"That'd look cute on you."

"Mm?" Lucy distractedly intoned. She was staring across the street again. Tarot cards, most likely. Knowing Lucy there'd be no way to tell if she wanted them to predict the downfall of any potential rivals or just to amuse herself and her friends. Probably both.

"That," Cepheus indicated, pointing through the dingy window, "right there."

Sighing, Lucy glanced around. "Those dress robes?" She raised her eyes at a black dress. "They look too hot."

"No, not them. Can't you see that necklace?"

"No," she said shortly, "I can't. C'mon, let's get back to Diagon—"

"Have some sense of adventure," he demanded, grabbing Lucy's arm and dragging her into Borgin and Burkes'. She raised her eyebrows, but went along.

"That one," Cepheus pointed once again, "that necklace." It was strung with several clear, almost white jewels. "Betcha you could try it on. Betcha I could ask the workers here to let me take it out for you, they know my family kinda."

"Oh, shut up," Lucy snapped. At his shocked, hurt expression, she added, "I mean, what if it's cursed?"

"It's not cursed!" Cepheus laughed. "See? Those are from Fire Crab shells. It's just something not...not traded a lot in in Diagon Alley and that kind of places, is all."

"Uh-huh," she glared. "Don't try that with me. We had better get back to Diagon Alley, my dad is looking for me. My high-ranking-ministry-official dad."

"Okay, okay," Cepheus put his hands up. "I can take a hint. And that's not the kind of thing you should go shouting about, here."

"Maybe here isn't the kind of place you should be dragging me to."

Conceding the point, he joined her as they walked back to Knockturn Alley. "I just think it's funny," he said, "why it is that the crabs get to walk around with jewels on their back. It doesn't do them any good, does it?"

"Might as well ask why they're so greedy and keep their own shells when they could make perfectly nice cauldrons," she snapped, "they're beasts, what does it matter?"

"But that's exactly the point, isn't it? They're not getting anything out of it, might as well let beings who can appreciate them have the jewels."

"You'd look pretty dumb with that many jewels sticking out your back, you'd need a bigger shirt to make up for it." At Cepheus' expression, Lucy added, "and that is not an invitation to take yours off. Good grief."

"Maybe we'd all wear tighter shirts," he said, "and have the jewels sticking out the back."

"Yes, I'm sure you'd like that. But in all seriousness, let them have their jewels. They probably can't do this." She waved her wand, and a bolt of white light shot out of the end. Hurriedly, she bent it into shape, until it more or less took the shape of a jewel. "Or this." A host of multicolored sparks filled the air in between. "Or this." The creation floated over to Cepheus, who raised one hand as if to touch it, but she quickly ended the incantation before he could.

"All right, all right. But still. What if we could shoot fire out of our behinds?"

"Cepheus," she faked a lilt, "there's something I hate to break to you."

He paused, taking a moment to take it in, and then with an enraged "OY!" chased her all the way back to Diagon Alley.