You can read the previous chapter here!
“Well, she was seen running in this direction, so if you see a girl matching that description, be sure to let us know,” said the guard wearily. “You have a good night now, sir.”
“Thank you,” said Cedric. “You as well.” He closed the door as the guard turned to walk away. Without turning, he said, “Heather.”
Heather popped her head out from the next room where she’d been hiding. “Thanks, Dad.”
“Heather, this is the second time a guard has come asking after you,” he said, turning to face her. “You are only eight years old and already public enemy number one. I don’t know how long I can keep hiding this from your mother.”
Heather’s temples burned. “Sorry, Dad.”
Cedric shrugged. “I mean, what are you getting up to out there? First it was stealing food, now it’s snatching coinpurses–what’s happening to you?”
I’ve been stealing food for as long as I’ve been allowed outside, she thought. I started stealing coinpurses because one coinpurse is several meals. It’s more efficient.
“It’s hard to explain,” she said, holding her hands out to him as though to demonstrate her innocence.
“Well, you better try,” said Cedric. “I want to know why my one and only daughter is becoming a little criminal.”
Because you can’t feed me! she thought furiously. She felt a tear spring to her eye.
Cedric flinched. “I’m sorry, sweetie. I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings. I just want to know–is it something we’re doing wrong? Me and your mother?”
Heather considered. Mom hates me. You do whatever Mom says. Where’s the problem?
The door swung open and Lily swept inside, a faded leatherbound book in her arm. “Look what I found!” she said, excitement radiating off of her.
“It’s a book!” said Heather, feigning excitement.
“Well, obviously it’s a book,” said Lily. “But it’s the book that’s going to save this family. It’s a book about raising troublesome children.”
“Now, Lily–” started Cedric.
“No, I’m afraid the time has come for real change,” said Lily, waving him off. “I didn’t realize how complacent I had become until I heard this man speaking on the corner. About how small things in children turn into big things in adults. Our little Heather needs some drastic action now, or who knows where she’ll end up?”
Cedric shook his head, then looked at Heather. He glanced back to the closed door and hung his head. “Maybe you’re right,” he said.
“Excellent,” said Lily, sitting down and opening the book. “We start by setting expectations. We’ll decide on those tonight and present them to her tomorrow.”
Heather felt a great discomfort, the kind she had come to associate with the sense she wasn’t wanted around. She turned and went to her room, closing the door and leaning her ear against the wood.
“How much did this book cost, anyway?” asked Cedric.
“I’ll work a little extra,” said Lily. Then, a moment later: “Or we’ll feed her less for a few days.”
“That’s not funny,” said Cedric.
“Who says I’m joking?” replied Lily.
Heather stopped listening and went to her bed. She got in and lay in the dying light of the day until eventually, she slipped into fitful sleep.
—
Heather ran from her house as the first rays of the sun rose over the city. She had crept from the house before her parents had woken up, and she planned to be gone for as much of the day as she could manage. She bumped into a middle-aged halfling woman carrying a large pack.
“Good morning, little one,” said the woman. “Are you from around here?”
“Yeah,” said Heather. “Aren’t you?”
“No,” said the woman, chuckling. “I was born far away, on Afira. My parents traveled far away from our homeland, and now that I am midway through my life, I wanted to go home and see where I truly come from.”
“Isn’t Afira far?” asked Heather.
“Very far,” said the traveler. “Most halflings will never see it. And I will say, Afira is beautiful. But it’s a harsh beauty. Everything has a sharp edge, in a way. It’s not like this place. Gods, I could look around all day. It’s so . . . natural here,” she said, gesturing around them.
“Uhhh . . . I guess so,” said Heather. She looked at the sloping trees and wide expanses of water. She shrugged.
The traveler laughed. “Maybe one day, you’ll see it.” She shifted the pack on her back. “I’m looking for the capitol. Do you know which way?”
Heather nodded vigorously. “It’s that way,” she said, pointing down a wide street, “then left at the fork in the road, then left again at the bank.” Heather smiled. “You’ll see it–it has big red banners.”
The traveler eyed Heather suspiciously. “How old are you?”
“I’m eight,” said Heather proudly.
“Why do you talk like a grown-up?” asked the traveler. She seemed more intrigued than actually suspicious, which relaxed Heather.
“My dad says that I’m a good listener, and I understand new ons,” said Heather proudly.
“New ons?” asked the traveler.
“Like, little details and complicated things,” explained Heather.
“Oh!” said the traveler, snapping her fingers. “Nuance!”
“That’s what I said,” Heather insisted.
The traveler laughed. “Well, you have a good day now.” She shifted her pack again and made down the wide road that Heather had indicated. “Wish me luck,” she called, waving goodbye.”
Heather turned and walked the opposite way down the road, playing a game in which she had to follow people for as long as possible without being seen. “Spying,” as she called it. And as she followed a young man with a very colorful coat, she stopped short. To her right was a shop she had never seen before. It smelled awful, but she could hear the faint sounds of animals inside, and she stepped inside without hesitation.
Inside was a collection of cats, dogs, birds, lizards, and a few snakes. Heather immediately gravitated toward the kittens and reached for a calico.
“Ah ah ah–no touching if you can’t pay,” said the shopkeep, an elven man with a bandana wrapped over his head. “You don’t look like you’re fed enough to feed an animal anyway,” he added. “Get out of here.”
Heather turned and stalked out the door. She thought of calling him something nasty, but she was struck by a better thought: Stay on good terms with him–I may need him later. She blinked in the sunlight and set out for another adventure.
—
“No one has ever heard tales like these!” shouted the crier. “From far reaches across the world–stories from as far as Strey, Myriad, even Afira! Places you’ll only hear about! Step right up and secure your right to these exotic tales!”
Heather watched as people passed the crier by. At his feet was a box of scrolls, and he wore a large, dusty grey cloak despite the late spring warmth. Heather timed her approach to avoid colliding with the stream of foot traffic and stepped up to the crier.
“Where’s Myriad?” she asked politely.
“Why, it’s between Strey and Afira,” said the young halfling man. “With lots of sea in between.”
“What’s it like in Myriad?” she asked.
“There are dwarves and humans everywhere,” said the crier. “And there are forests and huge cities and some of the biggest ports in the world,” he added seriously.
“Wow,” said Heather. “Are there halflings?”
“Uh . . .” said the crier. He glanced around. In a much quieter voice, he said, “Look kid, I ain’t ever been there myself. I’m just trying to sell these scrolls.”
Heather nodded. You could lie about a thing and sell it. Even better than stealing coinpurses.
“Can I have a scroll?” she said.
“Do you have three silver?” he asked, ridicule in his tone.
Heather scowled and looked down. “No,” she said.
“Then move along, kid,” he said. “Exotic tales!” he cried out again. “Stories from everywhere you’ve ever wanted to go!”
Heather left the crier and headed further away from the city’s center. She and her family lived in the area where the proper city becomes the outskirts of town, and she was headed past the center and even further away from home. Gradually, neighborhoods became more thickly wooded and narrower, only strips of houses between the steep forest and the sea. Once it was truly only houses without any interesting shops to speak of, she glanced up at the sun. It was just past halfway through its arc through the sky. She turned and headed back toward the city center.
She was just coming to the proper center of the city when a large cart loaded down with goods came rolling towards her. She stepped out of the way, but a mounted halfling stepped in front of the ox pulling the cart, frightening both animals. This upset the cart, which sent several items flying off the back. Shovels, lanterns, and rope fell off the back of the cart, clattering on the cobblestones. Heather watched. You could lie about a thing and sell it, she though. She stepped forward and began placing shovels and rope back onto the cart.
The cart driver turned and saw Heather reloading the cart. “Thank you, miss,” he said. “Let me know when it’s all ready to go again.”
Heather loaded everything but one lantern, which she placed between her feet under her skirt. She thumped the back of the cart. The cart driver snapped the reins, and the ox pulled it away. When the cart was gone, Heather grabbed the lantern and ran off, giggling the whole way.
—
Heather was standing on a street corner between vendors, a clothier on her left and a fletcher on her right. “Magic lantern,” she called out. “Magic lantern, never goes out!” People walked by, shaking their heads or chuckling. “You can see how the metal is shaped, it’s part of the magic!” she insisted.
“It’s a bullseye lantern, you idiot,” said a passing bearded old man. “It’s not magic.”
“It is so!” cried Heather. “You buy it and use it tonight, you’ll see!”
She frowned. Bullseye lantern. Fine. She picked the lantern up and walked several blocks before setting it back down and beginning again.
“Bullseye lantern,” she called from between a butcher and grocer. “It’s better than a normal lantern!”
“Hello again, little one!” said a voice. Heather turned; it was the traveler from earlier.
“Hi,” said Heather. “Did you find it?”
The traveler smiled. “I did. Thank you. The red banners were easy to spot.”
Heather smiled. “See? I said you would see it.”
“And you were very right!” said the traveler. “What are you doing now. Is that–are you trying to sell a lantern?”
“Not just any lantern,” said Heather boldly, “it’s a bullseye lantern.”
“Wow,” said the traveler, seemingly impressed. “You know, if you need to sell a lantern, I could use one,” the woman added.
Heather narrowed her eyes at the traveler. “That’s very convenient.”
The traveler laughed. “Do you not want to sell it?”
Heather smiled. “Yeah, I do want to sell it. It was just strange.”
“Life is strange,” said the traveler. “How much?”
I could live off a silver for almost two weeks if I’m careful. “Three silver,” she said after consideration.
The traveler raised her eyebrows. “That must be a mighty fine lantern.”
“It’s a bullseye lantern,” repeated Heather.
The traveler sighed. “You’re so skinny,” she said as if to herself, her eyes sad. “Okay.” She reached for her coinpurse. “Three silver for your bullseye lantern. But don’t spend it on anything silly.”
“I promise I won’t,” said Heather truthfully. “Thanks!”
“Hey, what’s your name?” asked the traveler.
“Heather,” came the reply, along with a demonstrative curtsy.
“Heather, I hope that life smiles on you,” said the traveler.
Heather froze. Why is this lady so nice? “Um, thanks. Uh, you too?” she managed after a moment. She turned and ran away, deep into the marketplace. She had one more thing to do before returning home.
—
Heather pushed the door open with her shoulder. She held a large platter of food: a carved ham, fresh fruits, and a loaf of dark bread. She stepped down the hallway and was about to come into the kitchen with her bounty.
“I just don’t know what to do with her, Cedric,” said Lily. “We decide to lay down the law with her, and she disappears. How are we supposed to do this if she’s going to be impossible? And get worse every year?”
“Now Lily,” said Cedric, “you’re talking about our child. Heather is a handful, but she’s not a monster.”
“Cedric, you don’t get it,” said Lily flatly. “We had a perfect child. We lost him. That was a punishment for something. Then we got her. That was another punishment. We have to start doing right, or the punishment is only going to get worse.”
“What are we being punished for?” he demanded. “If we deserve to lose a good child and suffer a bad one, what have we done to deserve that?”
Heather winced. Bad one.
“I don’t know,” said Lily, defeated. “I just don’t know. But I can’t deny it anymore.”
There was a moment of silence. Heather seized the opportunity. She swung into the room, the platter before her.
“Surprise!” she said happily. This will make them change their tune, she thought. “I brought extra food for dinner!”
Cedric looked surprised and somewhat pleased, but her mother looked disgusted.
“What did you do to get this?” Lily demanded. “What have you done?”
“I helped someone when I was out today,” said Heather. “They gave me money. I bought some food.”
“Why should I believe that?” asked Lily. “If you won’t even follow my simple rules, why should I believe you did good for someone? Especially when you lie like you do.”
“I’m not lying!” lied Heather. “I’m not lying!”
“Say it all you want,” said Lily. “I’ll never believe you.”
Cedric seemed to shrink into his chair. He looked sadly at Heather. He shifted slightly, or perhaps he shrugged half-heartedly.
“No go to bed, young lady,” said Lily. “No dinner. And tomorrow, you’re going to take me to return everything you stole.”
“But I bought the food!” said Heather, placing the platter down on the table.
“Just stop,” said Lily. “It hurts me that you do this.”
Heather slumped her shoulders. She turned and went to her room.
Inside, she didn’t listen at the door. She didn’t want to hear what else her mother had to say tonight. Besides, something else was going on in her head. Something small but persistent. She slipped the remaining money under her mattress. What is this feeling? she thought. Like I’m empty? She flopped onto her back and stared up at the ceiling.
One day, I’m going to go so far away from here that she can never find me. And then we’ll see what you think.
You can read the next chapter here!
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