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Tweak says, "MAKE LOVE NOT WAR! <3"

Bast:Singing, Music & Dancing (among other things) (meow_minx) wrote in history_dot_com,
@ 2011-05-31 17:00:00

Entry tags:

bast, bes

Looking for Trouble [ancient times] (tag: Bes)
Bast ran. She stretched out her legs, front and back, her little claws flexing every time they hit the ground. It gave her more traction against the sand and she was able to run even faster. The wind rippled through her fur as she flew across the hot earth, and Bast could not be happier. It felt so good to be free.

It wasn’t that she wasn’t happy in her new home. Mostly. She got a lot of good food, which she liked. She got to play with Dog Breath and Feather Head, and she liked that sometimes. Well, with Dog Breath anyway. Most importantly, she got hugs and cuddles from Isis, and Bast loved that. Not that she was gonna tell Isis that, but she did. She liked feeling like she was special, and the hugs did that.

But to get the food and the playtime and the hugs, Bast had to put up with a lot. Isis made her take baths, which Bast loathed until she figured out it was sort of like swimming and there could be a lot of splashing involved. She had to show up at meal time to get the food, not just have it when she was hungry. She couldn’t pull Feather Head’s hair when he was stupid, and he was stupid a lot. She had to wear clothes all the time and if she took them off and left them somewhere, Isis would give her The Look. The Look was the worst thing that anybody ever did to her, because it made her feel so bad inside. And she wasn’t supposed to go running off whenever she wanted, because she was supposed to be learning stuff.

But what could she learn from being told that she couldn’t learn from doing? It made more sense to do, in her opinion. And she’d told both Dog Breath and Feather Head just that. Only Dog Breath looked like he would listen. Maybe she could take him with her next time. This time, though, she’d seen the opportunity and she had to go before Isis noticed. She didn’t have time to get Dog Breath’s attention, or she wouldn’t have been able to escape herself.

And she needed to. She needed to get out and run and see and play and do without being told no, don’t do that, do this instead, that’s wrong, go this way, go that way, sit down, sit still, sit, sit, sit. Bast didn’t want to sit! Except she did, because she’d run a ways now and she was a little tired. Bast let go of the fur and claws and whiskers she’d been using when she ran, and instead became a little girl with a dirty face and untamed hair. This form was slower, and bigger, so she could catch her breath better. Besides, there was a small pool ahead. She’d smelled the water before, and now she could see the trees. Bast decided that would be a good place to sit.

But when she got closer, she could see that she wasn’t the only one with that idea. Creeping through the tall greens that grew very close to the water’s edge, she drew closer to… whatever that was. It was big, but then most things were big to her. And it smelled, bad. Why hadn’t she noticed that when she was a cat? Now that she was downwind of it, she could smell it, and it was nasty. It was also doing something that was making gloopy sorts of sounds, like when she dropped stones into thick mud. It wasn’t a good sound, and it was making Bast very uneasy. She ought to be a cat again, and she ought to sneak right back out.

Which she was going to do until she saw what the big smelly thing was playing with. It was a person. That’s what was making the gloopy sounds, the person’s insides. Bast frowned fiercely. That wasn’t right. A person’s insides were supposed to stay inside, because it hurt them when you took them out like that. The thing was hurting the person, even though the person wasn’t screaming. The person was still alive, but couldn’t scream. The thing must have done something so they couldn’t, and that made Bast even madder.

Bursting out of the undergrowth, she gave her nastiest growl and then yelled, “Hey! You let that person go! RIGHT NOW!”

When the big smelly thing did no more than give her a baleful look, Bast knew what she had to do. She attacked.

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dwarf_of_kemet
2011-06-05 01:14 pm UTC (link)

The call came through, shrill and desperate. It was not from a child, or the parent of one, as was most common, but from an adult under attack, and that was never a good thing. A demon that would attack an adult human was either very powerful, or very desperate, and either way it was bad. Not that a demon was ever good, but just like everything else, there was bad and then there was worse. This was going to be worse, that much the Protector could be sure of. He grabbed the necessary items and headed to the oasis, appearing already transformed to his more frightening appearance.

On look at the evil monstrosity told him his appearance alone would not be enough. There would be no frightening this one off. Bes was going to need to actually use strategy and weapons to defeat it. There would be no resolution short of the demon's death.

He'd barely had time to register it was a man under attack when something else slid into his field of vision. A child was seeking to interfere, probably the man's daughter. While he admired the courage the child displayed in wanting to protect her father, there was no way she could possibly come out on top in this fight. It only took the briefest of seconds to weigh the situation. Bes' first duty was to children, and he acted accordingly, appearing between the monster and the girl, fiercely shaking his sistrum as the girl slammed into him mid-leap. The sound of his rattle made the creature recoil long enough for Bes to look over his shoulder, intending to warn the child away, when a look of recognition crossed his deformed features. Had his mouth not already been gaping, the elongated tongue lolling grotesquely below his chin, it would have done so the moment he realized who the girl was.

"GO HOME BAST!" He growled, turning his attention back to the creature, sword raised, ready to strike.

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meow_minx
2011-06-07 08:47 am UTC (link)

One second Bast had been ready to jump on the bad thing, and the next she was smacking into somebody that hadn’t been there a minute ago. It knocked the breath out of her and made her head feel dizzy for a second. When she looked up to see what she had hit, something ugly looked back at her and for a second, Bast was afraid that it was something that was friends with the bad, smelly thing.

Then the ugly face yelled at her and Bast realized it was just Bes.

Bast scowled at him, mad that Isis’ friend had gotten in her way when she needed to go help that man! But Bes was ignoring her now that he’d yelled at her. Just who did he think he was? Bast didn’t care, she was helping, and that was that!

Knowing she was faster as a cat, Bast transformed, and slipped right between Bes’ legs as she ran at the big, smelly thing again. Another advantage to this form was that it had claws. And teeth. And she could jump. Boy oh boy could she jump, and she did just that, springing forward, aiming for the eyes.

As she raked her claws over the big smelly thing’s face, she yelled at Bes, “You go home! I’m busy!”

Turning, she jumped away, leaving scratch marks with her rear claws as she used the demon for a springboard. She landed lightly and immediately bounded sideways to land next to the injured man. A low growl came out of her throat. “You’re a bad smelly thing and you’re hurting this person. That’s naughty!”

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dwarf_of_kemet
2011-06-30 09:54 pm UTC (link)

One thing he could say for her, Bast was fast! So fast, she was almost a blur as she ran between his legs. Her aim was true, and the beast howled in rage. And Bes certainly could not fault her bravery. It took a great deal of courage for someone so small to stand up to something so vile and evil.

Her impulsive nature was another matter. Isis would be more than a little displeased, should she catch wind of this. Which she wouldn't. Not from him. Isis might come up with the proper motherly way of teaching her ward a lesson, but Bes had a better notion on that.

If she wanted to take the demon on, he wasn't going to interfere. Not yet, anyway. He looked completely relaxed, but in reality was ready to intercede in a second's notice. In the meantime, he would wait and see what she could do. It would do her no harm to learn to fight, and it also would do no harm for her to learn on her own that somethings were bigger than she was.

"He's all yours."

With that, Bes waited to see what she would do and what the demon would do. His reputation might normally be enough to halt the monster, but not if it thought it had easy prey.

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meow_minx
2011-07-07 01:58 am UTC (link)

Bast smirked. Even Isis’ friend knew that she was awesome. Of course she was. She was Bast! There wasn’t anything she’d found yet that she couldn’t outrun, outfight or outsmart, at least in her young mind. She conveniently forgot that just two days prior, she’d been pinned to the floor when Anubis and Horus had both sat on her. And that the only reason she was sharing a household with two such icky creatures as boys was because she hadn’t been able to fight off Isis’ greatest and most debilitating weapon: a hug.

Her memory was short and focused only on her successes, and she’d had many. It was easy to forget the cuts and scrapes and bruises that came with victory when winning was so much fun. And when it was the only part that was repeated for the benefit of impressing other people. So with the youthful assumption that she was unconquerable, and the reassurance of that by dint of Bes’ stepping aside, Bast launched herself at the smelly thing again.

She was so fluid and graceful in her current form that had it not been for the speed of her attack, it would almost have looked lazy. Bast landed in the middle of the creature’s chest, then hastily and messily clawed her way up to the shoulder, being sure to dig in as much as possible along the way. Once on the higher perch, she began swiping at the thing’s face, aiming for it’s eyes, with strikes so fast they were a blur even to her. Rat-a-tat-tat-tat! Again, she hit, hard enough that the blows were audible, or would have been if the thing hadn’t been bellowing.

Somewhere along the way, in the midst of the bravado and the adrenalin, Bast forgot just why she was scratching the thing and getting its squishy skin and smelly ichor on her claws. She forgot for the moment about the mortal nearby and concentrated instead on the jittery feeling that ran along her spine at being in a fight. It was fun! She was winning! She was going to make mincemeat out of this smelly thing! Ha!

And then the demon got hold of her tail.

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dwarf_of_kemet
2011-07-14 05:01 pm UTC (link)

Bes glanced once at the mortal, knowing there was nothing he could do for the person until the business with the demon was settled. In the end, the mortal would likely be alright. His greater concern was for the kitten and her over confidence.

Bast's moves continued to impress Bes. Her current skills told him that when she grew, when she came fully into her talents, she would be a serious force to be reckoned with. Her ferile nature and history had already shaped her, and should she find the right teacher, she would learn to channel that aggressive behavior and to temper some of that impulsiveness. Bes was little enough of a fighter, or he might have considered taking on the challenge. Oh, there were things he could teach her, but he concentrated solely on enemies like the one before them now, and that was a sight different than the fighting others leaned toward. The matter required some thought, but perhaps he could find someone suitable, when this business was over and he had time to actually think on it.

It wouldn't hurt Isis to give the girl something active to do, either. Bast was not the type of child to sit quietly in a corner, looking pretty and succumbing to hugs and tea all day. He knew the boys often rough-housed with her, but he wondered if it was enough to keep her entertained. Apparently not, or she wouldn't have been this far away and in the situation she was now.

He may not have looked it, but Bes was on high alert, watching for the instant his assistance would be needed. It actually took a little longer than he thought, the demon no doubt surprised by the ferocity of such a small creature. When it finally caught Bast by the tail, he knew it was time to step in, particularly when it opened what passed as a mouth for this monster, and leaned in toward her. With one bold stroke, the appendage that had assaulted her tail went flying, the still-caught kitten going with it.

"Now you will deal with me!" he roared. He shook his sistrum, making the monster howl in agony, while simultaneously diving his sword into the demon's midsection. The sounds were nothing knew to Bes, but they were a great deal louder than those produced by Bast's attempts, loud as those had been. This was what he did, and why he was so feared by their kind.

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meow_minx
2011-07-20 12:33 am UTC (link)

Bast yowled at the top of her lungs when she felt the fist close around her tail. Sometimes that was enough to startle somebody into letting her go, being that loud. Not this time though. And Bast loathed being restrained. It made something in her panic, and she hated that too. So she flailed wildly, striking out with front and rear claws, trying to get the thing to let her go. But it didn’t. Instead, she saw rows of teeth in a mouth that was fully of something slimy coming at her.

And then it wasn’t.

Instead, she was flying through the air, even though her tail was still held. She couldn’t figure that out, and didn’t really have time to. The ground was coming at her too fast, and with her tail being weighed down by whatever was still clamped to her tail, her balance was completely thrown off. She tried to twist around in the air, like she always did, but she only managed to get half turned before she hit. Without her feet under her, and her limbs to absorb the impact, it all went into her torso and the air was knocked out of her lungs.

Even though she felt like she couldn’t breathe, Bast rolled onto her stomach and crawled towards the man that had been hurt. He still needed help. But the thing on her tail was heavy and dragging, so she transformed. When she turned to look, there was an arm there, so she looked at the smelly thing again just in time to hear it scream. Bes was doing something bad to the smelly thing, and Bast was very happy about that.

Gasping, because she couldn’t seem to get air into her lungs, she crawled towards the man on the ground. She couldn’t say anything because she couldn’t breathe, but she gently patted his cheeks to let him know it was going to be okay. And she kept an eye on the fight, to see if she’d need to try to move him. He was bigger than her, but she was tough. She was Bast. She’d do it if she had to.

Boy, Bes was making lots of holes in the smelly thing with the sword, she thought. And she had a sudden urge to learn how to use one. That would be almost as good as claws.

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dwarf_of_kemet
2011-07-22 02:47 pm UTC (link)

While the sword and the sistrum were effective, and taking their toll, it was not the items he held in his hands that would finish off the demon. His real weapons lay in his mind and his voice. Once the beast had been subdued enough by the physical attacks, Bes loudly called out the Words of Power, his voice booming with the force and the power bestowed upon him as the Destroyer of Demons.

The effect was instantaneous, the beast instantly vanishing. But were the scene to be slowed down for visual aid, the viewer might see the demon writhing in pain and anguish, not so much exploding as imploding, the black mass collapsing into itself. What was noticeable was the loud sound that followed, as the air rushed back into the abruptly vacated space.

With a sigh, Bes sheathed his weapon, tucked his sistrum into his waistband, and transformed back into the form Bast would be far more familiar with. He walked over to where the girl was attempting to soothe the injured mortal.

"You fought well, but I hope you have realized that some things are beyond your powers. Beyond those of even greater gods than either of us." Which was partially true. Isis might be great, and now possessed the name of Re, but he wasn't sure she would know what to do in this situation. He expected only Thoth would know the words he had spoken, and he sure couldn't see that particular god trying to take on what he just had. No, Thoth was better off with his papyrus and ink pot. Leave the hard stuff to those who knew how to handle it.

Bes glanced at the mortal, finding that perhaps another lesson could be learned. "This man needs medical attention. Who do you suppose would be the best one to look after and attend him? Do you know anyone skilled with magic and healing?"

While he suspected that in her youth and lesser experience, Isis would come most quickly to mind, that was not who he actually intended to bring this man to. Isis could heal very well, better than most, and would be happy to, but he intended his inference to Bast's surrogate mother to be nothing more than a consideration to make the child think of the consequences she could face should the Queen find out what had transpired. Hike was far more used to injuries of this nature, and was used to Bes' frequent visits with patients.

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meow_minx
2011-07-25 04:19 am UTC (link)

“Lots of people,” Bast answered right away, even though she wanted to argue with Bes. As far as Bast was concerned, there was nothing beyond her powers. There was just stuff she hadn’t learned yet. But the mortal was hurt and Bes said he needed help. So they’d have to find him some help.

“Isis can,” she said, but she didn’t stop there. Mostly because somehow she knew that her new mother would yell at her. If not for the fighting, then probably for the mess she’d made of her clothing. Being clean seemed really important to Isis, though Bast couldn’t understand why. Well, she liked being clean, but sometimes a person had to get dirty to have fun. Isis didn’t seem to agree.

“And Thoth,” she added. “He’s really, really smart, he probably knows stuff. And there’s always something fun at his place. Auntie Sekhmet can heal. Plus, she’s just awesome. I love her.” As an afterthough, she muttered, “Oh yeah, and Hike. He’s boring though.”

She shrugged, then asked, “Can you show me how to use a sword? That made really good holes. I want to do that too. That would be a good thing to learn. Show me?”

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dwarf_of_kemet
2011-08-03 08:26 am UTC (link)

She was quick, Bes would give her that. He had hoped that Isis would be the child's first choice, and it was, but Bast had wriggled right out of that with other suggestions. And it seemed none of what had happened had phased the child in the least.

"You may think Hike is boring, but I assure you there are none better. Not when it comes to hike." Hike wasn't just magic, and it wasn't just medicine. It was a power that encompassed both, and named for the god that excelled at it. "Except for Isis," he continued, "but I don't think I'll bother her with this. She's likely got enough to worry about."

When she asked about his sword, he knew no lessons had been learned today. Bast knew she couldn't have beat the demon, but it was not a matter of it being bigger or stronger than her, it was the problem of her not having the right weapon. He sighed and shook his head.

"Swords do not make the warrior, little one. There is much more to learn than how to poke 'really good holes'." He knew his words were falling on deaf ears. Bes also didn't want her running around trying to learn how to use a sword on her own. Bast knew no fear, and without proper training, that was a bad combination. Yet ever since the young goddess had mentioned her, he had been thinking of Sekhmet. The child already adored her, and the Lioness would know how to teach the Kitten properly. Bes was also sure she would not teach her more than she was ready to know.

"But I'll tell you what. You get yourself on home before Isis discovers you are missing. I will get this man to Hike. Then, later, we can talk about it. It may be I can suggest to someone that you are interesting in learning how to fight. Someone who would be a better teacher than I."

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meow_minx
2011-08-09 04:19 am UTC (link)

“I know how to fight,” Bast argued, her lower lip protruding stubbornly. “I fight good. You saw. I want to fight better so I can make sure people don’t get hurt. It hurt that man. That was bad. Not just naughty, bad. Bad things should be stopped.”

It was quite a revelation for a child that rarely thought beyond her own pleasures and needs. But seeing the mortal being hurt had made her angry, and she didn’t want to see that happen again. Things that were big shouldn’t get to pick on things that were small, that wasn’t a fair fight.

“I’ll come find you later,” she told him, ignoring that it had been his suggestion to begin with. “I gotta go home. Isis gets mad when I’m dirty at dinner. Which isn’t fair because she doesn’t yell at ‘Nubis as much and he gets just as dirty.” Then she made a face. “I don’t think the featherhead even knows how to get dirty.”

Stupid bird. He was always perfect. It was revolting. But then again, getting clean meant the bath with the smelly oils, and Bast sort of liked the smelly oils. So a bath wouldn’t be so bad, and if she hurried, Isis might never even know she was all dirty and bloody. She seemed to get really upset about the bloody thing.

“See ya!” Bast called cheerfully, and then she was gone, making her way back home, trying not to get too distracted along the way.

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