"Got kicked out." Ruth shrugged and tried to sound casual.

"You did what?"

In a slightly wavering tone, she told him the whole story. To her amazement, the normally busy man stopped what he was doing just to listen.

Gregor waited patiently till the end of her tale. "So they found Cinna innocent?"

"Yeah, because of my mother's testimony." Ruth shook her head. "What was she doing with slaves anyway? She always tells me not to talk to them, yet she's apparently strolling through the marketplace with one? Something doesn't make sense here."

"I'm sure your mother had her reasons." Gregor suddenly had need to stir something on the stove.

"Yeah, to make my life miserable." Ruth muttered.

At that, he turned back to her. "Why do you say that?"

"Everything is just so different since we came here." she confessed, sadly. "Mother and Father don't want me around. They send me to school and to here just so I stay out of their way. But then they don't approve of what I learn at school and they yell at me for stuff like showing interest in the slaves or whatever. I've no idea what they do all day, but it's apparently very mysterious. I don't even know why we came here in the first place. Things were fine in Gatsba. Father was a judge - he didn't need another job. I wish we could just move back there."

"Your parents didn't ask you to hide in the back of the wagon." Gregor pointed out, gently.

"I know, I know..." she sighed. "But they didn't tell me why I shouldn't, either. They said Father had a new job. Besides, what kind of parents leave their children behind?"

"I'm sure your parents had their reasons."

"At this point, I don't care what their reasons are." Ruth shrugged. "I just want out. Can I come live here?"

He stared at her. "Here?"

"Yeah. They'll probably ask you to take me in the mornings anyway, since I can't go to school anymore. I might as well just live here."

"I'm not sure that's a good idea, Ruth."

"You don't want me either." she concluded, petulantly. "Nobody wants me."

Gregor didn't have to answer that, as someone else strolled into the kitchen. "Hi, Mir." he said, turning his attention away from the girl.

"Hello Gregor, Ruth." Mir paused. "Am I really that late? Has school already ended for the day?"

"She got kicked out. Her mother testified at the trial today. Cinna was found innocent." Gregor summed the situation up.

"So I want to move out and live here." Ruth tried to sound cheerful, but the more she considered the idea the more perfect it seemed.

Mir and Gregor exchanged a look. After a moment, the soldier asked, "You want what?"

"My parents are driving me crazy." she explained and told him why.

"Oh." said Mir.

"Well, we can't make decisions until we've spoken to Ruth's parents." Gregor announced.

"They'll probably be thrilled to be rid of me." Ruth interjected.

"Nonetheless, I'd like to speak to them first." her employer insisted. "Until then, you still work for me. Take this cloth down to the tables by the barn and make sure they're nice and clean for the soldiers."

"Yes, sir." she nodded and quickly accepted the chore.

"Then... well... stick around and watch for the soldiers. You can let me know when they start arriving so I know when to send the food down." Gregor finished the instruction.

"Okay." An agreeable Ruth hurried down the hill to her task. She'd make those tables shine. She'd make Gregor want to take her in.

But the tables themselves turned out to be awfully disappointing. Someone had already scrubbed them down. They were spotless.