want a good ol’ romance // oxo // closed

“Oh, entirely,” Xellis muttered, agreeing. “But I gotta love him. I mean… look at his face. He’s adorable.”
He took his hand from the bag’s moth and began to stroke its head, the mimic purring at the action and settling down. It’s hand slipped back into the side pocket and he calmed, letting off a soft hum.
“I mean… he’s been my friend for so long,” Xellis said, sighing and glancing over to the mimic. “He was a gift from Zayanzar, if I hadn’t mentioned. He’s been with me for about… 6 million years? 5 million? Something like that.”

Xellis let out a laugh. “Sure is, buddy. Although we age so much slower. You saw Zayanzar in the painting? That was about four million years ago. she still looks the exact same. Same with Elandorr and Feyrce, although Feyrce maybe looks a little older. I don’t really know. I don’t see either of them often.”
He paused, watching as Scipio yawned.
“If you’re tired— again— feel free to take a nap. Either here or I can show you to your room.”

“Not really,” Xellis said, his voice soft. He hadn’t been this simultaneously relaxed, happy, and excited in a very long time.
“Unless, of course, you had a topic in mind,” he continued. “Otherwise, my only question would be what mortal life is like. Being the god of curiosity has me…. well… curious.”

“Travel is my overall subject,” Xellis explained, gesturing with a hand. “I encompass many different things, so to speak.”
He took a long sigh, resting his eyes for a moment before replying. “And… yeah, tha seems like humans. It’s funny to me how they can care so much about something that will matter less than what socks you wear in the afterlife.”

“You think I do?” Xellis asked, stifling a shudder at his disturbing comment. “Mortals are funny to me, too. They’re very fragile.”
He glanced down to Scipio, but closed his eyes again as he continued. “Although, I find them fascinating. They have such a short time to live, but… they look so happy sometimes. And so sad sometimes. And its funny— they don’t know what’s in store after they die. They make the biggest deal out of the smallest things— to us gods, at least.”

“That’s actually what let me come ‘n get you,” Xellis said happily. “I watched you at your time of death, and seeing as you were a soldier, I figured you’d automatically go to Kieshara— the war goddess. But since you weren’t pledged to any god, well, you were free real estate.”

“Don’t worry— I don’t even own you,” Xellis said, stifling a small laugh. “It’s more of a two ways kinda situation. I get the orders, you help me complete them. It’s like… a coexisting relationship. We work together.”

“Doesn’t matter anyway,” he mumbled, clearly upset. “I don’t get any prayers from mortals anymore. They rely so much on their own technology, they have no reason to thank a god for travel. When they used to rely on the weather or the calm of the seas, they’d ask me for safety. Now that weather is less than a burden, and everything is certain, for the most part, they’ve no need of me.”
He brushed his hair from his eyes, letting out a deep breath, laughing as he did so. “Sorry for the sob story.”

“Honestly… yeah,” he said. “That’s basically it. I get prayers every once in… a very long time. So yeah, that’s pretty much all we have to do. Bumble around and do whatever we want.”
He stopped for a moment, glancing down at Scipio.
“And how you feelin? World still spinning for ya?”

“Wish I knew what it was like,” Xellis said, giving a muffled laugh. He draped the backs of his arms over his eyes, sighing. “It seems like it would feel nice, no? Relaxing. It would be really nice to feel something from it. Or to forget something from it, I guess.”

“Go ahead,” Xellis said. “I’ll wake you if you need me to. And I’ll make sure you don’t fall off the roof— like I said before.”
Arci waddled over, using his arms to drag himself across a few shingles of the roof. When he was close to Xellis’s shoulder, he cuddled down and began to purr.

Xellis smiled. He didn’t think he’d ever seen Scipio look this peaceful. He could completely see the fragility of a mortal, but there was something about the human that seemed to make him different. He was brave, the god could tell. A lot of mortals lacked that quality.
He closed his eyes as well, his breathing slowing. He felt the warm sun caress his face, and it was then he longed for a human’s ability to sleep. It seemed so enjoyable. Instead, he just rested there, contentedly.

Xellis blinked away his almost trance-like state. “Heck dude, maybe? I have no idea. Never experienced one. I would guess so. But.. give or take like, half and hour, and you’ll probably be fine.”
He kept his head rested against the shingles of the roof, the scratchy material not the most comfortable, but good enough for him. He stretched out his arms, letting out a small whimper as he did so.

“Hoooowooah buddy, take a seat,” he said with a smile, sitting up on his knees to help Scipio if he asked. “Just wait a while, alright? ‘N yeah, you did fall asleep on me, but it’s fine, I didn’t mind. You’re all good.”
He let sort of a nervous smile linger on his face, wondering how sober Scipio would react to what drunk Scipio had disclosed.

“Depends on your definition of ‘stupid,’ but I’d say you’re fine,” Xellis replied. He scooted slightly closer, debating whether to put his hand on Scipio’s back or not. He ended up not, to keep himself safe.
“And hey, it’s gonna be okay,” he mumbled comfortingly. “If you need to… upchuck, just do it off the side, alright?”