PHILTATOS // Foolish X Reader

17

Your thoughts were still filled with Anello when you went to collect your daily offering to bring to the temple, and as you carried the gilded plate down the path towards Anoitos' temple. Logically, you knew that whatever Anello had gone to see the caesar about wasn't likely you or Foolish - knowing that didn't do much to stop your mind from rushing to every possibility that Anello had found out, and something terrible was going to happen to you for lying to him, not once, but twice.

Still, you did your best to clear your thoughts as you approached the temple, slowing as you came to the bottom of the rosy marble steps. Taking a deep breath of the clean morning air, you focused on the way the temple glittered in the sunlight - the gold accents catching the light so that the whole place shone like a gem - instead of the conversation over breakfast.

Your eyes fell on the intricate doors that separated the interior of the temple from the rest of the hill. You had spent so much time behind those doors - and looked forward to the quiet moments each day - but not so much as you did now. It was different, knowing there was someone to actually talk to waiting for you, and a god no less.

After your trip around the city though, you had come to think of him as more of a friend than some higher being.

There was just something about seeing him giggle like a little boy as you watched one of the city guards get attacked by a seagull that changed his position in your head. He had called you a friend the first time you had really met him - and you supposed it was true, considering how much time you had spent talking to him over the years, even if he hadn't been allowed to respond.

It was nice to have that to look forward to each morning.

Feeling slightly better, you started up the steps, opening the door to the temple and slipping inside to the streams of morning sunlight that filtered down from the skylight above you. As the door swung shut behind you, you looked to the altar at the front of the temple, unsurprised to see Foolish sprawled out on the steps below his statue.

"Morning Foolish." You greeted, smiling.

Foolish grinned back up at you, but you could tell it was half-hearted. "Morning."

Setting the plate down on the steps beside him, you took your usual seat next to Foolish, adjusting your robes over your knees as you did. It was strange for him to be so quiet, but you figured he would get around to saying what was on his mind eventually.

You watched idly as he picked through the offerings you had brought for him, settling on a date and popping the fruit into his mouth, munching petulantly. "I tried to talk to my brother about the city." He said.

"And what did he say?" You asked. Judging by the way he hadn't launched into telling you about it as soon as you had walked in the door, you had a vague idea of what Sofos had said.

"He said that I shouldn't care that much." Foolish said. "Apparently, there's nothing anyone can do about it because Logios wrote it this way and no one knows what's happening next and Nkri just said to wait it out and stop connecting with the people." He sighed as he ended the sentence, grabbing another date and popping it in his mouth. "Don't tell anybody I told you all that."

"Of course." You said, sorting through all the information that had just been dropped on you in your head. It was nice to know that in showing Foolish the city he had tried to do something about the suffering - but you had already known that he had a big heart. It was less comforting to know that the gods had stopped responding because this was supposed to happen.

"I just don't understand why they would do this." Foolish said. "These are our people - why cause them to suffer? And for what?"

"I don't know." You responded honestly. The workings of the gods were beyond you - and seemingly beyond Foolish too, though he was one of them. You weren't too surprised by that though - for all his wonderful kindnesses, you couldn't imagine the god of fools would make for a very good confidant.

Sliding the plate of offerings aside, Foolish leaned closer to you, coming to rest his head on your shoulder. "It doesn't seem right." He said, the tops of his hair brushing across your neck.

You pursed your lips, shifting to Foolish could lay more comfortably against you, and resting your head on top of his. Again, you were struck by just how much compassion he held within him. He was virtually unaffected by any of what you had shown him - he lived in the sky above the city, not down in the streets. But still, here he was, lamenting the fact that things were as terrible as they were.

"It doesn't." You agreed, but your mind was partly somewhere else. Of course, you lamented along with Foolish that the gods would do nothing to help the city - in fact, that this had been written to happen. But also, that Foolish himself had been so discounted. The distinct lack of prayers to him, or representation in the worship - you were the only person on the whole hill to wear gold prayer beads.

It wasn't right - not when he cared so much.

"I just don't understand why." Foolish said, bringing your attention back down to him.

You brought one hand up to run through his hair, humming. "Perhaps the why isn't something for us to understand." You said. "Maybe this is just the end of a long story I wasn't born into the beginning of."

Foolish just sighed, and grabbed another date from the platter.