Alex felt so foolish. Ares hated her. It didn't take a genius to figure out he had loathed her from the moment she'd stepped into the office. They hadn't known each other a week, but he seemed set in his decision.

She really wanted to be friends. She could see how fond of him her uncle was, and she wanted to know him like that too. Alex knew his dry tone and the way he persistently corrected her uncle were really just a facade for the devotion and caring he had for the Detective. Why else would he be here? From just a couple of days of observation, she'd seen Ares file Docherty's paper work, process his billing, and feed his fish.

Alex wished she could crack that shell and experience the softer side of him, but so far, he had been cold, rude, and critical. Ares may have wicked fast reflexes and great strength (the other night he dragged the trunk and carried his bag, and still managed to outpace them), but he was not the best at being discreet. He stared at her constantly. She could feel his eyes moving up and down her like a paper shredder, tearing her apart. She found it positively depressing, but she was not going to let that kind of thinking get the best of her. It really didn't matter what Ares thought of her, she knew that, but she really wanted to be friends.

She loved Detective Docherty. Yes, it was a bit soon, but he reminded her so much of her father. He had the same cheery disposition and light-hearted nature that her father had. When she was with him, it was as if... as if she were home.

If only Ares could accept her. The Detective adored him, and Alex knew that somewhere in the depths of his sarcasm and dry remarks there had to be a decent vampire.

Why hadn't she just kept her mouth shut?

Even without her unique abilities, it wouldn't have taken Alex long to figure him out. Ares didn't hide it very well. The guy was a walking stereotype: dark hair, pale skin, dark clothing, and he only came out at night... Alex had even noticed him staring at the door before Dan had come in the other night—and who wouldn't suspect him after he had gotten into the cockpit so fast? Or when he raced out of the plane to get the headbands? No human could move like that.

Alex didn't understand how he thought he could hide it, but she could understand secrets. The world was not always a friendly place to his kind, nor was it always friendly to hers.

Alex was relieved when the knock interrupted them. She got up from the recliner and folded the quilt, placing it back on the chair as neatly as she could, although folding had never been her forte. When she turned around, she saw a small blonde woman walk into the office. The woman's eyes were red from crying and her nose looked brittle and irritated from who-knows-how-many tissues.

Alex was struck instantly by the amount of emotional pain the woman appeared to be in. She recognized the dull look in her eyes and was haunted by it. It could only be loss—the loss of a loved one. Her heart began to beat uncomfortably fast, and she started to feel lightheaded.

Alex struggled to stand; her legs began to sway.

Without warning, she felt a gloved hand on her arm and realized Ares had moved her back toward the chair to steady her. Was she embarrassing him? She flushed and attempted to focus.

The woman sniffed heavily. "Um, hello. My name is Nancy, Nancy Calloway."

"Hello there, my dear. I am Detective Docherty. Now, now, you look positively dreadful. Let me get you a chair. Ares, find some tissues for the poor woman, would you?" The Detective somehow managed to sound sympathetic and cheery all at once. It was the kind of tone a loving parent gave to a child to comfort them.

"Oh, thank you very much," Nancy said between sniffles as she took a seat in front of the Detective's mahogany desk. Ares passed her a box of tissues and she took them with another thank you.

Docherty took his seat while Alex and Ares pulled up two chairs. Alex was relieved to be sitting again though her mind was still swimming.

The young woman, who appeared to be a little older than Alex, wiped away a couple of tears and cleared her throat.

"Well, I suppose you are wondering why I am here."

"Take your time, it's quite alright," Docherty said, placing a comforting hand on Nancy's. He gave her hand a light squeeze and waited for her to continue.

She smiled politely.

"I, uh, my mother passed away recently." She paused before saying, "and it's a mystery how it happened. You see, when they found her it looked as though she had fallen down the stairs by accident. I couldn't believe it. The police did an investigation, but... but they couldn't find any evidence to support foul play, and decided it was either an accident or... or suicide." Nancy stared at the desk in front of her.

Alex placed a hand on Nancy's back. She knew there was no real comfort for this kind of pain. It took every ounce of her strength not to cry. Alex wanted to, Goddess knew how she wanted to, but she fought to hold it in. This woman needed her, and she would do the best she could.

"I'm so sorry. I lost my parents, too, a couple of years ago. What about your father, where is he?"

"Oh, he passed away a year ago. He'd been sick for some time. The police, they said they thought that my mom may have tripped or even slipped on purpose. A type of suicide, I guess, but that's not like my mom. That's not like her at all. She was doing well and she... she..." Nancy stopped and cried into her lap.

Alex looked over to her uncle. He had a compassionate look on his face and smiled at Alex.

"My dear girl, Nancy was it? I know you are going through a hard time right now, but rest assured, we are here to help. Now, take a moment, and then perhaps you can give us more information about yourself and your mother, eh? Let's start there. Keeping your mind busy is the best medicine in these situations, I find."

The Detective got out a pad of paper and pencil and then adjusted his glasses. Alex heard a shuffling to her right and saw that Ares too was getting out a notebook and pen. Alex began to wonder if she should be taking notes, but decided she was content listening.

"Yes, yes, of course," Nancy said sniffling, "I can tell you now that there was no lead up to this. My mother was in great health, and to my knowledge she was dealing with my father's passing well. My mom always had a good spin on life. She knew he had been suffering from his illness, and when he passed—we knew he was at peace, and that gave her a lot of comfort. She was still hanging out with her friends, and I saw her often, and none of us feel that she would have done this to herself. The thought of her tripping on the stairs, in a house she had lived in since my birth—well, the thought is ridiculous."

"Can you tell us, Mrs. Calloway, did your mother ever mention anything out of the ordinary to you? Not about her being sad or in relation to your father's death, but anything that sticks out in your mind as being peculiar for her to say or have experienced?" asked Ares.

Alex looked at him, wondering what he could be searching for.

"Oh, um, let me see... Oh, yes. My mom mentioned that she had been having trouble with her memory lately. She said she'd been misplacing things. She would put her wristwatch down by the table in her bedroom and then find it put away later, but not in her jewelry box, just in some random drawer. She also said that she had been having trouble sleeping at night. She said it sounded like someone was walking around the house.

"I suppose it stuck out because she has always had a good memory and was well organized. I've always known her to be a heavy sleeper too. I checked the house for her multiple times, but there was nothing," Nancy said, more focused and coming out of her gloom.

Docherty nodded as he made notes. "Interesting. You said she was well organized?"

"Yes, she was very organized. A bit obsessive-compulsive, if you ask me," Nancy replied, almost with a smile.

"Ah." The Detective continued to scribble with enthusiasm. "Can you tell me, whereabouts in town did your mother live?" Docherty blinked behind his spectacles.

"She lived in Vaughan, not too far from the amusement park. Do you need her address? We can visit this week if you'd like. The police have finished their investigation, and the house has been left to me. I'm not staying there, but I have the key."

"Why yes, that would be wonderful. Now, before we get to that, can you tell me, did she have a profession or was she retired, or...?"

"My mom was what we liked to call a household administrator. For as long as I can remember, my mom had been at home, taking care of the house and me."

Alex watched Ares and Docherty writing their notes and wondered how much of their notes would be similar and how much would be different.

"By the amusement park, eh... fascinating... most interesting. Yes... hm."

Alex was beginning to feel a little out of the loop when Ares asked, "Has your mother ever had any experience with otherkin, magickal kind, or any fairy kind that you can think of?"

"No, not that I can think of. I mean, it's hard not to bump into some sort of otherkin these days, but we didn't know any otherkin personally, and we didn't have anyone living on the property that we knew of. The house is rather large, but the yard was not much to speak of—oh, yes! The landscaping company my mom used was run by a very nice fawn gentleman and his wife. She's a gorgeous dryad, but I couldn't see them ever hurting anyone. Not even a fly."

Alex smiled. It was good to know there were more people out there like her that did not view fairy and otherkin as things, but as people.

Nancy went to get up and turned to Alex. "Forgive me, but I didn't get your name."

"Alexandria," Ares said, before she could reply.

Alex tilted her head and gave him a funny look, but Ares didn't look up from his paperwork.

"Feel free to call me Alex," she told Nancy.

"Alex, I'm very sorry you lost your parents too."

Nancy began to go white again.

"Thank you, Mrs. Calloway, but don't worry about me. It's you we're focusing on, and if I may say so, it takes some time, a long time, but eventually the daily pain will go away. You will never stop loving them, but you will find happiness again." Alex hugged her without warning. She didn't care about social norms or personal space bubbles. From her perspective, there was not enough hugging in the world, and, damn it, this woman needed a hug.

"Oof! Thank you," Nancy said awkwardly.

After a brief overview and some planning, Nancy was soon out the door. Docherty, Alex, and Ares planned to meet at the office Saturday morning and then head over to Nancy's mother's house together. Nancy would meet them there.

Alex felt badly for Nancy having to go back to the scene of her mother's death, but she was strangely excited too. At first, Alex was worried she would have to sit this one out, but now that her original panic was over, she was feeling more confident. Seeing Nancy's pain and knowing it like it was her own made her want to do something about it. She could not bring Nancy's mother back, but she could help find out who did it and why—that much she could do.

Perhaps she did have some of her uncle in her. She really hoped so because she couldn't get enough of him. His charm and cheery disposition washed away years of loneliness, and it seemed she was finding strength in their new relationship.

Every day, Alex got up early in the mornings to do her yoga, went to her classes or work, did her homework on breaks, and rushed to the Detective's office in the evenings. Alex never wanted this feeling of belonging to stop. She had really missed it.

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