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"Guiding a single student in three Paths is quite the undertaking," the High Priest pointed out. "It would leave you no time for another class of students."
She nodded. "I'm well aware of that, Priest Kinen. I also know that there are enough instructors that my absence wouldn't be missed. This would give me time to return to my own studies, so I do not forget that there is more to the Path of the Word than simply education."
Kinen glanced to his side, at a man standing at the edge of the crowd silently. Their eyes met, the second man cocked his head slightly, the gesture looking like he was admitting he had nothing to add. Turning his eyes back to me, Priest Kinen pushed a finger slowly beneath his lip, weighing me with each pass.
"My instinct is to inspect your marks myself, but since you are not yet trained in your Path, I feel it would be improper. Instead, I will send a Priestess of the Word, approved by all of your new mentors, to document every line on your body. She will be ordered to look for scarring beneath the markings, and to test that they do not run with various solvents. This would not be the first time a student tried to recreate the marks of a god. For your sake, Priestess Nariana, I hope that what you say is true - because if you were found to have cheated your Choosing, you will be assigned to Obligation. We are very good at determining these things. Do you understand me?"
"I do, Priest Kinen," I assured him.
He nodded. "Then I will have Priestess Saval work with you on a list of available courses, along with a schedule to make them all fit. If you thought this would make your life easier, you were wrong. Five Paths mean five times the education, and five times the trials. I hope, for your sake, that you're up to it."
I bowed my head, aware that he sounded like he didn't believe me. Still, he was letting me do this, which I was willing to count as a win. "Zeal seems to think I am, Priest Kinen. I can do nothing but trust him."
"Priestess Saval? Mark her as the first Priestess of Temptation. Design an initial schedule, and bring it to me for approval. If she can graduate, then we will list her as such in the final roles." His eyes slid over to me. "And if not, you will be listed as a Priestess of Obligation. Your future is now in the hands of your god."
Chapter 45
Nariana
Amerlee and Jamik needed to coordinate with Saval on my education, so they sent us back alone. Talin offered his arm again, and I took it, letting him set the pace. Oddly, he walked much better than I expected.
"Hope your shoes are more comfortable," he teased.
I reached up with my other hand, hugging his arm between us. "A long time ago, I realized that a guardian's job is to protect his ward's body from harm. The ward's responsibility is to make it as easy on him as possible. I'm trying, Talin."
He paused, turning to face me. "I know. You have a lot going on, and I am not pressuring you to be anything I don't honestly believe you already are. I also know that my family has influence over the High Priest, and I'm willing to remind him that they have not cut ties with me if that means it will help you."
"Baron Ranndor?" I asked.
He nodded. "Formerly, my father. Now my eldest brother. A brother I do not get along with, and who seems to think that my place in the temple is somehow a threat to him, but Kinen doesn't know that." He reached up for my face, his fingers sliding gently across my cheek. "After hearing all of that, I believe it's why Zeal put us together. My political ties will secure your place in this faith."
"I think it's more than that," I admitted. "I used to have a friend I thought would be my guardian. He was perfect with us. His only desire was to watch, being included in his own way, but he was never really my protector. He was on that Path, yes, but it always felt like I protected him more than he protected me."
"It's a blow to a man's pride," Talin admitted. "Well, or a boy's. More, I think, because we were all trying so hard to be men. To have the supposedly fragile one be stronger? Don't judge him too harshly for the way he had to learn."
"I don't," I promised. "I just..." I caught his hand, stopping the touches so he'd look at me. "I don't feel like I have to do that with you. Eladehl has always been my partner in trouble. Wraythe was my safe space to go when things got hard. You? It feels more like you're trying to fight for me. No,withme. You make me feel like it's good that I'm willing to tackle my own things, but like you can keep up too."
Talin dipped his head, but paused halfway. "I like that. I also want to kiss you so bad. I know it would be a horrible idea, and I realize we have a few more blocks to walk, so I won't. But so you know, that's the kind of relationship I want. I want to be the Jamik to your Amerlee."
I looked away and giggled. "I really don't think so. Their relationship is complicated, and it took me many years to realize it. She is only interested in women, but open-minded about some assignments with men. He is only interested in her. She loves him as her closest friend and confidant, but his love is unrequited."
"I'd still take it," he assured me. "Although I'd prefer to leave off the unrequited part." And he turned, guiding me forward. "So you saw Zeal. You never mentioned the part about drowning."
"It seemed easier to leave it off."
"Yeah, I can see that, although even seeing him is miraculous. What's he like?"
"Um..." I glanced down, trusting him to keep me from walking into anything. "He's gorgeous. His beauty is impossible to describe, but it's like he has no flaws. The kind of thing that only gets better the longer you look."
"I meant him, Nari. The man - well, god. His personality."
"He swings between gentle and furious so fast. I think he's amused when we refuse to whimper before him. No, amused is the wrong word. More like proud, but like a mentor would be. And he's sensual. It's like even his rage is wrapped in velvet."
Talin placed his hand over mine, his bent arm beneath. "What did you do to make him mad?"
"I made a demand. He'd been trying to work with me, but I didn't understand, and that upset him." I paused, deciding I didn't need to watch my words with my own guardian. "I told him I deserved consent. That I was tired of being thrown around, usually aside, and treated like a possession. I couldn't choose between the Paths, but I felt like I should have the right to agree to one before it was laid on my shoulders. Right after, a priest sent me to the inn, or so I thought. Except that priest was him. The same man who was in my Choosing Room."
Talin nodded, continuing on for a few steps before he asked, "Have you considered that it was just a priest? A man who is using you for some reason, knowing you'll be the one to take the fall for this?"
