:=: Samantha :=:

Jessica interrupted, "Wait, am I supposed to write this out phonetically? Or does spelling count? Cos I have no idea how to spell 'fahz-rall-zhaq'."

Nicole replied, "That one's phonetic. If it's Latin, spell it properly. If it's old Welsh, spell it properly. If its the Language of the Gods, then it's phonetic."

Jess sighed, "Right, sorry. You know, when I signed up for this stuff I didn't really expect I'd wind up playing secretary to you two."

Samantha smiled, "Jess, you're not our secretary. This is just a small part of the work we're all doing. And c'mon. We're working on a brand new magical tome, something that'll hopefully last for another thousand years."

Nikki added, "And you're the only one who can actually write any of these languages. Me and Sam can read the book, but you're the scribe, you're the one who got the skills to write it."

It had been four months since Sam's younger sister had joined them in service of the Goddess. Nikki was the Goddess's mortal vessel, and Sam was Her priestess. Jess, a talented artist, had been made Her scribe. Together, the three of them were working to learn more ways of using the magic the Goddess gave them, and part of that meant it all had to be recorded.

They couldn't just type it out on a laptop or tablet, however. The Goddess was a bit of a traditionalist, and wanted it done 'right'. So they had a few thick pads of heavy archival-quality paper, a number of calligraphy-style pens, and they'd even ground and mixed their own special inks.

Samantha watched as Jess started writing again. In another hour or so they'd wrap up for the day, the three would have dinner, then Nikki would give Jess a drive back to the Lowenberger residence building at the university.

This had been their Sunday routine for just over two months now, since Jess had moved into residence at school at the start of September. That had also been the topic of the only real argument they'd had in the past four months.

Jess and Samantha were both attending the same university. Sam was a few years ahead, a graduate student studying history, Jessica had just begun working on her BA in visual arts. Jess wanted to stay here with Sam and Nikki in their condo. They had a spare bedroom, and Jess thought it would be better than having to share a tiny room with a stranger in residence.

Sam had put her foot down, though. Occasional visits were ok, but her sister would not be moving in with them. The condo was exactly the right size for herself and Nikki. Having her sister here would make it feel crowded.

She also felt, though she hadn't said it, that Jessica would benefit from being in residence. It was sometimes awkward and sometimes uncomfortable, but you got to know a lot of people in a hurry, and it was a good way to maybe make some new friends. She knew her little sister really didn't have any friends, and that worried her a bit.

So Jessica stayed in residence, but every Sunday for the past two months she'd been here with Sam and Nikki. Together they were studying magic, working on creating new spells, and then writing it all down on the fancy paper, in cryptic runes and ancient languages. When it was complete, they'd figure out how to bind the pages together into a new book.

This weekend had been a little busier than usual, and Jess had spent the night in their guest room. The full moon and Samhain had both fallen on the Saturday, and the three had held a private ritual in honour of the Goddess last night.

Today they were working on 'transformation' magic, as they'd been for the past several Sundays. They were hoping that they could use it to help marginalized or disadvantaged trans folks, or 'edge cases', people who weren't likely to get a chance at the more conventional treatments.

Eventually, Nikki announced, "I think that's about enough for today. It's been a long weekend, it's getting late, and I'm getting hungry."

Sam nodded in agreement, and Jess looked a little relieved as she set the pen down then sealed the jar of ink. She stood up and stretched, then took the pens over to the kitchen to clean them in the sink.

While she was rinsing the pens, Jessica asked, "This spell's nearly done, isn't it? What's the next step?"

Samantha replied, "Honestly I think we're ready to try and use it. We really need to be sure it works, before we have you finish writing out the details for the book."

Nicole agreed, "So that brings us to the next question. Who will we test it on?"

There was a pause, then Jess smiled, "I mean, it's pretty much Sam's turn, right Nikki? You and I have both been through transformations already."

Nikki grinned and looked at Sam, "What do you think, hon? Curious to see what it's like having your body changed? Wanna see what it's like to be taller? Or shorter?"

Jess added, "Thinner? Or thicker?"

Nikki then gave Sam a naughty smile, "How about something more risqué? Bigger boobs might be fun..."

Jessica giggled, "Go for it, sis! It wouldn't have to be forever anyways. If the spell works, we can always use it again to make you back to normal. Eventually."

Sam's cheeks were burning and she shook her head, "Uh, pass? I'm happy with my body the way it is, thanks..."

Her sister giggled again, but Nikki could tell she was getting flustered. "Of course hon. We were just teasing, sorry we got a little carried away."

"I know, love." Sam smiled, though she was secretly relieved. She was still scared sometimes of the magic the three of them controlled. She then frowned, "We will need to test it on someone though... I guess we can keep our eyes open for someone who might be a good candidate to volunteer."

Jess dried off the pens then started packing them and the ink away. She left the new pages out for now, so the ink could finish drying. She then stretched her back and shoulders, and pulled the tie out of her hair and let her long wavy red locks free. Jess was eighteen, short and sort of slim-but-curvy, and had a Celtic / Irish look to her. Bright red hair, emerald green eyes, and fair skin, with light freckles across her cheeks and shoulders. She was wearing skinny jeans, a t-shirt, and sneakers, which was her usual style. Some bright red lipstick and a bit of eyeshadow was enough to bring out the colour in her face.

At the same time, Nikki pulled back her long straight jet-black hair and wrapped it with a scrunchie, to keep it out of the way as she moved into the kitchen to start working on dinner. Nicole had just turned twenty-two last month. She was petite, about the same height as Jess but a little more slim and less curvy, save for her chest. Even days like today where she'd spent the entirety of it at home, she had at least a little make-up on. Black lipstick, and some eyeshadow today. She was a little goth at heart, and was a genius with cosmetics. Her first job had been selling make-up so she'd had access to lots of different products, for experimenting and perfecting her look. She was currently wearing a comfortable knee-length black cotton dress, with some embroidery on the shoulders and around the waist.

Of the three, Sam was the tallest, as well as the oldest. Her 5'7" put her a good three inches above both her sister and her girlfriend, and they'd celebrated her twenty-third birthday in August. She was curvier than the other two as well. She wasn't fat, but she wasn't exactly thin. Nikki liked to call her attractively curvaceous. Sam wore her brown hair at around shoulder length, and she rarely bothered with make-up. Occasionally she wore lipstick, but that was it. Her style tended to be called witchy, hippy, or frumpy, depending who was saying it. Personally, she thought it was just comfortable. She liked long flowy skirts, leggings, and loose comfortable tees or blouses. And she preferred sandals or walking shoes, to the heels and boots Nikki liked.

When dinner was ready, they sat together at the small table.

"So I was thinking," Jessica said after a few mouthfuls of stir-fry, "What to call our little group. Cos I think we should call ourselves something. How does the 'Witches of Welland' sound to you?"

Sam glanced at Nikki, and the two shared a look.

"You know we're not actually in Welland County, right Jess?" Nicole asked. "That's south of here."

Jessica shrugged, "Still, we're right next to the Welland Canal. You can see the north end of it from your balcony."

Samantha asked, "Sis, why do we even need a 'name'? The only people we talk to about this stuff is the three of us, and we already know who we are."

The three of them had all sworn to keep their magic and their connection to the Goddess a secret. With the amount of power they could access, and what they could do with it, they knew people would not be happy if the truth had got out. They had already changed reality twice. Not to mention the other couple dozen times they'd made more subtle magical twists and changes to things over the past year.

Jess said, "I think it'd be nice to have a name for our little group. I had some ideas for a sort of logo too, like a kind of runic glyph we could use. It'd look pretty cool as a tattoo, or even just a badge or sticker or something."

Sam frowned, "Jess we don't want to advertise! This is a secret! We don't need a logo, or a name, or anything else like that."

Her sister pouted, "Fine. I'm still gonna call us the Witches of Welland though. I think it's cool. Alliteration is cool."

Samantha rolled her eyes a little, but Nicole smiled. "Ok Jess. I'll give it a try. 'Witches of Welland' is kind of growing on me, actually."

Sam looked at her girlfriend and raised an eyebrow. Was she serious, or was she just humouring Jessica?

Nikki just gave her a little grin, "At least give it a chance, Sam."

"No promises." Samantha grumbled, as she focused on her dinner.

After the three had finished eating, Sam and Jess did the dishes. Sam then gave her sister a hug and said, "Have a good night Jess. I'll see you around the campus during the week."

Jess reminded her, "We're meeting for lunch Tuesday, so I'll see you then for sure." She then put on her jacket and picked up her bag, and moved to the door.

Nikki gave Sam a hug and kiss, "Be right back hon."

Her girlfriend then headed out, to drive her sister back to the residence.

Alone, Sam got changed and ready for bed, then moved to the living-room and sat on the sofa. It was the start of November. In a couple weeks would be her and Nikki's one-year anniversary as a couple. Also the first anniversary of the two of them awakening the Goddess, and becoming bound to Her.

It had been quite a year.

The whole thing had started when Sam mistook a life-changing ritual for a powerful spell, and accidentally turned Nicole's life upside-down, changing reality itself in the process. That led them to meet the Goddess, and both had become bound to Her, and through Her to each other.

Her magic had brought them good fortune, and they worked to share that where they could, to help people. That in turn had led them to meet Jessica, who at the time was a homeless trans girl, and her life up till then had been a series of hardships and abuse. Sam and Nikki had agreed to save her life, but doing so had required them to change reality a second time. The result of that was Jessica had became Sam's adopted sister.

It had all worked out of course. Sam and Nikki were deeply in love with each other. Jessica was a good sister and their parents loved her as much as they did Sam. Now Sam and Jess were attending the same university, each pursuing their own separate passions. Nikki had a job she adored, working at a popular winery. All three of them had bright futures, and they got on well together.

Sam wanted to do something to celebrate the first year of this new life, but wasn't sure yet what. She didn't want a big party. But a small intimate get-together didn't seem good enough. They had intimate get-togethers all the time. Most of the past year had been a series of intimate get-togethers.

She was also thinking of making it a surprise, whatever 'it' turned out to be. But then she wasn't sure about that either.

Maybe she should just talk with Nicole and see what she wanted to do, how she wanted to celebrate.

:=: Jessica :=:

Jess sighed as she drifted awake to the sound of talking. Goddess, she was getting sick of the sound of her roommate's voice.

She opened one eye and checked the time on her phone. 7am on a Monday morning, and Tina was already up and chattering away on her phone to someone. Why oh why couldn't the university have paired her with someone more compatible. Or at least, someone quieter.

As far as Jess was concerned, Tina was your stereotypical cishet white girl. Sort of average height, a couple inches taller than Jess, she had blonde hair she wore in a short pixie cut, dark blue eyes, fair skin, and a bubbly personality that manifested way too early in the morning to be legal.

Tina was in the drama program of course. And athletics, of course. She was loud, pushy, demanding, and talkative.

Jess would have been able to forgive, or at least ignore most of that though, if not for one thing. Back in their first week as roomies, when they were both unpacking and settling in, Tina saw the pride stickers on Jess's laptop. Jess had placed rainbow, trans, and bi flag stickers across the back of her laptop, and when Tina saw them, she'd given her That Look.

As if to say 'Oh, your one of those Queers I've been hearing about. Ew.'

The only benefit of the two of them having absolutely nothing in common was, Jess rarely had to actually see or deal with the blonde. It was only when she was here in her room, trying to study or sleep, that it became a problem.

Why the fuck couldn't Sam have let her stay with them at their condo?

She sighed. Well residence was only for the first year. Maybe even less, if she got lucky and found something better. She knew their parents had helped Sam out for a while, and there had been some talk that they might be able to do the same for Jess. If she could find a cheap place, and maybe a roommate to split the bills. Or a part-time job.

For now though, she'd resigned herself to her half of the small room, and zero peace and quiet in the mornings.

Finally, Jessica gave up on sleep and dragged herself out of bed. An hour later she was showered and dressed, and stalked out of the room and down to the dining hall in search of food.

She was sitting alone at a table, sipping some coffee, when Kara approached, carrying a glass of juice.

"Morning, Jessica. Tina the Talker got you up early again?"

Jess rolled her eyes but smiled, "Hey Kara. Yeah. I guess I shouldn't complain, at least she woke me up early enough to get myself breakfast."

Kara chuckled as she sat down, and had a sip of her orange juice. She was tall and kind of skinny, about 5'8" and maybe 120 pounds. Her long slim arms and legs gave her a sort of wiry look. Kara tended to dress rather butch. Like today, she was in blue jeans and a mens-style t-shirt. She usually wore low cut hiking boots, though sometimes she sported a pair of black combat-style ankle boots. She was rather busty, and her shirts were usually tight enough to make that obvious. Her light blonde hair was always kept short, in a men's cut. Jessica had never seen Kara wear make-up.

Not that Kara needed it anyways, Jess thought. Her blue-grey eyes were attractive and always had a bit of a sparkle in them, and her lips were maybe a bit thin, but they were frequently pulled into a slightly crooked cute grin.

Although Kara had never confirmed it, Jessica assumed her friend was a lesbian. For that matter, so it did pretty much everyone else who met her.

The two of them were in the same Arts program, and by the end of the first week they were best friends. If only they'd been assigned as roommates, then life would have been perfect.

It was funny, in some ways the two girls seemed quite opposite. Kara was usually rather quiet and withdrawn, Jess tended to be more talkative and outgoing. They were opposites in other ways too.

Kara looked like a stereotypical butch lesbian, the only thing missing was the flannel shirt. But she didn't really flirt with girls, she didn't openly talk about girls or girlfriends, and she didn't seem to be into any sort of Pride stuff. She didn't have any rainbow stickers or buttons anywhere.

Mind you, she didn't seem interested in guys either. But from what Jess had seen, Kara was certainly more comfortable around girls than she was with guys.

Jessica on the other hand looked like just about any typical first-year student. She wasn't currently dating anyone, but at a glance most would assume she was straight. However, she was a vocal supporter of LGBT rights, and she proudly wore the flags or buttons, showing her allegiance.

Jess knew there were already a few rumours around that she and Kara were dating, but in fact they weren't. They were close, but their friendship was purely platonic. At least so far.

Jessica secretly hoped maybe there'd be more, but she didn't want to push. She wondered if Kara might be Ace, but she wouldn't ask. She figured her friend was shy, or nervous, and was content for now to wait and see if Kara would eventually confide in her about her feelings, one way or another.

As far as she knew, Kara wasn't seeing anyone else, and neither of them had any other close friends here. Well, Jess had her sister and Nikki, but they were family, so she didn't count them as friends, as such.

Like Jessica, Kara was from out of town. While Jess's family lived a ways north near Lake Simcoe, Kara was from western Ontario, somewhere near Windsor.

The two of them finished their drinks, and Kara stood up. "I'm going back to my room to get my stuff. See you at class, Jess."

"Yeah, me too. See you in a bit."

When she returned to her room, she was glad to find it was finally quiet, Tina had left for her classes. Jessica wondered if she talked through class too, then remembered. The girl's in drama. She's probably supposed to talk through class.

As she picked up her tablet and stylus and dropped them into her shoulder bag, Jess paused, and thought again about how she'd wound up here.

It seemed like she'd got accepted into university very quickly, and into residence too. It was only the start of July when Sam and Nikki had used magic to save her life and give her this second chance. Middle of July she'd decided she wanted to go to Brock with her sister. And just like that, she was accepted and had a room assignment and everything.

She strongly suspected her sister had used magic to make things happen, but she'd never asked. Their parents didn't seem surprised by any of this, which was enough to give her second thoughts that maybe it was just normal luck or something. On the other hand, if it had been magic that got her here, she hoped nobody else had been bumped to make room for her.

Finally, Jess hurried out of the room, hoping to catch up to Kara so they could walk to class together.

• • • • •

After class, Jess and Kara met up with a couple other first-year students at a local cafe. Jess secretly thought of it as the Queer Coffee Club. There were five of them, three girls and two guys, and as far as Jess could tell none of them were straight. She didn't know the other three well enough to call them friends yet, but they seemed nice, and she was hoping they'd all be friends soon.

Mike and Carrie were in the music program, Orin was in Drama. Jess thought Mike and Orin might be getting a little closer, but maybe that was just wishful thinking on her part. Carrie had a girlfriend back home.

The five of them were sipping their coffee and enjoying some quiet conversation, when a few of the local jocks came in, loudly talking and joking with each other. Jess sighed when she saw who was leading the pack.

Scott fucking Matthews. She'd only been here for 2 months, but she already detested him. He was like all the worst parts of Tina, but with a Y chromosome and money.

A privileged white cis het dudebro, Scott was tall and muscular, blessed by good genes and a wealthy background. His sandy blond hair was short and a bit messy, he had blue eyes, and slightly tanned skin, even in November. Jess had heard the term 'big man on campus', that was Scott. He was a jock of course, but she'd heard he was also pretty smart. Naturally he had a reputation as a womanizer, but that didn't stop some girls from fawning over him at times. Fortunately this was his final year. He and his 'bros' would be graduating and then they'd be gone.

Jess sighed as she thought, another group would just take their place. There'd always be privileged self-entitled pricks. It's how the world worked.

Sure enough, once the group of jocks had their drinks, they sat down at the table next to Jess and her friends. None of them addressed her little group, they made a point of just talking to each other. But their queer-phobic comments were loud enough to make sure everyone at Jess's table could hear.

Their mood was spoiled and the conversation ended. The five of them quickly finished their drinks in silence, then got up and left.

"Fuck I hate them." Jess muttered as she walked with Kara back towards the Lowenberger building.

Kara shrugged, "Not worth making a fuss about it."

"I know... but guys like them... They do that shit and they know there's never any payback. It's not fucking fair."

Kara sighed, "The world's not fair Jess. Just let it go. Focus on the stuff that makes you happy, don't think about the stuff that doesn't."

Jessica nodded, "Yeah... Good philosophy, I guess." She then said, "Tina's usually not back till after 5pm on Mondays. Wanna hang with me till then?"

"Sure." Kara nodded.

Jess smiled as the two of them entered the residence and headed for her room.

:=: Kara :=:

"I told you, it'll be fine. Sam's really laid-back, and I'm sure she'll be happy to meet you."

Kara just nodded slightly. Jessica had invited her to join Jess and her sister for lunch, but Kara was having second thoughts. It wasn't that she was too shy or anything, but it took her a little while to get comfortable around new people. And she really felt like she'd be intruding, since Jess's sister wouldn't be expecting a third person to turn up at the restaurant.

"You should have at least texted her or something, to make sure it was ok..."

Jess rolled her eyes. "Sam's chill. You'll like her. Relax." She pulled Kara into the restaurant, then started looking around.

Kara glanced over the tables, but she couldn't see anyone vaguely resembling Jessica.

"There she is! C'mon." Jess led Kara towards a booth off to their left.

Kara followed, still feeling a little out-of-place, but it was too late to back out now. Seated on the right side of the booth was a tall brunette. Her wavy hair was about shoulder length, and her eyes were a dark hazel tone. She looked about 3 or 4 years older than Jess and herself, and she was wearing a loose comfy-looking dark green top. Kara could see a dark brown jacket balled up on the seat next to her.

The only jewelry the girl had on was a silver necklace hanging from a cord around her neck. Kara thought at first it was a Star of David, then realized this one was a five-pointed star, a pentacle?

"Hey sis!" The brunette smiled, "Who's your friend?"

Jessica took off her jacket then slid into the booth opposite her sister, moving all the way in so there was plenty of space for Kara to sit with her, then as Kara sat down, she made the introductions.

"Samantha, this is Kara. She's 1st year too, same program as me so we have a lot of the same classes. Kara, this is my sister Sam."

Kara gave her a slight nodd, "Hi... nice to meet you."

Samantha smiled back at her, "Hello Kara, it's a pleasure to meet you too."

Kara was a little surprised at how warm and friendly Sam's smile was, like she was meeting an old friend rather than a complete stranger. She was still feeling a bit awkward though, "Uh, sorry for crashing your lunch. Jess said it wouldn't be a problem?"

Sam shook her head, "Not at all, Kara."

"Still, if you two have some catching-up to do or whatever...?"

Jess giggled, "Oh, sorry! No we see each other all the time, Kara. Sam goes to Brock as well, she's a grad student. And she lives in town here, with her girlfriend. I'm over at their place at least once a week."

Kara tried to keep the surprise off her expression. "Oh? Wow, so you're really close then?" She wondered a little what it would be like, to have family she'd actually want to spend time with on a regular basis.

Samantha smiled as she nodded, "Yeah pretty close? Jess decided to come to Brock because I was here."

The conversation was briefly interrupted as the waitress came by to take their drinks order, and brought an extra menu and cutlery as the table had originally been set for two. Then the three of them took a few minutes to look over the menu.

When the waitress returned with their drinks, the three placed their orders, then the conversation resumed.

Kara commented, "It must be nice being so close and all." She then added, "It's funny, you two don't look anything like each other."

Jess nodded, "Oh yeah, that's cos I'm adopted."

Shit. Kara mentally kicked herself for messing up like that. "Oh... I'm sorry, I didn't mean..."

Jessica shook her head and smiled, "It's fine Kara. It's not a secret, and it's no big deal."

Samantha then asked, "How about you Kara, where are you from?"

Kara sighed a little. She hated talking about her family. "Oh, uh, I'm from Essex? Its out near Windsor."

"Oh, that's a bit of a hike. Our folks are up in Innisfil, near Lake Simcoe. It's still a drive, but not quite as far." Sam asked, "Do you go back home often?"

Kara tried to keep the scowl off her face, and played it more like a joke, "Hah, no. I came out here to get away, actually. You know, have a bit of independence, see what it's like out on my own, that sort of thing."

Both Sam and Jess nodded in agreement.

Kara then asked, "So you have a girlfriend, Samantha? It's none of my business but how'd your folks take that?"

Jessica grinned, "Sam came out when she was like 12 or something? She's one of those girls who never had to question and figure herself out, she knew she was gay right from the start."

Samantha just smiled and replied, "I think mom and dad were a little surprised at first, but they've been entirely supportive. Jess and I are both very lucky." She then looked at Jess and added, "Mom's been dropping hints again, asking when Nikki and I are going to tie the knot. Not as bad as Nikki's mom though."

Both Sam and Jess shared a laugh about that.

Kara smiled. She wondered though, if they knew how lucky they were to have a family that accepted and supported them like that.

The waitress then arrived with their lunch, and the conversation stalled a little as the three started to eat. Samantha was having a chicken caesar, Jess had a burger and side salad, and Kara had chicken strips and fries.

As they ate, the three talked about university, how Kara liked it, Jess complaining about a few things, especially her roommate. Kara was gradually letting herself relax and just enjoy the lunch.

Unfortunately it meant her guard was down when Sam asked what brought her to Brock, and she answered truthfully, "It was the furthest university from home that accepted me."

Shit. They heard the tone in her voice too, didn't they? Yeah they did. Sam & Jess exchanged a look. Fuck.

Fortunately neither of them asked about it, and Sam just smiled, "Well it's a pretty good school. And it's in a nice part of the province. Especially if you like wine, can't beat being right in the heart of Ontario wine country."

Jess giggled, "Especially if your girlfriend works at a winery and gets a discount, right sis?" She looked at Kara and explained, "Sam's girlfriend Nikki probably brings home a case of wine every week."

Kara smiled a little, "Sounds like a good job, if you like wine."

"Nikki loves the stuff. Just don't ever ask her about it, she'll talk your ears off about every little detail."

Sam rolled her eyes, "She's not that bad, Jess! Nicole is just passionate about her work, that's all."

After they'd finished eating, the waitress collected the dishes and the conversation stalled again.

Kara then asked, "Sam, what's that necklace you're wearing? Is that like a witchcraft thing?"

Samantha nodded, "Yes, that's right. It's a pentacle. I'm a witch."

Kara smiled at first, thinking it was a joke, but Sam appeared to be serious. "Oh... Really?"

Jessica grinned, "She's been into that stuff since she was in high-school. It's all chanting and naked rituals under the light of the full moon..."

Sam blushed and glared, "Jess! No naked rituals! Why do you keep saying that!"

Jess was giggling now, and Kara realized this must be some sort of in-joke between the two of them.

Sam gave Kara an apologetic look, "Sorry Kara. Jessica likes teasing me about that, even though it perpetuates some inaccurate stereotypes." The latter part of the sentence was directed towards her sister, with a slightly irritated tone.

"Sorry sis." Jess apologized, though she was still grinning.

The waitress brought over the bill, and Sam announced, "My treat." She dug a credit card out of her purse, then asked, "You two have to get back to classes this afternoon?"

Kara nodded.

Jess asked, "What are you up to this afternoon, sis?"

Sam replied, "I'm heading home, after a quick stop at the police station."

Jessica frowned, "The cops? Everything ok?"

The waitress had brought the remote terminal and Sam was taking care of the bill as she replied, "Yeah it's fine. They contacted mom, they're releasing some stuff that they'd held after the accident? I'm just going to pick it up and see what it is. Odds are it's just junk, but I figured we should have a look first. If there's anything important we can give it to mom next time we see her."

The waitress then left again when Sam was finished, and she added to Jessica, "I think they're closing the investigation. They haven't found the guy by now, so they probably aren't going to."

Kara then asked hesitantly, "Your mom was in an accident? Was she ok?"

Jess shook her head, "Nah, it was me. I'd borrowed mom's car and come down here for a visit, and got totalled before I even got to Sam's place. T-boned, by a hit-and-run."

Kara's eyes widened in shock, "Holy shit!"

Samantha nodded, "Jess was in hospital for two or three days I think? Hit her head pretty bad, and sprained her wrist. She's lucky though, it could have been far worse." She then said to her sister, "Anyways that's all I'm doing. Just picking up whatever stuff the police took from the car before it went to the junkyard."

After that, it was time for the three of them to go.

"Thanks for lunch, Samantha. It was nice to meet you." Kara was back to feeling a little awkward again, but it felt like she'd be able to escape without putting her foot in her mouth any more.

Sam gave her that warm friendly smile again, "It was my pleasure Kara, and very nice to meet you as well."

Jess and Sam then gave each other a quick hug, Jessica said, "Thanks for lunch, sis. If I don't see you round the campus, I'll see you Sunday for sure."

They all headed out of the restaurant together, then Kara and Jess started back towards the university, and Sam went the other direction.

"See, I told you she'd be cool." Jessica smiled. "It went ok, didn't it?"

Kara nodded, "Yeah... thanks Jess. Your sister's nice. Sounds like your whole family is nice."

Jessica just smiled as they kept walking.

:=: Jessica :=:

They'd finished their afternoon classes, so Jess and Kara were killing time before dinner. They'd gone back to the cafe again, but this time it was just the two of them, no Queer Coffee Club today. They were sitting at a small table, sipping their coffees quietly at the moment.

Jess was a little worried about her friend. Kara seemed so reserved all the time. At lunch today it seemed like she had started to loosen up a few times, but then she kept acting like she'd done something wrong and closing up again.

It was interesting though that Sam had managed to get so much information out of her. She'd known Kara was from somewhere near Windsor, but from the sound of it, she'd escaped an unpleasant family situation. And the way Kara had seemed interested, maybe even envious, of Sam being openly gay and their parents accepting and supporting it...

Jess wondered for maybe the thousandth time if Kara was gay. If she'd had to stay in the closet, or worse, if she'd tried coming out and her family was abusive, that would explain why she was so reserved and secretive about it now. She probably had no idea whether or not it was safe to be herself here.

Jess was glad though that she was trying. That Kara had left home, sought out a university that put plenty of space between herself and her family. Hopefully she'd feel more comfortable soon enough, and would feel ready to open up and just be herself.

She was wondering if it would be safe to ask Kara a few questions, perhaps try and encourage her to open up, when another couple entered the cafe and Jess cancelled those thoughts immediately.

Him again. Scott fucking Matthews. She'd started thinking of that as his middle name. Today he was here with a coed. Jess didn't know her, but she looked like a 2nd-year, probably big in the athletics program.

Kara sighed, she'd seen them too. She gave Jess a little look. Jess shrugged back and rolled her eyes, then had another sip of coffee.

Scott and his date or whatever got their drinks, and they sat at the next table over. Was he stalking them? Or were Jess and Kara just 'targets of opportunity', she wondered. Probably the latter. She didn't think he cared enough to go out of his way to torment them, but she could definitely believe he'd take the opportunity to be an ass any time he came across them.

Sure enough it only took a couple minutes before the two of them started making their queer-phobic comments. Same as usual, they were 'whispered' and 'private', but also loud enough that Kara and Jess could hear them.

Jess clenched her teeth. Fuck she really wanted to say something, shut that guy up.

Kara caught her eye though, shaking her head slightly.

Jess sighed, and tried to ignore them. Kara was right, it wasn't worth getting worked up over.

The next few minutes, the two of them sipped their coffees and did their best to ignore the asshole and his date.

Perhaps the jock was getting frustrated that his usual queer-phobic bullshit seemed to be losing its effect, or maybe he'd finally come up with new material. Either way, Jess felt a new level of anger when she heard him whisper to his date, "I heard she's really a dude."

Jessica knew the comment wasn't directed at herself. He was taking a shot at Kara, for the masc way she dressed. And worse, Jess saw Kara was upset. She did her best to hide it, but Jess had seen that flash of emotion in her eyes, before it was suppressed.

She clenched her teeth again. Jess knew it would end badly if she said anything. She had to do something though, just to shut that asshole up and maybe even knock him down a peg or two.

As she had another sip of coffee, something caught her eye, and she suppressed a smirk. She had an idea.

On the wall, a few inches behind Scott, Jess could see a small harmless spider. One of those little beige ones, that usually lurks in the corner on the ceiling.

Technically she wasn't supposed to use magic in public, and she knew Sam would definitely not approve. Nikki would probably think it was funny though. Jess had another sip of coffee, then while the cup was up infront of her mouth hiding her lips, she quietly recited the spell. It was the one Nikki had created, and at its heart it was basically a kind of illusion spell.

Nikki had created the spell with the idea that they could use it to 'flash a badge' or show a 'court order' or something along those lines, but in fact it was way more versatile than that. Jessica was thinking of a nature documentary she'd seen a while back, as she pictured the biggest damn spider ever. The 'Goliath bird-eater', it was a tarantula the size of your face, big enough that it could catch and eat birds.

Jess felt the tingle of magic when she completed the spell, focused on the image, and on Scott. No-one else would see it, but to his eyes, he had a spider with a twelve-inch leg-span on the wall right next to his head.

It took two full seconds before he noticed, but when he did, the reaction was priceless.

"Holy fucking shit!" He yelped as he practically jumped out of his chair. His girlfriend was almost knocked over as he leaped past her, and she was so startled by his reaction that her latte went everywhere - mostly all over Scott.

Jess ended the spell as soon as he'd reacted, and now as he was staring at the wall with wide eyes and shaking hands, all he -- and everyone else -- saw was a tiny little house spider.

Everyone else in the cafe had gone silent, all eyes were on Scott. His jacket and pants were soaked, and there was a blob of whipped cream stuck in the centre of his chest, slowly sliding down his jacket.

Jessica suppressed a snicker. She couldn't resist, and said, "Jeez dude, it's just a tiny spider." Then to rub it in, she reached over and gently picked it off the wall with her bare hand, and dropped it into a potted plant on the windowsill.

There was a murmur of quiet laughter through the cafe. Scott and his girl grabbed a few handfuls of napkins. Jess could hear Scott muttering "...looked bigger at the time..."

Finally he stomped out of the cafe, the girl following. As they passed Jess and Kara, he gave Jess a cold, angry glare.

After they were gone, Kara sighed, "You should have kept your mouth shut. Then he'd just be mad at the spider. Now he's really going to have it in for you, Jess."

Jess bit her lower lip, trying not to grin. "I know... but fuck that felt good. Who knew he'd be afraid of spiders, right?"