The next morning saw Cariun leaving to post the notice at the guild hall.  Olive waited until she was confident he was completely gone and then she hastily grabbed up her coin pouch and hurried for the exit to the manor.  The streets were mostly populated by servants this early in the morning and no one spared her a second look.  She remembered a bit of Lylle’s description of the surrounding areas from the day before and was relieved to see the houses change into shops as she progressed.  She was going in the right direction.

There had to be people looking for work outside of the guild, she thought.  If this was anything like medieval Europe, there would be plenty of people living on the streets that would take any job that promised a roof over their heads.  Olive wasn’t so naive to believe that all people are good at heart, but she also didn’t believe that human nature was inherently flawed, either.  Being poor was not an indication of moral character.  If she eliminated any reasons for them to commit desperate acts, then there was only the common vices - greed, jealousy, carelessness - to worry about.

And as Cariun’s previous servant had so aptly demonstrated, those flaws existed in any social class.

Olive didn’t have to go too far into the city to find what she was looking for.  She hadn’t yet passed out of a commercial area when she began to see beggars on the streets.  There was a wide range of people occupying the streets, from farmers and peddlers with their carts to people dressed much like herself, carrying out their everyday errands.  It really would be an incredible experience, if her situation wasn’t so desperate.  She was in another world.  One that was set in a radically different time period, no less.  She’d been to Renaissance festivals back home, but this made them feel like paltry imitations, gaudy and without substance.  It was the small things that surprised her.  Someone sweeping their front steps with a broom that wasn’t mass manufactured.  A man leading a sheep on a lead through the street.  She struggled not to gawk.

Lylle had warned her against going any further without a bodyguard.  Maids and ladies-in-waiting were targets because they often carried money from the person they served for whatever errand they were on.  At least she wouldn’t need to go anywhere else.  The city had its share of beggars.  More than she was used to back home, but she supposed that was to be expected in a world with even worse social protections than back home.  

She didn’t have any particular criteria in mind.  How could she judge someone with any degree of accuracy from just a look?  Perhaps some people thought they could, but Olive was skeptical that such a skill existed.  People were too complex.  She’d have to try her best and hope she got lucky.

And if she didn’t, she thought grimly, at least she had Cariun to handle things if it turned out badly.

It didn’t take long before she came across someone she felt comfortable approaching.  A woman close to her age, huddled near the mouth of an alleyway.  She crouched, her feet under her as if ready to flee, tentatively holding out a begging bowl as people passed by.  Olive wondered how long she’d been on the streets and what put her there.  Her brown hair was matted, pulled back and tied at the neck in an attempt to make it look presentable despite the lack of care.  Her clothing was filthy.  Olive could smell the sweat and dirt as she approached.

“A coin, m’lady?” the young woman asked hopefully, holding up the begging bowl.

“I can offer you a bit more than a few coins,” Olive said.  “Do you want to be my maid?”

“Me?”  

The word came out quickly, loudly, in utter amazement.  Then she ducked her head, hastily, as if embarrassed to even be speaking to someone like Olive.

“I’m sorry,” she mumbled.  “I don’t need your coin.  I’m sorry for bothering you.”

“Don’t be sorry.  I need a maid.  You’ll have a place to sleep and a uniform.”

She tentatively raised her head to shyly glance up at Olive.  Olive returned her glance with what she hoped was a reassuring smile.

“I need to warn you though,” Olive continued, “it might be dangerous.”

“Any more dangerous than this?” the woman replied, gesturing at the streets around her.

“I don’t know.  I can’t make any promises.  But if you find it’s too much for you, I’ll do what I can to make sure you wind up somewhere safer.”

The woman stared at her for a long time, naked suspicion in her eyes.  This sort of thing was simply not done, it appeared.  The woman was clearly looking for the catch.  Wondering what sort of game this was, what sort of ulterior motive Olive had.  

“Where I come from,” Olive said, “we don’t care about titles or status.  I need a maid and it looks like you need to be off the streets.”

“I don’t know how to serve a noble lady.”

“I don’t know how to be a noble lady,” Olive laughed.  “We’ll learn together, okay?”

The woman didn’t give Olive her name, not at first.  In fact, she hardly spoke as Olive led her back to the manor.  At first Olive found this deeply uncomfortable, but as they walked she told herself to look at the woman’s perspective.  She was being taken to a strange place in a wildly improbable turn of events.  A foreigner claimed they had a job for her.  It was only natural for her to be deeply suspicious - in fact - the more Olive thought about it, the more she thought this was a good sign.  She’d need someone that was savvy enough to not blindly trust anyone that offered money.

“Well, this is it,” Olive said, pausing and looking back at the gate to the manor.

The woman studied the house for a moment.  Her gaze was calculating.  Clearly evaluating it and making some snap decisions about the people she’d be working for.

“It’s been neglected,” she finally said.  “You must be new to the city.”

“I am.  But I’m actually in the care of someone else right now.  Are you familiar with Prince Cariun?”

She braced herself for the woman to turn and leave.  He’d warned her that no one would want to work for her once they heard that name, after all.  But the woman didn’t flinch.  Her eyes narrowed a touch, but that was all.

“I’ve heard the rumors.  Do you think you can protect me from him?”

“I’ll do my best,” Olive replied.  “That’s all I can promise.”

The woman’s gaze slid away from the house and she stared evenly at Olive.  The earlier timidity was gone.  That must have been an act, Olive thought, to avoid offending anyone that might drive her away - or worse.

“And the court?  Can you protect me from his enemies?” She took a short breath and then spoke again, not giving Olive a chance to answer.  “Can you even protect yourself?”

Olive opened her mouth to reply, then shut it.  She dropped her gaze, suddenly unnerved.  Her earlier confidence faltered and bled away under the stare of this woman and her frank, unsettling, line of questioning.

“I don’t know,” Olive said softly.  “I did tell you it would be dangerous, though.”

“Well, I suppose I know where we stand.  I’ll take the job.”

With a heady rush of relief, Olive pulled the gate open and let the woman inside.