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(You’re welcome!)
“I see, that sounds similar to our general classes. We don’t have separate devotions to gods, however. Mostly because we only have one,” he smiled, glancing over at Fiori. It would be awkward when he went to Fiori’s temple at the end of the festival season.
Fiori laughed softly, shoving open the doors of the baths and then gesturing for Levi to walk through ahead of him. "Of course. We have our pantheon and you have your… Laidir?" His voice pitched higher at the end, turning it into a question. "What is he like?"
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“Yes, Ialdir,” he echoed warmly. The name felt familiar, comforting on his lips. He stepped inside the room. “He’s a father. Loving, yet disciplinary. Very much like earthly fathers yet…father of everything.”
"Ialdir," Fiori repeated quietly, trying not to twist the word around on his tongue as he shut the doors. Levi said it with such fondness, it reminded Fiori of the way he prayed to his own god. "He is… a father figure? But he is your god, how can he be…?"
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Levi shrugged as he began to undress, less shy than he had been several days ago. But he still kept his undergarments on. “He just is. I don’t see how a god couldn’t be like a father figure. Especially if he loves and guides his people.” Once he cast his shirt and pants to the side, he sank into the water, letting out a breath.
Fi plopped down on the edge of the tub, rolling up his pants so he could stick his feet in the water. "Love and guidance are… well, they are not always familial. At least, not for us. Our gods are teachers. Mentors. Patrons. They give us their blessings and in return, we bring glory to their names.
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“Ialdir is our protector too,” he added quickly. “He gives us the sun, our food, and water, protection and warmth. Guidance also includes being our mentor, and giving discipline. We thank him with praises and songs…jewels…” He trailed off, his eyebrows furrowing at the realization that the only major difference their two religions had was the number of gods. And which god.
Fiori kicked his feet back and forth in the water, coming to a similar conclusion. "We sacrifice animals. They feed on the life force, but it is our memory of them that keeps them strong, so we write ballads, tell stories, write epics… anything really. Because as long as their names live on, our gods do too."
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Levi reached up to his hair, deftly undoing the braid and combing out what tangles he could get without a brush. “Oh, we don’t sacrifice animals to feed Ialdir. He doesn’t rely on us to stay strong. But we do tell stories about him, and sacrifice our wealth. On certain days of the year we sacrifice an animal. A horse.”
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Levi reached up to his hair, deftly undoing the braid and combing out what tangles he could get without a brush. “Oh, we don’t sacrifice animals to feed Ialdir. He doesn’t rely on us to stay strong. But we do tell stories about him, and sacrifice our wealth. On certain days of the year we sacrifice an animal. A horse.”
"Your Ialdir… he is not bound to your people, is he?" Fiori's voice was soft when he asked it, confirming a suspicion. "He will go on living long after Nord Widonia falls. You believe that, yes?"
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“Yes, of course I believe that,” Levi confirmed, slowly inching forward into the bath to up his hair into the water. If all went well, he would be able to keep his face dry, “It’s a common belief in my country. A very sound one.”
"That's another place where we differ then." Fiori kept splashing his feet around, watching with interest as Levi's hair spread out like brown-black ink in the water. "My gods were born with my people, and they will die with us too."
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Levi ran a hand through his hair a few times before sitting back up with his newly drenched hair. It dripped water down his back and into the bath like a waterfall. “Hm, Interesting. I’ve never heard of that before. Is it like your gods are somewhere between mortal and immortal?”
Fiori couldn't help but smile as he watched the water stream down Levi's back, all the hair plastered down against his head. He looked a bit like an otter. Fi patted the edge of the tub beside him, gesturing for Levi to come closer so he could rebraid his hair. "Yes. They are not like yours– not omnipotent and all-loving. They need us to survive, that is why they bless us and favor us."
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“That is very different from us, then.” He contemplated this while he wrung out water out of his hair. He sat up on the edge after he was done. “The idea of that is so…backwards to me, it’s intriguing.”
"Why? Our gods are above us but… they are like us too. It is an ending to things that gives your actions purpose. Without that, their actions are… adrift. Meaningless." Fi separated Levi's hair into strands, weaving them together in his normal style. "And I would prefer it if you did not call my beliefs backwards."
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Levi stared at the wall while Fiori worked on braiding his hair. “To me,” he emphasized. “It’s just our cultures are almost…inverse of each other, I’m just…” he trailed off again, a frown curling the edges of his lips. “I apologize.”
"Thank you." Fiori kept working on his hair, hands as steady as ever despite the hard edge to his voice. "I think your god a strange creature, though creature you say he is not, and even then I respect him as best I can. He is as alien to me as my gods are to you, but I would not insult him because to you he is important." He finished the braid, setting his hands in his lap. "I would appreciate it if you paid mine the same courtesy."
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Levi reached to touch the braid with his hands when Fiori was finished. “I never meant for it to be an insult. To you or your beliefs. I wasn’t aware that it was.” He let his hand fall down into the rim of the bath. He swiped his tongue across his lips, trying to ignore the heavy regret feeling in his chest. “I’m trying to respect your beliefs the best I can as well.”
Fiori gave him a considering look and then nodded. "Alright. I know it can be difficult to understand, but… if you would not say it about your god, please do not say it about mine. They may not be the same as yours, but they are an important and valued part of my life."
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Levi’s lip twitched with some emotion, “Understood,” he said slightly quieter. He kept running through his words in his head, analyzing how Fiori might have been offended. Backwards to me meant to Levi, as just the inverse of what he believed of his own. But he did note how it might have sounded to Fiori. “Then the same goes for my beliefs, as well. Such as I would appreciate it if you didn’t call my god a creature from now on.”
Backwards to Fiori meant uncivilized, barbaric, savage. He had met enough people from other countries to know how his own was perceived, and it never failed to upset him. "I will refrain, and I apologize for having slighted him." Fi walked over to the towel holder, tossing one to Lvi before he used the other to dry off his legs. "There is an outfit for you in the changing room. I will wait in here."
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“Thank you,” Levi murmured as he caught the towel and stood up. He pat himself dry, replying to Fiori with a nod. When he first arrived, and even before being able to talk to Fiori about their countries, he did think his country barbaric, even savage. But after spending days here with Fiori and his friends, his opinion had drastically changed. Now the foreign country was just different, and he felt no disdain for it as a whole. With the exception of Fiori’s uncle and the soldiers that brought him here. He walked towards the changing room, drying his hair with the towel on the way there. He still felt bad about what he had said to Fiori, but what else was there to do except apologize and move on?
Fi sat down by the door, waiting for Levi to get ready. Now that the room was quiet he could feel his nerves creeping back up on him, slipping through the cracks in his composure with annoying ease. What would happen to him if he were overpowered at the tournament? What would his uncle say? He was supposed to take power, to be king, but what if he wasn't ready? What if he failed?
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Levi returned shortly wearing the outfit. He pulled the door closed behind him, but he was mostly focused on wrinkling his nose at the bracers on his arms. “I’m not used to these…” he muttered as he fidgeted with the ends. “Are they on right?” He squinted.
Fiori gave him a once over, mentally checking off all the items. He had his veil, the pants and shirt looked like they fit right, and all the embroidery was flawless. The only thing he'd messed up were the bracers. "No," he said, fighting back a smile. "Not at all. You messed up the clasps, see? They're on too lose." He took one of Levi's hands, straightening out his arm and getting the bracer fastened up right. "Feel better now?"
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“They still feel weird, but I can get used to them now.” He looked at his other arm to see if his could fix the clasp on the one too. “It’s the silver. I would be able to get used to fabric quicker.” He sighed through his nose. “Are we ready to go, then?”
"Silver is traditional. The only reason I get to wear fabric is because I need mobility in the ring." Fiori took Levi's other hand, fixing up the bracer there as he spoke. "And I suppose we are, if you're ready to face my uncle."
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“As ready as I ever can be,” he took in a breath to inwardly prepare himself. He had no idea what his uncle would be like, and that part made him anxious.
