The rest of that afternoon, Anna dutifully answered questions asked of her and did her class work with little comment. She stayed in the same classroom most of the day, with there being a rotation of teachers who were cycled through. By the end of the week, she would have five different lessons to remember and multiple homework assignments. The teenager didn't mind the workload too much. As it showed that her decision to attend the academy was a good one; the information here was no joke. Society had advanced a lot in the thirty-five years since her death. New laws had been made, a whole country had been colonized, and magic was stronger than ever. It would be foolish to not actively participate in the changing status quo, even with her plans to live a fulfilling, non-socialite lifestyle.
She walked through the courtyard of the academy with an emotionless expression, her mind heavy. It was hard not to miss her old life despite the advancements made while she was gone. Being wealthy helped her a lot and gave her an upper hand in almost every way. Sure, the Narine family wasn't struggling at all compared to some of the other scholarship students she had interacted with. But there was a noticeable difference between her and Lizbeth, who she would have considered lower class if this was her old life. Living on the other side of the tracks really put things in perspective for her. It was awfully sick that her current less privileged life was more freeing and satisfying than her years of luxury. Anna kept the feeling of bitterness to herself as she passed a pair of boys who averted their eyes.
Anna shook her head briefly and quickened her pace. It was rare to see male students walking around so casually. The academy had a sister school that shared the same land that was all men. The curriculum she believed, was mostly the same besides being tailored to teenage boys who wanted to be priests. For some reason, the teachers and other staff members would act aggressive if they even interacted. They would punish them and dock their grades if they were even spotted near the opposite gender. Anna found this incredibly annoying, but she would never vote that out loud, even to her close friends. It was better to play the role of a teenager completely awkward around boys her age. Her teachers often used her as an example to more rebellious girls of what they should aspire to be as a priestess in training.
The student hummed to herself as she finished crossing the courtyard and entered the next part of the academy. There was a large stairway that led up to the head priestesses' office. The building was very plain, the marble walls and floors being a soft red color that reminded her of peonies. Anna was met with a cool breeze as she hit the last stair and entered a long hallway. From what she knew, this entire floor was just a handful of offices that staff used. All priestesses with the largest being the one she was going to now. As she walked, she peaked into the rooms and saw that there were other students in them. They were chatting with their teachers in hushed tones, so she looked away to avoid overhearing anything too private. Anna finally stopped at the doors of the head priestesses office, which was at the end of the hallway. The door was closed, but the woman's back was visible in the window.
With a deep breath, she pulled on the door's metal doorknob and opened it. Instantly she coughed, smelling what had to be boiling oil. Despite this, she composed herself and lifted her skirt, curtsying. “Hello, Head Priestess Adsila.”
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Hearing her voice, the older woman perked up and turned to face her. The Head priestess was a mighty woman with a stature reminding the girl of a bodybuilder. She had an eyepatch over one of her eyes, a medical grade one no doubt from a spell mishap. Seeing the polite behavior of the teenager made her grin, with her dark red lips widening to reveal her gleaming teeth. She waded over with her long-sleeved dress dragging on the ground and trailing behind her. Seeing this reminded the girl of when she first met the woman.
It was two years ago, with her being part of the freshman class. The woman had entered the room wearing a partial veil and a darker, more somber version of her current outfit. Her mere presence had left Anna overwhelmed as she spoke with a soft, honey voice about the darkest of things. She made it clear that she expected every girl to be devout and loyal to the Goddess. Every word that left her mouth, every smile she gave them, was a blatant threat.
This left Anna with a genuine respect for the woman, which was somewhat reciprocated. The woman stopped in front of her and bent down, as she was decently six foot four. “You came a day early, little Anna.”
The teenager nodded and crossed her arms over her chest. “I figured it would be best to talk about the sage session beforehand,” She had wanted to scope out the situation as she really had no idea about saging. It wasn't something Anna had ever done or witnessed in her past life. “You never really explained it in depth.”
The head priestess tilted her head back and laughed. “You look so serious with your chest puffed out like that.” The teenager stared blankly as the woman ignored her words instead poking fun at her. “Come on. Come, take a seat and close the door.”
Anna opened her mouth to protest against the comment about her appearance, but quickly sighed and swallowed her words. There was no point in arguing. It was good that she had come across the woman while she was in a good mood. When she was friendly, she tended to be easier to crack. The teen instead followed the woman's instructions by closing the door with a small slam because of the door's size. There were two places to sit in the room, with the first option being a seat opposite the woman's desk. But Head Priestess Adsila had already sat down in option two, which was a set of deeply red couches. They were across from the other, being separated by a tiny coffee table that was oval. She looked at the teenager and motioned for her to hurry up and sit next to her. Anna did just that, though she scooted to the end.
“Before we drone on and on about what will happen tomorrow, let's just talk. You haven't been sleeping in your dorms as much.” The muscular woman commented casually about something Anna swore was private. She reached down and handed the teenager a cup. It was a green calming tea. “One of my crows saw you this week.”
Inside, Anna groaned. She had forgotten that the crows had been watching from afar. Crows weren't actually crows, but spirits that you could befriend and use in everyday life. They became loyal only when you earned their trust, which was typically done by feeding and housing them. You couldn't sense or see unless you were also a powerful priest or priestess, so the teenager had been unaware of their presence. But not of their existence, as she had witnessed the crows years prior. This was part of the reason High Priestess Adsila was so friendly with her. She had been incredibly interested that the teenager could see the crows in their true form as coal colored shadows. Anna had no idea why she could, but the priestess told her that it just meant her bond to the Goddess must be extremely strong.
One crow in question blinked into existence on High Priestess’ Adsila's arms, the woman stretching it out so the spirit could perch on it. It rubbed what had to be its head against her skin and chirped like a chick. “Have you been out practicing?”
There was no point in lying as the crows probably followed her around. “Yes,” She took a small sip of her tea and felt her body relax. It was familiar, but she didn't know if it was from this life or the last. “I've started to feel my awakening begin.