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Chapter 15
Wraythe
Talin and I made it to the dining hall first, so we went through the line to get food for Ela, Nari, and Anver, knowing this place would fill up quickly. It was the first day of classes, after all, which meant that everyone would be starving by now, since we weren't used to eating at set times.
"So, should we tell Ela we saw Quin?" I asked Talin as the priest filled my orders.
"Yeah, since it's good news," he assured me. "Why, do you think it would upset him?"
I could only shrug. "I'm never sure when it comes to Faylie, actually." I almost left it there, but couldn't. "He doesn't hate her anymore, and I'm not sure he knows what to do about that."
"Makes sense," Talin said.
But it didn't! At least, it didn't to me. "Care to explain?"
Talin rubbed my shoulder, then paused to list off a meal for himself, Nari, and Anver. When the priest went to make those up, he picked up like we hadn't been interrupted.
"Faylie's the 'other woman' in his mind. He feels like he has to have these sessions with her, and he resents his lack of control. If he can hate her, then everything's easier, but she's a nice woman. She's a faithful priestess. There isn't much there to hate, so instead he finds himself feeling bad for what he does, and yet he enjoys hurting her too much to stop."
"And he's told he has to do this so he can master it," I realized. "No, that does make more sense."
"Does it bother you?" Talin asked.
Again, I shrugged. "Not exactly. It bothers me that I don't understand this part. I'm not repulsed or anything. I just can't wrap my mind around how he can get turned on by doing that. When I think about sex, I imagine loving someone."
"But they can't," Talin reminded me. "That's not how the Path of the Body works. Their duty is to tempt, not care for them. That means it's nothing but physical pleasure, Wraythe. No different than jacking off. You don't really want to sweet-talk your hand, do you?"
I chuckled at that. "Dunno. I mean, it's been kind to me."
Talin just groaned, pausing to get the plates the priest passed to him, and then gestured for me to find a table. We headed back to where we used to sit, only to find a pair of first-year initiates had already claimed it. That was ok. They could have it. There was a better table at the side. A bigger one, actually.
When we reached it, I dropped my two plates and went to get another chair while Talin juggled the three plates he had. I was a little impressed that he managed, in all honesty. He'd just finished when I got back, so we both started moving chairs around the table so they were spaced more evenly, because unlike the table we'd used last year, this one was round. It would actually make things nicer, I thought.
But when I sat down beside Talin - so we could both watch the door - it felt weird. Not bad, just new. I used to sit across from him, either beside Ela or Nari. Never mind that Nari and Ela weren't here. Not having one was normal, but both? That had to be what was making me feel a bit twitchy.
"Eat," Talin told me. "They won't care."
"You think Tishlie and Ciella are going to make Nari's life miserable this year?" I asked as I took a bite like he'd ordered.
"Nah," Talin said. "I think Nari's strong enough now that they don't scare her. I think Zeal's always around her, so if they tried, he'd jump in her skin if she needed help. I also think that you're more worried about her than Ela."
"I am," I admitted. "No one fucks with Ela unless they want to die. Nari? They all think she's fragile, so they have to try at least once."
"But she's not," Talin assured me, just as Ela wandered his golden ass into the hall.
"Ela!" I called out, getting his attention.
"Where's Nari?" he asked, clearly mimicking my thoughts.
"She's fine," Talin assured us. "If I had to guess, I'd say she's happy about something, which means she's either really enjoying her class, or with Anver."
"Good," Ela said, pointing at the plates. "Beef for me?"
"Yup," I assured him. "Fish for Nari, and pheasant for Anver." I waited for him to sit down, then decided to dump my news on him. "Quin was waiting outside our last class."
"Shit," Ela breathed.
So I kept going. "Faylie's completely healed today. Not a scab or scar on her. Healed like your session never happened, and he wanted to know why."
