permit

to Nan.
“I believe Sarah is right in one thing,” she said gravely. “I believe we will have to keep you. Now, both of you—sleep.”
And to Nan’s surprise, she fell asleep immediately.

But that was not the end to the story. A month later, Sarah’s mother arrived, with Grey in a cage. Nan had, by then, found a place where she could listen to what went on in the best parlor without being found, and she glued her ear to the crack in the pantry to listen when Sarah was taken into that hallowed room.
“—found Grey senseless beside her perch,” Sarah’s mother was saying. “I thought it was a fit, but the Shaman swore that Sarah was in trouble and the bird had gone to help. Grey awoke none the worse, and I would have thought nothing more of the incident, until your message arrived.”
“And so you came, very wisely, bringing this remark­able bird.” Mem’sab made chirping noises at the bird, and an odd little voice said, “Hello, bright eyes!”
Mem’sab chuckled. “How much of strangeness are you prepared to believe in, my dear?” she asked gently. “Would you believe me if I told you that I have seen this bird once before——fluttering and pecking at my window, then leading my men to rescue your child?”
“I can only answer with Hamlet,” Sarah’s mother said after a pause. “That there are more things in heaven and earth than I suspected.”
“Good,” Mem’sab replied decidedly. “Then I take it you are not here to remove Sarah from our midst.”
“No,” came the soft reply. “I came only to see that Sarah was well, and to ask if you would permit her pet to be with her.”
“Gladly,” Mem’sab said. “Though I might question which of the two was the pet!”
“Clever bird!” said Grey.

I enjoyed the characters in “Grey” so much that I decided to write another novella for this anthology using the same characters. You might think of Mem’sab Harton as the Victorian version of Diana Tregarde, sans vampire boyfriend. I’m toying with the idea of doing