Ch 31. Riddles

John walked into his office with pastries in hand and approached Andressa’s desk. She was quietly writing something and he gently placed the bag on the desk in front of her. She didn’t look up, or acknowledge him in any way.

He frowned. “Is everyth-”

“You have a new client first thing today. A Sphinx named Wia who's having some social issues.”

“Oh, uh, thank you. Can I get you some coffee or?”

She quietly tapped the mug that was already in front of her. He noticed she wasn’t using the red pen he’d gotten her either, though it was visibly sitting to her right.

He went to say something, but decided against it, walking into his office instead. Either she was genuinely pissed at him for not taking her with him to the arena fight, or she was messing with him to feed. His guess was the former, she was usually a bit more playful when it was the latter.

He made himself some coffee and sat at his desk to drink it and have his morning bagel. Once he was done he called in a pixie and sent it off with a note to Hilda’s. Just as he was shutting his window he heard some movement in the waiting room.

He stepped out to see Andressa nodding as a sphinx spoke to her.

The Sphinx was large, maybe the size of a tiger, with the face of a beautiful tan woman wearing elaborate makeup and thick black hair woven in braids at the top of her head. He wondered idly how she managed that with paws, but considering everything else he’d seen in Avalon he wasn't really surprised.

John smiled as he saw her. “Good morning, you must be Wia?” He refrained from holding out a hand, in his experience handshakes were more of a biped thing.

“What guards gates? What asks questions that boggle minds? What guards the gates of kings?”

“You do,” said John, “please come in and make yourself comfortable.”

Wia nodded, smiling, and loped into the office before curling comfortably on the couch.

“Would you like some tea?”

“I'm brewed in pots, but have no nose. I wake you up, but have no voice.”

“Coffee?”

Wia nodded, and John poured the last of his still warm brew from the morning into a dish, mixing in a healthy dose of cream, and some sugar at her request.

“So, are the riddles always necessary or are we just having some fun this morning?”

“Yes.”

“This might be tough for me then. I’m not at my most clever in the mornings.”

The sphinx simply smiled at him in response.

“So, is that what you’re here to work on today? Not scaring off new people?”

“You can't buy me, but I'm a treasure. I can listen to your secrets without speaking. I am bonded to you, but not by blood.”

John thought for a moment, tapping his pencil on his chin. “A friend? You’re trying to make friends?”

She nodded. “I spend most of my day in the valley of kings. There are many treasures through the pass I guard and so it is my job to keep anyone who wants them out.”

“So you ask them riddles?”

“Yes, if they answer correctly I let them through. No one ever has though.”

“And when they answer wrong?”

She smiled a large toothy grin.

“Well that’s a riddle I can understand. What have you done to try and meet new people?”

“I’ve mostly just tried to talk to people. People of all kinds. I went to the market, the DMV, the floating garden, and tried to talk to people there. None of them would answer me though. Most ran away, and a few even called guards on me.”

John nodded. “Now when you say answer you, I’m guessing you were in those places asking riddles?”

She nodded enthusiastically.

“Well, at least it sounds like you really enjoy your job, even to the point where you do it outside of work. Just to confirm, you weren’t planning on eating anyone who answered wrong?”

“No.”

John nodded. “Well, I think I understand the problem. Now, this might surprise you, but in general people don’t really like to have to answer riddles in their day to day. Especially if they’re worried that they may be eaten.”

She cocked her head. “If no one likes riddles, how can I make friends?”

“Oh there are plenty of people who enjoy riddles, games, and all kinds of things of that nature, but you’re going to have much better luck meeting them in a designated place.” John thought for a moment. “There’s a pretty large group of people in the support group I run that enjoy games of all kinds. They may be up for a riddle night. I could introduce you as an acquaintance rather than a patient if you’d like?”

“I am invisible and powerful. I eat words and rebuild them. Some are born with me, but all can earn me.”

John thought for a few moments before piecing together the riddle along with the context of what he just said. He was lucky they were having a conversation, if the riddles had been in a vacuum he’d be having a lot more trouble with them.

“Intelligence? You’re asking if they’re smart?”

She nodded again.

“I think you’ll find that they’re up for some pretty significant challenges. They’ve been doing this kind of hobby for a long long time.”

She smiled wide.

“I do have to ask, you’re not planning on eating them are you?”

She shook her head. “That’s only for work.”

John nodded. “I’ll send a few messages out after this and see what we can put together for you.” He glanced at the clock above her. “Is there anything else I can do for you? Any other problems you’re having and want to talk about?”

Wia smiled. “All creatures indulge in me, children excel at me, and adults struggle with me. I can be done with words, with a ball, with a stick, and with nothing at all. What am I?”

He listened carefully until she finished and smiled when he figured it out. “You want to play?”

She nodded enthusiastically.

“Alright then. Shoot me the next one.”

…

As Wia loped out the front door to the office, John watched Mia walk in. That day she was wearing a simple black T-Shirt, fishnet gloves, and a dark red pleated skirt and had somehow acquired black bangs since he’d seen her last. In her hand was a metal tin out from which the smell of chocolate was wafting.

John waved at her and she smiled as she placed the tin in front of Andressa.

“What’s this, Mia?” asked Andressa with a raised eyebrow.

Mia removed the lid to reveal a large dark chocolate cake with chocolate frosting on top.

“We got a special order to bring this to you this morning. Thought I’d deliver it myself."

“Wonder who that’s from?” asked John with a smirk.

Andressa smirked a bit. “Not much of a riddle.”

“Next time I get tickets to something from a client, I’ll bring you.”

“Oh, like a date?” she asked.

John hesitated, and she grew a few shades redder as she smiled at him.

“I brought forks,” said Mia, pulling them from her pockets as well as several small plates she must've hidden in a dimensional storage somewhere. He quickly noticed that there were three of each.

“When’s my next client?”

“You have half an hour,” replied Andressa, taking a fork and a plate.

“And you wouldn’t mind if I?”

“Took a bite?” she asked with a wink. “Not at all.”

Mia laughed. “Should I take my piece to go? I had something I wanted to ask about, but I don’t want to get in the way of something.”

“It’s fine,” replied John, taking a fork and plate of his own before letting Andressa place an obviously far too large slice on it. “What do you want to ask?”

“Well, I’m going to be of age soon, and I need to start thinking about what kind of work I should be doing.”

“You don’t want to take over the bakery?” asked Andressa between bites.

“No, I would really prefer something that lets me sleep past three in the morning.”

John chuckled at that. He’d spoken to both Mia and Hilda at different points about how little interest Mia had in taking over. She was more than willing to help out, she was a good kid like that, but it was different when it came to doing it for a living.

“So are you asking for advice? I can’t honestly picture you being bad at anything Mia. You’re hard-working, intelligent, and friendly. Between that and your mother’s connections you could have your pick of apprenticeships, or even come up with something new that’s just for you.”

“I was actually wondering if…if you had ever considered taking an apprentice.”

John coughed a bit, caught off guard by the question and Mia’s smile dipped at his reaction.

He held up a finger and quickly ran into his office to drink some coffee and wash the cloying chocolate down his throat before he came back out.

“Sorry about that.”

“No. It’s okay. I shouldn’t have asked.”

“No, no, it’s fine that you asked. I’ve just never considered it.” He paused for a few moments. “On my world doing what I do takes a minimum of six years of advanced schooling followed by a two year internship, then licensing. Interning could be considered a type of apprenticeship, but it’s very different. I’m not sure it would be possible to take you as an apprentice considering how that level of specialized schooling isn’t available here.”

“Oh. Okay,” responded Mia with a bit of sadness in her tone that broke John’s heart just a bit to hear. He wasn’t used to her sounding sad, he’d practically watched her grow up since he’d arrived in Avalon.

“Let me think about it, okay? It’s just not something I ever considered.”

She brightened up a bit. “I can do that.”

Andressa snagged a bite of cake from John's plate despite there being plenty left in the tin.

“Can I help you?” he asked exasperated.

“No, I’m helping myself just fine,” she said, showing her sharp teeth as she bit down on her fork around yet another bite of his slice.