After meeting Mr. Cook, Alexander followed Roxana's scent to the next room down the aisle. Entering, he immediately heard Roxana growling and sure enough, down from a bed she leapt. Once again, Alexander sniffed her, even touched noses with his growling intended until she hissed at him. Then came the voice of a girl, sixteen years of age, saying: "Roxana, behave yourself."
Alexander looked up as a light turned on and stared at the girl. She was a slender damsel of five feet and six inches with light skin, large reddish-brown eyes and red hair that was long and straight. She was currently wearing a pink nightgown, although her typical attire was usually a blue kimono with shoes of the same color and a pink turban. She had an honest face and she was fairly attractive. A human might say this damsel's mouth the cutest, yet Alexander knew nothing of such things. All that he knew was the girl's face was honest and that she was fairly attractive and he had seen his fair amount of people on the journey to Quebec Castle with Captain Smith.
Then came a knocking at the door. Alexander turned around, approached the door and poked his head out of the room. There, stood Alan and upon seeing his master's elder nephew, Alexander meowed a greeting.
From Mr. Cook's room, the man could be heard asking: "Is he there, Alan?"
"Yes, Mr. Cook." Alan replied.
"Oh, Alan!" the girl exclaimed, hopping out of bed, and running to the door. Opening it, she asked: "Is this the male that your uncle brought back from Egypt as a mate for Roxana?"
"Y-Yes, Gemma." Alan replied, taking a small step back as he smiled at Mr. Cook's daughter. "His name is Alexander."
Gemma Cook had been two years old when her family came to Canada following the end of the Second Boer War. When her father entered the employment of Captain Smith, she and Alan came to know each other, for Alan's parents would visit often, for they had lived in the town that Quebec Castle was near. When Gemma had lost her mother six years after the end of the Second Boer War, Alan had been there to comfort her alongside everyone else. Now that Alan had lost his parents, she too helped him to get through the terrible loss. They had grown up the best of friends Captain Smith's nephew and pupil, for indeed Captain Smith had taken it upon himself to give Gemma an education, one that Alan now shared in as he found himself a better teacher in his uncle than he ever had in his schoolmaster.
Gemma returned the smile and asked: "What happened to naming him after Philip?"
"Oh, I don't know." Alan replied with a shrug. "But I must say it does fit with the theme more. There has been a Darius the Great, a Cnut the Great, a Herod the Great and a Peter the Great, but never has there been a Philip the Great… At least, I don't think there has been."
Rubbing against Alan's legs, Alexander listened to him and Gemma talk. They spoke of Philip, how he shared a name with one of the students who was as pleasant as the caracal had been unpleasant, then talked of their education under Captain Smith.
"I am struggling with the history of the Twentieth Dynasty." Gemma confessed, sitting upon her bed while Alan sat on a stool before her dressing table. Roxana was laying next to Gemma while Alexander now sat next to Alan. The male caracal stared at the female, who glared back with ears flattened against her skull. "With the Nineteenth Dynasty, it was easy. Ramesses I, Seti I, Ramesses II, Merneptah, Seti II in opposition to Amenmesse, Seti II as sole ruler of Egypt, Siptah, Twosret, I can remember the pharaohs perfectly, but with the Twentieth Dynasty it is Setnakhte and then an endless parade of pharaohs named 'Ramesses.' I want to go back to the lessons on ecology and primatology, I liked those so much more than learning about the history of the Twentieth Dynasty of Egypt."
"I know what you mean." Agreed Alan, shaking his head. "Nine pharaohs named 'Ramesses' and other Ramesses III and his identification with the Egyptian king from Hellenistic mythology that wanted to marry Helena of Lacedaemon, all the others just… I don't know, lack any individuality? They are just a name and a number. Ramesses I, Ramesses II and Ramesses III never felt that way. I just want the history of this dynasty to be over, finish the New Kingdom period, move on to Third Intermediate Period, the period before the coming of the Persians!"
Alexander approached Gemma's bed, an action that invited a hiss from Roxana. Immediately Gemma began to stroke the Asiatic caracal, saying: "Roxana, be nice." Alexander leapt up, proceeded to sniff the covers, and then looked to his intended mate. In his eyes were a friendly expression, countered by a less than friendly expression from Roxana. He touched her nose with his own, sniffing her obviously, while Roxana batted him away, hissing once again.
"Roxana, that is enough!" Alan exclaimed, sounding less than happy with the Asiatic caracal.
Despite Roxana's behaviour, Alexander never displayed any negative reactions. He had no reason to be less than gentle with Roxana, after all they both lived under the same roof and would have to get along.
"He is very well behaved." Observed Gemma, extending a hand to stroke Alexander's back. The northern caracal turned his head to look at her, making a chirping noise as he did with wide eyes and ears fully erect. "Hello, Alexander. May I pet you?" Alexander meowed and then looked to Roxana, while Gemma stroked his back.
The northern caracal proceeded to flip his right ear, asking for acceptance. Roxana, however, merely flipped both of her ears rapidly to show that she was agitated. Alexander then lay down, keeping his eyes on Roxana. She looked away, turning her eyes to Alan, looking agitated, yet friendlier with her master's nephew than she was with the new arrival.
"Hello, Roxana." Said Alan, extending a hand to gently pet the Asiatic caracal. Roxana, however, merely stood up and stared at Alan's outstretched hand.
"Oh, you're fine." Gemma uttered, now stroking Roxana's back. The Asiatic caracal gave a friendly meow to the Gardener's Daughter, who then said: "You have let Alan pet you before. He doesn't make you nervous."
There were only two people whom Roxana was fully comfortable with touching her. One was Captain Smith, and the other was Gemma. She had allowed Alan to pet her before, yet that had been a time when Alan had been sick with a fever and she had been keeping him company. Alan had awoken to find Roxana laying upon his waist, sleeping quite peacefully. It was that moment that Alan had pet Roxana, an action that caused her to awaken and stare at him with wide eyes as if to say: "Who said you could pet me?" The Asiatic caracal soon returned to her slumber and Alan to his.
As Roxana stared at Alan's hand, Alexander stood and approached Alan's hand as well. He sniffed it, then rubbed his head against the redheaded boy's open palm. What appeared on Roxana's countenance could have been called an expression of jealousy, leading to her batting Alexander away and hissing at him.
Jumping off Gemma's bed, Alexander ran to Alan's side and stared up at Roxana. Roxana merely stared right back with narrowed eyes and her ears flattened against her skull.
"Roxana, be nice." Uttered Alan, shaking a finger at Roxana, as if that was going to do anything. Roxana merely ignored it completely. "Alexander is here to stay as much as you are and you must learn to live together in peace."
"I think it would be best if you took Alexander with you, Alan." Said Gemma, stroking Roxana's back to calm her. "I'll handle Roxana."