From 2009's Yuletide, a gift for Vicky_v. Originally posted on AO3 under FictionalFaerie~
At first, things are troublesome. They've no plans, nowhere to go, nothing to help them on their way. It's sheer luck that has them with Altivo, who can help when they are completely exhausted from traveling. Miguel supposes that it is also sheer luck that gave them Chel. She may be oblivious as to where they are, but at least she knows a general lay out of the land and has a bit more experience at finding her way around. She also knows what they can eat, and she's pretty decent at finding dry places to sleep.
Miguel is uncomfortable with her being along at first, though he tries to remain optimistic. She is cheerful and helpful, and she hasn't done anything to slight him personally. It all boils down to Tulio, who watches her a little too closely, and follows her a little too willingly. Miguel tries to convince himself he's just having trouble adjusting to a third person along on their adventure, and that this is the only reason he minds at all. He tries to convince them that he's perfectly fine and just misses the place he'd hoped to call home.
Chel, however, is not quite as easy to fool as Tulio- something Miguel should have anticipated, given how she wasn't fooled at all by their godly guises. This time, however, she doesn't say anything. Instead she gives him space, shoving ahead to lead the way and coo at Altivo when Miguel begins to tense. He is both thankful and annoyed by this, but doesn't say anything in reference to either.
They never address the issue directly. Instead, one night when they've stopped to rest in a shallow cave Chel has scouted out, she goes about fixing things as indirectly as she can. Tulio is sleeping, and Miguel is watching the stars, trying to make familiar shapes, which is hard to do when he's halfway across the world. Chel comes out and sits beside him, leans in, and begins pointing out the shapes she was raised on. She shows him Patecatl's rabbits, the great Quetzalcoatl, and the tiny but ever mighty Huitzilopochtli. She tells him of Xocotl, who loved the stars so much that the god became one himself. When she has finished, they sit in silence, gazing toward the heavens, until finally he tells her that he misses his home, and she hears it for what it really is: he misses the way things were. Her response is apologetic that she cannot undo the things that have been done, but hopeful that together they can all make a new home.
The next morning, when he wakes, he resolves to give things another go. What has changed has changed, and he must work at keeping what he has rather than holding on to what is already lost. It is during their traveling that day that he comes up with his idea. They shall continue to be gods and travel, bringing joy to the people and touching lives, as they did in El Dorado. And Chel, she is to be their high priestess, the most loyal of their followers, rewarded with the chance to travel with them while they visit their mortal subjects.
It takes a bit to convince Tulio that the idea is valid, and Chel ends up being a large help in convincing Tulio. She points out that, given time to prepare they should have no issues doing things effectively, especially if they do not intend to stay long in the villages. Visits, she advocates. It will be fun, and leave them room to continue on with their grand adventure, Miguel persuades. Tulio waivers for the rest of the day, but by the time they stop to settle in for the night, he has decided that the idea will work. Miguel frowns down Tulio's suggestion that they can gather treasure from it, reasoning that if they are gods, they do not need gold and riches to hold the respect of the people. Plus, it will be harder to carry and cart along with them. Instead, they decide to gather supplies they actually need- perishable foods they cannot easily find, fabric and clothes, supplies for making camp, and other reasonable items.
Plans laid, they begin following paths that show signs of civilization nearby. Chel leads the way and shows them the paths, telling them both how to spot the signs she follows. Though the villages are sprawled widely among the land, they learn to find them easily. Being gods turns out to be convenient, and no one questions them when they ride in, royal and divine atop their horse. They move on before anyone can begin to suspect that perhaps they are not who they claim to be, but not before making things easier for the villagers- knocking priests down a few levels and halting some of the more savage practices.
While they travel from village to village, Chel teaches them the ways of the people so that they might continue their charade; she tells them of legends and sacrifices and days they should probably remember, especially if they're the ones who caused them to be noteworthy. They memorize names and anecdotes about themselves, about their peers, spending the hours traveling working on learning more and more. It's tedious work, sure, but completely worth it. They find it easier to spend more and more time in the villages as they learn their roles more thoroughly.
Tulio is determined in that particular way he tends to be determined in, convinced he can master this and make the charade believable. Miguel learns things with a bit more ease, surprisingly, quickly grasping that the only way to make things better for these people is to convince them that he matters and that he demands change: no more sacrifices, no more blood.
Some days, the information she has for them is harder to learn than other days- whenever she introduces an entirely new batch of gods to them as they work their way through jungles or days when they are tired of riding and walking and just want to rest. Those are the nights that, when they settle down they choose to rest for the night, she works on her part of the deal- worshiping them. Those nights, she teaches them things as well. She teaches them how to move together, how to share and love and be.
They work well together, the three of them.