It had been surprisingly simple to explain their side of the story. Nobody outside the magical community knew about the wedding, so there were no questions about that. By comparison, many people had heard about the accident. Branwen and Aria had met people during their time at school and had a few casual friends both at school and at work. But now it seemed like everyone knew who they were. Or at least who Branwen was.

"Look, it's that girl from the accident." One girl whispered to another in the hallway. "I heard she was in a coma for a week and was almost pronounced dead before she woke up."

For someone who preferred to go unnoticed, she felt uncomfortably famous now. And it wasn't like she didn't have enough other things on her plate. Trying to act normal wasn't easy. Trying to pretend like she wasn't angry and frustrated and distracted was not easy.

Aria kept telling her that she shouldn't be trying to act normal. She should be upset. That was normal. But Branwen knew that if she let go and released those feelings, she may not have the ability to rein back everything else she was feeling.

It didn't help that to keep up their new charade they had to dissect their lives from those of the Sons, throwing into a severe illumination how intertwined their lives had become. Despite it only having been a few short months, and despite them having tried to stay away from each other, it was more difficult than Branwen had imagined avoiding them. Before she had looked in every direction at all times in hopes of catching a glimpse of Pogue. Now she was doing it to make sure she didn't.

Another upsetting result of their new reality was that when changing her classes to remove her path from Pogue's, Branwen discovered that her time away and upheaval of her schedule resulted in the rejection of her doctorate application. She would require another year to finish it. It was a set back. And one that would require a lot of thought. But knowing it wasn't going to happen soon, and knowing that they had a much more impending crisis happening in a few months, Branwen tried to put it out of her mind.

"Branwen!" Aria called from downstairs. Branwen turned from her bedroom window and shook herself out of her thoughts. "Gina's here. Are you coming?"

Another thing changing her class schedule had meant was that she'd had to quit her job at the club. Her new schedule didn't allow for enough hours to make it worth it. Aria still kept a few shifts. Despite not having to pay for housing and Nathan also, discreetly, providing an expense account for things like groceries and gas, Aria enjoyed having something else to do with her time.

But since Branwen didn't get to the club much, they were meeting up to do some light shopping with Gina. Light because, as previously mentioned, their budget was light these days.

However, a couple hours into their girl time, Branwen's mind wasn't on the task at hand. It was on the large one looming in front of them. That wasn't unusual these days. It wasn't easy to avoid thinking about their plan. It was held together tenuously, as Catherine had pointed out.

Branwen knew Catherine wasn't wrong. Their plan wasn't strong. They were asking people to rise up and fight a system that had, for the most part, kept their secret world protected for a long time. And Branwen and her friends were very extreme cases of the Coven not looking out for its people. But they couldn't possibly be the only ones who had seen, or at the very least felt, the coven overstepping the lines of what it should be allowed to control.

What little correspondence she'd received from Nathan seemed to be reasonably positive. Since they were trying to avoid tipping off the coven, they couldn't be too vocal, but Nathan felt he was being heard.

Nathan hadn't said anything about Kieran, which was why it was so surprising to arrive home and find him sitting in the living room. Branwen had been surprised, at least. Aria had been stupefied. So much so she had tripped up the last few steps when Branwen had said his name.

"Kieran?"

And down went Aria. She recovered and picked herself up, gathered up the bags she'd been carrying, and assumed a glare that was a little much in Branwen's opinion, but who was she to judge.

"What are you doing here?" Branwen asked, setting her bag down and walking over to the living room.

To his credit, Kieran stood and looked politely abashed. "I'm sorry. I thought you'd said it was okay if I came here."

Shaking loose the old feelings of irritation and betrayal, Branwen took a deep breath. "It is, I just didn't expect you so soon. Nathan didn't say anything about you coming last we spoke."

Kieran relaxed a little and nodded. "Well, he wouldn't have known. We haven't been working together since about two weeks after we left Catherine's."

"Wasn't the plan for you to be helping him?" Aria said, rather forcefully in Branwen's opinion.

"Yes, but as we quickly discovered, we don't exactly have pull in the same circles. Pretty Boy is a little more upper crust and I'm a little more…"

"Nefarious? Disreputable? Undesirable?"

Despite Aria's insulting choice of words, Kieran gave her a slow smile. "If you say so."

Clearly there was a story there Branwen had missed. Staying on topic, however, Branwen moved to the closest chair and sat down. "So how has your progress been in your circles?"

With one last leer in Aria's direction, Kieran turned his attention to Branwen and sat back down on the couch. "Well, given the nature of my 'circles', it's been supportive." Branwen gave him a quizzical look and he elaborated. "There are a lot more people than you might think who have felt the tight hand of the coven around their necks. Years of punishing people who step a toe out of bounds has consequences. The further you get from the head coven geographically, the more stories you hear."

"Are you suggesting the coven has been harder on those further away?"

"I'm confirming that the further away, and the less direct contact with the head coven, the more common it is that people are questioning the laws. And we all know what happens to those who question the laws."

It was clear that Kieran rethought his words after he spoke them. She just shook her head when he went to apologize and moved on. "I wonder if you might have heard any notions of others wanting to stand up before mentioning our own desires to do so."

Kieran's amused grin was confirmation enough. "More than a few times people mentioned how they wished they knew how to approach the Head Coven about making changes or whether there was even a way to do so. To be honest, there were even a few disgruntled parties who suggested someone should give them a taste of their own medicine. It seems there are a few more families than one might have thought that have lost contact with loved ones due to punishments not dissimilar to my own."

Branwen took that in and allowed it to ruminate. She had gone traveling with her mother on coven visits, seeing many different situations and levels of community in the other covens, but she would admit that she may still have been too young or self-concerned to think about what a negative visit might have meant for a coven after they left. In her mind she had just been a teenage girl being dragged around the country by a mother who rarely had time for her when they were home, let alone on the move.

"That's good news, right?" Aria asked, coming over to the side of Branwen's chair. "That means we'll have support."

"Not all support is good support." Kieran said.

Aria rolled her eyes. Clearly she was a little focused on her ire for Kieran right now. "He's right. We can't have this be a lynch mob or we may all find ourselves on a pyre or hanging from trees." Maybe not quite so old fashioned but still. "If we turn this into an angry take down, it could get messy. Not only could everyone on our side of the argument be punished, but if this draws too much attention from the non-magical population, we could doom us all. This is meant to be a positive change. A chance to evolve into a more modern world. Adjust to the times. I know it seems like an us-versus-them, and in some aspects, it is, but we want it to be two sides, coming together to make a new future for all of us. If we turn this into a war there will be more futures lost than gained."

"On a more positive note," Kieran leaned back and smiled, "I made contact with some friends back home and we may be able to use their help for the more technical parts of our… argument."

"In Montana?"

"No, Ireland."

Of course. Branwen felt a little stupid for not thinking about the European covens but, other than relatives who immigrated back to Europe, the two magical worlds didn't really mingle. Branwen had never considered how odd that was before now. Why wouldn't they all communicate and interconnect? It wasn't like they couldn't pick up a phone or go see each other. This wasn't the olden days when suspicion was high and each coven had to keep to themselves for their own safety.

So then why did the North American covens not share their governing forces and ideals with the European covens the way governments did? The thought triggered all sorts of ideas and questions in her head.

"Kieran, why haven't the coven's across the world come together? Why isn't their a UN of the magical world? Why doesn't our Head Coven meet and have events with the other Head Covens?"

Kieran looked at her for a long time in silence. Like her, he was good at hiding his thoughts but she could see a swirl of them going past behind his eyes. Eventually he leaned forward. "I never considered how sheltered you were but of course, you're their princess."

"Listen here, ass face!" Aria said, stepping forward. "You have some nerve…"

Kieran held up a hand and it must have been pure shock and outrage at the silencing action that made Aria actually stop. "I'm sorry, I meant no offence. I just didn't realize that being banished may have actually been a blessing in some ways. I've seen beyond the wall." He gave Branwen a sad smile. "The Head Coven doesn't communicate with the others around the world because then they would have to take off their crown."

When Kieran had been cast out of the magical world, he had been sent to live with his father's distant relatives in Ireland. They weren't magical and knew nothing about it in the kind of "don't ask questions you don't want the answers to" kind of way. All they had known was that Kieran had gotten himself in trouble and was being sent away.

It hadn't been easy to be newly without a part of himself he'd known his whole life. He got into trouble, being an angry young man, and ended up bouncing around a lot and ending up back in the states. But not before making a few discoveries of his own.

"The magical world outside of North America is an entirely different world." Kieran said. "Don't get me wrong, it's not Harry Potter, or anything, but it is a completely different experience. I don't know if I would call it a UN, but there are representatives from all over the world who come together and share information and resources. People travel freely and interact with each other. There are even compounds and reserves and places safeguarded for witches to be who they are.

"And there are actually groups of people dedicated to covering up accidental discoveries of our world. In the rest of the world, persecution isn't a constant threat. Sure, they still have to be careful, but use of magic and knowledge of it isn't hidden in the shadows in fear. That's only here."

How was it that they could have been taught so much about their own history and yet know nothing about the outside world? How was it that he hadn't thought of that before? But then again, when you were a witch in North America, travel had to be approved and monitored by the Head Coven. Kieran began to wonder how many witches even got approval to travel outside the continent.

Aria had sat down on the side of Branwen's chair and they were both staring at him. Aria was clearly shocked, and by the look of it, a little offended. Branwen was harder to read but was obviously confused. "But how? How is it that we are so different from everywhere else? How is it that nothing has changed here? Why are we not a part of everything else?"

Kieran admired that Branwen wanted to make change and he was glad that with her, at least, their princess, they had a chance, but her felt sorry for how she was just now learning how hard it really would be to change the Head Coven's minds. "If you had ultimate power, would you give it up?"

"If it meant bettering the lives of the people I care about, of course I would."

Yeah, stupid question. Of course she would. She was more her father than she would ever me her mother. Even Catherine was a little more self-entitled then she cared to admit. Branwen's life experiences had made her rebellious and anti-establishment to a fault. He was both ashamed and glad he was a part of that.

"At first I'm sure the Head Coven cut themselves off from the rest of the world for their own protection. Persecution of witches was like a fever that caught quickly and burned hot for a long time. But the older parts of the world also have cultures that appreciate magical myths and religions from the past. Once the world started to evolve, the magical community learned how to work with the appreciation people also have for fairytales. They worked with what people want to believe. Whether that was magic or miracle, fantasy or fairytale. Myths, old wives tales, legends and prophecies. If you give someone a logical explanation, they will choose to believe it if the truth is too hard to process."

"So why didn't we do the same? Why are we still stuck in the old ways?"

"To be put bluntly, the best way to control someone is to keep them scared and cut off from the rest of the world."

"So you're saying our entire existence is scare tactics and slight of hand?" Aria asked. "You really expect us to believe that?"

"Why not? You've spent this much of your life either believing that the only witches in the world resided in North America or that your Head Coven ruled the world from Kansas."

Aria opened her mouth to respond but clearly came up with nothing and closed it again. Branwen, on the other hand, ignored his sharp words to Aria and kept going. "So why hasn't someone from anywhere else come and changed things here?"

"And attempt to overthrow the Head Coven?"

"You say that like it's unthinkable. Is that not what we're trying to do?"

"I was being serious when I said you're their princess." He shook his head and moved to the edge of his seat to look her in the eyes. "I'm not trying to be an asshole. Branwen, you are the heir to the throne. The only reason our efforts have a snowball's chance in hell is because we have you."

He could see that the idea of that made her uncomfortable. He had heard that her original plans for her life had been to escape the coven with Aria and go live a normal life somewhere else. Now she was beginning to see how there was never going to be an outcome the coven would allow that didn't have her sitting at the head of that table. Whether she wanted to or not. Really the car accident should have made that obvious.

"Our efforts not withstanding," Branwen said, obviously avoiding her own doomed future, "if that's what it takes, why hasn't some other… princess, or better yet, a king or queen, come along and forced the change?"

"One benefit that has resulted from the Head Coven keeping North America in an old fashioned bubble, is you. Due to their ways, they made sure to try and keep the head families' bloodlines as pure as possible. They can say it's for politics, but it's the only real reason the arranged marriages have remained. I'm sure that's why your engagement to Nathan kept you safe. It played right into exactly what they wanted.

"The rest of the world has intertwined with the regular population. Their bloodlines are diluted. There are still powerful families, but none of them hold a candle to the head families here, let alone yours. Properly educated, the powers of even one witch of each of the covens here could probably take on an army of witches from anywhere else. When they do magic, it's simple, or assisted by a talisman, or takes the consolidated effort of a coven working together. The days of people's eyes glowing when they did magic doesn't exist outside North America, let alone the stories we were told as kids about the witches of old glowing like they themselves were on fire."

Branwen got up and paced to the window. Whether she was actually looking at the street below, he doubted it.

"Still," Aria said, sounding slightly more accepting of his words, "if all this is true, how is it nobody else has found out? How can a whole nation, a whole continent of witches, not know what going on in the rest of the world?"

Kieran went to answer but Branwen spoke from her place at the window. "The Head Coven requires all traveling witches to submit applications, including their itineraries, travel documents, accommodations and return information." She sounded like she was quoting the law book word for word. She turned and leaned against the frame, looking at them. "It's not like you go up to someone when you're traveling and ask if they're a witch. No one is allowed to use magic when they travel. If they are at high risk of doing so they have a subduing bracelet put on. No one would ever have reason to believe they are magical or approach them about magic. With no knowledge of how to find magic anywhere else, there would be no reason to go looking for it or suspect it anywhere else. Keeping everyone ignorant is actually the perfect solution."

Aria shook her head. "Imagine keeping someone so far in the dark they don't even know what a light looks like."

"Or what a light even is." Kieran added.

Aria looked at him for the first time that evening without disdain. Instead, a look of horror slowly overcame her face and she turned to Branwen. "What am I going to say to my parents?"

"Nothing." Branwen said. "You can't tell them the truth and expect them not to go to the leaders they have followed all this time and start asking questions. Not only would it put them in danger but…"

"It would tip our hand." Kieran finished and Branwen nodded.

"How do I not tell them? This changes everything about our lives."

"Look at all the things we already haven't told them." Branwen said. "Interacting with the Sons changed our lives and we didn't tell them about that. We have to protect them. If that means we have to keep this from them for now, that's what we have to do." She must have realized her tone was a little hard because she softened her expression and went to sit beside Aria again. "I get that it's hard and finding this out, well I guess we know how Pogue and Caleb felt when we told them the truth about their heritage. But we need to keep in mind that there is a bigger picture here. This knowledge is now a weapon and we need to make sure we don't use it prematurely."

She didn't look happy about it but Aria nodded. "Fine, but what about the guys? Shouldn't we also fill them in?"

"I can go if you like." Kieran offered. Not that he wouldn't love to get under Danvers' skin but Aria had a point. They might need to be on the same page at some point and he couldn't imagine holding this information back longer was going to solidify their team spirit.

Branwen looked at him for a little while but slowly shook her head. "No, I actually think Aria should do it."

"Me?" Aria sounded and surprised as Kieran felt. He knew she might not send him but he thought she would go, if only to have an excuse to see Pogue. From the moment she had woken up he had felt the tension between the two. Kieran would admit that part of his conviction to their cause came from an innate belief somewhere inside him that connections like the one between Pogue and Branwen, one so strong others could feel it, had a purpose. Something the coven clearly didn't know yet.

"Yes." Branwen said. "One, it will give you a chance to check in and see how Caleb is doing with his powers." Aria rolled her eyes but Branwen continued. "And, two, you have the cover of Sinsations to work with. Gina can help you reserve one of the secluded booths and get the guys up there. Hopefully the people being around will help them keep themselves under control when you tell them."

She turned to Kieran. "Maybe you can help get them to the bar? They can't really walk in the front door if you know what I mean."

Kieran nodded. "I can do that."

"Good. Thank you. We should also probably sort out a timeline for their side of things soon. I can't imagine Tyler and Reid are going to like that they've been kept in the dark this long."

"Just another in the long list of things we have to plan." Aria said, sighing. "I should get upstairs. Might as well get this over with during tonight's shift."

Branwen nodded and looked back to Kieran with a tight smile as Aria walked away. When she disappeared up the stairs, Kieran cleared his throat. "I have to be honest; I thought you would have wanted to tell Pogue and Caleb."

"Thought I wanted to see Pogue, or wished Aria wasn't going to see Caleb?"

Stunned by her bluntness and his own obvious transparency, Kieran shifted uncomfortably and tried to avoid her implication. "Isn't he dangerous or something? What happens if he blows up at the news?"

She tilted her head at him. "I believe Caleb has been doing better with his powers."

Kieran narrowed his eyes at her tone. "You believe or you know? Do you think he is somehow all better?"

Branwen shook her head. "Caleb will never be all better until either the curse is lifted or his powers are somehow stripped from his body. However, I think that self-awareness and a new understanding of what's at sake may have made him more aware of his using problems and maybe curbed them a little. That won't stop the wear on his body or the temptation to use them though." She stood and crossed her arms. "But I think you should stop believing that Caleb being addicted to his powers works in your favor."

Kieran didn't even know if he knew he thought that until she said it. "Not that I do, or I have need of anything working in my favor, but if I did, I don't understand how that wouldn't." His own sentence confused him but she seemed to get it.

"Among other things, every girl has a soft spot for trying to save a lost cause."

"Pogue isn't a lost cause. He isn't addicted to his powers and even when he uses them he doesn't show any signs of temptation to use them more."

Branwen looked down for a moment and nodded. "You're right. I have noticed Pogue seems to have less of a pull from his powers than the others. But the situation with Pogue is a lost cause." She looked up at him. "Pogue is the ultimate lost cause. Not him, himself, but our relationship. He may not be addicted to his powers but the curse still affects his life, both because, whether he uses his powers or not, he will still age faster. Also because he will have to watch his son, the only child he can be blessed with, go through the same suffering he and his friends are now. And the only way to save his from his curse, that fate, is for me to die."

It sent a chill up his spine, the calm of her voice. This was a truth she had thought about and come to uncomfortable terms with before this moment. It was why she could so easily deny herself the temptation of getting to see Pogue. Because seeing him with what she knew, was just as must torture as it was euphoria.

Branwen turned and walked towards the stairs. "Branwen?"

She turned back at the bottom of the stairs and tilted her head.

"I'm sorry that you and the love of your life are cursed."

She flinched a little but covered if with a tight smile. "What does a girl need love for? After all, apparently I'm world famous."

With one last nod she turned and went upstairs.

AN: Hi guys, I know it's been a while. I've had major writers block. I actually went back and reread the story and watched the movie again. I have so many plans for things to happen in this story but can't seem to sort out how they should flow together. Hope you enjoy this update! -J