"Initiate Maela," a stern voice said the instant she stepped back into the convent, pulling her out of her darkening thoughts. The woman who spoke wore the gold robes and crimson hood of a full Confessor, combined with a golden stole of office that made it clear in an instant that her authority in the convent was greater than most.
The expression on her potato-shaped face, unfortunately, made it just as clear that she despised the woman who seemed to hold the Mother Superior's favor, and her lips puckered as though she'd just eaten a lemon when she spoke to Maela.
"The Mother Superior requires your presence immediately," Confessor Noyala said, scowling at the basket in Maela's arms. "Leave that here; someone else can return it to the kitchens," she said.
