Aiden didn’t slow down until he was safely tucked away inside the cottage on the outskirts of town, a cup of coffee in one hand and a book in the other as he sat curled up in front of the fire in the upstairs drawing room, trying and failing to ignore the other two occupants who were trying to start a conversation with him.

  ‘I knew Bruz was right,’ Vivian said. ‘That you were an introvert-’

  ‘I am not an introvert,’ Aiden stressed. ‘I just… don’t like talking to most people.’

  ‘That’s the definition of an introvert.’ Felix settled himself beside Aiden on the couch. ‘That and Aiden Tenebris.’

  ‘How did you get on before you came here?’ Vivian was curious. ‘Of what little I know of nobility and their lifestyle, isn’t there a lot of socializing and mingling involved?’

  Aiden sighed and shut his book. It was an interesting read too, a beginner’s guide to shadow magic, but he knew he was not going to be able to get any reading done now, not when his new friends smelled blood in the waters. ‘Since I’m not the heir to the family, I didn’t have to attend many events. And the ones I did, I would find a secluded balcony or nook and stay there till it was all over. Nobody noticed me.’

  Felix let out a disbelieving laugh. ‘Everybody noticed you! Especially the girls. Do you think Shyling’s obsession started after she came here?’

  ‘Obsession is such a strong word,’ Aiden muttered.

  Felix snorted. ‘It’s too weak a word, in my opinion. Did you notice how she was acting so familiar and close with you?’

  Vivian leaned in, curious. ‘She was?’

  ‘Oh yes. She called him Master Aiden. You only address someone by their first name if you are close friends or family.’

  ‘She called you by your first name,’ Vivian pointed out. ‘Does she fancy you as well?’

  ‘Another reason to call someone by their first name is a sign of disrespect.’ Aiden sipped his coffee. ‘It’s implying that they don’t associate you with the family name, with noble blood.’

  ‘And how would you tell the difference?’

  ‘Body language and tone of voice, I suppose.’ Felix shrugged. ‘There aren’t any hard and fast rules in this. Noble etiquette is game based on intuition mostly.’

  Vivian pointed at herself. ‘I call you by your first names. I don’t even call you master.’

  ‘Well, that’s how we introduced ourselves to you, so that’s fine.’

  Vivian slumped back into the cushions of her armchair. ‘I think I would be bad at this game.’

  ‘You would.’ Aiden leaned back. ‘Pray that you never get caught up in it. It’s too late for us.’

  Vivian frowned as something odd that was just mentioned struck her. ‘You said that using the first name means that she doesn’t think of you as a noble.’ She looked at Felix. ‘Why would she be so rude to you?’

  Felix paused for a beat before answering.

  ‘Because I’m not of noble blood,’ he said, trying his best to look nonchalant about it. ‘Well, not entirely at least. My father is a noble, my mother is not.’

  Vivian titled her head in confusion. ‘And that’s not good enough?’

  ‘Not to her.’

  The conversation had taken an awkward turn. Picking at the sofa threads, Vivian glanced outside. The sun was setting and the sky was growing dark. She stood up and stretched, eager to change the subject.

  ‘I’m heading down to the library. It’s time I started my reading lessons. Do you need anything? Tea, coffee, some snacks…?’

  ‘Nah, we’re good.’ Felix lay down on the couch, putting his feet up on Aiden’s lap. Aiden scowled and shoved him off, before moving to the armchair that Vivian had just vacated, opening up his book again. ‘I think I’ll take a nap. Wake us up when you’re done.’

  ‘Alright. Try not to kill each other when I’m gone.’

  Vivian passed by Peri as she climbed down the stairs. She heard him reach the top and let out a muffled sigh. ‘Why are you two always here?’

  She moved into the library before she could hear Felix’s response, because of course he would respond, and with something cheeky too. Her senses which had been heightened after her awakening were slowly dulling back to what they used to be. According to Sith, they should be back to normal within the month. Which was good, because Vivian really didn’t want to hear everything that was going on in the house. She once had the misfortune of overhearing Peri singing in his room, and she was not even inside the cottage. The man might be gifted at everything else, but he just couldn’t carry a tune.

  Just like every other evening since she left the infirmary, she sat down at the table and pulled out the book that she had painstakingly been making her way through. Sith had taught her the alphabets and how they joined into words and sentences, after which she gave her a beginner’s book and told her start trying to read it and circle the words she couldn’t pronounce. During the first few days she couldn’t do it alone and Sith had to sit beside her and read everything out loud. Now that she knew how a few words were pronounced, she had started trying to read on her own. Writing was entirely different beast, but she was steadily making progress, though sometimes she still pressed the quill too hard and tore a hole through the parchment.

  All in all, she was learning, albeit slowly.

  ‘Good evening,’ Sith greeted as she stepped into the living room. She poked her head into the library. ‘Hard at work I see. You could teach the sloth a thing or two.’

  Vivian grinned back. ‘Good evening. I think I’m making good progress. I’m almost done with this book.’

  The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

  ‘Oh, good work,’ Sith praised her. ‘I’ll sit down with you after dinner. Could you go call the sloth down?’

  ‘Alright.’ Vivian shut her book and got up, her chair scraping behind her. ‘Oh right, Aiden and Felix are here too.’

  ‘Well tell them they’re welcome to join us for dinner, if they want. Though it might be a simpler meal than they’re used to.’

  ‘I don’t think they’ll mind.’

  It took some work to drag Peri out of his room. Vivian took the assistance of Aiden and Felix to carry the man downstairs all while he took turns whacking each of them with his pillow. They dumped him in one of the chairs in the dining room, and he immediately slumped over onto the table, mumbling and grumbling as he did so. And he stayed that way until Sith placed a bowl of fruits on the table and rapped her knuckles on the wood. He immediately shot upright in his seat.

  ‘I’m awake!’

  ‘Good. Help me set the table.’ She marched back into the kitchen, dragging a slouched Peri behind her.

  ‘Sometimes, I think Sith is the only one in the world who can handle Peri,’ Vivian commented.

  Aiden popped a grape in his mouth. ‘Those sharp claws and fangs might have something to do with that.’

  ‘How many times do you think that Peri has been on the wrong end of those?’ Felix grinned.

  Vivian laughed. ‘Too many to count.’

  Dinner was a calm affair, with them chatting about this and that, about the children’s goings-on, Sith’s work and Peri’s day, which was a very short story since it only consisted of food and sleep. Halfway through dinner, Ebion came leaping in through the window and settled himself on Vivian’s lap. Vivian absentmindedly scratched him behind the ears with one hand as she ate, making the black feline purr loudly and swish his three tails in lazy contentment. After dinner, the three of them cleaned up the table and dishes while Sith and Peri moved outside for a smoke. Vivian was a quite surprised when Aiden and Felix rolled up their sleeves to do the dishes. She hadn’t expected nobles to do manual labour.

  ‘Do you know how to…?’

  ‘It’s washing a plate,’ Aiden said confidently. ‘I think we can manage.’

  When the first plate slipped out of Aiden’s hands and shattered on the floor, that confidence took a step back. None of them spoke for a moment.

  ‘I could-’

  Before she could even finish her sentence, another plate slipped out of Felix’s hands and joined the shattered plate on the floor.

  Vivian forced a smile on her face. ‘Tell you what, why don’t I do that? You can clear up the table.’

  The two boys readily dropped the plates back in the washing tub and made for the dining room, their hands still wet and dripping soap water everywhere. Vivian sighed.

  I’ll clean that up later… along with the shattered plates.

  Together they managed to clean up, and by they she meant herself, as Felix and Aiden seemed to make more of a mess rather than less as they worked. Finally, she managed to have everything squared away and ushered the boys back out into the living room, just as Peri and Sith stepped back inside. Ebion was already curled up in front of the fire, his small body rising and falling in deep breaths as he slept. Vivian gently lifted the cat onto her lap and the five of them settled down with cups of tea that Vivian had managed to make in the midst of Aiden and Felix’s helping. They sipped in silence for a while, watching the fire dance merrily in the fireplace, the heat licking and warming their toes.

  ‘Oh, Vivian, before I forget.’ Sith dug around in her pockets before pulling out a parchment and handed it to her. ‘Your trade license. You are officially permitted to conduct business in Mirran.’

  ‘Congratulations!’ Felix leaned forward in his seat to peer over her shoulder at the piece of parchment. ‘We’re in business.’

  Vivian took the piece of parchment from Sith, careful not to jostle Ebion on her lap, and unfolded it. She wasn’t quite adept at reading yet but she managed to make her way through the writing which ended with an official looking seal. She smiled.

  ‘We’re all set for Sunday then.’

  ‘This Sunday?’ Peri questioned while letting out a huge yawn. ‘That was fast.’

  Aiden frowned. ‘We already told you that we talked to Miss Vyn this afternoon.’

  ‘Did you?’ Peri slumped back in his chair. The man seemed incapable of holding an upright position. ‘I must’ve missed it.’

  Vivian looked at him incredulously. ‘It hasn’t even been a half-hour since.’

  ‘I’m sorry, but my mind has a mind of its own. It only listens to interesting things.’

  Sith slapped him on his arm as he let out another yawn. Peri grumbled and rubbed his arm, but didn’t retaliate. ‘Look, I’m happy for you, but if you wanted someone interested in business talk, you should’ve spoken to Cyrus.’

  ‘Speaking of Cyrus, is he still in town?’ Vivian asked. ‘I haven’t met him since the lake incident.’

  ‘Ah, that’s because he’s avoiding you,’ Peri explained.

  ‘Me? Why?’

  ‘Well, it was the princess’s idea to kick you off a flying chariot.’ His lips stretched into a lazy grin, his scar scrunching as he did so. ‘He’s still staying at the Rusty Kettle. You should talk to him about that. Loudly and angrily. And please tell me when you do. I want to watch.’

  ‘I’m not angry with him.’ Aiden and Felix shot her a disbelieving look. ‘Alright, maybe a little. He could’ve landed the chariot; he didn’t have to push me off.’

  ‘Technically, we’re the ones who pushed you off,’ Felix corrected.

  ‘What is wrong with you?!’ Aiden asked incredulously. ‘Why would you point that out?!’

  ‘Oh right, I forgot about that.’ Vivian gave them a smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes. ‘You two seemed a little too eager to kick me off.’

  Felix held up his hands in a placating gesture. ‘Now, now. Let’s stay on topic. We were discussing how this was all Cyrus’ fault.’

  ‘Oh, I have words for him,’ Vivian bit out. ‘But I have plenty for you as well.’

  ‘Alright, alright, let’s not fight,’ Sith interrupted, ever the mediator. ‘Not in my house at least. Take it outside.’

  Scratch that… she’s just as prone to violence as everybody else.

  Sith put down her empty cup and stood up. She turned to Aiden and Felix. ‘Now, it’s quite late. You boys want to stay the night? It might be bit dangerous stumbling back to the residential district in the dark.’ She pointed behind her to stairs. ‘Reno’s gone on a job so one of the bedrooms is empty right now. I’m sure he wouldn’t mind you two using his room.’

  Felix glanced outside. ‘Well, I think I’ll take you up on that offer. I don’t fancy finding myself at the bottom of a ditch tonight. What about you Aiden?’

  Aiden sighed. ‘I suppose I’ll stay as well.’

  Vivian raised an eyebrow. ‘Please, don’t to force yourself.’

  After settling the boys in Reno’s room for the night, which was disturbingly clean even in the absence of its owner, Vivian climbed the spiral steps to her own room in the attic, followed closely by Ebion who had made it a habit to snuggle under the covers beside her every night. Vivian welcomed the warmth of the feline, though she could do without the cat hairs and hairballs she occasionally found on her bed.

  Oh well, one of the many pleasures of having a cat, I suppose.

  The feline in question had already taken his place on her pillow, his yellow eyes fixed on her expectantly.

  ‘Alright, alright, I’m coming.’ Vivian slipped under the covers and laid her head on her pillow, careful not to push against the cat. As previously observed, he didn’t like that at all and would respond with a quick scratch on her nose for the action.

  ‘Good night Ebion,’ she whispered to the cat.

  The cat purred in response, his three tails swishing lazily for a moment, the rings on them gleaming in the moonlight that was streaming in through the window. They seemed to be made of the same kind of glass that her identification token was made of. Vivian quietly slipped out a hand and grabbed the plate that was on her bedside table. It had almost become a routine for her to check the token every night before she went to sleep.

  The token sat as empty as the day she had gotten it. There no longer was a golden tree growing and putting out branches and roots. The pattern had faded within the week, returning to its empty state, devoid of magic. Still, she checked every night, hoping to catch a glimpse of gold winding its way through the glass.

  Nothing today as well…

  She placed the token back on her bedside table, a little disappointed even though she knew that she was going to find it empty. She curled herself into a ball, her eyes still locked on the innocent looking token that stayed stubbornly empty, as sleep gradually overtook her and she joined Ebion in the land of dreams.