Riff had gotten quite good at 'expecting the unexpected,' so to speak, but not even he could have anticipated the replacement for Miss Mary Weather's governess.

He'd certainly been aware that the spirited girl had successfully chased away her latest caretaker, and that another had been found after almost a week. He ought to have been introduced to her immediately, really, but the meeting had been lost somewhere in a sudden influx of bills and taxes and late nights and thought provoking, difficult to understand, and vexing in general masters.

As it happened, the meeting was practically pure chance. There had been a dispute between two of the footmen that Riff had ended up mediating, and he had just sent them away when his next problem appeared behind him.

"I don't mean to intrude, but my charge seems to have-"

Startled, Riff turned, and the governess stopped speaking. They stared at each other in complete silence for what felt like minutes before Riff finally found his voice.

"Lucinda?"

Her own wide eyes narrowed and her mouth pulled down into an expression of contempt. "Quite a fall, isn't it, to become a rich man's servant? Mr. Raffit, I suppose, since you never managed to earn the title of doctor." Her voice was hateful. Of course it was, when she still wore mourning clothes six years later.

He was not prepared to have this conversation. "Lucinda-"

His ex-fiance slapped him. Hard. "It's Miss Moran," she hissed, tossing her head to stare angrily up at him. "Don't you dare address me so familiarly, you long since lost that right."

Head reeling, Riff fell back on propriety and station and the reminder of a class difference where there hadn't been one before. It was a defense mechanism. He couldn't care. It would end this conversation. "Miss Moran," he agreed quietly, finally forcing himself to straighten and regard her impassively. "I believe you said you were looking for Miss Mary Weather. I've not seen her recently, but she favors the gardens for hiding places. Pardon me, madam."

Riff bowed, turned, and walked away. The rustle of skirts behind him suggested Lucinda had done the same.

She sought him out that night, after Miss Mary Weather had been sent to bed and he was trying to examine the daily expenses, not get lost in the glow of the wick and his own fire-consumed memories. Riff stood as she knocked and entered. "Miss Moran. Is there something I can do for you?" Propriety was a coward's shield, perhaps, but it was the only one available to him. He remained standing.

Lucinda sat, spreading her black skirts around her. She had always been a beautiful woman, Riff reflected, though he could not imagine being attracted to her. Not again, not with everything that had happened then. ...Not in comparison with-. "There may be, actually," she said, her measured and carefully even voice breaking through his thoughts. "You could resign."

Riff's heart sank. Well. Any hope of reconciliation was gone. "Still so bitter?" he asked quietly.

It had been the wrong thing to say.

Lucinda flew to her feet, hands trembling. "Why wouldn't I be? You took him from me! You killed him! I don't need evidence, I know you did it! You burned him, you burned my Clyde!" She was breathing hard, splotches of color appearing on her cheeks.

Riff closed his eyes, but otherwise did not move. Lucinda had been carrying this pain and anger for so long. It was all she had left, now. He would not defend himself, not when he knew she would see explanations and reminders only as excuses. Still… He would not surrender, either.

"My resignation would not bring my brother and parents back from the dead," Riff finally said into the silence, as evenly as he could. He met her eyes again. She looked so lost, suddenly. Angry, yes, but pitiable. "I have no intention of leaving this household." His mind drifted back to his master. No intention indeed. Nearly a fortnight of helping him dress and undress, and the young man still waited for the other shoe to drop, for Riff to betray him. Riff refused to do so, not even to ask the questions he needed answers to. Not seeing those scars, feeling him twitch, meeting eyes which held a little bit more trust every night.

For some reason, keeping Cain's confidence was unspeakably important, more so than his own curiosity or comfort or ease of mind. How odd. "I'm needed here."

"Needed?" Lucinda repeated. "Needed? You're nothing but a servant, Riffael. Don't delude yourself-" A sneer twisted her face, narrowed her eyes. "You're easily replaced."

Riff shook his head slowly, not sure what to say. For the first time in his life, he felt needed not for his capabilities, but for his personality, himself. He couldn't quite explain it, though, let alone to Lucinda. She'd only disagree. "I wouldn't be so sure," he finally said. "Please, Miss Moran, it is late. I must see to my master."

He crossed the room and held the door open for her. Lucinda, however, did not move. "…You care about him a great deal," she said slowly, eyes on his. "More than anyone else."

Riff frowned faintly, wondering what she meant, but she was sweeping past him now.

"…You took my Clyde, you know," she said, and this time there was no anger, her tone was conversational. "Perhaps you should lose the person most important to you, too."

"Lucinda-" Riff started, a premonitory chill running down his spine, but she had already disappeared into the darkened hallway.

A/N: Okay, please don't hate me, I promise this will be resolved next week. I almost combined this chapter and the next, but then it weakens a perfectly good ending line. But I did have my reasons for including Lucinda! I did! I swear I did! Narratively, I needed a way to clearly demonstrate the differences between what happened to Riff in canon and what happened to Riff here. As far as character development is concerned, well, this is the first serious threat Riff has encountered while working for Cain. Not that he really thinks it's serious. Right now.

I want to send a quick shout out and thank you to Aristotelian for the extremely flattering review. (This is not a complaint, I'm quite pleased.)

As for my anonymous review from Moon: I'm glad to know that you've started looking forward to Mondays, now! I don't know if Cain regrets telling Riff about his scars now or not. I don't think he does, I think he's more confused by Riff's reaction, because Riff seems to have developed an extremely unsettling habit of not reacting in the way Cain expected him to. As for why Cain showed Riff but not Mary... (Forgive my character ranting, please?)

I don't think Cain views Mary as an equal, or a potential equal, even in canon. He loves her, he dotes upon her, but he also desperately, desperately wants to keep her safe, protect her. (Crooked House. Scold's Bridle. Every single time he's hidden his activities from her.) Cain thinks of himself as poisoned. Consider the end of The Stake, the chapter with Lucinda, when he wonders if he's poisoning Riff by allowing him to stay, to even touch him. He views Mary as a precious object, even, and she well knows this-and is justifiably infuriated by this, given she grew up on the streets. (Again, I point towards Crooked House, specifically the last few pages.) Of course he doesn't tell Mary about his scars, because even if she's tougher than she seems, Cain doesn't want to see that. Cain wants her to stay safe, to stay innocent, to not be caught up in the horrible underworld of London, to, most importantly, avoid the Hargreaves curse.
As for why he told Riff here? I can't say too much, but consider this. As both an amateur scientist and an amateur detective, when presented with something he doesn't understand, Cain has a certain way of approaching a problem, namely by experimenting and testing. Riff is one such problem. He has stated he wants to take care of Cain, has ignored direct orders to do so, has made allowances for his eccentricities, has displayed no fear of him, has expressed no disgust for him. Besides that, Riff is safe. He very obviously does not need anything like protecting (unlike Mary Weather). Cain's been testing him the whole time, ever since Riff brought him hot water and tea leaves instead of deciding it was too much trouble. He's started to see Riff as someone he might be able to trust, as a potential equal, on a level that Mary can never be. That's why I think it's plausible that Cain would let Riff know on purpose, when he'd never let Mary know.

...That got so much more long-winded than I meant for it to be. I spend far too much time on examining these characters... But, yes. I do tend to think out exactly why a character makes the choices he or she does. Which leads to... rambling character exposition in author's notes prompted by a perfectly innocent comment. I'm so sorry.

Please review and let me know what you've thought! Specific question: Does anyone actually read the rambling review responses in the author's note? Just, I feel like I accidentally double the chapter length, because I get distracted and overly enthusiastic and it turns into some strange journal entry...

Okay, again. Good or bad, I want to know what people are enjoying about these chapters! See you next week.