They're cuddlers, really

[onthewind]

Raezenoth has just won a war. Well, he'd actually won it a while ago, but now is when things have settled and the divine borders have become a bit more set in stone. The leftovers of that annoying nature god are cleared away to become part of another god's domain - desert, mostly, Rae was the victor here. The new denizens of Rae's domain either get to leave for another place, or adjust to the tough but fair life of their new god.

Idania has admittedly gone a bit stir crazy. She spent so much time in Rae's land, defending him or going to show off how great Rae can be that she's pretty much only seen desert for the last - what, year or so?

It's time for a change of pace. She checks with Rae, he agrees that she can get some time to herself, and then she packs her things. It's time to fly somewhere new, to a place she hasn't seen before with people she's never met. She expects to go far enough away that people won't know the name 'Raezenoth,' so she doesn't pack light. She expects to be doing a lot of sleeping outdoors, floating comfortably in the air where no one can touch her.

She's flying at full speed for about five days in a random direction before she lands for anything more than bathroom breaks and some occasional jogging to stay limber. When she does, she recognizes absolutely nothing about anything around her. Good. This is definitely far away and unrecognizable enough for her tastes. She checks her supplies - yeah, definitely enough to last for her to explore this place properly.

While she was flying, she stayed away from the domains of gods, not wanting any sort of trouble or drama associated with them. Now, though, she's going to explore the first nice one she sees. Another day of walking, later, and she comes across a place that's obviously a domain.

Sometimes gods directly address her when she enters, but not always. Only one way to find out. She heads inside without fear, to explore the temple and village nearby.

Comments

[pythbox]

A divine voice addresses her almost as soon as she crosses the border.

"Hello, wandering acolyte," says the local god. She - probably she; the voice is a little ambiguous - sounds friendly and amused.

[onthewind]

"Hello!" says Idania, brightly. "I'm a friendly wandering acolyte, my name's Idania, what's yours?"

[pythbox]

"Ealasiva," she says. "And my friend in the forest is Viokai. As long as you behave yourself in our domains, you may travel freely."

[onthewind]

"Friend in the forest? Aww, you've made friends with another god, that hardly ever happens! That's cute. I'll behave, as long as there's not like - weird rules about pork. I'm not going to hurt anyone or steal anything, anyway."

[pythbox]

"Common sense and common kindness should suffice, yes," says the plains god. "If you'd like to talk about where you came from and how you got here, I'd be interested to hear it."

[onthewind]

Idania giggles. "Aw, you're also polite, I like you already. I'm an acolyte of Raezenoth, god of the desert wind - I can fly. I did that to get here. Want me to go on the spiel of religious stuff, or is that sacrilegious?"

[pythbox]

"No, go ahead," the god says agreeably. "But thank you for asking."

[onthewind]

"Okay! Well, Rae's a god of freedom and finding your own path and strength. Accordingly he doesn't demand much at all from people, but he doesn't just hand them solutions, either. He's very fair, likes giving people all of the tools that they need to get what they want but leaving the getting to them. We're both super against things like slavery, but he makes faces at me if I just hand people things rather than letting them earn them. His domain's not a cakewalk to live in, considering it's a desert, but it's never unfair. It is not the land of random plagues and famines to scare people into giving up offerings, I hate those on principle. I would not be his acolyte if he did that."

[pythbox]

"He sounds like a reasonable sort," says Ealasiva. "Although Vio and I tend to favour a different style. We like to fill our domains with thriving, happy people who occupy themselves in ways that suit them, and we don't mind helping them along towards that state."

[onthewind]

"Awww. Awww! You two sound cute, are you working together as much as it sounds like you are?"

[pythbox]

"Likely more," she says. "People tend to find us very surprising that way."

[onthewind]

"That is very surprising! Most gods don't trust each other that much, the whole big - competition thing."

[pythbox]

"Vio and I go way back," she says cheerfully. "We take offerings in common - when someone has only one thing to give, they're as likely to leave it for both of us as just one; all our temples are combined."

[onthewind]

".... Wow that is working together way more than I was expecting! And I was expecting a lot! Props to you two."

[pythbox]

"I did tell you you'd be surprised," says Ealasiva. "Thank you. I'm very proud of our cooperation."

[onthewind]

"I thought I was taking you seriously enough, but apparently not. Shame on me, I should do better next time."

[pythbox]

The god's voice laughs.

[onthewind]

Idania does a cheerful little loop in the sky, grinning. "All right, you have probably got important god things to do, I'll get to exploring and leave you be. This looks like it'll be a fun place to explore."

[pythbox]

"If you drop by Vio's forest I'm sure he'll be thrilled to talk to you," she says. "Take care. Don't be afraid to get my attention if you run into trouble."

[onthewind]

"All right, thanks! I shouldn't, but if I do I'll let you know."

Then Idania flies to the nearby temple, to give some offerings. As is polite, for an acolyte.

[pythbox]

This temple is fairly simple. The back wall is painted with a laughing man hugging a smiling woman as they sit together on a wooden bench; the woman's half of the bench sits on a grassy plain, and the man's half is under a huge oak tree, with more trees crowding in behind. All around the rest of the walls, the same two figures reappear in a simpler style, always interacting with people; the forest god seems to prefer hosting or attending celebrations and giving or receiving gifts, while the plains goddess is mostly shown talking to people, listening to their problems and offering solutions.

[onthewind]

Idania finds this to be incredibly cute. She looks around the temple, to get a good feel for what sorts of things they like - and then she gets to thinking of proper offerings to give.

Obviously they both are very social gods, so it follows that they should have a social sort of gift. Something involving people, involving how they work together so well. She considers finding and buying wedding rings, but that seems a bit crass - gods don't tend towards any sort of romance.

They are both very based around the land, and growth and nuturing in particular. That much is obvious. It would be pretty easy to go grab some flowers or something, but that seems kind of silly. Not to mention, uncreative. She heads outside of the temple, looking around the town for ideas. When she finds something, she giggles, and then she buys it - on a whim, she also gets a ribbon. Viokai likes presents and gifts, let's make this a gift.

Onto the table of offerings goes a ceramic watering can, with cute designs painted on it. They nurture, they help people grow - if they were gardeners, this is the sort of tool that they would use to take care of things. This watering can in particular was picked because it was adorable, with cute little flowers on it and little adorable butterflies. Appropriate, because Idania considers the god pair cute, too. Idania ties the bright red ribbon around the handle. Viokai likes gifts, she's acknowledging that - this is for both of them.

Satisfied with the offering, Idania then gets to exploring the village.

[pythbox]

Well, that's adorable.

The village is a cheerful little place, full of - how did Ealasiva put it? - thriving, happy people occupied in ways that suit them. Small children wave to her in the street.

[onthewind]

Idania finds this adorable! She waves back, smiling.

"Hey, Rae," she says, to the vial of sand around her neck. "I found the most adorable thing of all time."

"What," says the god, "have rabbits and cats spawned?"

Idania laughs. "No, no. Just -" she starts explaining the domains, and the cuddling gods.

"That is indeed very cute."

"I know, right?" laughs Idania, and then she goes back to exploring the adorable little town.

[pythbox]

The adorable little town remains little, and adorable, and a town. Many of the people are friendly, and the ones who aren't are at minimum not rude. If the topic of gods happens to come up in conversation, she will tend to find that everyone is extremely satisfied with theirs.