The weeks became months, and the months passed.

The boy still only whispered, but his language skills had reached literacy and his math was up to simple multiplication. She taught him based on what she remembered from school, a decade ago.

The woman, Belinda, had originally been from a merchant family. As the only child that survived infancy, she had been sent to school to gain literacy and learn math. Her father was doting enough to value her as more than a marriage-bound expense, but pragmatic enough to make sure she could live well on her own.

None of it mattered, of course. She was just out of school when her entire family was murdered by a rival merchant. Her family dog had bought her enough time to escape with the clothes on her back, and for the next ten years, she had scraped out a living with a fake name in the brothel. Her three-room apartment had been bought from selling her virginity to the highest bidder, and her daily bread came from her nightly earnings.

Despite all that, she had saved money. Her dreams of becoming a merchant hadn't died along with her family and a good amount of her emotions. Lately, she thought to herself that her dream of becoming a gentle but strict mother like her own might still be intact as well.

She had filled up two secret compartments full of money, and on the completion of the third, she would be able to procure a wagon, animals, and began trading. She had been writing male names on a piece of cloth for the boy, and her heart warmed at the thought of choosing one soon.

Very soon, as a matter of fact. The madame had hinted to her that a wealthy clergyman was interested. His requirements were strict; the woman must be under thirty, good-looking, with no family, and no diseases. Since the boy was a secret that never left the apartment, which she never used for work, she fit the bill. It was a wonderful opportunity to go out with a bang, earning insurance money as well as the potential protection of a big shot. Everyone knew that the church controlled the kingdom in all but name.

She went out of her way to buy the expensive perfume and a new negligee before the madame introduced her. It was a success, as the pudgy geezer in the large, strangely shaped hat grinned and licked his lips. "Tomorrow night," he wheezed, "I shall baptize you."

She went home early in the afternoon, surprising the boy with rarely bought candy. Using the sweets as encouragement, he struggled through the rest of basic division in one night.