Chapter Text
In this world there were people chosen by the Gods.
Klein's gaze was covered by a thick gray fog, as if alive, it wrapped around the figure of a young man of a learned appearance. Instead of a small rented room in Balam, a spacious stone hall appeared before him, the vaults of which extended beyond the reach of an ordinary person. Thick columns, two girths of adult men, surrounded a bronze table and 22 seats around it, at the end of the table appeared an invited guest, and at the beginning sat the host, slouching.
The familiar gray fog hid his face, not allowing the particularly curious to see his features. As if he were a naturalist posing for an artist, He laid his head on his hand and smiled bewitchingly. His body was covered with one piece of cloth, hiding everything most secret, but presenting to the view the areas of skin that caused the greatest work of the imagination. Translucent tentacles entangled Him, moving lazily, no one would have said that these bizarre appendages with unknown letters were part of a man.
But He was not.
"Mister Fool," Klein stood up, greeting God, but then his face changed. Like a parent who noticed the mess his child had made. "I beg Your pardon, but let me remind You that when receiving guests, the host also needs to take on a decent appearance."
Klein was hinting at God's indecent attire, which from the first meeting had been his personal nightmare and the cause of anxiety disorder.
"Only you are here, my blessed one," the Fool waved his free hand, and his actions were measured, very relaxed. "Now sit down and tell me about your former colleague, with whom you were dissatisfied."
"It’s not that he’s dissatisfied… Wait," Klein’s fingers gripped the edge of the table and his face showed surprise, usually unusual for the collected young man. "You’ve decided to make him a member of the Tarot Club after all?"
The Fool nodded slowly.
The conversation that unfolded in the Sephira castle was rather surreal, if you looked closely at the details. Like a painting by a skilled artist, which looked luxurious and sublime from afar, but up close you could see some oddities that were absolutely impossible to embody in life.
Their story began about two years ago, when an unfortunate student of the history department fell into the trap of the diary of the ancient Antigon family and shot himself. This could have been the end of his life, and the brother and sister, who worked day after day, would have cried bitterly in the morning. But then he opened his eyes here, in the ancient castle and met a mysterious entity that offered to become His blessed one.
'Do you have any regrets left?' He asked, and Klein, realizing the futility of his situation after the explanation, burst into tears. 'There is no need to grieve... I will help you. And you will spend the rest of your life with me.'
That day, the Fool sounded like an evil God, but in fact He was an absolutely lazy creature who vouched for the creation of a secret organization for his new blessed one, so that he could gain skills, knowledge and useful connections, in reality it was a circle of lovers of mysticism. And their selection was ...
Klein shook his head when he remembered that his God simply remembered his things, lost in the mortal world, and called new owners.
But returning to the present moment.
"It was a wish of the Evernight," putting his feet on the floor, the Fool took a more decent pose and leaned back in his seat. "After you left the ranks of the Red Gloves, there is no longer a way to coordinate actions with Her church. This child is familiar with you and is talented, so She contacted me."
The Fool decided to play a few games of cards with Evernight, when she quietly suggested that it would be nice to take one of Her followers to the circle of interests of His blessed one. At that moment, a mysterious smile played on the lips of this woman, and the God of Deception broke out in a cold sweat.
Evernight was a very compassionate Goddess. But all who crossed Her path left this world and their remains are now stored in the basement of Her church.
"But this is your Tarot Club. If you are against it, I will gently refuse Her."
'You will simply hide in the Sephira castle away from the sight of the Goddess ...' Klein mentally groaned. His God was too problematic.
Massaging his temples, the young man remembered his former colleague from the time of Tingen. In terms of professionalism, there was no one in the Church of Evernight who could compete with him in terms of efficiency, talent, and list of completed missions. Even when he was a newcomer to the Red Gloves, the captain always listened to his opinions… But in all other respects, he was not that good.
Having shared his thoughts with the Fool, he did not mention his personal qualities. After all, God should not be interested in this, and Klein was not a gossip, even if it was more like an interview.
“In my opinion, Leonard will be a good liaison between us and the Church of the Goddess. His mind is very sharp and there is no need to explain everything in detail. In addition, he is a participant in other secret meetings at a high level.”
The Fool was silent for a while, as if seriously considering what had been said, and only Klein knew that God's head was in a tumbleweed state, and only a game of cards or the mention of the blasphemer Amon could make Him wake up. But he asked an unexpected question.
"Do you like him as a person?"
'Mr. Fool, you should at least remember his name,' Klein muttered to himself, and then thought about it. 'As a person...'
Like God opposite him, Klein leaned back in his seat. A wistful smile flickered across his lips, perhaps he had already gotten used to this noisy colleague who had followed him from Tingen to St. Samuel's Cathedral to do exhausting work, despite his love for a relaxed and unhurried life. It was so quiet and boring at sea without him.
"No one will force me to share an apartment with him anymore, I simply cannot stand this mess, the smell of tobacco, the night walks and these terrible poems," Klein complained, deeply traumatized by cohabitation with his former colleague. "But if I have to trust my life to someone, then after You it will be Leonard."
Thoughtfully tapping his chin, the Fool accepted this emotional answer. He talked with his blessed one for some time, wondering if he needed anything on his journey.
Having received a long list after Klein's disappearance, He threw it in the trash with the artifacts. Klein writes them anyway, expecting to receive what he has written in a couple of weeks.
The Sephira Castle sank into a familiar silence, only the gray fog was His companion in this huge space. After sitting in his chair for a while, putting his feet up again and almost dozing off under the lulling silence, He remembered that he needed to bring a new participant to his little blissful one's hobby group. God lazily raised his hand and made a glowing scarlet star fly up to him.
Warmth touched his fingertips, and a new figure appeared on one of the seats.
The Fool glanced at the man who bowed his head, as if dozing. His eyelashes trembled, opening with difficulty, and a bit of interest flashed in God's eyes.
He understood why the Evernight had smiled mysteriously then. She knew that her old friend was a great bowist and was favorably disposed to those who could please the eyes.
And the Red Glove in front of him was definitely handsome, could even compete with Lilith in the years of Her wakefulness. The soft green eyes, covered with a veil of sleep, looked around the space a little absentmindedly and not focusing on anything in particular, and the soft-looking lips parted in thought, silently muttering something. The face with regular features finally turned to the owner of the place sitting at the head of the table, allowing one to see the black curls framing it, so long that they fell on his bare neck and touched his sharp collarbones.
The relaxed man in front of him radiated the aura of a romantic poet, and the gaze of his green eyes inspired a certain calm, but this was not the result of advancing in sequence, because he was only a Witness of Souls, but natural charm.
Before the Fool had time to throw in a few mysterious phrases, revealing himself as an incomprehensible higher being, the Red Glove muttered,
“Here we meet again, my muse.”
A little surprised by such a statement, God bowed his head and decided to remain silent. He was overcome with curiosity and a desire to know why this follower of the Evernight thought that they had met before.
Leaning forward slightly and drawing attention to his shirt, unbuttoned to the first buttons, and generally dressed sloppily, as if in a hurry, Leonard continued his speech with awe and trepidation. His voice was very attractive, drawing you into his story.
“Allow me to tell you again how divine and innocent your appearance is. Oh, this fog that hides your face, but I see, I see this soft chin and the contour of your lips,” Red Glove described excitedly, putting her hand to her chest. “Please, at least this time do not disappear and gift me with your voice!”
After a short silence, the Fool, with a smile that did not change on his face, said only one word:
“Thank you.”
He could see even in the dim light of Sephira's castle how the captivating green eyes began to dance with sparkles, now they resembled the ceiling of this hall, covered with shining stars. Or was it just His association? He was so happy, as not even the most loyal follower looked after the revelation, and his soft lips parted and after a quiet exhalation, a pleasant voice sounded again:
"This dream... it is becoming more and more realistic. Oh, Goddess, thank you."
'He thinks this is a dream?'
The puzzle came together in His head. According to His memories, the followers of the Evernight were very reserved, sometimes He could confuse them with the Beyounders of the Chained Pathhway, they are very hardworking, rejected and devoted to their Goddess. If not for this small mistake, perhaps this beautiful Red Glove would be very prim and polite, not memorable at all.
... but since it all turned out this way, the Fool couldn't resist playing a prank on this cute child.
"So, do I seem handsome to you?" he asked inadvertently, and the Spiritual Worms lazily crawling along the body came to life.
Folding his hands in front of his face, as if reciting a prayer, Leonard looked with reverence at the head of the bronze table. In his eyes, there was nothing more beautiful than the soft and mysterious smile addressed to him, this cape that beckoned to come and look under it, to enjoy this beautiful and divine body, and this dim light and creeping mysterious gray fog... His soul belonged to a poet, and as a man immersed in art, he had a strange idea of beauty and tried to instill it in others through his poems.
"The Goddess will be a witness to my words. There is no one who would inspire me to sleepless nights spent writing lines glorifying beauty, except you. You are the only one for me."
If Klein heard such words, he would be horrified. The world should not see so much lyricism from this poet.
The Fool liked such frankness. He waved his hand, allowing the Red Glove in front of him to continue praising Him.
After spending more than half an hour like this, with noisy and colorful descriptions from a charming man who was trying to convince his muse how honest he was in his feelings, the Fool rubbed his chin in thought. Every time He did this, he thought of something dubious and causing headaches for the other Gods and Klein.
Leaning back in his chair, He stopped Leonard and grinned.
"Hmm, if I am beautiful, then what about you?"
Without thinking, Leonard answered confidently,
“I am quite popular among young girls and older ladies,” he threw back his black hair, smiled magnetically and narrowed his glittering eyes. Very playfully. “The Goddess was gracious and blessed me with such an irresistible appearance.”
'No, it is more in the power of the Calamity of Destruction. Your Goddess has only given you the ability to work harder.'
But this naivety was also charming. Could He destroy the delusions of this sweet child like that?
“If so, would you like to become my blessed one?”
Klein would accuse the Fool of fraud. He lured him in at the most desperate moment, forcing him to choose between serving Him and death, and he lured this Red Glove into his church while he was half-delirious.
But Leonard shook his head after looking at the face of his muse for a while.
"My devotion to the Goddess is above my personal interests."
"As I thought. Evernight, I even envy such devotion of your followers… Ah, no, I still took one or two away from Her church, he-he.'
Without insisting on becoming blessed, after all, it was a small prank, nothing more, the Fool carefully watched Leonard’s thoughtful expression. He frowned charmingly and, putting his fingers to his chin, thought deeply. Having already gotten involved in this game, He was interested in guessing what the Red Glove would surprise him with again.
And He was right.
"I cannot be your blessed, but what about the beloved."
A deathly silence hung in the spacious hall, although it was inherent in this place from the beginning. The animated Spiritual Worms rose up, slightly lifting the black robe covering their bodies, and turned curiously towards Leonard, who did not understand what he had said wrong. With a completely innocent face, the follower of Eternal Night watched as the writhing tentacles approached him and began to examine him, assessing him.
The Fool asked a question that was in no way related to what had been said earlier.
"Aren't you scared?"
One of the Spiritual Worms poked its end into a smooth cheek, but Leonard did not even grimace, watching with sluggishness as his body was wrapped around. As if he had stepped into a snake's nest and the curious slippery creatures were studying the troublemaker, only playing with their poisonous fangs in front of him.
But the reaction of this Red Glove was priceless.
"I can do that too."
Thin clots of darkness emerged from his back, turning into similar, but thinner tentacles. They were as cold as an ice lake, but for the Spirit Worms, who had no temperature, this was no problem, they allowed these clots of darkness to wrap around them and hang like that.
A very unusual picture. A couple of chuckles involuntarily escaped from the Fool's mouth.
As if he had no intention of scaring the Red Glove, who could not determine when and what to say - did it matter whether he thought it was a dream? - the Fool remained relaxed and watched as Leonard played with his appendages. Touching them with his hands, he came up with colorful descriptions on the fly, which only from afar resembled poetry. It seemed he enjoyed it.
Suddenly, several cards appeared in front of Leonard. Without explaining what they were for, He only offered to draw one.
Without a single hesitation, the Red Glove took the card.
"The star? Why a woman’s card…"
The Fool’s smile remained uninsightful.
Having held the new member of the Tarot Club for a while longer, He raised his hand and allowed him to continue sleeping in bed, leaving only a few words:
"Remember, Monday at 3 o’clock in the afternoon."
But, of course, Leonard had happily forgotten about it…
***
The maids were bustling about, cleaning the huge Hall family estate and already preparing for dinner at 4 o'clock in the afternoon. The young lady, however, had locked herself in her room, gently instructing her golden retriever to guard her sleep, while she herself was busy preparing for the upcoming meeting. Adjusting her golden curls, falling like a waterfall on her shoulders, and her luxurious green dress, Audrey could not wait to hear the continuation of the incredible conspiracy that had unfolded this time in Balam.
'No, no, Audrey, people could get hurt. Don't wait for it with such anticipation!'
Lightly patting her cheeks, the girl felt her body becoming lighter and her head spinning.
A few moments later, a huge hall spread out before her eyes, and a gray fog swirled around her legs. Following an old tradition that had taken root during the meetings, Audrey, or rather Miss Justice, was the first to rise from her seat and curtsey to the head of the table. The words that escaped her lips were…
“Greetings, Mr. Fool.”
… when she bumped into a strange man. Audrey might have thought that he was a new member of the Tarot Club, but he was sitting right on God’s lap, while He was carefully holding him by the waist.
Miss Justice was able to calmly close her mouth and sit back down, only thanks to the self-control of the Path of the Spectator. The others were so impressed that they could not tear their interested glances away from Leonard, who stood at attention. He looked back awkwardly, trying not to move his head too much and not to show panic, while a huge number of assumptions were seething in his head…
He remembered. Someone had told him that something would happen today at 3 o’clock!
At that moment, a familiar voice sounded at his shoulder, and Leonard couldn't help but glance at it, his eyes widening in shock. This was...
"Let's begin the meeting," the Fool said, resting his head on his fist in his usual manner, but this time his free hand was holding the man on His lap.
Sitting at the end of the table, Klein, who, thanks to his position, was the first to see this picture, refrained from covering his face with his hands and not seeing this shame. He had a subtle premonition... The fun-loving Fool and the absolutely unrestrained poet, under normal circumstances they could launch into a discussion of very strange things that would offend other higher beings. But what had to happen to lead to this!
As usual, Cattleya started first. She adjusted her glasses to collect her thoughts.
"Today, the Queen of Secrets did not provide pages from the diary of Emperor Rosella."
The Fool nodded to her. It was so calm and ordinary, only Leonard became even more tense when he heard a familiar name in a completely strange setting. Although no, wait. Hidden faces, terms from the Beyounder world... is this a secret meeting of illegals?! He desperately called out to the old man in his head, but he was silent, either not wanting to be noticed, or not being able to do so.
Trying not to notice the strange sight, they still did not receive an explanation from the Fool, so it did not concern them, the members of the Tarot Club continued their exchange. Despite his shock, Klein continued to play the role of the World and sell characteristics with artifacts. He had recently become a demigod, so a lot was required to get rid of him.
The only problem was that he did not disguise his voice in any way. And Leonard, who had worked with him for two years, could not help but recognize his former colleague, who suddenly decided to leave.
His mouth wide open in surprise, he almost called out his name, but he held back. Working in the Red Gloves taught him to be collected and calm in any situation, he couldn't just give away his connection to Klein at this strange secret meeting. First, he needed to figure everything out.
The Fool, who had been watching him from the very beginning, suddenly spoke up.
"The first part involves exchanging artifacts and knowledge. Also, if you wish, you can hire someone for the task. Your friend often acts as a hunter for the Beyounder," his smile widened when Leonard turned to him in amazement, either surprised by the Fool's frankness or by the position of his former colleague here. "Want to buy something?"
"... I don't have any money?" Leonard blurted out thoughtlessly. He really didn't have a penny on him, he was dozing in the church basement at the time and was completely unprepared for this situation.
Justice, who had been watching the exchange and the scene unfolding nearby, was disappointed to find that the Fool had erected a Spiritual Wall around himself to speak to the man. She had no doubts about the God before her, believing Him to be generous and wise, but the discomfort and tension Leonard was showing could not help but bother her.
What was the reason?
Then the Fool's voice sounded again. As if setting an example for his new lover, He turned to Klein, who was busy selling his artifacts. Everyone in the Tarot Club was amazed; never before had the observing God been interested in their small gathering to the point of interfering.
"The Word of the Sea. Save it for Mr. Star."
The Star!
Everyone latched onto that word, after all, he was the newest member of the Tarot Club. But why was he honored to sit on the lap of the Fool himself? Audrey couldn't help but feel agitated inside, but outwardly she remained indifferent to the matter.
"…as You wish," said the World, his gaze sweeping over Leonard's figure appraisingly.
Their voices were once again hidden behind the Spiritual Wall. The Fool, who had caused the commotion, who hadn't noticed, too absorbed in his show, patiently explained to Leonard:
"Don't worry about the side effects. Your old man can counteract them."
"Yeah," he replied senselessly, and then looked horrified. "Where did…"
The grip on the Red Glove's waist tightened, but only to keep him from falling, too amazed by the Fool's knowledge of his secrets.
“He is one of my followers.”
After these words, some things fell into place. Leonard’s eyes darted around, and in his green eyes one could see the colossal mental work now, they opened wide every time the man realized something.
Finally, the exchange came to an end. The Tarot Club had long ceased to need the Fool to guide them, so they did not interfere with Him admiring the Star on His knees. The first topic that was raised was the situation in Balam.
Even though he was partially familiar with what was happening, even participated in it, Leonard listened attentively to the words of the World.
But still, the Fool’s addition was much more interesting.
“It seems you want to know why my blessed one left the Church of Evernight?”
… the way this question was formulated already gave answers to many questions. Leonard always found it strange how quickly his colleague improved, and he got the list of ingredients for the advancement every time he digested the old potion. But their church did not have the full Way of the Fool.
But he simply believed that his friend had the right to keep his secrets, just like he did. Until he left.
“No,” the Red Glove answered. “But… Can I at least find out if he really served the Church of Evernight selflessly?”
It was hard for him to accept that someone spent two years of his life risking his life for his comrades, caring about their health and scolding them for empty coffee cups at work, drinking with everyone and getting a reprimand from the captain the next day… Leonard ignored the fact that Klein was the Faceless, for him he was always that little colleague from Tingen and a loyal comrade in the Red Gloves.
Thanks to the influence of his Blessed, human feelings were no longer alien to the Fool.
"Yes," His answer was very short.
And Leonard was grateful for that. If God were to start awakening these very fresh memories in front of him, picking at an old wound that had not yet healed, Leonard did not think he would be able to hold back and not burst into tears right now in front of everyone.
Meanwhile, the discussion moved on to Sunny. His stories about life in the God-Forsaken Land could not fail to arouse interest, even the arrogant Sanguine, Moon, who was only interested in the events of Backlund, which could affect him, listened with curiosity.
But Star faced a problem, like every newcomer to the Tarot Club. He was embarrassed by the fact that he absolutely did not understand what this boy, clearly no older than 14, was talking about, while the others looked serious.
Without giving up, Leonard tried to understand Sunny's story from the questions the others asked. It was difficult, though...
"Do you want to figure it out yourself or should I tell you?" the Fool asked, and his hand rose higher, massaging Red Glove's stomach and drawing attention to himself.
"To be honest, I don't understand anything."
Despite his answer, Leonard continued to watch the members of the Tarot Club, not paying attention to the harassment of his stomach. Audrey, who glanced at them from time to time, could not hide her embarrassment, and her face flushed. The Mage and the Court, who rarely gave advice to their comrade from distant lands, also became interested in what was happening at the head of the table.
A little depressed that His actions went unnoticed, the Fool remembered something about the body constitution of the followers of Darkness. Leaning into her unprotected ear, He whispered,
"You are familiar with the Godforsaken Lands, aren't you? Mr. Sunshine from there."
Feeling unexpectedly warm, Leonard shuddered and pulled away slightly, rubbing his reddened ear. He looked down at God with displeasure, and in his green eyes splashed many words that he wanted to say, but still he held back. In the end, the Fool was not a bad person, just... strange.
And the one who appeared in his dreams as a muse.
After this small gesture, the atmosphere between them became awkward. Having already figured out the situation and realized that there was no danger for either him or Klein and everything could be explained, the follower of Eternal Night began to pay attention to other things, for example, how nimble fingers played with the fastened buttons on his shirt. Sometimes a black glove inadvertently climbed under the white fabric and touched his warm stomach.
Unable to bear it any longer, Leonard muttered discontentedly,
“This is too strange…”
"Don't lovers do things like that?"
The Fool continued his amusement relentlessly, in his head he imagined the Spiritual Worms crawling under his shirt, warming themselves, and the young and inexperienced Red Glove blushing with embarrassment and starting to complain, while looking absolutely charming.
Although his complexion was no better now.
"I-I'm not," Leonard remembered his own words a couple of days ago, while he thought he was in a dream. "It's not something that can be decided so easily..."
Turning away, he covered his face with one hand. It was too awkward to tell everyone his views on choosing a soulmate like that—even if he was covered by the Spiritual Wall—but feeling some guilt before the Fool, he still squeezed out timidly:
"Beloved... For me, he is for life and forever. You can't approach this without being prepared..."
He was a romantic man and believed that one day he would meet the girl of his dreams during some feat or, on the contrary, she would be in no way connected with the world of the Beyounder, a worker in a small pub who would listen with interest to the stories of the Red Glove, disguised as an ordinary officer. And then they would start dating, get married under the gaze of the Goddess and have children...
"So you don't like me?"
... but Leonard also couldn't say "no" now. After all, the Fool was some special ideal for him, capable of inspiring and inspiring.
Feeling how his tongue was unraveling, and his words were becoming more and more unrestrained, he began to justify himself.
"It's not so! I really, really like you, it's just..."
"But last time we already planned our future life," the Fool looked so unhappy even behind this layer of fog, as if He had been deceived. Although the main swindler was He. "A house in Daisy Bay, two kids and cats..."
Leonard's face was incredibly cute at that moment. Absolutely red, he opened and closed his mouth, not even knowing what to say to this. For the first time, someone other than Pallez and Klein put him in a stupor and made him embarrassed.
But after a minute of silence, when it seemed that he could not answer, he decided to go all the way. Leonard put his hand on the other's palm and babbled nonsense.
"I think we will become good parents! We will have beautiful children and several cats... But we do not need to rush. You are very beautiful, especially the contour of your jaw, that aura of mystery, and your tentacles, they are so soft! I'm sure they are nice to sleep on, you could use them as a pillow and... Ahem, but I have a lot to do at the church and I am weak right now... True, it takes time. But you are really beautiful!"
It was only when he finished his fiery speech that Leonard realized that he was the only one speaking. Turning to the table with the rest of the Tarot Club, he wanted to disappear into the ground. Even through the fog, one could see their shocked, confused and condemning looks.
"It seems like I just got dumped," the last nail in Leonard's coffin was the words of his now ex-lover.
'Oh, Goddess, why did I have to...'
The only one who was shocked not by Leonard's words—well, by them too—was Klein. His gaze was glued to the lips of the Fool, who was holding back his laughter, watching the unfolding picture. Not an ordinary soft smile, but a real laugh…
In fact, Klein was now a little envious. Still, he couldn’t make his God cheer up like that.
But he still thought about having Justice erase everyone’s traumatic memories of today…