Renn hummed as she turned a page of her book, while Meriah mumbled a complaint under her breath as she hurried to pick up the piece of meat that had fallen into the fire.

I glanced at her, and the way she picked at the piece of meat that had slipped off her stick she had stuck it to. She shook it a little, since it had caught aflame, and she sighed as she went to stick it back on her stick. This time she did so properly, so that it'd not fall again.

"So… It seems to me they just… moved some of the stories around. A few of the poems are different too, but not so greatly that I see any real difference between them," Renn said as she studied the new bible Light and her people had made.

"The fact you likely could write word for word the differences between the two from just memory is terrifying," Meriah mumbled as she put her stick back into the flames. The pieces of meat stuck upon it sizzled as she did. She liked her meat rather well cooked. Almost burnt, nearly. But that was also why pieces kept slipping off her stick. They shriveled up and fell, or the little half-broken twigs they were stuck too burnt off from within the meat they were lodged into.

"The way Randle had spoken about this… I had honestly expected so much worse. So far the worst thing I think is that they actually list the tithes needed to cleanse ones sins. The last one had simply said granting time, resources or self to the church was enough. This one outright says money," Renn said.

"That's what Randle has a problem with. They're making it more about money than they are faith," I said.

Meriah went to pull one of her pieces of meat off the stick and eat it. As she did Renn flipped another page and frowned. "I still don't understand the idea how one can just… pay their sin away. If it is that easy why even consider sin so problematic? And also, does it not condemn the poor to their hell? It seems to really favor the rich… though I suppose this new version does say that one's tithes must be a portion equivalent in burden… maybe they're trying to be equal in their demands? To make the rich give more than the poor, yet be equal?" Renn wondered as she scrutinized the new bible.

I wasn't entirely sure where Meriah had got it from, but I didn't doubt either her or Renn's assessment of it. If anything I was glad that Renn was reading it. Her doing so meant I wouldn't have to. She'd memorize it completely in one sitting, and would be able to, as she's doing now, tell me the differences and comparisons with ease.

I should have her deal with all documents from now on.

Renn flipped the page and shook her head as she quoted one of the passages. "And let they who desire sanctuary grant alms to those who preach our words. Giving an appropriate sum in doing so, shall purge sin and grant a sure life here and in the next," Renn read, and then sighed at it. "I could maybe overlook the way they tell you to give alms and payments, but they specifically say to give it to the church. Why not just say to give it to those who need it? To be charitable? Why does it specifically have to be the church?" Renn asked.

"She's tearing my religion apart Vim. Right next to me," Meriah grumbled as she ate.

"What…? Oh! No! Not at all, I'm just…!" Renn panicked, her ears fluttering as she looked at me, and then back at Meriah worriedly.

"Okay. I'll need to stop or else I'll get addicted to this," Meriah then said with a grin.

"Wha…?" Renn leaned back a little, frowning as she looked to me.

"She's teasing you Renn. Meriah actually does not subscribe to the religion of songs and sisters. Why do you think Rapti always made snide comments? They're of the same cloth, but different shades of color," I explained.

"Ah Vim! Revealing secrets like that! For that I should reveal one of yours!" Meriah pointed her stick of burnt meat at me.

"Please do!" Renn nearly shouted, leaning forward. I paid attention to how close she got to the fire. She had been sitting closer than usual, as to easier read the book in the night.

Or well…

I glanced up as Meriah chuckled mischievously, at the roof above our heads.

It was a drafty thing. Made of dark wood. We were in what was likely an old fisherman's hut. Not far from a beach, thus why the ground was littered with sand. But it was empty, worn down, and the sandy grass floor was slightly overgrown with weeds thanks to long years of lack of use.

But it was better than the strong cold winds outside, that had sleet and wet snow flying upon it.

"Couple'a decades back, Vim and I were hunting worshipers of the iron cross. As we did what we had to, we actually happened on one of our own members. I won't say her name, out of a kindness to her, but let's just say we caught her with her pants down," Meriah started to tell Renn.

I sighed as Renn's tail and ears wildly twitched as she nodded, transfixed entirely on Meriah as she blabbed about something stupid.

Meriah shifted her stick, as if to take a bite of one of the few remaining pieces on it. Instead she held it in front of her face. "Vim was in one of his weird moods at the time, and I don't think he even noticed what was happening. Anyway, we had been carrying proof. In the shape of a head. He entered the room, not realizing what was going on, and went to put the head on the table nearby their bed. Our young lady was shocked, but fine, but the young lad she was with? Different story entirely," Meriah said.

"What happened?" Renn asked, grinning ear to ear in anticipation.

"He shat himself," I said.

Renn turned to look at me, her eyes wide, and Meriah groaned at me. "Vim! Don't spoil it! Jeez! For that I should say another."

"You would have anyway," I said as went to put another split log onto the fire.

Renn had eaten her portion of the food we'd prepared already. It made me wonder if I should dig out another batch of meat for from our supplies… but she'd not asked for any yet, and Meriah was almost done with hers. Maybe they were fine.

"Wait… although very funny, I don't see why it's a secret of Vim's. More like a secret for that member and the man she was with if anything," Renn then said.

I rolled my eyes as Meriah snickered. She had been waiting for Renn to say something like that. She leaned forward, nearly into the fire. "It was so bad that it went everywhere, Renn. Even onto Vim himself!"

Renn's half grin scrunched up in disgust as she looked at me.

"Technically it's because it got flung everywhere as the two panicked. And don't let her discount the whole story, she got hit by some too," I said.

"Gah! Don't tell a lady's secrets!" Meriah shouted.

Renn smiled as she leaned back a little, her left ear fluttering in excitement. "What happened? Did Vim apologize or did he just ignore it?" she asked.

"Oh he felt bad, but only because she began to weep like crazy… speaking of that, I wonder if those two ever even saw each other again afterward?" Meriah wondered.

Renn was no longer smiling. "Did you ruin someone's romance, Vim? Really?"

"What? I don't know…?" I hesitated, since I genuinely didn't remember.

She gave me a look that kind of hurt and I looked away from her as to glare at Meriah. "Look, in your attempt to make a joke I'm now being glared at."

"That's your fault. Fine. Here's another, one time I found Vim stuck upside down in a hole, as naked as the day he was born."

"What? Haha," Renn immediately laughed at that, which told me she had undoubtedly easily imagined the scene. Likely was even able to imagine how it had happened too.

"It's been a long time since I've been stuck anywhere like that," I said.

The two laughed at me, and I enjoyed the sounds for a moment. The harsh wind outside, whistling into the building through the many little cracks and spaces between the worn down boards, was loud but not so loud it was a bother. Though it did make the fire sometimes pop and crackle a little stronger than it should be doing.

Plus it made it a little colder than it should be too.

And unlike me, who was warm thanks to the laughter and good company, I knew Renn was likely not faring as well. She had started to wrap her tail around her own waist, something she usually only did when depressed or worried. And she right now had a huge smile on her face, showing teeth even, so I knew that wasn't the case.

She was instinctively trying to keep herself warmer.

Her heavier jacket was nearby, as were our bags that had a blanket and other stuff, but I wasn't sure yet if I should offer to grab them or her… or just go get them without being told to.

I was concerned for her. But it honestly wasn't justified.

She was a non-human. And a very stalwart one too. Plus she had grown up in this kind of weather. Yet…

Yet I wanted to be tender with her all the same.

"Were you fighting a monarch, Vim? To be stuck is one thing, but naked too?" she then asked.

Had I been…?

"Was something like that. Honestly, as much as I'd like to keep badmouthing him… there really haven't been many instances of him making a fool of himself. Not in any grand way, at least," Meriah said.

"Wouldn't be, you never stick around long enough to see them," I said.

"That's true!" Meriah agreed.

"You got any to share Renn? It's only fair you give a few in exchange for hearing some," I said to her.

"Huh…? About me?" Renn frowned at me, and Meriah giggled at her.

"He means about himself. You see him do anything odd?" Meriah asked.

Renn squinted her eyes at me, and then she turned to grin at Meriah. "The only times I've seen Vim embarrassed is when we're flirting, do those moments count?"

This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

Meriah's giggling abruptly stopped as she glanced at me with an odd look. "Flirting…?" she mumbled, as if stunned.

"I think Meriah was more so wanting to know of any funny or awkward things you've seen me do, or get involved with," I said, hoping to maybe avoid talking about our flirting.

Not that Renn and I would need to worry about talking about how we shared our affection. It honestly was very tame, all things considered.

Plus knowing Renn she might just enjoy yapping about such a thing, so I needed to deflect just in case while I could.

"Oh. Hm…" Renn crossed her arms, tapping the new bible against her elbow as she went into thought.

I studied the woman who was likely going through years of memories, most likely genuinely and literally. I wonder what that felt like.

"You know… not really? There have been plenty of times I've found him adorable, such as when he accidentally breaks something and glances around in hopes that no one else saw. But nothing outright hilarious like getting stuck upside down in a hole while naked. Really Vim, why aren't you more clumsy? I want to see you do silly things too," Renn said, complaining a little as she looked at me.

Meriah snickered.

"I'll be sure to put myself into uncomfortable and embarrassing entanglements more often in the future, my dear," I said.

Renn's arms slowly unfolded as her ears fluttered while she gave me a weird look. Meriah giggled too, a little too strongly. "Gosh he's being weird enough as it is right now!" she said.

"He is, but it's not that weird is it?" Renn asked after a moment of staring at me.

"To me it is. But I'm starting to assume he's been like this with you the whole time, so you've not realized it. For your information Renn, Vim's always been the quiet and stoic protector in the Society. A man of few words, really. Not that he's ever been rude or abrupt, but he's usually not so talkative either. And usually he's very expressionless, too! I've enjoyed seeing him smile and frown so wildly while we talk," Meriah said with a smirk.

"You two are making me want to go back to talking about religion," I said with a huff as I went to add another split log to the fire. It was likely needing more fuel than usual thanks to the breeze slipping through the rotted walls.

They both giggled at that as Renn lifted the bible, as if to display it. "How do they make these anyway?"

"What do you mean…?" Meriah asked.

"It's the same writing. As the last one I read. At Rapti's a few days ago."

"Ah, they print it. They have these little blocks they put ink on, and they stamp it onto the papers. It's actually quite interesting to see, honestly," Meriah said.

Renn glanced at me and I nodded. "It's true. You cut and fashion a small piece of metal, or wood I guess in their case, into the shape you want. A letter or number, and then use it as a stamp. Line many of them up properly, in the form of a page and keep doing that for each page, then put it together, and voila a book," I said.

"Huh… Why aren't all books made this way then? Most are handwritten aren't they?" Renn asked.

"Because only the Cathedral, the Society, has those machines. And the only thing they're allowed to use them on are the gospels," Meriah said.

Renn frowned as she glanced my way again.

I nodded. "My agreement with Celine is they only print their bibles. And they don't share the knowledge with anyone."

"So you're the reason, again," she said with a sigh.

"Hm…? She seems offended, Vim," Meriah noted.

"Renn's a weird one, Meriah. She hates that I keep secrets yet for some reason gets upset when she finds out I taught one of our members something special or unique, such as that," I said.

Renn groaned at us. "It's not that… I just… I mean… do you know how long it takes to make a book? It took Witch entire moon-turns to make a single one, and it had been smaller than this. It just feels… wrong," Renn complained.

"Witch?" Meriah asked softly.

"A saint she once knew. Why does it feel wrong Renn?" I asked, interested to know why she thought so. I'd have thought she would have found it amazing and a good thing not a bad thing.

"Well… it's neat. You say it's like stamping a whole book… that means it's probably able to be made easily, again and again as long as you keep inking the stamp… but at the same time, it feels like it's cheating. Where's the passion? The personal touch? Half the fun about reading books is the little scribbles and notes. The neat ways some people write certain things, or draw certain letters. This just… feels…" Renn shrugged lightly as she opened the book to a random page and shook her head at it.

"Hm… but it makes it cheaper Renn. Thanks to that printer they're able to distribute those bibles for free to everyone. It's one of the reasons the religion of songs has grown so strongly and so fervently. Without those free bibles I bet there'd not be a tenth of the believers there are now," Meriah said.

Renn slowly nodded. "I suppose…"

Interesting. Renn was basically arguing that a printed book had no soul in it.

It told me she really was a sentimental creature. One far more than I.

Which was a good thing, really.

Though… wait till I told her you could do the same print style for paintings, too.

Deciding against doing so at the moment, I gestured lightly at her. She noticed, and smiled as she reached out to give me the bible.

I took it, opened it, and for a few moments read a random passage… but then my eyes blurred and the words became unreadable. Resisting the urge to toss it into the fire as kindling, I shut the book a little loudly and studied its binding.

"Didn't take him long at all to give up, did it?" Meriah teased me.

"I'm surprised he even opened it to be honest," Renn said.

Hmph. "I only wanted to glance at it," I said as I held it back out to her.

She smirked as she took it back. "What for?"

"To see if I could recognize the printing. I do, but only because you mentioned it. Your memory is a scary thing, Renn," I said.

Renn hummed at me as she opened the book again. "But all the letters are so similar… how could you not notice?"

"You'd be surprised. I don't think anyone has noticed, have they Vim?" Meriah asked.

"The general populace? No. Not at all."

At least not as far as I was aware. It's not like I actually kept tabs on such things, after all.

"But… how could one not notice? All one would have to do is pick up two at the same time and look at them," Renn wondered.

"Who does that Renn? Most only pick one up and open it during the sermons anyway, and do so with a hangover," I said.

I ignored Meriah's scowl as I added another log to the fire once more. I realized I was going to have to go outside and get more here soon. At the rate the fire was burning there'd not be enough through the rest of the night, and I didn't want the two women to have to sit in the cold for no reason.

"Vim's so gentle for most things, but he's sharp tongued when it comes to this stuff isn't he?" Renn said lightly as she flipped another page. She had gone back to reading it.

"The woman who raised me once told me she had watched him build a church, and then before the sun had set on its first day in service he had torn it all down to rubble. Sometimes I don't know what to think about him. He sometimes treats faith gently and with reverence, then other times spits upon it as if he was a heretical demon," Meriah said.

I smirked at the memory. I'd not thought of that in decades.

"Look at that smirk! Gosh, and Rapti and the rest think he's one of their gods. Ridiculous!" Meriah said.

That made me smile even more genuinely.

Finally someone gets me.

"There's one of those adorable moments I spoke of, right there," Renn then said.

I glanced at her, and found her happily smiling at me. In a way that made me wish we had been alone.

"Hm… I'll admit that smile is nice on him, and not something one usually sees, but that's what you find adorable…? Maybe you're as odd as he is, Renn," Meriah said.

Renn's smile didn't fade at all as she happily chuckled. "Maybe I am!"

The wind picked up a little, and for a moment I watched some rain and sleet droplets sneak into the building. They glistened in the dark a little, and faded quickly. Neither of the women seemed to notice as Renn went back to reading and Meriah finished up her last piece of meat.

"So Vim… did the gods write these? Or did one of us?" Renn then asked.

I wondered what part she was reading to have asked such a thing, but instead of answering I glanced at Meriah.

She had a worried expression on her face as she tried to not look at me. She was acting as if she was still chewing food, yet I knew she had swallowed the last bite a few moments ago.

"Can I ask why you're asking first? Before I give an answer?" I asked gently.

Renn frowned, and then looked up from the book. She glanced at me first, and gave me a small nod. "It feels like it's written in our perspective. Even the parts that speak from some kind of greater viewpoint or power, I guess? Plus you and others have mentioned that Celine and her people had started the Church of Songs, and as far as I'm aware there were no gods involved back then, right? So…" she spoke calmly, not even noticing Meriah's squirming.

I did my best to ignore Meriah too. Even though she kept glancing between the two of us. She had grabbed the stick she had been cooking with tightly, enough that I knew it'd snap at any moment under the stress.

"Celine helped found it, and make it what it is, but the religion had been around long before her. She had been born to what you'd consider a society. Something like the one we belong to. It had been full of saints and worshipers of them. She converted that religion, modifying it for the general populace, into what you're reading now. The core tenants and morals and stuff are the same though," I explained.

"So… this was made by Celine, but the religion it was based off wasn't? Was that one made by a god then?" Renn asked as she glanced at the book.

Meriah made a tiny groan of discomfort, which made Renn finally look at her. Renn startled, frowned and glanced at me then back at Meriah. "Are... Meriah, are you okay?" she asked.

"No. Not at all," Meriah said.

"Um…" Renn worriedly looked at me, and I gave her a gentle nod.

"Meriah is stressed. She likely wants to say something very ridiculous but is afraid of what I, or you, will say or do upon hearing it," I said.

Renn tilted her head at me for a moment, then after a single twitch of an ear looked back to Meriah. "You've not seemed like someone who would hesitate to do such a thing before now, Meriah," she said.

"That's because we've not talked about anything like this until now…" Meriah groaned.

"If it's any relief, I don't think Renn would be bothered to hear what you have to say, Meriah," I said.

Renn perked up as she nodded. "Yea! I promise not to react too crazily," she promised.

"It's more Vim I'm worried about, to be honest…" Meriah mumbled.

"Vim…? Really? Now I really want to hear it," Renn said with a grin at me.

I shrugged and gestured at Renn, to tell Meriah to just go ahead and say it.

Meriah sighed, cracked her stick… and then nodded. "Fine. I was raised by one of the people who had been a part of that convent. The one Celine was from. Don't believe Vim's gentleness, Renn. It had been a cruel and wrong religion. It had given birth to not just the faith you know now, but other even crueler ones. Like the Epoch and Iron Cross faiths," Meriah said.

Renn was quiet for a moment, and then after a few tail twitches she glanced at me. "Her saying that makes you angry?" she asked me.

"No. She fears what I'll say about her faith. One of the ones that had been born amongst all the rest, as she says," I said.

Meriah made a noise. "Yes, yes. I get it, Vim. They all have faults, but…" Meriah went to start defending her faith, but I smiled and raised a hand to stop her.

"I'm not even in the mood to talk about religion at all, why would I debate you Meriah? Debate with Renn instead," I said.

"Rather than debate I'd like to hear more about it. Vim and a few others have told me about Epoch, but I've not heard about this Iron Cross before. I'd like to hear about them too," Renn said happily.

Meriah groaned and glanced at me, with a look that told me she had felt as if I had just tossed her into a boiling pot.

She was likely about to panic. She, like most of those who knew about the Epoch and Iron Cross, didn't like spreading its doctrine. People became corrupted by them. Cruel. Evil.

And even the people who had seemed gentle and pure, like the Clothed Woman, have and had succumbed to them. So I understood Meriah's worry. She had worried that I'd bite her head off for talking about them in front of Renn, my wife.

Little did she know, Renn was not one she needed to worry about. At all.

I smirked at her. "You can still run off you know," I suggested, giving her an out.

"What…! Please don't… we don't have to talk about them, and well…!" Renn started to panic, but Meriah sighed and smiled.

"Fine. But only if you promise to not tell anyone I told you," she said to Renn.

Renn nodded firmly, so I stood up and stepped away.

While the two went into deep conversation, about the convent, Meriah's godmother, Celine and the faiths all around them… I did my best to hide and run away myself as I left the drafty hut and went to gather more firewood.

I made sure to take my time, finding myself more comfortable standing outside in the cold sleet carrying rain than by the warm fire next to the woman I loved, and someone I saw as a reliable comrade.

Far more comfortable.

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