June 11: Edgar Bones Must Die: Adkins House: Phoebe

[Phoebe Bones]

If she’d gone to Kyra’s place the night before, there would have been nothing to keep her from spilling the beans. But now, sitting in her old bed with her best friend, everything was threatening to come tumbling out. Just breathe. She’d never hung up without telling Edgar she loved him, not since they exchanged those words when she was in secondary school. You know you can’t tell her. This was the biggest surprise she’d ever gotten in her life, and she didn’t know how to work through it. Not when she didn’t have the proper words to tell Kyra why she was so upset. Phoebe nodded as Kyra teased her, thoughts about Sadie slipping in and out of the ever turning jumble that was her mind.

Something her best friend must have sensed, spurring them on with a plan of action. A plan of action that drew a laugh from Phoebe, as she could hardly see the two of them kidnapping her dog while sloshed. “I’m with you,” she said with a squeeze to Kyra’s hand, eyes wandering to the suitcase she’d left unpacked. “Would it be alright if I stayed with you and Liz tonight? I can’t talk to my parents about this.”

Plans set in motion, Phoebe was quick to change and gather her things, mind running wild as she teased Kyra for driving all the way out based on a horoscope. Her mum had coffee waiting for them, and after hugs goodbye and promises to visit properly soon they were in the car, but not before she gave a log stare at the Bones house down the street. The radio was soon filling the silence that had fallen over them as they headed back towards London, giving her mind too much time to wander. If she was going to back to Edgar, Kyra would have to know the truth. Because surely if magic was going to be a part of her life, her best friend would experience it too. This was too big of a secret for her to keep for the rest of her life.

“We have the counter protest this weekend,” she said absentmindedly. She needed to fill the car with something, anything to take her mind off of magic. But it was hard to not see the similarities with her world and the one Edgar had described to her, fascism apparently not bound by the ability to use a magic wand. “People really f*cking suck you know? It’s not like Britain hasn’t spent years invading other countries and now people act like we shouldn’t let others come here? I can’t believe these people.”

[Kyra Thatcher]

"Good.

We're getting Sadie, whatever it takes."

She returned the pressure on her hand, glad to see Pheebs perking up a little at the admittedly ridiculous plan. Her heart gave a lurch at Phoebe asking to stay with her and Liz, so so grateful that she'd listened to her gut this morning. "I insist that you do. Now go put on something heart-stoppingly gorgeous before I get all verklempt." Kyra finished off the communal breakfast plate as Phoebe dressed and gathered her things, laughing off her best friend's teases about her horoscopes - Yeah, yeah, yeah, you don't believe in them, but you can't say they were wrong this time. - while mulling over the predicament. While she'd grown to love the Bones' like extended family over the years, there was no denying that she'd had suspicions about them and the Prewetts for an age and a half. They just...didn't seem to fit in the world she lived in. 

In this day and age, what parents didn't insist on their children learning basic life skills? What teenagers hadn't heard of the most popular musicians from across the pond? Was their school really so isolated that the world passed them by, or was there something else afoot? Because they were never sick, never hurt, Kyra couldn't even remember spotting a pimple on any of them...

What had happened between them that was putting Phoebe in the position of having to choose to stay with him or to leave? What was this secret Ed had kept? Ed and Fabian and Gideon, she reminded herself with a slight grimace. The rest of their families too, no doubt. When she'd met Fabian's sister and her family when they'd been together, surely they knew whatever secret was potentially driving Phoebe out of the relationship. The thought left a bitter taste in her mouth, and she was quick to follow Phoebe out of the house, salutes given to her parents and promises to take care of their girl easily given. The car was fast to start, thankfully, and while they were soon out of their childhood neighborhood, it wasn't soon enough to keep Phoebe's eyes from lingering on the Bones' house. Feeling for her friend but, until knowing more, unsure of what else to do, Kyra shifted through radio stations until finding a solid one that rarely played ballads or the like. She was antsy to know what was going on, but trusted that Phoebe would tell her when she could, so tried to content herself with the music until Pheebs spoke up.

"People really f*cking suck," Kyra reiterated. "And it's not like they've got a choice but to leave their home countries - the Gujaratis are likely getting expelled from Uganda by the end of summer, if everything goes through, and where are they supposed to go? When they're UK citizens already, it's like - what, we're turning our backs on our own people now? After colonizing their home country in the first place?" She sighed heavily, driving on autopilot into the city, towards her neighborhood, and prodded her friend's shoulder. "Good thing there are some really good people to counteract all the rest. You'll have a hand in fixing this sh*t soon, in big ways."

[Phoebe Bones]

Phoebe gave a grin to her best friend, happy for the plan they laid out. While she didn’t want to see Edgar today, not really, it would be easier with her best friend by her side. She dressed quickly, heart healed some just by Kyra’s presence. It was stupid to call her parents last night, it would have been quicker to pop over to Liz and Kyra’s place. But her parents didn't ask questions, didn’t pry. They didn’t know anything much about why she had asked her father to come and get her, and Phoebe was hoping to keep it that way for now. She needed a believable lie, and she wasn’t sure she had anything good in her mind at the moment. She knew her parents understood it was bad, seeing as she’d never left after a fight before. But whatever they were imagining had to be so far from the truth, because Phoebe would have never guessed that her longtime boyfriend would have kept a secret like this from her. Even if there were laws around it, this wasn’t the kind of thing you dropped on someone after six years.

Once in the car with Kyra, she still felt like she was about to burst with the truth. This was too big to keep from her best friend, especially when it concerned Fabian and Gideon as well! She knew she shouldn’t be so miffed with them, seeing as the twins weren’t the ones she was involved with. But it still hurt, that two people she concerned to be like family had also hid such a big secret from her. And this magical war? It was too much, and Phoebe was glad for the distraction of their conversation. “Not to mention we still have colonies in other countries, it pisses me off to no end,” Phoebe agreed with a sigh to Kyra’s statement. Britain had invaded the world, and yet people didn’t want to offer shelter to those that needed it? It was the least they could do to make up for it, and Pheebs gave a small grin as Kyra nudged her. One day she’d be a lawyer, and would be more help to the people that came into the office she worked at. She was thankful for the opportunity, a privilege given to her by her father’s good connections. She had a good life - minus the current upheaval - and it was only fair that everyone got the same luxuries they did.

They were soon cruising back toward the city, shuffling through stations to find songs to belt out, teases and laughs taking her mind far away from her breaking heart. Even with traffic they made good time, pulling up outside of one of their favorite bars. Being back in the city...it made her mind wander back to Edgar. Wondering what he was doing to pass the time - probably something with the twins - and wondering if this was something she could handle. The deception? It was a big deal of course, particularly when her mind thought of how much magic could possibly bring to her life. No, that wasn’t the part that hurt the most, she could probably get over that. After all, she didn’t know what the punishment for breaking a magical law was - but based on the little she knew of this war, it seemed like there were a fair amount of close minded people in this magical world.

But a war? Being a soldier? Those were conversations she’d never expected to have with him. It had been hard to accept that her boyfriend wanted to become a police officer - another lie, of course - but to hunt dark wizards? She supposed that had been his goal all along in his desire to become an Auror, but what he was suggesting. Phoebe hardly realized how lost in her thoughts she was until Johnny was setting down a shot in front of her at the bar. “Thanks Johnny,” she said, forcing a smile on her face before she downed the clear liquid, making a face at the burn from the liquid. “Yeah, one more,” she said, setting the shot glass down for their bar-tending friend to refill. After downing the second shot, she shook her head, heading to a booth to sink down into.

Once Kyra had joined her, Phoebe gave a long sigh before she spoke. “I need you to pinky promise me you won’t tell anyone what I’m about to tell you,” she held out her hand, giving Kyra and nod as they locked pinkies and shook. “Edgar and the twins, they’re wizards. Proper wizards, Kyra. He made a rose bush grow in our kitchen door, out of nothing.”

[Kyra Thatcher]

The ride to the city passed as it normally did, almost as if all was right in their little world. They worked around morning talk shows to find enough belters to keep them occupied, lighter teases and topics bringing relief until the city fell around them. Phoebe retreated back into her thoughts and the blonde wished she could've kept her out of them, but...she'll mull it over and then let you in. Gotta be patient. And so she parked and led the way to Johnny's bar, pounding on the door with a beaming smile until the bloke appeared and let them in. "It's a vodka sort of morning, Johnny," Kyra said by way of greeting, guiding Phoebe to a barstool by the shoulders. The girl was still in a sort of daze, poor thing, as Kyra made small talk and thanks to their friend. And after her second shot, Phoebe drifted off and...

"Coffee, doll - but if you pretend we're Irish, I'll work you into my next song. Favorably," she added with a smirk, blue eyes lighting as she saw him reach for the Bailey's. Mugs soon in hand, Kyra found her partner and sat opposite, placing the mugs between them. Don't make me beg, she thought, beseeching, and felt her heart begin to race as Phoebe piped up. "I promise," she replied immediatley, pinky locking around the other's, eyes trained on hers as she spoke...

"What?" Kyra's attention focused on her best friend even more keenly, and she couldn't help her grin. "You'd better not be pulling my leg." But one long look into Phoebe's somber eyes told her that this was no joke, not at all. "Those bastards." While she wanted to sound extraordinarily cross, Kyra couldn't quite manage it at the moment. Because the alcohol was diluting her bloodstream and magic was real and she had to smile at that even while a bloke she'd loved had kept the truth from her...Magic exists. And it's right here, has been here all along! "He told you last night? Can see why that'd throw you for a loop, Christ alive." Animatedly agitated, wanting to hear more from Phoebe and knock down Edgar or the twins's door all at once, Kyra drummed on the side of her mug, fingers working nearly as quickly as her mind.

"I'm going to skin Fabian," she declared, the threat delivered with too much of a smile to be taken seriously. "How could they have kept this from us? Us?" She'd understand the three of them not sharing this secret with everyone - one night stands, bartenders, random passers-by - but had she and Phoebe truly not earned their respect by now? Well...Pheebs did. And how big of a fool have they thought you to be, for believing in magic when they knew the truth all along? "How'd this come up? He just - " Kyra took up a pen from the table, relic of last night's trivia contest, and swished it about before giving her best quiet Edgar. "Have some roses, Phoebe. I'm a wizard, by the way." She flung the pen back towards its resting spot and forced herself to take a lengthy breath, fold her hands around her mug, and drink before letting her mouth run away with her again, shooting her friend a contrite look. "I'm sorry, I am taking this serious, and I'm furious at the lot of them, I promise, just - wow...What're your thoughts about it all?"

[Phoebe Bones]

Phoebe knew this was the sort of reaction she was going to get from her best friend. There was no denying that the truth about magic was going to make Kyra light up, that her closest friend would want to know all the details about it. Details that Phoebe didn’t necessarily have, given how little information she’d let Edgar tell her before she had decided she needed to just be away from him. Thinking of how hurt he’d seemed on the phone made her heart ache, and she was quick to take a sip of the hot coffee as her best friend tried her best to be serious. But there was a lighter side to her tone, even if Kyra was calling the boys bastards while looking at her across the table. “Yeah, after he got home. With flowers, mind you. Should have known something was up.” Surely the flowers he had brought had been meant to ease the betrayal she was feeling, but not even the prettiest flowers were capable of healing her heart when it felt shattered into pieces.

Phoebe sipped at the coffee, grateful for the added addition of the alcohol as Kyra let her thoughts fly freely. She wished that she had answers for her best friend, but they could get them eventually. Fabian wouldn’t dare lie to them, not now that they knew the truth. And while Phoebe knew that Edgar would want to be the one to answer all her questions, but she felt more betrayed by him than she did the twins. Sure, they all kept the same secret. But her and Edgar had been together for years, she’d moved in with him! Her parents had been livid about that, about how he needed to make an honest woman of her if they were going to live together. And it wasn’t until now that he’d thought to bring it up?

Phoebe let herself laugh quietly at Kyra’s impression of Edgar, smiling at her friend. “You can be excited about magic, you know. It’s...it’s certainly something.” Tucking one of her legs underneath her, she turned to face Kyra more, glad that she could finally tell someone the truth. “After her gave me flowers, he asked me to hold out my hand. And he put this little ball of light in my hand, it didn’t hurt or anything. Went out when I closed my hand around it,” she spoke quickly, doing her best to not miss any details. “And he had a magic wand Kyra, I’m not shitting you. It was wood of some sort, he let me hold it. It was….disappointing, actually.” While she hadn’t thought much of it in the moment, there had been a part of her that was curious what a magic wand would feel like in her hands. And it hadn’t felt like anything much at all. “Then he told me he could do magic, that he’d gone to a magic school of some sort. Oh, and here’s the kicker - he wants to fight in a magical war.”

[Kyra Thatcher]

Was there ever a man who'd come home with flowers unexpectedly and didn't deserve a swift kick in the nads for whatever he was trying to cover up for? If he existed, Kyra would gladly shake his hand, and scoffed at the news. Had Eddie really thought that flowers would be enough to soften the mental and emotional blows that he was so unbelievably belatedly delivering? For how long had the couple been an item? Six years now? Why's he told you now? Kyra wondered, biting her lip to keep from thinking out loud even more as her friend spoke. Thankfully Phoebe was understanding of her needing to get some energy out, and her inability to refrain from the frank giddiness that was threatening to overtake her. She kept hold of her mug, enraptured on the woman across the table as Phoebe broke down her internal dam and started letting the truth of last night cascade out of her.

Nonthreatening little ball of light. A magic wand. Magic school. Magic war. 

    And that's the crux of it, is it Pheebs?

For it wasn't enough for Ed to have deliberately concealed these truths about himself and their world, he had to go and add on his intent to join up in a goddamn war. Not a copper, then. The twins in on this gambit too? Soldier was different than policeman; knowing that Ed and the Prewetts were going into the force had been something to swallow, to be sure, but there were reassuring assumptions that came with the job. They'd stay local, they'd have protections, they'd face everyday criminals and help make the London a safer place. But to fight in a war? First off - what was the war about? And was it here? Under their noses, just as Ed's magic was? What would taking on this role mean for him, and by association, for Phoebe?

Kyra broke her admittedly wide-eyed stare, glancing into her mug, taking a drink. She was only just beginning to mull this information over; processing everything would take much more time and much more information, but this was somewhere to begin. She took a steadying breath and let it out slowly, willing her want-to-scramble mind to focus. "Right. So. This war - what's the deal? Everything you know, babe, lay it on me, I can take it," Kyra said decisively, eyeing her friend over the mug. "And disappointing? The wand, I mean. How so?" How had it not been as Phoebe had imagined? Was it not like those they'd seen in books of fairytales? Or in later researched tomes of druid lore?

[Phoebe Bones]

Her mind was far from worried about the outcomes of her spilling this secret. She was two shots in, she was hurt, and she felt that perhaps the enter magical community could shove it. She hated that there was this deep secret that existed, that there were two entire worlds divided by the use of magic. She wanted to love this new world she knew about, the way that surely Edgar and his friends and family loved it. But how could she, when at the heart of it all was a mad man who wanted her and others like her dead, and that was what her boyfriend wanted to do was go and fight that mad man. Probably, partially because of her. He’d said that she was safe in their flat, but she didn’t know if that was true or not. Could one ever really be safe from magic, especially when they didn’t know about it?

She was already feeling better having told Kyra the truth, knowing that her best friend would see her side of things. And at the same time, Kyra had the wonder about magic that Phoebe felt she should have. The wonder Phoebe wanted to have, but simply couldn’t muster. Seeing the glowing ball of light in her hand, the rose bush that had grown in her kitchen, those things were beautiful. But she simply hadn’t felt she could be in awe of those things last night, not when everything felt like it was crashing down around her. She stared into her mug of coffee, mulling over everything Edgar had told her last night. There was no point in keeping anything to herself now, and so she decided to answer the easier of Kyra’s questions first. “It felt like a stick of wood, and nothing more. I don’t know what I was expecting when I held it, but you should have seen the things he did with just that stick of wood. Things that I could never accomplish, and that’s what made it disappointing.” They had dreamed of magic, her and Kyra, and to know that it wasn’t something accessible to her was harder to accept than she had anticipated.

“This war it’s...it’s being led by a psychopath,” she started slowly, looking back to to Kyra from her mug. “It’s all about blood purity, I don’t really understand it. Edgar said that this psychopath and his follower’s believe that these pureblood magical people are the only people who should have access to magic.” She drank some more of the coffee, making a mental note to leave Johnny a good tip for letting them in so early and getting them drinking. “Apparently I’m not any more danger knowing the truth than I was before, there’s wards over the flat, whatever that means. But their Ministry has been infiltrated by the people supporting this madman, and the only way to solve it is to join this magical war.”

[Kyra Thatcher]

That was the rub, wasn't it. That magic was within reach, that they knew people who could perform nothing sort of miracles, that they could see it - and that they'd never be able to feel magic within them. Never do what the others could. Destined to sit and watch while their world was shaped by others. They'd always taken what action they could, she and Phoebe, but how could their ways with words be any match for literal magic? Kyra nodded, giving Phoebe's forearm a little squeeze before thoughtfully taking up her coffee again to learn about this war. 

Blood purity. They keep track of lineages, then. Pure of blood. Pure of wizarding blood? So there's other sorts of wizards, then, if they make those distinctions. Pure of blood. Do they get as inbred as the royals once did? It's got to have some effect, can't have an endless pool of "pure" lines.

    A psychopath. Good, good, comforting to know.

But we don't have access to magic. So what's the fight about? Non-magical people who learn about them?

    Wards. Apotropaic magic, must be. Pops up in too many cultures for it not to have any truth to it.

They've got their own Ministry? Of course they have. Hidden in plain sight?

"There's always another way. Always." Kyra sighed and brushed her hair back, propping her chin up on her palm. "But then again, it's Ed," she bemoaned, remembering all too well how he'd solve neighborhood disputes with contests instead of discussion. "Probably thinks that's the fastest way for it to end. I'm sure they've got spies of their own inside this Ministry too, working other angles. Can't be legal in their system, what the psychopath's doing."

How was Phoebe supposed to determine if she was staying with him or leaving when there were so many questions left unanswered? When all she'd seen of the magical world was good? When all she'd heard was bad news? 

"Are you leaning any way? With Ed?"

[Phoebe Bones]

Phoebe had grown up with the idea of magic in her mind. Her and Kyra, they’d read everything they could about the subject. They’d dived deep into tarot cards. They’d spent their lives wishing for magic fixes to little problems. And then magic had been right under her nose all along, with fixes to her silly problems. To know there was magic in this world was one thing, to know it was being used to do evil things was another. She’d never been one to sit on the sidelines when faced with injustice, and now that was what she was expected to do. She could know about magic, she could know about the war, but she was useless in the fight. And that wasn’t something she was used to. She was the kind of person that wanted to be on the front lines, and Edgar was asking her to sit on the sides while he protected her.

“I don’t know what way I’m leaning,” Phoebe admitted at Kyra’s question, taking another long drink of the coffee in front of her. There was so much to consider, and she was glad she’d spilled the beans to Kyra, because who else was she going to talk this out with? “There is always another way, and there must be hundreds of magical folk secretly living among us, couldn’t they fight for a better world?” she questioned, hands moving as she spoke, “I mean, I’m just assuming there are hundreds of them, I don’t really know. I left before I could get more information. I just feel like, if there is this big war there’s got to be someone else that can fight it besides the three of them.” Without experiencing the world first hand, she had no idea how bad this war was. But Edgar had said she was not safe knowing about magic.

“On the other hand,” she began with another drink of her coffee, “Can I really sit here and tell him not to fight for what he believes in? Especially when I’m fighting to make our world a better place, it’s not really fair of me to ask him to step down.” She knew Edgar, after six years together she felt that she understood him. She knew what kind of man he was, and he was a good one. She also knew that she was part of the reason he wanted to fight, and she understood that too. She would lay down her life for Edgar. “Honestly, a war happening under our noses is one thing, but where my mind is now is that I’ve lived a lie. He kept this secret from me for six years, what other kind of secrets could he be keeping?”

[Kyra Thatcher]

The depth of attachment that Phoebe had with Ed was something that Kyra had veered away from whenever opportunities arose...because of this. A heady sense of betrayal radiated outwards from her friend, and she hated that this was where the years-long relationship had brought Phoebe. Phoebe had invested so much in the relationship, had envisioned a future and a family that now seemed up in the air; she'd stayed true to Ed through their years of school, going dateless to dances while Ed was away, writing letters and waiting for summer with a patience Kyra commended, never feeling like she could rise to that sort of challenge. Phoebe had bared everything, risked everything, and for what? For a partner who hadn't thought they would be together long enough for him to have to tell her this secret?

It was enough to make anyone cut ties, and Kyra's heart went out to the woman across the table as she listened, wishing for the wisdom to find the best way through this. Someone else could fight, you're right. But they wouldn't let others take their place while they could stand, you know that as well as I do. This struggle with the war happening within the wizarding community was immense, something that required reckoning with - if Phoebe wanted to continue with Ed. It was a boggling thing for Kyra to think, as she'd seemingly forever been revising a maid of honor's speech for a wedding that wasn't planned and she hadn't yet been asked to take part in, that they might not be together after all was said and done. The passion that they had for each other, for the world around them, was unparalleled in Kyra's eyes. As their friends and siblings fell in and out of love on the regular, Phoebe and Ed had appeared so stable, so in sync, that they were the ones to look up to.

"I can't imagine trying to process all of this from where you're sitting, love. But for what it's worth," she began, reaching over to take her hand, "Edgar's a terrible liar. I'm honestly flabbergasted that he was able to keep this all under wraps for so long - I mean, he breaks so easily, that's why we've never thrown a successful surprise party, ever. It seems to me...like he got in over his head, in a way." Kyra gave the other's hand another squeeze before letting go to thoughtfully take up her drink. If this was any other situation, oh how she would love to run wild with the most far-reaching of theories! A secret world of magic, a secret war, secret organizations, it was enough to fuel the most wild of daydreams. But this was much too much to trifle with, and she did her best to rein in her thoughts for the present. "He didn't tell you when we were young - which, again, shocking, imagine the absurdities he would've used to impress you if he'd been able to use magic - and you two ended up beating the odds, starting a life together. I'm not trying to excuse him, he should have told you ages ago, but if you're thinking he's living some secret life with someone else in your place...that's the one thing I wouldn't worry about. He loves you, Pheebs, and he made a huge mistake in keeping this from you. I'm here with you, whatever you decide."

[Phoebe Bones]

Six years was a long time, and yet it also seemed like so little when she thought about the possibility of a life without Edgar in it. This news, this magic world under their very noses, she needed time to process that. She needed time to process it with Kyra, because Kiki was her sister and was the one person that Phoebe always knew she could talk to. She loved Edgar dearly, but Kyra was her person. She was the one person Phoebe consulted when it came to almost any decision, which was why leaving her out of the choice to move in with Edgar after school had felt so strange. It was why she was willing to stop holding her tongue about the oh-hey-we-can-do-magic secret that the boys had been keeping from them both. Because if Fabian had ever told Kyra, Phoebe was positive she would have heard about it. They didn’t keep secrets from each other, and up until now Phoebe would have said that same thing about her and Edgar.

Taking another long sip of her drink, she focused her attention away from her thoughts so that she could take in what Kyra was saying. Because if anyone knew what to say to her to make her feel better, to get through this - it was Kyra. Edgar knew her well, yes, but Kyra? Kyra had always been there for everything. So while her telling Kyra had probably broken some fancy magical rule, there was no way she was going to keep this from her best friend, not when she had her heart at stake as well, if Fabian ever got his sh*t together. And Kyra was oribabky the only one right now who could get her thinking straight. She had a point, Edgar was shite with secrets. The amount of surprise parties that had been spoiled was a higher number than one, which the first time should have been their clue that Edgar couldn’t keep it under wraps. So this? An entire magical world that he’d kept from her? It was a miracle that he had kept it to himself this long.

“You’re right, he is so bad at keeping secrets,” she said with a hint of a smile. “Can you imagine that amount of times those boys probably wanted to show off to impress us?” Looking back down at her drink, she finished off the coffee and leaned back in the booth, closing her eyes. “I don’t know if this news would have been easier at 15, when I really think about it. But we stayed together through so much, and I know he’s not harboring some secret family. I just…” she trailed off, taking a deep breath. “I guess I just wonder if he ever would have told me, or if this was some secret he was planning to keep from me forever. Is it only coming up because of this wizard war or whatever?” Phoebe opened her eyes, a smirk tugging at her lips as the alcohol made it’s way through her blood stream. “Those bloody wankers kept magic from us, how absurd is that?”

[Kyra Thatcher]

If this was the end of Phoebe and Edgar, they certainly were going out with a bang. A drop of knowledge, of secrets, of hidden identity, a fight - they hadn't ever half-arsed anything, eh? If it was the end, change would come swiftly for their little group. Phoebe could come and live with her and Liz while they finished up school. Ed and the twins, and his siblings, they...they would have to go their own way. Right? As much as her heart ached for her dearest friend, it broke for herself too. The people who had lied to them, to all of them - they weren't simply childhood friends, girlhood crushes. Their lives were interwoven, and to be severed from them? Necessary, for Phoebe and Ed's sake surely, even if they wouldn't say they had to cut all ties. But it would have to be the end, it would.

What would we do with what we know now, though?

If the ones they knew couldn't be trusted, were there other witches and wizards who would be upfront with them? Answer their questions and help parse out the irrational from rational fears? 

While she and Fabian hadn't been an item in some time now, the thought of him and Gideon no longer being a phone call away...

She's smiling. She's smiling.

Kyra drank in some relief as Phoebe spoke, rather more fondly of Ed and the twins than they deserved. "Honestly, I don't know how they never slipped up. Explains a lot though, doesn't it, how they were so clueless out of school?" Pheebs had had to teach Ed how to properly do laundry, not to mention the marathons of driving lessons the three had required! Whatever fancy magic they were taught didn't make up for a lack of basic skills - even though - well - they wouldn't have to drive because they probably could fly or some sh*te, and were there charms for cleaning and - "He's been doing dishes by hand. Edgar has. By hand." That pushed her over the edge, and Kiki giggled into her drink. She sobered, laughter abating, as Pheebs reflected. The question she asked, though, wasn't one that she could answer. "I dunno, babes, and I wish I did," she sighed. "I hope he would've, even if none of this was happening. Must've been eating him alive all this time, you know? The one time he's strict about following a rule, I guess it really matters in - er - in their world."

She met Phoebe's look as the brunette opened her eyes, echoing her friend's smile as she softened. "It's more than absurd. I want to be mad at them, so mad - and I will, next time I see their lying little faces," she assured, although her blossoming grin made the threat incrementally less effective, "but - I just want to march over to the twins' flat, kick them out and lock myself in with all their schoolbooks, and only let them back when they promise to answer my new list of questions. And if they won't promise that, then we're doing a Q&A through the door until they tire of it, because I sure as hell won't."