A flash of orange burst out of the tree line, followed by three more. I assumed they were foxes, but they were moving far too quickly for me to take note of.
A woman appeared behind them, moving with in-built grace that seemed fox-like even from this distance. Even if Baal hadn’t already told me what she was, I would have been able to guess.
She approached and gave the two of us a peaceful smile.
“Thank you for coming, Huxian,” Baal said.
“Thank you for the invitation,” she responded in a melodic voice. She shook her head back, the beautiful long dark hair falling behind her as she did.
I stared at her, unable to tear my gaze away as I thought about how wonderful she was going to be to photograph. There was something captivating about her that I just knew was going to translate well onto camera.
“This is Chelsea,” Baal said.
“A pleasure,” Huxian responded. “I’m afraid that my foxes don’t take direction very well, but Horus assured me it wouldn’t be an issue.”
“We can work around them,” I promised.
Baal smiled and nodded, not seeming in the slightest part annoyed that I was speaking for both of us.
“Excellent.” She turned around and scanned the surrounding oasis. “Is there somewhere you’d like me?”
“Chelsea?” Baal asked.
“Erm, I think that depends. I’m sorry, I don’t know if it’s rude to ask, but what colour are your tails?”
“What colour would you like them to be?” she asked.
My eyes widened. “We can choose?”
She nodded. “I can channel any kind of fox spirit, which means that I can choose the colour of my tails. They’re naturally sand coloured.”
“Like Tibetan sand foxes?”
Huxian turned back towards me. “You know your foxes?”
“I know my animals,” I responded. “My fox knowledge in general is quite rusty.”
“I’m still impressed.” She smiled kindly.
“We can go with your natural colour,” I said. “It’s a more accurate representation of you, I think that would be best for the photos.”
“And it will look good with the light we’ve got now,” Baal said.
“As well as be a great contrast to your hair.” Excitement built within me at the idea of photographing the beautiful goddess. Yesterday had been fun, but today was shaping up to be even better. I hoped whoever our next god was would be just as easy to work with.
“Great. So, where?” Huxian asked.
“What about on the rock formation over there?” I asked the two of them, pointing to where I meant. Trees emerged from behind it, framing it nicely, while the rocks themselves were just enough off the ground that I felt they’d suit the way Huxian vibed.
“I’ll get into position,” she said, heading over in that direction still fully clothed.
“She knows that this is supposed to be about getting naked, right?” I whispered to Baal.
He chuckled. “I assume so, but I have no idea what Horus told everyone when he convinced them to do this.”
“Seems like an oversight if you ask me,” I muttered. “I’m not the one telling her if he hasn’t.”
“I’ll bite that bullet for you,” he promised. “But I don’t think we’re going to need to.” He nodded in her direction.
I looked over in time to see Huxian slip off her dress and let nine stunning tails out into the air around her, each of them moving as if they had a mind of their own.
Despite having seen all kinds of things yesterday, this was actually the most awe-inspiring. Maybe it was because I’d seen plenty of wings and horns before, but I’d never seen tails like these. They were magnificent, and the contrast between the light brown fur of her tails and the jet-black of her hair was everything I wanted it to be. There was no doubt in my mind that one of these photographs was going to end up in my portfolio.
One of Huxian’s foxes bounded over and raced up the rock, coming to a stop at the point and lifting its paw.
I reacted in an instant, raising my camera and snapping a few shots without waiting to see what would happen. I could direct people, but when it came to animals, it was all about reacting the moment they did something.
The fox lowered its face and hopped down, making me certain that I’d done the right thing.
I glanced over at Baal who was beaming widely. I wasn’t sure if it was because he thought we had a good shot, or because he was impressed that I’d thought to get it in the first place, but it made me feel all kinds of warm and fuzzy inside.
“We’re going to have to keep an eye on those mischief makers,” he said. “I think they’re going to keep us on our toes for the next hour or so.”
I let out a small laugh. “It’s a good job that animals are your expertise, then.”
“I’m not sure I’m even needed for this,” he joked even as he got in position to take some photos himself.
I trusted my instincts and moved over to the other side of the rock, catching a photo of the wind lifting Huxian’s hair just as one of her tails crossed in front of her. I wasn’t sure if it would be exactly right for the calendar, but it would be a stunning photograph, and right now, that was the only thing I could think about.
Every now and again, I glanced over at Baal, though I realised quickly that neither of us were getting in one another’s way. It was surprisingly easy to work with him, and I looked forward to doing more of it.
And I hoped that I’d get more opportunities to once this week was over.
CHAPTER 11
Chelsea
I busied myself with the laptop, clicking through the photos we’d taken of Huxian and Asterion, pleased with how they’d come out. The fox goddess and the heavily muscled god couldn’t have been more different, but they’d both produced unbelievably good photos. It was hard for me to believe that I was the one who took some of these. This was an opportunity I’d never have had if Baal hadn’t decided to use the copy shop.
It was surreal, far more so than I expected.
“You seem lost in thought.”
I jumped at the sound of Baal’s voice.
“Sorry, I thought you heard me come back,” he said, handing me a chicken wrap.
“Thanks.” I took it from him, touching his hand deliberately as I took it.
His gaze locked on mine, and I knew that he was aware that I’d done it on purpose.
“So, what were you thinking about?” he asked, gesturing to the laptop. “Hopefully not how hot Asterion is.”
I snorted. “I mean, there’s no denying that.”
“Not even slightly,” he agreed. “But that wasn’t what you were thinking.”
“It’s just...I took these.” I flicked through several of them, stopping on one of Huxian on top of her rock.
“You did,” he said, his voice brimming with pride, but there was no surprise in his voice.
“Thank you,” I said softly. “I know we’re not done yet, but this is better than anything I could have imagined myself doing as my first professional shoot.”
“I’m glad I could help.” He placed a hand on my back and I leaned into it. The casual show of affection wasn’t something I’d expected, but I liked it a lot.