Charley was surprised Miss Crouch even wanted to talk to her. Since the day they'd met, Montague's flower shop owner had been scarce. The urchin was starting to think the lady just didn't like her. Which was fine with her, as far as Charley was concerned. Most people didn't like her and she survived just fine.

The urchin had her hands stuffed down into her pockets, cap slung low on her ginger head. She didn't look up at the wave from Benevolence, but her feet maneuvered around the maze of tables and chairs until she was standing in front of the woman. Empty hands still shoved in her pockets, all the tables here were clean of anything worth snatching!

"Good," she answered Miss Crouch, and sat down accompanied by a shrug of her shoulders. Charley was pretty sure the woman already knew how she was, Mrs. Mann probably sent an owl every time she messed up a plant or made an order late.

It wasn't her fault that flowers were crazy things that couldn't decide whether they wanted water or not.

She took her hands from her pockets and let them flop on her lap, hardly paying attention when the shop girl came over. The grown-ups talked like they normally did, like nothing really interesting. It wasn't until they were both looking at her that Charley blinked and tried to sit up straight on instinct. "Wah, really?!"

Her eyes widened and she leaned up closer to the menu in front of her. Benevolence hadn't ordered for her and wanted Charley to pick. Her choice! Of all the wondrous flavors the menu listed, she could hardly know where to start. She could close her eyes, but could not get rid of the enormous grin underneath as the urchin pointed to a name on the menu and then held up two fingers to the shop girl.

Two scoops. As long as Benevolence was paying, she was planning on walking out of her here with a bellyful of ice cream!

Charley propped up her cap to listen more intently at the woman's purpose today. She was sure it wasn't just to treat her to ice cream, but Benevolence had earned something for that. Part of her was desperately hoping it wasn't being fired, she liked sleeping somewhere warm for a change.

The urchin's cap slipped a little when she looked down at the second gift from the woman today. It was a book. Ugh.

"Oh," Charley started, and then tried to look happier about it. She could do that easily enough, pulling the corners of her lips apart and raising her eyebrows. The rest of her face followed easily, a face not so natural but still a close imitation of the pure magic she'd felt for ice cream. "Whadda mean by intriguing?"

Even magical plants were plants, just plants that sometimes wanted to eat her watering can instead of getting a shower.

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