back to brewing the tea.
I see you. There’s no use hiding, Apopsis purred.
I’ve come to destroy you, Pharaoh growled.
Attack me if you dare but be warned—Your master won’t look kindly upon you if you kill her mother’s precious cat, Apopsis purred, flicking his tail in Hildy’s face. She batted it aside absently. The Mau looked over his shoulder at her.
Pharaoh whined. He’d been warned not to get attached. That defeating a warlock took absolute commitment… but he hadn’t been able to help himself.
You wouldn’t dare be a bad dog, would you? Aposis taunted, casually licking a front paw.
Pharaoh didn’t want to be a bad dog. He didn’t want to disappoint the master he loved so much… but he’d made a pact when he joined the order. Maybe Jamie would understand. She’d called him a good boy, after all.
It was a chance he had to take.
Apopsis looked up from his triumphant grooming in time to and catch a flash of fur and teeth. He screamed an earth-shattering yowl of anger and pain. Claws out, he fought back, too distracted to conjure another curse.
It was over as quickly as it started. Apopsis was vanquished.
Spell gone, Hildy blinked, momentarily confused. Then she saw the cat hanging limply from Pharaoh’s deeply scratched muzzle. She let out a high-pitched wail, drawing Jaimie from the back room.
“No! Bad dog!” Jamie yelled. Pharaoh could hear the disappointment and betrayal in her voice.
He let out a meek whimper, dropping the Mau. Jamie ushered him into the back yard amidst Hildy’s frantic wails. He paced anxiously at the door.
It had to be done, Pharaoh told himself. What happened to him now was of small consequence in the face of an eternal battle. He wasn’t supposed to get attached.
Still, he thought, peering through the glass as the person he loved most walked away, he wished for Jamie to understand that he was still a good boy…
The End
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