They headed to the safe house—or what Suthe assumed was the safe house—just as the sun was sinking behind the mountains. She still wasn't sure if she had understood Nem Koel's explanation correctly—after all, the girl did have a bit of an accent. The clockwork hour? Maybe it was just the time Suthe had spent in Sylterra, but to her it sounded more like an event one of the Forgeborough guilds would celebrate.

Yet between the steely gaze in Nem Koel's eyes, the firm set of Ulsper's jaw, and the ever-darkening sky above, there seemed enough concern about the harmless-sounding clockwork hour to give Suthe cause to worry. So she hurried after the spy and the soldier, down narrow dirt alleys that twisted between dark houses with chipped paint and grimy windows. Some residents were lighting the lanterns that hung from the eaves of the buildings, and the softly-glowing colors swayed in the wake of their passing. The evening might have been serene, if it wasn't for Suthe's niggling worry about the mysterious clockwork hour and whatever it brought with it.

Nem Koel's words had given Suthe reason to be wary of anything even slightly box-like, and so she cautiously kept an eye on a wooden crate near a shopkeeper's doorway as they passed.

Both the mining explosions and the cannons from the military base had grown quiet, and as the cool of evening crept in, it brought with it the sound of voices, weary from a hard day's work, that buzzed in the streets and echoed from open windows and doors.

Suthe scurried to catch up to Ulsper's side.

"Isn't anyone besides us worried about the clockwork soldiers?" she asked in a raised whisper.

"Not if they're not fugitives like you and me," he replied steadily.

Suthe bit her lip. "What will happen if we get caught?"

Ulsper spared her a glance from beneath his hood. "Pray we don't have to find out the answer to that question."

"It's here," Nem Koel suddenly said from in front of them. She pulled on the brass ring of a dark wooden door set in a dirty gray stone wall and ushered them through.

The door led down a short tunnel that opened into a small gravel courtyard lined with short bushes. The high stone from the outside wall ran made up the courtyard wall as well and ended at the black-tiled house at the far end of the yard. The house was small, old, and brown, with another dark-paneled door and a single window at the center of the second floor covered by a black-fabric shade.

"Inside, hurry," Nem Koel urged from behind Suthe's shoulder. The girl crunched across the gravel and slotted a key in the lock at the front door, wiggling it once before the mechanism unlocked.

The sky was almost black now. While Suthe was still standing in the courtyard, looking around, Ulsper strode past, took her wrist, and pulled her after him. Though she protested his grip, it was only once all three of them were inside and the door was locked that he finally let go.

Suthe huffed in irritation and stepped back, opening her mouth to complain, but then she looked around and the words died on her lips.

The house had looked old and worn from the courtyard, but inside it had an almost magical appearance. Though the roof had looked like worn, black tile from the outside, now that she was indoors Suthe could tell that several windows had been set into the center of the ceiling to let in daylight. Ceramic pots with crawling vines hung by twine nets from ceiling beams, the greenery tumbling down to nearly reach the balcony that ran around the upper floor of the building. Two doors were on either side of the upper floor, but the front of the house had no doors and the back of the balcony was only for the stairs.

In the center of the first floor, two long wooden tables with benches basked in the last of the light coming in from the windows. The floor was made with a wood that matched the tables and benches, but was mostly obscured by several rugs. Like the upper floor, there were two doors that led to rooms on either side of the house, but Suthe could also see that there was a door at the back, beneath the staircase. There were also two shelves of white ceramic bottles to the immediate right of the door they had just entered, and upon closer inspection, Suthe determined that they were bottles of alcohol.

"What is this place?" she asked, still gazing around. The sound of trickling water reached her ears, and she looked around one of the pillars supporting the balcony, trying to find the source. Incense, like that in Alaera's apartment, permeated the air. The whole place seemed to Suthe like a garden sanctuary hidden from the busy, dirty streets outside.

"It used to be a small martial arts training school," Nem Koel explained. "But it lost business after the Rebel King took the throne and was abandoned until a few years ago."

"And now?" Ulsper asked.

Nem Koel shrugged. "General Yenh's sister-in-law bought it and fixed it up as a place for travelers and military trainees to stay. Well—she says that, but personally, I don't think she gets enough business to keep it open." She leaned a bit closer to Suthe and Ulsper and whispered, "I think she trades some things that aren't very legal."

"What kinds of things?" Suthe asked, but Nem Koel only gave a nervous look around the building.

"Um, the other rooms are empty right now, so let me take you to where you'll be staying," she said, ignoring Suthe's question. Suthe turned her puzzled gaze to Ulsper, and he slowly inclined his head in the direction of the ceramic bottles on the shelf beside them.

Nem Koel took them straight to the back of the building, to the door beneath the stairs that led to the second-floor balcony. As they crossed the floor, Suthe began to notice the dust that rose up from the carpet and the light gray film that covered some of the plants and paintings on the walls. Nem Koel, she realized, hadn't been exaggerating about the lack of visitors to the establishment.

The door beneath the staircase led to a hallway with two more doors, and it was the farthest one that Nem Koel opened, ushering Suthe and Ulsper into a small room with a raised wooden sleeping platform on one end and a small window at the very top of one of the walls. It was only once a pair of feet passed by that Suthe realized this part of the building was below ground level, most likely built into a hill that ended with an alley on the other side.

"This is the best place for now," Nem Koel explained, more to Ulsper than to them both, Suthe noticed with a bit of irritation. So what if she wouldn't have been able to tell the difference between a safe room and an insecure one? She was staying here too, wasn't she?

"Thank you," Ulsper said, but there was something flat and clipped about his reply.

Nem Koel nodded, not catching the changed tone. "Okay. Stay here, I'll be back with some food and bedding."

As soon as the door clicked shut, Suthe approached Ulsper.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

He raised a brow at her. "Nothing's wrong," he replied. "What makes you think that?"

Suthe frowned, wondering if she had been mistaken. But she continued. "You just didn't seem satisfied with something when Nem Koel asked," she explained. She had heard that kind of response a few times at the bakery, when the celebratory cake or pastry decoration hadn't turned out exactly the way a customer had imagined, but the person would insist that it was fine anyway. Suthe and her mother prided themselves on customer satisfaction, and worked hard to try to get the order just right.

"I just prefer high places for a hiding spot," Ulsper explained after a moment. "But we don't have much choice in this case. That's all."

Suthe let out a breath that sounded a bit too much like a scoff to be polite. "I thought you were going to say something like Nem Koel was leading us into a trap to betray us to the Imperial Guard!" But heights? That was what he was unhappy about? Of all the concerns to have right now...

Suthe let out a sigh of relief and sank down to the sleeping platform. Then again, Ulsper's fondness for rooftops had allowed him to sneak through Sylterra without getting caught, and had helped her escape from Alaera's apartment when the soldiers broke in. Maybe it wasn't such a far-fetched worry, after all.

Another thought occurred to her, and she put a fist beneath her chin. "It's a bit weird about the general's sister-in-law, isn't it? Did you see all the dust? This place is pretty, but it's barely used!"

Ulsper didn't deign to reply, but pulled back his hood and took off his cloak. Suthe began to do the same, but a sudden realization hit her and she suddenly jumped up.

"Wait a minute!" she said, staring wide-eyed at Ulsper, who had tensed at her sudden reaction. "We're not both staying here, together, are we?"

The spy paused, then turned to look at her over his shoulder. There was something akin to disbelief on his face.

"Are we?" she pressed, when he gave no reply.

That prompted him into motion. Ulsper took a step forward, then another. Suthe stumbled back until she hit the wall, and still the spy kept coming towards her. She scrunched her eyes shut as Ulsper reached up—and closed the curtains of the window over her head. Behind closed lids, Suthe could tell how the room immediately darkened, the only source of light now a small oil lamp near the far side of the sleeping platform.

Outside, a heavy bell began to ring. Suthe counted each toll, focusing on her breathing. The sound stopped after the sixth peal, but Ulsper still hadn't moved. This close to him, Suthe could smell the leather of his jacket and a faint trace of cedar—perhaps remnants from the barrel they had been leaning against on the steps by the brothel earlier.

"Is there something the matter with that?" Ulsper finally asked, his low tone breaking through the stillness between them. Slowly, Suthe cracked open her eyes and met his gaze. He was too close—she could see the stubble along his jaw and noticed a small white scar, just beneath his chin.

"Well, I mean, we hardly know each other, and we're not..." Suthe felt heat rush to her face and trailed off, embarrassed to explain further.

"I was thinking that you would sleep there—" he nodded towards the platform beside them, "and I'd sleep across the room, by the door." He sounded so calm about the matter.

Suthe bit her lip, unsure. She had never had many friends, especially male ones, and so the time she had spent with them was very limited. Now, stuck in a room with—well, not a friend, exactly, but a male at least—felt awkward to her. "But I hardly even know you!"

"I'm not depraved, Suthe," he said, letting out a breath and stepping away. "And I have just a few other things on my mind at the moment, mainly how we can find some answers tomorrow and avoid Kalasha and the rest of the Guard during our stay."

It was a fair point. Embarrassed, Suthe nodded, and Ulsper returned to the far side of the room.

"So we're safe from the clockwork soldiers here?" she asked after a moment, hoping the change in topic would lessen the awkwardness between them.

He sat down on the floor cross-legged, and began searching through his canvas rucksack.

"Yes."

"Are they really that frightening?"

Ulsper looked up at her. "Maybe you'll get to see one. But as long as you're a fugitive of Montmyth, pray it's only at a distance."

Suthe edged closer. "Have you ever seen one?"

Ulsper busied himself with polishing one of his daggers—she couldn't be certain, but it looked to Suthe like the one he usually kept in his boot. "Twice. The first time, at least, there wasn't a warrant for my arrest."

"And the second?" Suthe prompted. She knew she was prying, but couldn't help her curiosity—she felt almost like the children in Crestdune who would press their noses to the bakery window to get a better look as she and her mother pulled the fresh sweet rolls out of the oven.

Ulsper glowered down at the blade in his hand. "The second time, I nearly got handed over to the Rebel Court."

He didn't say anything else, and Suthe bit her tongue to keep more questions from spilling out. The clockwork soldiers sounded frightening, but—

"You want to see one, don't you?" Ulsper said. He was looking at her again. The dancing shadows cast by the dim oil lamp in the corner of the room made it difficult for Suthe to tell just when his attention had flickered from the weapon in his hand to her.

"Well..." She was curious, but she didn't want to admit it. They had bigger problems to worry about, for sure.

"I'll show you one, then," Ulsper said.

Suthe's eyes widened. "Really?" She felt a small smile begin to spread across her face.

"On one condition."

Suthe cringed. That didn't sound too good. "Which is...?"

"I'm back!" There was scarcely a pause between the knocking on the door and the opening of it as Nem Koel returned, bearing blankets, cushions, and some spare clothes. She entered the room with a satisfied smile, oblivious to her interruption of their conversation.

"Nem Koel," Ulsper began, "Would you be willing to teach Suthe some of the basics of Andilirish meditation?"

Nem Koel dumped her cargo on the sleeping platform and looked at him, then turned to Suthe. She seemed a bit surprised at the sudden question, but not averse to it, like Suthe had hoped.

"Well, yes, I suppose," the girl replied. "I have late mornings before midday break free, so I could stop by."

Suthe couldn't help but groan. "Ulsper, I already said—"

"Thank you Nem Koel," Ulsper interrupted. "See you in the morning, then."

"Uh..." Nem Koel looked back at Ulsper, a bit unsure at his abruptness, "Right. Well, goodnight! Nice to meet you both."

She left the room after a final backwards glance, and Suthe was once again left alone with Ulsper.

Suthe took a breath and tried again. "I told you earlier that I don't—"

"Then what's the alternative?" Ulsper asked. He wasn't angry, like Suthe had expected him to be. Instead, his voice was soft and calm, and her protests sounded impulsive and angry in comparison.

"I—"

"You could have disappeared today," Ulsper said. "You've had luck in the past with your abilities, but that doesn't mean you'll always be so fortunate. You need to learn control, or else you're just as much a danger to others as you are to yourself."

"But—"

"Nem Koel will be able to teach you other things as well. Ask for some self-defense lessons. It won't deter a clockwork soldier, but it might help you escape from some thugs in an alleyway."

Suthe thought back on the three men who had approached her earlier, next to the brothel, and suppressed a shiver. Ancestors forbid it, but he was right.

"All right," she said. "It's a deal, then."

Ulsper settled back down in his spot against the wall and began cleaning another knife—they all looked so similar, Suthe couldn't tell if this was the one he kept in his sleeve or at his belt.

"Deal," he said.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

So a few weeks ago I wrote ahead and saved up a few chapters.  Now I get to post, which is fortunate since I haven't had time to do any writing lately.  Enjoy!