"The populace at large seems to think I found a spell to give you a sense of humor," Alice said with a smile when Hieronymous entered the treasurer's room the following Saturday. "There were a few that doubted that you would be responsible for such a thing initially, until I asked who would have the nerve to pull a prank and then try to pin it on you. Apparently, that list contains only Potsdam and me, and we have both been overheard denying doing so."

"Yes, Petunia did mention that she had been asked about that," he answered. "I take it she was on the short list due to simply not having any fear that the students can discern, and you because if you have the nerve to be married to me, you also have the nerve to be playing practical jokes on me?"

She nodded. Being able to tolerate, and even enjoy, her marriage to Hieronymous had apparently enhanced her reputation in some ways. None of the other students doubted that she had a lot of nerve. There were probably a few that still thought her touched in the head, but more thought that either she had political ambitions that were being served by her marriage, or that she had decided to help Clark with his by stepping aside from being House Carleton's heir apparent. This meant that either she was very crafty, or very generous. Apparently in the wizard world, both traits were well respected, especially if you were able to cloak one trait with the other. "I have denied making the shadows dance, or even giving you the idea to do so. I have not denied being responsible for your newfound sense of humor, however."

"I suspected that might be the case," he answered. "I assume you assured them that the effects of said spell were only temporary?"

"Not in so many words," she said, continuing to sort her pile of mail. "I did tell them to expect it to be business as usual on April second."

"I do have to admit, I have not been so diverted in a long time," Hieronymous said, taking the other chair at the table. "You seemed quite amused as well." He seemed rather pleased with himself about that.

Alice filed that remark away. He probably had been trying to make her laugh. As serious as things had been lately, she could see where he would think that she would benefit from some levity. Some men would tell a woman jokes to make her laugh…her husband, apparently, was willing to prank an entire class to do so. He must have decided that she had needed it. "And I believe that that was one of the sweetest things you have ever done for me," she noted. "I know you were well outside your comfort zone in doing that, so thank you."

"That is true," he agreed, "I sincerely doubt that I would have done so had you not been so melancholy lately. I do have to admit that I enjoyed your reaction. You are unequivocally beautiful when you smile, and seem even more so when I know that I am the cause of it."

This, of course, made her smile again. "It sounds like you had fun, too. So, you are capable of fun now?" she said referring to their conversation the previous year when he said that he did not have fun.

"It was not a problem with the capability, but the desire I believe," he answered.

"And I suppose it is difficult to look dignified and have fun at the same time," Alice admitted.

"Precisely so," Hieronymous said.

"Speaking of 'fun,'" Alice continued, "according to Mr. Grey, I own a nice resort in New Zealand. If we choose to honeymoon there, I'm sure they would be happy to take very good care of us."

"That sounds satisfactory, they even make decent wine there," her husband replied. "I actually came to remind you that the Thunder Call would be taking place as soon as we receive the appropriate weather."

Alice nodded. "And Nancy and Grandfather will be here shortly after breakfast for a visit. Do you mind telling Clark that we're meeting in the guest lounge? I haven't seen him since that was arranged." She had told Adelaide to meet her in the library on Sunday instead, due to the visit. Clark had known of the time for the visit, it was just the location he didn't know.

"I will do so forthwith," Hieronymous said getting up from his chair. "Until then."

...

Shortly after breakfast, Nancy, Grandfather, and Madame Steward arrived and they met in the guest lounge as planned. Potsdam and Hieronymous had engaged Madame Steward in conversation in one corner of the large room, Grandfather and Clark were in another, and Alice was with Nancy on a couch. She had been greeted by her little sister literally jumping into her arms, and she had not let go of her since except to give Clark and Hieronymous their hugs. Her husband had been a little awkward with that, he was not use to anyone but her being in his personal space, and Alice had just winked and told her sister that he just needed more practice. Nancy had then informed Hieronymous that she intended to hug him every time she saw him, until he got good at it.

Her husband had a long way to go until he became skilled in dealing with small children. At least he was willing to work on it, as he had told Nancy that he hoped that the hugs would not completely disappear once she had decided that he was proficient in doing so.

Alice doubted that Nancy knew what 'proficient' meant, but she thought that her sister had been able to figure out the general meaning given the context.

Nancy was now perched on the couch beside her, wearing a pretty blue dress, and a ribbon tied back her long hair from her face. She excitedly regaled her with stories of meeting Cinderella, tea parties, and Grandfather's horses. Finally, she started to run out of wind.

"I like it at Grandpa's house, but do you have a house yet Alice?" Nancy asked.

"We found one we like," Alice started, "and I'm going to sign the papers to buy it on Monday. It usually takes longer to buy a house, but since I'm paying with cash it doesn't take as long."

"That's good," Nancy said.

"But we still need furniture, and then it needs to be warded," she reminded her sister.

"I heard Grandpa say that you and Uncle Hieron were going on your honeymoon after school was out. What's a honeymoon?" Nancy asked.

Alice thought back, trying to remember how her mother had put it when she had asked as a young child. "It's a vacation that two people who were just married take. It gives them time to be alone and focus on each other."

"But you were married a long time ago," Nancy stated. "Why didn't you have a honeymoon then?"

Alice sighed. Nancy was very good at asking awkward questions. At least she was asking her instead of Hieronymous. He probably would have no idea how to respond. "Do you remember that I told you that we weren't in love when we first got married? You also have to be in love to go on a honeymoon. Since deciding that we did love each other, we haven't really had the time to go before since he has to teach and I have to be in class."

"Oh," Nancy said, apparently mercifully satisfied. She looked like she was going to say something else, but then perked up and slid off of the couch. "My friends came over to say 'hi,' and they also say that it's time to dance."

A bright light outside the window and a thunderclap punctuated her sentence. Surprised, Alice looked out the window. Where there had been clear skies only a half hour ago, dark clouds now rolled. Apparently, at least some of her sister's friends were the local shining powers. She hoped that the other class officers were getting her housemates out of their rooms, as it was now time for the Thunder Call.

Nancy drug her outside, not towards the gym, but to a large open area. "Nancy, we usually dance inside," Alice indicated, pointing towards the gym where students were starting to enter.

"But we won't be able to taste their power in there," Nancy explained. "They like showing how strong they are, and we can see better out here."

"Without getting burned to a crisp?" Alice asked, and Nancy laughed.

"We left our bodies upstairs," her sister told her. "They can't get hurt up there."

Alice's eyes widened, just now noticing that they were both faintly transparent and that she couldn't actually 'feel' her sister's hand in hers. "We left…is that safe? We can go back? Will the others be worried?"

"Oh, Madame Stewart and I have done this before…she's watching us from the window, so she's told the others what we're up to," Nancy assured her.

Alice looked up, and indeed her sister's teacher was watching, and Hieronymous had appeared to join her. Could he see her now?

A peal of lightning struck beside her, and rain began to fall. It was strange not to feel the raindrops. Nancy, smiling, took her hands and started spinning them both around in circles. Deciding to jump in with both feet, Alice mirrored her sister's smile and kept dancing as lightning bolts fell in the clearing. They were so thick, it was almost like dancing around moving trees of bright light, and those trees started dancing with them.

And she had never felt more alive.

...

Hieronymous stood by the window with Madame Steward and Lord Carleton, using a Spirit Sight spell to watch as Alice and Nancy danced among the lightning strikes. Unlike the spirits that came for the Dark Dance, these spirits liked being seen.

All he had felt when they had left their bodies on the couch was a faint whiff of White magic, but Madame Steward had immediately known what had happened. Apparently, young Nancy had wanted to ride the teacups again as the park was closing, and had left her body on accident trying to do so. Madame Steward had to go find her, and explain that she could not interact with physical matter while in that state so the teacups could not run.

Petunia and Clark had gone to the gym to participate in and monitor the formal Thunder Call, but his wife and her sister, whether they knew it or not, were performing the original ritual as the native shaman had for millennia.

"Given that Nancy is already performing out-of-body migrations and was able to pull her sister with her," Hieronymous asked, "at what time do you anticipate that the child will have exhausted whatever curriculum you have planned?"

Steward sighed. "I fully expect her to go faster than I have guessed, and to be done within a few years of what I know of fact. After that, I believe that we will both be learning together. I just hope I will be sufficient to protect her during that phase. I am starting to think that we may have another Oracle on our hands."

Hieronymous frowned. There had not been an Oracle for a thousand years. The Three almost never deigned to speak to humans directly, but when they did, they always choose a witch that could use nothing but White. Oracles only appeared during times of conflict, when the direction of the Three was necessary. If that was indeed the case, it would explain both Nancy's inability to use any other color of magic and why Dark spirits had attempted to destroy her. The possibility was both wondrous and terrifying, but only time would reveal the truth. "Thinking of which, has anyone been able to identify the maker of the portal that brought her into the Otherworld?" he then asked.

Carleton sighed. "They have identified that the maker was not human, or any of the local entities that they know of. They did find the alarm system that was designed to notify of failing wards cut, so whomever e was, e is familiar with human magic and methods."

"Have they inquired of the spirits that protected Nancy from em?" Hieronymous asked, remembering the tangle of powers that had been above him that night.

"That is what they are currently attempting to do," Steward answered. "That Nancy was even attacked appeared to be news to some of them, but others had heard rumors about the fight or had been wondering where she was. They have not yet found one directly involved, so they must be beings that do not normally communicate directly with humans."

"Which is why your home will be locked down tighter than the class one vaults at my bank," Carleton said.

"Under the circumstances, that is an appropriate precaution," Hieronymous mused. It was fortunate for Nancy that she had a grandfather with the resources to properly protect her. It would take the services of a truly skilled Warder to do so, and Warders of that capacity did not come cheaply.

They were quiet for a few minutes, watching the dance before Carleton again spoke. "Clark has told me about the situation his girlfriend, Miss Danson, is in. Do you know her well Hieronymous?"

"As a friend of my wife's and as a student I do," he answered. "I assume you are referring that do to a promise she made as a child, she finds herself in need of a spouse within the year?" Carleton nodded, and Hieronymous continued. "She has been a loyal friend to Alice, and stood beside her despite Alice's unusual circumstances. She does know how to keep secrets, and has something of a competitive streak. She is a moderately good student, but tends to take the most direct approach during testing even when other routes would leave less damage. I do not think there would be any harm in a single-year contract, which I believe is all they are planning."

Carleton nodded. "But if Clark becomes attached to her, do you believe she will make a suitable wife?"

Hieronymous had to think a moment before carefully answering. In the wizard world, the spouse of the Head of a House was considered more of a business partner to the Head than a consort. After all, if the Head merely wanted a consort, there would only be a short marriage contract. The short marriage contracts could be renewed as often as it was wished, but it gave the impression that the spouse was considered lacking and was either kept for Head's amusement, or that the Head thought a divorce would upset their children. It was not uncommon for the initial short marriage contract to be immediately followed by a much longer one. If the contract was for ten years or more, giving the spouse a permanent place in the House even if a divorce did eventually take place, it was assumed by the community that the spouse had the Head's complete trust and support. For better or worse, anything the spouse said or did would reflect directly on the Head and the House itself.

He had no fears with Alice. She was both considerate and intelligent. If anything, she would likely cast House Grabiner in a better light than he was capable of himself. It did remind him, though, that he would have to instruct her in protocols before they started making many public appearances.

"She would make him a loyal wife," he finally answered. "While she is not as intelligent he is, nor does she possess his political acumen, her enthusiasm does not waver. I believe the support she would be able to give him would be more of cheering him onward than actively helping him achieve his goals."

Carleton nodded thoughtfully. "Perhaps that is all Clark will need. Still…I fear I will be handing my grandchildren a world more damaged and dangerous than it was when it was passed to my generation."

Hieronymous understood that the man was uneasy about the reports of demon numbers swelling, but whether Steward knew that particular, he did not know. If she suspected that Nancy was an Oracle, Steward also suspected serious conflict arising. Alice had later clarified for him her sister's statement about how she could have stopped the coming war, which almost certainly meant that humanity would find itself warring with the demons again within decades, or even less.

It sent a chill deep into his bones to think that his wife might have literally given her love to demon. He had once been certain that she could do much better than him, but now he knew how much worse it could have been. That she would have set another world as a target to save her own…one did not keep such company without becoming tainted. Whatever innocence of self that she would have retained would have been burnt to a cinder by sending innocents to their demise, no matter what world they had come from. It would have either broken her, or turned her into a consort truly worthy of a demon king.

But that had not happened. The world was as it was, and it had some measure of hope.

"Grandchildren as remarkable as your own are not to be underestimated," he pointed out. He realized that between Nancy and his own prophesied son, he would probably make a tremendous mark on the lives of two influential individuals. It was likely a responsibility he would have to shoulder while sitting on the Council as well. He would be lying to himself if he denied unease over the situation, and he knew Alice was nervous about it too.

Like he had told her, he had to remember to take the challenges as they presented themselves, even as they prepared themselves for what was to come. In the short term, they had their honeymoon to look forward to. They had made plans for her to come up to his room during the May Day dance, and he would finally claim his bride. It had been a long road, but the best things in life were worth waiting for.

He looked back down on the clearing where Alice and Nancy danced. The lightning had begun to slow, and the pair had fallen into a more stately rhythm of movement.

"They do give me hope," Carleton admitted, in reference to his grandchildren. "And I suppose each generation has its own hurdles to face."

"It is still natural to hope for the best for your children and grandchildren," Steward admitted.

Hieronymous nodded, knowing that he already worried about the future and the struggles of the son he had not even yet conceived. Outside of some medical or magical anomaly, he was still a few years away, given they did not intend to have him until Alice was out of school. Thinking of which, the normal wards Petunia taught to prevent student pregnancies might not be up to the task, given that Nancy seemed to disrupt wards by her mere proximity. Fortunately, there were also potions which served the same purpose. Otherwise, the five-year-old might end up inadvertently inciting the premature arrival of her own nephew.

It also occurred to him that it might be a good idea to find out what Nancy's radius of effect on wards was. If it was too large, it might be a good idea to keep her off Iris grounds. Otherwise, the students would have to be warned when she was present and to use alternative measures during those times. Petunia would not be appreciative of a rash of student pregnancies occurring whenever Nancy was loose on Iris property. In retrospect, he thought it a good thing that it had become necessary to move off the grounds with Nancy in order to keep her. At least it should not be dangerous for Nancy to be here during Thunder Call. Everyone was to attend the event, and it provided no privacy.

After one last blast of lightning, the storm stopped, and the sisters started making their way back up to their bodies. The ground where they had been was now scorched and muddy. Steward hurried over to the bodies on the couch to ensure they got back in without issue. Within moments, the two reentered their bodies, and stretched like a pair of cats after a long nap.

"Next time," Alice told her sister, "warn me you're taking me out of my body first."