Fall of Autumn, Week 5, Day 1

"Effy!" I said as the woman reached me, wrapping me in a hug, her silver robes swaying with her movements yet still constrained by the white chains denoting her status as a priestess.

Her pale blue hair tickled my nose as we embraced, and when she pushed me back, her soft green eyes were sparkling. This time, I did not feel the warmth of her aura.

She remembered. I laughed disbelievingly to myself. Such care for someone she's only met once.

"How was your first day at the Academy? Gristle told me today was the day you started attending, did you meet anyone kind?" The woman asked softly, her hands squeezing my shoulders gently.

"I did, several people actually," I said after thinking for a moment. "I'm part of the Mithril group so I work closely with four others. They're nice—mostly."

"Wonderful!" Effy's smile widened, and she looked over her shoulder at Gristle, "Would you mind if we had the room? I would like to catch up with Nora about her time in Fellan."

Gristle did not look particularly pleased at the request, in fact, by the way he pressed his mouth down and furrowed his brows, he seemed displeased. It was an odd expression on his face and nothing like the mild scolding he'd given me for not reviewing the sheets on my classmates and instructors.

"Of course, High Priestess Ophelia, I'm happy to leave you—if that is what my Lady wishes."

I felt my expression soften as I looked up at Gristle, who was here for me if I wanted it. And I did. I wanted to trust him. And my Divinity was something I had only shared twice before—once, when it was forced upon me at my Affirmation, and once, when I called upon that blasted Goddess of Truth before Sir Oberon Rellar.

Looking back to Effy, I reminded myself why she was here.

A Goddess had descended. A Divine. And, for all that she had lived up to her name as the Lady of Compassion, healing Ridan's eyes, she was still dangerous. I needed Gristle with me, even at the risk of him reporting back to the Countess. I needed his savvy and his protection.

"I'd like for Gristle to stay, he's truly come to my aid so many times since I've arrived here. And he knows more about what I've been up to than I do." It wasn't quite a lie, but it wasn't the full truth.

The spirits slipping into the room through the shadows were evidence of that.

"Oh, of course." Effy ran a hand over my hair, and while the touch was unfamiliar, it was not unwelcome. It felt very much like what it was like when Dame Arella patted me on the head or when Klein poked fun at Noir. Warm, in a way so mundane.

Gristle gave Juniper and Sylvie a small motion to leave and they closed the door as they did so.

As we all sat down, Gristle to my right on a soft lilac sofa and Effy across from me in a plush chair, I saw Effy's eyes scanning my person.

"Did you perhaps bring that wonderful knit bunny with you?" Effy asked curiously.

I shook my head, glancing at the corner where I knew Noir was watching. "Not quite in the same way."

Gristle and Effy followed my gaze and I stretched my palms out, flexing my hands. "Noir, you're welcome to come out if you'd like."

Noir withdrew from the shadow, shifting and standing upright. His body widened to being fully three-dimensional as he made his way up to the couch.

"Hello," he said, climbing up onto the couch by my free side. He struggled much less in this form than in his knit bunny body.

"Oh dear! You've grown quite a bit from when I last saw you just a few days ago." Effy leaned forward, peering down at Noir with a smile only a grandmother could have. "What happened here? Oh—wait, don't tell me—it has to do with why I came here, yes?"

My back straightened and Noir tucked himself into my side for comfort—mine, that is.

"It… probably does." I nervously looked at Gristle.

How much do you share, Nora? You said you wouldn't be ruled by your fear. You said you would bend before you broke. So bend.

"To be honest, I only know what the System has told me about what happened," I confessed. "I haven't had many lessons regarding Divinity, how it functions, and how one uses it."

Effy blinked, her smile falling slightly. "Use it? You mean your Divinity?"

Gristle stilled beside me. I swallowed thickly, nodding. "I called for help."

"Help, my Lady? What for?" Gristle's voice was tight, but it didn't set me on edge. I knew it was not about me. I could see the calculated look on his face, he was thinking of Ridan.

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

"Captain Ridan was not… polite. And when he saw Noir he reacted poorly." I was half-whispering, but I knew both of them could hear me perfectly fine. "I wasn't scared, per se. But I was upset. And I, well, I wanted help. And I was willing to take it from anybody. Apparently, someone I didn't know was listening answered the call."

"Someone you didn't know was listening?" Effy parroted. "By chance, are you referring to the descent that Herali detected?"

I looked at Gristle nervously, and he let out a put-upon sigh, "My Lady, you've said this much. Why are you hesitating now?"

Your word is law. Ridan's words ran through my head, and I couldn't help but to think, Let's put that to the test.

"Well, I would like to ask that you—um, refrain from reporting this to the Countess. Unless she specifically asks."

Gristle looked at me incredulously, "My Lady, the only reports I give on you to the Duchess are what she specifically asks for. Nothing more, nothing less."

It was my turn to blink, processing what Gristle was saying. What he was explicitly telling me. "Oh."

"Yes, my Lady. Your secrets are yours to share, and lest the Duchess ask about them outright I have no intention of sharing them."

I shifted in my seat. "Well, then, you see, I recently passed the First Threshold."

Effy's smile dropped entirely at that.

"The First Threshold? Of Divinity?" Effy demanded, her voice laced with shock, "Surely you don't mean—"

"Brel, Grel, Scylla, and Abelia," I listed, interrupting Effy. "That's which Divines have given me Skills. There are others—one who refused or who I refused. But I did. And I can prove it too."

[Shadow Animation]

A crude dagger manifested, circling my now outstretched hand. Sliding its blade across my palm, blood welling in my hand before I turned it over and let the crimson and gold fall onto the low table in front of me. As soon as it had appeared, I dismissed the dagger.

Effy gasped, standing abruptly and grabbing my hand—Gristle not far behind her. Both of them were stretching out my palm, looking at it critically.

"Nora! You shouldn't have done that!" Effy hissed, not without a healthy dose of concern.

"My Lady, there are other—safer ways to prove your Divinity." Gristle half-scolded, half-educated as he examined my hand.

Then he snapped his finger, and a vial appeared within his hand, filled with a pink and orange swirling concoction.

"This will feel cold, my Lady, but it will not hurt," Gristle directed, popping the top off the potion and pouring a few drops onto my hand. I felt my skin stitch back together but Gristle was right—it was more akin to ice sliding across skin than it was the feeling of my flesh molding onto itself.

"Please, do not do something like that again—not in front of me or anyone else. You'll give me a mana attack," Effy scolded me, and her tone had all the warning a grandmother would have. Which was comical, coming from her youthful face.

Nervously, I pulled my hand back, staring down at the non-existent cut. "What kind of potion is that?"

"A very expensive one from the Duchy of Nemo," Gristle responded primly. "So don't tell anyone I used it—or that you know I have it."

I snorted. "Deal."

"Can we circle back, please, now that the dramatics are over with?" Effy said lightly, as Gristle released his grip on my wrist and sat back down. "You called for help, a Goddess decided to answer—and? How does a mere Class Skill—I'm assuming it is a Class Skill, yes? Ok, good—create a… hmm, a full-fledged spirit. Wait," Effy snapped her fingers, "You crossed the first threshold. That's how. Okay, I'm caught up."

"Well," I hesitated, but in for a penny in for a pound, "I hit Level 11 on one of my Skills when I…"

I felt a blush creep up my cheeks, and Gristle and Effy were both looking at me curiously.

"When I declared that I didn't need Frill's compassion—that I had protectors and confidants of my own. And I gave them, I guess, positions in my life."

Effy huffed lightly. "No, you gave the spirits names. I can feel it. They're more than they were before. Names hold a special kind of power, especially when it comes to Divinity. But you said you hit Level 11? Then it was enough to push past the first real bottleneck—congratulations! That's particularly difficult for unique Class Skills. It can take a person years to figure out the requirements."

I nodded seriously before furrowing my brow. "Good. Wait, does that mean my other bottlenecks are going to be a problem?"

Effy shook her head in disbelief. "Other bottlenecks? Nora, dear, that is something I should not know. So, I am going to pretend I did not hear it and instead, say: I have found you innocent of heresy and you have not been declared Anathema."

I did a double-take. "Is that what you were checking?"

"Of course." Effy nodded seriously, her warm expression falling away. "There are many ways to call a Divine. Not all of them safe—or legal."

I silently agreed. It was never safe to call a Divine, but I couldn't quite get myself to resent it after knowing Frill healed Ridan's eyes. That didn't mean I wanted it to happen again, though.

Effy stood slowly, reaching over and patting my head. "All right, I'm off. It's late and I have to prepare for the winter festival next week."

I looked outside, to the still orange horizon. The second sun had yet to fully set. As if reading my expression, Effy laughed—her light voice carrying gently.

"Yes, it's late for me. Usually, I'm tucked into my office at this time doing paperwork—not out hunting down possible eight-year-old heretics."

I met her light expression with one of my own, standing and reaching out for Effy, wrapping her into a gentle hug.

"Thank you, Effy, for being so warm even in moments that others had chosen to be cold," I whispered.

Effy wrapped her arms around me, and I could hear her voice shake as she said, "It is more than my duty, as a Priestess of Ital, one of warmth. It is how you should have always been treated, Nora. With warmth, and kindness, and gentle touches."

I pressed my face into the soft fabric of her robes, and within me, little Eunora stirred. For the first time today, she felt the warmth of the world. She felt as if she knew this life was looking up. And maybe I felt that way too, that despite the hardships of the day, it was not insurmountable.

From anxiety to confidence, from uncertainty to steadfast choices, today was more than one or the other. It was like all life: a cacophony of conflicting feelings.

And I was getting to be okay with that.

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