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Narinder had become used to many things in his life. The constant stares of the Lamb’s followers was one of them. However, today the stares were even more prevalent. All he was doing at the moment was sitting on a bench in the plaza and reading a book, yet groups of followers were still looking at him, whispering amongst themselves. The moment he looked at them, they would promptly turn to avoid his gaze when he looked towards them.
He let out a sigh. He was alone today. The Lamb had said they had an “errand” to run and had left the cult at dawn. He had debated looking for Baal and Aym around the cult, but he knew they likely didn’t want their father hanging around as they were socializing with followers.
Leshy was running to and from Pilgrim's Passage to obtain more and more flowers for some reason. Heket was working in the kitchen and had thrown him out when he tried to check on her. Kallamar was nowhere to be seen, and Narinder had learned not to search for him after he walked in on his brother with his lovers. The Goat had come to the cult and dragged Shamura off somewhere this morning.
Just as he was about to return to his hut to read in peace, he saw Baal and Aym approaching him.
“Master!” Baal called, “We were just informed that today is a special day for gifting handmade items to those you appreciate!” Baal pulled out a piece of paper and handed it to Narinder, “I wrote this for you. I apologize I did not have more time to work on it.”
The paper had a poem on it. Narinder smiled as he read it. He pet Baal’s head briefly, earning a quiet purr from the younger cat. “It’s wonderful, Baal. Your skill has grown again. Thank you.”
Narinder glanced at Aym who held his own piece of paper. Narinder took the paper and smiled widely at the drawing of the three of them. They were standing proud with their weapons in hand, the twins standing on either side of Narinder as they had for centuries.
Narinder moved to pet Aym’s head, chuckling a little as his more recalcitrant son blushed over the gesture. “You have shown amazing progress with your art. It is hard to believe you have only been drawing a short time. I shall frame this portrait and place it on our wall.”
Aym looked shocked for a moment, but then smiled, “If you feel it’s worthy, Master, then I’d be honored. I shall draw a better one later!”
Narinder let out a pleased hum, while Baal teased, “More time to spend with Jalala, huh?”
Aym hissed, “She’s a talented artist. It is only natural to consult those skilled in an activity one seeks to learn!”
Baal smirked as his brother, then waved at someone behind him, “Maybe you should tell her how much you appreciate her talents now.”
Aym turned around quickly to see Jalala heading towards the group with her sketchbook in hand.
“G-good day!” She greeted them. The three offered their own greetings back before Jalala opened her sketchbook and handed a loose page to Aym while blushing, “I… um… drew something for you… for… um… today.”
Aym took the picture with a matching blush on his face, “T-thank you.” After an awkward moment of silence, he cleared his throat and asked, “Did you prepare an offering for Master to show your appreciation for him?”
“Oh! Oh, I um…” she started before she opened her sketchbook and started going through pages. When she found the one she wanted, she carefully ripped it out of the book. She handed it to Narinder, “It… it’s not much, but… um… I hope you l-like it.”
Narinder looked at the drawing with a soft gasp. It was a drawing of him and the Lamb. They were sitting outside under a full moon, the camellia field behind them with fireflies drifting around them. The Lamb leaned against him with his arm wrapped around them, and they were looking into each other’s eyes. Their faces were close enough that it’s possibly they were leaning in for a kiss.
Narinder looked up at Jalala, who was nervously shuffling her feet. He smiled gently, trying to put her at ease as he said, “Thank you. You have an amazing talent. I’m surprised my Lamb has not commissioned you as the cult’s artist.”
Jalala perked up and blushed from the praise, “Oh! N-no, I’m not that good yet.”
Narinder paused a moment before he placed a paw on her shoulder and leaned down until she met his eyes. Once she did, he said, “You need not obtain perfection to possess an astounding ability. I do not give praise which is unearned. You should be proud of your abilities even as you seek to further improve.” When she nodded, he pulled back from her, “I will share this gift with the Lamb. I believe they will appreciate it as much as myself.”
–
Narinder’s day changed after that. It appeared accepting Jalala’s gift encouraged other followers to approach him. Unfortunately, those gifts were unremarkable. Many were simply flowers they obtained from the farm, or sweets from the kitchen. He could help but roll his eyes as he looked at the food. Most were chocolate or citrus based, neither of which he liked. Almost none were made or grown by the giver. Still, the act of accepting the offerings would be good for the cult’s faith.
–
It was a few hours later when the Lamb returned. Narinder had returned to reading on the bench after he finished the Lamb’s gift. There was a small pile of gifts next to them. Narinder set his book down as he heard their bell jingle in his direction. He had missed his Lamb and was glad they had returned. Instead of the greeting he had expected, the Lamb came to a dead stop in front of the gifts and asked, “What the hell are those?”
Narinder’s smile and ears dropped. A bit irked that his Lamb did not greet him properly, he bluntly replied, “Offerings, Lamb.”
“And you ACCEPTED? You. are. MINE! I’ll kill all of them! Then… then we’ll go somewhere, alone, forever. I-I won’t let anyone take you from me! No one!” They loudly replied, the air around them turning dense as their anger grew.
Narinder stood up, and took a few steps so he was directly in front of them. “Why would I not accept? Mortals commonly give offerings to the divine, as they should.”
For a moment the Lamb paused, then their anger morphed into confusion, “Offerings?”
“Yes” Narinder replied, as though the Lamb was being oblivious, “Today is the day to provide gifts to those you appreciate, is it not? Few deserve a mortal’s appreciation more than the gods.”
The Lamb looked at him for a long moment before they replied, “Romantic. It’s romantic appreciation, either an existing love or one they seek to pursue.” They were silent for a moment to let that sink in before they went on, “Get rid of them all. The only gift you should receive today is from me.”
Narinder shook his head, “I will dispose of most, but there are some I desire to keep.”
At that, the Lamb’s anger re-emerged, “Who are the whores you’d accept gifts from? I won’t let them take you from me! I’ll kill them and gift you their blood!”
Narinder let out a growl, “You will not speak of the twins in such a manner, nor will you ever threaten them. If you wish to speak about it, then speak.”
The Lamb blinked, then closed their eyes. They counted to themself slowly, “I’m sorry. I didn’t realize the gifts were from them. I won’t ask you to get rid of them, but the others need to go.”
“There is one other I desire to keep.” Narinder said.
The Lamb growled, their eyes opening as they were about to demand to know who. However, they stopped when they saw the drawing Narinder was holding up. They took the drawing from his hand, and looked at it with a muted, “Wow”
Narinder let out a hum of agreement, “Exactly. The giver is unimportant compared to the subject.” After a moment, he explained, “Our unfamiliarity with the holiday could have partially caused this. That drawing was the first offering I received from a follower, and it was only after Aym suggested she give me an item to show her appreciation for her god.”
The Lamb looked up from the picture, and took a moment to decide how to react. They still wanted to kill everyone (except the twins) who gave him anything on a romantic holiday. But they weren’t sure who had done so except Jalala, who appeared to have been asked to give a gift. They also knew Jalala only had feelings for Aym. They took a deep breath as they decided, “I want everything else destroyed.”
Narinder smiled slightly, then gathered the gifts in his arms. He walked to the center of the plaza, and threw the gifts into the shrine fire. He could hear the followers around gasp and speak amongst themselves. He had no interest in their reactions as he returned to the Lamb’s side and gave them a chaste kiss.
“You worry for naught, my Lamb. I will never knowingly accept romantic gestures from others. Just as I am yours, you are mine. Now and forever.” He smiled as he added, “The offerings made it clear your followers do not know nor care for me in that fashion. But you… you know the true me, as I know the true you.”
Narinder pulled a small box out of his pocket. He held the Lamb’s hand in one hand, and put the box in their palm with the other. He waited until the Lamb opened the box, exposing a ring with a gem that appeared black but possessed an unusual gold shimmer.
Narinder smiled apologetically as he explained, “As I had just learned of the holiday this morning, I had not sufficient time to prepare a more sufficient gift. We can place the gem in a different piece of jewelry should you desire.”
The Lamb barely heard him as they stared at the gem. Something looked oddly familiar about the color. After a few moments, they gasped as they realized what it was, “Is… is this ichor?”
“Yes.” Narinder replied, “I had spent this morning desiring to be in your company. I hold no doubt you felt the same. Now when you wear the gem, some part of me will always be with you.”
After a moment, Narinder added, “It has a further use. Resurrections can only be accomplished when you possess part of their being. With that ring, you will always be able to call me back to your side no matter what happens to the rest of my body. You will never have to fear being without me.”
The Lamb carefully placed the ring on their finger, then leapt to hug Narinder. “It's wonderful! We’ll never have to be apart for even a second again!” When they pulled back, they blushed and admitted, “I’ve also been thinking of how much I wished we could always be together. Every crusade is torture without you by my side. So…”
The Lamb paused for a second as they opened the crown’s storage. They pulled a scythe out from the crown. The scythe took the form of a twisted skeleton. The skull was on top of the heel with a small pointed tip emerging from the top of the skull. In place of the skeleton’s right arm was the main blade. The cutting edge was a blood red that transitioned to black as it approached the back edge. Where the skeleton’s left arm would be was a smaller blade, colored the same as the other. The shaft of the weapon was shaped like a spine that transitioned into two skeletal legs intertwined.
Narinder took the weapon, slowly moving it as he examined every angle. The color, design, and obvious sharpness showed it was a well made weapon. The craftsmanship could only come from one person, “Kudaai.” Narinder said in surprise.
“I wanted you to have the very best!” The Lamb explained, “I know crusades can be dangerous, but this way… maybe we could go together? D-do you like it?”
Narinder smiled softly. They could have easily given him a normal weapon. One made by Kudaai was rare and guaranteed to be of the highest quality and ability. He doubted the bladesmith cared about his tastes enough to design the skeleton, which could only mean the Lamb had given him a design and convinced Kudaai to follow it. They really were wonderful to him.
He chuckled as he approached the Lamb, grabbing their face with his free hand, and pulling them into a passionate kiss. The Lamb could feel his light purrs through the kiss. They were panting when he finally pulled back.
“It’s perfect, my Lamb.” He purred out, “I would love to accompany you on your next crusade. In fact, we could go to the shrimp’s for dinner.”
“Yes!” The Lamb shouted, “I had actually hoped you’d want to go. I made reservations already!”
Narinder rested the scythe on his shoulder with one hand, as the couple walked hand in hand towards the gate. Narinder had grown used to many things in the cult, but doubted he’d ever grow used to how the Lamb made him feel.