Chapter Five

The Gardens

The trio walked through the park; if one missed the distance the two boys kept from the girl, the welts decorating Claudius’ arms and face, the baleful gaze Thief shot back occasionally, or mistook the tense silence for amiable, they might have looked like a trio of close friends.

“Stay close to me if she tries to betray us.” Forest Boy said, louder than Claudius would have liked.

“Shh! Too loud. That isn’t going to happen.” Claudius whispered. “We made a deal.”

Forest Boy’s face scrunched up with distaste and he continued at the same volume. “Whatever you choose to believe we have to be prepared. Thievery is the height of evil. For someone like that, breaking a deal is simple, and we have no idea what else she’s capable of.”

“I don’t think so.” Claudius said. “Before it almost seemed like…”

“Like she was one movement away from killing you.” Forest Boy said.

“No! Like-”

“Do I look like I have cement clogging my ears?” Thief stopped in the middle of the path. “And I don’t care what you whisper about me, I owe you nothing, much less a justification for what I do.”

Claudius raised his hands defensively, but Forest Boy looked more incensed than Claudius had seen him before.

“The caught thief wails loudest.” He said, “This city must be soft on thieves, in my village if you’d taken anything as important as-”

“You wouldn’t know the first thing about this city! Whatever backwater village you came from-” Thief began ranting at the same time.

“Hey! Can we all just stay calm here?” Claudius stepped between them but the two merely craned their heads to argue around him, as if he were simply a shrub in the way and his protests were drowned out by the increasingly loud insults past him.

He searched his satchel for chunks of clay disc, found the two largest with somewhat intact channels, and concentrated, launching them.

The chunks connected with both Thief and Forest Boy’s foreheads, surprising them and putting the attention back towards himself.

“I think we all need a minute to calm down.” Claudius began. “We aren’t all friends, that much is obvious, but we don’t need to be. How do you plan on finding that medallion if you alienate her?” He asked Forest Boy, “Do you feel like searching every building in this city? Better start now.” He turned to Thief. “Hate us all you want but you’ll never have to see his absurd cloak or my beautiful blue eyes again if you work with us just a little longer, right?”

A quiet like a kettle on a lit stove, not yet boiling, fell. Thief still looked as though she wanted to pummel both him and Forest Boy, whose glare suggested she was welcome to suffer the consequences for trying.

“Right?” Claudius repeated loudly.

The pair held their silence for what felt like hours before finally Forest Boy spoke.

“Thievery is…” The anger in his eyes faded. “A pitfall of this city I must learn to handle with more sensibility.”

“Idiocy is another, but you seem well-versed in that concept.” Thief said, seeming satisfied to get the final blow in. “And you’re wrong. I’m not invested enough in you to hate you, but once this transaction is done, I’ll be glad to never see you again.” With a final disdainful look she turned and resumed walking.

“Just think of the medallion.” Claudius said to Forest Boy

He inhaled deeply and gave him a pointed look. “Remember what I said. Next to me when she betrays us.” Before hurrying to catch up to Thief.

Claudius gave a quick nod, glad that the altercation hadn’t become physical, at the very least, but with the distinct feeling bubbles were beginning to rise in the kettle.

…

They finally emerged out of Tyr Park and into what Thief had called the Gardens.

The buildings looked a few stormy days away from collapsing into themselves, many were clearly abandoned or so Claudius assumed until he spotted movement from some window or gaping hole in the wall. There were a handful of, what must have been businesses with the signage falling apart or fading away. Even the sidewalks and roads were cracked and eroded.

It was an ugly neighbourhood, but what set his spine tingling was when Thief stopped, waved the pair over, and with none of her usual disdain, perhaps uncertainty or even fear, whispered, “Stay close to me. Don’t look anyone in the eyes. If someone speaks to you, pretend you didn’t hear.”

Each step was uneasy. Claudius was not certain whether the feeling of eyes on him was real or imagine, but he despite Thief’s warnings he could not help but steal a glance or two.

“Hey!” Someone shouted. Instinctively Claudius turned to see who was speaking. A weathered older man with ratty clothes and a far fewer teeth than normal was gesturing for them to come that way. The bizarreness of it nearly stopped him in his tracks until Thief pulled him forward by the wrist. “Hey! Get over here already! I’m talking to you! You think…” The man trailed off into incoherent rambling.

“Don’t go over there.” She said. “He’s going to pester you for money and try to feel your teeth.”

Claudius threw a glance back. The man was still rambling to himself. “It sounds like he needs some help.”

Thief barked a bitter laugh. “He wouldn’t be in the Gardens if he didn’t. You’re welcome to try.”

Claudius said nothing but from that moment on kept his eyes on the sidewalk as said little.

After some time, Thief stopped walking.

They stood in front of a burned-out husk of a building. The fire that consumed it must have taken place some time ago, but the blackened remains looked like they’d been washed down by rain and wind.

“How…rustic.” Claudius said.

“I have slept underneath the stars and even I would be ashamed to call this my home.” Forest Boy said.

“Not here, idiots!” Thief said, pointing the to an apartment building next door, marginally better than the rest of the street in that under half of its windows were broken and Claudius could not see inside through holes in the wall.

“Listen to me,” This time Thief looked more stern than fearful, “Everything I said early applies even more here. Don’t look at anyone, don’t talk to anyone. When we’re inside, you stay out of my room and out of my stuff. Listen to my every word, okay? I won’t be responsible for what happens if you disobey me.”

Claudius nodded.

Forest Boy nodded.

Thief stared at them for a long moment before walking to the door. A boy about their age laid across the front steps, staring daggers at Claudius and Forest Boy and refusing to budge until Thief gave a nonchalant wave “They’re with me.”

Instantly the informal doorman’s demeanour shifted, and he leered cockily at the three of them. “Ah, Cee, thought it was about time you started bringing boys over to your place. Never figured you the type for two at once. And what’s with that pant leg? You couldn’t wait until-”

Thief made a very rude gesture and walked into the building. Claudius followed trying not to blush while Forest Boy looked indifferent.

The building was no prettier on the inside than the outside. Thief lived three stories up.

She reached for her wrist, seemingly out of instinct before remembering that she wasn’t wearing her pseudanite. She let out a quite curse and lifted the rotting floorboard underfoot to find produce a key.

Her door swung open with a high-pitched creak. Before the boys could enter, she blocked the doorway.

“What?” Claudius asked.

“This is where I live. I don’t want you two idiots inside touching anything. I-”

She went silent. Suddenly she grabbed both of them by the wrists, pulled them inside, and slammed the door shut.

Claudius nearly stumbled, caught at the last second by Forest Boy.

“I thought you didn’t want us two idiots in here. What changed?” Claudius asked.

“Nothing.” Thief snapped. “Just don’t move a muscle and don’t even think about looking around.”

Thief walked quickly into the bedroom. Claudius took the chance to look around.

It was small for one. A single person could live here comfortably, though comfort seemed to be a foreign concept. Thief’s furnishings consisted of two wooden chairs, a ratty old rug with holes eaten into it to reveal a ratty floor underneath, and a rusty lamp with no lampshade. There was a tall stack of old books beside one of the chairs.

She didn’t seem to own very much at all, at least nothing she kept outside of her bedroom.

“Stay aware.” Forest Boy said. “If she betrays us, it will happen soon. With my abilities back it’s safest to stay next to me.”

Claudius felt a touch foolish. With all the chaos he’d completely forgotten to ask about that. “What made your vitality work again?”

“I’m not certain. It must have been something in this city’s foul air that my body had to adjust to.” Forest Boy said.

Claudius raised an eyebrow. It might have been possible.

The bedroom door swung open.

Thief rushed towards them once more, something clenched in her hands.

Forest Boy raised a hand towards her, it looked as though he was ready to blow her backwards, just as he had before, but nothing happened.

Claudius’ heart skipped a beat, fearing she would notice.

Thief instead, pressed something against Forest Boy’s stomach.

Frantically she looked from Forest Boy to Claudius.

Get out. She mouthed and pointed to the window.

Forest Boy only had a moment of confusion before there something slammed against the main door. Then slammed again and again.

Thief began gesturing wildly to the window.

“One second! Stop breaking the door, Ioro!” She shouted, fidgeting with the window.

Claudius didn’t need to be told more than twice. He tiptoed through it with as much speed and grace as possible and landed onto a rusty fire escape below with a lovely view of the ugly burned-out husk next door.

Forest Boy joined him a moment later, staring in awe at the item held in his hand.

Thief had given him the old wooden medallion.

The two shared a look but before either of them could speak, the door swung open, rattling the wall.

“You kept me, waiting, little crow.” A male voice called.

“I was undressing! You could have given me a minute before trying to break down my door.”

“No.” The voice said. “When I knock you open. I don’t give a damn whether you’re naked, sick, or bleeding from the jugular.”

Thief said nothing.

“What’s this I hear about you bringing two guys over to your place?”

“It’s nothing. I was just-”

A slap echoed through the room, followed by more silence.

“Two guys were here. Why?”

Thief was silent for a long time.

Claudius’ heart raced within his chest.

“Books.” Thief eventually said. “Found out something I had was actually pretty valuable, so I thought I’d sell it for a few reels.”

“What books?” The male voice said.

“Some old Animator textbooks. Apparently one of them was a first edition.” Thief said.

Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site.

“Was that all that happened here? Little crow,” The voice tutted. “Don’t lie to me, was it books, or are you doing something else. Something a girl your age you shouldn’t be?”

More silence.

“They left already. With the books.” Thief muttered, “Nothing I can do about it now.

“Hope you didn’t undersell yourself.” The male figure said. His footsteps sounded as though he was leaving, but they stopped.

“What’s this I hear about a medallion?” He asked.

Claudius’ heart sank into his chest.

“Jun said you came here earlier with a medallion. Care to show me it?”

“Fake.” Thief said, “I tossed it.”

There was a thud and a grunt of pain.

“Are you lying to me?! Little crow, if you lie to me, I’ll burn you to ash right here.”

“No!” Thief said, “It was a fake, I swear! It had all the signs when I grabbed it, I didn’t notice the serial was fake until I put it with the others! I promise!”

“You know what I did to the last guy who tried selling on the side? You were there, weren’t you? Do you think he’s ever gonna try it again?!”

“NO!” Thief said, “I didn’t sell it, it was fake, just fake.”

Claudius locked eyes with Forest Boy, both horrified. Thief may have caused them trouble, but it sounded like she was about to be hurt or worse. He could not just leave her to her fate.

He reached into his satchel, feeling for the crumbs, and let his vitality fill a small handful of stones, levitating them like a cloud around his hands, like a cloud of dust.

Aim for his eyes, grab her and run down the fire escape.

He breathed deeply, staring to rise, ready to climb back into apartment. Forest Boy forced him downward with one hand and a stern look from his mossy green eyes.

“Come to think of it…” The man inside said, Claudius and Forest Boy froze. “You aren’t stupid. You’ve never been stupid enough to skim off the top. But listen, I don’t need someone who doesn’t know their place and you don’t want to be someone I don’t need, Ciella.” There was one last heavy thud, followed by the sound of a door slamming.

Silence. A long silence passed before Thief…before Ciella walked over the window and signaled them to back in.

She did not look much different though her cheek was rapidly reddening.

“Thank you…” Claudius said awkwardly, “For not ratting us out…and uh, sorry we-”

“Savage.” Forest Boy clicked his tounge. “If a man abused his family like that in my village he would be dealt with before the next sunrise.”

Ciella rounded on Claudius. “I don’t need your thanks, shower someone else with your pity, we’re not friends.” She rounded on Forest Boy, “And that man is not my family.” She hissed. “Don’t talk, don’t say anything, just wait here until he’s gone and then we can leave.”

Ten minutes of no one speaking and Claudius trying hard to avoid starting at Ciella’s cheek before she finally decided they could leave. This time though, they took the fire escape, climbing down and passed the burned-out husk.

“What did that building next door used to be?” Claudius asked, “Before it burned down.”

“An old hostel.” Ciella grumbled, but something in her seemed glad to change the conversation “It burned down a few weeks after we moved here.”

“We?” Claudius asked.

“You were not born here?” Forest Boy asked.

Ciella said nothing. She said nothing for the rest of their walk back to the statue.

…

It was full night by the time the trio made it back the statue. The earth rumbled underfoot, eventually spitting out the two staffs, which Claudius promptly handed back to Ciella. The look in her eye suggested she would be happy to beat him with the pair of them, but she settled for warping one into a bracelet around her wrist and one around her thigh.

“Our transaction is complete.” Forest Boy said.

“Everybody got just what they wanted.” Claudius said, clapping the pair of them on the shoulders.

“Did they?” Ciella said, stepping back and pulling a stone medallion out of her purse.

Not just any stone medallion, his medallion.

He searched frantically but the spot in his pocket was empty.

Ciella tossed the medallion at him with a bitter laugh. “No amount of medallions are worth dealing with you two any longer. Start paying attention, robbing you was the worst decision I made all year but someone else might be just as stupid.”

She turned to leave.

“Wait! I have one question!”

“Not part of our deal.” Ciella said, continuing to walk.

“Wait! I’ll do you a favour!”

Ciella stopped, “Anything?”

“Anything.” Claudius said.

Ciella stopped walking.

“Do you know where the Red Horse Inn is?”

Ciella turned back to him. “That’s your question?”

“Of course.”

“It’s the burned out husk besides my building. It burned down a few years ago and never got rebuilt.”

Claudius felt something in his brain snap. The exhaustion of the day nearly left him face down in the grass.

Where am I going to stay? Where am I going to live?

His mind stopped processing anything related to that.

“Thanks, Ciella.” He said, dully.

Ciella turned around, looking like an impossible mixture of shock, annoyance, embarrassment, anger, and shame. “Never call me that! Never talk to me again!” And began walking faster until she vanished out of their sight, back towards her horrible apartment.

Should have asked if she there was a vacancy in her building. That dump is probably all I can afford. He thought dully.

He turned to Forest Boy. “Well, you got your medallion back. You don’t have to destroy mine now.”

Forest Boy said, “In my village, when you faced with a yellow vine snake, you have to rush it, screaming and gnashing your teeth, anything less and it’ll strike, leaving you dead in minutes from the venom.”

“What?”

“I don’t know that I had it in me to destroy your medallion, not really.”

“You were bluffing?”

Forest Boy shrugged. “The matter’s behind us now. I wish you good health.” He said and began to walk off.

“Where are you going? Where are you staying?”

Forest Boy turned around, looking confused. “Why do you insist on speaking to me still?”

“Huh? We’re friends, aren’t we? After everything we’ve been through we can’t be strangers. Didn’t you have any fun?” Claudius asked.

“Fun? That was the most miserable day of my life. I’ve kept my word and returned your medallion, there’s nothing more to say between us.” Forest Boy said.

“Are you really telling me that we went through all that just to stay strangers?”

“Whether or no we’ll stay strangers, I can’t say. Strangers can share fond memories and remain strangers. I wish you good health.” Forest Boy said, turning back around to walk in the distance.

“Can you at least tell me your name?” Claudius asked.

Forest Boy stopped a moment. “Thorn. I suppose it’s fine if you call me that.”

“Thorn,” Claudius said to himself, almost in wonder. The name felt like a hard-won prize in his mouth. “Where are you going to go, Thorn?” Claudius shouted.

Thorn shrugged again. “Somewhere like this.”

“Okay.” Claudius said glumly. “See you at school.” He said, too quiet for Thorn to hear. His green cloak vanishing into the trees.

Suddenly a wave of exhaustion hit him, but if nothing else, and there seemed truly nothing else uplifting, he had his medallion back.

The Red Horse Inn was no good. All day he’d been looking for a horse that died ten years ago.

“Better find something else, anywhere else to stay.” He said to himself.

His stuff, he’d completely forgotten about the bag he’d left at the dumpling store. Everything he needed to start the life away from home.

The sun was beginning to set.

If there was even the slightest chance it was still there wasn’t it worth a look?

…

The sun had set completely by as Claudius approached The Humble Dumpling for the second time, the grumpy owner and his wife looking surprised at the state of him as he approached the window and asked one question.

The dumpling stand owner looked at Claudius as though he’d grown a second head.

Claudius asked again.

“You left a bag with money on it on the street, it’s gone, no use looking for it.” The man said.

“A bag?” His wife chimed in from the back, “Someone turned one in earlier actually.”

The Mr. Kulner looked surprised but shrugged. “Miracles happen sometimes.” His wife moved to hand it over to Claudius, but he blocked her movement. “How do we know it belongs to you?”

“Inside there should be five sets of shirts, pants, and underwear, seven books, a photo of me and my parents, a scarf, wool gloves and hat, and eleven hundred reels. Oh, and some clay moulds.”

The storeowner looked inside and handed the bag to Claudius. “Mostly right.” He said.

It was not hard to guess what was missing.

Claudius sank to his knees. Ruined. Financially ruined. From poor to destitute. It would have been a task to stay at the Red Horse, but with that gone he’d have to spend the zero reels he had on months of housing. It seemed like the cruelest prank to hand him a scholarship to Meridian Academy and then make it impossible for him to live in the city.

Nothing. I have nothing left.

Suddenly, almost infuriatingly, he remembered the ten-reel bill in his pocket.

“Is there anywhere in the city I can stay for ten reels? Not for long, just long enough to…” To what? To beg? To contact his parents and explain that he’d lost more money than they’d made in a year?

“Sure,” Mr. Kulner said. “For free actually.” He pointed in the direction Claudius had come from, “You can sleep in the park as long as you want, as long as the police don’t see you.”

“Oh.” Claudius said.

His wife slapped him on the arm, “Don’t be rude.”

“Can ten reels get me another dumpling?” Claudius asked.

The man stared at him as if he were crazy, shrugged, and stepped back into the kitchen, returning a moment later with a tray of six dumplings. When Claudius tried to hand him the money, he refused it.

“Just take them. They would have gone to waste anyway.”

Claudius sat at the nearby seats, the hunger he’d been ignoring all day came back in full force and he began to devour his meal.

“Tell me this, kid. You looked fine this afternoon, now you look like something I’d have swept the street with. What happened?” Mr. Kulner asked.

Claudius took stock of his appearance then. His clothes covered in dust and dirt, his pants had holes where there had been none this morning, and there were patches of dried blood. Bruises dotted his arms, neck, and face where Ciella had hit him with her rod, that he could feel at least. His hair must have been a mess.

“Met some new people. Not very friendly.” He said. And resumed eating.

Mrs. Kulner looked sympathetic. “You simply must be more careful. This is one of the safer neighbourhoods and every now and then someone gets robbed.”

“That won’t be a problem.” Claudius said, “There’s no way I can afford to eat here anymore. I’d be lucky if I can afford the train to come dig through your trash.”

“There’s no need to rummage through our trash, we’ll have a bag ready every night.” Mr Kulner said.

“What are you going to do?” Mrs. Kulner said.

“I…” Claudius trailed off.

What was he going to do?

There must be some kind of work he could do. A city this big must have had work, but could he even sustain himself until then? Would he sleep on the streets? How would he get food?

The man looked unimpressed, “You’re an academy student. Just let your parents know and they’ll-”

“Dear.” The woman said. She suddenly grabbed her husband by the arm and dragged him away from the window, into the other room.

Claudius tried to avoid eavesdropping, but it was difficult to ignore the muffled bits and pieces that made it through the walls.

“-eave that boy alone on the streets?”

“-not our problem. Why should we-“

“He’s a good kid…-end him out onto the streets and you can sleep alone and don’t even think I’ll-”

“How is that fair?”

“-unless you’re prepared to go months without…”

“Fine! Fine, woman! Twist my arm any further and it’ll break. But don’t think I’ll be in the mood to…you for months.”

Claudius had heard enough. He readied himself to leave when the man and woman popped back into view, the woman looking overly pleasant and the man looking as though he’d found half a worm in his apple.

The woman nudged the man and when he spoke it was stilted and awkward.

“Would you…be looking for work?” He didn’t wait for Claudius to reply, “It doesn’t pay much, maybe 40 reels a day, plus dinner.” He looked disgruntled, “Room and board included, until you find a place of your own. The offer’s only good as long as you can cook and clean and keep your space tidy.”

“Both. I can do both!” Claudius said once he realized what exactly was being offered.

The man nodded solemnly and nodded to the direction of the door. “Get your stuff inside then. Shouldn’t take you long.”

Claudius hoisted his bag over his shoulder and listened for the sound of the door unlocking before coming inside.

He entered.

The woman, shorter than himself smiled at him while the man just looked uncertain and bashful, “Follow me, I’ll show to your room.” She looked somewhat concerned, “Actually, please wait a moment. I’ll just need to go tidy up first.” And began climbing a staircase leading to the back.

“That’s fine, I think I forgot something down back by the window…” Claudius said, pretending to look through his bag.

The woman nodded and climbed the staircase.

Claudius turned to look at the man. “Staying in someone’s home without their permission doesn’t sit right with me. If you don’t want me here, you can tell me now. I’ll leave and you can tell your wife that I remembered a relative I could stay with.”

The man stared down at him inscrutably for a moment, a long moment of tense silence before finally speaking, “Stay.” The man said. “But if you don’t pull your weight for even one minute, on or off your shift, then you’re out of here. You don’t make my wife wash one dirty sock, or clean one dirty dish, got it? And don’t go snooping around any of the bedrooms. Doesn’t matter how good an employee you are, you snoop, and you’re gone.” The man said.

Claudius didn’t doubt it.

Instead, he shuffled his ass upstairs with nothing more than a curt nod. Mrs. Kulner was waiting for him at the top of the stairs, sweating slightly.

The upper floor was small. There were three bedrooms, assuming the other remaining door was a bathroom. Claudius frowned slightly; the bottom floor looked very well maintained but the top floor looked like it had seen better days.

“It already feels like home,” Claudius said.

The wife smiled warmly at him and guided him into one of the rooms.

He flinched as something brushed up against his leg.

It was a house cat. Completely black with bright green eyes. Something about those green eyes seemed almost familiar to him, but his sleep addled mind could not process it.

The cat looked at him for a long moment, then hissed and hurried out of the rooms.

It seemed the majority of the household was not enthused about his presence.

“Don’t mind him,” Mrs. Kulner said, “He’s a softie. Give him some time to get to know you and he’ll be like a tiny shadow.”

The room she had just cleaned out was about the size of his bedroom at home. It was bare except for a bed, dresser, and window.

Still, he let out a sigh of relief. It was free, gloriously free.

He gave the wife a smile, “Thanks, it’s perfect.”

She smiled back at him, “All we ask is that you don’t stay up too late and clear any guests with us first.”

“That’s not all we ask!” The man called from down the stairs. “No guests! No noise! No mess! Don’t eat our food outside of lunch dinner and breakfast! If you open a bedroom that isn’t yours, you’re gone. Work starts at 8!”

The woman put on a long-suffering smile, “He doesn’t mean all that. Between the two us he was always the softie.” Her face turned serious, “but please do stay out of the spare bedroom. Now then, get some sleep. You’ll need a few hours of training beforehand.”

Claudius nodded and set his bag down. The door creaked shut as the woman left.

He let his bag hit the floor and let himself fall into the mattress.

For a few moments he thought about everything. More had happened to him today than years back home He’d never been robbed before. He thought about Thorn and felt a twinge of annoyance that he apparently hadn’t made a friend yet and Ciella, he’d have to keep a look out for more thieves in the nine remaining days. He’d have to find some time to visit the school, so he wasn’t left wandering around looking for his classes. There was more, much more to think about but the exhaustion of the day caught up with him all at once and he was asleep in seconds.

----------------------------------------