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"But you were never on the Path of the Body," someone called out.
Saval looked over to where the voice came from. "We, as in the Priests of Temptation. All of us are Zeal's physical presence in our own ways. No, I never walked the Path of the Body. I have plenty of experience with the duties, though. Do not assume that there is no overlap between Paths. However, I was not brave enough to fall into bed with someone I didn't know. I needed to feel comfortable with them first, which meant time getting to know them."
Beside me, Talin sighed. "She's talking about my father."
"So?" I asked.
He glanced over and met my eyes. "It's weird to think of my dad like that, Nari. He was the Baron. He was the leader of my household, and he ruled with an iron fist. He was not kind or sensual. It's also a little gross to imagine my father's balls slapping her ass, ok?"
I had to bite my lips to keep from giggling. "I really did not need that mental image."
That made him chuckle, but Saval was still going.
"If you intend to work in a group," she said, "then I will need you to put that on the paper I'm giving you. Primary partners, secondary, who you could work with, and who you refuse to."
"Tishlie and Ciella," Ela mumbled.
I nodded in agreement, because even though they shouldn't be in this session, I had a feeling these papers were going to become a part of the file Priests of the Word would use later.
"Now," Saval said, "for those of you who know you've been requested, that doesn't mean you can't refuse the session. It is always your right to say no. You can even change your mind mid-session. Yes, your grade will reflect this, but not in the way you think. If you are unable to complete your session because of a refusal, then you will simply get an incomplete on this grade, and it will not be factored into your year-end scores."
"That's not how Oryll did it," someone else called out.
"I know," Saval said. "I also remember a priest dying because of it, a guardian on the verge of death, and a priestess with broken bones. Things got to that pointbecausegrades were held over a student's head, making multiple people in that room feel as if they had no choice. There's a word for that. It's called rape." She stopped and scanned the room. "Yes, it's that serious. If any of you feel pressured to do something, as if you no longer have the power to say no, then I need to know. I don't care if that's because of another instructor or myself. If you do not feel as if you can tell me, then talk to Priest Roek. Have your guardians speak with him. I promise you that Zeal has never removed your consent. By serving him, you are meant to do so willingly, not under duress. It doesn't matter if you're a student, a disciple, adept, or even the High Priest of this temple. You still, and always will have, the right to consent. Am I understood?"
"Yes, Priestess," the class mumbled.
But half of them sounded shocked, as if they'd never imagined how much control over their lives they deserved. That made me realize just how much damage Oryll had done to us in a single year. The man had been so blinded with his need to force me to pick a Path that he'd never noticed what harm he was doing to everyone else in the process.
"As always," Saval said, "my office will be open to any of you, for any reason. You can either turn these in here on my desk when you're done, or you can drop them off there if you'd like to speak with your guardians or potential partners first."
Then she started the class. I wasn't the only one busy scribbling out my answers to the survey while she lectured us on the ways to ease anxiety in a patron. At one point, Ela turned his page so I could see something he'd written down. It was his list of limits, and it included working with his partner having both hands and feet bound.
I nodded once to show I agreed, then added the same thing to my own page. It was the little things like that which made me feel so safe with these guys. Loved was a better word. I hadn't even thought about being tied up. I'd assumed that Ela would be the one tying, and I trusted him, but that didn't make it true. The chances of a patron wanting to tie me and abuse mewithEla's help were too obvious, and yet I'd overlooked it.
So, when Saval moved into discussing setting our limits, I lifted my hand. "Saval?"
"Yes, Nari?"
"What if we find other limits next week, or next month? Can we add to this form?"
She smiled at me. "You can. You can also talk to me at any time, and there will be another form like this given to you at the end of the year. Once you all graduate, you can simply inform your scheduler of any changes in your availability or preferences."
"Thank you, Saval," I said and went back to writing, feeling even better about this.
But, like always, she found a teachable moment in my question. "Do not be afraid of asking questions. All of you in here are meant to learn. The very nature of that should bring up questions, and it ismyduty to answer them. My Path does not put me above you. It simply divides our responsibilities so that we can all handle the parts we need to. Now, your first meeting with your patron..."
"Peyron," Ela breathed.
Beside me, I saw Talin clench his hand. I glanced over, but his attention was on Saval. Maybe that little gesture had been a fluke, but I didn't think so. Talin didn't like Peyron. Or maybe he wasn't sure about this session, since he'd come so close to death in the last one? Either way, I wanted to know, because taking care of him was just as important as him taking care of me.
