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"Wow," Wraythe mumbled when I moved beside him. "Think you'll end up converting some new followers for Zeal? You look gorgeous, Nari."
"Hey," Eladehl said. "What about me?"
"Yeah, yeah. You're lovely, Ela. Could use a little more lipstick."
He scoffed. "I shaved at least."
Wraythe reached up to spread his palm across his chin and up both sides of his jaw. "I didn't."
Which wasn't exactly true. He'd clearly shaved the edges of the beard he was trying to grow. Right now, it was more like a shadow, verging on actual scruff, but it looked kinda good on him. It also made me realize that he had the most amazing eyes. I'd always known they were green, but the darkness on his face made them stand out instead of fade into his tawny skin.
"I like it," I told him, reaching up to run my fingers through the hair, making it crackle. "Might be weird to kiss."
He chuckled. "Eladehl can't grow a beard."
"Fuck off," Eladehl grumbled.
"You look better without one," I assured him. "You have the jaw to pull off the clean look."
"She's saying my jaw's prettier than yours," he taunted Wraythe.
"And you're surprised?" Wraythe asked back. He flicked a finger to Eladehl. "Pretty boy." Then to himself. "Big boy."
"Height," Eladehl clarified. "Because I think I got you beat downstairs."
"Keep dreaming," Wraythe mumbled just as a man in a yellow robe walked to the front of the room and clapped his hands.
"Acolytes," he called out. "Gather round."
We all started moving closer. Eladehl caught my shoulders and guided me before him, to the front. Wraythe fell in at his back, but the Priest of Intuition noticed. His eyes widened, and he looked up, all the way to Wraythe's face.
"My, you're a big one, aren't ya?"
"Six foot six," Wraythe told him. "So, yes."
"I sure hope you plan to be a guardian."
Wraythe chuckled. "I do, Priest. That's the Path I'm following."
"Which explains your interest in Intuition." He turned his eyes on the rest of us. "You see, Bode, the God of Intuition, is useful for Priests of Temptation. When I was an acolyte, I spent my ninth year with your god. That's how I know that your duties will not always be easy. Whether that's knowing when to refuse an assignment, preparing for a patron to make a bad decision, or anything else, a little intuition could make all the difference."
"It's why I wanted this one," Eladehl whispered to me.
But the Priest heard. "I assume you plan to follow the Path of the Body?"
"I do," Eladehl agreed.
"Then Bode will be even more useful to you. Knowing when a patron needs comfort or to be pushed is a part of his influence. Now, follow me, and while I know this is fun for all of you, please remember that the citizens outside our temples will judge your god based on your actions. Decorum is best."
With that, he guided us out the front entrance and across the grassy block between our temple and that of All Gods. As students, we weren't often allowed outside the temple grounds, so we all looked around in awe. People bustled along the street, going about their daily lives. The weather was beautiful, which meant they were taking their time, not rushing like Amerlee and Jamik had when I was a child, and yet I felt oddly disconnected from them.
Women wielded parasols over their shoulders in beautiful colors that matched their beautiful dresses and bustle skirts, staying to the walkway at the side of the road. Men donned top hats or rode jigging horses down the middle. Carriages and smaller gigs weren't uncommon, either. They came in mostly black, but I saw one with blue trim, and another that was white.
They were all far enough away that I couldn't make out the details. I could still see that there were buildings on the far side of the street that passed the Temple of All Gods, but I couldn't quite read the signs posted above them. Part of it was the bright day. The sky above was perfectly clear, not a cloud in sight, yet I was too proud to shield my eyes with my hand.
"One day," Eladehl said softly, "we'll walk down those streets, and people will stop to stare. Women will clutch at their throats, and men will shield their groins. Our assignments will be in the nicest houses, and we'll sleep in the beds of the barons, Nari."
"You will," I reminded him.
