Katie almost dropped her phone. She stood frozen a few seconds as she took the information in. She was vaguely aware of Lucy glancing at her uncertainly.

"W... What? You mean the Jessica Lawson who failed her pledge?"

"The same," her father gravely. "I don't think she's dangerous, but if she uses magic and you're around when that happens..."

Katie didn't need him to finish to understand the subtext.

"The Council might get the wrong idea..." she sighed. "I get it. Okay, I'll be back soon. We were on our way anyhow."

"Okay. See you soon."

She put her phone away.

"What's wrong?" Lucy asked, concern in her dark eyes.

Katie took her arm and said:

"I'll explain later. We have to get to my house."

Lucy didn't protest and soon they were out of the shopping centre and driving back. They found the rest of the Thomas family - including Hazel this time - in the living room. Most of them looked worried. Hazel looked more confused than anything else.

"Is it true?" Katie asked as she and Lucy sat down. "Did Jessica really escape?"

"Yes. The Council and other warlocks are out looking for her."

"Who's Jessica?" Lucy asked.

"She was a witch too," Katie explained. "But unlike most of us, she didn't accept her powers, and it made her pledge go wrong... and she's never been the same since."

"Oh..." was all Lucy said.

Katie turned to her parents.

"How did it happen? I thought the institution she was in had high security?"

"It does," Isadora agreed, frowning. "We're not sure how it happened, but she's gone. And no one knows why she left, or where she went."

"I'd say the why is pretty obvious," Gideon said. "She was fed up of staying locked up in there."

It was as good a theory as any, and Katie couldn't think of any other reason.

"As for the where... her parents have already looked in all the obvious places, of course, but either she's already gone when they arrive, or she hasn't been there at all."

"Like she's expecting them..." Katie finished.

From what her parents had told her, Katie knew that Jessica might have changed but her mind still worked more or less normally. If one didn't know what she'd been through, they could believe she was just a little eccentric.

"So... what exactly do we have to do with all this?" Katie asked. "I mean, I understand she was a Starchild, and everything, but..."

"We thought it best to tell you in case you ran into her," Helaena said. "That's why Hazel's here too. We don't think it will happen, but it's better to be safe than sorry, isn't it?"

"I suppose... but should we be worried about running into her?" Gideon asked.

Kendall sighed thoughtfully.

"I don't think so. She's mostly harmless, from what I've been told," he said. "But with your sister in the Council's radar..."

He paused, but Gideon had caught the meaning.

"You don't want to risk a confrontation that could lead to using magic," he finished.

His father nodded.

"Do we really think it would come to a confrontation? If she's harmless..." Lucy pointed out.

"We don't know what to expect," Helaena told her. "It could be a peaceful encounter, or it could be a hostile one. She barely spoke in the institution, which means we really have no idea what's going on in her mind, right now."

"And when in doubt, I'm for being ready for anything," Kendall replied.

Katie and Lucy eventually went up to her room, leaving the others talk. Katie shut the door as Lucy slumped into the armchair Katie sometimes read in.

"I don't get it, though," Lucy said. "Why would one reject having magical powers, anyway? I would be totally thrilled!"

"It's not always as easy as it sounds," Katie told her as she sat on her bed. "It's not like you can choose to have it or not. You're born with it, like it or not. It's sprung upon you whatever your opinion. I guess not everyone is happy with that."

Lucy pondered that.

"I guess so. It's kind of like your family. You don't choose them, but you're stuck with them."

Katie couldn't help smiling.

"It's a little more complicated than that. You can't cut ties with magic."

"Can't you just like... take it out?"

"Yes," Katie said. "That's what Dispelling is for. But it's a punishment, not a favour."

"Oh... not a good idea, then."

"No, not a good idea at all," Katie smiled. "Not to mention that it's completely unheard of for someone to do it by choice."

Lucy sat cross legged on the bed next to her.

"Changing the subject, we never finished the conversation we were having about you and Luke. And more importantly, you never told me why you zoned out when we talked about him."

"I didn't zone out, I was thinking," Katie protested weakly.

"Oh, really? Thinking about Luke, maybe?"

Katie heaved a sigh.

"Lucy, please... just give it a rest, okay?"

She leaned back into the wall behind her.

"I told you, witches and Unspelled relationships don't work. Even witch and warlock relationships are complicated..."

It was perhaps the one thing that sometimes made her wish she wasn't a witch. Of course, romance was complicated for Unspelled, as well. But it felt even more so from where she was standing.

"Your parents are together," Lucy reminded.

"They exist, but they usually date back to before our clans became rivals." Katie clarified. "Plus, my parents were from the same clan already."

"There's got to be a few decent guys in your clan, right?" Lucy asked.

"... Probably, but not in the vicinity." Katie sighed.

"Well... no harm in enjoying the moment, right?"

Katie sighed again, but there was an underline of irritation to it. She loved Lucy like a sister, but sometimes she really needed to shut up. She turned to her.

"... What if he falls in love with me?" she inquired. "Or I do? How can I leave him before he finds out who I am without breaking both our hearts?"

Lucy was silent.

"How can I open my heart to someone knowing I'll have to pull back eventually? Unspelled aren't supposed to know about us. But hiding it would end up getting between us, no matter how hard I try to avoid it. I don't want to get into something I know is not going to work."

"How do you know unless you try?"

"Because I've seen witch after warlock think the exact same thing as you are, and not one of them are still with the Unspelled they'd fallen in love with."