It was a week following Diolla’s Moon that Alvery found himself back in Aniselle picking up Eugene Cremont’s shoes from Theo Tipping.

The streets were busy as ever around the cobbler shop despite the blistering heat that had arrived that morning, and so Alvery opted to wait in the shadowy, cool store that smelled heavily of leather and shoe polish.

“Here we are,” Theo strode up to his wooden counter with a box in hand. “Please pass along my apologies to Eugene. These took me longer than usual due to the vacationers.”

Alvery nodded and withdrew the coins the Cremont’s had given him that morning for the work.

“Not a problem. Eugene just had them done now in preparation for his anniversary in the fall.”

Theo smiled as he counted the coins Alvery had handed to him. “That sounds about right. Last year they went on a day-long picnic, and the shoes popped a seam when he had to get their cart out of the ditch.”

Alvery grinned, he could just hear Eugene’s mumbled exasperation and Eliza’s calming reassurance that such things happened…

“Have you been enjoying your stay with the Cremont’s, Mr. Robin?”

His gray eyes finally moved upward to meet Theo’s gaze.

Blinking, Alvery found the immediate answer a bit surprising.

“I… I am. I really am.”

Theo opened his register and dropped the coins in with a clatter. “They are good people. And who knows? Maybe you will find yourself staying in Aniselle indefinitely.”

“No.” The instant response and hardness of the word startled Theo who looked back at Alvery and was taken aback by his expression.

He looked frightened and fidgety… He looked how he did when he first arrived in Aniselle. Like someone was about to reach out from the shadows and cut his throat. Theo had almost forgotten that the strange newcomer to their town had ever looked like that, as he had come and gone from Aniselle two or three times since staying at the Cremont farm, and he was looking more and more relaxed and content.

Theo frowned. “Apologies. I didn’t mean to upset you, Mr. Robin.”

“No. Sorry.” Alvery reached under his glasses and picked at the corners of his eyes. “I just… I guess I was forgetting how much work I have waiting for me somewhere else and people counting on me.”

Theo’s eyes narrowed as he studied Alvery, not in wariness, but rather thoughtfulness.

“Fair enough, Mr. Robin. Well… After you tend to your business elsewhere, be sure to maybe pay a visit to the Cremont’s in the future. Eliza hasn’t been this plucky in years.”

Alvery gave a tight lipped smile and bob of his head as he picked up the box of shoes and turned to leave.

“Take care, Mr. Robin.”

Giving a wave over his shoulder, Alvery stepped out into the blistering street.

He could feel sweat prickle his skin in less than a minute as he turned to head back to the farm.

I should check the post office again and see if anything arrived today from Georgie.

Alvery felt his mood slip into darkness as he was unpleasantly reminded about his reality outside of Aniselle…

However his spiraling thoughts were interrupted when he was bumped into from behind, making him stumble.

“Ah! So sorry! I wasn’t– oh. Hello.”

Alvery looked around and found himself staring down at the young woman who had been at the cafe the other day with the old bitties– Fiona was her name.

Her pale green eyes almost appeared gray in the bright sunlight, and her dark brown hair had been pinned back elegantly. On that day she wore a beige skirt that fell just above her ankles with a dark green corset and a white, short sleeve blouse. In her arms were two books, one with a blue cover and the other red…

Alvery readjusted his glasses that had been knocked askew then gave her a small wave to signal that he was fine before he turned and started to walk away.

“W-Wait! I… I would like to apologize for yesterday!”

He stopped with his back still to her and winced. He could hear the embarrassment in her voice.

“Your mother was absolutely right to say that stuff to those women. They are the worst kind of gossip mongers to ever walk this earth… I got dragged to lunch with them against my will and really wish I hadn’t let them speak about you that way.”

Alvery slowly turned back around. He consciously decided not to correct her about the assumption that Eliza was his mother. It would help him blend into the town scenery and not stand out.

“It’s fine. I took no offense.”

“Still I… I should buy you a cup of tea or coffee to properly apologize. O-Or maybe a cake to take home?”

Opening his mouth to once again reassure the young woman that she did not need to keep feeling guilty, Alvery noticed the titles of the books she carried.

“You’re reading Jasper Mackel? Are you studying metallurgy?”

Fiona’s eyes widened in surprise. “Yes. I never thought metals would be so interesting, but I had the best professor on the matter in Scarlem… Professor-”

“Professor Billings?”

“Actually Professor Billings is on sabbatical this year, so I had Professor Vale! She is absolutely incredible! I heard when she first started learning at the university she had run away from home, so she pretended to be a boy for the first two years of her schooling!” Fiona began excitedly, her eyes sparkling.

Alvery’s heart thudded against his chest.

Georgia Vale.

Or, as she was known to him, Georgie.

“Yes, I’ve… I’ve heard of Professor Vale,” he managed to keep the excitement from his voice.

This young woman might know where Georgie was spending her summer!

He just couldn’t be obvious about asking or that could tip off someone to who he was…

“When did you study at the university?” Fiona’s question prompted him to try and maintain the conversation. Despite the topic of science, and of course his beloved university being the subject, unfortunately, Alvery knew he had to lie.

“Oh I… I never got to attend myself. I’ve just read some of Professor Billings papers and thought they were brilliant. I noticed Professor Vale’s names on some of his publications.”

“Ah, I see,” Fiona’s previous exuberance faded. “Well… he is brilliant. Professor Vale though… I can’t believe how bold she is! It’s amazing!”

Alvery did his best to smile politely. It was torture not demanding the information that could help him reach his goal and get him out of danger…

There was only one thing he could do to try and draw out the information in a natural, non-suspicious way however… and he was already dreading it.

“Did you… Erm… If you don’t mind, would you like to have some coffee and discuss more about Professor Billings and Vale?”

He felt his cheeks burn as he said the words.

Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.

Fiona smiled prettily back at him, hugging her books a little closer to her chest. “I think I would really like that.”

“Great. I’ll meet you at the cafe tomorrow for-”

A commotion down the street interrupted Alvery, making both himself and Fiona look to see what was happening.

Squinting, Alvery could see the slight, unmistakable figure of Tiaznia wearing her oversized pants, white shirt, and brown corset, running barefoot down the road, with Chief Balon following behind, waving his beat stick at her.

He watched as the peri girl darted down an alley to her left, the policeman pursuing her already far behind as he struggled with his large gut to catch up.

“I wonder what that was about,” Fiona tilted her head, her eyes wide and curious. “I thought that Peri girl wasn’t allowed in town… I know a lot of people who would leave if she starts hanging around.”

Alvery didn’t say anything.

His heart had somersaulted when he’d seen Tia, and his right hand curled into a fist as he felt a pang of guilt in his gut.

“Anyway, you were saying a time for tomorrow?” Fiona pressed while turning a wide smile to him.

“Ah… whenever works for you,” Alvery responded while forcing himself to look back at her.

“How about tea time? Ten-thirty?”

“I’ll see you then,” Alvery nodded, then started striding farther into the town toward the alley that Chief Balon had just managed to reach and turn down.

“Ah wait! What is your… name…” Fiona stared after Alvery as he speedily walked away from her.

She blinked, then gradually began turning her toes to make her way back to the house her family was renting for the summer.

“Odd… I thought he was walking the other direction when I bumped into him.”

*

By the time Alvery reached the alley, Chief Balon was already exiting while breathing heavily. He noticed the policeman was empty handed, and instantly felt a rush of relief fill his chest.

“Good day,” Alvery greeted with a nod.

The policeman waved while still gasping for breath, his face was bright red, and sweat trickled down the side of his head into his thick sideburns.

“Was there an issue with Tiaznia?” Alvery asked pleasantly.

The chief turned his beady eyes to Alvery and glared. “She was snooping around the inn. If you see her. Report her to the station.”

Whether it was because he was a man of few words, or he didn’t have the wind capacity to speak for long, it wasn’t entirely clear to Alvery as Chief Balon then turned and trudged back the way he came.

Once he was certain the Chief was out of sight, Alvery peered down the shadowed alley.

It was a small road with a dead end sandwiched between the town’s apothecary and its stationary store.

There were two crates leaning against the apothecaries stone wall and a broken clay pot, but nothing else someone could hide behind.

Frowning, Alvery continued his search. She couldn’t have gone that far…

Then he eyed the ivy growing along the back right corner of the stationary store, and the height of the wall at the end…

Moving carefully down the alleyway, he kept his eyes on the wall.

It wasn’t all that high, though it did look as though it was part of the property to the house behind it…

A rustling of the vines had Alvery freezing in his tracks.

He then watched, his heart racing in his chest as a hand appeared over the edge of the wall, then another, then a leg swung up and over, followed shortly by the rest of Tiaznia.

She dropped down into the alleyway gracelessly and stumbled briefly. She then wiped the brush from her pants, and turned toward the alleyway exit, but froze when she saw Alvery standing there.

“Everything alright?” he heard himself ask as her amber eyes glinted to a near gold as the sunshine from the street behind him reflected back to him.

She raised an eyebrow and nodded once.

“That’s good. The chief already left, but there are a lot of people on the street watching.”

Tia’s eyes moved over his head, as though she were pondering her next move, then shrugged.

With her not giving much of a response to him, and knowing that she certainly didn’t owe him one, Alvery pivoted around in order to leave.

“I wasn’t stealing anything,” she called out abruptly.

Alvery turned back around, looking at her dumbfounded. “I didn’t think you were.”

Tia regarded him quietly as he held her gaze. She appeared to be looking for a sign of deception, but when she saw his sincerity, gave a nod.

Again, Alvery tried to leave, but then… Then the questions that had been multiplying about the peri girl appeared in his mind, and instead of leaving her in the alley as he most likely should’ve, he faced her again.

“Who is your father?”

Tia straightened in surprise, then her eyebrows twitched, and a line appeared between them.

Never before had Alvery seen her look annoyed. It made her seem more human somehow. Before he had often thought of her almost as a being from another world. Her light laugh, her easy smile, her unerringly calm nature…

It also had the sobering effect of bringing back his sense of common decency.

“Sorry. That isn’t my business, and… and I’m sorry for being rude before. I just don’t think it’s safe for you to be around me.”

Tia’s irritated expression turned unreadable and she raised an eyebrow.

Alvery let out a sigh to try and settle his nerves that had been unexpectedly jostled over seeing her again, and at last managed to leave the alley and Tia behind.

Standing quite still as she watched him leave, the peri woman reached up and gently rubbed the side of her neck, her attention falling to the ground as her thoughts shifted away from being chased.

Twisting her mouth, Tia ambled back up the alleyway.

It was going to be mid-afternoon soon, and by that time many of the guests in town would retire to their rented rooms or homes for a nap. She would wait until then before making her way back to her caravan.

It wasn’t as though any of them would come and force her to the police station– they were all either disgusted by her, or afraid, and if Chief Balon returned with any of the other officers, she’d simply hop the wall again, and continue climbing through yards until she broke free of the town and could make it to the woods.

She hadn’t wanted to be chased out of Aniselle for the day just yet though… Mr. Sim usually left out a bit of food on the corner of his kitchen table near his back door which she was temporarily dependent on as some of the visitors in town had taken to scaring off the small game near the forest.

So, moving her hands to her pockets, Tia sidled over by the two pallets leaning against the wall, and plunked herself down behind them to stay out of sight for the next few hours.

Running into him here in town when I haven’t been around, and he hasn’t been around… Sarkal really must want me near him.