Chapter Nine

The bells ending First Day tolled and went, Riat and Tiera sleeping through them. Riat woke sometime during Second Day and looked down at Tiera as she slept. He sighed and brushed her hair out of her eyes, feeling a pang of sadness as he noticed the lines of dried tears on her cheeks. Not for the first time he wondered about her past, and gave thanks for the Night she stumbled into him. He wasn't sure he could take care of Tiera, but Riat was confidant that living in the building was better than wherever she was running from.

He rolled off the bed as quietly as he could, not wanting to disturb her finally peaceful sleep. The door creaked as he left, but Tiera continued to sleep.

There were few people awake as he wandered around. He could hear Charen and Gered arguing as he passed Gered's room, but he was unconcerned. The two bickered constantly, but always made up in the end. Lyd had found them years ago, eating the meager scraps in an alley. They had been together for longer than Riat had known them, and it had been the two against the City until the day Lyd brought them under his wing.

Gered was older and the more rational of the pair. He had dark hair and a bittersweet, melancholy smile that only Charen could make disappear. He had been beaten by his father, a fate many children of the Inner City met, and emotionally abused by his mother. Charen had come into Gered's life around the time his father died, and the two became inseparable. Charen's steady acceptance of life's twists and his ability to find an optimistic view on any situation drew Gered even closer and finally was what convinced Gered to leave his abusive mother.

They bickered over anything they could find, but rarely was it serious so as the fighting grew in volume, Riat shook his head, confidant the two would work out their problems as they always had. He marveled at the commitment of having such a long lasting relationship and was in awe of the bond the men shared. Riat moved out of hearing range and climbed the stairs to check and see if the first shift had made it to duty.

Sure enough, Zehro and Jek were sitting just inside the door of the supply room, talking, Zehro's red-haired head nodding in agreement to Jek's longwinded argument. Riat cleared his throat as he came up behind the men, startling them badly. Zehro jumped to his feet to greet Riat and Jek nodded from his seat on the floor.

"Riat! It's good to see you back." Riat smiled. "My mission went perfectly."

"You were gone longer than I was. I'm glad to hear it was a success." Zehro nodded and smiled.

"There weren't any problems. I hear you've been busy, a new recruit?"

Jek laughed. "Riat always has new orphans. That's what we all are, orphans and projects. He likes to fix people, only this time he brought a little girl."

Riat nodded and grinned. "Her name is Tiera. I'm sure you'll like her. She's about Lyd's and your age." He nodded to Zehro.

Zehro looked interested. "When can I meet her?"

"She'll be awake soon, I think." Riat looked thoughtful. "I hope you two get along, she needs all the friends she can get. Just-" He paused. "Just be careful around her, alright? She frightens easily," he finished cautiously.
Zehro nodded, slightly confused. Jek looked at the two men and smiled. "I heard she gets scared very easily. Diran was telling me about how she doesn't even like to be touched, and how Leeay made her cry." Riat nodded slowly.

"She's had a hard life."

Jek snorted. "Well that's obvious, but show me someone who hasn't."

Riat looked at him. "I suppose you're right, but show me someone who is as broken as Tiera is. I mean, you've met her."

Jek shook his head. "Weak character, is all I'm saying. Everyone has a story. Most rise above it, some don't."

Zehro looked between the men, surprised. Riat looked slightly annoyed, something Zehro had never witnessed before. Their leader was usually unflappable.

"Um-" he broke in, hesitantly. Riat swung his gaze to the younger man. "Listen, I'm sure Tiera is a nice person, I'm sure I'll meet her soon. Riat, I assume you want to see who is on the schedule? Is that why you made your way up here?"

Riat nodded, mentally collecting himself. "The thought did cross my mind. Mostly I wanted to check in with you, make sure everything went well."

"Yeah, yeah, it went fine. Here is the schedule," Zehro picked up a paper from a near pile.

Riat's eyes skimmed the times and names, confused when he finished. "Who made this, and why am I not on it?"

Zehro and Jek exchanged a look. "Arim made it, but I thought you knew you weren't going to be on duty this round. Everyone said your hands were already full and you-" Zehro trailed off as Riat's eyes narrowed.

"Where is Arim?"

As if on cue, they heard the dark man's deep voice in the hall. He entered the room as Riat opened his mouth to call, a small shadow trailing timidly. "See, girl-child, I knew he wouldn't go far." Teira nodded calmly, but Riat could see her anxiety in the way she clasped her hands behind her back. "She was wandering around downstairs, looking for you." Arim leveled his stare at Riat. "She was alone." He added pointedly.

Riat stepped over and offered his hand to the girl. She hesitated but took it, noticing the other two men. "Little Rabbit, I thought I would let you sleep longer. Are you ok?" Tiera nodded, wary of the shorter man she hadn't met. He was staring at her in a way she didn't completely understand.

"Zehro, put your eyes back in your head," Arim said lazily. He flushed the dark red color of his hair.

"H-Hello, my name is Z-Zehro." Tiera nodded again and whispered her name. She could tell Riat was upset but she didn't know what had happened.

Jek laughed. "Well, isn't this interesting." All eyes swung to him, but only Arim caught the humor.

"Tiera, if you need anything else, don't hesitate to ask, alright?"

She nodded at him and looked back to the men now staring at her. There was nothing for her to say, so she remained quiet, as she had been taught years ago. With her eyes at her feet, Tiera missed the look flash across Zehro's face.

It was close to the end of Third Night by the time Tiera had enough courage to ask Riat about the forest park Lyd had spoken about. Riat was expecting her interest in the park, but it shocked him to hear Lyd and the others knew about his sabbaticals. She mistook his surprise as alarm and all but tripped over herself to apologize, face red and ashamed.

He took her small hands to stop the flow of words. "Little Rabbit. The forest-park is just a place I go when I want to think. It's very peaceful." She nodded quickly. "Tiera, I will take you if you'd like to go."

"I don't want to ruin your forest-park, I don't know if I should go."

"I would like to take you there." Riat tipped her chin so she would meet his eyes. Her breath caught.

"I-I would like to go." She hesitated.

"We can have Lyd and Rehi, maybe Arim and Zehro come with us. Whoever isn't on duty. We can bring a sack with food and make it a Day trip. We could plan it for First Day. If you'd like," he added quickly.

"I would like to go." Tiera was rewarded with a smile.

"Wonderful. I haven't been on a picnic in years. I know the boys haven't either. Shall we see who wants to join us?"

The two made their way to the kitchen which Tiera was learning was the hub of all social activity in the building. There were countless rooms and hallways, a maze of darkness and crumbling walls, but other than the supply rooms, the kitchen was the only place large enough for everyone to gather. It was a tight fit, but the closeness the kitchen invoked helped relieve the pain of loneliness for many of the members.

Charen and Gered were sharing a quiet meal in a corner, whispering together in their own world. Teeka wandered the room, begging scraps from the men. Jek, Lyd and Tefir were gossiping while Arim and Leeay looked as if they were having a more serious conversation. Lyd smiled and waved as Riat led Tiera to the group. Only Arim noticed Leeay's blank face and how she carefully ignored Tiera.

"Tiera," Tefir spoke up almost nervously. "How old are you?"

"I do not know," she answered softly, nervously. She was uneasy to be in the room with so many people, but the boy was making her the center of attention. She had too many years as the center of the wrong kind of attention to ever be completely at ease with it again.

"Oh," his face fell.

"I'm really sorry, don't be mad at me. I-I just was never told when I was born." She kept her eyes down and ducked, as if to disappear. Riat picked up on her body language and put an arm around her shoulders.

"My best guess is Tiera's about the same age as Lyd, Diran and Zehro." To the shocked look Tefir gave and the raised eyebrow from Jek, he nodded. "She isn't as young as she looks. Sorry Tefir, you're still the youngest." Tefir made a face as Lyd laughed good naturedly. Tefir had been discovered as a very young child and grew up in the shelter of the refuge. He was constantly begging for a recruit about his same age and it became a running joke.

Tiera managed to relax at Riat's touch and gave a small smile for the boy. He smiled shyly back and turned pink. Arim noticed as he brought Leeay over to the group.

"Oh, ho ho, boy-o. Do you have a wee crush on the new girl?" The pink turned into a bright red flash and he started to stutter. "I think you do." Riat and Jek smiled as Lyd and Arim laughed. Tiera looked confused.

"Have a crush?" Her voice was hesitant and still soft, but most of the nervousness had left.

"He likes you," Lyd sang out. "Our little Tefir, growing up so fast!" He swept his arms out dramatically. Tiera still looked confused but didn't voice it.

"What's the matter, little girl?" Leeay's voice was condescending. "Still out in the dark?"

Tiera's anxiety returned in a flash at Leeay's tone. "I-I don't understand what he means. Tefir l-likes me? What does that mean?" There was a sudden silence. Tiera started to shake as every pair of eyes in the room swung her direction. "I-I-I'm sorr-rry," she whispered.

"You don't- Are you serious?" Leeay's scorn made Tiera flinch.

Riat tightened his comforting hold. "It's ok, Little Rabbit. It means he has a soft spot for you. Arim was just teasing."

Tiera looked at the boy in question. Tefir was bright crimson, his mouth hanging open in surprise. Rehi's shock was less evident, his eyes only widened. Lyd was not stunned as the rest and smiled gently while Arim looked at her calculatingly. Something flickered over Leeay's face as she turned away.

"I'm sorry," she whispered again.

"There's nothing to apologize for, girl." Charen spoke up almost lazily from the corner. "It isn't your fault you didn't know."

His words seemed to comfort Tiera and she nodded before moving closer to Riat. The others broke out of the daze they were in and Tefir and Lyd clamored for answers.

"Where were you born? Who are your parents? Where are they now?"

"Where did Riat find you? What happened to your last home? How did you get those bruises?"

Tiera shrunk away from the questions, but more so from the memories they invoked. She wasn't sure she was ready to give the answers she had.

Jek saved her with his impatient bark. "Leave the girl alone. You know better than to pelt people with questions. If she wants you to know anything, she will approach you and tell you. That is the way it is, you both know that." The two looked away, shamefaced.

Rait could see the pain in her face and pulled her into a full hug before changing the subject. "I was actually planning a picnic trip to the forest-park and we came in here to see if anyone would like to join us. It'll be First Day, so whoever isn't on duty can meet us in the front and we can head out from there."

Tefir was disappointed. "I'm on shift. So are Diran and Charen." That meant Gered would stay behind to stay near his lover. Leeay left the room without word and Arim shook his head regretfully. Lyd nodded and promised to wake up on time but his brother shook his head, explaining he would rather sleep. After extracting a promise from Lyd to inform the two currently on shift, Riat and Tiera left the noise of the kitchen.

Tiera was exhausted and fell into a fitful sleep almost immediately, but Riat watched over her, eluding sleep until his eyelids were too heavy for him to keep open