---
Last night's misunderstanding had been beaten out of them both. What remained was simple enough. He was also one of Sekhmet's. Just like him. Useful and strong.
Annoying when first met.
Acceptable in hindsight.
Bat Bat, naturally, ruined the gravity of the moment by leaning toward Mira and whispering far too audibly, "They all look like they are trying very hard not to kneel and very hard not to look like they are trying."
Mira actually almost smiled.
That was when she made the choice.
Not inwardly only.
Practically.
She stepped away from the desk.
The movement itself drew a few eyes because Mira did not waste motion often. She came toward Sekhmet with the contained determination of a woman who had decided her pride could remain in place while still speaking plainly.
Sekhmet noticed immediately.
She stopped at a respectful distance from him, close enough for private conversation if the room respected it, far enough not to provoke the wrong assumptions from Raka's men.
