CHAPTER 17

Lanri woke up very, very slowly. It was a cycle of cracking open her eyes, noticing it was still dark out, and going back to sleep to a dream she’d had many times before, where she was mighty, angry, and righteous.

And forgetful. When the sun was out, and she actually, truly woke up, she frowned at the ceiling. She realized she couldn’t remember it. The dream had just been there, when she didn't care about it yet. But now that she was awake enough to think about it, she couldn’t remember it.

Seeker probably knew, though. The Heartwarden was always paying attention to her thoughts, watching her mind with half of an eye. She turned her head to look at her, feeling the angel’s weight and warmth pressing against her shoulder. “Hey, what was I dream–” She stopped mid sentence. When she came onto her side, and faced Seeker, she saw something she would never have expected.

Seeker was asleep. Not unconscious, like she had been in Gorance’s traps, or at least Lanri didn’t think so. Just… asleep. She was still naked, and gracelessly faced down. Her face was almost completely buried in the pillow she was hugging with one arm, while the other was extended towards her, with her wrist bent at an awkward angle against Lanri’s shoulder. What little of Seeker’s face wasn’t covered by the pillow had strands of her brilliant red hair matted to it by sweat and saliva.

Lanri stretched and yawned, and gently readjusted Seeker’s arm to a position that looked more comfortable. She didn’t know if the Heartwarden was able to get sore, but it seemed polite either way. Next, she leaned in closer, and brushed the damp hair out of her face.

Seeker looked so peaceful now. Her features were perfectly neutral, her jaw slightly slacked, and Lanri found herself again wishing she had Seeker’s powers. She wanted to use them to look into the sleeping angel’s mind, like she did with her. She wanted to see what she was dreaming about.

Seeker had told her mortals dreamt about their homes most often, and Lanri wondered if that would be the case for Seeker, too. She wondered what Seeker’s home was like, if she even had one. When she tried to picture it, she imagined a place very much like this monastery, or perhaps the shrine where she had found the dress. With enchanted stones for light and heat, long and lingering corridors, and very little furniture.

She didn’t really like that kind of place much herself, though. Her apartment in Astoria was far closer to her ideal. She liked compact, cluttered places. Places lined with shelves for books, cubbies for little trinkets and trophies, reading nooks, a big pantry, and an open hearth for warmth.

She frowned when she thought about the pantry. She hadn’t eaten anything yesterday. She hadn’t consciously thought about it at all, and she was pretty confident she would never have been able to keep anything down if she had. But now that she had slept, and had time to calm down? She wanted something to eat.

She looked around the room. She had her crutches close by, she noted. On Seeker’s nightstand, she was surprised to see the bottle of brandy Sheep had given her, next to a small leather purse.

So that’s how you fell asleep.

She looked away from the bottle of poison, and back at the crutches. Maybe she could try going out, and look for something? She dismissed the thought as quickly as it occurred to her. Seeker would never allow her to go out on her own so soon, and doing it just because she wasn’t awake to forbid it felt wrong.

But, she couldn’t just sit on the bed, either. Her bladder wouldn’t allow that. She reluctantly swung her legs over the side of the bed, and picked up the crutches. She braced herself for the pain of putting her weight on them, but found it was almost completely gone. That cream really had helped. She pushed herself off from the bed, and after a brief struggle and a flash of a prayer to Shala to keep her on her feet, she found her balance.

It wasn’t easy to navigate to the bathroom, but well worth the effort. She began with the most urgent matters of relieving herself, but quickly decided to expand the scope of her visit. She took off what little clothing she’d still had on when she fell asleep, and propped herself up on one of the stone counters lining the walls, in front of a mirror and wash basin. She poured half of one of the ewers’ content of water into it, and used it to wet one of the wash cloths.

Over the next half hour, she diligently cleaned herself. She scrubbed and rinsed everything several times, only leaving her hair alone. It was filthy, too, but she just couldn’t think of a way to practically go about washing it. Not without taking the brooch out, and she knew trying that wouldn’t get her anywhere. Instead, she resorted to vanity. She examined herself in the mirror in front of her. She’d absolutely lost weight. Her ribs were a little more defined than normal, her limbs a little slimmer, and her cheeks a little on the sunken side. She still looked healthy enough, she supposed. But she hadn’t been this skinny since before she moved to Astoria.

“We’ll get you fed, Dear, don’t worry.”

Lanri spun around where she stood, and smiled at Seeker, who looked as bedraggled as she had while asleep. “You were sleeping!” She said, lacing the comment with the tone of an accusation.

Seeker smiled, and came closer. “I was, and it was wonderful. It’s been… Gods, it’s been years! You know, I’ve never actually slept with another person like that before. It’s quite intimate, isn’t it?”

Lanri quirked an eyebrow, and considered it. “I suppose it is intimate,” she agreed after a moment. “I’m not sure it even registers next to the other stuff we’ve done, though.”

Seeker’s smile turned into a grin, and she finished closing the gap between them. She took Lanri’s hand in both of her own, and pulled it to her chest. “I thought it was intimate. And more importantly, it was special to me.”

Lanri leaned forward and, holding Seeker for support, kissed her. “Then I’m beyond glad we got to do it.” She was a little surprised when the kiss didn’t taste like anything. She expected the brandy to have lingered on Seeker’s breath, but there was nothing.

Seeker returned the kiss eagerly, and took a small step forward. It was just enough to push Lanri’s butt against the countertop she’d been leaning on a moment ago, and she was grateful for the extra support. “How long have you been awake, Dear?” She asked, breaking the kiss.

“About half of an hour.”

Seeker smiled, and put a little more weight against Lanri. “That’s excellent. You’re recovering faster than I thought you would. We’ll have to celebrate.”

Lanri giggled. Feeling Seeker pressed so closely to her, she could think of several ways to do that. “Help me back to bed?”

“What an excellent idea,” said Seeker, as she pushed a crutch into Lanri’s left hand, and swung her right arm over her shoulder. Using Seeker for support was actually a little harder than walking with just the crutches, Lanri quickly realized, but she appreciated the gesture. And as they approached the bed, she found herself wondering just how long Seeker would be willing to take care of her.

Seeker gently lowered her onto the bed, and she crawled across it, to close to the middle. The Heartwarden wasted very little time in joining her, taking the place just to her right. “I’m not going anywhere,” Seeker told her with a soft smile, answering the question she’d not even put into words yet. She reached across the narrow space between them, and put a single finger on Lanri’s throat. The gesture confused her a little, until she started to trace one of her arteries with it.

“You’re a delight, my Dear. I told you, mortals are impossible to get bored of under the worst circumstances, and I have never met one as interesting as you. You’re… incredible,” she paused, and sighed happily. “A mind I could listen to for decades, looks to kill for, and as loyal as can be. What else could I want from you?”

You could want me to do as I’m told.

Seeker’s expression firmed, and she propped herself up on her arms as she leaned in to look down on Lanri from above. She held up a single finger. “Once,” she simply said. “You’ve deliberately disobeyed me once, and that was when you were starving, after spending less than a full day awake with me.” She reached down, and tapped Lanri on the forehead with a single finger as she smiled at her. “I know for a fact you won’t do it again.”

For a moment, Lanri wondered how Seeker could possibly be so sure of that. She’d cut her wand despite Seeker screaming at her not to. She knew Seeker thought that didn’t count, but she felt like it did. “But–”

Seeker gave her a patient smile, and put the finger on Lanri’s lips. She stopped talking, and looked up into those blue eyes as she waited for what Seeker had to say. “But nothing, Dear. You’ll do what I tell you when it matters. Making sure of that is my responsibility, not yours.”

Lanri smiled, and nodded. She still had some doubt in her mind, some lingering worry that she’d get them into trouble again, but she trusted Seeker. She trusted her completely and utterly, and was confident the Heartwarden just knew better, so she decided to try to put it out of her mind.

“Now, I think I know the answer to this, but what do you say I take this beautiful brooch out?”

Lanri swallowed. She hadn’t expected Seeker to take it out unless she needed to. “You want to take it out? To hook up? Did you change your mind?”

Seeker shook her head. “I didn’t. I still think you needed a clear head for our first time, so we both knew you really wanted it. But that was a week ago, Dear. I think any and all doubt about that has been vanquished.”

Lanri agreed with that wholeheartedly. There was no doubt in her mind she wanted Seeker. “I… I think taking it out might be fun, then,” she said.

The angel grinned, and leaned forward to kiss her on the forehead as one hand disappeared from view, and reemerged a moment later holding the shiny jewelry. The next time Lanri breathed in, a wave of calm and desire hit her. She felt herself smile, and she let out a giggle she couldn’t stop. She watched the Heartwarden press the brooch to her collar bone, and Lanri compared the eye-shaped sigil on it to the one she had tattooed. They were the same, and that delighted her. It made her feel like she’d been claimed. Like she belonged.

She breathed in again, filling her lungs with that smell of love and passion, and she licked her lips. She wanted to explore every inch of a body that smelled like that. She wanted to feel and taste Seeker, not just smell her. Seeker nodded. Lanri knew she couldn’t hide what she wanted from the Heartwarden, and judging by the kiss that followed, she was more than happy to oblige.

The kiss was overwhelming. Without the brooch, Seeker tasted like calm, and purpose, and adoration. She tasted like certainty, and forever, and need. And when the kiss broke, Lanri could see the reflection of her own dumb grin in her eyes.

“I thought you might like that,” Seeker purred, and her eyes briefly widened in surprise when Lanri grabbed her head, and pulled her down for another kiss.

It was euphoria, and it was new, and she wanted more. It reminded her she had a duty to feel good, and make others feel good. She was curious about it, too; Wanted to know what this was, but she couldn’t bring herself to stop and ask. Instead, she tried to roll them over, to put herself on top, but Seeker simply didn’t let her. She tried pushing for a moment, but when it was clear Seeker wouldn’t budge, she stopped.

“You are not taking charge here, Dear,” Seeker chided, and she put a single finger on Lanri’s throat again. She took it to mean I am the angel here, little mortal. Obey, and that thought sent a wave of excitement through her. She watched as that same finger was lifted from her throat, and dragged down her body. It split the valley between her breasts, and kept going, down to her belly button, to the zone of need below.

The finger circled her folds several times, and then for just the briefest of moments, ran across what lay between. It was a single tease, promising pleasures she could not imagine, but that was all it was. It kept going past her clit, and trailed back up, leaving behind a single line of slick that quickly turned cold.

“Eager, aren’t you?” Asked Seeker as she examined her glistening finger, then licked it clean. Lanri’s heart rate began to pick up, and Seeker didn’t hesitate to calm her down with another aura flavored kiss. “I’m curious, though.”

“About what?!” demanded Lanri. She shrank a little, regretting the aggression almost as soon as she heard it.

“About you. About what choice you’re about to make, and about what will happen after.”

“I… I have to choose something?”

Seeker grinned at her, and her finger trailed back down to between Lanri’s legs as she nodded. “You do. You’re going to choose the order in which we go from here.” The finger teased along her folds again, but never quite did anything Lanri really wanted from it. “Option one, is that you get yours first. I’ll make myself right at home down there, and help you deal with that awfully oppressive haze that’s clouding your mind.”

Lanri swallowed. Right now there was nothing she wanted more in the whole world. How could Seeker possibly think she would–

“Option two, however, is the opposite. We’ll find out together just how much I can fuzz your head up when you find out what I really taste like.”

The second option stunned her a little. She wanted to get off, Ishara help her, did she ever. But at the same time, she wanted to know what would happen if she let it build. She looked up at Seeker, at those curious eyes that never seemed to stop studying her. They didn’t betray a preference on Seeker’s end, unfortunately. “I… I don’t know.”

Seeker giggled, and leaned down for another kiss. “That’s not an option, Dear. I command you to choose.”

“I want to push it.” she blurted out. She hadn’t actually been sure which way the pendulum would swing when she started the sentence, but by the time she finished, she was certain of it, and she found herself smiling and blushing a little. “I… want to know what’ll happen, too.”

“Outstanding,” purred Seeker, and Lanri could feel that finger keep exploring, teasing and rubbing at her entrance but never quite going for it. Part of her wondered if she’d just volunteered to let Seeker be mean, when the hand left the area between her legs, and emerged into view trailing a viscous strand of desire. She extended it to just inches from her face, close enough for her own smells to be noticeable even through Seeker’s aura, then curled it up, beckoning her to sit upright.

Lanri obeyed, quickly scampering up to lean against the backboard, and was grateful when Seeker took the opportunity to stuff a pillow behind her for comfort. The Heartwarden moved up, too, the much taller woman straddling Lanri and sitting in her lap. It gave her an outstanding view of her chest, and the few locks of red hair that hung across it. That one finger, the same one that had been teasing her a moment ago, came up under her chin. It pushed up on it, gently, yet firmly enough to leave no room to mistake the order for a suggestion

Lanri looked up into the Heartwarden’s smiling face, and couldn’t stop herself from smiling back. She was looking at her hero. Her angel that saved her from villains and protected her from herself and her own eagerness. Her Heartwarden, who smelled like love and victory, and could do anything she wanted with Lanri, but had always chosen to be gentle and patient.

“You truly are such a devout little thing,” Seeker purred as she leaned in, and gave her another kiss, one that barely touched the surface of her lips. “You were so right before. You absolutely are my favorite. Let me show you.”

Lanri smiled at the kind words, and watched with interest as Seeker closed her eyes. She looked so competent, so powerful like that, concentrating on… something.

The air began to grow thicker, and stale. It still smelled wonderfully of Seeker, every breath she took carrying the power of Ishara herself with it. But everything else seemed to be displaced by it. It bordered on oppressive. She couldn’t focus, and she quickly felt out of breath, a tiny, basic part of her telling her she needed to flee, and stick her head out of a window.

But Seeker didn’t think so. The angel gave her an understanding smile, and that was all she needed. It was all she could need. Seeker knew how she felt. She knew breathing was beginning to get difficult, and that she was on the edge of hyperventilating, but she wasn’t stopping.

And Lanri knew that was enough. Seeker was paying attention to her, so she was safe. So when her breathing sped up, and the sorcerous calm overpowered the rising apprehension about how she felt, she didn’t act. She kept looking into Seeker’s blue eyes even as she began to gasp, and the edges of her vision started to darken.

She barely noticed when Seeker leaned in, and her lips connected with hers.

________________

She felt… thoughts and feelings well up from parts of her mind she hadn’t known existed. They were strange, alien even. Base urges that told her not what she wanted, nor what Ishara wanted from her, but what Seeker, her beloved Seeker personally wanted. She’d already known most of it, but… this was different. It wasn’t just knowing, it was more than that. It was an awareness and understanding she’d never felt before.

Seeker wanted her body, her love, her loyalty, and her obedience, and she craved to give her all but the last in return. Seeker wanted everything Lanri had fantasized about when they first met, and she wanted to have it for as long as they could. She wanted them to explore the world together, to be together. She could see Seeker’s plans for her, to take her first to a craftsman, then far away to a mage who might be able to heal her, and then to go wherever they wanted. She saw Seeker wanted nothing more than to keep her close, and safe, and to understand everything there was to know about her.

Seeker saw her as hers. Seeker had found her in need, and taken her for her own, to love, and dote on, and to cherish. Lanri was beyond special to her; She was her favorite. She was a duty, and a privilege. She was a purpose in her own right, something that hadn’t been given to her by Ishara, but that she had made for herself.

________________

Lanri blinked a few times, and snapped out of it. She felt light-headed, a rapidly spinning world stabilizing around her. She wasn’t on the bed anymore, she realized. She was kneeling on a damp patch of carpet, looking up at Seeker, who sat on the edge of the bed with her legs crossed. She felt something hit the top of her breast, and realized she was drooling.

Lanri crawled closer, until she was right by Seeker’s feet, and smiled when the Heartwarden slid down from the bed, joining her on the soft carpet. “I think I blacked out,” she told Seeker with an awkward smile as she wiped her mouth with the back of an arm, and the Heartwarden laughed a little.

“I think so, too,” said Seeker, amusement writ large on her face. “Ishara above, you were brave.”

“I was?”

“You were,” Seeker said just before she pulled her into a deep, enthralling kiss. For as long as it lasted, she understood exactly why Seeker thought she was brave, but it was gone as soon as it broke, and she quickly had the question on her mind again. Seeker looked at her with an odd, perhaps slightly nervous expression. “How do you feel?" She asked.

“I don’t… I don’t know,” Lanri admitted. “Like I… Like I understand you better. What did you do?”

“I pushed my aura as strongly as I could,” Seeker told her. “I flared it, Dear; Used it to express what I don’t have the words for.”

“Did it work?”

“Oh, yes it did,” Seeker purred. She leaned a little closer, and put her forehead to Lanri’s. “You may have been otherwise occupied, but most of that magnificent mind of yours was very receptive to what I had to say.”

“Did you change me?” The question came up suddenly, and Lanri gave it a voice as soon as she thought of it.

“No,” Seeker said, softly. “I don’t want to change you. I want you, Lanri Vattens, not what you might become if I’m not careful.”

Lanri smiled, and nodded. The movement moved Seeker’s head up and down as well, she noticed, and she laughed a little at the sight. “Why did you wait so long? To… To let me feel that?”

“I was nervous to,” Seeker admitted. “Worried that I would get it wrong, and wash you away, and only leave what I wanted you to be. That I would accidentally do what the other Heartwardens might have done on purpose.” Lanri tried to picture it. There was something exciting, appealing even, about being remade. The need between her legs colored it a little, but even without that, it still wouldn’t be bad. It was a difficult concept to consciously grasp even if she had a visceral sense of it she couldn’t quite explain. “But I don’t think I did that. You’re still you.”

“You could have. You could have turned me into anything.”

“I could have. But I didn’t want to. I want you, Lanri. I want the woman I saved from those weak minded fools. The woman who said she loved me as soon as I took the gag from her mouth, and never changed her mind.” She leaned forward a little, which forced Lanri’s head back enough to let them lock their lips together and kiss. “I could have done something else with my aura, yes. I could have imprinted myself on you, forced stronger feelings on you that would never go away. But I don’t want those. I want the ones I earned.”

Lanri shook her head in confusion. She didn’t know what to make of what Seeker was saying. She was hardly the picture of the perfect lover. “I don’t–”

“Lanri… My Dear. I punished you, yelled at you in anger, and your reaction was to wrap your arms around me and promise me you loved me. You destroyed your most treasured possession, and were sacrificing yourself to save me. How could I ever willingly change someone like that?”

“Oh…” Was all she could manage. A little gasp in the face of what was probably the longest series of compliments she’d ever heard. Nobody, not even Faron had ever – Oh, Faron. Had Seeker swept her off her feet so much, so completely, that she’d just forgotten her husband like that? That his name hadn’t even entered her mind once since waking up in his birthplace. As she thought about it, she saw Seeker’s smile soften and fade, until the Heartwarden shook her head.

“Do you want to think about that right now?”

“I don’t know,” Lanri admitted. “It’s my duty to, isn’t it? He was–”

“Your whole world, I know,” Seeker finished with a soft smile. “Let’s get dressed for now, then.” The Heartwarden stood up into a crouch, and put her arms under Lanri’s. In a single, seemingly effortless motion, she pulled her up, and moved her onto the bed. With a smile that was filled with understanding but didn’t quite mask her disappointment, she added “We’ll probably finish this tonight. If you want.”

________________

Lanri looked around at the halls of the monastery in awe. She’d seen the building before, from the outside, but never once had she been allowed within. But now that she was, with Seeker escorting her, she was treated like an honored guest. Beautiful people were coming and going, all of them with pleasant expressions on their faces. Some of them had predatory grins that marked obvious wishes to get into bed, while others simply gawked at Seeker, and ignored her completely.

It was a far more diverse crowd than she would have expected. Elven, human, Orcish, and more. Men, women, and everything in between, they ranged from looking like they were approaching twenty, to well into their sixties. Some of them wore baggy, relatively modest outfits like robes and dresses, while others barely wore anything at all. The majority of them wore the rose golden medallions of Isharan priests, though some wore none at all, and a handful wore ones of other deities.

Are they all Touched by her?

“No,” whispered Seeker into her ear. “The youngest ones aren’t, of course. They’ve only been welcome here for weeks or months. Of the rest, about a sixth of them are.”

Lanri looked back over her shoulder, at Seeker. “Why so few?”

“Eyes front, Dear,” Seeker chided. “Until you get the hang of it.” Lanri rolled her eyes, but did as she was told. She thought she was getting quite adept at the crutches remarkably quickly, if anything. “And there is no single reason why so many aren’t Touched. Some have the Talent, and can’t or won’t give it up. Others are simply not Ishara’s to Touch in the first place, here to learn but devoted to a different patron. A few are just cleaning staff, paid to be here.”

“That can’t explain all of them,” Lanri thought out loud.

“You’re right.” Lanri could swear Seeker sounded proud. “For most of them, it’s unknowable. Maybe Ishara doesn’t think they’re ready, or maybe they just don’t want it.”

Heretics.

With a sudden, unpleasant pull to her shoulder, Seeker bade her to stop. “Don’t you ever” – Seeker warned as she turned around to look at her. Those beautiful, superior eyes bore into her with anger that made her stomach drop – “ever judge others like that, Lanri. Do you think these people have all had what you had? Do you think anyone alive has ever had the opportunity to learn even a fraction of what the dress made so obvious to you?”

Lanri stared at Seeker. She stayed silent, unsure of what to say. After a moment, she shook her head softly, and felt relieved when that softened the scowl on Seeker’s face. She didn’t quite understand why not knowing made their… choices acceptable, though. To reject Ishara like that seemed so profoundly wrong to her.

“Being Touched is a massive commitment, Dear,” Seeker told her. “I know accepting it seems like the obvious, objectively right thing to you, but that’s not how they see it. It just isn’t for everyone.”

Lanri looked away from Seeker for a moment, and saw everyone else in the hall was staring at them in shameless curiosity. Seeker did the same for a moment, looking away from her and at the crowd of priests and acolytes. Lanri could see the scowl return to her face. She looked like she was about to tell them off, then let out an exasperated sigh, and urged Lanri back into motion.

“I don’t mean to tell you you should forget what the dress showed you, Dear,” Seeker whispered over her shoulder. “Just that you need to be mindful that it didn’t show it to anyone else.”

________________

Seeker led them down another handful of corridors, into a large dining hall that smelled of nothing. A round, domed space, with tables scattered around it. In the center stood a tall and proud statue of Ishara that was as difficult to look away from as the one in the shrine had been. Lanri found herself entirely focused on it, on the craftsmanship showing the muscles in her thighs and the texture of her skin. A faint tug on her hand insisted she follow it, and soon after, she was pressed down into a chair.

The statue seemed to look at her, to see her, personally. It was like it smiled at her with the same excitement as the other one. She heard someone say something, but wasn’t particularly eager to find out what it was about.

Until Seeker stuck a hand in front of her face, and snapped her fingers. Lanri blinked a few times, and shook her head to look up at the Heartwarden. “What is it?” She quietly asked.

Seeker rolled her eyes, and gave her a patient smile. “I said, what do you want to eat?”

“Eat?” She asked, before remembering she was allegedly in a dining hall. She looked around for a moment, and saw the various faithfull spread around, contenting themselves with food that looked entirely inadequate to Lanri. Vegetables, soups, and little slices of bread with jelly on them seemed to be the day’s menu. She looked around for anything appetizing she could point to and ask for, something that would resolve that hunger she’d been managing to ignore since waking up, and nothing looked remotely adequate.

It all looked appetizing enough, especially compared to what the more appearance-minded elites of Astoria ate. But she needed cheeses and meats before she’d consider soups and marmalade. She wanted a rack of ribs glazed with spiced honey and glasses of milk. She wanted a thick stew, rich with onions, garlic, and beef. She wanted beer, and bread, and the kind of meal that would put some meat back on her bones.

Seeker looked around too, as Lanri thought. She frowned for a moment, then said “I see your problem. Just… wait here for a moment.”

Before Lanri could form an opinion about it, Seeker walked away, crossing the dining hall. Lanri watched her go, and saw the crowds literally part for her as she moved.

“You don’t like the food much either, huh?” Asked a little voice behind Lanri. It drew her gaze away from Seeker, toward itself. The speaker was sitting at the table directly behind her, and it turned out she was a stocky bovine looking beastkin. She had horns, big, black, fluffy ears, green eyes, and splotchy skin. Lanri looked at her for a moment, and caught herself as her eyes began to trail down to see if she had a tail, too.

“What?" She asked, snapping her eyes back to the beastkin’s. As she did so, she noticed a big bronze emblem around her neck, a bundle of wire forged together to look like a shock of wheat. She hadn’t seen one so up close since she was a child, when her parents asked the local temple to sanctify their farm. A priestess of Hayer.

“The food,” said the priestess. “I think everyone in here saw you frown when your Heartwarden escort asked about it.”

“Oh,” Lanri looked around again, at the food that didn’t look like it had magically tripled in nutritional content in the last minute. “It does look a little…” she trailed off, and looked back at the beastkin as something clicked for her. “How do you even know she’s a Heartwarden?”

The priestess giggled, and smiled at her. “Oh, honey. It pours off of her like syrup. You can just tell! The way she looks, the way she smells from two rooms away, the way she walks like she has a divine stick up her ass she only takes out to beat someone with.”

A flare of anger burst to life in Lanri’s chest. “Hey, Seeker doesn’t have a–”

She trailed off when the priestess’ amused tone and giggles blossomed into a bout of laughter. She snapped her fingers, and leaned a little closer from her own table. “Oh, and don’t forget that doe-eyed loyalty! The merest hint of disrespect, and you’re seething.”

“She very much deserves your–”

“Oh, please,” said the priestess with a grin, and a tug on her medallion. “I am Mirabelle Rivas, Daughter of Plenty. I know damn well what my place relative to an angel is, young lady. And you’re fair game to tease.”

Lanri scowled at the priestess, and began to turn around, saying “I’d prefer you don’t,” as she did so.

“Oh, don’t be like that, you skinny wretch,” insisted Mirabelle “You look like you haven’t eaten in weeks! That’s a big problem, and it’s my whole job here to solve.”

Lanri stopped mid-turn. Part of her wanted to ignore the strange woman, shift her attention back to Seeker, where it belongs. But being told she looked as skinny as she thought drew her attention back to her. “Your job here?”

“Oh, yes,” said Mirabelle with a grin, and she pointed across the room, to where Seeker was talking to the abbot. “That abbot Du Bois your Heartwarden friend is talking to is a lovely man, a real credit to his order, even. But he couldn’t grow decent strawberries in his greenhouse if it would save his life.”

“You’re here to grow fruit? Seeker said you were here to study,” Lanri mused.

“Oh, no!” Said the priestess as she clapped her hands together, and chortled at a joke Lanri didn’t understand. “I understand what Ishara’s temple is for just fine. I’ll just busy myself with the glass garden on the roof while I’m here. And speaking of busy…” Mirabelle trailed off, and gestured behind Lanri. “Your Grace,” she said with a polite nod.

Lanri turned to look, expecting to see Seeker looming. Sure enough there she was, with an expression on her face that told Lanri they were leaving already. “Come along, Dear. We’ve got craftsmen to talk to.”

That sounded vaguely familiar to Lanri, reminding her of what Seeker had shown her that morning. There had been thoughts about craftsmen there, too. “We do?”

“Yes, we do,” urged Seeker as she gestured Lanri up onto her feet. “And we’ll find a tavern with a richer menu on the way.”

“Oh, there’s one a street over from the smith with a fantastic vol-au-vent,” Mirabelle offered. Seeker and Lanri both paused, and looked at the woman. “What? I’ve been stuck in this city for weeks now, with those bandit mages about. I can only eat so much bread with citrus marmalade.”