The Greatest Liar

We moved toward the stairs together, but before we reached the door, she paused. She turned, her face softer again, almost pained.

“Sorry,” she said quietly. “I know the mood was... good. I just—Valray…”

“You don’t have to apologize,” I said. “She’s your daughter. Cherish the time you get with her.”

I meant every word of it, but Ravela might never know how heavy those words were on my tongue. I had a nagging sense that some things from the game would have to be maintained.

Valray still had to leave the city eventually. She had to go out there with Cynthia and the original protagonist. That group would end up saving the village that took them in, and in doing so, probably helped ensure the continued existence of the world.

With that in mind, Ravela really only had one year left with her daughter, most likely.

Ravela, still smiling like she couldn’t help it, stepped closer. She reached for me, then kissed me again on the lips. But this one was different. Slower. Tender. Full of everything she couldn’t put into words.

When she pulled back, I looked her in the eyes. “Let me hold you.”

She nodded.

I wrapped my arms around her and kissed her again, pulling her close. Her hands clung to my jacket, and I felt her sigh into the moment before we finally let go.

Then, just like that, the Ravela I knew snapped back.

“Alright, get moving, alchemist,” she said, grabbing my wrist and practically dragging me toward the stairs.

“Oh, going out there with sleepwear,” I joked, eyeing her still-damp hair and loose sleeping shirt.

“She and Meredi will both be grateful I’m not in full gear,” Ravela replied. “And Meredi won’t be able to yell at me to go put on a shirt.”

“We can have dinner with Valray,” Ravela said as we reached the bottom of the stairs. She pushed open the backroom door, continuing with a smirk, “And then we can come back here and finish what we started—”

Ravela stopped.

So did I.

Walking toward the backroom, but paused mid-step, was Meredi.

A small woven basket hung from one arm—one of those homespun ones made of lacquered strips and copper wire. It looked heavier than it should’ve, likely packed with food she’d brought for me. I was willing to bet she wanted to make sure I wasn’t going hungry after all these days I had been spending at her place.

Her hair was down today, that straight, golden hair falling over her shoulders freely. She’d scrubbed off the usual smears of oil from her arms and neck—no soot, no metal grit under her nails. She wore a black and sleeveless turtle-necked shirt and pants noticeably lacking her assortment of tools. And her expression?

Utterly neutral.

But not blank. There was a hint of curiosity in them.

I felt Ravela's fingers slowly uncurl, her arm falling to her side in the smooth, practiced motion of someone who had lied with her body more times than she’d ever lied with words.

“What are you two finishing up?” Meredi asked, her voice warm, even.

Ravela answered before I could open my mouth. “Alchemy,” she said, with a flick of her hand that was half-dismissive, half-deadpan. “Tim’s got a little list of exotic ingredients he needs. I was… gently telling him what was viable and what wasn’t.”

I nodded along. “Apparently, I’m being a little unreasonable in my requests,” I added, trying to sound vaguely indignant, vaguely distracted. “She says we need to be realistic.”

Meredi tilted her head slightly. “Right. You have been telling her you’d get back to her.” She gave a small, amused exhale through her nose. “Don’t bully her too much, Timaeus.”

“I can say no to him,” Ravela snapped back, getting a small chuckle from me.

Meredi stepped further into the shop, the soft tread of her boots audible even on the worn planks.

“It’s been weeks since I’ve been in here… I’m glad it looks more organized,” she said.

She looked around as if inspecting the layout, but I had the sense she was letting the silence stretch—I couldn’t help but wonder if she was picking up on the earlier vibe.

“You brought something?” I asked.

That got a genuine smile out of her.

“Yeah. Stuff for stew, some bread, and some of the reject vegetables Cynthia brought home yesterday.” She held the basket toward me, and I stepped forward to take it.

“Thanks, Meredi. This means a lot…”

Her smile lingered. “You’re welcome. I thought that maybe it would be nice if I used the kitchen in the back and made something for you—”

Meredi suddenly recoiled. Then she leaned in, while Ravela stood at the side.

“Is something the matter?” I asked, my heart not prepared to be so close to Meredi.

“You have a red mark on your neck,” Meredi replied, squinting with her good eye.

“Red mark?”

A glance at Ravela reminded me of it—Ravela had bitten me there.

I took a second. If I came clean about it, maybe I could make progress with Meredi somehow. Ravela’s desperate shaking of her head dissuaded me, however. If Ravela wasn’t ready for that, then I wouldn’t push it.

“Meredi, is it a bulls-eye mark?” I asked with some urgency.

Meredi stammered. “Bullseye? I’m not sure—”

“Meredi! Is it a bullseye?”

“No!”

“I was playing with bugs today, Meredi!”

Behind Meredi’s back, Ravela mouthed, “I’m not a bug.”

“Meredi, is it swollen? Can you see a barb?”

“No, no, I can’t—and it’s not swollen,” she said, rubbing her fingers against my neck.

I shuddered immediately.

“Tim! Are you okay?” Meredi asked.

“Just nerves,” I lied. She didn’t need to know that her touch made me weak at the knees. “Is it just red?”

“I think… I don’t know, it looks like there’s blood beneath the skin.”

“Blood, blood,” I muttered. “It’s probably going to be a bruise then,” I said, looking at the guilty Ravela. “Is it two distinct points of blood? Like a spider’s bite?”

“No. Multiple points,” Meredi said, calming down with me.

I let out a sigh of relief. “Okay, it’s probably just a reaction to something that got on my neck.”

“Okay…”

“Whew, you had me worried there, Meredi,” I said with a grin.

“Sorry… Erm… Were you two going out?”

My heart jumped. “Going out?” I asked.

“Yeah, Rav looks like she’s about to step out, and it looked like you were following her.”

I laughed. “Right! Meredi, get this! I ran into Valray today, right when she was coming in from the Slants!”

Meredi lit up, looked at her sister, and then me again.

“She’s going to your place for dinner!” I said.

A heartbeat later, all joy drained from her face. “What?”

Meredi grabbed me by the collar and pulled me toward the door.

“Why didn’t you say something sooner?!” Meredi barked.

Ravela let out a laugh as she followed behind us. “That’s what I said!”

“I locked up! What if Val’s waiting in the cold right now!?” Meredi continued. “Hurry, hurry, hurry; we can’t miss Val!”