Chapter Text
Once upon a time, in a realm far, far away, there was a big green thing called “The Greck.” With big arms, covered in thick green hair and big boots to stomp with, The Greck liked to wander. Most of her days, she spent eating wild berries and swimming in the creek. Most of her night, she spent sleeping under the stars. It went this way for many, winterless years, until one day, The Greck wandered somewhere new.
Cradled between three small hills and a river, there was a wide, grassy area. No trees, but it was far from empty. Bricks and stones were laid out, some in haphazard piles and some carefully arranged to make the footprint of a large structure. The Greck carefully tread around tables piled with tools and wooden chests overflowing with more construction supplies. Right in the center of it all, there was a small chunk of glassy black rock, with words carved into its flat face and a golden bell on top.
“KINGDOM OF FOOLS,” the sign read. The Greck had learned to read a long, long time ago. She had almost forgotten. But the boldly carved strokes formed familiar shapes, formed words, formed meaning.
“HELLO?!” Someone shouted, from a distance. The Greck’s ears were big and could pick the voice apart from the wind easily. Her eyes were not quite so discerning. From far across the open plain, down on the bank of the small river, the man was little more than a shiny blur.
“Hello?” The Greck shouted back. The man drew closer, sprinting jauntily, and she could see he was as golden as the bell. He had two large emeralds for eyes and a large round nose between them. He was also, for some reason, wearing a shark as a hat.
“Welcome to the kingdom!”” he shouted. He didn’t have a mouth, but she could hear the smile in his voice-- high pitched, but still vaguely masculine, with a strong, flat accent.
“Hi,” she said. “I’m The Greck.”
“Hello ‘The Greck.’ I’m The King of Fools.”
The Greck had met The King of Fools, a long, long time ago. She had almost forgotten. But his face was familiar, as was his title. Although, they had met so long ago, it was before he was the King of Fools and before she was The Greck.
“That’s right,” The Greck said, as if that was a normal thing to say, when learning new information. The king stuck out his hand to shake hers. He wasn’t exactly small, but he certainly wasn’t doing himself any favors by making The Greck hunch over a little just to reach down to his hand. She held onto it for a moment, trying to gauge if The King remembered or recognized her. He seemed unreadable. She let go, and smiled a wide, sharp-toothed smile.
“The King of Fools. The KOF. I like it, King Foolish.”
“Please, please,” he said, holding up his hands. “No need for titles. I try to stay humble. Just ‘Foolish--’”
“I’m still The Greck,” The Greck said. “It’s kind of like a title, but it’s my name.”
“Well, you’d fit RIGHT in at Kingdom of Fools, The Greck, because EVERYONE has a title. We have The Master Architect, Roscumber, and The Royal Jester-Slash- Monday- Executioner, Owen. And me, The King. Everybody’s got a ‘The!’ You might as well call us The Kingdom. And they do call us that.”
“And what would it mean to be a member of The Kingdom of Fools?” The Greck asked, almost skeptically.
“It means you get to live in a castle!” Another voice shouted. Behind The Greck, a young woman emerged from a hole dug into the side of the hill. She had sharply indigo hair that matched the shade of her disconcertingly wide eyes. She was grinning ear to ear, practically skipping across the field. Tools hanging from her belt and a backpack stuffed with buildinding material-- this must be The Master Architect that the king had mentioned.
“Hello!” she said. Her voice was high and melodious, with a soft accent that seemed to hug the edges of her words. “Hello King! Hello! Are you here to join the Kingdom?”
“Hello. I’m The Greck. And… uh, maybe?”
“You should! Trust me, the Kingdom is VERY whimsical--”
“So much whimsy,” The King nodded.
“--And you would have SUCH a good time, and we could hang out and Owen, our royal jester is part of it, too, and we’re going to be SO strong and... And, yeah!”
It seemed extremely unspecific, but it was clear The Master Architect felt passionately about this. She was nodding, locked in eye-contact with The Greck, until The Greck had no choice but to nod along.
“I was saying,” The King said. “Since we all kind of have ‘The’ in our names-- you know, the king, the architect, the jester-- that ‘The Greck’ doesn’t feel out of place at all, right?”
“So true, King!” Ros nodded, even stronger now. She balled her fists and looked expectantly at me.
Perhaps it was just all the nodding, or the excitement between The Architect and The King (who was bouncing on his heels), but the whole ordeal did seem very appealing to The Greck. She had been alone for a long, long time. She almost forgot what it was like to be on a team.
“Sign me up,” said The Greck. “Put me on the list. That sounds incredible.”
Ros cheered.
“Do I have to swear fealty?” The Greck asked the king, but didn’t wait for an answer. “I swear it, my liege.”
“YES! Come on! Come ring the bell! Our first recruit!”
And swiftly, The Greck became a fool.