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It had been a trying few days since returning to the temple. She was too tense, too agitated. And her aim was suffering because of it.

“Third?”

Iryana jerked upright, lowering the wooden bow to her side, and spun to face her visitor. Keeper Tomislav stood before her, a hint of a smirk on his face.

“Keeper,” she greeted him, blushing.

She’d seen him a few times, swapping out with the other Keeper, but he’d always seemed exhausted and didn’t interact with anyone. Now, Keeper Tomislav looked completely drained.

“The tattooing is hard on you too, isn’t it?” Iryana realized.

He seemed to deflate slightly. “It’s… difficult, at times. Cruel even. But it is the way of our people, and it’s an honor to hear their truths.”

“How are the forgings going?” Iryana asked, surprised by how nervous she felt.

“As expected, but I was hoping we could have that talk now.”

“Ah.” Iryana rocked on her heels. “Of course.”

After putting her bow and quiver away, Iryana followed the Keeper into one of the rooms on the opposite side of the temple from her room. There was a simple table, benches, and a candle to light the space.

“Please sit.” The Keeper gestured at the bench across from where he was sinking down.

She joined him, bracing herself for having this conversation again.

The Keeper reached across the table, squeezing her hand. “How have you been feeling lately, with everything? You seem to have come far since we talked down in the well.”

She smiled at that. “I have. I’m trying to conquer my fears and make decisions without them. I’ve accepted my place in my clan, I’m rebuilding my relationships with my sisters, and I think I’m healing.”

But she didn’t mention the worries she still had. The dread that even if she tried her hardest, she was still going to fail. That she wouldn’t be enough.

“It takes a long time to heal from the kinds of wounds you have.” His voice was soft. “And on top of that, now you’re double-forged.” There was a question in his eyes.

Her face fell; she didn’t even try to hide it.

“The conclave has no records of this that don’t end in death,” she admitted. “There is more research to be done, but it seems if I can’t find a way to settle the magic, to help them find harmony, it will eventually kill me.”

What little energy he had seemed to disappear. “I’ve noticed you haven’t used your forgings since you’ve been here.”

Iryana hesitated and then shook her head. “It is… painful and seems to make it worse. The less I use them, the longer we have to figure out some kind of solution. I hope the conclave discovers something soon. I’d like to reforge my water staff into something else, but doing that now would just make everything worse.”

“I think holding off on that is the best decision.”

“You don’t know anything about this kind of thing, do you?” She tried not to let herself hope.

He offered a weak smile. “I wish I did, Iryana. In order to bond with the magic of the gods, one has to take down their walls. But for that magic to bond with another within you? I don’t know how that would even work. Theoretically, the magic would have to yield to each other, but I don’t know how you’d will that into being.”

Iryana took a slow, deep breath and rolled back her shoulders. It was fine, she hadn’t thought he would know something when one of his order’s Scholars did not.

“But still…” The Keeper lifted a hand to rub at his chin. “The second forging shouldn’t have been possible. Yet you tried it anyway. Some part of you believed you could do it, and you succeeded. Whatever drove you to that belief will hopefully bring you to a solution for the disharmony you are suffering from.”

She frowned. It felt more like a desperate whim that had led her to that second forging. An intense need to save her family and her allies within the 18th.

“I can only hope. One day at a time, right?” Her voice sounded choked.

“You’re a strong woman, Iryana. You’re going to make it through this.” His gaze was so earnest that Iryana almost believed him.

“Thank you, Keeper.” She bowed slightly over the table, her eyes burning. “Your belief in me helps more than you know.”