Hæra’s heart raced as if she were trying to win one of the herd’s tests of speed. There was something here, more than she’d ever sensed before. If she stayed undiscovered, she could figure it out.

Sister Madeleine lifted her head in a proud tilt as she continued gazing over the sea, looking as if she owned the entire ocean. “The life demands a certain strength of character,” she said at length.

Strength of character? What sort of strength was that? Would it be enough to mark this woman as a worthy challenge? Hæra managed not to swish her tail impatiently.

“We rise before dawn every morning and spend an hour in silent prayer,” Sister Madeleine continued. “Even on weekends. At seven, morning mass is celebrated, followed by breakfast. Then school begins, and those of us who teach are busy for the rest of the day, although we break for lunch and recreation. The sisters who don’t teach spend the morning and afternoon working around the convent. After our school duties are done, we teachers join them again to read and pray. At five, there’s the evening prayer office, supper and recreation at six, the nightly prayer office, more reading, and lights out at nine-thirty.”

“That doesn’t sound so bad,” Ava said, while Hæra shuddered at exactly how bad it sounded. Thanks to her father and rotting books she’d seen in shipwrecks, she knew what reading was, but she didn’t know how to do it. And while she reverenced the Great Mare and Stallion, prayer was as dull as a dead crab. Ava went on: “Not a lot of time to get bored or, like…overthink things. Um, what do you do for recreation?”

“We don’t watch a lot of TV or movies,” Sister Madeleine said dryly. “There’s little leisure time. That’s the point: our thoughts are turned toward duty and devotion.”

Sister Madeleine probably wouldn’t be impressed by how Hæra spent her own days. Except for hunts, she avoided her fellow Each-uisge as much as possible, straying as far as she dared to explore the ocean, and sometimes just lazing around. It was a bit lonely, but when she got her wings and the herd’s respect, that would change.

“We’re also involved in the community—and you might have noticed our presence at school dances.” Sister Madeleine smiled. “Especially when we tell you not to dance too closely to the boys.”

Dance. Hæra knew something about that. Each-uisge performed mating dances before the combat and frenzy began. Humans did as well? But how did they do it without getting too close to one another? It sounded as if Sister Madeleine wasn’t mating with anyone, either.

Not that this mattered one way or the other, but that knowledge felt…good.

“Uh, yeah.” Ava shifted back and forth on her feet. “I don’t mind when you tell us that.”