“And so, I said, ‘Don’t ask me. I don’t know what the average male foot size is.” Ever laughed from their place on a wooden ladder looking through the bins of cogs and gears on the shelves. 

Cogsworth gave a slight chuckle as he sorted a box of metal springs. “I would assume not.”

It had been a month since Ever had received their permanent prosthetics, and they had been working as an apprentice to Cogsworth for nearly that entire time. Apparently, apprenticeships were a lot like internships as they were often unpaid and those that did get a salary were often very meager. 

Ever had found themselves in the rare position of being in a paid apprenticeship with a salary that was nothing to gawk at because, according to their lessons in Florena economics, 150 silver coin was a sizable amount for what was tantamount to a paid internship. They enjoyed the work they did at Cogsworth’s and loved learning about the inner workings of the machines brought into his shop. 

“So, are you going to attend the celebration this weekend?” Cogsworth asked, causing Ever to look down at him with a quirked eyebrow.

“Celebration?” Ever paused in their work, turning around on the ladder. 

Cogsworth set the box of springs aside as he took a seat and began cleaning his glasses. “That’s right. You're from out of the country.” Ever had decided not to broadcast the fact that they were a drifter. 

It wasn’t that they didn’t trust Cogsworth, it was just that Ever had plenty of experience with people who seemed to be open and accepting one moment but were prejudiced and hateful the next. They would always change their tune as soon as they found out the truth about them. Ever didn’t exactly feel like going through that again, plus there was also something about the term Drifter that rubbed Ever the wrong way. 

“So, what’s this celebration you’re talking about?” Ever asked as they made their way back down the ladder, stepping onto the wooden floor which creaked underfoot. 

    Cogsworth slid his glasses back on his face as he spoke. “It’s an annual celebration, formally known as the Florena Liberation Celebration, but most these days just call it the Celebration.” 

Ever took a seat on the lowest rung, leaning forward as they stretched their back out, pressing their fingers to the tip of their toes. “What’s it a celebration of?” The name made Ever think of something similar to Independence Day, but they wondered if that's what it was.

“It celebrates when Florena was liberated from the control of the now dead Roma empire. In fact, the preparations should be underway right about now. Liberty tends to be one of the major celebrations points as it’s one of the oldest cities and played a major role in Florena’s Liberation along with Angel Falls.” 

Ever had wondered why they were putting up decorations in both towns, but they had figured that if it was something truly important, they would find out eventually. They had never been one to be in a particular rush to find out things that they either knew they would find out later or that they knew they could figure out on their own. 

Ever nodded. “Oh, so that’s why they were hanging banners.” They said it more for Cogsworth’s sake than their own. 

He nodded in return. “I usually close up shop for the celebration and close up early during the prep day.” Ever watched as he stood, picking up the box of springs, returning it to its designated shelf. “If you sweep the floor, I’ll put things where they belong, and we should be able to close up before lunch.” 

Ever stood up, stretching their arms over their head, lacing their fingers together before moving toward the corner where the broom was kept, and they began sweeping the still relatively clean floors. 

Cogsworth had been right when he’d said that they would get used to their prosthetics the more they used them. In the past month, Ever had gotten much more used to working with their new limbs, and it was almost like they were their old ones.

Moving had gotten easier the more Ever had done it, and they no longer struggled to walk without limping. Pushing open the door, Ever swept the dirt they had collected out the door. Ever did one more once over, sweeping around the corners and then sweeping the dirt out the door. “You can go ahead and leave. I’ll close up shop.” 

“Are you sure?” Ever returned the broom to its corner, eyeing the mechanist. 

“Yes. Go and enjoy the celebration.” Cogsworth made a shooing motion without even looking up as he began putting everything away.

“Thanks.” Ever slowly moved over to the front door and took off the leather apron and hung it up on the hook. They opened the door, pausing in the entryway, pausing briefly. “Are you positive you don’t want me to stay?” 

“Yes. Now shoo!” Cogsworth said, making another shooing motion with his hands and Ever held up their hands bowing their heads as they reluctantly stepped outside, closing the door behind them. 

Ever made their way toward the airship station at a lazy pace, taking in the preparations for what was gearing up to be a big celebration. People rushed back and forth, setting up booths, hanging up decorations, and looking just slightly overwhelmed. 

Arriving at the station, Ever was surprised at how busy it was despite the early hour but figured it must be because of the coming celebration. They boarded the westbound airship, Ever paid the one copper fee before taking a seat near the back, the tools on their tool belt clinking against the seat. Leaning their head against the window, they watched as the airship raised up into the sky, leaving the city behind. 

Ever arrived back in Angel Falls, they disembarked from the airship and made their way into town, taking in the preparations for the celebration. Shops were putting up banners and signs declaring celebration sales that they would be having, some were even setting up tables with products from their shops outside. 

Ever left the business district and entered the residential district, nodding to the people sitting on their porches. As they approached the boarding house, they took in the two-story building. 

It, like many of the other buildings on the street, had formerly been a factory and had been refitted into a house in recent years. Its brick outside was worn from years of weather, but its windows were relatively clean. The recent tenant came to a stop in front of the door, which was made of metal, and reached into their pocket for the key they had been issued by Matron Julia, slipping it into the lock. 

Ever made their way inside the boarding house wanting nothing more than to change out of their work clothes, a brown tunic and a pair of tan slacks, and take a nap. They shed their boot and moved through the house towards the staircase. Ever made their way upstairs, thinking about what they would do with the time they had been given off, a nap was step one but then after that, they were at a loss. 

Coming to a stop in front of the room they still shared with Tesla, at least until the third bedroom was cleared out. Ever paused in front of the half open door, hand poised over the handle when they heard Tesla’s voice, desperation leaking into her tone as she spoke.  “I understand sir, but –” 

Ever moved over to the opening, peering through it to see Tesla at her desk, sitting in front of the radio she had claimed was broken. In her hand was a microphone, her eyes downcast and her lips pressed together. A male voice cut her off mid-sentence. “No buts. You did the right thing reporting them, but that is only step one. Repeat them back to me.” 

Tesla’s shoulders sagged, and she looked off to the side, away from the door, as she clicked the talk button. “Report. Apprehend. Detain.” Ever could have sworn that they had heard that somewhere. It sounded oh-so familiar, but they couldn’t for the life of them place it. 

Tesla released the call button, and the male's voice spoke once more. “Good girl. Now I’ll be sending some nearby agents, and I’m expecting you to work with them in cleaning up your mess. Understood?” Ever watched Tesla bow her head and her shoulders heaved as she sighed. 

Clicking the button, she spoke into the microphone. “Yes, Sir.” 

“Good. I’ll make the arrangements. You keep things normal. We don’t want them to get spooked.” The male voice spoke up and Tesla repeated the previous affirmation before returning the microphone to its hook. 

Ever watched her cradle her head in her hands before standing up and muttering something to herself. She walked over to the door pulling it open and before Ever had time to get out of the way Tesla collided with them. They both stumbled backward, somehow managing to catch themselves before they fell to the floor. 

Tesla looked at Ever in a mix of confusion and fear. “Ever? Wh-what are ya doin’ ‘ere?” 

Ever cocked an eye at Tesla. Suddenly wondering just what that conversation had all been about. “What am I doing in the place where I live?” 

Tesla shook her head, taking a deep breath. “No. I mean, what are ya doin’ ‘ere now? Shouldn’t ya be at work?” Tesla seemed oddly anxious as she looked over her shoulder and back at Ever.

“Cogsworth gave me the rest of the day off for the celebration. I’ll probably have the next few days off as well.” Ever watched as Tesla anxiously fidgeted, twiddling her fingers.

“How, um, how long ‘ave you been back?” Tesla mumbled, eyes darting from side to side and Ever opened their mouth to respond only to close it again when they realized that, more than likely, the reason Tesla was so nervous was that she hadn’t wanted anyone to hear that conversation. And from what they had heard of it they could understand why. Something about it set them slightly on edge and Ever couldn’t quite put the uneasy feeling to rest. 

Ever shook their head, deciding on the best course of action to take. “I just got back. I was about to open the door when you crashed into me.” Relief flooded Tesla’s face and Ever knew that they had made the right choice. Uneasy knots had formed in the pit of their stomach as Ever took an unconscious step back.