Isabella laid her head on Aurora's shoulder. “I'm really glad we met.”

“Even with everything?” Aurora replied, leaning her own head against Isabella's.

I learned today that our world was never supposed to exist. It was an accident. And by “world” I actually mean our entire universe. Every last bit. A mistake, made by beings of such ridiculous power and knowledge we might as well call them “gods.”

“You've been on that box all day, Beta,” Henry said. He spoke gently as he rested against the door frame. “Don't you think you should take a break?”

Beta never looked away from the screen, her eyes still tracking the game. “It's awful out and the garden's under repair anyway. And Leopold is on vacation. And,” she looked away for a moment to glare at Henry, “I've read all the books you've brought me.”

Isabella squeed. She was a little embarrassed by that fact, but there wasn't really any other way to put it. Aurora was coming to the show tonight!

“Why do you keep trying, little one?” the creature asked. It slid slowly back and forth along the floor, its scales rasping on the uneven stone.

“Really? That's what we're going with?” Aurora replied.

Aurora swept the flashlight around the hallway. She wished, not for the first time, she could just conjure up light like Raeth could. A small spot of light in a dark, long-abandoned building brought to mind way too many horror movies. She'd been places that could put those to shame, but still. Childhood conditioning was a hard thing to put away.

“Seriously? Everyone” Aurora asked. She turned the fuzzy-eared hat over in her hands.

“Everyone in this part of the world, anyway,” Raeth replied. “Ri is about 60% larger than Earth, so there's a lot of space for variety.” Raeth had already donned the rest of his costume. His hat had long, floppy ears that drooped past his shoulders.

I was so tired. Whatever energizing spark had kept me going up to this point was just gone.

“She's a cursed danger, Raeth!” Icturata Tass yelled. The Councilor was pacing back and forth, gesticulating.

“She's a scared young girl,” Raeth replied.

Something was wrong. Aurora's hands shook like they hadn't in years. Not since the first days of her training, when she first learned what Source-forming was.

So, apparently she wouldn't just get used to it. She'd grown to love it. Walking around in Galavaria for the last few weeks had been a remarkably freeing experience.

Source-breaking is... well, it's a bit like trying to spray-paint with a fire hose. It's possible to turn it on just a little bit. It requires a lot of concentration to do it, though. You have to pay attention the entire time, because what it really wants to do is turn on full blast.

“Avaunt, miscreant!” the stranger cried, as relayed through Aurora's mechanical companion.

Aurora cocked an eyebrow at the little construct of gem and metal. “Seriously, J? That's the best translation you could do?”

Aurora had experienced quite a few different cultures since she'd been working for the Council. Some of them were almost incomprehensibly alien. Even though humans or human-like creatures were surprisingly common among the Worlds, they all had evolved some extreme variances in how they lived their lives. Aurora had started taking it all in stride. Council free agents had to act as diplomats, after all.

“Life has gotten really weird for me,” Aurora said once they had settled down on the bench. Her cheeks flushed and she faced away from Isabella. A couple went by, walking a dog.

“Define weird,” Isabella replied.

Beta stared at the blank wall of her room and thought about the events of the day. She couldn't remember the last time she'd gone outside the building.

Aurora clicked a few candids while the techs finished setting up on the tiny stage. The lighting in here was crap, but she could work with it.