Yeah, Sekhmet.

I didn't set out to name the cat after an Egyptian goddess, it just sort of happened.

For many, many years, I have been reading the Amelia Peabody mysteries, a series of books set around the turn of the last century, with Egyptologists for main characters. They had lots of cats as pets through the series, and they were all named after Egyptian gods and goddesses. (There are about twenty books in the series now. I came in around book six.) At the time I didn't have a cat, but swore that if I ever did get one, I was going to name it Bastet, after a cat in the book. Said cat was brilliant to the point of spooky, saved the day all the time, and was friendly to it's owners.

Fast forward about eight years, and here's this little cat on my doorstep, looking cute. "Aha," I thought, "my little Bastet at last." Unfortunately she didn't ACT like Bastet - she acted like a cat in the books named Sekhmet, who did nothing but lay on laps wanting to be petted and fussed over. So the cat got named Sekhmet.

The cat had the last laugh. Turns out naming her after a goddess of war was suitable after all; she's so territorial that she's anti-social with everyone but me and now the baby. Once in a while she'll lay on the husbeast but it took her about five years to do it. Plus she's one of those cats who nibbles to be friendly.

When they ask about the name at the vet's, I tell them it's ancient Egyptian for 'likes to bite'.