Harper's Pathos

Chapter Nineteen: Night of the First Day

Harper sat on the stairs in front of the temple, looking up at the stars and moon hanging like lanterns upon the night sky. As they studied these distant, burning lights, they thought about the people who admired them so. This dark sky, this churning, inky sea above them meant something different to everyone. To the people of the Glass Desert -or at least to the people in this temple- the moon and stars glowing above represented the protection of the goddess Bas. 

The young adventurer certainly felt things while looking into the night, a sort of calm washed over them as they gazed into such beauty. As embarrassed as they would have been to admit it, the pitch darkness also reminded them of Morgan's hair, a silky mess of shadow weaving through the air... However, it was clear to them that this was different. They didn't feel the same thing looking towards the heavens that some did. They felt no gods watching over them, no divine presence. 

This didn't bother Harper, however. It didn't fill them with any form of existential dread. As strange as it might have been, they felt no great yearning to understand the divine, despite their celestial nature. They simply felt no need for it. 

They did wonder however, what exactly these priestesses saw in the sky that they did not. What was it that drew them to it so, if it was different from what drew Harper? What was it that this spy, whoever she was, saw so lacking as to betray her order? Did she see the sky in the same way as Harper? Had she once viewed it as her fellow priests did, but lost that sight somewhere along the way? Perhaps the blonde would get to ask her that, if they managed to keep things from devolving into violence. 

The nephilim closed their eyes for a moment and performed a drawn out, lazy looking stretch. In doing so, they leaned further onto the backpack which they wore as they awaited Morgan's return. 

Within the last hour, they had returned to both their room and Morgan's to clean out everything that belonged to each of them. As they both had very little aside from the sorceress' books, it was quite easy to fit it all in the bag.

Before that, High Priestess Kiya had also given them the key and shown them to their new apartment, which was paid for by Harper's work as the two had agreed. They had waited to actually enter the place, however, as they wanted to share the moment of first seeing it with their friend.

That friend, after a couple more minutes of waiting, did arrive. Harper heard the footsteps before they saw her, but she soon turned the corner to walk up the steps and into their view. Her shoulders were slouched, and even in the soft glow of the moon the bags beneath her eyes were visible. 

"Hey Morgan. You okay?"

The woman raised an eyebrow, "Mhm. Why wouldn't I be?"

"Hmm. Never mind," they decided not to push it, "I've gotten our living situation figured out with Kiya! You wanna head over to our new apartment?"

"Oh, that's why you were sitting out here? Yeah. We can eat later, let's settle into the place for now. I need a place to put my books anyway. My pockets are stuffed." 

Harper snorted, "How'd you even fit them in there? And where'd you get even more books?"

"They're very big pockets," Morgan responded, deadpan, "And even more books? I don't feel I have nearly enough, frankly."

"Well," Harper hopped up from their sitting position and extended their arm to the woman, "Shall we head to our new home and find a place to put them?"

The tired-looking Morgan smirked and took the blonde's arm. They began the short walk across the street together. The height difference was even more obvious when they were so perfectly side by side.