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As you eat a late breakfast outside the palace later that afternoon, you’re surprised to see that Theopotides and Clytie are headed out of the palace. Theopotides waves enthusiastically at you – his face still wan, he nonetheless gives the impression of an excitable, energetic boy – you hardly recognize him. Clytie, with reverence, kneels at your feet and begins a long and heartfelt soliloquy about her gratitude – hands clasped before her, eyes on your sandaled feet, she rambles seemingly without breath. You let her continue for some time, as is appropriate, while making grotesque faces at Theopotides. He eventually bursts into laughter at your ridiculous antics, interrupting Clytie and earning a poorly aimed swat. You kindly gesture to Clytie to rise, and before too long, they have disappeared behind several boulders as they descend the path to the Hippomedon fields.
The next 5 days fall into a steady rhythm – the oikos staff bustling with activity as they prepare for the feast and symposium; you patiently working under Nyx’s gaze to prepare the Dionysos’ Frankencense, chanting, adjusting the slow process of preparation by small degrees, watching the solution gain the honey-like texture of the completed product. A handful of commoners trickle to your gates with minor concerns – a rotten tooth, a twisted ankle – nothing to truly test your medicinal skills. Nonetheless, you overhear a new set of rumors about yourself – rather than yourself consorting with foul demons, this wild fantasy has you succoring Apollo himself to rescue the deathly Theopotides from Hades’ himself. You barely resist the urge to feed into such drivel, although you wisely refrain – as amusing it might be, the cloudy head of Mt. Olympus is never out of sight for long.
Finally, on the sixth day, your messengers arrive, bearing their respective responses…
>more coming
