I spin around to face my confronter. Although she wears a hood seemingly designed to hide her face, I can tell she is a woman. Her hand pinches my shoulder, sharp nails digging into my skin. "What are you doing here?" she repeats harshly.

Come on, come on. Say something, don't just stand there. "I-I uh...I was looking for my sister...and I got lost."

"And yet you somehow managed to find a well hidden room, and were eavesdropping on the shrine keeper?" she asks, her voice dripping with disbelief and sarcasm. "Don't you think I would find that a little hard to believe?"

I swallow, trying to clear the lump in my throat. Trying to run isn't an option; even if I was able to find my way out of here, I would likely be kicked out, and Eris might get in trouble too. "I-I'm sorry," I say shakily. "I'll leave if you can tell me how to get out."
"You aren't getting off the hook that easily. We'll see what Kiara has to say when she finds out what you've been doing." She pushes one of the doors open with one arm, keeping a firm grip on my shoulder with the other.

I blink rapidly as bright light floods the corridor, momentary blinding me. When my eyes adjust, I can see half a dozen people crowding around a round table, which is covered in papers, scrolls, and books of all shapes and sizes. All of them are staring directly at me, and the intensity of their gaze makes me want to curl up and disappear.

The girl with black hair, who I now recognize to be Kiara, is the first to speak. "What's going on?"

The woman finally releases my shoulder, then pushes me forward, making me stumble. I hear the rustle of her robes as she bows. "I found this one listening outside the door," she says respectfully. "What shall I do with her?"

Kiara's stare intensifies, as if she's studying me. "I don't recognize you. Who are you?"

I open my mouth to speak, but the woman beats me to it. "She says her sister is here. I don't think she's telling the truth. She may be some sort of-"

"Silence, Lilith," Kiara cuts her off. "I trust she can speak for herself." She turns back to me. "Well?"
"My name is Sedna," I reply, giving a shaky bow. "My sister, Eris, lives and works here. I promise I mean no harm."

"Eris?" she says questioningly, and her eyebrows raise in surprise for a brief moment, "She never mentioned anything about having a sister here."

If she didn't say I was her sister, then what did she tell her? She said that she told Kiara about me...does she just not remember? I keep my eyes on the floor, trying to give no indication of the unease that the statement provoked, but I'm sure that my attempt is unsuccessful. Even so, that doesn't stop Kiara from talking. "You don't look anything like her." Her eyes narrow suspiciously. "Are you sure you are who you say you are? Because if you aren't, I WILL find out. And trust me, the consequences for lying will be much worse than if you tell me now."

"I'm not lying, I swear!" I plead, even though I can feel frustration welling up inside me. I have a feeling that anger won't get me very far. I steal a glance up at Kiara's darkened face. "Just ask Eris. She'll tell you who I am."

She sets her lips in a firm line. "Fine. We'll see what she has to say."

"Lilith," she says, addressing the hooded woman while keeping her eyes focused on me, "Go find Eris and bring her here. Don't forget to take the...necessary precautions." I don't dare look, but I hear the door creak open, then close quietly, so I assume she left.

She finally breaks her gaze from me and I exhale, even though I hadn't realized I was holding my breath. Now, she turns to the others in the room, who have been watching, and judging, the scenario before them. "The rest of you may leave. This gathering will resume at a later time. Return to your quarters." Most of them nod their heads in acknowledgement and move to exit through the same door Lilith used moments ago.

Only after the last person files out and the door closes does Kiara speak to me again. "If you were a regular attendant of this shrine, you would have been thrown out, or even killed, for the transgression you have committed."

Oh dear goddess, I half think, half pray, feeling my breath catch in my throat.

"But," she continues, "Seeing that you are unaccustomed to our rules, and assuming that what you say about yourself is true, I will spare you for now."

I nod, accepting her mercy, but I am momentarily confused. Why would she have mercy on me when her own people would have been punished? I banish the thought from my mind, for now at least, and force myself to give a verbal response. "Thank you."
"Why don't you have a seat while we wait for Eris, and we'll talk," she says, not unkindly, but in a way that sends apprehension crawling up my spine. She moves two chairs so that they face each other and gestures to one for me to sit in. I take the seat without looking up at her.

"Sedna, was it?" Kiara asks, and I nod numbly. "What is your occupation?"

"Excuse me?" I ask, with more hostility than I intended. She just had to ask the one question I can't answer.

"Your occupation," she says exasperatedly. "What you do for a living."

"I don't know if I am in a position to tell you that, considering the circumstances," I respond, trying to keep my tone even to mask my nerves.

"On the contrary, you aren't in a position to withhold information," she counters. "It's clear that you at least have some blood of a witch. Do you perform spells for people? Ward off evil spirits? Craft tools or potions?"

"I do a little of everything. It's easier to ask what I don't do." I'm trying to stall, even for a few minutes, and I think she's noticing. In fact, I know she's noticing. Whatever this Kiara is, she is not stupid, that much is clear.

I reach my hand up to my neck to where the stone of my pendant hangs hidden under my shirt, silently asking it for guidance. Kiara may have spared me, but what little patience she had is clearly wearing thin. I can't stall for much longer, but I can't answer her question.

The rustle of papers to my right causes me to instinctively turn that way. In this windowless, breezeless room, far beneath the surface, the pages of a book are flipping as if they are being blown by the wind. Suddenly, they stop. It only takes me a second to notice that the book is open to a rough sketch, and although the drawing is clearly old, I recognize its subject immediately.

The drawing laying in front of me is one of the very same pendant that hangs at my neck.

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Finally an update! Again, I apologize for the wait, but I've been having some personal issues and it's been hard finding the motivation to write. I hope you all understand. (I post messages when a chapter is going to be delayed, so be sure to follow me if you would like to receive those messages.)

I may have to edit this chapter some, but hopefully it makes sense. The next chapter will be up soon! Thank you for reading!