The Worst Christmas Ever
Upon arriving back in Rome we are met in the street by a handsome fellow clad all in black, wearing gloves. He pulls out the Book of Thoth and extends it towards Harald, saying "I believe this is yours." They hem and haw back and forth until Harald takes the book, without quite acknowledging that it is his. He asks if the fellow is John Cresentius, and recieves an affirmative reply and an invite to dinner the next day at the Cresentius mansion. Everyone goes back to the inn and sleeps well.
The next morning everyone wakes up to a fine Chirstmas day. They all skip down to the Pope Castle, where Kleantha goes in ahead to prepare the way for our heroes. After a bit some guys invite us in, and we are taken to a room with a bunch of priests. They are bad people, and keep drinking wine from ewach others' bottoms and talking about who has the cutest catamite. They thank Harald for delivering Kleantha safe and sound, and ask what he would like for a reward. He mentions that he has a dead wife who needs resurrecting, and tries to bargain for it. These guys don't want to cut three years off their lives, so instead they offer to make Harald a Bishop. While he is hashing out the logistics of his Bishophic one dour old priest in the back says "Enough! I'll not see the Church made a laughing stock! Bring out the girl." It's Pope John XV. Harald can't believe his ears. It's a Christmas miracle! He produces the chopped bone shards that are all that remains of Afaf. Laying her on the table, he thinks of the happy adventures they will share, and how he will deal with the whole bigamy bit now that he is a convert. The Pope casts his spell, and flesh once again clothes Afaf's body. She smiles, and reaches for Harald, only to turn pale. Harald tries to snatch his ioun stone and cast it around her newly reformed head, but he fails to catch it. She dies again, with his name on her lips. Harald thanks the Pope, all the time damning God inside his heart for making this the worst Christmas ever. He takes Afaf out of the church, out of the city, and buries her.
To top things off, that night, as Harald lies awake on watch Fat Legs shows up and they have a fight over the Black Stone of Cybele. Fat Legs stops after he gets beat down, and Harald brings him up to speed on the current situation in Ethiopia. Somehow this makes Harald lose a point of Strength, and Fat Legs takes off to either return to Ethiopia nad try to kill Jan Seoum, or else help some jews steal the Jew Face. Seems he has been practicing sneaking into papal vaults. The rest of the night passes without incindent.
