When Andrea awoke the next morning, the events of the previous night came flooding back.

She lumbered to her feet and dragged on her pants but hesitated to put on a shirt. A touch to her stomach made her wince; it was still tender, but it didn't hurt as much as the situation she had gotten herself into the night before.

Is this what might happen to me if I try for a wish?

She selected the loosest long-sleeved shirt she could find and dressed. With reluctance she gave the command for a mirror and checked herself over. Everything seemed fine. Everything but the miserable look on her face, but there wasn't much she could do about that.

The interface hidden against the wall beside the mirror flickered to life after a series of gentle taps. Andrea checked her message in-box. It was a foolish thing to do; any and all messages would flash on an interface in her vicinity. The interface was dormant, so that meant no messages, but Andrea checked regardless. She had sent out several ads in hopes to spark the interest of a possible suitor.

Nothing. No takers.

She had a poor reputation, just like Queen had accused her of the night before.

For the love of the Colony, can't I ever live this bad image down? Fool around with a few servants, and suddenly you're considered subhuman.

Rather than lament her past mistakes further, she sighed and made her way out.

When she opened the door, she found Tanner leaning back against the railing. The E rested with hands in his pockets, his head hung, and his feet spread to support him. Andrea let out a soft gasp.

The E's bald head snapped up. Tanner said something, which to Andrea's ears meant nothing, but the voice was sincere. They stared at each other for some minutes until Tanner groaned.

In one quick motion, the dud E took Andrea by the arm, which was thankfully covered by her shirt, and dragged her down the hall on the right. When they came to a stop in one of the smaller corridors, Tanner clapped his hands together. His big brown eyes were pleading as he spoke.

"I'm sorry," Andrea answered. "I don't understand what you're saying."

Tanner gazed at her for a moment and motioned for her to lift up her shirt.

The very idea had Andrea stepping back, but the wall was an impediment. She remembered her new, leaner body, and that calmed her enough to comply.

As soon as the shirt was up, Tanner stepped closer. He put his left hand against the wall and drew Andrea's body near. At first he raised his hand, but then he lowered it. Then he raised it again.

Tanner was focused on the wound, but Andrea was focused on him. The E was warm, his body so hot that Andrea let the heat bathe her.

Andrea was excited by their proximity; rarely had someone stepped so close to her without a hint of reservation. She was more excited about the prospect of the E wanting to help her, seeking to help her. Tanner was trying to make amends. An action such as this was not one Andrea was familiar with.

Whatever Tanner was doing or trying to do, it took him a great deal of time, so Andrea studied him, from his clean smell to his hairless frame.

Tanner's body was smooth. He had some freckles along his collarbone, and as the E loomed close, she tried to ignore Tanner's right hand holding her waist. Rather than focus on the man's hips pressing against hers, Andrea fought to keep her mind elsewhere.

Their close proximity afforded Andrea a better view of Tanner's bald head; his tanned skin; the look of determination on his furrowed brow; the defined muscles of his broad chest; the very power of that brawny figure. Those hard pecs twitched, and Andrea wondered if the hairless condition reached everywhere, if the man's entire body was bare.

Andrea couldn't remember the last time someone had taken such interest in her. Her knees trembled.

When Tanner leaned away to give her a curious look, Andrea realized that she had been breathing heavily. The E's brown eyes scanned her, and when the man took a step back, Andrea suffered yet another bout of humiliation for the umpteenth time that week. She'd broken out in a sweat, face burning hot, and, as embarrassing as that was since Tanner could see why, she was all the more mortified by the fact that she couldn't calm down.

That curious look should have made all intimate thoughts fade, but Andrea found herself wanting to hold Tanner's waist, to drag him close again.

Her appreciation was misplaced because Tanner groaned then backed away.

"Scheisse!"

Still struggling to calm, Andrea watched the E march down the hall. A few minutes later, when he returned with Queen, Andrea had no trouble losing all sexual interest. Queen just had that effect.

Sober and defeated on many levels, Andrea waited for them to converse before Queen let out a soft sigh and stared at the wound. He didn't so much as bat an eye; he just glared at the injury. Andrea's stomach tingled, and she looked down to see the skin around the burn close in on itself. It was eerie, much like her flesh zipping together until it was whole, the wound mended.

Queen grumbled all the while. "At least you knew better than to try to heal it yourself and maybe stop this poor idiot's heart by mistake."

Once that was complete, Queen looked Andrea in the eye.

"I'm gonna tell you this for the last time, rich rot. You even think of putting your hands on Tan again, and the next burn isn't going to close up. I'll see to that. Are we clear?"

Andrea swallowed hard and nodded as she turned to walk away. When she heard them follow, she took note of the fact that Queen answered Tanner in German instead of English for the first time.

***

Back at the office, things were awkward. Or rather, Andrea felt awkward. She decided to be steadfast and just mind her work. Rather than drive herself crazy, Andrea devised a plan: ignore him. It was easy. Just ignore Tanner. Sure, they were sitting side by side, but she was determined to get through the school year with her head held high. Why, for the life of her, she even found herself in a situation with this E when the one she wanted was with Rene, she wasn't sure.

E's are unpredictable and...and besides, you can't pay him for a wish; no telling what would happen, she scolded herself. And what's up with that hip-to-hip thing? Was he trying to suggest something? I don't even know how to sleep with E's, so it's not like we could fool around.

As soon as she thought it, she closed her eyes and banged her head against the table.

You idiot. Look who you're thinking about in bed. The gaw-ro outcast. And not the cool type who's in a band and smells funny, either.

She growled at herself.

"Guten Morgen."

Sitting up in record time, Andrea tried to focus her vision as Tanner sat down, giving her a sincere smile. She wasn't sure what to make of it, but that smile was addictive because she found herself smiling in return and speaking before she could stop herself.

"Good morning."

When the E bowed his head and went to work on his own interface, Andrea gritted her teeth in self-loathing. Her body was abuzz, and the warm and fuzzy sensation got the better of her.

"So much for ignoring him. What was that, a full twenty seconds?"

"Bitte?" Tanner turned to focus on her, giving her his undivided attention. Andrea froze. Even her grandfather, who had often been busy training students privately, had never given her such consideration.

Tanner stared at her and tried again in English. "Please?"

The word made Andrea smile and she decided to give the only German word she knew, too: "Was?"

Brow furrowed Tanner grinned. "Please?"

"Was?"

They both chuckled.

"Can I get in on the joke, too?" Kobal's voice drew their focus, and Andrea noticed just how fast Tanner turned and went back to work.

"Good morning, Mistress Andrea. How are you today? I'm terribly sorry about yesterday. How about we try again tonight?"

"Tonight?" It sounded like a date. Andrea decided to ignore the fact that the man would be bringing his girlfriend—fiancé, whatever—it was still an invitation of sorts. "Sure!" She hadn't meant to sound quite so enthusiastic, and she glanced to Tanner but calmed when she saw the bald E working. "Um...seven o'clock is all right?"

"Yes, of course. Please excuse me," Kobal said.

Kobal turned to look over Tanner's shoulder, and Andrea took the red-headed E's long body in. He was slimmer than Tanner, which wasn't hard because Tanner did look like a sculpture come to life. But Kobal was toned and wiry.

Andrea tried to get some work done.

Kobal held her interest, but after the man left, she found herself waiting for Tanner to say something. Didn't they just have an almost intimate—but mostly creepy—moment this morning? Could they go back to being strangers? Granted, it was more like girl meets dud E, girl gets burned by dud E, girl gets fixed by dud E's mean brother. Now...?

She muttered under her breath to herself. "Girl gets ignored by...E."

Language barrier or no, she didn't want to say "dud" for fear there was a German word close enough for Tanner to recognize it.

The E in question stopped and turned to her. Andrea knew the man couldn't understand, but the fact that he took notice made her curious. Tanner turned in his chair to face her, and Andrea studied the attentive expression.

You can't even understand me. Why do you even care what I have to say? With a shake of her head, Andrea hurried to explain, "No, no. I didn't say anything."

Tanner still waited, and Andrea decided to take a page out of Gulliver's book. She made an x with her fingers, and the meaning translated enough.

Still silent, Tanner nodded and turned back to his work. He didn't say much—maybe he didn't have much to say—but Andrea was curious about the man's motivation. She had nothing that the E would want, so she wondered if Tanner was simply friendly. Having a friend wouldn't be a bad thing—they were in short supply. Language was a problem, though, because she didn't know what sort of person the man was. She found herself typing in an equation wrong, her face red with guilt as she noticed what she was doing. She had zero willpower to stop herself, and she turned to Tanner and tapped his shoulder, careful to keep from brushing against the man's skin.

As he'd done before, Tanner paused and turned to her. Andrea sat back and nodded forward, indicating the interface. She gave her best imp-pup eyes with a pout, and the man laughed in response as he leaned over to see.

While Tanner was busy looking at the code on the interface, Andrea was busy looking at him. She didn't know why she'd thought of E's as delicate. Everyone who'd ever seen a few knew most were anything but. But as hard as Tanner's body was—and by the Colony it was a hard and solid body—he had a softness to him. From a distance he might have appeared menacing, but up close he was somewhat dashing.

It's a shame you don't have any hair, though. You might be attractive with it. Not just for the E thing either....

Tanner finished, sat up, and bowed. Andrea looked at the code and froze. It was different from the answer she'd calculated. "No," she found herself groaning. Don't be a dummy. Please don't be stupid. I'm not the brightest, but you can't be stupid, too. Come on. That answer is wrong.

And it was, as far as Andrea knew.

It was one thing to seek friendship with a man who couldn't communicate; it would be another to be flattered by a fool. Tanner sensed her displeasure. The E reached across for a sheet of paper—an action that had Andrea screaming internally—and begin to scribble.

Once he was finished, he pointed, step-by-step, at the math formula he'd written out. Andrea nodded with each tapping of the silver pen, and once Tanner had finished, she gasped.

"Holy shit...." The E had been right. That prompted a wave of relief to surge through Andrea, and for once she ignored the fact that she herself had made a mistake—something that she rarely forgave herself for—and focused more on the fact that the E was smart. He had a head for numbers, just like Marian had said. Hell, just like their supervisor had. "Danger averted."

She sat back in her chair and caught sight of Tanner's smug smile and wink before the E turned back to his own interface again with a soft, "Bitte—please."

"Thank you."

Lunchtime came too soon, and Tanner was gone for the day. Andrea couldn't believe how her entire body shut down in response to being alone. It had been fun pretending to communicate with the E; maybe that was what she'd missed. That didn't matter. She had bigger things to focus on—like dinner with Kobal.

***

The mission onto Kobal only lasted until 6:45, when she got another message saying the man had to cancel.

This time around Andrea had been bitter, so bitter that she worked until midnight before going to seek her dinner. She wanted to physically feel bad, and she certainly did.

Tanner sat waiting for her at the table again. The look on his face said it all: he was pissed.

Andrea stopped at the doorway, wondering what she was expected to say. Did they have an agreement or a rule or something? Had she accepted an invitation to dine with the man without realizing it? Hell, at this point, she wondered if bitte or please or whatever actually meant "Do I have permission to drag you into a tunnel and have my way with you?" The thought made her pause, and another thought occurred.

Instead of respecting Tanner's anger, Andrea lit up with ire. Blowing up wasn't her usual response; she was sure her voice was calm, but Tanner must have sensed something because the E's own anger faded to a look of unease.

"So what? You're looking for a laugh, huh? Did somebody put you up to this, or are you just being a dick? You think I don't know what everyone says about me? That they call me the easy conquest? Do you think I care?" She bit out through clenched teeth, "And for your damn information, you bald bastard, I don't deserve to be treated like shit, not by Kobal and certainly not by you either. Is there a sign affixed on my back saying I advocate being everybody's punching bag?"

Tanner sat up, his once-sullen expression softening, but whatever he uttered, though gentle, made Andrea bitter.

"I don't care what you're saying. It's bad enough I'm stuck being a joke. I don't need to be made fun of by the likes of you, too." She hung her head, finally. "It was just a few times, and I was stupid for doing it, and now everyone thinks...." She worried her lip, and she knew her face was bright red as she confessed, "Okay, the fellatio was more than just a few times, but I don't sleep around. I'll have you know that."

By the time she was finished, panting and trembling, Tanner stood. The E indicated the free chair, his long arm stretched out toward it, and Andrea sat down in a huff. "Why can't even one thing go right?"

Tanner pushed the soup and bread toward her, and she felt sick at the thought of it.

"I don't want it," she said.

There seemed to be no other alternative than to sit there wallowing in her own self-pity. The sound of Tanner choking drew her focus.

With a scowl as if he'd eaten hair or something just as unpleasant, Tanner tried to bring another piece of bread to his mouth. Eventually, he gave up and put it down. He pushed the tray to Andrea with more urgency, and Andrea watched with disbelief as the man took out another piece of paper from his back pocket and took a bite of it. With a firm nod, Tanner sat back with his arms folded and gestured to Andrea's tray.

Andrea didn't have anything to say, but her own smile blossomed—and it wasn't only because of seeing the man eating actual paper, never mind that it was paper that cost more than the earths Creator would have charged for it. It was the way Tanner pretended Andrea hadn't just had a meltdown by herself.

Tanner wasn't serious about eating the paper, though, and after he finally spat most of it out, Andrea smiled and decided to eat the soup.

While she was eating, she kept her head down. A gentle rapping caught her focus, and the sight of Tanner twirling the drumsticks in his fingers made her smile. She liked the way it looked. Tanner caught sight of her, pursed his lips in thought, and started to play against the table.

Andrea refused when the man offered the sticks. "No. I...I don't play instruments." She knew how it must have sounded. "I mean, I'm a music teacher, but...I...I don't play anything." As soon as she admitted it, she felt like shit all over again. "Which is why she's valid in threatening my title."

Tanner sat fidgeting his leg. After hesitating, he offered the paper, a large portion of it uneaten, then motioned Andrea to put her hand on it as well.

"Please."

His eyes were gentle and Andrea, who never had the power to say no when someone wanted anything of her, complied.

They stayed there, both with their hands on the paper. Tanner stared at it. After five minutes, Andrea was tired, but the paper caught fire in the center, and Tanner sat back with a satisfied smile. He picked the burning paper up and crushed it in his fist. Once he opened his hand to see the flame dancing on his palm, he nodded.

"Gut." He looked Andrea in the eye and smiled. "Danke."

The way he said it was sincere enough, but Andrea asked, "Are you just using me as a match or something?" Tanner gave her his usual blank look, and Andrea said, "Never mind."

With his hand making a fist, Tanner exhaled. Once he saw that the flame was gone, he dragged his chair close to Andrea and offered the drumsticks.

"No," Andrea insisted. "Really. I can't. I can't play anything." The gentle nudging of her arm made her smile. "Man, you're pushy. All right, all right. But it's...." She thought about saying it was late, but then she took in Tanner's close proximity again—so close that the E's warm shoulder grazed her own—and her entire body responded with a twitch. "I guess another hour won't hurt."

***

The next night Andrea was both relieved and startled to see Tanner waiting for her at the table. His body hunched, Tanner busied himself with something.

As Andrea neared and saw that it was a craft of some kind, she groaned to herself. "More? Are you gaw-ro kidding me?" She decided right then and there to put a stop to this waste; it was getting to be too much now.

Andrea opened her mouth to say something stern but polite, but Tanner's tender brown eyes settled on her, and Andrea forgot how to speak

When Tanner adjusted the paper heart on the tray, Andrea smiled in spite of herself.

"Night," Tanner said with a smile.

The longer Andrea waited before speaking, the shakier the smirk was. Andrea looked around the room, scanning their surroundings for any possible ridicule that might lay in wait. Till now she thought of Tanner as good-natured but she reminded herself that this was a very smart and talented E working for crumbs—an E uninvited—taking suspicious interest in their school with no apparent gain. Eventually, Tanner hunched his shoulders and looked around as well; his exaggerated mockery made Andrea chuckle.

"Evening to you, too," Andrea said, and sat. Tanner was sweet, she realized. Why can't Kobal be like you? She muttered under her breath, "Or why can't you be like Kobal?"

Tonight Tanner accepted the soup Andrea offered and even managed a few sips before he inched it back to Andrea little by little throughout the meal. Instead of watching Andrea eat, however, he eyed the paper heart.

Andrea smiled to herself and nodded to it once she had finished eating. "You want to set that thing on fire, don't you?"

Tanner focused on her, and the sullen expression on his face suggested he wanted to understand every word Andrea had uttered. Rather than frustrate the man, Andrea picked the heart up. Everything in her said not to waste the paper, and although she did like the craft, she held it out.

With a small smile of appreciation, Tanner took hold of the other end and let out a long exhale. The E's breath ignited the paper; a blue flame flickered against the white. This time around the flame was more impressive. When the fire danced on Tanner's fingers and traveled up the man's arm until it reached his shoulder, Andrea felt a pang of worry.

The flame shrunk and faded, absorbed into Tanner's fist. Tanner revealed his palm, and the fire that burned there flickered for a few seconds before disappearing. The E exhaled in satisfaction and closed his eyes as he brought his fist to his lips.

"Ja. Endlich."

Andrea was ready for him this time. With a freshly loaded German-to-English dictionary on her mini-tablet, Andrea typed in the unfamiliar word. "Finally? Finally what?"

Tanner gave her a pleasant smile and handed the drumsticks over.

Aghast, Andrea raised her hands and refused. "No. No. Honest. I can't."

The way Tanner's smile fell made Andrea regret ever having refused, but she didn't take the words back.

Tanner raised his hands and brought one up and then down again, showing a scale.

Andrea studied his action for some time until she came to a conclusion. "Balance? Pay? You want to pay me? For what? For giving you fire?" She felt silly talking to herself when she received no answer. Rather than stay there staring at the man, who would only stare at her in return, Andrea stood to leave.

She made her way to the door and heard the dud E say, "Pay. Ich pay."

"Really," Andrea said, turning to give him a smile, "I really don't need anything."

"Pay." Tanner jumped to his feet and held up his hands to usher Andrea back in her seat or at least to stay put while he hurried out the door. "Pay. Ich pay. Warte."

Andrea consulted the diskette again and nodded. "Wait. Right. Wait for what?"

To Andrea's surprise, the dud E returned with an acoustic guitar in hand. As impressed as Andrea was with the replicated wood of the instrument, she was more interested in what Tanner had in mind.

"Are you going to sing?"

Tanner gestured to Andrea and mimed playing the guitar.

"A guitar lesson? Oh, no. No, that—"

"Tan?" Queen's voice carried from the hall.

"Scheisse," muttered Tanner under his breath. He held the guitar up and looked around, searching for a place to put it. Eventually, he put it on the table. His finger to his lips, he said, "Shh."

Andrea stood watching him. She thought the man meant to use the System to leave because he pressed his back against the bare wall. Instead of sinking in, however, Tanner rubbed his hand against the smooth gray surface. The wall liquefied. As if he were pulling on a blanket, Tanner yanked the putty-like substance and wrapped it around himself.

He faded from view and Andrea was struck dumb.

"Tan?" Queen rushed in. He calmed at the sight of Andrea. The expression on the green-haired E's face suggested that he wanted to ask something but hesitated.

Rather than continue staring at the wall where Tanner hid, Andrea cleared her throat and turned her attention to Queen. "Good evening. Can I help you with something?

Queen raised his right eyebrow, his eyes settling on the guitar on the table. "What's this? You've upgraded your burglaries from mere drumsticks to bigger instruments now? I've got a harmonica in my pocket; do try to let me walk out of here with that much."

Chewing her bottom lip to keep from saying something she might regret, Andrea paced herself and asked flatly, "What is your problem with me?"

"I don't have a problem with you," Queen answered. "I have a problem with Tan wasting his time with you." He turned and walked out, saying over his shoulder, "I shouldn't waste mine, either."

A few minutes after Queen left, Tanner yanked the wall from his body and gasped. He had trouble putting the surface back where it had come from. Each time he put the substance back in place, it fell forward. Eventually, he got it right.

Though Andrea was annoyed, she didn't leave right away.

Tanner sat down with the guitar in hand and pointed to Andrea's open chair. "Pay," he said. He began to strum a tune.

Andrea glanced to the open doorway and then to Tanner's confident smile. She sat down to spite Queen.

***

The following day started out rough. Andrea chided herself for being so careless, but the night before had been one of the best in a long time. Now she was late for work. The idea of giving Marian more ammo made her sick to her stomach, but she almost felt it was worth it.

She'd spent most of the night with Tanner. They hadn't talked much. Tanner had played song after song at Andrea's request. It had been rocky at first, but once Andrea had called up the title on an interface and the System played a sample of the track, things had gotten easier. Eventually, Tanner chose the songs on his own. Some were in languages Andrea couldn't place, but the melodies were nice enough.

Having had relationships that were largely in her own head on more than one occasion—friendships and otherwise—Andrea was always suspicious of the motives of anyone who might want to be close to her. Hell, Reed had been a prime example by the looks of it; somehow she'd read Reed wrong. Therefore Tanner made Andrea curious. In all her searches for classified E information, Andrea had not encountered any documents that said E's might have interest in Yules—humans without extra abilities—such as herself. Though suspicious about Tanner, she was also smitten by the attention.

To indulge in this foolishness would be a mistake. She had decided to keep her distance, so she cursed herself for dabbing on some perfume. She didn't need perfume—she didn't wear perfume—but she felt compelled to put some on today, the most expensive one she had. She was set. With pep in her step, she hurried to work. When she got to the office, though everyone else took note of her hurried entrance, Tanner didn't look away from his interface.

With an air of caution, Andrea sat down. She decided to just focus on her work. Tanner sniffed, then sniffed again and coughed.

The action had Andrea sitting up, eyes wide. "Oh shit."

Kobal walked in, wearing a sheepish grin. "Good morning. I'm terribly sorry about yesterday—"

"Something's wrong with him. Is he sick?"

They turned to watch as Tanner sneezed again and again. "Oh dear," Kobal said, taking in a deep breath. Eventually, he sighed. "Mistress Andrea, you do smell lovely. But...I'm afraid you might be causing this reaction. Tanner doesn't have a high tolerance for synthetics."

"Synthetics?" Andrea yelped when Tanner decided to remedy the situation on his own. With a sneeze, the E pushed on Andrea's chair, distancing them. At first Andrea was embarrassed, but Tanner's teasing grin calmed her. Once the man made an x sign with his fingers, Andrea chuckled. "Sorry."

Tanner wafted at the air and gave the thumbs up.

"Gut." He drew a fake box with his hands, and they both laughed. "No move."

"Don't move." Andrea grinned. "All right. I'll stay in my quarantine zone."

They laughed between each other until Andrea caught sight of Kobal's frown. The red-headed E tried to play it off. "I'm...I'm glad you two are doing well." His deep blue eyes studied Tanner. "Since when have you been trying to use the Common? English usually gives you difficulty."

Tanner ignored him, turned away, and started to work.

Andrea took note of his actions. Having a romp with Tanner had been fun. Andrea thanked her new body size for that. She was sure the E, dud or not, wouldn't be as inspired to be playful if she were just regular ole out-of-shape Andrea.

When the two E's were close in proximity, Tanner looked big and bulky compared to Kobal's chiseled and well-sculpted physique. Tanner's lack of hair, even eyelashes, meant he'd rub his eyes often. Andrea hadn't noticed it much before, but now—with Kobal so close, not fidgeting or moving—she couldn't ignore it. Seeing them side by side skewed Andrea's view.

She couldn't help it when she called Kobal's name. The E looked back at her, and she said, "Are...can we...can we try the dinner thing again? If you're not interested—"

"No, no, I'd love to try. How about a week from today? A week is surely enough time to give notice."

"Give notice?"

"Yes, Rene said I didn't give her any notice. I just accepted an invitation on the same day, and that was rude and disrespectful."

Andrea considered the man's words and actions, and she was at a loss. "I'd think it would be flattering for you to make arrangements for you and her to have fun."

"Yes, that's what I had thought, but—" Tanner's comments interrupted Kobal. The red-headed E paused to regard the man but kept his attention on Andrea. "So I wasn't at fault, you don't think?" Kobal patted Tanner's shoulder to hush him. "Sorry, Tan. One second."

The sound of Tanner standing from his chair cut Kobal off. Tanner left without another word.

"Tan...?" Kobal called after him. "You still have another hour." But the dud E was gone, and Kobal shook his head. "He can be so sensitive sometimes. I wasn't ignoring him." When Kobal's deep blue eyes settled on Andrea, they held sincerity. "I know he looks big and bad, but he's only twenty-three, and he's still very immature in a lot of ways. Please don't take his playfulness too seriously. And because he was mute for most of his adolescence, he does tend to read too deeply into body language, so please don't take anything to heart. I—"

"Mute?" Andrea wished she hadn't interrupted the man, but she was more than just a little curious about it. "What happened to him anyhow?"

Kobal's features softened into a somber frown. "He got lost and was caught by some people who didn't see him as anything more than a wish to be had. The damage...it was colossal. We were afraid he'd never recover. That's why he's called Tannenbaum, because he couldn't even show any sort of expression. No sadness, no joy, nothing. The only time he'd kinda smile was when he looked at a Christmas tree. He'd just stare at it for hours on end."

Andrea felt riddled with guilt. "Yeah, but...just to have one wish...what's...what's wrong with that? I mean, look, there's a servant here; his tongue was cut out. Surely an E would allow a bit of physical discomfort, a shock or two for touching a Yule's skin, just to help someone like him out."

Kobal's eyes dimmed; it was the first time Andrea could remember Kobal taking on such an unwelcoming expression with her.

"Yes, an E skilled enough might be able to fix that, but one with low to no power like Tanner—for him to fix it, he'd have to take on the injury."

"Take it on?"

"Take it on. In other words, the man without a tongue would actually take Tanner's, while Tanner would take on the man's injury."

"No." Andrea shook her head, more than just a little confident that she was the one in the right, as ridiculous as she knew that might be. "No. No way. I spent a lot, and I mean a lot, on a one-paragraph essay. It's been flagged by the System and erased now, but it said that you can pay an E to grant a wish—"

"Mistress Andrea, ma'am." Kobal said with genuine pity. "This is a very sensitive topic for me. So I'd like to bow out of the conversation now." Before he could turn to leave, he paused to look back to Andrea. "And for the record, we don't whore ourselves, even to gratify someone with a wish. A poaching of an E is still poaching, nothing more. And if that's where your interest in Tanner lies, I'd like to ask you not to suggest that to him. He's been through a great deal. It took him a long time to get here. Asking him to take on any more suffering is just cruel and awful. Excuse me."

***

"Now I get to be cruel and awful." Andrea lumbered down the long hallway. Days when she felt down like this, she'd go look at the portraits. She didn't even remember about the center picture being absent until she was nearly there. How far into my own world have I gone that I couldn't remember something as important as that? The very thought had her feeling bitter. For lunch she'd eat alone in the small kitchen rather than the larger, cafeteria-style staff area. She wasn't the staff; she refused to set foot in there.

She recognized Tanner's sultry voice, or rather, the low tone. That came as a shock because the E was never around for lunch or after. In an effort to stay out of view, Andrea slowed her stride and took refuge close to the wall.

"Look. Do you see that? Do you see it? Huh?"

Queen dragged Tanner to a stop and pointed up to the two remaining portraits. Whatever Tanner said was probably meant to be funny, but Queen wasn't laughing.

"Chuck it up. Because this is all just one big gaw-ro game to you." Queen pointed. "Look at him. That's Lars; that's Andrea's 'father.' Don't you get that? He doesn't even look older than you. Take a good look, and tell me again if you still find it funny."

Tanner did take it seriously enough to look up to see what Queen meant. He didn't like what he found because he grumbled a short response. Queen calmed, his voice holding sympathy. "I don't know what you're doing, what you think you're doing, but look at this painting, think about this family, and let this gaw-ro thing you've got going with Andrea go. Leave it."

Tanner didn't answer; he just stared up at the picture. When Andrea reached the conclusion that Tanner was staring at her portrait, her body warm in both pride and flattery. But in the same breath she felt sick. Now she was lurking. She was lurking like some storybook villain or peeping tom.

"And you've seen what the younger one, Dom, is like. It's fitting that his name is so damn similar to 'demonic,' because that's what he gaw-ro is. He's gaw-ro evil. I had to take one of the younger students out of a gaw-ro garbage chute. Another hour in there and the gaw-ro furnace would have ignited with the poor kid inside."

Tanner cast him one glance, muttered something, and then nodded forward to the portrait once more.

"You're just as stupid as Midge," said Queen. He growled in frustration and walked away.

Andrea took a deep breath and approached. She cleared her throat.

Tanner didn't stir, however; he kept looking up. His behavior made it clear he'd known about Andrea's presence the entire time. While tapping his own bare right cheek, Tanner said, "Gut."

Tracing the mole under her eye, Andrea nodded with a blush. "Thank you."

"Please." Tanner considered something. He gave Andrea a shrug and said, "Essen?" At Andrea's blank look, the E brought his hand to his mouth to indicate food.

Andrea was on a strict diet, but she didn't hesitate to nod. Two invitations in one week; it was a record.

"Sure. I—"

Tanner walked off and paused once for Andrea to catch up. A few minutes later, Andrea found herself standing in front of the door to the staff eating area. On any other day she'd be apprehensive about walking in. No one in the family had a reason to be here. Tanner held the door for her, and with that gesture she didn't hesitate to enter.

The room was busy with activity, but Andrea felt like she didn't belong. She also felt compelled to look out at the open layout littered with round tables. Tanner's hand came to rest on the small of her back, urging her on, and Andrea lumbered forward.

Eyes scanning the crowd, looking to see if people were staring like she felt they were, she didn't pay much attention to the buffet line. She walked away with her usual bread and soup, but something else caught her eye. Tanner had a tray as well. Whatever was on it was not something Andrea could identify. It was all white, like overcooked oatmeal, but the texture seemed different. One purple apple lay beside the slop. Andrea was intrigued. He eats?

The E spotted a seat and overtook her to secure it by putting his own tray down. Before, with Tanner there standing beside her, things were only bad, but now they were impossible. The room looked like it was shrinking for a minute, but then it expanded again, and Andrea felt dizzy. The chatter had died down; all she could hear was faint whispering. She managed to take one step forward. When someone caught a whiff of her crappy perfume and made an exaggerated cough, Andrea wanted to die. As slow as her stride was, she was moving forward; that much she was aware of. The would-be head of the household, eating with the staff. Was there any greater disgrace? She wondered if that was what they were saying.

Out of the corner of her eye she saw two men whispering at their table, and when one mimed the outline of a straight body with a large rear end, that was it. Andrea froze. Tanner got comfortable at a table nearby, but it was still too far. Pivoting on her heels, Andrea turned and hurried to the door, tray and all.

Once she exited, she waited for the steel to slide shut before she put her back against it and took long deep breaths. She owed Tanner an explanation, but then again, how was she going to deliver that to a man who didn't speak her language? With a sigh she made her way back to the kitchen with her tray. As she walked she looked ahead, but once she realized that there was a piece of cake on the tray beside the bread, she paused in her stride.

"Gulliver...."

She stared at it with intent for some time, and by the time she reached the kitchen, the cake was gone, and all that remained was the delightful sensation all that sugar caused as it coursed through her.