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"Let's start this again? I'm Anver, a friend of hers from school."
"Mhm," Talin said, clasping his hand. "Talin Ranndor, son of the late Baron Ranndor, brother to the current one. I had to take a leave of absence shortly before my Choosing Day, so ended up going through with your class."
"Seems like you're taking good care of her, though," Anver said, but it sounded a little forced. "Did you have a planned partner in your year?"
Talin chuckled once. "Um, I declared the Path of the Word. During my break, I changed my mind to the Path of the Body. I was lucky enough to meet Nari the day before our Choosing, and we hit it off. So, at least there's that, because pretty much everything else was a shock."
Anver nodded in understanding. "I'm guessing you've met Wraythe and Eladehl?"
"Pretty fond of Eladehl, and Wraythe's a fun guy." Talin shrugged. "We don't always see eye to eye, but we're all on the same page." And he looked at me.
"Yeah," Anver said. "I honestly did not expect you to get Body, Nari. I was so sure you'd end up in Word."
"Um..." I made a face, wondering if I should really do this. "If I tell you something, could you keep it from Tishlie?"
"There's no need for her to know," Anver assured me. "Unless you wanteveryoneto know."
"Yeah, pretty much why I donotwant her to know. You've heard about the person with the strange marks?" I braced, waiting for this to go really badly.
Talin felt my muscles tighten, and his hand immediately moved to the back of my neck to rub gently. It wasn't much, just his way of letting me know he was there to lean on. He didn't yet understand the ties I still felt to my very first friend. Once, Anver had been the closest one I had.
"Tish says someone faked their marks, and the High Priest is in a fit. Why?" Anver asked.
"Because that someone is me, the marks aren't fake, and it's complicated as fuck."
His eyes jumped to Talin. "I have a direct line to all the gossip in this temple. Tish can't help but revel in it, mostly because it makes her feel like she's better than someone else. So, when you need information, come to me? Not her. Me."
"Why?" Talin asked.
Anver ducked his head to scratch at the back of his neck. "Because I'm paying my price. I spent two years thinking I was being a nice guy. Tish was so meek and fragile, and she'd been through a few things. There was a disagreement between the three and me - "
"Thethree?" Talin laughed. "Um, is that a title?"
"Yeah, kinda. It's what everyone calls them, although I'm starting to think it'll change to the four, soon. My point is that I needed some cooling off time, Tish needed a savior, and the next thing I knew, two years had vanished, my best friend hated me, and I'm a fucking idiot about women. Well, men too. About relationships, because I don't really do them."
"They told me," Talin said, stepping over to clasp Anver's shoulder. "And they all miss you. That's something I hear on a regular basis. Even Wraythe! So thank you. I might take you up on the offer, and I'll try to convince Nari to forgive you."
"Right here," I mumbled.
Talin leaned over to kiss my cheek. "Look, I pissed off Eladehl my first day. He fights dirty, so I have a feeling you've been putting this guy through shit for long enough. Besides, what do you really have to lose? You're already matched with me. He is serving his time with that viper - and no, I don't like her either - so cut the guy some slack, beautiful. He probablyneedssome friends who will just listen."
"I do," Anver said. "And I miss our study groups. I miss the laughing and lying around. I also miss seeing the three - uh, four - of you so happy."
"Wait," Talin said. "Can I see your right hand? I wanted to look at something in your marks."
My stomach froze. "Really?"
"Gut feeling. I'm going with it." And he held out his hand.
With a shrug, Anver put his into it. Talin scanned the marks on the back of his hand, turned it over, and then tilted it toward me. He didn't have to say a thing because I saw it too. There, tucked between the sharp lines of Anver's lace was a thin circle around his thumb.
"It's a match," I said softly, holding up my thumb.
"Yeah," Anver said, "but matches are supposed to be on the back."
"Wrong match," Talin told him, showing the back of his right index finger.
I turned my hand the same way, exposing the identical bands. "Someone in the know told me that these are a hope, not a prediction. I'm pretty sure I didn't have it before Choosing, and I know I didn't have Talin's - "
