That morning, for the first time in months, Ana woke with an arm around her. She almost managed to convince herself that she hadn’t missed the feeling, but it was no use pretending. Messy’s warmth and soft breathing lulled her back to sleep for a moment, but then she told herself that it was time to get up. Ana had never been one to just stay in bed.

  She still just lay there, enjoying the comfort of Messy’s presence until Messy woke on her own.

  True to her word, Messy hadn’t asked for anything. She’d lent Ana a night shirt, and they’d gotten into Messy’s small bed, the taller woman wrapping her arm around Ana from behind. No demands, no wandering hands. Just the warmth and the soft pressure of another body giving them both a sense of safety and comfort, two things that Ana hadn’t let herself think about how much she’d needed. Judging by the soft light coming in through the window, she’d slept for hours more than normal.

  She heard Messy’s breathing change, and felt her shift behind her. Then a nose in what remained of her hair, a deep breath, and a quick, soft kiss on the back of her neck.

  “Ah. Sorry,” Messy croaked sleepily. She pulled back, but her arm stayed where it was.

  Ana gave her hand a squeeze. “‘s all right. Don’t worry about it,” she said, and rolled onto her back so that she could look at the woman whose bed she shared. Messy’s hair was a mess — some of the braids were coming loose, and others were kinked. And her thick eyeliner was worse, half on the pillow and the rest smeared.

  Ana failed to suppress a snort, which triggered a familiar, clenching discomfort in her belly.

  “What?” After a second Messy brought the heel of her hand up, wiping at one eye and looking at it. “Aw, shit, I forgot to wash my face last night, didn’t I? I must look horrible.”

  “You’re adorable,” Ana reassured her. Then, “Sorry to do this after just waking up next to you, Mess, but I’m gonna need some advice.”

  She’d known it was coming. She’d been in the splinter a little over two weeks. Maybe the newness of everything had distracted her. Maybe her Attributes and the constant magical healing had helped. But now, undeniably, she felt the first harbinger cramps coming on. Her last period had ended a week before she came through, so this was pretty much right on schedule.

  She had a pad and two tampons in her purse. Those were for emergencies, with the expectation of being home soon, or finding a corner store anywhere within a five minute walk. And while she knew, intellectually, that women had dealt with this very problem for about two and a half million years, she was not sure what to do.

  Thankfully, she had Messy to help her out. And magic, apparently. Thank — who? The Wayfarer? — for that.

  “If you don't want to just grin and bear it, the midwife can help you out. You know her? Touanne?” Messy said, after offering to take Ana to the seamstress who made the best of what was basically primitive period panties, padded and washable. Not anything Ana looked forward to, but beggars and choosers and all that.

  “Oh, yeah, sure. There’s magic for that?”

  Messy looked at her like she’d just said something adorably dumb. “Ana, the Craft of Life deals entirely with the body, and in my experience well over half of all Life mages are women. Of course there’s magic for that! Anyway: Touanne can help you with the pain, bloating, stiffness, any discomfort really. She’ll charge if you’ve got money to spend, but fair enough, right? We’re a couple hundred women in the splinter, after all. She wouldn’t have time for anything else if it was free, and she’s not the only Life mage here. She’s got potions, too, so I usually just keep a couple of those at home. Need one?”

  “Not yet. Thanks. I’ll be visiting Touanne anyway, so…”

  They quickly redid Messy's braids, just two big ones to save time. In exchange, Messy joined in as Ana did her morning exercise. Ana went light so they wouldn’t build up a sweat, which was getting easier as her Attributes increased. Then they had a quick breakfast at a nearby inn — sandwiches of freshly baked bread and cold meat, with tea. They talked a little, and then Messy had to go to work. Which, of course she did: that was how most people lived their lives. Just because Ana had never worked a job with regular hours in her life didn’t mean that everyone was so lucky.

  “Hey, step in for a few minutes,” Messy said as they left the inn for Master Renvi’s shop. “I never had a chance to give you those ear studs.”

  “Mess, you don’t have to—”

  “I know,” Messy cut her off gently. “But I want to. I meant what I said: they’ll be beautiful on you, and I want to see it.”

  Ana didn’t argue any further. She couldn’t tell if it was Sense Motive helping her or not, but she really didn’t think Messy had any motives besides what she’d said. If the woman wanted to give Ana a present for saving her life back in the Delve, why not let her? Besides, she was curious about what a thunderstone might look like.

  The door to the shop was unlocked. As they entered Messy said, “Mornin’, Master Renvi!” and a man looked up from where he sat behind a counter. Master Renvi was a lanky, sallow-faced [Themion Master Jeweler (24)], sharing Kaira’s almost but not quite human features. He was wearing a magnifying eye-piece, and smiled, wide and shark toothed, when he saw them.

  “You’re later than normal, girl!” He said to Messy, then faced Ana. “Which is still earlier than she needs to be in, I keep telling her. You must be Miss Anastasia Cole!”

  “That’s right,” Ana said, giving Messy a questioning look before approaching the counter and offering her hand. Renvi clasped it, wrist to wrist. His hands were long-fingered and looked delicate, but were wiry and deceptively strong.

  “Glad to meet you. I’m Renvi. The girl’s been talking about you since she came back from that Delving she loves so much.”

  “Yeah?” Ana smirked at Messy, who rolled her eyes. Ana noticed the tips of her pointed ears going red, though.

  “Oh, aye. Thanks for keeping her alive. A skilled and reliable assistant is hard to find, especially out here. Now, I’m glad to have met you, Miss Cole, but I need to get back to work.” He released Ana’s wrist, and she did the same, allowing him to sit back down. “Whenever you’re ready, Mestendi. Take your time.”

  “Won’t be a moment, Master Renvi. Ana, I’ll be right back,” Messy said and rounded the counter, disappearing through the door behind it.

  The store was similar yet different to the jewelry stores Ana was used to. There were pieces on display, though nowhere close to the quantity you’d see in any store back in London. Rather than prices, most items were marked with price ranges — from a few silver to dozens of gold pieces or higher — and possible variations, suggesting that these items were mostly for display.

  “Master Renvi?” Ana said, and the man looked up.

  “Hmm? Oh, don’t you start with that ‘Master’ business. Mestendi insists on it, and I can’t be bothered to get her to stop, but please don’t you do it, too. Did you want something?”

  “Renvi, then. Are most of your sales to order?”

  “Aye! Sometimes we sell a display item, but I prefer to tailor an item to the intended wearer. And picking the individual stones to be set is half the pleasure of buying a new piece, don’t you think?”

  “I never even knew that was an option, to be honest.”

  “Ah, you poor, deprived creature. Come back whenever your heart desires, and we’ll find the right stone and the right setting for you.”

  “Here we are!” Messy came back, her whole being alight with excitement and her eyes somehow even brighter than normal.

  “Ah, those would be the thunderstone studs, then,” Renvi said without even looking at what Messy was holding. “How many times did you reset those this past week?”

  “Master!” Messy blushed furiously.

  The thunderstones were aptly named. They reminded Ana of white opal in how they had a deep luster, but instead of being pearlescent they were a hundred shades of silver and gray with streaks of blue, white and gold inside, resembling a thundercloud with flashes of lightning. And Messy had been absolutely correct. When she looked at herself in the shop’s small mirror, the studs were beautiful on her. She wore them out of the store.

  This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

  She left Messy to her work with a smile, a hug, and a plan to meet for lunch at the square, followed by a haircut. It was still early, but Ana had things to do.

  Her first stop was the outfitter’s. She wanted a bag that was larger than her purse but smaller than her pack, and the outfitter had her covered. She’d seen it when she’d been there with Ray a week before. It was sold as a harvesting bag and made of something like burlap, had a simple harness instead of straps so that it could go over both shoulders, and only cost her a couple of silver. Not stylish by any stretch of the imagination, but very practical. From there she went to the seamstress Messy had recommended, though she had to wait in the morning sun for a few minutes before the woman arrived. She left with a promise to return in the afternoon to pick up her… necessities.

  She had two larger purchases to make. The first was a replacement for her bent and buckled shield. She’d managed after the boar revenant destroyed her buckler — it had still been possible to hold, functioning as an improvised, oversized knuckle-duster — but she needed a new one. The other was a new weapon. Ray’s axe had felt a lot more natural to use than the sword, and it just seemed to do more damage against the demons. Swords were good at making things bleed, sure, but an axe was much better at breaking bone and cracking skulls, which was a lot more effective at ending fights against an enemy that could seemingly bleed for minutes before slowing.

  Perhaps it would have been better to go straight to a weaponsmith, but Ana didn’t know any of them, nor did she know quite what she was looking for. So instead she went to the Exchange, where she’d bought the buckler in the first place.

  “Miss Anastasia Cole!” A cheerful voice greeted Ana moments after she’d stepped through the door. The place was empty except for her and the same clerk she’d dealt with last time she was there with Tor.

  “Morning. Yildim, right? How are ya?”

  “Right as can be now that you’re here,” he said with a huge smile that did nothing for Ana. “I’m glad to see you back. How did that armor hold up for you?”

  “It kept me alive and comfortable. Probably wouldn’t be here if not for it.”

  “I can’t tell you how happy I am to hear that, Miss Cole. Now, how can I help you this morning?”

  “I need a new shield and weapon,” she said. “I got my buckler chewed up by a demon and I’ve decided swords don’t work for me. I’m thinking, something more like an axe.”

  “Something like? Does that mean you’re not decided?”

  “I borrowed a battle-axe of some kind recently and it had a spike on the back. I liked that, too. Something a little, I don’t know, more direct than a sword.”

  “Well, we certainly have some options there. Though if you’re willing to forego the shield you shouldn’t discount swords, either. A greatsword might be more your style, if cut and thrust isn’t for you. It’ll still cut, of course, but it has a lot more mass than a regular, one handed blade.”

  “I’m sticking with the shield, thanks.”

  “As you say. Well, we’ve got a selection of shields in stock, as well as hammers, maces, picks, and axes. A flail or two as well, but those are an acquired taste. For the shield, do you want something like the buckler I sold you?”

  “Something similar, yeah. It worked well until I sacrificed it.”

  “Right, that makes things easier. I’ll bring a buckler and a few weapons, then.”

  The buckler Yildim brought out was nearly identical to the ruined one, and Ana suspected that it was some kind of standard pattern. The weapons, though, were a mix of spikes, hammer heads, axes, and some things that were basically just lumps of metal on a shaft; those would be the maces, she guessed. Some had a single business end, some had a front and a back, and of those most were a mix of two types of weapon.

  One of them especially caught her eye. The shaft was maybe twenty inches long, the grip wrapped in leather wide enough that she could grip it comfortably with two hands if she wanted to. The last eight inches were reinforced with steel in one piece with the head, of which one side was an axe bit much like on Ray’s weapon, and the other a faceted lump of metal the size of a ping-pong ball. “Mind if I get a feel for it?” she asked Yildim, touching the grip.

  “Go ahead!” the man said. He didn’t even take a step back.

  Security here, Ana decided, was absolutely shit. Or maybe people just didn’t usually rob each other in a little community like this, separate from the rest of the world. That would be easier to believe if she hadn’t been forced to kill two men who assaulted her on the road on her first day here, but it was still a nice idea.

  For all the metal at the end of the weapon, it felt surprisingly light in her hand. It was even more top-heavy than Ray’s weapon, with a longer shaft and more steel, but the bit was thin enough to reduce the weight a bit. Giving it a few practice swings, she soon found its balance, and she could see herself chopping and smashing very effectively with it.

  “Gotta tell you, Yildim, I like the feel of this.”

  “I thought you might! How does four gold for the weapon and the buckler sound?”

  Ana laid the weapon back down on the counter. “Sounds like you’re trying to screw me again, Yildim. Two gold and I’ll throw in the old buckler. Maybe you can sell it for scrap.”

  “Three gold, six silver, and the buckler.”

  “Two gold and four.”

  Yildim looked at her, an appraising look that she countered with a bored one of her own. “Two gold and ten. You throw in the buckler, and I throw in a proper belt loop for the weapon and a hood for the bit.”

  Something, probably her Negotiation skill, told Ana that she was unlikely to get a better deal, and not to push it. She offered her hand. “Deal.”

  Ana left the Exchange a little poorer, but with a new shield and weapon in her bag and a notification calling for her attention.

  She smiled. With that she knew that she’d done well in that deal, and she’d even been rewarded for it! She couldn’t wait to try out her new weapon, either. She didn’t look forward to it adding to the blisters that Ray’s axe had given her, though.

  Ana finished up her morning by heading to Touanne's. Her cramps had been slowly getting worse, and while she was pretty sure now that her Attributes made the constant, grinding ache easier to bear, she’d never been one to just accept pain if she could do something about it.

  “Oh, yes, of course!” the Healer said when she asked. There had only been one other customer there, so the wait was thankfully short. Touanne was in the front that morning and had complimented Ana’s new earrings when she came in, both of which Ana took as good signs. “I just need to lay my hand on your stomach. Do you want to go in the back, or…?”

  “That’s all right,” Ana said, hiking up her shirt. Then as Touanne put her hand on her and that blessed, soothing warmth spread through her belly she continued. “So, Messy said that there's a charge…?”

  “Oh! Usually, yes, if I know that you can afford it. But if you buy a couple of potions I’ll waive the fee. You’ll probably want them, anyway, if you’re going to be going out more. A silver each, and each one has enough it should get you through the week. There. Is that better?”

  “You’re a lifesaver, Touanne.” Over-the-counter painkillers had nothing on Touanne's instant relief.

  “I do my best.” Touanne smiled, but there was a sad tilt to it. “Was there anything else?”

  “Just thought I’d check in, see how you’re doing. Where’s Tellak?”

  “In the back, with Jay. Jay’s been a little restless, so Tellak wanted to sit with her and see if that would calm her down.”

  “And you? How’re you doing?”

  “Better, I suppose. It still hurts that I can’t help Jay, but I’m hopeful that there might be something in the book. From what I’ve been able to piece together, it deals with summoning victims and transforming them into those things that Tellak and the others faced, though I can’t tell for what purpose. I suppose they summoned their victims to make their crimes easier to hide.” Touanne closed her eyes and swallowed hard. “Horrible, really. But I’ll keep working on it.”

  “Yeah, please do. I’ll see you tomorrow, yeah?”

  Ana turned to leave, but stopped when Touanne said, “Wait! Will you practice drawing mana today? Tellak told me about your accomplishment yesterday.”

  “In the afternoon, yeah. Why?”

  “Will you go to the treeline to do it?”

  “That’s the plan.”

  “Do you mind if I come with you?”

  Ana’s eyebrows slowly rose. “Uh, I guess not? I’m meeting Messy at the square at noon for food and then,” Ana ran her hand through her much-abused hair, “she’s taking me to get this dealt with. But I can come by here and pick you up on the way out, sure.”

  “Thank you. I’ll see you an hour or two after noon, then?”

  “Yeah, see you then. And seriously, thank you! I don’t know how I survived thirteen years of this shit with no magic.”

  That got her a pleased smile from Touanne, accompanied by a pulse of something that Ana could only call satisfaction. “I really am glad that I could help. Bye for now!”

  As she left, Ana thought about that pulse of emotion she’d felt. It had happened a few times now; if she understood it correctly, it only happened when someone with a high Connection didn’t suppress what they gave off. And Tellak had commented on Ana herself broadcasting how pleased she’d been through her aura when she managed to connect with the mana beneath her feet.

  Ana had no idea how to suppress anything. That meant that anyone who was strong enough would likely be able to read her if she felt anything strongly enough, and she absolutely hated that. She was definitely not going to be increasing her Connection Multiplier until someone taught her how to stop broadcasting her feelings to anyone who might be listening.

  She’d have to ask Tellak or Touanne the next time she talked to them. Or Kaira, once the expedition got back in.

  As she made her way toward the square, way too early to meet Messy but with nothing she had to do, Ana grinned at how excited the woman was going to be when she heard that Ana should be able to use Earth magic. She wondered if Kaira would actually catch on fire, or blow something up.

  It should be a fun conversation.

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