:=: Jessica :=:

Jessica sat down with Kara at one of the tables in the dining hall, and they both started eating.

Kara commented, "Ms. Winters did ok with Preston's class this morning, I think?"

Jess shrugged a little, "Yeah, I guess. I still miss Mr. Preston though."

Kara nodded, "I get it, Jess. At least... you know."

Jessica nodded, "Yeah, I know." She then added, "I'm sure we'll see Megan at queer coffee club this afternoon."

"You shouldn't call it that." Kara reminded her again, then went quiet as she she looked a little thoughtful.

Jess took another bite of her sandwich, then asked, "What'cha thinking about?"

"Oh..." Kara blushed a little, then replied quietly, "Just wondering about Megan. Like, if she's into girls now? Like, if that sort of thing changed..."

Jessica grinned, "I don't know, but that's another awkward thing you can try to work into casual conversation."

Kara chuckled a little, and was about to say something else when Jess's phone buzzed.

Jessica pulled it out and checked then rolled her eyes. "That's ten times in the last two days she's texted for Cindy!"

Kara chuckled again, "Time to get that kid her own phone then? I guess up till now she hasn't needed one."

Jess tapped out a quick reply, telling Tanya she'd have to wait till the evening. She then replied, "Yeah, we were gonna get her one for Yule? I don't think I can wait though. I'll talk to Sam and Nikki about doing that this week. The sooner the better, I do not want to be in the middle of two horny teens trying to text each other nonstop."

"Eighteen's still a teen, Jess." Kara grinned at her.

Jess giggled, "Are you implying I'm also a horny teen?" She then added, "Anyways, nineteen is also still a teen, Kara!"

Kara blushed slightly and focused on her lunch for now.

Jessica smiled as she did the same, enjoying her sandwich.

She was happy, maybe the happiest she'd ever been. It felt like the past six months, her life had gone from basically unliveable, to as near perfect as possible. Her adoptive parents were loving and kind, her sister was amazing, her chosen family were all wonderful people. She lived in a great place, university was going well. Her best friend had become her girlfriend, and over the weekend, they'd finally taken their relationship to the next level.

Jess suppressed a giggle as she thought back to Saturday night. It had been the first time for both of them, and it was completely awkward and a little embarrassing, and she wouldn't have had it any other way.

She finally realized Kara was talking to her, and she focused on her friend, "Sorry, I got lost in thought there for a moment."

Kara nodded, "I could tell. I was just asking, do you think Sam and Cindy will come around on that stuff Nikki said yesterday? About land and a house and everything?"

Jessica considered. "I think Cindy will. I'm pretty sure the only reason she's not sure yet is now that she's got a friend, she doesn't want to move too far away? If we can figure out where exactly we'll be, and it's not too far, then she'll probably be ok with it. Or if it is far, then she might need some assurance that she won't be isolated. Like, get the kid a car..." Jess glanced around then added quietly, "Or the teleport spell. That would be perfect... I mean if we're out in the country, you and I won't be able to bus it either right? If we're still coming here we'll either need a car or the spell."

Kara looked like she was thinking that over, then she finally agreed. "Yeah. Otherwise we'd need to get a place in town, and that'd defeat the purpose of having a nice home on some land somewhere. So that'll have to be part of the 'deal' for us as well." She then asked, "What about Sam? I get the feeling, without her the whole idea won't fly at all."

Jess sighed, "Yeah. Sam and Nikki are still the 'bosses' or whatever. The leaders of our little club. If Sam's not on board, the whole idea will sink..."

She frowned and thought for a bit. "I think... I'm positive Nikki wants this. How could she not, right? Her own vineyard? She'll be working to convince Samantha. I think it'll just be a matter of time before Sam gives in. Especially if we can avoid any more magical emergencies or whatever? So she can relax and stop stressing for a while."

Kara nodded, "Yeah. Well, lets hope we don't have any more emergencies. Maybe if we can get through the holidays without anything blowing up, that'll be enough for Sam to unwind."

After lunch, the two of them set off together to their afternoon class.

• • • • •

It was just after three in the afternoon, as Jess and Kara ducked out of the snow and into the cafe. They were a little late, but Jess saw they weren't the only ones. Mike, Orin, and Megan were already sitting at a table, but Carrie wasn't here yet either.

They got their coffees then joined their friends at the table.

"Sorry we're late!" Jess asked, "How's everyone today?"

Kara asked, "No Carrie today?" She looked toward Mike, since he and Carrie shared several classes.

The others greeted them both, and Mike shook his head. "She missed all our classes today."

"I was just saying, maybe she's sick." Orin said. "That time of year, flu season and all."

Megan suggested, "Or maybe she went home early? Last week she was talking about being homesick, how much she was missing her girlfriend."

Jess nodded, "Yeah, that's right... Still, it's less than two weeks till break."

Megan then asked Jessica and Kara, "How was your class this morning, with the new teacher?"

Jessica gave Megan a bit of a look. It was still hard to look at the cute brunette and not think about her old prof with the wispy silver hair and raspy voice. Jess wasn't sure if Megan was asking because she wanted to know how Ms. Winters was doing with the class, or if she was just trying to tease Jess a little with some awkward conversation.

Kara replied, "Ms. Winters did fine, I thought. She's a good teacher, and it seemed like she had good notes to follow." She added with a shrug, "Her teaching style is different than Preston's, but I like her. I think she'll do fine."

Megan nodded and said to both of them, "Well it's only the first class since she took over. Give her a chance Jess, I'm sure it'll be ok."

Jessica shrugged, "Yeah I guess. I still miss Mr. Preston though."

The others looked sympathetic, they knew he had been her favourite teacher.

Megan added, trying not to smile, "I'm sure he's in a better place now."

Jess gave Megan another look. That girl was definitely trying to wind her up. She could tell Megan was enjoying herself, but with Mike and Orin here Jess couldn't really say anything else. She finally just sighed and focused on her coffee for now.

Fortunately, Orin took over the conversation, and started talking about something from his Drama classes. Jess tuned it out for the moment, still thinking about Mr. Preston until she heard Orin mention a familiar name.

"Her name was Tina? She dropped out about a month ago, but one of the other girls in class had been friends with her and had some news today. Apparently it was some kind of medical emergency, like a mini stroke or aneurism or something. She couldn't talk, like completely lost her voice, and apparently lost some of her memory? She didn't even remember graduating high-school and starting university. It's pretty scary, but Nancy said she's recovering. She might only miss a year, so she could be back next September, maybe."

Jessica glanced at Kara, and it looked like both of them were thinking the same thing. They'd never found out what the Goddess had done to Tina. Losing her voice sounded like poetic justice for Tina the Talker, but losing a bunch of memories and having an aneurism was seriously frightening. Jess was glad to hear though, that her former roommate would recover. Maybe losing a year was fitting punishment, for her part in Jess's assault.

Then her phone buzzed again and she checked. "That's two more texts since lunchtime!"

Kara chuckled, "You may as well just give her your phone, at this rate."

Mike asked, "Give who your phone?"

Jess rolled her eyes, "Oh... Cindy. She's sixteen, and she doesn't have a phone so she gave my number to her friend, and now I'm getting non-stop texts for her. It's like I'm her secretary or something!"

Megan asked, "Is she your little sister?"

Orin asked, "What sixteen-year-old doesn't have her own phone?"

Jessica sighed, suddenly regretting saying anything. "It's complicated. We're looking after her, she was homeless and I felt sorry for her, and she wound up staying with us. Long story though." Then looking at Kara, she said, "I'm not giving her my phone! But I'm going to insist she gets her own, ASAP!"

Kara just chuckled again as she finished her coffee. "Do you have any money? We could pick one up on the way home."

Jess thought about that. She couldn't afford to get the kid a fancy phone or an expensive contract, but she could at least get her something, and a pay-as-you-go plan.

"Yeah, actually I could. Nothing fancy, but for now just her own number so she can text Tanya without bugging me. Let's swing by the Pen Centre on the way home."

Mike was impressed. "Wow, that's really generous! Taking in a homeless kid, and now you're getting her a phone?"

Jessica sighed again, "Like I said, it's complicated." She looked at Kara, "Wanna go?"

Kara nodded, and the two of them bid the other three farewell. Megan smiled, "See you both tomorrow at Mrs. Brown's class."

:=: Samantha :=:

Sam slipped into bed and then cuddled up against her girlfriend. It had been a few days since Nikki had told everyone about the Goddess's offer, and Sam was still uneasy about it. She was still troubled by the Tanya situation as well, though Cindy seemed happy that she had a new friend.

Then there were the upcoming holidays, and the prospect of somehow explaining Cindy to her parents. That was still a little over two weeks away, but Sam knew she'd have to tell her folks about the girl soon.

She whispered to Nicole, "Hey love? I'm still thinking about how to tell my folks about Cindy, how to explain why she's here..."

Nikki shrugged a little. "Just tell them the truth, hon. She's homeless, no family or anything. Jess felt sorry for her and brought her home, and we all just got used to her?"

Sam sighed. "I don't know if they'll accept that, Nikki. 'She followed me home so I kept her' rarely works for dogs, let alone kids."

Her girlfriend giggled a little, then said, "Well, we have the court order. If your parents want to get fussy about it, tell them we made it official, tell them we got the documentation and everything."

"They'll still have questions." Sam frowned. "They know it's not that easy to get custody of a kid."

Nicole asked, "Well what did you tell Maria? How'd you convince her the court order was legit?"

Sam sighed again, "I told her we had friends in high places. I don't think she believed me, but she didn't press."

"So tell your parents that." Nikki shrugged. "Hon, I think you're worrying too much. Things might just be fine and no-one will care or question, you know?"

Sam frowned a little. "I just think it's a good idea to be ready, if people do question. And we're talking about my parents. I can't just ignore them if they demand answers." She then sighed. "Sooner or later Nikki, someone's going to start asking questions. All the magic, the changes, sooner or later someone's going to notice and we need to be ready."

Nikki was quiet for a bit, then asked, "You're still upset about all the recent magic and changes, aren't you? The stuff with Tanya?"

Sam sighed again. "Yeah. That, and other things..." She hesitated. She didn't really have any reason, there hadn't been any problems yet. She wasn't sure if she was just being paranoid, and she didn't want to say anything to upset Nikki, or the Goddess, when she had no proof, nothing but a gut feeling.

After another minute or so of silence, Nikki said softly, "Sam? She's asking to speak with you."

Sam commented, "Well, that's better than just taking over whenever She wants." She waited for the Goddess to appear.

Instead it was still Nikki, who clarified, "No, I mean She's asking you, if it's ok if she comes out and speaks with you."

"Oh!" Sam was surprised. The Goddess was asking her for an audience? That was unusual. "Uh, ok, yes of course."

She felt the shift in Nikki's body, and then realized they were still cuddling.

Sam blushed as she pulled away, "Ah... Sorry... We were comfortable and I forgot..."

"That's all right, Samantha." She smiled as she sat up, shifting so She was sitting crosslegged, facing Sam. It seemed a very casual, relaxed position for the Goddess. Especially considering Nikki was only wearing a large nightshirt.

Sam was surprised to realize Her eyes weren't glowing. Between the casual posture and the normal eyes, it was actually hard to believe it was the Goddess here and not still her girlfriend. "You seem a little...different, from how You usually look when You appear."

The Goddess nodded slightly, "Part of our new arrangement. Nicole is still present as well. We are... Sharing." She then asked, "You are uneasy with some of our magic Samantha, and I sense you have some concerns about Me?"

Sam sat up as well, still blushing a little. She figured there was no point hiding things now. Obviously the Goddess knew Sam was uptight. Time to admit it and get it out in the open. "Um... Yes, I suppose so. I worry that you've made so many changes to things, and that your plans are so big. And I have some questions about your motivations."

The Goddess nodded slightly. Her expression didn't reveal any feelings of offence or anger. "Perhaps if I explained My motivations, that would set your mind at ease? Tell Me Samantha, what is something I have done of late that you find concerning or objectionable?"

Sam gulped a little, then said "Well, the stuff with Tanya? I mean... You could have easily made Tom normal and let him go..."

The Goddess responded, "Thomas sought to harm Jessica and Cindy. In the past, he caused Jessica and Kara distress. I owed him nothing."

Samantha nodded, accepting that. "Then why make the offer at all? Why change reality to make Tanya comfortable and let her return home?"

"That was not for Tanya's benefit, Samantha. I did that for Cindy. She was lonely and desired friends. Now she has one, with whom she shares much in common."

Sam frowned, "Cindy could have made friends on her own. Doing all that wasn't necessary..."

The Goddess shrugged slightly, "It was Cindy who changed Thomas into Tanya, not I. I merely took advantage of the situation as it presented itself. Had I done nothing, you would still be caring for another lost, distraught girl."

Sam considered. From that perspective, it did make sense. She still didn't feel good about it, though she was glad she didn't have to worry about another homeless kid around their apartment. She then asked, "Why can Cindy work magic? You had originally said she wouldn't be able to, for another two years."

"That was an oversight on My part."

Sam frowned. She then asked, "It's because of her age I guess? Is that also why she can be so unpredictable at times? I mean, sometimes she acts almost like a child, sometimes she acts like a teen, sometimes she seems like a young adult..."

The Goddess explained, "Unlike Nicole or Tanya, I did not grant Cindy a lifetime of new memories upon which to build a new personality for herself. Further, she was isolated for much of her first week. She was forced to re-invent herself with her primary influences being the physical and mental conditions I had imposed upon her as punishment, and the knowledge and memories she retained from her old life. Since Jessica brought her here, the girl has been further influenced by all of you, along with the age indicated on her documentation."

Samantha sighed. In that light, it was no wonder Cindy seemed a little unstable at times. She almost wished they could bring Maria into the fold. A little therapy might be good for the kid, if it was with someone she could actually talk to.

She then asked, "Have you more questions, Samantha?"

Sam nodded, "Yes... While we're talking about Cindy, why did you pick that particular punishment for Scott? There's a million things you could have done. Why make him a girl?"

The Goddess smiled slightly. "As I have explained to Nicole, I am influenced by the beliefs, desires, and opinions of my worshipers, as you are by Me. At that time, My worshippers consisted of three young gay women, of which one was trans and another was originally male. That is why that punishment occurred to Me, as fitting for the crime."

Samantha was surprised to hear that She was influenced by them, but that also explained why She was ok with them using Her power to help LGBT folks. Sam wondered if having only gay followers meant She'd become gay herself. Then she wondered if maybe that had already happened.

Sam quietly considered all of this for another minute or two, then finally said "Thank you for talking with me... Thank you for telling me all this."

"You are welcome, Samantha. I hope I have helped set your mind at ease." She then added, "Nicole and yourself are bound to Me more closely than the others. It's important to Me that you are comfortable and happy."

Sam then saw her eyelids flicker slightly, and then she knew Nikki was back.

"Did you see all that, love?" Sam asked.

Nikki nodded as she lay back down, "Yeah. Are you feeling better now?"

Sam considered, then as she lay back and started cuddling her girlfriend again, she nodded. "I'm feeling better about most things... There's still some things I'm uneasy about. But yeah, feeling better now."

:=: Nicole :=:

The timer beeped, and Nikki pulled the tray out of the oven. She started carefully dishing the salmon portions out onto the waiting plates, and then Jess carried them over to the dinner table where Sam, Kara, and Cindy were sitting.

It was Friday night, the end of another good week. Sam had been in a slightly better mood since her chat with the Goddess on Tuesday night. Jess and Kara were both still a little giddy at times, enjoying each other's company. And Cindy had been happy all week, between the phone Jess had given her on Monday and seeing her friend on Wednesday evening at her baking class.

"So I had a long talk on the phone today with my parents. Well, mostly my mother." Sam was saying. "They're excited about coming down on the twenty-fifth, and looking forward to meeting both Kara and Cindy."

That was two weeks from today. Nikki nodded and smiled, "I told you there wouldn't be any problems, hon."

Samantha frowned, "Well I didn't say it was an easy conversation. Mom must have asked a hundred questions, and she made me email her pictures of both Kara and Cindy."

Nikki noticed Kara looked a little awkward about that, and smiled to her "Don't worry Kara. Mrs. Carlisle probably just wanted to be sure she'd recognize you and all that, before they get here."

Jess smirked, "Or she wanted to get an idea of your size and colours, so she could find you a sweater or something. She'll be bringing gifts for everyone, I'm sure."

Cindy hadn't responded at all to the conversation, or reacted to her name being mentioned. She was eating with one hand, while her other hand was holding her phone. She'd barely put the thing down all week, and had been texting almost non-stop with Tanya.

Sam then asked "Have you talked to your parents at all, Nikki?"

"Yeah, actually I wanted to ask you about this," she replied. "After I dropped Cindy off for her baking class the other night, I went round and visited them. I told them there'd be five of us so it was easier for the two of them to come over here. I suggested the twenty-fourth or the twenty-sixth, but when I mentioned your folks would be here on the twenty-fifth they asked if they could come that day as well? It'd be busy and a little crowded, but what do you think? Everyone together all at once?"

Samantha sighed, "We don't have enough chairs and the table isn't big enough."

Jessica suggested, "Well we don't have to make it a big formal meal. We could get a couple more chairs and maybe some of those little folding tables, and let people just sort of mingle around? Lots of little snack type foods?"

Nikki liked that idea. "That'd be less stressful, and less work in the kitchen. I know you were worried about me spending the whole day working on dinner. This way we could make some things ahead of time and just warm it up when everyone's here."

She could see Sam was fretting again.

"I'll have to tell mom and dad that the Elliots will be coming too, and mom will probably be disappointed that we aren't doing a traditional dinner..."

Jessica rolled her eyes, "She'll live. It'll be fine, sis."

Samantha sighed again, then frowned. "Cindy? I've told you every night this week, no phones at the table!"

The small teen sighed loudly, "Fine... Putting it away..."

She continued to text for another minute or so before Sam stated, "Now, Cindy!"

The girl finally stuffed the phone into her pocket and pouted, before she continued eating.

Nikki was smiling and Jessica giggled a little, "Wow sis, you're gonna make a great mom someday."

Cindy giggled at that as well, then said, "Tanya and me wanna go to see a movie tomorrow. Can I have some money? I'll need a ride too, or bus fare... Actually how about an allowance or something?"

"I'll give you some money for the movie." Nikki said. "We'll have to think about an allowance, or if you should be getting yourself a part-time job."

Cindy thanked her then frowned, "I don't know if I'll have time for a job. I wanna start going to school again when the new semester starts? I wanna go to the same school as Tanya."

Nikki exchanged a look with Samantha. It had only been a week today since Cindy had surprised everyone by cursing Tom, and tomorrow would mark a week since she and Tanya had become friends.

Samantha said, "I'll speak with Maria next week and find out what we'll need to do, to get you registered there. If you're sure that's what you want."

The small blonde nodded, "Yeah! Tanya's been telling me all about it and it sounds kinda fun."

When they were all finished dinner, everyone helped clear the table and wash the dishes. Cindy then reminded them, "Don't forget there's dessert tonight!"

Nikki smiled again. Cindy had made cupcakes yesterday and decorated them today, she was eager for everyone to sample her first creations.

The five of them were soon seated at the table again. Cindy set down a large plate in the middle of the table, with a dozen cupcakes on it. The icing on them was pretty, it had been piped to look like chocolate flowers, rather than just spread on with a knife.

The young teen announced, "They're all just chocolate, no fancy flavours yet. Let me know if they're ok though?"

As they all helped themselves, there was the sound of a phone buzzing. Sam gave the girl a hard look, but then Jessica spoke up, "That's mine, Sam."

While Jess was digging out her phone, Nikki tried her cupcake. She was impressed. She knew the girl had made everything from scratch, and for a first attempt it was actually really good.

Jessica checked her phone as she took a big bite of her dessert. She then frowned, and with her mouth full said "Oh shit!"

Cindy pouted, "It's that bad?"

Jess shook her head, "Sorry, not the cupcake." She was still staring at her phone, and tapped the screen.

Samantha sighed, "Jessica, no phones at the table applies to you as well. It goes for everyone, for that matter."

Jess ignored her sister and looked at Kara. "It's from Mike. Carrie's dead! He sent a link to the news report, police found her body yesterday..."

Kara looked shocked, "Holy crap..."

Nicole could see Cindy was looking conflicted. She knew the girl didn't want to interrupt Jess and Kara, but she obviously wanted to know what people thought of her baking. "Cindy? These are delicious. Great job."

:=: Tanya :=:

Tanya was waiting infront of the movie theatre where her mom had dropped her off. It was cold and windy, and she was thinking she should just go inside and wait where it's warm. Fortunately she only had to wait another minute or so before she spotted Nikki's car.

The black compact pulled right up and Cindy jumped out, smiling. "Hey Tanya!"

She grinned back at her friend, "Hi Cindy!"

Nicole waved. "You two have fun. Cindy, text me when you're ready and I'll come get you." Cindy nodded and closed the door, then Nikki drove off.

The two of them then hurried into the building to get out of the cold. They'd seen each other Wednesday of course, and had been texting every day since Cindy got her own phone on Monday. And they'd talked a lot too, usually at night when they were both supposed to be asleep.

Still, Tanya was happy to see her friend again, and she'd been looking forward to the afternoon with her since the idea had come up on Thursday. And they were both looking forward to seeing the new thriller that just came out.

The two went up to the counter together, and just like that their plans were dashed.

"That movie's rated R. So I'm gonna need to see some ID from both of you." The guy was staring at Cindy when he said it.

Tanya sighed. She probably could have got in by herself without getting carded, but there's no way Cindy could pass for eighteen. She barely passed as sixteen, even with her ID.

Cindy was frowning angrily. Tanya knew her friend hated being mistaken for a kid.

She said, "It's ok Cindy. We can always stream it in a few weeks. Let's see something else instead."

The two stepped aside and looked at their options. There wasn't much else they were interested in, but Tanya suggested "What about that superhero movie?" It had already been out for two weeks, so she knew it wouldn't be that crowded.

Cindy sighed and agreed, "Ok."

They got their tickets, and then hit the concessions stand, and both came away with popcorn and sodas. They picked seats towards the back of the theatre, since they knew they'd probably be talking as much as watching the show. Back here they wouldn't annoy as many people, and at the moment there wasn't anyone around to overhear them. They had another twenty minutes before the movie started anyways, so plenty of time to chat.

"Sucks about not getting in to restricted movies any more." Tanya said.

Cindy nodded, "Yeah. That's just one of like, a hundred other things to get used to, right? I dunno about you but I miss having my own car."

Tanya sighed, "Yeah... Now we both gotta go through all that hassle of getting our licenses again too. Ugh." She started munching on a handful of popcorn, as she wondered if she'd have to take lessons again. She could remember taking lessons and knowing how to drive in the other life, but she had no idea if the skills transferred over, or only the memories.

Cindy took a sip of her drink, and continued, "Even just the independence... Not having to always get permission to go out, and having to tell someone where you're going and why and what you wanna do."

Tanya considered. "I kinda don't mind that as much? I mean, it's nice to know people care, that they wanna know."

She could see her friend was thinking that over. Tanya had to remind herself, Cindy didn't get the same sort of 'reboot' that she did. She then asked, "Hey Cindy? Do you miss your parents? Don't you ever think about going back home and seeing them?"

That brought a frown to Cindy's face.

She took a deep breath, then sighed. "At first, like the first few days especially? I really wanted to see them. You know what that was like right, like totally in shock and stuff at first? And I was alone. She left me outside the bar with no ID, no phone, and just like a hundred dollars in cash? But She made it so I couldn't talk to any friends or family or whatever. So like, I couldn't even go and try to talk to them, no matter how much I wanted to."

She stuffed some popcorn into her mouth, and as she was chewing, Cindy continued. "So I was basically homeless, no-one even knew I existed, wandering around downtown trying to figure stuff out alone? And yeah, I really wished I could have seen a familiar face and that someone would take care of me, help me out, that sorta thing."

Tanya shook her head, "Fuck. That's terrifying..." She asked, "What about now, though?"

Cindy shrugged, "It's different now. Like I was saying last week? I'm different. I've changed. They're Scott's parents, not mine. Scott's dad... he's like an older version of Scott. He's just as much a bigot and an asshole, but with a little more maturity and a lot more money. And Scott's mom's an enabler, and a bit of a drunk."

She sighed again and shook her head. "So no. I don't wanna see them. They're the people who raised Scott to be an asshole and a rapist. I don't want anything to do with them."

Tanya was silent again, as she considered all that. She thought about her own parents, how she remembered them from Tom's life and how she knew them now.

"I think... I think something with my parents changed?" She frowned slightly. "Maybe losing their first kid then having a little girl, made them sort of better, or less uptight about stuff? Because as Tom's parents, I think they were more like your - I mean, like Scott's folks. But the way I know them now, they're a lot nicer, a lot more chill."

Cindy was munching some more popcorn, and nodded slowly. "That makes sense. I think She'd have made sure if you were getting a new life, you'd get decent folks who'd be cool with you and wouldn't be dicks about anything."

Tanya thought some more about her folks, and her new life. Then she smiled.

"A week ago I never would've believed I'm saying this but... I'm actually glad all this happened. Like, there's a few things that still sort of suck, but over-all? I'm a lot happier now than I think Tom ever was." She smiled, "I'm even having fun at school, and that's something he hated. And like you said... Being a girl can be kinda fun."

Cindy smiled, but she was quiet for a few moments. Finally, she said, "I'm glad you took the offer, Tanya. I'm glad you're happy, and that things all worked out ok for you."

Tanya suspected there was something her friend wasn't saying. "But? It feels like there's a 'but' coming."

Cindy shrugged, "I'm a little jealous of some stuff." She added quickly, "I'm not saying I don't want you to be happy. I'm glad things worked out so good for you. And I understand why some stuff for me isn't as good. Like, I'm paying the price for what Scott did, I get that."

Before Tanya could respond, Cindy smirked and added "I'm also a bit jealous that you got boobs."

Tanya felt her cheeks go red as she suppressed a giggle. "Yeah, pretty sure I have you to thank for that, Cindy." She then added, "Anyhow, you're still growing right? You never know how things'll turn out in the next year or so."

Cindy's grin faded as she gave a slight shrug.

Tanya realized she must have said something that was a sore spot for her friend, and quickly decided to change the subject.

"So, you and me out to see a movie together? Is this our first date?" Tanya smiled hopefully.

Cindy's eyes widened a little and her cheeks started going pink. She giggled, "I didn't even think of that!"

Tanya grinned, though she could feel her own cheeks were getting brighter too. "Hey after the movie, wanna go get dinner? Dinner and movie, right, that's how it goes?"

Her friend grinned as well, and nodded "Good idea!" She fished her phone out, "I'll text Nikki and let her know I'm gonna be late." As she was tapping on the screen, she said "Thanks for cheering me up, Tanya. I really appreciate it."

Tanya just smiled, "I'm glad. I'd rather be making you happy, than making you sad."

The theatre lights were starting to dim as Cindy sent her text. The two of them settled back in their seats, watching the screen.

:=: Kara :=:

The mood around the table at the cafe was sombre. It was their last Monday coffee get-together before winter break. Last week they'd assumed Carrie had gone home early, or maybe she was sick. Now all five of them knew what had really happened. They'd all heard the news, and more details had come out over the weekend.

Mike sighed, "I can't believe it. Why'd anyone want to kill her? She was nice... Nobody disliked her."

Orin said quietly, "Some of the jocks didn't like her, or any of us."

Megan shook her head, "That was just bullying and teasing. I can't believe any of them would..."

Kara agreed, "I don't think any of them could have done it."

Mike then said, "Whoever did it had to be here though. People saw her at breakfast at the Decew dining hall, but she didn't come to first class. She was grabbed between residence and class. Right here on campus..."

Jess sighed, "That doesn't mean it was a student though, or faculty or whatever. I mean, anyone can come and go right? Visitors, strangers..."

"I'm sure the police will find them." Kara stated. "There's security cameras around. They're probably going through the footage. It's just a matter of time."

The others nodded, and everyone was quiet for a bit.

Then Mike spoke up again. "The police still haven't released details about how she died, like what happened... That means whatever it was... It was something really bad."

"Not necessarily." Orin replied. "It might be they're just staying quiet because there's a clue or something, they don't want to tip off whoever did it that they're onto him?"

Kara nodded, "Maybe."

Mike then frowned. "They had that vigil for Scott Matthews. I haven't heard anyone talk about doing anything for Carrie. I guess I shouldn't be surprised. Everyone mourns the asshole because he was rich and popular, nobody cares if a queer coed gets killed."

Megan sighed. "Scott was 3rd year, popular, and had a lot of friends. Carrie's only been here a couple months... I'm not saying I think it's fair, Mike. Just saying, there probably aren't as many people talking to the faculty or the board about doing something for Carrie."

Mike sighed again, but Orin asked, "Well, why don't we start talking to them about it? She was our friend, we should make a point of it."

Kara nodded, "Good idea, Orin. I'm in."

Jessica nodded as well, "Yeah."

Mike asked, "Who would we talk to, though?"

Megan looked thoughtful, then finally said, "Orin, this was your idea so why don't you take the lead on it. I can give you a phone number and an email address..."

Kara watched as Orin dug out his phone.

Megan then recited a number and an email address from memory. "That's Martina Prentice's contact info. She's on the board, and she'll be sympathetic. Whether you call or email, be polite, but make the point Mike said... Carrie might not have been as popular as Scott, but she was still a Brock student and she deserves to be remembered."

By now they were all staring at Megan. Mike and Orin were probably wondering how she knew someone on the board, well enough to memorize her contact info. Jess was probably thinking the same thing as Kara, that it was maybe risky for Megan to reveal that she knew this stuff. Kara was glad she'd done it, though. And she hoped that the woman would listen to Orin's request.

:=: Henry :=:

Henry started the pickup again and turned up the heat. It got cold too quickly with the motor off, but he didn't want to burn gas all day, so he couldn't leave it running constantly.

He was parked infront of a fairly nondescript plaza. There was a pizza place, a dry cleaners, convenience store, and a franchised coffee place. There was enough turn-over in the lot that nobody seemed to notice his beat-up old pick-up was there for hours at a time.

Henry took a look around just to be sure no-one was watching him. Then he sighed, and turned his attention back to the bus stop across the street.

It had been two full weeks since he'd first laid eyes on his son. He'd seen Jason another dozen times since then. He'd been following, watching, tracking. He knew the demons had their lair in the condo tower a few hundred meters west of the bus stop. If he was right, in the next ten or fifteen minutes he'd see his boy and that blonde girl emerge from the bus, and walk to the condos.

There was still some frustration, though. He hadn't seen his son in the company of either demon yet. He'd seen the taller demon a handful of times since he started watching the condo tower late last week. And the shorter demon he'd only seen once. It had been a bit of a fluke, he happened to notice it as it drove past in a small black car.

Henry checked his notes again. He had something of a theory worked out. The shorter demon, he was pretty sure that one was just a messenger, a lackey. That's why its disguise didn't need to be as convincing.

The taller demon was definitely the one in charge. Back when he still had access to a computer, he'd been looking at Jason's social media. He learned that his son had been deceived into believing the tall demon was family, a sister. That had to be how it was controling, manipulating the boy.

He decided, if he could only get one, it had to be the tall one, the leader. The fact that he hadn't seen his boy and the demon together yet was thwarting his plans.

Then he spotted the bus, and dropped his notebook on the seat next to him.

It pulled up and stopped. And sure enough, Jason and the tall blonde girl emerged. The bus drove off, and he watched his son and the girl as they walked towards the condo tower. They soon disappeared inside, and Henry turned to his notes again. He already had the bus route number and location of the bus stop written down. He added the time next to it.

He was pretty sure his boy wouldn't appear again till tomorrow morning. Henry would be back here then to watch.

For now he reviewed his notes again, and looked over the information he had on his boy's class schedule. That music student couldn't tell him everything, but with enough persuasion she'd given Henry everything she knew. And he could fill in the rest of the blanks himself.

He felt a bit of regret about the girl. Still, it had been her choice to resist. If she'd cooperated, things would have gone much easier for her. Henry hadn't enjoyed what he had to do, but he had no choice.

God had given him the visions and set him on this mission. Destroying the demons and saving his son was the only thing that mattered now.

It was just a matter of time. Next week the winter break would start. Everyone's schedules would change. Henry would be here, watching. He was sure the time was coming, and when it did, he would be ready.

He put the truck in gear and pulled out of the parking lot. With one last look at towards the condo building, Henry said quietly, "Hang in there son. Your old man's gonna save you."