"Thanks," he said.

"If you can't go anywhere, it didn't seem right that he should." He straightened up. "I'll get my dao and we can go find this Crown Alley."

Tycho grabbed his shoulder. "Notyet," he said. "There's someone I want to see first."

Standing on top of Li's shoulders made it easy to stretch up to the window and rap a rhythm on the shutters. One-two-three, pause, one-two. Pause. Repeat. Pause. Repeat.

"Hurry up!" hissed Li.

"You're not waiting on me," Tycho murmured back. He knocked on the shutters again, a familiar pattern that he and Veseene had arranged as a code years ago. She would come-if she could. Tycho bit his lip. What if Brin had hurt her when he came last night? What if he had come past again later, seeking retribution for what had happened at the Wench's Ease? What if Veseene wasn't alone? What if There was a slow shuffling and the sound of hands fumbling with the shutters. Tycho ducked as they swung open and Veseene looked down at him. "You could have stopped knocking!" she rasped. "It takes time for me to get around!"

Tycho grabbed the windowsill, hauled himself into the cold and dark second chamber of their rooms, and swept his friend up in a hug. "I was worried, Veseene."

In spite of her harsh words, Veseene sagged against him. "So was I. You heard my warning?"

"Yes, but too late. Brin was already waiting for us at the Ease." Veseene drew a sharp breath. "Don't worry," Tycho assured her. "We got away." He moved farther into the room. A quick glance down into Bakers Way had revealed the watch being kept on the door of their building. Fortunately, Brin hadn't thought to set a similar watch on the alley behind it, the alley thatTycho's bedroom window overlooked. A chest yielded a stout rope. He knotted one end of it around a bed post and flipped the other out the window to Li. "Veseene," he asked as the Shou tied Jacer-ryl's packs to the rope, "how did you manage to cast that warning spell?" Li tugged on the rope and Tycho began to pull up the packs.

The old woman flushed. "I tripled the strength of my tea."

"You did what?" Tycho flinched and the rope slid back between his fingers. He hissed in pain and closed his hands, though not before Li let out a little curse from down below. Tycho glared at Veseene. She looked at him and raised her eyebrow.

"You're going to say it was stupid," she said stubbornly. "If it was, at least I'm not the only one who's been doing stupid things lately."

Tycho winced. "Brin," he said. He heaved the packs over the windowsill, untied them, and dropped the rope back down. Veseene looked at the packs in astonishment. "I'll tell you all about them," said Tycho, "but Brin…" He sighed and confessed. "To make extra coin, I've been running packages between Brin and Jacerryl Dantakain."

There was a squeak of surprise, but not from Veseene.

Tycho looked up sharply. Peering through the open door to the front room was Laera Dantakain.

"Bind and tar me!" yelped Tycho-just as Li put his weight on the rope. Tycho stumbled forward and slammed against the wall. This time, Li's curse from down below was louder and accompanied by angry instructions for Tycho to brace himself. The bard did, but through clenched teeth, he managed to hiss out, "What's she doing here?"

"That," Veseene said darkly, "would be one of the other stupid things you've done, wouldn't it?"

Tycho groaned and only partially at the strain of holding the rope for Li. Once the Shou had his arms over the windowsill, he let go of the rope and staggered into the warm front room. Laera backed up before him. Her eyes were defiant. Her face bore an angry red mark on one cheek where he had slapped her last night. Tycho's gut twisted. He turned away, but just came face to face with Veseene as she and Li emerged from the back room. "I sent her to a guard station," Tycho protested.

"I got lost." Laera found her voice. "A woman found me."

"Rana," said Veseene. She pushed past Tycho and sat on the couch, drawing Laera down beside her. "She saw you two at the Ease last night and when she couldn't get any sense out of Laera, she brought her here. I got her calmed down. She told me what happened last night. She also told me what else has been going on during her music lessons."

"Nothing has been going on! Nothing!" Tycho stepped up and knelt down in front of the couch. "It was just-"

Veseene's hand darted out and slapped him.

The blow wasn't hard, but it hurt him more than Tycho could have imagined. He looked down at the floor in shame then up again. He turned to Laera. "It was flirting, Laera. That was all. I'm sorry." He stuck out his chin. "Go ahead," he said, "take a shot."

Laera didn't hesitate. Her slap had more strength behind it, though, and it caught his lip against his teeth. Tycho reached up and touched his mouth. His finger came away with a spot of blood on it. He wiped it on his pants. "Better?" he asked. Laera nodded. "Good." He stood up. "Your father is looking for you."

"I know." She looked up at him. "He's already been here. It was the first place he looked."

Tycho blinked in confusion. "Then what are you still doing here?"

"I sent him away," said Veseene. "I told him I hadn't seen her."

Laera sat up straight, taking Veseene's hand in her own. "I still want to leave Spandeliyon, Tycho. I want to travel with you. If you'll have me, I want to be your apprentice."

"What?" exploded Tycho. "No! No!" He stomped around the room. "Of all the stupid "He flung himself down on the edge of his cot. Head in his hands, he told Veseene and Laera everything. Her uncle's duplicity brought another gasp from Laera, but Veseene just sat still and listened. When Tycho had finished, she gestured for him to come closer. He did.

She slapped him again and glared at Li. "Didn't I tell you he gets into enough trouble on his own?" The Shou shrugged.

"It's not all his fault," he pointed out. "It was only because he's helping me that Brin came here last night." Veseene grunted and looked back at Tycho. Her former apprentice threw up his hands.

"I'm an idiot," he said. "Go ahead. Say it." He turned to Laera. "Go home," he said. "You'll be a lot safer there. I'm not leaving Spandeliyon any time soon and I'm not even going to think about taking you as an apprentice right now. I have to go steal beljurils from one ruthless gang boss just so I have a chance at appeasing another ruthless gang boss!"

Laera folded her arms. "I don't have to leave Spandeliyon, but I'm not going back to my father's house."

Tycho stared at her in amazement for a moment before grinding his teeth together. "Bind me, you're as stubborn as he is! Fine! Just "He searched for alternatives that would at least keep Laera out of their way. "Just stay here, then. Keep an eye on Veseene. We can sort this out after I've finished getting the Hooded good and mad at me!" He rose and went back into the back room, aiming an angry kick at Jacerryl's packs in passing.

He heard Veseene's shuffle behind him a moment later. "What is it?" he snarled. "Do you really think I should take Laera as an apprentice? I'm not ready to have an apprentice of my own!"

"Actually, I think you are," Veseene said calmly. "And I think that if Laera is willing to ride out all of the rejections you've been giving her, she might make a good apprentice, too."

Tycho turned and dug into his chest. "But half of her expectations come out of ballads and romance tales. She knows almost nothing about the world outside of Spandeliyon!" He stiffened and turned around. As he expected, Veseene's eyebrows were arched high. "Don't you dare say she reminds you of a certain Spandeliyon dock rat."

Veseene shrugged. "A bard can have her roots in high town just as well as in dockside." She sat down on his bed.