A/N: Based off a prompt / headcanon I saw. Reviews are appreciated, and so is criticism. Hope you enjoy!
Octavian was an augur with a reputation. A reputation of graphically dissecting and anatomising any stuffed toy.
Maybe this was why he was different.
Every day he'd wake up at dawn, and head towards the temple and statue of his ancestor, the god Apollo. Underneath the statue of the god of prophecies, Octavian approached his work station. Remains of severely cut teddy bears were scattered on the benchtop, stuffing overflowing some others.
Any stuffed toy he got his hands on was immediately slaughtered when Octavian had the chance to do it.
As he ripped the toys apart, it was as if Apollo were whispering in his ear. Prophecies, verses from the Sibylline Books. A mystery, they were to Octavian. He wanted to know more about them.
So much more.
And vivisecting stuffed animals helped. It was pretty much a continuation of the ancient tradition – cutting animals to deliver prophecies. Except Octavian used more modern objects. And things that weren't so alive.
Pretty much everytime you visited this augur, he'd be hacking away at yet another toy, chucking the carcasses over his shoulder, or leaving the corpses on his workbench.
But there was one toy that he didn't dare harm.
Never. Not ever.
A small stuffed bear. Dark blond fur, bright obsidian eyes. A shy smile carved onto it's petite face.
It was snuggled in Octavian's bed, under the covers, protected from the wars that were soon to rampage Earth. It had been tucked in safely by Octavian himself, like he did every day when the sun rose. And every night when the moon hung high in the sky, Octavian climbed into bed and hugged it, as if the world was going to end and fell asleep with it in his arms.
This bear did not have a name. To Octavian, it was simply 'you.' Names did not mean much to Octavian.
Octavian did not know his mother. He did not know her name.
All he knew was that the bear was a gift to him from her.
Octavian loved the bear with all of his heart. And he did have a heart, for those who oppose of that idea. Maybe it was just hard to tell.
The bear was a way Octavian could try remember his mother. The only way.
Maybe that's why Octavian loved it so much.
"We're going to beat those Graecus. I'll be back later, okay?"
The bear would've nodded if it could, but it only stared blankly at Octavian as he walked out of the room. Octavian hugged the bear, and once again it was placed on Octavian's bed, and waited for Octavian to come back.
It waited.
And waited.
And waited.
The sun rose and set many times. The bear watched from the bed as the sky turned different hues, waiting for Octavian to come back.
Days passed. Octavian still wasn't back.
However the bear still waited, and prayed that it's master would come home soon.
What it didn't know was that Octavian was gone.
Gone. Forever.
In a fiery explosion that saved the world.
But the bear still waits. It still has hope. Hope that it's master would return.
Did Octavian return?
We are not sure. When the new centurion of the First Cohort entered to clear out Octavian's room, the bear was gone.
We don't know where it went. Maybe it left. Maybe it's with Octavian. Maybe it's still waiting.
All we know that it's happy.
And that's all we need to know.