"You're back." The postmaster said as he barely looked up from his desk as Lina walked in.

"Still haven't found a replacement?" Lina replied, careful as always to modulate her voice between eager and energetic without a hint of a condescending "gotcha." And for the past month, her gamble that the postmaster was so insufferable that no one who was learned enough for the job would want to put up with him paid off. Every day he had plenty of work for her.

"The job is yours for the day if you want it." He said, still not bothering to look at her.

"I do, only, look." Lina said as she waved her left arm, which was now out of the sling. It was still stiff but she had started exercising it with Gourry the previous night to get it back it its full strength. "This is better now, and now that I have two hands I can find full time work as a maid or a waitress…"

He finally looked at her and Lina held his gaze she worked to keep her smile pleasant and her face blank. Given her temperament, it was a lot harder than it sounded. He was an asshole, and no matter how good her work was he always managed to find fault with it at the end of the day, but overall he left her alone while she was working. And while the job was boring, at least it was not degrading. While she'd clean up someone else's mess if she had to, she desperately didn't want to. And if she took a job as a waitress all she'd never get her sister's voice yelling, "shut up and do it!" to whatever ridiculous demand a customer made out of her head. No, the post office was better than either of those options.

And while she had checked other places she'd not had a lot of luck finding employers willing to hire a "little girl" for anything substantial. This was made harder by the fact that she was so busy earning money that she didn't have time to hit the pavement. She'd thought about going to the library to show off her translating skills, but they were always closed by the time she got off work. And if she didn't go for one day, she risked the postmaster finding someone else to replace her and losing the only income they had. So she kept returning to the place where her odds were best that she could find some way to make money with every day, and so far it had paid off. It had kept them fed and they were able to save enough for next month's rent.

So what if her tongue was sore from constantly being bitten? They were fed, so it was worth it.

The postmaster continued to stare at her, his mouth slightly ajar, his eyes wide. Lina decided she had to risk pushing the envelope a bit. "With the tips I could make as a waitress I could even make more than what I'm earning here."

He sighed as he stood up and said, "Are you wanting the job?"

Lina felt her heart race, but damned if she was going to settle for the pennies he was currently paying her without a fight. "If I get the full wage."

He continued to stare at her, betraying nothing of what he was thinking. But then, Lina knew that he needed her. Finally he said, "It's yours then."

Lina felt relief wash through her, "Thank you. I'll get straight to work!"

She walked over to her desk, mentally calculating what she could do with the increase in wages as she started her workday.

Gourry held the block of wood with his hand while he gripped the carving knife with his mouth. Whittling was something he liked to do after a long day's travel. It was easy and mindless, a good way to relax and create something of beauty. He'd thought that his days of whittling were behind him when he'd lost his hand, at least, until they found Filia and hopefully had it regrown.

Yet when they'd first moved to the slums, Gourry had tried to find work while Lina was gone. There was so much time to kill, and surely there was something he could do to help out. But people would take one good look at him and laugh to his face as they slammed the door without even giving him the opportunity to try. While he tried to dust it off with his typical good naturedness, after a week of solid rejections it was impossible for him to pick himself up and try again. Dejected, he sat on the street in front of the slums and, bored out of his mind, decided to see if there was a way he could reclaim the ability to whittle and had eventually found that he could hold the knife with his mouth.

As the days passed his actually got somewhat good at it. In fact, even though he continued to practice swordplay to keep his skills as sharp as possible, he reluctantly had to admit his skills at whittling were better than they were with the sword now. And if he thought about it too much a black well of depression would stretch before him. So he took a moment, and then focused on the block of wood and the figure that it would become.

"There you go, sitting there useless while your wife goes out to support you." Aja said as she came up to him. While Lina had punched her on the second day they'd moved in for her cruelty, she'd quickly realized that Gourry wouldn't do much to defend himself and had taken to venting at him when Lina was gone. Gourry told himself that he didn't mind too much. After all, Aja never said anything he wasn't already thinking. He couldn't argue with the fact that Lina had to go out every day to work for that detestable man while he did nothing of value.

And Lina had been far too kind to him about it. So kind it was scary. It was strange, because for years he had wanted it to be like this between them. But now that it was finally happening, he felt so bad for being worthless, for making the wrong choice in the first place that he couldn't genuinely savor it. He did his best to not let it show. She was working so hard to support them and to make him happy. If anything, Aja was giving him the treatment he felt he deserved.

So Gourry ignored her as he continued carving as she glared at him and put her hands on her hips, "Well what do you have to say for yourself?" When he continued to ignore her she yelled, "Did you go deaf as well?"

"Did you carve these yourself?" A man asked as he walked up. Gourry looked up at him and saw that he was dressed in gaudy, mismatching colors. He was definitely someone who wanted to stand out and be noticed.

Gourry set the block of wood down and took the knife out of his mouth and wiped the saliva on the handle on his pants as he said, "Yes."

"Can I see your work?" the man asked.

Gourry pointed to a bag that was beside him, "It's in there."

The man took one out, one that Gourry had carved before he lost his hand and said, "Incredible."

"That was before the accident." Gourry said quietly.

The man waved a hand, "No one needs to know that."

Huh? Gourry frowned, "Who are you?"

"Munrab." He said as he stuck his hand out, and Gourry hesitantly shook it. "And I have a business offer for you."

Gourry's ears perked a bit, "You do?"

"How about you come to my circus, and we sell these pieces?"

"Sell them?" Gourry repeated, "But why would anyone want to buy them?"

"Because they were carved by the man with one hand and no feet!" Munrab explained, "Trust me, they will sell like hotcakes! Especially if you just sit in a chair and let people watch while you whittle."

"Do you really think they'll sell?" Gourry asked, not convinced at all, but desperate to do anything to help.

"Filthy little liar." Aja said, "I'll tell everyone it's a scam, that these were carved before he lost his hand!"

"Oh, piss off!" Munrab said as a bit of guilt rose within Gourry. It would involve a bit of deception. But then he did have some decent pieces he'd done after he lost his hand. And it wasn't as if he was good at remembering which ones were carved before or after anyway. And he desperately wanted to help Lina improve their situation.

Aja shook her head and walked away, and Gourry looked at him and asked, "Do you really think she'll tell everyone?"

"I don't think it will matter." Munrab said, "So, you interested?"

Gourry narrowed his eyes, "How much will I get?"

"Twenty percent."

Gourry was so desperate for money that he almost agreed, but then he knew Lina would have his hide if she found out he took the first offer. "This is my work! Seventy-five percent!"

"But I'll provide clients and a platform for your work! Thirty!"

"How many one-handed whittlers are you going to find?" Gourry asked, "Sixty."

"Forty."

"Fifty."

"Deal."

Gourry was smiling as he got home. For once he had some money in his pocket, and he'd sold all of his carvings. Sure, people gawked at him as he carved, but people always gawked at him now, and at least he was getting paid for it. Of course, now that it was all gone he wouldn't be able to do it tomorrow, but Munrab had offered to let him join his freak show.

He saw Lina walk down the street, looking tired but seeming to be in a good enough mood. As she approached she sat down beside him and then reached for him and pulled him into a hug as she said, "Well, the building's still standing."

He laughed as he kissed her, and then pulled away to say, "We'll have to try harder tonight."

"Challenge accepted," she said with a wicked grin as she gave him another quick kiss, and then she pulled away to touch her forehead to his, "Especially since I have good news. I got on full time with the post office, and at full salary! I've been crunching numbers all day, but I think we can even afford something a bit nicer, it's just a matter of getting some time to look."

Gourry felt pride course through him as he pulled out the bag of money he'd earned and said, "Will this help?"

Lina's eyes widened as she took it and opened it, "Damn, where did you get this?"

For some reason he couldn't identify, he was reluctant to tell her, "I earned it."

"But how?" she asked, and he bristled.

"I sold my carvings." Gourry said.

"You what?" Lina asked, and so he explained about Munrab, and Lina's eyes grew more and more narrow the more he talked, and then she yelled, "You let him turn you into a sideshow attraction!?"

Gourry straightened in annoyance. He thought she'd be happy, "I don't mind. I didn't think you would either. Money is money."

"I mind!" Lina said as she stood up, "Where is that Munrab! I'm going to give him a piece of my mind!"

"Why do you mind so much?" Gourry asked, his voice low, "Being dressed as a woman was worse than this!"

Lina grew red as her hands clenched into fists, and it was as though the frustrations during the long month of being at her best that she'd shoved down were breaking through, "That was different! You had two hands and two feet then! You weren't…"

She stopped as she realized where she was heading, and then Gourry finished for her, "A freak?"

She turned away from him, and he turned to look into the street, the tension between them thick until it was suddenly broken by a familiar, high pitched voice calling, "Miss Lina!"

"Is that…?" Gourry asked.

"Jillas?" Lina said, and then she reached down to grasp his hand as she turned in the direction the voice had come from, and Gourry knew they were both hoping that Filia and Jillas had finally found them.

"Miss Lina! Mr. Gourry!" Jillas cried as the red fox beastman finally came into view. But Filia was nowhere to be seen. "I finally found you!"

Lina and Gourry exchanged a look, "Not that we're not happy to see you, but where's Filia?" Lina asked, cutting straight to the chase.

To Gourry's alarm, tears formed in Jillas's eyes, "The boss, she was captured."

"What!?" Lina and Gourry both cried out at once as Jillas took a note out and gave it to Lina.

Gourry looked at her as she read it, and then she looked at him, "It says that if we want her back we'll have to fight." Lina said, "And it gives a location close to here."

"We must leave at once!" Jillas said, seemingly blind to the fact that neither Lina nor Gourry were at top strength. Lina met his eyes once more, and he could see the doubt within. Was this something they could even do?

"But who took her?" Gourry asked, "I mean, she's a golden dragon. That can't be easy for an ordinary human."

"We have no idea who took her." Jillas said, "She was getting ready to leave after she got your letter, and then she just vanished. Gravos and I looked high and low and all we could find was this note. Gravos stayed behind to watch Valgaav and the store while I set off to find you. Please, let's not waste any more time!"

Gourry looked at Lina to try to gauge her thinking. But then, what choice did they really have? Filia had gotten roped into this mess because of them. They couldn't wash their hands of this to stay safe. Staying safe is what got us here in the first place, Gourry thought miserably.

Lina smiled a little as she closed her eyes and said, "Well, honey, looks like we're saving a golden dragon tonight."