The Scared God [ManXManXMan]

Chapter Twenty-three: Доверие - Doverije

~Chapter Twenty-three: Доверие - Doverije~

It is two days after my revival that I am once again able to walk. I was, for the most part, able to stumble around like an inebriated idiot yesterday, but it was not until this morning that my sense of balance returned. Though, unfortunately, not all of it; I only have enough stability not to trip on thin air, so tackling the stairs will likely not come until tomorrow. Which means I am stuck in the attic for another day.

While part of me balks at the idea of wanting to spend time with Hors and Perun, being stuck alone in my room is frustrating. There is almost nothing to do up here, which only makes the weird feeling in my chest more noticeable when I have nothing to use as a distraction, and though I know what the feeling is, I refuse to accept that I might be lonely. I mean, I might accept wanting to be around Hors more, as he is not all that bad, but Perun, too?

Besides, considering how much time they spend in my room, I should not be missing them. Perun is busy most of the day – and it's so fucking stupid that I wish he wasn't; he should be my fucking enemy – so he only stops by my room for meals. I kick him out afterwards, as he took my unspoken invitation from the other morning as an offer to make random small talk about stupid things that have been happening in the pantheon lately.

I couldn't care less about how many wild goats Uroda managed to tame in a week for a dare from Kostroma.

Hors, on the other hand, is almost always with me, whether while we play a board game or read our separate books in silence. At the moment, he is not here, but that is likely only because he is either making food or giving me time to wake up, as it is still an hour before breakfast. Eventually, though, he will bother me about my hygiene again, since I will soon be able to use the stairs, but until then, he will likely not be waking me up to take a–

A knock on my doors startles me out of my thoughts, but I do not have a chance to reply before Hors opens the door and walks in. I should probably give some kind of protest, even if it would only be halfhearted, but I end up simply staring at him in confused silence as he approaches my bed and, by proxy, me. He stops a few feet away, and I try not to be alarmed by his neutral expression, which is something I have been seeing less and less of lately.

He isn't angry about something, right?

Before I can question his reason for coming up here, Hors asks, "Do you think you're well enough to bathe?"

I stand corrected; today is the day he bothers me about my hygiene.

"Not if it means being carried around like a princess," I reply warily. While I do want to take a bath, I would rather not sacrifice the last of my pride by asking him to carry me.

My comment must amuse him, if his little smirk is anything to go by. "Is that a 'yes' if I don't carry you like a princess?"

I nod, pushing back my sheets so I can stand up. However, he walks over before I can do more than untangle my feet, and, rather than help me stand, he picks me up. Only, instead of carrying me like a Disney damsel, he carries me like a sack of potatoes. It stuns me for all of five seconds before I hit his lower back with the side of my fist.

I take it back. He's not just bad; he's an ass.

That thought has me pausing as I realize that my face is only inches away from his backside, and I end up staring in bemusement for a moment before startling out of it when he starts walking – why isn't he teleporting? At least save me the embarrassment of being paraded past Perun – towards the door. I hit him again, embarrassed with myself for staring and him for demeaning me by carrying me like this. I offer up no protest, though, because it is at least better than being carried like a princess.