Ada's much needed day off was not as restful as she had been hoping. It started off well; she was up early and made breakfast for her and Sam, she got in a bit of studying, and was just about to shut it down to go shower when her phone rang. She thought it would be Sam on her lunch break to vent some of her bad-day blues, but was startled to find it was Hillebrandt. A video call, no less. After a quick sigh, Ada answered, checking her face in the camera before the call connected.

Honestly, Ada had forgotten about him. After Charles and Jocelyn had appeared on her doorstep, he was gone from her mind. She figured if he was calling now, it was for nothing good. His sullen scowl confirmed as much.

"You're tan," Ada noted en lieu of a greeting. And he was, his hazel eyes now lighter than his complexion. "What's up?"

The scowl deepened. "Forced vacation, apparently it's been a year already." His eyes roamed the screen. "You look like hell."

"Thanks, you're too kind. Where did you go?"

"Florida, saw my parents." He shook his head. "That's not why I'm calling. Tell me you didn't have anything to do with that fucking arson case."

"Okay, I didn't have anything to do with that fucking arson case." Ada stifled a snicker as his cheek twitched. "Seriously, I didn't."

"Good enough. The captain was asking, he made the town connection. Now I can tell him you swore you didn't. Just don't say anything otherwise, I'm obligated to turn you in if you do."

Ada nodded. "Got it. I wasn't there."

"Do you have an alibi?"

She glanced at her monitor for a second. "Yeah, I do."

Noah would vouch for her. Not only was it in his best interest, she trusted him to. After all, it wasn't his first time doing so.

"Good, you should probably sort out your story between you, just in case."

Ada's brows rose. "In case of what?"

"I haven't heard yet if your local police have any leads or suspects, but if they do, you want to be ready to be questioned, whether or not you had something to do with it, and I'm not saying you did."

Ada could tell by his expression he knew she did. Smirking, she started to respond, but got only a syllable out before he cut her off.

"No, nope, don't say anything, just nod if you understand. I swear to God, I'm not losing my job over this."

His hard persona was cracking despite his best efforts; Ada offered a smile and a nod. "Got it."

He rolled his eyes. "Have you heard from them?"

"Charles and Jocelyn?" Ada asked, and he nodded. "Big time. They showed up at my door."

"Is that how you got ..." He drew lines across his throat with his finger.

Ada swallowed hard, still able to feel the dim ache of the nearly-healed bruise. She thought better of telling him the truth and said, "Yeah, but I got him back for it. I punched him as hard as I could in the jaw."

Hillebrandt grinned. "Well done. Knock any teeth loose?"

"Not this time, but he was wearing makeup to cover the bruise, so it must be pretty bad."

That got a laugh out of him. "I bet he hated that."

"He did," she smirked. "He hid it well, though. I think he was just surprised I even hit him back. Hey, can I ask you something?"

"Shoot."

"Do you know anything about a pot dealer by the name of Simon P?"

Hillebrandt frowned. "You're not talking about Simon Prentiss, are you?"

She shrugged in response. "I don't know his full surname, but if he's a pot dealer, then yeah, probably him."

"He's bad news; you don't know him, do you?"

"Hard to say at this point."

To her surprise, Hillebrandt laughed, and apologised when she frowned at him. "I'm sorry, it's just so weird to hear."

"What?" Her frown deepened.

"Has anyone told you you're starting to get an accent? You just said 'aard, and it's not the first H you've dropped."

"No, they haven't." Ada cleared her throat, suddenly aware of the way words rolled off her tongue.

"Well don't overcompensate, it's not a big deal. It's just hard to get used to." He put emphasis on the H as mirth danced in his eyes.

Just then, there came three knocks from the front door. "One second."

"Do you need to go?" asked Hillebrandt, mirth gone.

"I don't know, hang on." Ada approached the door and took in a familiar, towering shadow. Ada felt fairly confident as she unlocked and opened the door. The switch to French was unconscious. "Aidan? Hey, what are you doing here so early?"

"Ada!" Bear arms pulled her into a hug. "Sam told me a bit of what happened, are you okay?"

Though surprised, Ada returned his hug and spotted Noah behind him on the little path. He gave her a knowing, albeit friendly smile which she returned. Her phone hovered over Aidan's back, and she heard a disgruntled Hillebrandt clear his throat.

"Hello? Ada, are you okay?" he asked in English, and she felt Aidan start lightly before releasing her.

"I'm fine," she said to both, then angled the phone to display all of them as best she could. "This is Aidan and Noah, friends of ours."

"I'll sign off then, I just needed to get that confirmation from you. Call me if you see them again, okay?"

"They're in your neck of the woods right now," she continued in English. "At least for a few days. We'll see what happens, I guess."

"All right. I'll try to keep noses out of the case in question as much as I can. We're pretty swamped, so it shouldn't be hard."

"When are you not?" With a brief grin, they signed off and she turned her attention back to Aidan and Noah. "Sorry about that, come in."

Right away Ada went to make coffee and grab snacks. It was routine at this point. If she didn't now, one of them would soon enough. As she rinsed the basket she heard chairs scrape behind her, the clack of the cane coming to rest on the door frame. The machine burbled to life behind her as she pulled out a chair of her own and set a plate of crackers and cheese out.

"So who was that? A friend from Ontario?" asked Noah as he got comfortable.

"I guess. He's the detective who ran the investigation against Charles and Jocelyn. We're still in touch."

She and Noah shared a long look, in which she tried to convey that Hillebrandt knew nothing.

"How was the trip?" she asked Aidan, nibbling at a cracker. She hadn't seen him since they got back, they were both too busy. Ada was only one pay cheque away from getting the car, and Aidan was in the middle of interview hell.

"Great, I'm really glad we went. It would have been cool if you were there, but yeah, there would have been some tension. They're not so relaxed about bending rules."

"Sam said a lot changed there, that most buildings have internet now?"

He grinned, and it grew as Noah shot him a surprised glance. "Yeah, they do. They had to if we were going to stay in touch properly. Telephones are garbage. Helena finally convinced Chase to invest in the upgrade." Aidan stretched, popping his neck. "Some of them even have cell phones."

"Like Jonesy."

"Yeah," he chuckled. "He sure was stoked when you messaged him. I seriously doubt he's going to stay there after his birthday."

"Why did it take so long?"

Aidan shared a look with Noah and shrugged. "Hard to say for sure. I sort of think it was to keep us sheltered, so we wouldn't want to roam far before we were of age to move out. A little selfish, a little overprotective. Helena's been arguing against it for years."

"She must be stoked to be able to watch her soaps online instead of VHS, huh?" said Noah, a nostalgic smile on his face.

"Big time."

The coffee maker beeped, and Ada got up to tend to it. As she set out mugs for the three of them, the two continued the conversation. She might have been bothered by being mostly forgotten as they delved into it, but it was frankly nice to see the two talk freely. Even with Sam around, Aidan and Noah didn't discuss anything together to any great length. The ground around them was tender, unstable, and more often than not they trod on a rough patch that either escalated or fizzled out to stony silence.

"I hope you'll come to the next meeting; both of you." Aidan gazed between them, donning a hopeful smile.

"Yeah, of course." Ada puffed air through her nose. "Honestly, I should have just gone in the first place."

The thought had crossed her mind about a dozen times each day. She could have said no. She could have just left. Why did she do this?

Because she enjoyed the thrill.

Ada fought down a shudder and tried to focus as Noah agreed as well, though with greater reluctance.

"I really don't think they want me there," he was saying, frowning at his mug. There was a deep line between his brows that never fully went away.

"The best way to show them you're better is to be there. Otherwise they're just going to keep feeling uncomfortable with the decision."

"He's right," Ada added, pulling out of her reverie. "Show them who you are so they stop worrying about who you were."

Aidan held out his mug as though acknowledging her words as he swallowed. "Yes, exactly. We'll all be there next time; it won't be so bad the second time around."

Noah shrugged and agreed. He busied himself with a cracker under their scrutiny. To spare him, Ada asked Aidan the question she was dreading.

"So, how much did Sam tell you?"

"Barely anything, I imagine." He fixated on her throat, eyes pinching. "She told me you got caught up in old drama with your siblings, that you got hurt. I take it that was what she was referring to." He nodded pointedly, eyeing her throat again.

Ada couldn't help reaching for it as she said, "Yeah, mostly. I've only got a couple of burns and other bruises, too. Charles and Jocelyn tracked me down. Really, it was only a matter of time. I tried to buy them off with one final job. It was supposed to be simple and straightforward. Go fucking figure, though, I stumbled onto a drug ring that actually involves my siblings, and now I'm indebted to that guy, their friend, who runs it."

Aidan pursed his lips as Noah tried to look shocked. "That's a lot." When she only nodded, he appeared to debate for a moment. "Can I ask you about the whole ..."—her heart skipped so hard she could feel its impression against her inner ribs—"magic thing?"

He said it so delicately, it's like he was afraid she was going to explode at the mention of it. Well, maybe if the alternative wasn't murder, it might seem more intimidating. But, honestly, after meeting with Maggie and having the night to process the news, she wasn't so freaked out. Again, homicide. Nothing is as intense as that, so she nodded for him to go on.

Noah was clearly eager to hear more; she supposed she hadn't really finished their conversation before. This was the first he was hearing of it, too. She took a deep breath, gathering her thoughts before she would have to answer and explain the weirdness she was part of.

"Have you learned anything more about that glitter you saw on Sam, and that girl?"

That wasn't where she thought he would start, but she redirected quickly. "A bit, but I'm waiting to hear back from her. She has a theory. Yeah, it's magic, by the way. I don't know, it's all so crazy. I wouldn't believe it if she hadn't done something ... amazing."

She couldn't even begin to describe that sphere to them. Words didn't seem enough to convey the pure delicacy of the structure she created and destroyed with all the ease of a child blowing bubbles. Instead, she described what she had done while inside that forsaken building. Not in as much detail, she stuck mainly to the fire, and she avoided the murder completely. She felt Noah's nervous eyes on her grow more and more intense the closer she drew to that instant. When she passed it and didn't mention him at all, Noah relaxed.

It was weird to lay it all out there, to discuss magic as something real. It shouldn't feel so weird. She had done it, apparently, multiple times in the past. Not to mention the two magical beings across the table from her, and the one she shared a bed with. It shouldn't be so hard to accept, and yet ...

"Listen, can you two stick around tonight after the run? I want to see if it happens to you, too." Her mug was almost empty, and she eyed the carafe longingly.

"Sure thing." Aidan went to retrieve it after draining his own. "What was her theory about it?"

"I don't know, she wasn't ready to discuss it. All I know is she thinks I have some rare, luck-based magic."

Noah's brows rose. "Well, could she be right?"

Ada shrugged. "I guess, but it sounds like bullshit."

"Can she see it?" asked Aidan as he sat. He passed the carafe around.

"No, but that's not unusual, she said. It's not super common to be able to see ..." She snapped her fingers as she grappled for Maggie's wording. "Crue? Non, brute? Non ... oh, ouais, la magie pure."

To be clear, for the non-French speakers, cru and brut are other ways of saying raw or pure. Sure, in English it's an easy debate, right? What was it? Oh, right, it was raw magic. But in French? Look, it's not always a breeze, okay? She still struggled sometimes.

Noah leaned for the sugar bowl. "What does that mean?"

"I don't really know, since she didn't explain very much. I think she's afraid of being wrong." Ada took a sip, soothed at once by the taste and warmth.

Aidan cocked a challenging brow. "Oh? How come?"

"Why is anyone afraid of being wrong?" Ada shrugged it off.

A grin joined the challenge. "Could it be because she's into you?"

Noah perked up, glancing between them as she gasped. "What? How did- Sam texted you, didn't she?"

"Yep." The grin became a victorious smirk as he scooped up his phone and pulled up a message, saying, "According to her,"—he cleared his throat and spoke in an awkward alto—"Maggie couldn't have been more obvious when she glared at my hand.' Followed by: 'Can you believe her? I bet she lied about needing to talk to her aunt so she can see Ada again.' And then: 'The worst thing is she's hot now.' Then there's a Ron Swanson GIF that says 'This is my hell.'"

Ada was snickering by the end of the first text and all-out seal-clapping by the end of it. She knew Sam was upset about Maggie, and she knew Sam had spotted Maggie's pining, but a string of jealous texts was about the last thing Ada expected. She really was trying her best to keep it to herself. Ada wouldn't tease her for it, but she sure got a kick out of the revelation.

Aidan's feminine impression didn't help matters. Noah was in stitches beside him, and Aidan flipped him off with a goofy grin.

"Okay, I can't say for sure if that's what's going on, but I admit Maggie's not very good at hiding her emotions." Ada took a sip and focused on her breathing so she wouldn't chuckle and choke.

"I told her not to worry." Aidan was still getting a hold of himself as he set his phone down. "That hot or not, you're not the type to do that."

Ada's brows rose. "I'm not arguing, but why do you think that?"

He shrugged, gathering his thoughts. Noah cut in. "Well, beyond the fact that we're like the scariest older brothers she could possibly have?"

To this, Aidan gave a lopsided grin and pointed at Noah in agreement. Ada rolled her eyes.

"You're not wrong about me, but you really think I'm scared of you? Did you see what I did to that damn building?" She smiled so they would hopefully know she was teasing.

Aidan scoffed. "Big deal, you've been doing that for a hot second. We've been doing this since we were kids."

Noah held up his hand for a high-five. "Nice pun."

As Aidan obliged, Ada stared between them, incredulous. They were actually bonding over taunting her. Well, three could apparently play this game.

"Watch it, boys, or I might start learning just to prove you wrong."

Little did she know what good motivation those words would be.

By the time Sam got home, the sun was down and the wind had picked up to a howl. Ada barely noticed, though, because she was trying with all her might to do the light trick Maggie had done. How hard could it be? It was a question she only ever asked when buzzed. The afternoon bled away as the three of them played silly multiplayer games and worked through a bottle of wine.

It hadn't escaped her, even buzzed as she was, that Noah had hardly touched his. When she tipped her chin at it in question, he mimicked a steering wheel with a wink when Aidan wasn't looking. Clever.

They never really stopped the banter that began over coffee, and at some point when they were discussing magic, again, Noah uttered her favourite challenge: prove it. It got her in some sticky situations before, but she could rarely resist the stakes.

So there she was in the armchair, scrubbing her hands together for so long they chafed. It wasn't completely fruitless. The first flicker of light being sucked out of the room was too subtle for them to spot, but the second one Noah noticed right away. In those moments in which the light was drawn into her, she felt a deep tug within. Whatever it was she was touching, so to speak, it was elusive.

Sam's arrival was in the middle of this. Ada was just beginning to get a small flicker of white between her fingers when the lock tumbled.

"I'm home." A pause, no scuffing or jingling of keys as she removed her outdoor things. "Why does it look like you're welding in here? What is that?"

Ada managed to hold onto the flicker for a second as she looked to Sam's confused face, but it faded in an instant. Dividing her attention was too great a challenge. Ada offered a warm smile.

"Playing with magic." It had stopped feeling weird after her third success at creating light. Don't get her wrong, it still blew her mind every time she did it, but it wasn't so hard to accept.

Sam blinked a few times, searching for words. "So that was ..."

"Some sort of light ball." Ada shrugged. Her upturned palms were hot and raw. "How was your day?"

She tossed her keys in the bowl before sinking into the couch with a subtle groan. As she did, Aidan poured her a glass, emptying the bottle.

"Thanks." She sipped. "A day from hell, honestly. We still have just one computer for checkouts and whatnot, and it went down again this afternoon. Before that, I had to process a twelve-year late fee without the original card, which took about an hour. What a day." She sighed before taking another drink. "You're here early."

"Yeah, we came by after lunch to see Ada. Are you still in tonight?" Aidan stifled a yawn as he heaved his legs onto the table.

"Definitely."

"That reminds me, I asked them to come by after," Ada cut in. "I hope that's all right. I want to see if they get that gold stuff on them as well."

Sam smiled, weariness easing for a moment. "Yes, of course."

Gazing between the three of them, Sam was doll-like in the middle. Scary older brothers indeed; it put things in somewhat better perspective. Good thing she had no intention of getting on their bad side.

The evening wore on and they switched to tea when their glasses emptied. Noah had poured his out when no one else was looking. It wasn't the full moon, so there was no time constraint of restlessness for them. They left a little after ten, leaving Ada to settle on the couch with her laptop for more programming study.

Things weren't perfect, but they were better. She had to acknowledge how much better she felt having been honest—mostly—about what she had done, and at having people she could talk to about it. So even though things were still tender with Sam, she felt more relief than stress at having come clean to someone for the first time. She wasn't totally alone for once.

Still, it didn't make her feel better about what was coming. Charles and Jocelyn would be back, without a doubt, and they weren't going anywhere. Ada was done running. Somehow, she would put an end to it. They would. There could be no more of just her in this, her last endeavour had proven as much.

The thought of putting Sam in harms way, of involving her in real-life organised crime, made her stomach churn. But what else could she do? In all that time she had to think, Ada came up with no alternatives. She went from focused to wallowing and back in a steady cycle as the hour grew small. She probably should have just gone to bed, but she was determined to be awake and alert when they got back.

Around three Ada had devolved to simply watching television and was debating crawling into bed instead of waiting up. It's not like she wouldn't have the chance again. Late as it was, Ada was only going to have a couple of hours under her belt for work in the morning. Sleep did sound good.

Ada wasn't debating for long. Halfway to her feet, headlights flared moments before the purr of Aidan's engine reached her. After a deep stretch, she strolled around the coffee table to part the curtain. She grinned. Noah had gotten his wish.

They filed inside with a chorus of greetings, all sounding as tired as she felt. Aidan grinned as he strolled into the living room, messy hair an absolute disaster. Noah's flannel was offset by a button, but he was probably the happiest Ada had ever seen him.

"I drove both ways," he said proudly, gesturing over his shoulder to where the car was.

Sam appeared, her hair dipped brown from dragging in the muck. She beamed at Ada, and her heart gave a pleasant skip.

"He threw you under the bus," said Aidan. If not for the smile, Ada would have assumed him to be angry with her, or to know the full story. Instead, he followed up with, "You taught him well, though, he didn't grind the gears; and I really don't want to know how bad he ground them last time."

Ada laughed. "Not too bad, I promise. I want to take a look at the engine sometime soon, it shouldn't be whining like that."

"Would you? I didn't want to have to take it in so soon."

"Of course."

Ada swallowed hard, remembering her purpose all at once. She flicked on the lamp and, after a moment of thought, started with Sam. Sure, she had seen it on her before, but the near guarantee of seeing it again was bolstering. Her smile was small and private, just enough to dimple her cheeks. As Ada drew near, Sam gazed up at her through her lashes before tipping her chin up, then side to side and back again. It took a second for Ada to focus on the task again. For a long, terrifying moment, her skin was remarkably normal. Something caught her attention. With gentle fingers, Ada tilted her right cheek toward the light in time to spot a pinprick of gold which swelled to a delicate bead before trickling down her jaw. With a gasp, Ada caught it with her finger and brought it over to the light.

The bead held its form and hummed on her fingertip. Ada could see and feel it as well as anything else. "Can you see that?" she asked, gesturing at it with her free hand. All three shook their heads, and Ada cursed. "There's a drop on the end of my finger and it feels ... I don't know, charged?"

"So, it is a liquid then?" asked Noah.

"I guess so." Wiping it away on the back of her hand, she turned to them. "Who's next?"

Aidan volunteered, albeit with some reservation. "So I just ... turn my face, like this?"

He did as Sam had, though it didn't help much except to expose the underside of his jaw.

"You're too tall, sit down."

He did, and when he repeated the motion, Ada saw it right away beneath the curls on his forehead. Ada lifted those, ignoring his confused gaze, and grinned in triumph. Gold was smeared like thin paint over his forehead, more concentrated near his hairline and fading out.

"You have it, too." Ada turned to Noah, dropped her hands. "Your turn."

He sat cautiously and at a bit of an angle until he settled in. Ada didn't have to move his hair, short as it was. It took only one turn before she saw it, abundant along his neck where his collar covered, a thinner coat nearly masking his throat.

"Well?" he asked, gazing at her from the corner of his eye. He had frozen when she gasped.

Ada nodded, straightening. "All over your neck. You're all covered in raw magic."

Now that she knew it, she didn't know what to do. She had her knowledge, her answer, but it was meaningless. Ada sank to the armchair with a sigh.

"What does it mean?" Sam joined her, perching on the arm.

"I don't really know. Maggie only said that it was unusual to see, that gold means I make luck, and that she had a theory but wanted to confirm it first." As she sighed again, Sam rubbed her arm in support.

"When do you see it on us?" Aidan asked, leaning on his elbows.

"After you shift, it seems. I haven't seen it on any of you otherwise."

"And when did you see it on that girl?"

Ada paused, chewing her lip as she considered this. "I can't say for sure what caused it, but it was on her cheek in the shop. She had just offered to read my cards. She said she had a feeling something big was about to happen to me, and then the gold showed up." Her groggy mind took a second to make connections. "And when I asked her yesterday if she could see things, like, in her mind, she agreed. I guess she was seeing something."

"Maybe it's sweat," murmured Aidan, sleepy gaze drifting to the floor in thought. "I don't know how magic works, especially for ... hang on, what are you, anyway?"

Ada grinned nervously; she never thought she would ever be asked what she was. "A witch, she said."

"Cool," murmured Sam and Noah at the same time.

Aidan hummed softly, considering. "Well, I don't know a thing about witches or their magic, but I would guess we probably don't use it the same way you do."

"I would guess not. Why sweat, though?"

He shrugged. "Well, look at where you've seen it, how it seems to form. It sounds like sweat to me."

He and Noah shared a look, who nodded. "Sounds plausible to me."

"This is so fucking weird," Ada murmured, earning her sympathetic smiles. "I guess I'll text her in the morning; when I know anything more, I'll tell you. Maybe she'll know something useful."

"Wait a second." Noah was frowning, lips pursed in thought. "Have you always seen this stuff on us?"—Ada shook her head—"Why would it start all of a sudden?"

"That's part of the theory she's testing, or getting sources on, or something. I really don't know."

When no one else seemed to have input on the matter, Aidan got up with a groan and cracked his neck. "We should probably get home. I've got a trial shift bartending at the pub tomorrow, can't be too tired."

Sam walked him to the foyer, but Noah was slower to rise. Though well hidden, his wince was not unnoticed. Ada offered a hand and braced him as he stood.

"How was the run?" A simple question with a deeper meaning that wasn't lost on him.

"Good," he said as he shifted his weight to the cane. "Painful, but good. I'll be fine."

Sam and Aidan were chatting about D&D night as he laced up his sneakers. Neither seemed to notice they were trailing.

"Is it getting any easier?" Ada asked.

"Some, but not much."

Noah dragged his shoes over with his toes and walked into them with relative ease; it was then that Ada noticed the elastic laces. He offered a little smile as they went to leave. Before they did, Ada thanked them both in earnest, and was given a casual, "Of course," in response, like she had asked them for help building a bookshelf and not studied them for invisible traces of magic.

Sam snaked an arm around Ada's waist, leaning against her with a yawn. "Was it what you were hoping for?"

"Yes, even if it's meaningless for now." Ada put an arm around her shoulders and drew her close. "Come on, bed time."

"I have to shower, I'm covered in mud."

They made their way upstairs on slow, tired feet. As she cleaned up, Ada scrubbed her face and her teeth and listened to Sam describe the evening. It always blew her away to hear about Sam's altered perspective and the antics she got up to in that form. She even excitedly reported that Noah and Aidan had seemed friendlier than usual. In turn, Ada told her about their afternoon and the progress the two seemed to have made. She didn't want to count her chickens before they hatched, but she was optimistic. It was a bit of a bizarre sensation.