"Do you know what this is?" The elven groundskeeper Samuel gestured towards the dirty cloth bundle he had unearthed it that afternoon near a hedgerow, showing it to a ten year-old Nathaniel Howe.
"It's the things I stole." The boy stated this as a matter of fact and without missing a beat, neither defiant nor ashamed.
"Stole? Maker's breath! These are the jewels and coins that have been going missing from your parents' receptions, aren't they?" At Nathaniel's nod, the elf shook his head. "What were you thinking, lad? So much coin. How did you ever pull that off without someone catching you?"
"You taught me."
Samuel's face went white. If Nathaniel implicated him, he was done for. Rendon Howe would see that he never worked again, not anywhere in Amaranthine. If he didn't end up in the dungeons, that is. Hoarsely he stammered, "I never did any such thing."
"You did. You said that the best thing about being an elf was that people saw you but didn't really see you, so you could go about your business and be left alone. People don't see children, either. I just went about my business."
The groundsman expelled a breath, then after a moment chuckled and put a hand on the boy's shoulder. "I see. But Nate, you can't go around stealing. It isn't right. What did you want with all that anyway?"
Nathaniel shuffled, his usual bluntness finally tested. His voice sounded small. "Mother doesn't like the flowers and rocks I bring her. She says they're dirty."
At last the elf understood. Lady Howe was a hard woman, never more than with her eldest. It was on him in particular that she poured all the bitter disappointment with her husband, with her own shortcomings, and with the world at large. She could make Delilah or Thomas break, but not Nathaniel, and because of that he got it all the more. The arlessa did like her jewels, however. The boy had hoped to win a scrap of her favor with the one thing that seemed to give her any happiness at all.
Crouching down, Samuel spoke earnestly. "That was a nice thought, my boy, but you mustn't do it anymore."
"But, Mother..."
The elf shook his head. "Not even for her." Nathaniel's expression remained staid. He could be as stubborn as flint. At last, however, he nodded understanding. Samuel smiled and stood, ruffling the boy's dark hair. "You have obviously got some skill, young one. Maybe someday you will be able to put that deftness to use for something better than for taking what isn't yours."
It took Samuel weeks, working quietly through the network of elven servants in the area's noble houses, but eventually he was able to find most of the owners of Nate's treasures. All over the arling, ladies suddenly found their missing bracelets and men their brooches. The coin was donated anonymously to the Chantry's orphanage in Amaranthine. Lady Howe never knew what she had missed, but that was the way of things with her, and Samuel knew it always would be.