Thrones of Light and Vines - Crowns of Flame and Ice Book Two

(5) The Little Things

Small twigs and pebbles crunched under my feet as we walked. I smiled against the blanket of sun that had wrapped around my face, warming my skin. Spring had finally set in, the first signs of it being the small flower buds and unfurling leaves. Birds chattered in the trees, their wings ruffling gently as they prepared for flight. I adjusted the straps on my bags, wincing as the leather bands dug further into my skin. Alex was still refusing to aid our travels one bit. Not even summoning something to carry our luggage. He had summoned a plate of chocolate and cheese chunks though. After that I'd forgiven him, its effects were starting to wear off.

Two women passed us, likely farmers' daughters judging by their simple dresses. Their hair was a smooth blonde colour, bleached from spending time outside. Alex winked at them. Their faces immediately brightened into a soft shade of pink and they erupted into a fit of giggles. I shot him a look, "really?" He shrugged, lifting both shoulders and allowing them to fall. A stone skittered under his foot, "it's rather boring being asleep for millennium. Pardon me for wanting to have a little fun." He added that part with an exaggerated pout. I wondered then if the reason for wanting to take the long way to the steps was because he wanted to simply experience the journey. I supposed a few extra weeks meant little to a god who had been alive for thousands of years.

I worried my lip, "what is time like for you?" Rosie shot me an incredulous look as if my question was the strangest thing in the world. Alex's eyebrows flew up to his hairline, "that is a question with the impossibility of a God." I scowled at him, everytime he spoke like that his chest became an increasingly enticing place for target practice. "your godliness is starting to become increasingly less impressive the more you talk" I snapped, kicking a nearby stone with the toe of my shoe. He chuckled but sighed, "time loses its value when you are as old as I am. You no longer cling to every second like it might be your last." I considered his words and I found I understood what he meant, in the way a mortal could. In a way time was like a currency, the more you have the less you feel grateful for it. "It is not good when Gods lose their appreciation for small things such as nature or time, it turns them into something... other." I scoffed, marvelling at the audacity he had to call time and nature small. Alex raised an eyebrow at me, "what?"

I slid my gaze to him, "how can you consider those things to be small? Some would think them to be the largest entities of the world." His eyes glittered, not with humour, with interest. He smiled softly as he answered, "you are thinking like a mortal. There are larger things than those aspects. It is interesting to me to see how your people's opinion of Gods changes over time." Thinking like a mortal, I felt the words in every part of my being. I was a mortal in comparison to him but it still bothered me for some reason. I found I wanted to understand his point of view more. "does it bother you?" I asked, "that people in this world no longer worship the Gods?" We still threw around the term 'gods', but not in a serious way. The temples had been left to ruin thousands of years ago, as far as I was aware non remained. He chewed on his lip, "it doesn't bother me in the way you think it does, that we're no longer... praised. It bothers me to know that some think we abandoned them." I gaped at Alex, that had certainly not been the answer I expected.

"Is it hard being a God?" I asked, brushing a loose strand of hair out of my face. Rosie snorted and I glowered at her. Alex's eyes however flared in surprise, "you are the first person to ever ask me that." Quilo noticed me struggling with my bags for the tenth time and decided to take one for the team. He flung it over his shoulder and smiled when I let out a grateful little sigh. I winked at Alex, "I like keeping people on their toes." Quilo snorted and I grinned at him. Alex considered my question for a long moment, "some will not understand what it is like to have the power to fix worlds worth of problems. Some consider it a great burden to have. But to answer your question... yes. However, I am grateful that I have this power and not someone who would use it for the wrong reasons."