When Ada woke the next day, she lay in bed for a while trying to make sense of her emotions. She was so used to waking up with stress, worry, especially in the last few weeks, that to have nothing to worry about was frankly disconcerting. Something had to be wrong, didn't it?

Except, there wasn't. Sam was curled up in her arms, snoring softly. Simon had been appeased. Charles and Jocelyn were dealt with. Ada had nothing left to worry her. Maybe if she ran the list a few more times she would believe it.

Her day was surreal, crawling by under the hoods of neglected vehicles. Arthur wasn't pleased about all her impromptu time off and made sure she knew it. Ada gritted her teeth and endured. After all, a little grief was a small price to pay for her freedom. He wouldn't do anything, despite numerous claims of thin ice under her feet. He needed her far more than she him.

Colin was extra chatty, and she tried her best to be receptive. She reminded herself that she had had friends far less considerate and caring before. Besides, they had a fair few things in common, it turned out. She just had to get over his pesky puppy personality.

Ada was doing well with it, up until he invited her for coffee after their shifts. Still sleep deprived, she couldn't stop herself from setting down her wrench to emerge and say, "Look, I'm just going to say it: I'm not interested, I'm a lesbian."

He chuckled, unruffled. "I know. Well, I suspected, anyway."

Ada felt her brows creep up and her annoyance bleed away. "You knew?"

"Sure," he shrugged. "I assumed after Becky tried to set you up with her brother, and her friend at the bank, and Ravi."

"Oh, I forgot about that one," she said more to herself than to him. Then she chuckled dryly. "Ever think I just wasn't interested?"

"Of course, but let's face it, I may be straight as an arrow, but even I know that Becky's brother is an absolute catch."

Ada laughed harder. "So all this time you've been asking me on friend dates?"

"Yeah," he said with a perplexed frown. "Was that not clear? I'm sorry. Is that why you've been so aloof?"

Ada was aware of the possibility that he was just saying that—gas-lighting, if you will. But Colin was too genuine for that. She had met her share of sociopaths; he wasn't one of them.

"Well, I can't tomorrow, but soon, okay? I've got a lot going on this week."

He beamed. "Sure."

Colin left her to it with a spring in his step. At least he was easy to please. Ada found herself grinning shortly after. The relief of knowing combined with her newfound freedom had her nearly giddy.

At the end of her shift, she raced home. She was running a few minutes late and was determined to get in before Maggie arrived. She was just stopping by to swap out some of the tomes for Ada's studies. Ada wanted to spare Sam the potential discomfort of entertaining her alone until she arrived. Whatever was sour between them hadn't healed yet.

Aidan's hatchback was parked in Ada's spot. Though she wasn't expecting them, she wasn't exactly surprised. Aidan and Noah were stretched out on either end of the sofa, while Sam sketched in the armchair. Her hair was piled into a bun, new hairs forming a thin halo around her hairline. She beamed at Ada over the top of her sketchbook.

"How was your day?" she asked automatically as she tucked her pencil behind her ear.

"Good." Ada kicked off her boots, covering a yawn. "Told Colin today that I'm gay."

Sam snorted. "How did he take it?"

"Well, it turns out he wasn't trying to ask me out." She skirted Aidan's knees and dropped into the centre cushion with a groan as her spine gave a satisfying crack. "The news didn't phase him at all. Apparently he's suspected for a long time."

Considering Becky moved to China eight months ago to teach English, yeah, it had been some time. It was hard to say exactly how long he had known, but it didn't matter. What did matter was that she could let her guard down somewhat at work. One less exhaustion to worry about.

"I mean, I might be biased, but he would have had to be completely oblivious not to know," said Aidan, grinning when she looked to him. "What? I know style doesn't mean anything, but you don't exactly exude interest in guys. Like I said, maybe I'm biased. I knew who you were before we even met, so ..." Ada elbowed his side, earning her an amused, "Ow!"

Noah snickered. "Speaking of style, are you planning on keeping your eyebrows like that?"

"Maybe, why?"

"I don't know." He shrugged, clearly deliberating. "I think it kind of suits you."

"I like them," said Sam with an approving grin.

Ada was one syllable into her sentence when knocks sounded from the front door. Ada hurried to get it, stubbing her toe on the table in the process. Laughter followed her as she hopped a few times on her way to let Maggie in.

"Hey," Maggie said, grinning awkwardly toward the dying chuckles. "Am I interrupting anything?"

"No, come on in." Ada waved her over the threshold, backing up to give her room to shed her snow-flecked jacket. "Noah, Aidan, this is Maggie." She gestured to each in turn so she would know who was who.

"Hey," she said with a brief wave, struggling with her right boot zipper. "Sorry to barge in like this."

"Don't be." Sam st aside her book, eraser, and gripe. "These two basically live here."

Aidan grinned at her first, then at Maggie. "Nice to meet you, we've heard a bit already."

A light flush tinged her cheeks. "Nothing bad, I hope." Her eyes darted to the tomes central on the coffee table, then to Ada's in a panic. She turned slightly so they wouldn't see her whisper, "You didn't tell them, did you?"

Ada smiled both to allay her worry, and because she was amused that she thought whispering around them would be private. Of course, she couldn't know otherwise, but it tickled Ada nonetheless.

"There was no way around it, they were in on what happened. You don't need to worry about them, I promise."

"I didn't think I had to tell you not to freaking tell people what we can do!" she hissed.

After a moment of deliberation, Ada placed a palm on her shoulder. "These are the most trustworthy people I have ever met. Your secret is safer with no one. Our secret."

"This isn't about trustworthiness, we don't tell people what we do. Did you forget about the witch hunts?"

"Look, they knew about the fire I caused before I even told you. No matter what, they would have figured it out, even if I didn't tell them. I know better than to go spreading this news around. These people are my family."

Noah cleared his throat. "Do you want us to give you some privacy?"

"No, it's fine." Ada gave him a smile, then turned back to Maggie. "Trust me when I say you can trust them."

She sighed heavily, scanning the small gathering. "Fine." She raised her voice to a normal level. "But if any of you tells a soul, I'll freeze you solid and shatter you to pieces."

Since she didn't know if that was possible or not, Ada erred on the side of caution. "They won't."

Ada caught Sam's eye in time to spot warm pride before Sam turned her attention to Maggie. "What you taught her was life-changing; thank you for taking the time."

"Um, you're ... welcome."

"Do you want to sit? I can grab another seat." Ada gestured, but not at anything specific. It was just a nervous reaction.

She agreed, so Ada dragged over the computer chair and angled it toward the couch for her before taking her own seat again. Ada slid the stack of book over, then sat back.

Maggie opened her mouth, then shut it and scanned each of them for a moment. "Did you find them helpful?"

"Yeah, I think so. I mean, I can't do much with the information on potions and tinctures, but the theory books were handy. Do you have anything on astral projection, or my luck based magic that I can read?"

"Astral projection, yes. I brought one with me, I thought you might ask for it. But as for your specific brand of magic, no, I'm afraid not. Auntie has been writing down everything she can remember on the subject, but she doesn't know much." Maggie dug through her large shoulder bag, eventually retrieving a long, narrow book no thicker than a DVD case and passed it to Ada. "That should tell you more about the astral plane. I honestly don't know how much help we're going to be in terms of luck magic, but I can at least get you in contact with some people who can point you in the right direction, if you want."

Ada nodded eagerly. "Very much. I think I'm on a downward trend at the moment."

Indeed, her toe was still throbbing, and it wasn't the first injury of her day. So far, she had walked into a chair in the break room, banged her head on the sink when she dropped her earbuds in the washroom, and lost a fiver down a storm drain, all since dawn. If she kept this up she was going to be in the hospital with a concussion before the week was out.

Maggie grinned. "Spent it all doing your job, or whatever?"

"I guess so," Ada shrugged.

"Makes sense. Well, be careful. There's a damn good reason it's so rare."

"Oh?"

"Well, sure. I mean, think about it. Epic highs, catastrophic lows. The ones that managed to avoid fatal accidents had the greed of others to contend with. People brag, gloat, flaunt. Not all of the folk like you managed to keep their glee in check. Some of us believe that folk like you brought it on themselves."

"And you?"

She shrugged. "I don't think any of them asked for this. Sure, gloating is probably a bad idea when you're winning impossible odds, but it's no reason to be murdered."

Ada nodded slowly. She honestly hadn't thought of it from that angle. When Maggie had described it the first time, Ada had taken it to mean the occasional spell of clumsiness, not a penchant for being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

"When you say impossible odds, does that apply to the lows, too?" Ada asked after a time.

"Yes, absolutely. I'm talking, like, struck eight times by lightning in a lifetime odds."

"Hm ..."

The murmur of conversation from the television filled the silence. Ada didn't like the sound of those odds at all, and suddenly, everything seemed vaguely threatening. How was she supposed to keep herself safe from natural disasters?

"Look, you don't need to stress about it," she said, crossing her ankles on the table. Her skirt, done in tie-dye shades of grey, dangled and pooled on the rug. "You made it this long without dying. Just don't use up all your stores if you can avoid it and you should be fine. At least, that's how I understand it."

"I guess so."

Ada thought back to the thin, hollow bubble she found in place of her mana the day prior and cringed internally. She had definitely gone too far. That being said, there was no avoiding it. She did what she had to do to get the job done. There was nothing in her future that she could see that would demand another total drain of her mana.

Maggie checked her watch. "Well, I should probably get back. I need to make dinner still." She got to her feet and stretched deeply, spine arching. Then, she fished out a few more small books from her purse and set them on the table. "Here, these are some books I read when I started formal training."

"Thank you." Ada stood too, leading a wave.

Beside her, Noah swayed and sank back down with a deep groan. His cane fell from its perch, but Sam caught it before it hit the table.

"Thanks," he murmured, taking it from her and propping it up again. "Sorry, don't mind my manners."

Maggie gave him a once-over with a concerned pinch in her brow. "What's wrong?"

He shrugged. "Just an old injury."

"I can take a look, if you want." She paused, alarm flaring bright for an instant. "I mean, I can't heal your injury or anything, but I might be able to help with the pain a little."

Noah looked to Ada, who shrugged. "Up to you."

He bit the inside of his lip and gave her a steady, critical assessment. If Aidan was uncertain, he masked it well. He didn't protest at all, though if Ada knew anything about him, she'd bet he wanted to. Noah eventually nodded once and scooted forward.

"What do you need me to do?" he asked in a hushed tone.

"Where is the injury?"

"Here." Noah gestured to his lower right back, and then his abdomen, where the fist-sized scar lay hidden.

Heedless of potential danger, Maggie strolled right past them and took Ada's vacated seat. She rolled up her sleeves, asking, "Where is the pain the worst?"

"My back."

Again, Noah glanced at Ada, then at Aidan. When neither of them protested, he turned slightly in his seat and pulled up the hem of his tee shirt. The scar was an uneven crater just above his pelvis, waxy, and vibrant as the flesh of a grapefruit. Ada hadn't seen it before, but it was larger than she was expecting. It was a wonder he had survived at all.

"Holy shit," said Maggie, her right hand frozen in the air between them. "What happened?"

Noah puffed air through his nose in a mirthless laugh. "My own hubris."

"Hubris doesn't stab you. Christ, did it go right through you?"

"Yes."

Maggie shook her head. "I don't know if it'll be of any use, but let's see. I'm going to touch you, okay?"

Even with warning, he still jolted as she pressed her fingertips to the centre of the scar, then splayed them outward until her entire palm was pressed over it. Ada didn't know if the others felt it, but a distinct ripple like gentle waves coursed out from her. Her fingers began to glow faintly as though pressed over a bright light. Noah showed no signs of distress, and so none of them moved. They watched with bated breath for a conclusion they had no inkling of.

Maggie wrenched her hand away with a sharp gasp, rocketing to her feet. "What the fuck? What. The. Fuck?"

"What?" Aidan demanded, at once a leader and concerned brother. He stepped toward her, but thought better of it and fell in beside Ada. "What is it?"

"What did I just see?" Wide eyes met Ada's behind the flash of light across her lenses.

Ada cleared her throat as dread bottomed out her gut. "Um, you'll need to be more specific. Did you see how he got the injury or something?"

"No, I saw a huge wolf snarling at me."

Everyone stared at her as tension turned the room to stone. Ada barely dared to breathe. Oh, fuck, what had she done? What had she brought into their home? Deep breaths; she could find a way to navigate this without revealing the truth. She could. She had to.

"Yeah, that was part of it." Ada cleared her throat of the obstruction thickening her voice. "How he got the injury."

Maggie squinted at her. "My vision didn't feel like that. The way it looked at me ... it was like it could see me."

Noah sat back once more, an unsettling pallor in his cheeks. He met Aidan's gaze over Maggie's shoulder with firm resolution. Noah nodded once, and Aidan sighed loudly.

"Fine." He took his seat, indicating she should do the same.

Ada skirted past them and took the computer chair. Sam's wide eyes took it all in, but she kept to herself. She caught Ada's eye, reservation apparent in her own. Ada, too, was wary.

"What was that?" Maggie demanded, directing her question to Aidan.

"First thing's first; if I am to answer your question, I need to know something: can you do anything to help him, anything at all?" He paused, waiting for an answer that didn't come. "Look, I understand all too well what it means to have a secret bigger than yourself."

That seemed to do the trick. She pursed her lips for a moment, then said, "I can make a salve of sorts to help with the pain, but that's about it."

Aidan nodded once, then gave me a brief, hard stare. "I can't believe I'm saying this ..." he muttered to himself. "And I wouldn't be, if you weren't in the exact same boat as us. Frankly, I get the feeling there's no point in lying to you, anyway. You'll either figure it out yourself, or you'll fucking see something else. We,"—he gestured from himself, to Noah, to Sam—"turn into wolves."

Brilliant dawn crossed her face, followed by a grin. "So it was symbolic. There was a wolf in my tea leaves not long ago. I've been waiting and waiting for the sign that would tell me if it was good or bad. It's neither. It was literally about you lot."

"You're awfully calm about this," noted Noah, apprehension apparent.

She shrugged. "It's not the first I've heard of your kind. I mean, it is in terms of reality, but your kind is discussed in a few of the tomes I've read."

Sam perked up. "Really? How many? Do you still have them?"

"Yes, some. I'd have to do some digging to find anything." She paused, glancing at Sam. "Why, are you interested in reading them?"

"Very." She nodded eagerly, loose bun bobbing.

Maggie shrugged, sending hair cascading down her back from over one shoulder. "I'll see what I can find, but it might take a little while. I can't remember what topic led to that."

Aidan was pinching the bridge of his nose like he was getting a headache. "Look, just promise me you'll keep this to yourself. You can't tell even your aunt, or your mom, not anyone. I didn't tell you this for the sake of research, I told you for his sake."

"Of course." She gave a resolute nod, hands clutched in her lap. She glanced over to Noah and smiled. "I'll have to try a few different formulations to see what is going to work best for your injury, but I should be able to take the edge off at least. Can you come see me tomorrow afternoon?"

"We'll be there," Aidan said for him.

Maggie checked her watched again. "I really do have to run. Thank you for trusting me with this, I know how scary it can be." She shot Ada a pointed glance. "Your secret is as safe as my own, I imagine."

He half-smiled. "Quite, then."

She returned it fully as she got to her feet. They rose again—though Noah remained seated—and Ada walked her to the door. She stepped into her boots, but paused after zipping them.

"I know it wasn't your call, but I appreciate all of you trusting me with this. It means a lot."

Ada tipped her head toward the living room. "It's all good, they can still here you just fine. We appreciate it, too." Ada paused, debating her next thought. "I sort of had a thought I wanted to run by you."

"Shoot."

"Your aunt said she can't interact with the astral plane, right?"

"That's right." Maggie tilted her head slightly.

"I was thinking ... well, I managed to explore another plane the other night, it was amazing. Just this long, endless hallway full of fog, but still. I thought maybe I could try to help out somehow. I don't know how, but ... well, somehow."

A myriad of expressions warred for dominance. Finally, she settled on a misty grin. "I'd like that."

Geared up against the light snowfall outside, she gave Ada a little smile and a wave, then hurried off to her car.