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Gilles shoveled a stack of frites beside the sandwich and slid the plate across the steel counter to her "Run that out to the first booth and I’ll have it ready when you get back"

Scarlet bristled "I don’t work for you, Gilles"

"Just be grateful I’ you out to the alley with a scrub brush" He turned his back on her, his white shirt yellowed froers twitched with the fantasy of chucking the sandwich at the back of his head and seeing how it corandma’s stern face just as quickly infiltrated the dream How disappointed she would be to come back home only to find that Scarlet had lost one of theirthe plate, Scarlet stormed out of the kitchen and was nearly bowled over by a waiter as soon as the kitchen door swung shut behind her The Rieux Tavern was not a nice place--the floors were sticky, the furniture was a mismatch of cheap tables and chairs, and the air was saturated with grease But in a tohere drinking and gossiping were the favorite pastimes, it was always busy, especially on Sundays when the local farnored their crops for a full twenty-four hours

While she waited for a path to clear through the crowd, Scarlet’s attention landed on the netscreens behind the bar All three were broadcasting the saht before Everyone was talking about the Eastern Couest of honor and where a cyborg girl had infiltrated the party, blown up so queen … orto assassinate the newly coronated emperor Everyone seemed to have a different theory The freeze-frairl with dirt ses on her face and strands of damp hair pulled from a messy ponytail It was a mystery how she’d ever been admitted into a royal ball in the first place

"They should have put her out of her misery when she fell on those stairs," said Roland, a tavern regular, who looked like he’d been bellied to the bar since noon He extended a finger toward the screen and h her head And good riddance"

When a rustle of agreeh the nearest patrons, Scarlet rolled her eyes in disgust and shoved toward the first booth

She recognized Éhter immediately, partly due to an array of scars and bruises on his olive skin, but er in the tavern He was more disheveled than she’d expected fro, with hair that stuck out every direction inaround one eye Beneath the table, both of his legs were jogging like a windup toy

Three plates were already set out before hi salad, and untouched slices of to at hiaze shifted and collided with hers His eyes were unnaturally green, like sour grapes still on the vine Scarlet’s grip tightened on the plate and she suddenly understood Éh the crowd, she deposited the sandwich on the table "You had le croqueloud or gruff as she’d expected, but rather low and hesitant

Maybe Éht Maybe he really was shy

"Are you sure you don’t want us to just bring you the whole pig?" she said, stacking the three e back and forth from the kitchen"

His eyes widened and for a moment Scarlet expected him to ask if that was an option, but then his attention dipped down to the sandwich "You have good food here"

She withheld a scoff "Good food" and "Rieux Tavern" were two phrases she didn’t nor ers fidgeted with the straw in his drink and Scarlet could see the table beginning to shake fro up the dishes But then she paused and tipped the plates toward him "Are you sure you don’t want the toarden The lettuce too, actually, but it wasn’t wilted like this when I harvested it Never mind, you don’t want the lettuce But the tohter’s face "I’ve never tried them"

Scarlet arched an eyebrow "Never?"

After a hesitant lass and picked up the two slabs of tomato and shoved them into his mouth

His expression froze mid-chew He see "Not what I expected," he said, looking up at her again "But not horrible I’ll order some more of those, if I could?"

Scarlet adjusted the dishes in her grip, keeping a butter knife fro off "You know, I don’t actually work--"

"Here it co an excited lanced up at the netscreens They showed a lush garden, flourishing with ba from a recent downpour The red warrand staircase The security ca shadows that stretched out into the path It was beautiful Tranquil

"I have ten univs that say soirl’s about to lose her foot on those stairs!" sohter from the bar "Anyone want to bet me? Come on, what are the odds, really?"

A irl appeared on the screen She bolted froarden’s serenity with her billowing silver gown Scarlet held her breath, knohat happened next, but she still flinched when the girl stumbled and fell She crashed down the steps and landed aardly at their base, sprawled across the rocky path Though there was no sound, Scarlet iawked up at the doorway Shadows cut across the stairs and a series of unrecognizable figures appeared above her