<div class="floatleft">(https://snusercontent.global.ssl.fastly.net/member-profile-full/64/2175164_9159282.jpg)</div><span class="bbc_size" style="font-size: 12pt;">Carter A. Byrd</span><br/><strong>Blessed By::</strong>Athena<br/><strong>Location::</strong>Persphone House --> Temple<br/><strong>Company::</strong>Liliana --> None<br/><strong>Date/Time::</strong>Saturday, June 20th<br/><strong>Mood::</strong>Happy --> Nervous<br/><strong>Wearing::</strong><div class="spoiler_container"><div class="spoiler_header" onclick="hideSecond (this);" role="button"> This</div><div class="spoiler_body">(https://ae01.alicdn.com/kf/HTB1mpr8lRmWBuNkSndVq6AsApXaH/Men-s-Formal-Suit-Waistcoat-Blue-Black-Dark-Green-Business-Banquet-Wedding-Men-Tops-Vest-Fashion.jpg_q50.jpg)</div></div><br/><hr/><br/><br/>Carter woke up in the warmth of a sleeping Liliana, her back pressed against his chest and one of his arms resting across her middle. The ginger was content to lay there with her for quite sometime, just enjoying the comfort of laying in bed with the woman he loved. Not too much later, Liliana also stirred awake, and as reluctant as they were to separate from each other, they knew that must get out of bed and prepare for the day, as today was the day of the Ceremony. The pair shared a shower, then dressed for the day. Carter did not own anything too formal, nor did he own anything that was in any kind of Greek style or form. What he did have, was a plain white dress shirt, a new pair of black dress pants, a red tie, and a black, formal waistcoat. It was what his last caregiver had given to him while he was working for him. It had been purchased relatively cheaply at a used clothing store, but it fit Carter perfectly, lacked any holes or signs of wear, and fit the aesthetic the old bar owner had been looking for at the time.<em>"When you play the music for the drinkers in this, it'll make this place feel less dingy, and like they're not drinking in an illegal, shitty bar,"</em>the old man had said with a laugh as he handed Carter the garment. Today, the formal wear was given a new purpose as he prepared himself for the ceremony. It would also be what he planned to wear to the party tonight, as he hardly owned any amount of clothing at all. Never had he the ability to purchase clothing for himself as he pleased, but now, he was making money selling artwork online.<br/><br/>Of course, Liliana looked magnificent and beautiful in her clothes for the day, and Carter had to have told her that at least a thousand times as the pair got ready, frequently stealing kisses and playfully poking her butt throughout the morning. When they were both ready, he walked with her, hand in hand, to the entrance of the underground temple, where a group other blessed and elders were gathered. They arrived a tad late, of course, as they had stayed up most of the night partaking in adult activities, but they arrived at the beginning of the ritual, hardly missing a thing. Carter found it was hard to focus on, however, as his mind danced between the shared night with the woman he loved and the nerves he felt towards the Goddess who had chosen him. This would be the ginger's first time doing this, and he was concerned that his gift wasn't good enough and that he wouldn't be sure what to say once it was his turn with Athena.<br/><br/>As the ritual ended and they were sent off to spend their time with their respective deities, Carter turned to Lily and gave her hand a gentle squeeze, wishing her luck with Persephone and promising to see her later. As he watched her walk off, he noticed Seth headed down, so he waited outside for the other Athena's blessed to finish, nervously looking down at the offering he had prepared for Athena. While he walked from Liliana's house to here, he had the offering secured under one arm, but now the canvas was held in front of him as he looked it over. Carter had painted Athena a winter forest. He did some research, and found that she had a familiar, a snowy owl. So, he had painted the Aegis, the shield she often wielded, borrowed from Zeus, and a sword. The sword was stuck into the snowy ground, with an intricate, golden hilt pointed up. Leaning against the sword was the Aegis, and perched upon the hilt of the sword, one clawed foot on each handle of the hilt, was a beautiful snowy owl. The weaponry was to represent her title of Goddess of War, of course. Several times, he had repainted this, restarted it, re-done certain aspects, but he believed it could no longer be improved. Although it was quite a striking piece, Carter wasn't too sure. This painting was going to a<em>goddess</em>. It could<em>not</em>be anything less than perfect. After looking it over for a moment, he let out a sigh.<br/><br/>Luckily, before he could think too much about the work in his hands, Carter noticed Seth leaving, so he headed inside to take his turn. It didn't seem like there was anyone else in here or anyone able to hear him, which was a relief. After placing the painting down at the base of the statue, leaning against it so it was upright, he knelt down on the ground, feeling awkward. Carter had never prayed before. When he lived with his family, they were not particularly religious, did not attend any kind of church, or mass, or other religious gathering. They did not pray, but they did not refuse the idea of a God, either. When he lived with the Loan shark, Carter was still not introduced into the idea of religion, and he had a confused viewpoint, unsure whether he really should believe in any kind of God or not. The old man who had taken him in after the loan shark kicked him out was a somewhat religious man. He never spoke of his religion, never told Carter what faith he followed or who or what he believed in, but the redhead could tell there was some aspect of religion in that man's life. At that point in his life, Carter had believed there was no God out there, or at least a merciless one. Throughout his childhood on the streets, he had seen a lot of suffering in people, and he believed that any Gods must had abandoned them if they were to leave their followers to rot like that. But then everything he thought about religion changed when he was chosen by the ancient Greek Goddess. Still, his viewpoints were jumbled and confused as to what to believe, but he at least knew there were higher powers out there.<br/><br/>A long moment of silence filled the room as Carter tried to think of what to say. "Uh," he started, his voice quiet, clearly unsure about this. Was Athena even listening? How would he know? Or would he just end up talking to himself like a madman? "Um, I guess I should say thanks, first." As he began, he found it easier to speak, and ended up doing so without thinking first. He had thousands of things he wanted to say to the Goddess, he just didn't know how to say it, and it came out as a somewhat jumbled, rambling mess. "Thanks for blessing me, for choosing me. All my life, I've never been chosen for anything, no one wanted anything to do with me. But then you chose me to be one of your blessed, and brought me to the village. And that has changed everything. I have friends now, and someone who loves me. And you gave me an actual purpose. But all of that is also why I ask for your help."<br/><br/>As he was speaking, without realizing what he was doing, Carter shifted from a kneeling position to a sitting one on the floor of the room. He was looking up at the statue. "You're the Goddess of War, but you're also of wisdom. Please, help me with the wisdom part. I don't want to let you or Lily down. I've never had anyone love me like she does, and I don't want to mess anything up. She's important to me, so I ask for your help in helping me make the right decisions to keep her happy. I also ask for your help with being your Blessed. I don't know what exactly is expected of me, or what I should be prepared for, but I don't want to make you regret choosing me. Please, just guide me in making the right decisions with life. I'm not used to any of this. I'm afraid that I'm going to mess everything up."<br/><br/>It surprised Carter when he realized how much he had said as he rambled on, but he seemed to have spoken everything that was on his mind. For a few silent moments, he remained as he was, sitting on the floor, as he tried to think of anything else he wished to speak about or ask of, but he couldn't think of anything. The only thing on his mind was worry that Athena was going to disapprove of his gift or the lingering feeling that she hadn't been listening. He still didn't quite know how to feel on the whole religion thing, but it was something he knew he would figure out eventually.<br/><br/>Now that he was done in the temple, he thanked Athena again and got up and left. After leaving, he began to walk to the Athena house, where Ross and Todd had spent the night. When he entered the house, he saw Ross sitting on the table, a mug of coffee sitting between his two tiny raccoon hands. "Hey. Looks like you didn't destroy everything. Good job." For a couple minutes, he would speak with Ross about what he had just done and what the two animals had done last night. Todd had already left to return to Lilly, and Ross had made a pot of coffee. Having an intelligent Raccoon as your familiar was handy, as he had little thumbs that he could do things with. Carter poured himself a cup of coffee and he and Ross went back outside, where they sat on the steps of the Athena house and drank their warm bean juice.<br/><br/>The two sat and talked about a few things, mostly just waiting for everyone else to finish with their talks with their deities. While they sat there, Carter noticed something white had fallen from the sky and landed in the grass alongside the dirt pathway to the house. He got up and went to see what it was, stooping down to pick it up. It was a white feather. Looking up and around, he saw no bird that matched the color or size of the feather, confusing him as he sat back down. A moment passed, and then he realized. Athena's familiar was a snowy owl, the animal he had painted. Was this a feather from her? To tell him that she had been listening after all? A small smile passed onto Carter's face as he twirled the feather around in his fingers. Maybe she really had been listening after all. Ross took the feather from Carter, sniffing it curiously before handing it back, no interest in the feather.