Marcia poured herself a glass of wine. "That's a very sound strategy-"

I got up and put some water on to boil for the pasta. I felt all warm inside, and not just because the tiny kitchen was hot from the cooking and all the bodies. It felt good to have my friends here and to remember how much they cared for me. That was something I never wanted to lose, no matter how deep I got myself into the magical world.

* * *

The next morning, Owen was in his usual spot on the subway platform. I felt a flutter in my stomach when I saw him, then reminded myself to forget about it. He appeared tired and haggard, with dark circles under his eyes, but otherwise he looked much better than the last time I'd seen him.

"How are you feeling?" I asked when I got near him.

"Better, thanks. I'm not looking forward to going through that again."

"You have to do it again? Can't someone else?"

"I wouldn't ask anyone else," he said solemnly as a train screeched to a stop.

We didn't talk on the way to work. He looked lost in thought, and I was lost in thought, so neither of us minded the relative silence. The subway during rush hour isn't a prime conversational zone anyway, especially when the topic of conversation involves magic.

I headed straight to the verification office, which took every ounce of will I had in me. I made a show of putting down my bags and draping my jacket across the back of my chair, then was just about to go put my lunch in the refrigerator when Gregor shouted at me. "Yes?" I asked innocently.

"You'll be officing up in R and D. We'll send your assignments there."

"Oh, okay." I kept my face as blank as I could while I picked my bags and jacket up and left the office. Only when I was safely out in the corridor did I smile in relief. It was going to be a lot easier to come to work from now on.

As it had at my last visit, the R&D door swung open when I approached. Once inside, I wondered where I should go, but I soon heard a flutter of wings and a fairy approached. Those wings might look insubstantial, but it seemed that a fairy could move pretty quickly when she wanted to. I recognized her as the fairy I'd seen on the subway that day last week that had changed my life.

"Hi!" she said cheerfully. "You must be Katie. I'm An. They sent me to show you your office."

"Oh, good. I was wondering where to go."

"It isn't far. They want you just inside the entrance so you can spot the bad guys.

Good work the

other day, by the way."

"Thanks."

"And here we are!" She hovered just inside the doorway to a small office with glass walls that overlooked the main corridor. It wasn't palatial, but it beat the verification pool, and it beat my cubicle at my last job. It even had a door. "We've already got the phone set up, and your computer will be delivered this afternoon."

"A computer?" That was something I hadn't had back in the pool.

"Yeah, special orders from the boss. Bathroom's around the corner. We don't have a coffee room or kitchen, but if you need anything, just grab someone and ask for whatever you want. I'm in the lab across the hall, so yell if you want something. Oh, and yell if you see someone who doesn't look like they belong, but that goes without saying. Any questions?"

"Not right now. Thanks."

"Great. Then I'll see you tonight."

"Tonight?"

"You're going out with the girls, aren't you?"

"Oh, yeah, that. You're coming, too?"

"Sure thing. It'll be fun. Welcome to R and D."

As she fluttered away I pondered the idea of a girls' night out that included a winged fairy. It looked like this would be an interesting evening, to say the least.

* * *

I'd just wrapped up my work for the day when Ari appeared at my door. "You ready to hit the town?" she asked.

"Sure, just give me a second to shut down."

"Grab me across the hall when you're ready to go and we can head to Isabel's office together."

I shut down my newly arrived computer and packed my things, then made a quick dash to the bathroom to freshen up before stepping into Art's lab. It was all chrome and white surfaces, with several large computers. "There you are," Art said as I arrived. "Welcome to my domain, the last step in Practical Magic."

"What do you do here?"

"Final testing before a spell is released—make sure there aren't any typos, make sure it works as advertised, any necessary editing to get it down to the tightest, most concise spell you can get. Some of those theoretical guys get a little wordy. They read too many old books. Archaic language may make a spell look impressive, but it doesn't make it work any better." She picked up her purse and said, "Looks like it's the weekend."