Re: Caleb & Theo
Caleb had a rich history with stories. It was probably why he loved books so much, even now. His parents may not have had much money but they had grown up with their own folktales and they had passed them on to him. Books were precious things, cared for and held onto for generations. He associated them with a sense of home - with security, comfort, and love. There was also his constant pursuit of further knowledge, of course.
"Oh, I don't mind at all," he said. "There are all sorts of different familiars, I'm sure that's true everywhere. But Frumpkin is fey. Fey, generally speaking, have this very mutable nature about them. They're natural shapeshifters. I don't know what his natural form is, I don't suppose I ever will, but when he came to me the first time he was shaped like my childhood cat. There is a spell - a ritual - that I cast to bring him to our realm from the Feywild. And if he needs to be something else, I simply do the ritual again and he pops back to his realm and comes back changed. Caduceus speaks to him sometimes, just to check-in, and I've been assured that he doesn't mind. But we - my friends and I - we have gotten into all kinds of strange situations that are not fit for a cat. Lots of being underwater."
He didn't mention how the rest of them managed underwater, but... magic. Theo understood magic. He knew its capabilities. Caleb probably didn't need to explain.
"No?" he asked, tipping his head towards Theo. "We aren't really religious in Rexxentrum either, but there are always the devout. The gods are real and we know they're real. There are many people who have seen them in the flesh. My friend, Jester, her god travels with us a lot. He's a handful, but it's fun to watch him work." And it was fun, at the moment, to watch him try to get blood out of his hair where he was standing over by the bonfires. But that was Artagan's secret to tell or not tell whenever he felt it was pertinent. "Not all the devout follow gods, though," he added. "There are those who follow... celestial spirits, unicorns, demons, angels, deep-sea monsters, the Old Ones, Archfey, even especially powerful dragons. They can bestow power on their followers but they're more accessible. The gods are, most of them, locked behind the Divine Gates. You have to go to them, or they have to send an avatar to you, whereas the Patrons can be much more hands-on."