"I'd heard you were back!"

Theiden shook the raindrops from his hair and smiled at the cheerful sound of Evaly's voice echoing from the back of the tannery. She emerged from behind the drying racks of skins and approached the counter.

"News travels fast," he said.

"Well, the day's almost over, so it's had plenty of time to reach me. I thought you'd never visit!" Evaly leaned in. "Truthfully, I'm tempted to just close up shop a bit early right now—with this rain, we've hardly had any customers anyway." Her brown eyes glimmered at the idea, and Theiden's spirits lifted.

"How've you been?" he asked. He'd missed their lighthearted banter.

She laughed. "I should ask the same of you! However did you escape that terrifying witch? Is it true they eat children and paint themselves with their own blood? Do they shift into beasts at night?" She shuddered. "So monstrous."

Theiden frowned and shook his head. "I'm glad to be back, certainly, but they aren't all as bad as that. They're a bit misunderstood, actually."

Evaly let out a scoff. "This from the man whose wife was murdered by them."

The muscles in his jaw tensed. "I haven't forgotten. There are evil ones," he said, "but calling them all bad is like saying everyone living in this city is a saint. And we have plenty of thieves and murderers who carry out their deeds without a spot of magic."

Evaly frowned. "You mean witchcraft."

Theiden hesitated. "Ah—yes."

She studied him for a moment, then shook her head, as though unable to figure something out. "You've changed, Theiden Guster," she said. "You've lost your fight."

"No," he said, feeling a bit annoyed by her assumption. "I've only come to realize who my true adversaries are."

Evaly raised a skeptical brow. "Don't tell me the witch charmed you into taking her side. It almost sounds like you're defending her."

Theiden stepped back. "She tore me from my family and lied to me at every turn," he snapped. "I would never defend her. Only..."

"Only?"

"I don't think she quite deserves to be attacked, either," Theiden finished after careful thought. "She means well, and despite her divisive methods protected me. It would just be better if both sides leave each other alone."

Evaly didn't look as though she believed him. "You know, more people have been disappearing as of late," she began slowly. "Just last week, Jeseth Magrippe was found near one of his hunting traps, and, well...it wasn't pretty. The witch he'd run into had made short work of him." She shuddered. "You're not thinking of continuing to hunt out there in the forest after all you've been through, have you?"

Theiden frowned again. "I have to earn money somehow, Evaly. What other options do I have?"

She bit her lip, looking unsure.

Theiden resisted a sigh. Their conversation had gone downhill once Evaly touched on topics still sensitive to him, and he had lashed out as a result. It wasn't how he had planned their meeting to go at all, and he didn't want to end on a sour note.

"Besides," he continued, adopting a lighter tone to relieve some of the tension between them, "you've got to get your supplies from somewhere, haven't you?"

"Oh..." Evaly sighed and waved a hand. "I'd resort to skinning rats and calling them beaver furs if it meant that you'd be safe."

Theiden laughed at the mental image. "That would be a tough sell."

A small smile flickered at the corner of her mouth. "Indeed."

Theiden grew serious again. "Actually, that's the reason for my visit," he said. "My family's been suffering without an income in my absence." He swallowed hard at the guilt that left an acidic taste in his mouth. "They've been starving."

Evaly nodded slowly. "I'd wondered," she said softly.

Theiden continued. "I'd like to ask for an advance," he said. "A loan, until I can pay you back in twice as many furs."

Evaly sighed. "As much as I don't like the idea of you going back outside the city gates to hunt, I can tell there's no stopping you," she said.

Theiden nodded. Thanks to Lenesa's lessons, he also knew how to better defend himself—but after seeing Evaly's earlier reactions to his stories about the witch, he figured it was best to keep silent about that detail.

"Just promise me one thing—no squirrels," Evaly said.

Theiden gave a small smile. "No squirrels."

Evaly nodded, expression tense. "All right then. Since this is a dire case, I'll pay you in advance. But you'd better hope my father doesn't find out," she warned. "And you'll need to come back with some good specimens."

"I will," Theiden promised.

He could hear the unspoken disapproval in Evaly's sigh as she pulled out the money box from beneath the counter and began counting out the coins. His fingers closed over the softly clinking metal once they were placed in his palm, and with a nod of thanks, he finally turned to leave.

"Oh, and Theiden?"

He turned back, holding the door open a sliver.

"You still owe me drinks at the Panpipe Pub, don't you?" She put a hand on her hip and raised an eyebrow expectantly.

Despite the still-brittle mood between them, Theiden felt the beginning of a grin cross his face, secretly thrilled that she hadn't forgotten. "Well, if you're still willing to go with someone who didn't show up the first time..."

He was distracted by movement at the corner of his vision, and turned to look through the doorway. A cloaked figure, just a spot of color in the distance, was running in the direction of the city gates. Dread shot to his stomach as he realized the person looked familiar, and he pushed the door open further for a better view.

Lenesa.

Then the shouts of the pursuing figures became audible.

"Stop her! Someone stop her!"

"Get her! Stop, you!"

Theiden turned back to Evaly.

"How about we decide on a time once I've paid back my loans?" he said, his words coming out in a rush. "It wouldn't be right to pay with your money, after all."

Evaly gave a thoughtful nod. "Sounds fair."

"Great." Theiden pushed the door open wider. "It's a deal then. I've got to go, but I'll see you later."

He rushed outside without time to hear her reply, striding after the figures he had seen earlier. His steps soon turned to a jog, then a full run as possibilities of what was happening whirled through his mind.

He turned down a side street, a block over from the shouts and stampeding feet. The witch was winding through the streets, trying to lose her pursuers, but Theiden took the most direct route—Lenesa was still headed for the gates, after all. After cutting through two different alleyways, he managed to get ahead, and turned in the direction of the chase as it grew ever-louder and nearer.

Lenesa turned the corner first. Her dark blue cape was flying out behind her, revealing the petticoat-less dress beneath that clung to her legs as she ran. One gloved hand gripped at her hood to keep it from sliding back, while a wicker basket jostled in the crook of her other arm as she desperately tried to pull her cape across to hide her unusual loose dress.

Her pursuers had not yet turned down the street when Theiden reached out from the shadows and grabbed her, pulling her back behind a stack of wooden barrels outside the side door of the milliner's shop.

Caught by surprise, Lenesa lashed out, a terrified gasp leaving her lips as she swung her arms and kicked backwards to throw him off. Theiden swore under his breath, narrowly avoiding the attacks. In a move he had learned from their sparring, he brought her scarred, weaker side against his chest, trapping her left arm between them so that he would only need to worry about one fist swinging his way.

The witch kicked, and he winced as her heel hit his shin.

"It's me, Lenesa," he whispered against her ear, fighting to pin her other arm down as she continued to struggle. "Calm down, or we'll be caught."

The effects were instantaneous. She stilled, just in time.  On the other side of the barrels, Theiden could hear the hurried steps of her pursuers as they ran past.

Theiden counted the sounds of three pairs of feet before he finally relaxed his grip.

"Okay," he said, voice still lowered, "I think they're gone now."

He had expected the witch to straighten up with her usual icy demeanor and brush him aside. Instead, she slumped against him, and he had to shift his weight to support her so that they didn't both fall over.

"Lenesa?" The hood still hid her face, and he slowly reached out a hand to pull it back. She was trembling. Had the chase really frightened her that much?

He sucked in a startled breath when her hood fell away. He hadn't expected the brown hair, shot through with so many shades of her natural bluish-silver that it was hardly a disguise anymore, if that was what she had intended for it to be. And as soon as he saw her face, he realized that yes, she had feared for her life. She was tired and scared—so human in that moment, he almost forgot what she really was.

"What happened?" he asked softly.

The words seemed to rouse her from her terrified stare, and she blinked, inhaling a shuddering breath and she struggled to stand up and support her own weight. Finally, she managed to speak, and a single word passed her lips.

"Decliteur..."

The name was barely loud enough for Theiden to catch it, but the panic in her eyes somehow seemed to make it louder, the word heavy as it fell from her lips.

He had never seen her like this. Lenesa had faced off against fauns and a Turned witch, but had never showed a glimmer of fear. Now, however, just the mere mention of the witch hunter had her shrinking into herself and scrunching her eyes shut like a small child with a crippling nightmare.

He felt a fleeting twinge of sympathy, but her terror still didn't negate the fact that she had lied to him, and used him for achieving her own means. He had saved her life in repayment for her rescuing him from the fauns and Audeste. Now that they were even, he should leave her to her own fate and forget about her completely.

Somehow, he couldn't get his feet to obey.

"You should leave," he said finally. "Why are you even here?"

She took a step back, cold misty air sweeping between them. He could still see the shivers that attacked her frame beneath her cloak as she leaned back against the gray stone wall behind her.

"I've already told you the answer to that question," she replied slowly. It was heartening, to hear her attempt at being her usual, stony self, as though drawing inspiration from the wall behind her. Yet her attempt still fell flat, and Theiden could hear the shakiness in her voice.

He decided to play along for the moment, and frowned, trying to remember. "It's been a while," he said. "But I suppose you did mention something about...trading with people in the city. Healing? And...the innkeeper's goats."

"Just trying to help," she breathed, closing her eyes and leaning her head back.

"You can't stay here," he said. "They'll circle back once they realize they've lost you. And the guards at the gate will have been alerted by now. You won't have much chance of slipping past them for the rest of the evening. Maybe you should wait until tomorrow—"

"I can't leave Shwei," she interrupted, eyes snapping back open with a renewed energy. "I left him out by himself, and he's waiting for me. I have to go back tonight."

"He'll end up waiting even longer if you end up getting caught," Theiden protested. "How did you even run into Decliteur to begin with?"

She let out a nervous breath. "A man named Bramthaus—his son was critically ill. There was a crowd, and Decliteur was watching. I don't know how much he knows about me, but he's certainly suspicious. He wanted to talk, but I just couldn't...I couldn't..."

"You definitely can't leave the city right now," Theiden affirmed. "If Decliteur suspects anything, he'll have alerted the guards for certain."

Though she still trembled, Lenesa drew herself up to her full height and fixed him with a glare. "Thank you for your concern, but I can take care of myself," she said.

"And this is what 'taking care of yourself' looks like?" Theiden countered, gesturing out to the street where the men had run past just moments before. Then his hands fell on her gloves, and a memory clicked into place. "And how are your hands?"

She recoiled as though burned by his words. "It would be best if we no longer interacted with each other," she said. "Pretend you don't know me. You shouldn't be associated with me any longer." Theiden didn't miss the way she fidgeted with her gloves. It was a sure sign that her hands were still covered with the markings. She had told him they were a cause of overexertion, but he couldn't help but wonder if they meant something more.

"I'll distract them," he said finally. "Stay here."

Without giving Lenesa time to reply, Theiden stepped out around the barrels, and into the street.

~~~~~~

Theiden is back, and so am I!   Lenesa is very unlike herself in this one and I'd love to hear  what you think.  Also, I've been wondering, do you have a preference when it comes to character POVs?  Do you prefer to hear from Lenesa more than Theiden, or vice versa?

Thanks for reading!