Angela frowned deeply as she sat in her chair and listened to the onslaught of several different voices. She was rubbing her forehead. This newest set of choices in deities were making her head spin. She laid in her throne as if she was being tortured by the choices the Voice put forth. She had nothing against Xunatar. The balance of the world would always need people like him in power somewhere. It was the Voice taking her husband. The plus side was that he would be immortal by her side. They could be together always. The downside? He was all the way over in fucking Parvpora. A groan left her lips as she became depressed again. 

It didn’t shock her in the slightest that he would go back to his roots. The moment she felt his ascension she knew where he would be. Parvpora was his home. That was where she had found him and that was where he had lost everything. The Gardens had been his home but not in the way that Parvpora had been to him. A deep frown crossed her face.

“My lady, are you listening to us? The forests are sad right now!” The druid stomped her foot and Angela’s green eyes drifted over to her.

“The forests are sad because it is winter. Spring will soon be here and they will be better. You don’t need me to fix what isn’t broken. Simply be patient for the wet warmer weather that Terra brings. The more snow we have the better the fertility of the soul. The better the trees, shrubbery, and everything else will be,” Angela spoke as if it was a silly thing to complain about. “Trees are just like people. Winter sucks.” She sighed a bit and waved her hand off. “Is that all?” The druids of Virens stared at her with disbelief. She had never blown them off before. They knew she was depressed, anyone could see it. They didn’t blame Angela. Before Drae, she had been vastly independent but she had been lonely. Now she had Drae and they were continents apart. 

She slinked out of her chair and waved as she left. “Take care of the temple while I’m gone. I decided I’m not dealing with anything today. Guests are to be roomed or if they can’t wait for me to not be busy… then they don’t deserve my blessing.” She waved her hands at her clergy. “Keep the children out of trouble.” She grabbed a blanket draped it over herself and found the mirror that connected their realms together. They were made from lacriamium and magical quicksilver. They had been Drae’s first gift after he became a god. It had been several days, a week maybe, since she had last saw Drae or heard his voice. They were both incredibly busy people now.

Spring would be the worst and she had her fears that she wouldn’t be able to see him until all the fields had been sown, all the trees had been budded, and that everything was basically fertile. Of the Gods currently, her job was one of the hardest seasonally. Not to say that Naota’s job wasn’t hard but her’s seemed to keep her busy. With her big cozy blanket, she passed through the portal.

Tar Eisalae was beautiful and she gave credit where it was due. She knew that Drae’s mind was beautiful. She had seen it from the very first moment they had met. No matter how many times he had told her that all he was, was a liar and a scoundrel. 

Walking from his study to the library. She took a look around, of course, it wouldn’t change in the small amount of time he had been a god but still… this place was him. She would love it.  She frowned at the large floating platform and grumbled a bit about how walking up the stairs would take a long time and she wanted to see Drae now.

Going against her better judgment she got onto the large glass platform and it started to float up. By the time she reached the top she was buckled over and holding herself. She really did hate air travel. Her green eyes looked up and she pulled herself off the floor. She made her way up and she found his chair empty. A frown came to her face and she decided she would wait for him.

She climbed into the large armchair and curled up on it. It was comfortable, a lot better than most thrones. Closing her eyes she drifted asleep waiting for him to notice she was there.

There was no way he could not have known that she had stepped into the Temple Library. He was so deeply ingrained in the magic that brought her there in the first place that there was no way he would have been able to not know. Then of course, there was the slight ringing in his ears that came when Tar Eisalae spoke to him. It was strange, having a temple that was capable of even the mildest form of communication, and even the capability of protecting itself. Even when he had been forming the temple from the massive celestial rock that had plummeted from the sky the night of his Ascension, it had zapped him and tried to repel him. But it wasn't until the Rosenites had gifted him the pieces of the Himiria Star to augment the power of the place that it actually began communicating with him. 

Upon hearing the ringing in his inner ear, Drae looked up from where he had been meticulously arranging bags of alchemical components in the Emporium towards the center of the Temple Library. 
"Yes, I know she is here. Yes, I know she is sitting in my chair."
The ringing increased, the pitches changing almost conversationally. Drae sighed. "You were the one complaining of the mess in here. This place is still new. I don't exactly have aides clamoring to run around and clean up messes right now," he growled. The ringing continued. He sighed and straightened up. 
"Well, when you put it that way," he muttered and snapped his fingers. The spilled salts and crystals swept themselves back up into their bags, and Drae brushed his hands off. "I do enjoy being able to do that," he said softly. He was still getting used to the idea of being able to do everything with just a thought or the sweep of a hand. 

He walked out of the Southern Archway into the Temple Library and walked up to the Tree of Clarity before looking up through the central shaft of Tar Eisalae up to the Occulus where Angela was waiting for him. He remembered then that he had forgotten to put in a set of proper stairs that would lead from his rooms to the Occulus because Angela hated flying. He felt bad immediately, and knew he was going to have to make it up to her. He strode past the Tree of Clarity to the levitation plate that would take him up to the Occulus. 

As the thick glass hexagonal plate lifted up into the air, glowing a faint blue, a slight breeze blew about Drae created by the movement, and it ruffled his free-flowing hair and over-robes. The plate moved at a quick pace, carefully controlled for safety by Tar Eisalae itself, though it seemed for him it was moving quite a bit quicker. The plate came to rest in the center of the Occulus, the three orbs representing Revaliir and her two moons Parvpora and Canelux floating, rotating, and orbiting above him while the Himiria Frame rotated outside the Occulus crystal dome. Up here, the air crackled with music, and Drae felt it filling the fibers of his being. Up here, the voice of Tar Eisalae was even more clear to him. 

He was facing his 'throne' when the levitation plate came to a stop, and his heart throbbed in his chest when he saw Angela sleeping in his large plush chair, her long vibrant red hair draped over one arm of the chair, curled up beneath a blanket. He couldn't help but smile. Gods how he had missed her. Quietly, he crept up to her and tucked the blanket beneath her chin and pressed a kiss to her forehead. 

He smiled broadly at her. "Hello, my Love," he said softly as he caressed her face. "How have I missed you," he sighed as he kissed her gently on the lips. 

She must have been asleep for a few good minutes before she felt him kiss her forehead. Sleepily she opened her eyes and stared up at him with a smile. “I’ve missed you too.” She stretched as she came up and give him another kiss. “You didn’t have to come here so fast. I didn’t notice how tired I’ve been. Winter is almost at an end so demands of my attention have gotten high.” Even a goddess had her limits how much she could take. Her energy was pouring into the lands. The tiniest buds, blades of grass, everything.

She pulled herself around on the chair and opened the blanket up so he could join her in the chair. Drae got into the chair with her and they were snuggled closely. Though it was a bit cramped it didn’t appear like his wife cared all that much. People had made her tired and now she was basically at home with Drae. She was happy and content. She pulled the blanket tighter and made him get closer to her. She couldn’t break him now and all that did was make her chuckle when she thought about it.

The redhead closed her green eyes and went into her thoughts. “I need to bring the children here if I can ever get away. You’re way too busy to come home and they miss you dearly. I don’t know what they will do if they don’t have their big papa bear soon.” She chuckled as she spoke. “Iva and Ro are dying to see you but they understand that duties come before family, unfortunately.” It was a reminder of what life was like when it was just Ang and the children.

They would figure it out but for now, they were busy. They had to make time eventually but she didn’t know when they could. The world kept turning and they were trying to stop for just a moment to enjoy what they had. She kissed his neck softly. “Also I’ll forgive you for not putting stairs in.” She teased him gently as she put her head onto his shoulder. “How does it feel to be the first God in Parvpora?” She was a bit concerned about him.

"Of course I had to come running," Drae whispered. "We've barely seen each other in days," he said as he joined her in the chair. "And as you said, Terra is your most taxing season. So I must be here to make it better for you," he said as they cuddled on the comfortable albeit cramped chair. This sort of thing was the biggest reason he had insisted on something comfortable rather than something more showy. He sighed comfortably as he ran his fingers through Angela's hair. 

"I do think they will enjoy coming here. I have rooms set aside for them and any of the elder children who wish to come visit. I am sure that the Reservation will be a particular favorite for both Iva and Rohan since they both seem to get along so well with the animals," he mused softly. 

He smacked himself in the head playfully when Angela mentioned the stairs leading up from his rooms to the Occulus. "I'll get on that as soon as I can. I would hate for you to be discomforted. I thought making the plates of glass would help you, but I see I was wrong," he said in mock disappointment. "There are, however, stairs to get you down to the main floor of the library," he said reassuringly. He made a face at her question and moved his head from side to side like he was trying to figure out how to answer her. 

"I'll live," he replied. "As you can see, I'm not exactly the talk of the town. No one has been here but you so far, my darling," he commented. "But I'm not surprised. This is Parvpora, no one puts much stock in the Gods here," he added. "But I do think when they realize how beneficial it will be to have me around I'll become much more popular," he grinned. 

This answer was far more positive than he had been feeling when he had been called to Ascension. He'd never admit it outloud, but he had thrown quite the little temper tantrum over it. 

“It’s absolutely torturous.” She teased as he reaffirmed just how long it had been since they last saw each other. “I’ll live through Terra, as I always have.” She chuckled softly. They were comfortably cuddling in that chair of his. It might have been cramped but it was sort of nice to be that close to Adraejen. His smell filled her nose pleasantly and she chuckled again as soon as she had her fill of his scent. She could never take that smell for granted… not after her death. She reeled into his hands as he stroked her hair. If she could purr she would have. It was the most reassuring thing she had ever felt. She wasn’t entirely sure what he could have been reassuring her about but it comforted her. Maybe it was that she would survive Terra as she always did.

“They will love that.” She chuckled just a bit and smiled at him. “I’ll have to send them over here when the girls have too much of them. I will be bust soon enough and not around much to take care of them.” She frowned a bit at Drae and tried to make the best of it. “Rohan isn’t used to me not being here. He’s been so sheltered by it all. This will be hardest for him.”

She laughed a bit and pulled herself away just enough to look at him. “Don’t worry about it Adraejen. I’ll manage. I’m sure it has more to do with the sensation.” She mused a bit. “Same way a ship makes me feel the same way yet it too is made from the earth.” She reminded him gently. She could hear the mocking and a chuckle left her lips. “I saw the stairs.” She reassured him. “I wasn’t about to make that damn trip more than once on the way up. You and your flying bullshit.” She took a little jab at him.

She tilted her head at him. “Love, it doesn’t shock me your temple is in Parvpora one bit. Parvpora has been your life. I’m but a small sliver of it. You were born here, damn well near died here, set up your business here, everything that is you… is in Parvpora.” She didn’t know if he realized the impact he had on where he was at. “Maybe you are what this continent needs. Despite how much of a scoundrel and a liar you can be,” she teased him again.

She reached over and flicked his nose softly. “You’ll live Adraejen but you have to keep being as strong as I know you can be. All content to play the badass… Remember?” She smiled softly up at him. “I can handle the heathens for now. You worry about setting all of this up. You have quite a long way to go before you are fully established. You’ll need clergy, followers, and all that good stuff. Something to draw them in. You’ll have all of that but it will take a bit. You will be a good god… I know you can be. Despite how pissed off I am that the Voice would take you from me.” She muttered a bit. “I can’t keep selfishly holding onto you and not letting you become greater like I know you can be. Despite how unhappy it makes me to have you all the way over here.”

She leaned over and kissed his cheek and let her lips linger for a moment before leaning in and putting her forehead against his cheek. "We'll figure out the distance thing… and the busy thing… and the kids thing." She chuckled.

“Rohan is smart for an infant. Yes, he needs you, but I think he realizes already that there are some situations that can’t be helped. I think he learned that after your close shave with death,” he sighed. “Not that I want to separate him from you at all, but unfortunately now that both of us are deities, maybe we will be having to split his and Iva’s time between us. Especially during your busy season,” he sighed.

He chuckled at the comment about her dislike of the sensation of being off the ground. “Don’t worry, I’ll fix the stair issue,” he promised, and lowered a hand to the ground. There was a tangible shudder throughout Tar Eisalae and a loud rumble in the ground beneath them. He looked up at the crystal dome. “Thank you,” he said appreciatively to the great crystal dome around them.

“You know, I didn’t think of it that way. I don’t think I do still. I am still not sure if my ascension was the smartest decision that the Tree has made,” he sighed. “I know I made a name for myself in Wyllmochvar, but this is a continent that rebelled against the gods and burned their World Tree. That may have been thousands of years ago, but who is to say that they won’t try and tear this place down?” he asked softly. “That is my fear. I am a paradox here, and I fear it may put our children in danger,” he told her. “Scoundrel and liar I may be, but I am also a selfish bastard,” he sighed.

Her confidence in him was reassuring, and he did hope it wasn’t misplaced. He was grateful, in a way, for the ascension because it meant he was immortal, and he would live as long as Angela would. It also meant he could keep up with her better, but even that was made difficult by the vast distance that now separated them.

He sighed and held her close. “I know we will. It just seems so overwhelming right now I guess. I mean, we didn’t exactly get any sort of warning that this was going to happen,” he commented. “But you are here now, and this place is empty right now. No one will bother us if we were to go somewhere meant for proper cuddling,” he said as he stood up and lifted Angela and her blanket up in his arms and carried her over to the levitation plate that would take them to his private chambers. Instead of stepping onto the plate, he tapped his foot and a second before the floor slid aside and revealed a brand new set of stairs that spiraled down around the shaft that the levitation plate would have followed.
“There, see, I keep my promises,” he chuckled as he carried Angela down the stairs and through the short hallway into his sleeping chambers. He set her down on the bed that was tucked back into an alcove in the wall and curled up more comfortably with her on the plush bed.

Angela sighed gently. “I really will miss them when they come over here to visit. Maybe I can sneak over here at night when you have them.” It was odd talking about splitting there time like they were. “Terra is just the busiest season. It sucks but there is nothing I can do unless I want a hoard of angry people after me.” She chuckled a bit.

A mischievous look appeared on her face as she heard the rumbling. “What a good thoughtful husband I have. I think everyone needs to have a husband like mine.” 

She tilted her head and smiled at him. “I have faith that the Tree knows what its doing. Even if I don’t like it. It does things because it needs to. You are the person its needs right now no matter my feelings on it. If it comes down to protecting the children you know the conclave would help you. We’re like a dysfunctional family.” She chuckled a bit. “You should go visit Naota. He just had three beautiful babies with Echo. They damn well woke me up in the middle of the night.” She sighed a bit. “You must have been out on a job when it happened.”

She closed her eyes. “Even though we are weakened here in Parvpora and you outside of your temple… we are still stronger than most. I am willing to bet that Dalanesca and I could take on a while army or two.” She chuckled. “We can protect each other. That is what we do.”

She laughed. “When have we ever had warning for anything? Even Rohan was a surprise.” She laughed a bit more now that she thought about it. “We didn’t have any warning that we would fall in love. Remember we just got with each other because sex was a thing we both enjoyed.” She gave a smile as she watched him get up. “Oh that sounds lovely.” She eeped just a bit as she wrapped herself around him so he could carry her.

Her green eyes looked at the stairs and smiled. “I see that. Everyone should have my husband. Not that I’m willing to share.”  She laid down in the bed and took a relaxed sigh as she snuggled up to him and covered him with the blankets. The goddess laid gentle kisses to his cheek and neck as she put her head on his chest. “You know as much as I complain that we’re not giving enough alone time… I miss the little brats.” She smiled up at him. “Rohan always ends up on you when he tries to take over the bed. You would think he was so much bigger than he is… and Iva doing her spread eagle.” She laughed a bit more.

“I’m beginning to think its a learned behavior between the two of them.” She closed her eyes and snuggled her head into him. “Are you tired from building the temple love?” 

"If everyone had a husband like yours, then the world would be in a lot of trouble. I am not sure it could handle more than one of me," he smiled. 

He thought about her suggestion and nodded. "Maybe I will. Naota's a level headed man. He might at least be a good individual to get some ideas from and discuss things. I'm sure he could use the break as well if he and Echo were just gifted triplets," he chuckled. "I can't imagine…" he said with the shake of his head. 
"Knowing that you and Dalanesca would come to my defense gives me comfort, love, but I would hate to put you both at such a disadvantage. Let's just pray that Tar Eisalae and I can fend off armies on our own. But I'll still come aide you in a heartbeat. I am still your Warlock after all," he smiled. 

"You make a fair point. Everything about our relationship has really come as a surprise. I guess we should have seen this coming, I guess. But if we had, it would have been a surprise," he mused as he carried Angela down the stairs. Thinking about it, he had never carried her like this before. If anything, it seemed that Angela had been carrying him half the time. It wasn't necessarily something he was proud of but he never said anything. 

He sighed contentedly as Angela began kissing his neck and cheeks and he growled appreciatively and curled his body around hers. "I don't think Rohan ends up on me so much as he tries to steal my pillows and I don't like to give them up," he chuckled. "I think he seeks out the softest spot, which is the pillows because his bassinet is essentially just a giant pillow, and even though our bed is soft, the pillows, to him, are softer," he mused. "As for Iva, I think she gets it from having a massive bed all to herself… or she's just like her mother," he added playfully.

He sighed. "Yeah, I am. Even though I think Tar Eisalae did all the real work, getting it to work with me sapped most my energy I think. Things were pretty difficult until Willow sent the pieces of the Himiria Star to use for the Frame around the Occulus, but once that went up, Tar Eisalae and I were able to communicate better and things started smoothing out easily," he explained.

"But I am not tired enough to just fall asleep. This is the first bit of quality time we've had in a while, and I don't intend to let it go to waste," he said as he kicked off his boots and shed his over robes.  

“I could handle more than one of you,” she joked and gave his smile right back at him. “You aren’t too bad.”

Angela chuckled a bit and tilted her head. “Neither could I… My limit is two and I refuse to break it. The triplets were an accident on my end.” She knew that it had been because of her potion that Echo had gotten pregnant with three. Her back hurt thinking about it and she was immortal compared to poor Echo.

“It’s not a disadvantage if it means protecting my husband Drae.” She was short with him a bit. She wanted to help protect him here but she knew that he could handle himself but it didn’t mean that she would leave him all by himself should an uprising happen again. “Nice to know some things don’t change.” She smiled again when he said he would protect her.

She chuckled as she thought about it. “Right now you are stronger than I am. You’ve always wanted that in a positive way instead of me dying.” She put her head against his shoulder and snuggled. “It’s nice.” She liked that feeling that he was stronger than her at least now.

The goddess’s energy revived just a bit as she heard his growl. Her eyes looked up at him contently. “He loves his pillows. Much more than any other baby I’ve ever had.” A thought crossed her mind and she started to laugh hard. “Maybe it’s because he’s a boob baby like his father.” She tilted her head and thought about Iva. “I’m no bed hog but Rohan… he most certainly was.”

She rubbed his chest softly and kissed his neck again. “Don’t sell yourself short. You’ve been doing that this whole time. This whole thing is you. You created Tar Eisalae as an extension of yourself like the Sundering Gardens is an extension of me. This is you.” She waved her hand around to show him the room. “That doesn’t shock me about the Himiria. It is an arcane augment. You just needed help to settle into your new power.”

She watched him kick off his boots. “I’ll never understand how people wear shoes.” Her nose wrinkled up a bit and she laughed. She helped him take off his over robes and smiled. Her hands dropped the robes off to the side. The goddess snuggled close to him once more once the robes were gone. “I love quality time with you, it’s the best.” She took in his scent and melted against him. She had first found his scent when she was on the way to the grave and ever since then she hadn’t taken it for granted. She was drowning in him. Parvpora wasn’t bothering her at all now.

“So what was your ascension like? You never told me…”

Drae looked down at Angela and sighed. "I guess there is no arguing with you. Despite my misgivings, you ARE right all things considered. I mean, I did build this place. Tar Eisalae couldn't become this without me to shape it. That is a great feat for me, and I'll admit it has me a little excited now, among other things," he smiled at her. "I'll get used to being a God before long," he promised her.  "Willow did me a great service when she and the Rosenites gifted me the Himiria Star. I am eternally grateful for that gift," he sighed. 

He laughed at her comment about his boots and he looked at her affectionately as she helped him shed his over-robes and continued to undo his vest and tossed it aside as well before he cuddled back up with her. "The Earth does not love us all equally, my dear. You have the luck to have Earth as your domain so I am sure that everything your feet touch is like the softest of silk. Me, on the other hand, I haven't gone barefoot since I was a child, and even then I hated it," he chuckled. He loved how she melted into him and he growled softly in her ear as he nuzzled her. 

He sighed and rolled so that he was facing the ceiling. 
"The Voice and the World Tree hit me with a shooting star," he said, heaving a deep breath. "I suppose they couldn't be subtle, me being Parvporan and all," he said wryly and cast a glance at her. "It hurt like hell though, having all that power fusing with my essence. I am pretty sure that if Cyprus had still been attached to me at that point, she would have ceased to exist completely." 
"I was absolutely pissed of course. If anyone had been in the vicinity I bet they thought I was insane. I tried to throw a rock at the World Tree and I ended up knocking the star that became Tar Eisalae from the sky," he admitted. "I was mostly angry that the Tree was taking me away from you…" he sighed. "But… on the bright side… you won't break me. I may not be Fertility or anything, but I won't tire like mortal Drae did," he said, caressing Angela's curves and pulling her tight against his body.