PHILTATOS // Foolish X Reader

20

You left the temple after saying a quick prayer, feeling let down in the most backwards way.

You couldn't understand why he had decided not to show up today - had you upset him? Or was something else going on that you didn't know about? You couldn't help but wonder if one of the other gods had found out about the daily visits and made him go back to hiding away - what did that mean for you?

For the first time in a long time, anxiety seeped into your bones - almost the same as when Foolish had appeared to you the first time. So naturally, you found yourself on that same bench underneath the olive tree, settling down to watch the sun rise in the sky and hopefully calm your nerves.

Sitting down on the stone bench, you slipped your prayer beads off over your head, running your fingers over the golden chain, thumbing over each of the beads as they passed through your hands. It didn't help that you were worried in more than one way either - yes, you were worried about why Foolish hadn't been there in the sense that one of the other gods might have found out, but you were also worried about him as a friend.

It wasn't like him to disappear without saying anything - not with how much he had talked to you about everything else.

Though you were mostly worried about Foolish, part of you was worried about yourself as well. If one of the gods had found out that Foolish had appeared to you in his corporeal form (or at least one of his many corporeal forms), what did that mean for you? You hadn't meant to stumble across him that day, but in all of the stories (even ones like yours, where the human involved hadn't meant for any of it to happen) the gods still rained punishment down.

You thumbed over the beads in your hands faster now. Logically, you knew you were probably overreacting - silence from Foolish didn't mean your doom after all, it was just unusual. You couldn't help the thoughts swirling around in your mind though. You were quite literally dealing with a god, after all, and gods were known to be fickle.

You just really hoped you hadn't accidentally upset him.

You couldn't think of anything you might have done to cause him to leave - and even when you had in the past, he had always brushed it off for the most part. Hell, you had accidentally brought him to see a man ripped in half and he hadn't held it against you. To think that you might have done something that would have made him leave without a word was concerning to say the least.

It wasn't like there was anything you could do about it though. You had said your prayers and left the offerings at the altar - it was up to Foolish now to decide whether or not to speak to you again.

Your thumbing over the prayer beads slowed until they were just laying across your palms. You hoped the other gods would let him speak to you again, if that was the reason he had disappeared today. The temple wouldn't be the same without him...

A chime echoed through the olive trees, causing you to sit up and drawing your attention behind you towards the center of the hill. That was the bell that hung in the pavilion... someone was summoning everyone to the center of the hill.

Another chime echoed rang out across the fields, and you slipped your prayer beads back over your head, letting them fall to your robes as you stood from the bench, starting towards the center of the hill. They never rang the bells unless it was something important - and in times like these, ringing of the bells could only mean bad news.

As you hurried along the stone paths, you began to see more members of the worship heading in the same direction as well, talking amongst themselves as they half-jogged. Judging by the drawn brows and worried looks on their faces, they knew just about as much as you did - nothing - and had made the same assumption that whatever news it was would be bad.

As you approached the pavilion, you saw more people already gathered there, filing into the same seats you took during your morning meals. You found your usual seat at the long table, sitting down next to one of Frontidas priestesses. "What's going on?"

"No one knows - everyone's been asking around." She said. "Can't be something good though, unless there's been a miracle."

You nodded to yourself, eyes drifting over the pavilion as the rest of the worship gathered together. There was no telling what news was about to be shared with you, but that irrational part of you immediately linked the ringing of the bells and Foolishs' disappearance together. Thoughts of someone - namely Anello - finding out swirled through your head, though you did your best to quell them, focusing on the chatter around you instead.

"...possibly be something good for once?"

"As much as I would hope so, it's just no realistic..."

The chatter only grew louder as the entire worship gathered, only to cut off almost all at once as Anello began to lumber towards the front of the pavilion, drawing all eyes to him. You watched as he came to a stop where everyone could see him, turning to face the gathered crowd. Your stomach curled as the expression on his face was revealed - an offshoot of that manic energy that had seized him those weeks ago.

Anello looked all too proud of himself as he folded his hands across his stomach. The corners of his mouth carved deep upturns into his cheeks, and his eyes glittered in the early morning light like they were inlaid with jewels.

"Brothers and sisters." He began, that low slow tone of his voice giving way to something more upbeat. "Something wonderful has happened."