What villainess am I?

Chapter 11 - Blessings and Blasphemy

Is it fate or folly that one prays to a god? At first, one would think a god abiding by its tenants and duties with or without praise from mortals, and yet we bow and raise our hands to the heavens; why does that seem to be? Even a dog does not ask for scraps when it has not found its cries answered. Is it that we see the gods' answer, or is it simply a question of chance that we think fortune will smile on us by asking the right person? Is it fate that calls us to ask for the pity of another or piety to the universe that we deem well-suited for our cause? As I find names of gods that we do not know the names of and hear their chaplets and prayers of sycophants, I ponder that very question. Having met two gods, I wonder how we, as mortals, add any assistance to the creatures with no form and whose power is immutably all-encompassing in their realm and duty.

Is it we make the gods in worship, in devotion to an idea we bring to life, or is it simply a course of reality, the fate of worlds, to be destined with gods? What if none think, how may it bring a god to such a world? Is it a lie to think a world could live without one, or is it the deception that we must pray to them? How many worlds know of these beings' names, and how many do not; does it even matter?

As I circle the unfathomable depths of gods and the powers of life- it dawns on me that Alice has been staring at me for some time as if trying to ask or answer a question. Her eyes lock with my own, and I tilt my heavy head- causing her to smile. I give her a suspicious glare; her demeanor has been strangely simplistic for her common reactions, as if plotting something.

She sits right in front of me, so it is easy to keep my eyes on hers; as I do, she ruffles my hair, shaking her head and standing up as she does, she asks,

"Young Lady, tea and cookies?" Walking away from my vision, I hear the clatter of china and metal,

"Mmm, yesh!" I nod, tempted by the call of sweets. As I reside in a younger child's body, my taste buds have become quite sensitive to taste- especially sweets. Almost to an addicted degree, I find myself eating or drinking something with sugar, indulging in the rich tastes- bitter or sweet, I consume with a ravenous hunger I cannot stop at times. I sheepishly find it hard not to agree readily to suggestions of food.

As Alice returns with a plate of cookies, she holds out the teacup and platter for me to hold; it seems she knew I could not see past a certain distance and engineered such a situation. Taking the cup, I stare at her, pondering what she plans to do with my defenses obstructed, and to my surprise, she starts to feed me,

"Say ahhhh." She grins- while I may prefer to be treated as a child to keep appearances and not worry about my family, I don't enjoy it; Alice has taken a liking to tease me, especially by treating me like a helpless child.

As I eat and drink, I ponder the next month's plans- as we begin the journey to the Alabaster Theocracy, a kingdom of priests, a holy land guided in prayer, the last bastion of the gods. Names like these are said to describe the lands ruled by the Church of Vitate.

The plan, it seems, is to caravan from our home to the Theocracy, linking up with Mother as we follow the roads away from the North. After meeting Mother, we will continue to the Theocracy's lands until we reach the border, where we will be escorted directly by a procession and retinue provided due to Father's station.

It makes me anxious to think of the money spent on this single trip; we will have guards following us constantly, and the animals following us combined with feeding what was a suppression force- the price for this excursion is astronomical. To think it is all for a child to be blessed and then sent away again strains the mind to conceive the scale.

Shaking my head, I lean back before I hear a chuckle, reminding me of the other person here. I turn to Alice, who gives a bemused grin before feeding me another cookie,