[Amon/Alex's POV]
Amon had made it to the boat without passing Otto to anyone else. It was unnerving to realize how little she weighed, certainly since the memory of carrying the boys was still so fresh in his mind. The weight of two small children should be more or less equal to the weight of one adult woman, right? Well, it wasn't.
Merenre beckoned him to lay her on a bunch of cushions under a shelter in the shadow as he prepared to treat her.
Amon put her down very, very carefully. He didn't even care that the others of the hunting party were giving him curious glances; he was convinced that she would break if he didn't handle her with care. She looked so very fragile. So very sickly thin with bones jutting out underneath her flesh as if she'd been starved for months.
Merenre worked quick and efficient; he grabbed one of the flasks he'd prepared for the boat ride, poured a large amount of the lotion on his hand and applied it thickly on the worst parts of her burned skin. The lotion was meant to ease the pain of minor sunburns for careless leisure travellers, but hers were no minor burns. Her skin had turned a deep red with white spots on the most exposed parts of her body.
Otto cried in pain as Merenre treated her, even though she wasn't conscious.
"S-She's alive?" Amon heard the youngest general utter at least as surprised as Amon felt. No one reacted to his question. Merenre would have, but he was too busy saving a life.
After applying the lotion, Merenre took a bowl with clean water and some bandages (also mandatory supplies when you go hunting) and started to clean the dirt from her feet. He frowned as every swipe revealed a little more of what should have been her bare feet.
Otto's head lulled from side to side, bothered by the pain, but still not exactly awake. The water in the bowl turned black, then a dark shade of red. Merenre didn't stop to show Amon the end result. But then again, Amon didn't need to see Otto's feet to know that walking through the desert on bare feet was not a good idea.
"That's all I can do for her for now. You should try to make her drink some more. Don't forget to bring her into a sitting position so she won't choke. I'm not sure she has enough energy to cough up water that enters her lungs," Merenre barked commands as he stood up to dispose of the dirty water.
"Me?" Amon asked confused.
"Yes, you!" Merenre retorted annoyed. "I thought you'd dislike it if anyone else gets close to her, but if you're reluctant to help, I'll just-"
"I get it already! Quit your nagging," Amon cut his brother's complaints short. He heard the scribe's son snort, but ignored it, grabbed the nearest waterskin and did as he was told.
Still, taking Otto's limp body into his arms proved to be difficult. Her head kept lolling from side to side, and he accidentally kept touching sore spots, which made her whimper. He finally settled for a semi-comfortable position where he was seated behind her, her back against his chest, her head on his shoulder and his arm wrapped around her to keep her steady.
A strange sensation overwhelmed him. If he had to put it into words, he'd say it felt as if he could breathe for the first time ever since he'd arrived here. As if a part of him had been missing and he hadn't noticed until it was returned. As if he was whole again.
He was 99% certain it was caused by the girl in his arms. Although, Alex couldn't remember feeling like that around Otto? Had he grown attached to her without realizing it? Amon was still analysing the new feeling when Otto sighed in relief and relaxed in his embrace.
"She feels it too," he thought as he suppressed a shiver from running down his spine.
"Otto? Sweetheart? Will you try drinking for me?" he whispered into her ear, unsure of how the others would react to hearing her futuristic name. She frowned but responded well to the waterskin he held to her mouth and swallowed twice before she choked and started coughing. Amon tensed in surprise, quickly leaned her forward and patted her back before she fainted again. He re-gathered her in his embrace and gently wiped the water from her mouth.
"Would you stop staring already," Amon heard the large farm owner say. When he glanced towards the others, he noticed that the scribe's son had turned a rather amusing shade of red.
"What is he doing?" the boy asked, a note of intrigue audible in his voice.
"That's what love looks like," the farm owner said, a fond smile playing around his lips, undoubtedly remembering a happy memory.
"Don't lump your pharaoh together with the average human," Merenre interjected. "Can't you see this is the gods doing? The magic radiating from them is so thick it's sickening, and they've never even spoken before."
"What? You mean they haven't met before?" the youngest general joined the conversation. "Why would he go out of his way to save a nearly-dead woman he didn't even know before?"
"I told you! It's divine intervention," Merenre said smugly. "He's been having visions about her for weeks now."
"You mean the gods actually speak to him?!" the older general uttered in surprise, but continued in a near mumble; "He must be worthy after all then."
That annoyed Amon endlessly. How dare they question his right to the throne. Right in front of him, nonetheless! He could feel his blood start to boil, but before he could become truly agitated, Otto whimpered and turned to nuzzle unconsciously into the crook of his neck. He instantly froze and felt his cheeks flare up.
"She'll be a fine wife, that woman! Instantly nullifying that guy's anger!" the old general roared with laughter. The other members of the hunting party were laughing too.
"Let him be," Merenre shushed, although he was smiling too. "He's still new to this."