When Anne Coris was publicly declared the new Saintess at sixteen years old, the church had placed guards around her new room.

This wasn’t an unreasonable precaution, nor was it unexpected. Anne had secretly been in training to become the new Saintess for four years at that point, and it had been repeatedly explained to her that she would face new dangers once the church went public with the appearance of a new Saintess.

Eva had just been raised from the level of acolyte to cleric, making history as the youngest person ever to achieve that rank (being only a few months older than Anne), and she had also been assigned a new room—right next door to Anne’s. But there were no guards around Eva’s room, and she had been quick to dump her few belongings wherever so that she could focus instead on helping Anne move in.

Having finished her work, Eva glanced around Anne’s room with satisfaction. It was far bigger, fancier, and more comfortable than even the nicest rooms in the foundlings’ dormitories. Much closer to what Anne deserved. The bed had multiple blankets and pillows stuffed with real down, too. And the window looked out into a courtyard lined with greenery.

There was also an armed guard visible through the window.

Anne pulled the lacy curtains shut.

“Oh, don’t close them,” said Eva. “Don’t you want to let the moonlight in?”

Eva reached for the curtains, but Anne grabbed her wrist to stop her.

“No, please,” said Anne.

Eva paused, looking at Anne’s nervous expression. “Are the guards making you uncomfortable?”

Anne kind of shrugged a bit.

“Okay, we can leave the curtains closed,” said Eva, smiling reassuringly. “Whatever you want.”

Anne climbed onto her new bed and pulled her knees up to her chest. Eva climbed up after her, putting an arm around Anne’s shoulders. Anne leaned into the embrace, resting her head on Eva’s shoulder.

“I didn’t think it would be this overwhelming,” said Anne, her eyes closed. “It felt really good looking out at all the faces in the crowd at the miracle, seeing how much joy and hope I was bringing to everyone. If I really can help people by being the Saintess then it’s worth it, no matter how hard it is. But lately…. I feel like there are strangers watching me all the time without me knowing it, even when I’m alone.”

Eva could feel Anne shudder in her arms.

“This room…” said Anne. She pushed away from Eva a bit, so they could look at each other. “Do you remember that place the Bishop took us to, when she took us on that trip to the capital last year? The place with all the animals in cages?”

“The zoological gardens?” guessed Eva.

“That’s how this room makes me feel. Like I’m one of those poor animals.” Anne rubbed her eyes. She looked exhausted. “I want to go back to the dorms,” she said. Her voice was soft and pleading.

“Really? But the dorms were way more crowded,” said Eva, trying to understand. “There was never any privacy there at all.”

“Yeah, but—“ Anne shrugged again. “I knew all the other kids in the dorms, and I knew they didn’t really pay attention to me that much. Not like those… silent watchers.” Anne spaced out for a moment, staring into the distance like she was listening to something, or maybe feeling something. “I need to get out of here,” she said, standing up.

“No, Anne,” Eva grabbed Anne’s arm, pulling her back down onto the bed. “You need to stay here! You’re safe here!”

“I don’t feel safe,” said Anne, struggling to get out of Eva’s grasp. “I won’t run away forever, I’ll just… go into the Sacred Forest, for a while. Until I feel better. Nothing will hurt me there. I’ll find Agis, and—“

“No!” said Eva. “The Forest is dangerous too, Anne, I…” Eva took a deep breath. “Anne, this is serious. I need you to stay here. I’m asking you to stay here. You promised you would listen to me if I said that, remember?”

Anne calmed down. “I did promise you that, didn’t I?” she said.

“Yes,” said Eva, letting go of Anne’s arm and gently holding her hand instead. “You’re just stressed out and not thinking straight. But you can trust me when I tell you you’re safe here. Those guards aren’t watching you, they’re watching out for you. It’s okay. Everything’s going to be okay.”

Anne flopped back on the bed, covering her eyes with her hands. “Will you at least stay here with me, then?” asked Anne. “Just for tonight? Please? I don’t want to be alone in this room.”

“Of course,” said Eva, laying down next to her.

“Thank you,” said Anne, hugging her friend.

Eva held Anne all through the night, helping her feel safe. It wasn’t uncommon for the foundlings to share beds sometimes, especially when the dorms became overcrowded like they frequently did, but in all the years they had been living in the church this was the first time Anne and Eva had slept in the same bed together.

This is for Anne’s sake, Eva told herself. Anne just needs extra support during this difficult transition, and this is the sort of thing close friends do for each other. My own desires don’t factor into this at all. It’s only about Anne.

Of course, it wouldn’t be good to make this a habit. Oh no. Anything more than this wouldn’t be normal.

The next day, Eva went to have a talk with the Bishop. And the next night, the guards were gone. Instead, Agis was perched in the window when Anne entered her room for the night.

“Agis!” said Anne, running to embrace her brother. “What are you doing here?”

“I’m gonna be your guard from now on,” said Agis, his chest puffed up with pride. “Or at least, like, when I can. When I’m not doing other stuff. At night, mostly. Or when you really need me to.”

“But isn’t it dangerous?” said Anne. “You can’t be seen in public.”

“That’s why he’s going to follow you in secret,” said Eva, from the doorway. She was smiling. “That way, if you ever feel like someone is watching you, you can be reassured knowing it’s probably just Agis.”

Anne’s smile was brighter than the sun when she hugged Eva. “Thank you, Eva!” she said. “I’m glad I didn’t run away after all.”

When Eva left to go to her own room for the night, Bishop Geist was waiting in the hallway.

“I know I agreed to this, but are you really certain a single archer is good enough protection for the Saintess?” asked the Bishop. “The church has its enemies, and he can’t watch over her all the time.”

“No,” Eva smiled. “But I can. Having Agis around will make Anne feel better. Meanwhile I will keep her safe. As long as I’m around, no one will be able to touch Anne.”

But Eva had failed. She had failed in a way she hadn’t even imagined possible. She was so busy trying to protect Anne from that Goddess-damned assassin that she had failed to notice other sorts of threats. Threats to Anne’s soul.

Eva rushed through the long hallways of the Tulin estate, a firm grip on Anne’s arm behind her. The front entrance was far away. Too far away. Why did noble estates always have to be so damn big? It would be so much faster if Eva could just teleport them out. That would be the best way to handle this. Get them both away from here as fast as possible.

But she couldn’t use her magic in front of Anne… not that obviously… not yet…

Then Eva felt a tug from behind and turned around.

Anne had stopped walking. “God, finally, I’ve been calling your name but you wouldn’t even look at me,” said Anne. “Where are you taking me?”

“Back to the church,” said Eva. “We need to get back there as soon as possible.”

“What? Why?” said Anne.

“We need to get you away from… bad influences,” said Eva.

Anne’s eyes narrowed into a distrustful glare. She pulled her arm out of Eva’s grip and took a step back.

When had Anne’s eyes become that hardened? Where were the eyes that had looked at Eva with openness and trust?

“Whatever you have to say, you can say it here,” said Anne. “I don’t want to go back to the church with you.”

“But you can’t stay here!” said Eva.

“Why not?” asked Anne.

Eva glanced around, but there was no one in the hallway to overhear. She instinctively cast a silencing spell around them anyway, just in case.

“Look, it’s clear now that I’ve been right about Corvina all along,” hissed Eva. “She’s been looking at you with impure intentions all this time, plotting how to use you and corrupt you. We don’t need someone like her as an ally. We’ll find another way to accomplish our goals. You need to stay away from her from now on.”

“No,” said Anne.

Eva had expected her to argue, but something about Anne’s tone of voice was so casual and matter-of-fact that it threw Eva off balance.

“No?” said Eva.

“No,” said Anne. “I’m not going to stay away from her. I love her.”

“I know you admire her, but—“

“I don’t admire her,” said Anne. “I love her.”

Eva paused. “You’re clearly confused,” said Eva. “I know friendship can feel a lot like love sometimes, but it’s important not to get carried away. Once you get some distance from this, you’ll see that—“

“I’m not fucking confused,” said Anne. “God, Eva, I could tell you were a bit oblivious and naive but I didn’t think you were a bigot.”

“It’s not possible for women to love each other… like that,” said Eva. “It’s unnatural! It’s wrong!”

“What the hell, Eva,” said Anne. “I was in such a good mood, too. I know we’ve been lifelong friends and I don’t want to throw that away, but I don’t have to sit here and listen to this, either. Come find me again when you’re ready to have a reasonable conversation.” Anne turned to leave.

“No, wait!” shouted Eva. “I didn’t mean it like that, it’s just… You’re the Saintess, you have to be a shining example of moral purity, for the sake of the people.”

“I don’t think I’ve done anything impure,” said Anne, with a shrug. “But whatever, if it’s an issue, then I’ll just quit being the Saintess.”

Eva was stunned. “You don’t mean that.”

“Why shouldn’t I quit?” asked Anne. “You’re the one actually doing the miracles anyway, aren’t you? Or am I wrong?”

Eva’s world was falling apart around her, piece by piece.

“I can explain…” said Eva.

“I’m sure you can,” said Anne. “I don’t really care right now.”

Eva reached out and grabbed Anne’s sleeve. Not roughly this time, but hesitant, pleading. “Anne, look, I promise I’ll tell you everything. No more secrets. But I really need you to come with me right now. This is serious, Anne.”

“I don’t care how ‘serious’ it is, I’m not leaving with you,” said Anne.

“No, you don’t understand, Anne, I’m saying this is serious,” Eva repeated. “Do you not remember our promise?”

“What promise?” said Anne.

Somehow, against all odds, this final blow actually knocked Eva back to her senses. Her mind had been trapped in an awful spiral of panic and confusion, but now everything was clear. She felt an eerie sense of calm wash over her.

Eva laughed.

“What? What is it?” Anne looked confused. “I’m sure if you remind me what the promise was, I’ll remember it. You know I can be kind of spacey sometimes. I mean, now that you mention it, I’m sure I remember something about a promise, I just—”

Eva moved forward and Anne took a step back, looking scared.

No, ‘Anne’ took a step back.

“The assassin was telling the truth after all,” said Eva. “You’re not her.”