Sly

The morning air had a damp and chilly wind to it again. I woke up sore after a night of running around the taproom, but I still forced myself out of bed with a groan and a stiff neck. There would be a lot of cleaning to do after the crowds of rowdy soldiers and their loved ones left. They say this is the first of three marches coming home. The next would bring back Prince General Mason with the next third of the army and the last would bring King Joasten and the rest.

The idea was to draw out slowly while Linmead restructured its borders. Once our northern ally was fully on its own feat again the remainder of the Unays army would return. The marches were expected each one month apart, so just before the Shadow's ball in October, and then the king's group would be early November as long as the heavy snows up north didn't come early.

    On my hands and knees scrubbing the floor of the taproom, it was peaceful work that let my mind wander and it needed to be done anyway. Abe and Addah were scrubbing pots in the kitchen when I came upstairs. Davery had come back from the Crow's Foot last night with Dirk, Jexa, and Grahm. The lot of them were a few drinks in and it was my sorry job to sober them up enough they could find their way to their own beds.

By the time I was finished with the others, Davery had fallen asleep and I had to wake him up to talk. That was quite a discussion, that a prince had been sitting in the very chair Davery was using just hours before. He was understanding of everything. Of course he was, Davery was the level one of us. He didn't even scold me for being followed by Pettypiece. Finally, he agreed that the best course of action for the city was to meet Rorik in person and talk about the situation. After all, Rorik had proven himself trustworthy thus far and probably just wanted a first-hand account of what was happening in the lower parts of the city. Davery would certainly be a useful council for that, and maybe together they could think of something. The god of strategy Sage knows the two of them would be far better for the job than me, and perhaps I could stop having these run-ins with the prince.

A heat crept to my cheeks remembering how the prince and I parted ways last night. Maybe I was judging him too quickly. He may be a coin, one of the biggest in the city if I was being honest, but at least he cared about his people. And with that thought, I focused all my attention and energy into a stubborn stain near the fireplace. Yes, much more worth my thinking than a nosey prince and my annoying brother. Much more worth my thinking indeed.

    "Sly?" Someone called from the doorway of the inn. I sighed at the stain, dropped the scrub brush in the water bucket, and went to see who it was.

The willowy shape of my oldest friend hovered in the doorway. Her dress was plain and unassuming today, though it still didn't hide the grace of her movements and the care that went into the appearance of a muse in worship to Bliss.

"Orchid! What brings you here? It's early." I brushed any dirt off my clothes as Orchid walked in.

    "Just a visit." She sat elegantly on a stool at the bar, crossing her ankles as they dangled, just barely, above the floor. But with Orchid, she wouldn't mind a little work, so I went back to scrubbing the floor.

    "Nothing going on today? No fancy noble wants you to play for his war hero son's celebration dinner or something?" I hit the floor again with a grunt and fished out the scrub brush.

    "No, just a day off. Didn't you hear Prince Braeton declared the day a holiday? Nothing happening at the castle, most of the nobles are staying home."

    "A holiday huh? Well, that might keep them home but the sensible Swamp commoners still have to work to eat."

Orchid gave a little smile at that, but something still seemed off. I paused my work to study her face. The fine line between her eyebrows, the bite marks at her bottom lip that told me she had been worrying at it all morning. My voice softened for her. "What's really wrong, Ria?"

A faint smile came to her lips. "Haven't heard that name in a while."

I gave her a crooked grin and shrugged. "Orchid brings beauty and music and light to the city. She's strong, and beautiful, and capable. But she isn't allowed to cry and let it out. Ria was, so I want to talk to Ria right now."

Her expression wobbled and her eyes grew glassy, though no tears spilled. "It's silly, I just miss Da. He didn't come home yesterday and I know he's coming home later but River's aunt and cousin came home and Fae and Moon had a brother come back. Did you even know they had a brother? I didn't. Panther told us all to go around town today and meet our friends and family that came home but I didn't have Da to go to and I just . . ." The tears had started somewhere around the first time she said 'Da' and I reached behind the bar for a clean cloth to dry her face. Orchid didn't ramble on until she got upset. She either rambled on, or got quiet.

    "Clean with me," I urged, handing her the scrub brush. Work was always good for my own troubles, and Orchid didn't have as much work to do now that she lived in Panther House. Certainly nothing as hard and dirty as when she was in a drafty shack in Swamp just down the street from mine. Orchid sniffed but took the brush Sly handed her. "You start, I'll get another brush."

    Orchid nodded, and I came back shortly. We finished the floor in the main room easily. We moved on to windows, dusting, turning down mattresses, and organizing the cellar storage, and all the while I was keeping an eye on Orchid. Her mood was down, but distracting her was definitely helping. Addah made us break for a lunch of bread and broth at some point. As hot and humid as it may be for most of the year, the cooler windy season was upon us and I always looked forward to Addah's broth.

I teased Orchid for being spoiled on Lights district food when she first bit into the tough bread. But eating something, even the harder-grained bread from Swamp district, did more for lightening my friend's mood. Orchid had cheered up over lunch and Addah shooed us from the kitchen telling us to get some fresh air. No arguments here, a walk after eating sounded just right, and might help me turn Orchid's mood around completely.

    We wandered around for a while, eventually ending up near the lake where we used to play as children. Even now the evidence of other little hands shaping tiny houses in the mud or poking sticks to draw pictures and make little rivers were present.

After some wandering, Orchid insisted that she wanted to leave something at the nearby Bliss temple so we walked that direction. Orchid bought a small bouquet at the lakeside market for an offering. I thought it was a sweet and appropriate gift for the goddess, but then she urged me to get something too.

    "Something to offer? I don't need anything from Bliss," I said.

    "Shadow then, ask for cleverness and boldness. Ask for her to guide Davery's steps, she must like him for his cunning." Orchid smelled the flowers she bought and sighed happily. "Please."

Orchid clearly wanted favor from the gods today. And, if it would make her feel better . . .

    "I suppose I could," I said. We walked the market a little further until I came across a candle stand. There was one fat pillar with the pawprints of a cat scurrying around the bottom. The detail made me smile, and I bought it. Shadow, for all her mischief and secrets, was widely known to favor cats.

    "Where does one worship Shadow?" Orchid asked as we walked from the market.

I gave a small laugh and murmured just for her to hear. "Wherever she isn't supposed to be."

Orchid gave me a confused frown, nudging me with her elbow as we walked. "I'm serious."

"I am being serious! Just wait, I'll show you."

Bliss had appeared before Orchid years ago, placing her mark for all to see. The dieties walked among us when they chose to, and Bliss was one of the more frequent visitors to our human eyes. When she picked a favored child, everyone knew it. Once a god appears before you and marks you, you sort of stop worshipping any other deity, so Orchid likely didn't know much about the other eleven gods since she was young when she was chosen.

Orchid had been playing her lap harp at the memory service for my mother who had died in one of the Swamp district floods. Bliss appeared, shimmering in all the splendor of the gods and there was no question as to who was walking among us. She leaned down and kissed a stunned Orchid on the side of her neck, leaving a mark in the shape of a harp that was still there today, and shocking the rest of us who watched on in silence. The mark was always just a hint different than the color of her skin, no matter how tan or pale Orchid became with the seasons.

A mark was barely visible unless you were looking for it. Most dedicates of a god had been marked at some point or another. Panther had a sword on her back, which you would normally think was from Blade the Warrior but it was for her renowned sword dancing. River had a songbird for her voice, Fae had a fan like the one she was dancing with when she was blessed. The twins each had one half of a heart on their shoulders that appeared whole if they stood side by side, arms touching, since they chose to live and perform in such a way. When a god claims you, you go to their court for your afterlife. If you weren't claimed, you go to the sleeping realms ruled by Spirit. Spirit has their own court as well, but the sleeping realms are the afterlife for the majority of people.

But Shadow? I don't know that I've ever seen a chosen of Shadow before. Or maybe that's by design. It's certainly within the goddess's nature to keep such secrets.

    "Shadow doesn't like the structure of temples, you worship her alter if you can find it. It comes and goes in different pockets of darkness, and if someone finds it who isn't there to leave an offering for her, it will disappear the next day and appear elsewhere." I began following Shadow when I met Dirk and learned how to sneak, pick pockets, tumble locks, and a few other unsavory skills. Of course, Dirk was a follower of Shadow, it only made sense, but for me, it just felt right.

    "Really? Then how are you going to find it to leave your candle?" Orchid asked.

I shrugged. "I just have a feeling. Look down the right nooks and crannies, and I'll find it soon enough."

We walked on, making it to the temple of Bliss without seeing any signs of Shadow. Orchid left her flowers, and I gave her some time to quietly spend in the soft, cushioned prayer room. When she was done, we began our walk back to the Snoring Dragon.

The smallest patter of footsteps snagged in my ear, and I snapped my head to the side just in time to see a sleek black cat scurry to a crevice between buildings.

"What is it?" Orchid asked.

The candle sat heavy in my pocket as I watched the cat pause at the entrance of the small space, turn to look at me, then disappear inside the shaded alley.

"I think I know where to find it," I murmured.

Orchid followed me as I made my way to the place where the cat had just been. Around a thorny bush and against an old tannery, the narrow space was indeed just the right sort of scene for Shadow to have her alter.

There was no sign of the cat, not even prints in the caked mud, but at the very back corner was a simply carved wooden mantle. No taller than my knee and no wider than the alley allowed, I dropped to my knees in front of it and pulled out my candle. A few things were scattered across the wooden surface. A piece of brass chain, a feather from some bird that lived afar. I was glad for the shallow bowl of match sticks as I set to work on my candle.

"Keep your secrets and I'll keep mine," I whispered the old chant, "to follow the scarcest of the divine. For Shadow I leave a token of mine, in exchange for her help in time."

I watched the lit candle flicker for a moment, the light reflecting off the wall behind it. After a heartbeat, the flame snuffed out and I gasped.

"Is everything alright?" Orchid called from the entrance of the alley.

"Go," the smoke seemed to whisper, no longer rising upward but stretching around me in a snake of gray and leading out of the alley. "Hurry."

The hairs on the back of my neck stood up, and I scrambled to my feet.

"I think we need to get back," I said, rushing out of the alley.

"What?" Orchid's eyes were wide as she moved out of my way and then hurried to keep up with me.

"Now, I think I need to get back now."

There was no explaining it away, I had clear instructions from Shadow's altar to run. Some force in me just knew that I had to get back to the inn, and I had to get there fast.