The Priestess' Affair [Books 1 &2]

𝐕𝐈𝐈𝐈. 𝐚 𝐡𝐮𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐞𝐩𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧

-HER-

I concealed myself in the shadows as I traversed the shrine courtyard. It must have been sometime in the night when the morning begins to descend. The shrine stood still and quiet with the frigid sea winds wailing outside the shrine walls, accompanied by the murmur of the waves crashing tirelessly on the shore. 

It was such an odd hour that it was safe to expect everyone asleep. I had returned at the right time because no one was there to confront me yet. I could go to bed straight and fall asleep, wishing I'd never wake up. My whole body was aching from travelling continually for two days. The way back was more prolonged and more tiring. I was dreading my return, but I had no choice. I had no other place to go.

As I walked through the empty shrine halls, an emptiness stretched in my chest. I might have heard a few birds chirping somewhere in the distance, signalling that the sun was about to come up, but I didn't pay heed to them. I headed straight to my room as my eyelids grew heavier than my soul due to sleep. I was feeling numb— both physically and emotionally.

I didn't remember what happened after I went to my room. All I remembered was collapsing on my bed before dreams came to steal me from this realm and hold me captive until the sunrise.

The sun was up in the sky, sizzling when someone attempted to wake me up. I didn't respond first, but when a bucket of cold water was poured on me, I sat up with a jolt, heaving. I was about to curse out loud to whoever it was, but I swallowed my voice as soon as my eyes locked with the pitch-black ones of the Matriarch. A shiver ran down my spine, and it was not because of the cold water. I looked away instantly. It always made me feel uneasy whenever I looked into the Matriarch eyes.

I didn't know why it was so. Maybe, it was because she was the Matriarch, or maybe it was because no whites were left in her eyes anymore. I shivered again just by thinking of her dead black eyes. 

"It's noon, and you're still in bed. We thought you couldn't get lazier," She remarked, setting the bucket down.

"I returned early in the morning and was tired—"

"The high priestess is waiting for you. Hurry up and come to her office. We haven't got all day for you," she snapped and left. Meanwhile, I sat on my bed shaking with cold and anger. The rage that I had been feeling yesterday filled me again. 

I would not let her walk over me today.

Quickly, I changed into a dry set of clothes before leaving my room and headed towards the High Priestess' Office. It was at the very back of the shrine, facing the Lagrafiri volcano. I always found its location odd, but a priestess dreaded going to the High Priestess' Office wherever it was. I was angsty about going there, but the rage that had suddenly surfaced had overpowered it.

I took the last turn of the corridor and came face to face with that massive wooden door. I took in a deep breath and knocked on it briefly. Without waiting for a response, I pushed the door open and walked in to find the Matriarch and the High Priestess talking in hushed voices.

"Do you think she knows?" The Matriarch had asked in a hiss.

"If she knows, she knows," Vittoria answered clearly before raising a cup to her lips. I didn't know who they were talking about. However, as soon as they exchanged a look after sparing me a glance, I got a hint at me being the subject of their conversation. For a moment, none of us moved. I stood at the door, watching the two while the two of them sat around the huge granite slab of a table, watching me. There were two teacups and a teapot on that table—nothing else. 

Vittoria's office was just how I remembered it when I first came here. The colossal window which dominated the office mise-en-scene perfectly framed the Volcano and the other holy mountain where the dead priestess' lived. The other three walls were covered with shelves and shelves of books and other enchanted things that Vittoria often used to impart her duties to the shrine. Just like the last time, I didn't miss the scythe resting against one of the shelves. Its sharp blade slightly glinted as the sunlight sneaking into the office flirted with it.