"Ooohhh." To Megan it seemed as if he were carrying the whole world in his kit. He'd seen the places the gifts come from.
"For you!" he said, and gave the scarf to Mama and the shell in the box to Megan and the arm ring to Papa. "There. Just a little memento of my stay south."
"Varik, we couldn't…"
"Now don't go all proud on me now! What are friends for? I'd give you the same either way, rich or poor." Mama looked a little sad for a minute. Megan guessed she was thinking of all the other people who weren't friends any longer.
Then she smiled and kissed Teik Varik on his beard that covered a new scar. Maybe he'd had to fight pirates instead of just run away. Teik Varik wouldn't run away, Megan thought. He's brave. "Thank you," Mama said. Papa was looking at the arm ring between wrist and elbow.
Megan looked at her box and shell, and sniffed inside. The shell smelled like the box, and of iodine, too—a Haian smell. Then she heard a funny noise, and when she looked at Teik Varik his shirt was moving; it had a bump. Megan stared, and the bump wiggled across his stomach and a wet black nose peeked out of his shirt lacings.
"Varik…" Papa just sighed and said thank you, too. Then they all looked at Megan. She kept staring at the bump with a nose in Teik Varik's shirt. He looked down and laughed again.
"This is my friend, Tik-Tik." He unlaced and pulled out an animal that looked as if a ferret and a raccoon had traded pieces. It had a long striped rubbery nose as if someone had grabbed it and stretched it out long as a finger; skinny black hands, and a black mask and furry black rings all the way down its tail. It made a chirping, whirring noise, and its long, long nose bent sideways when it sniffed. Then it sat up on its hind legs on Teik Varik's palms, twisted its fingers together, and bobbed up and down. "T'is little prigger snuck into my quilt bag one night," Teik Varik said, "on a beach in Krim, and tried to make off with my small-clothes, but I caught 'em by one corner and after a bit of a tugging and some talk he allowed they were mine. He's more a friend than a pet and'll steal anything not nailed down."
When Megan reached out to touch him, Tik-Tik squeaked and dove into Teik Varik's shirt again, and the bump he made wiggled around the back.
"Ah, little Meg, he's his own creature and he'll play with you by the by when he gets comforta'l with you." Varik's city accent was softened by strange foreign burrs, as if he were more used to speaking naZak.
She hoped Tik-Tik would like her soon. She looked at her shell and box again, and Mama reminded her what to say.
"Teik Varik, thankyouveryrnuchfortheshell. When you go sailing next can I come, too?" Then she could get a friend like Tik-Tik and see all those places, and Mama and Papa and she wouldn't have to live in one room that smelled like wet, with a cold draft along the floor.
They all looked at her, biting their lips as they did when they didn't want to laugh. She hated it when they laughed at something dumb she said.
"No, Megan, you're not…" Then Teik Varik got a funny look on his face and changed the subject. I'm not going to feel bad. He was going to say I wasn't apprenticed and I'm almost nine.
Ness and Lixand told Varik about what he'd missed in the last year, and about the regency and how it was going. Nobody liked the Regent much, but he hadn't done anything really wrong yet so there hadn't been riots, and the snow helped keep things quiet. Something might happen in the spring, but there were the wedding plans to distract people. Shortly after Megan's tenth birthday, the City would celebrate the Zarizan's wedding to Mikail's daughter, Avritha. Papa said the whole show was to keep people's minds off what was really going on.
The Ragman and Varclaf had got dragged off to the dungeons a while ago, just for being in the wrong street. The Guard had closed it off and taken everybody, but Ranion and Regent Mikail had had a fight, and on the Zarizan's birthday he'd ordered everyone released, so they'd both got out. The Ragman had been skinny as a stick, but he was better now. Varclaf had had a cough and some sores, but his wives and husband looked after him.
People said that clearing the dungeon was good, but Ness said it was as bad as taking innocent people without trial; she'd rather have the law courts opened again than let the Guard or one of the Prafetatla just say "guilty" and that be the end of it. Sometimes you could get people out if you bribed the Guard with enough money.
That's not fair, Megan thought. But there's lots of things going on that aren't fair. She'd heard in the pack that the commoners' truth-teller's school had been closed and the children sent home, which meant that only the Prafetatla would have truth-tellers; none for the ordinary people.
Megan decided to go out away from all the boring adult talk. She could play with Jerya's kid or maybe climb to the roof and see if it was still snowing; if she couldn't play with Tik-Tik, she wanted to do something that wasn't dull.
Blue and Zazan's cat spat and yowled at each other on the stairs and Teik Erham swatted them apart with the broom. The corridors got very dirty in the winter; snow, carrying soot with it, sifted in from the plank walls and down from the hall, then melted. Dimi's ferret bounced down the hall and the cats chased it until it whipped into a rat-hole where they couldn't follow, so they both sat with their noses pressed almost together, staring. The ferret wasn't dumb; it wouldn't come out there again, but stuck its nose out and screamed at them.
Megan climbed to the top floor where it was cold and windy, because the walls weren't very good. Then she slipped through the crack between where the wood roof was now and where the glass had once been.
When the landlord had closed in the roof, he or she hadn't bothered to dig a big plate of glass out, that had broken in a "v" from two of the supports onto a beam below, for salvage. It was worth almost a month's rent, it was so big, and when she'd found it she realized everyone had forgotten it. At first she tried to break it, because that would be the only way to get it out, but it had just hurt her hand, then when she'd kicked it the roof had shivered too, so she guessed it was partly holding the roof up and stopped trying. That was probably why it was still there. It was her secret place, her secret treasure, and she didn't want anybody to find it.
There was a dark space between the big beams where she could stand up almost straight. One wall was the pane of glass and the floor was the wood ceiling and the other wall was the brick chimney. Someone had covered the hole where the glass had fallen in with more wood so it was like a wood sandwich with a glass "v" in the middle. It was her favorite place in the winter, as if she had a room of her own that she didn't have to pay rent for. It was getting harder and harder to squeeze in, though, as she grew. There was so much snow caught in the gap next to one of the chimneys on top of the outer roof that it was actually warm. If there was a fire below, the bricks heated up and she could even take her coat off.
Only the cats knew about this place, and her. She rubbed her mitt over the cold glass next to her. It had spidery lines where it had cracked. Like people do, I guess. If she could somehow get through the glass she would be able to walk the length of the beam at the top of the house, right over the atrium.
She hoped things would get better soon. Mama and Papa were looking more and more like Zazan, or like Shen when she didn't think anyone was looking. Even Dimi looked like that early in the morning when it was his turn to get water for breakfast—crinkly around the eyes and old.
But perhaps some people didn't crack apart, and she prayed every day that it wouldn't happen to her mama and papa. She couldn't do anything to help them but be the best she could so they wouldn't worry.
I'm already the best cniffta player, she thought, and that's good, but that won't help Mama and Papa. Maybe Teik Vatik’ll help. I wish I could go with him. I wish I could see all the warm places he talks about. I want a friend like Tik-Tik. Teik Varik had been out-river a couple of times and seen beaches of black or pink sand, or sand so white it could blind you like snow. He'd told her about giant cormorants and Haiu Menshir's islands, and Hyerne where the men weren't allowed to fight and Arko where the women weren't
. She closed her eyes and pretended, but couldn't smell the flowers even though she could see them in her head. All I smell is mouse shit and snow and wet. She was wet through the seat of her pants. I hope somebody apprentices me soon or I'll be too old.
She went to play cniffta with Rilla, who was very good at it for one so little. They kept up until Rilla got cut; they'd used the two real knives as well as the wooden ones they'd made, and the steel ones flew differently. Megan helped her wash her hand so that it wouldn't get cut-ill, though it wasn't that bad—a nick that went from the bottom of her thumb to the long line.
"Megan, I don't wanna go home.' Megan looked up from where she was dabbing the cut with a corner of her coat. Rilla was frowning as if the cut hurt more than she was saying. I guess her mam isn't in a good mood lately.
" 'kay. Let's go to the Market."
Rilla smiled, which Megan liked; she'd been getting quieter lately. They went up to the Market, throwing snowballs at each other and the signs. Megan mashed snowballs on a wall; made a face out of them. Rilla stuffed some snow down Megan's neck and ran away yelling while Megan chased her with two handfuls, her hands bigger. Megan washed Rilla's face good, and she wiggled and swore.
"Pig-kisser! I'll get you! Stopfffth that! Ug, stop, it was only a little snow! Fish-Face!"
"Say yield! Say you're sorry. Say Rhunay! Say it!"
"I give! Rhunay!" Rilla's face was all red, but she wasn't really mad, not any madder than Megan. Both wet, they stopped in the Papa-bear shrine on Na Yehk Road to get out of the wind. The statue was of the Bear rearing up on His hind legs, with all His claws out. She hung her scarf on one of His paws—I don't think He'd mind—and they brushed all the snow out of their collars. She bowed to the Bear and they both ran their fingers through the stone bowl in front of Him, having nothing to give. It felt cold and slippery, as she remembered good soap being, not like the sand-soap they used now. She picked up the clapper and tapped the bowl to make it ring sweet, like the honey He liked. It made her sad that she had nothing to give Him in winter, but she tried to make up for it in summer, giving both Koru and the Bear flowers.
At the Market, they watched the cock-fights; it was too cold for outdoor spider fights, and the dancers in the circle and the shadow puppets. The priest came out with his black and white robes and furs afterwards and blessed them for watching. As they wandered away, Megan saw one of the perfume-sellers look around and duck to slip a fish under another perfume-seller's stand. It was only a little one.
They went past the food stalls. She wanted a meat pie but they were expensive, and though she tried not to smell them, her mouth still watered. If there were more of us I'd try prigging a couple. But there's just us two, and I have to look after Rilla.
The younger girl dawdled to look at something and Megan was looking at the toy-seller's stall when somebody behind her yelled, "Stop, thief!"
She looked; you were supposed to help if somebody raised the hue. If it's somebody I know maybe I can accidentally help them get away. They'd caught someone around the herbalist's stall… Oh, shit.
It was Rilla. She wriggled and yelled and the stall-keeper had her by one arm, the hand with a herb bag in it. The Guard was coming. She could hear them, clangety-clank. What do I do? What can I do? What am I supposed to do?
A guard had Rilla and was asking her something, shaking her to make her answer. She cried and kicked at his shins. "I'm six! Six!" she yelled. Megan wiggled past grownup to get close.
"Teik Guard!" She didn't want him to notice her, but Rilla was her kin, and in trouble. "Please, she's my little cousin and she's six."
He had a mean, thin stare and she felt smaller than a baby bug about to get stepped on. He'd been eating sausages in garlic sauce; he smelled like that and it was in his moustaches. He squinted at her and gave Rilla another shake. "Your parents' names, brat."
Rilla pressed her lips together. He peeled her mitt open and pulled the bag of herbs out of her hand. "NAME!" he shouted, and she yipped. "Marte, Marte, called Canter."
"And where do you live?" He tightened his hand on her arm, his leather gloves squeaking in the cold.
"Pisnichy Street." Rilla had tears running down her chin and snot all over her lip. Megan wanted to kick him, cut him, make him stop hurting her.
"Valyria!"
"Yessir!" Another of the Watch.
"You heard. Get her. Bring her to the block."
"Yessir!"
The guard half dragged Rilla with him to the block, walking just a little too fast for her to keep up, even if she ran, so she kept falling and being pulled along.
Megan was right behind. Papa was too far away to get. This isn't supposed to happen. This can't be happening, not to anyone in our family. I can't leave Rilla alone with the Guard.
She saw Serkai and Noran across the lane of stalls looking over at the commotion, and shouted the pack's yell for help. "Serkai! Dzhai! Dzhai!" He's got to hear, he's got to hear me call. "Serkai!" He looked up and then waved. "Run to the Wooden Plate and tell my papa what happened, please?"
He waved a fist, and he and Noran ducked down the alley next to the Deib's Den Inn. Megan found it hard to breathe; it was like breathing a knife as she gasped cold air into her lungs. Rilla, why'd you get caught? Why?
The Guard waited on the block and they wouldn't let Megan up with Rilla, so she stood by the stairs looking up at their boots.
"You'd think the River Quarter scum'd be stealing food before anything else," one of the guards said to another. "Zarizan's right when he says they just breed more vermin. Should clean the whole quarter out."
"Shut it, Stavislev, the Comp'ny Small-Stick's listening." The first guard spat into the snow, just by Megan.
A crowd had gathered from the winter Market, so when they brought Aunt Marte, they almost didn't need to call people out. She was yelling, two guards dragging her, but when she saw Rilla on the block she went quiet and pale.
The Guard pronounced sentence just like in the summer on Onya's mama, but the air didn't go as tight and funny as then because Marte wasn't as well liked as Onya the Elder. Megan wasn't surprised but still felt sick. Megan still wished hard when the fate-coin spun. It stuck in the snow on its edge and the Guard captain cursed and scraped the block with the side of his boot before doing it again. Everyone was quiet now. Tick. Black.
"No! You little bitch! Why'd you get caught? I need my hands you…" Aunt Marte screamed at Rilla. The Guard dragged her to the hand-block. She didn't want to listen, didn't want to see, but she couldn't look somewhere else.
Marte struggled, almost whining, with her right hand curled into a fist to try and hide it from the hammer. Then she gulped and sobbed, once, looking up at the K'gebar. She shivered all over and forced her hand open. She watched the K'gebar and the hammer, like a mark watching a shell-sharper take his last copper. The wind blew her hair across her face but she didn't even blink. Megan didn't think she could.
The K'gebar raised the hammer and brought it down. Aunt Marte tried to pull away and they held her. She screamed once, then again before he hit the second time—it cut off when she fainted. She didn't feel the third time. Most people didn't.
The guard let Rilla go, but she just stood looking at her mama lying in the snow. Megan climbed on the block, when the Guard had gone away, and held her. Rilla just stood looking. I'm ashamed. Papa, where are you?
The crowd was going away, but Megan was high enough to see Papa coming through all the people. Serkai had him by the shirttail to stay with him.
His face was closed. Koru, how much more is going to happen to us? When is it going to stop? But it wasn't really them it had happened to this time, but to Aunt Marte and Rilla. Marte had bitten through her tongue and it smelled as if she'd pissed herself. That didn't matter though; they all helped getting Aunt carried to Megan's home, where Lixand laid her in the wallbed. That meant Mama and Papa would share Megan's and she'd sleep with Rilla on a bed made in Mama's box to keep out the draft. It would be crowded but ev
erybody would be warm. Then they asked Dimi to help again.
He didn't like Marte but helped as a favor to them. "He hit pretty hard; must naht been having a good day," Dimi said. "Don't know, Lixand, if she'll get it back. Mightbe a little. I've given her somethin' to make her sleep."
"Thank you, Dmitrach." Papa gave him the copper he'd made today that was supposed to go to the rent. Maybe Mama had made enough; Megan hoped so.
" 'ixand?" It was Aunt. She couldn't talk straight because of her tongue. "I hur'. She ha'es me. Ro'n kid. Ha'es me." She cried, slowly. "Nobo'y's faul' bu' te 'ragonlor'. Shi' on him, ‘n’ my poor, bad kid."
"Hush, Marte, you'll be all right." Papa sat on the edge of the wallbed, making it creak. He patted her hand, then moved it to her forehead. Her hair was soaked at the temples from sweat and tears, and her face looked raw and empty. "Hush, sister, shhh, you'll be fine."
Papa sent Megan and Rilla to get bed linens from Aunt's house because they didn't have enough for everyone.
They went up to Middle Quarter and it looked strange to Megan. So much space; space between all the houses and small gardens. She'd forgotten. The pack ran through here to get to the Market, but stuck to the big streets, and she'd spent the rest of the time in alleys in the River Quarter.
Rilla had always met her at Koru's Shrine because Megan didn't want to see Aunt, so she was surprised at the state of the house. It was dirtier than a bottom room of the Flats and it didn't have turkeys outside its door. The shutters were broken and rattled, letting the wind in.
She opened her mouth to ask and Rilla interrupted, "We're doing all right." She had the stubborn look on her face that said "Don't ask."
"Okay. It's none of my business. Linens?"
"Spare room, in the walnut box."
"I'll get 'em." What has Aunt Marte been doing? She hadn't been cleaning. The still was the only thing not dusty. It smelled worse, nastier than the last time they'd come to visit two years ago. The herbs looked different, too. Megan dug down into the box to get the blankets and her fingers hit something cool and hard, and something that clinked.
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