Jules looked up from his notebook after writing down the Greek and Latin suffixes and prefixes for various anatomical and medical terms that Anah had on the easel across from the coffee table he was using as a desk. He liked the coffee table much better than a typical school desk. There was a lot more room, which was especially nice since Anah allowed him to have snacks. "Done," he said, setting his pen down.

"I will be giving you a quiz Friday morning, so do remember to study, dear," Anah said.

"You won't have to worry about that with me," Jules replied. "Honestly, I hear Dad talk so much about his visits to the doctor that this should be easy."

"Well, there are some words here that I would hope your father has not used, as they would be quite worrying."

"Fortunately not." Jules put a raspberry biscuit in his mouth, chewing for a moment before saying, "So… study for anatomy quiz on Friday… what's next, Anah?"

"Next, we take a break, and then it is on to sewing. I will be teaching you how to put a button back on your trousers—using your father's trousers because he somehow ripped the button off while working in the stable."

"Is this from a couple days ago when he came in and told Mum that 'a serious crisis was just averted?'"

"Yes, it was."

"Oh." Jules closed his notebook. "Okay, then."

Anah smirked. "Get some lunch, and then we will start."

Jules stood to go into the kitchen, and frowned upon seeing Livna lying flat as a pancake by the front door. "Liv? What're you doing? You waiting for Mum and Dad?"

The husky whined while looking over at Jules.

"I'll take you for a walk after lessons are done. Are you alright? You're usually with us in the parlor."

"I think she is worried about your parents, given what happened yesterday," Anah said.

"Oh, yeah, with the… the Black Shuck." Jules filled the kettle with water before setting it on the stove. "I remember hearing some of the other kids mention it close to Halloween when I was still going to a regular school, but it was never serious. Mostly just to try and scare the girls. I wasn't sure if it was real or just a legend. Doesn't surprise me that it's real." He took out a mug from the cupboard, and set a bag of tea in it. After turning the stovetop on to begin boiling the water, the telephone started ringing. Jules picked it up, saying, "Hello?"

"Hello, Jules," Dietrich said. "I am not interrupting anything, am I?"

"No, your timing is perfect, actually. I'm taking a break between lessons," Jules replied.

"Good. I take it your father is at work?"

"Yeah. Why?"

Dietrich was quiet for a moment, then let out a sigh. "I… had a vision last night, and, needless to say, it was quite disturbing."

Jules felt like he had been dropped in cold water. "Involving Dad?"

"Yes. I was standing on a hillside, overlooking a flat stretch of land, with a railroad running through it. Your father was walking along the track, and stopped when a train's whistle could be heard. He did not seem bothered. He just stopped and slowly looked to see the locomotive coming toward him."

"He didn't get out of the way?" Jules sat at the table, nervously winding the phone's cord around his fingers.

"No. I woke up just before… well, I will not elaborate. Are you alright?"

"Not really."

"If it helps, there were no ravens in this vision. I am aware what the sight of a dead one means."

"What could this mean, then?"

"I wish I knew. I was going to wait until later, to actually tell your father, but I could not bear to wait longer."

The kettle had begun whistling, but Jules wasn't paying attention. Anah quickly took it off the burner.

"Jules? Are you alright?" Dietrich asked.

"What do you think?" Jules tried to swallow past a desire to cry.

"I sincerely apologize for this. If I had a solution, I—"

"No, it's okay. You're just the messenger."

"Still. I wish there was something I could do."

"I know. Is there… anything else?"

"No. I will let you know if something comes along to clarify this."

"Alright. Thanks." Jules went to stand and put the phone back, but Anah took it from him telekinetically. Once the phone was hung up, Jules found his hands were shaking as he was torn over what to do. One part of him wanted to scream and hit the table. Another wanted to burst into tears.

Anah slithered over to wrap her tail around his arm. "Dear?"

"What?"

The cobra touched her head to Jules's. "We will figure this out, okay? Visions cannot always be taken literally. Do you still want your tea?"

"I guess." Jules felt like he had been punched in the stomach. "What am I going to do? I don't want to tell Dad this."

"Tell him. Trust me when I say hiding this is the worst thing you can do. Now, we are going to make sure that we are in a decent mindset to tell him. What are you thinking right now, honey? Tell me everything."

Jules stared down at his tea for a moment before speaking. "Isn't that black dog an omen of death?"

"Not always."

"It attacked him, though."

"We do not know why yet."

"I can't see Dad just standing there and letting a train hit him. He… He's not suicidal."

"No, he is not."

"There was no dead raven, but this feels like the vision Dietrich had of me falling off the bloody castle tower all over again."

"In a way, it does."

"I really don't want to tell Mum."

"She will have to know as well."

"Why does this have to happen again? I hoped we were going to be left alone with the magpie prophecy fulfilled."

"There is no way of knowing how often the supernatural will call on us in our lifetimes. I did just mention that visions cannot always be taken literally. Dietrich has had plenty of metaphorical and literal visions, but it can be difficult to tell which is which. This could be something your father has to learn from and be prepared for, rather than an impending disaster."

"Dad's been through so much. Why can't he be left alone?"

"This is not an attempt to torture him. He does still have a ways to go in order to successfully fight the difficulties he has been plagued with over the years."

"I don't want to lose him." Jules felt a weight on his leg, and looked down to see Livna resting her head on his thigh.

"I doubt we will," Anah said. She moved closer after waiting for Jules to respond. "Anything else?"

Jules shook his head. "If there's anything else, I'll let you know. Thanks, Anah." He looked down at Livna, then back at Anah. "Would it be alright if I took her for a walk?"

"Of course, dear. I will even come with you."

They made sure nothing was running and everything was off before getting ready for their walk. Jules put on a heavy coat and a soft knit hat that Anah made a few winters ago. He tucked his gloves into his sleeves so his wrists weren't exposed to the cold air. Meanwhile, as a Siberian husky, Livna didn't need anything except her leash. She was looking up at Jules and sitting patiently while he knelt down to clip her leash to her collar. "Alright, Liv, this's what you've been waiting for, right?" Jules stood and opened the door, letting the husky trot out first before he followed.

Anah was coiled around his shoulders, inside his jacket, with her head poking out of his scarf. "I thought it was supposed to get a little warmer today," she said.

"Yeah, that's what I thought this morning," Jules replied. "Blimey, it's cold."

Livna looked up at both of them, with an expression that seemed to say that this weather was perfect and they were being silly. She stayed close to Jules's side as they walked down to the postbox. Jules didn't bother looking inside, as the mail wouldn't be delivered for another few hours. He then led Livna up the road, away from the house. They would continue on that road until coming to a set of mossy castle ruins, then turn south toward a little village on the outskirts of Cambridge. Far away from the park where his father had encountered the Black Shuck yesterday. Jules's mind turned to Dietrich's phone call. He wondered if it would have been better to not know about this vision. It was a little late now. He glanced down when he noticed Livna slowing her pace to walk directly alongside him, and felt Anah nuzzle his face.

"Are you alright, dear?" Anah asked.

"Yeah. Just thinking."

"About what Dietrich told you?"

Jules nodded. "I wish I wasn't worrying so much. You made good points, but I still feel awful."

"It involves your father. It makes sense to worry."

Jules went quiet for a little while, looking down at the path as he walked. "Other people my age wouldn't worry. They're more concerned about themselves and how much they can break the rules. They always acted like their parents were obstacles rather than people."

"I remember you were teased a bit when you did work at the horse farm last summer because you… oh, how did that one little snot put it? 'You have a stick up your bum and care too much what Mummy and Daddy think?'"

"Yeah, pretty much."

"Your parents mean a lot to you," Anah said. "There is nothing wrong with that. If you think you are worrying too much about your father, I would honestly much rather have you worry than not. At least worrying means you love him."

"I tried explaining that I've never had issues with Mum and Dad. I have no reason to disobey them. The other boys told me I'm just stifling my own independence by not making any decisions for myself."

"That is quite ridiculous for them to think. You have already been given a great deal of independence over the years. You still have some things to learn, but beyond that, you would not be completely helpless if you were to move out today."

"You're with me right now. Doesn't make me very independent, now, does it?"

"Well, I am probably going to be accompanying you when you are ready to live on your own anyway."

"Good point."

"One other thing I would like to add is that you demonstrated a great deal of maturity and independent thinking by not giving into the boys' pressure. Do you really want to hang around people who want you to take advantage of the freedoms your parents have given you? And, do you really think they would not find out?" Anah tilted her head. "I choose not to read minds because I find it invasive, but if we suspected you were up to something that could potentially have serious consequences for you and those who love you, yes, I would take a peek, honey."

"At least you'll never have to worry about that." Jules let out a sigh. "Sometimes I do wish I had friends my own age, but… it doesn't look like that'll happen."

"Oh, I would not give up hope, dear. There is a whole world for you to explore—why, you have not even explored the whole of Britain. There is someone out there who will become your best friend. They tend to show up when you least expect it."

"I hope so."

They returned home about an hour later. Jules didn't hesitate to light the hearth and decided to have cocoa instead of tea. After warming himself up, he sat with Anah in the parlor with Vanora's sewing supplies and a pair of Moffitt's trousers. Anah was wrapped around his arm, guiding him through the process of a button repair. Livna lay on the couch next to Jules, fast asleep.

The sewing lesson went smoothly until Jules accidentally pricked his left palm with the needle. "Ow!" He hissed in an effort to avoid cursing. "Blast."

"It is alright, dear. Set everything down, we will get you cleaned up in the bathroom," Anah said. She turned the lights on with her tail before slithering onto the sink, where she searched the medicine cabinet for bandages.

"It's like a paper cut," Jules said with a wince. "It doesn't look that bad, but it really hurts."

"Poor thing. Here, let me see." Anah gently pulled Jules's hand toward her, then began cleaning the wound with a damp washcloth. "Oh, you did get yourself pretty good." She wiped away the blood, then took a dry tissue and applied pressure to Jules's wound by wrapping herself around his hand and squeezing gently.

"I'm sorry for botching that up," Jules said.

"No, no, do not apologize. We all make mistakes doing things for the first time. At least you did not get blood on your father's trousers."

"There's that, yeah."

Anah remained coiled around Jules's hand for several minutes, then unwrapped herself and inspected the wound. Satisfied that it wasn't bleeding anymore, she gave it a brief cleaning one more time before putting a bandage over it. "Alright, dear, I will finish repairing your father's trousers—"

"No, I can do it. I'll just try not to stick myself again."

Anah was quiet for a moment. "Hmm… alright, but do be careful."

"Thanks, Anah." Jules kissed the top of the cobra's head, then went back out into the parlor with her to finish the button repair. Fortunately, he was able to complete the job without jabbing himself again. Anah left to start making dinner while Jules placed the fixed trousers on his father's side of the bed. He paused, looking over at Moffitt's nightstand. He didn't want to imagine life without his father. On one hand, Jules was looking forward to life on his own, but he wasn't going to cut his parents out. He remembered one of the other boys working on the farm complaining about his curfew and being sick of being told what to do in general. Jules had the guts to ask why he didn't just follow curfew in the first place, which earned him a spiel about the curfew being too early and didn't permit him to do anything.

"There's also that thrill of risk, you know? Doing something fun with your friends that you'd never get to do with your parents—oh, wait, you wouldn't know, because you don't have any friends. Why? Is that not allowed either?"

The jeering and isolation made Jules quit after that summer, and Moffitt had no arguments. He wasn't too surprised to learn his father had faced similar things as a kid, but at least he had his brother for company. Unfortunately, Moffitt didn't have much advice, as he never really stood up to the kids who teased him. It made Jules wonder if he had somewhat inherited that timidness and lack of confidence. He was never really confident throughout the magpie incident. The only time he acted out of line was when he ran away to find the sword. He didn't count going back into the castle after breaking his arm because it was only his mother arguing against it, and everyone told him multiple times that there wasn't going to be another chance at this. Either he was going to succeed, or the magpies were going to take over Britain.

There were times when Jules wanted to explore on his own, but he refused to do so if his parents said no. They had reasons and explained those reasons clearly. There was never any "because I say so" from Moffitt, Vanora, or even Anah. He never felt restricted with them. Maybe a little with his mother, but that was a recent phenomenon brought on by the magpies. Still, they never belittled him or babied him. He loved them and didn't want to disappoint them. But, he wondered if he worried too much about disappointing them. Or just worried too much in general.

He found it ridiculous that he was worrying about this after Dietrich told him about his vision. It seemed only natural to be worried. Am I worried or am I frustrated? Would others my age think it's "not cool" to be dwelling on something I don't even know will happen the way I'm afraid it will? I really don't care what others think. Not those who don't matter to me. Dad does matter. Mum and Anah, too. Troy, Dietrich, Hitch, Tully. Antheia. Especially Antheia. Jules kept staring at the trinkets and clock on his father's nightstand until a realization struck him. I'm worried I can't protect him. How does that make any sense? He's supposed to be protecting me, not the other way around.

His mother's voice outside the room made him turn his head. "Jules! Anah! We're home," she called.

Jules stepped outside the bedroom, and found himself concealing his left hand. "Hello, Mum, Dad." He gulped and felt blood drain from his face when he started thinking about how much worse his parents finding out about Dietrich's vision was going to be compared to a little cut on his hand.

"What're you doing in our bedroom?" Moffitt asked.

"Oh, Anah showed me how to fix a button. We repaired your trousers."

"Thank you. I've been wondering when I'd see those back."

"I was going to do them this weekend," Vanora said.

"I thought it would be a good practical lesson for Jules," Anah replied. "I apologize."

"No, it's alright. Less for me to do."

Jules bit his lip and looked at the floor while thinking about the best way to bring up the subject of the vision.

"Can I get in the bedroom, please?" Moffitt asked.

Jules looked his father in the eye, not realizing he was still standing in the doorway. Despite not having seen Dietrich's vision himself, he could picture his father standing on train tracks, staring as the locomotive barreled toward him, the headlamp illuminating him until he was bright white…

"Jules? Are you alright?"

"Um…" Jules looked at the floor again. "I… um… n-no?"

"No? What's the matter?"

Jules swallowed anxiously again. "Dietrich called earlier. He said… he had a vision of… of you getting hit by a train."

Silence fell over the house, apart from the crackling of the fire in the hearth and the gentle sizzling of food cooking in a pan on the stove.

"Jack, call Dietrich," Vanora said. "We need answers."

"He said there was no dead raven," Jules said. "Th-There's that—"

"That doesn't mean we shouldn't be concerned," Vanora replied. "Remember the vision of you falling off the castle turret?"

"Which ended up not being like how you were afraid it would be!"

"You still could have been crippled!"

"Both of you, stop!" Moffitt shouted. "I will not have my own wife and son arguing with each other. Now, I'm going to call Dietrich and get some answers."

Jules kept quiet while his father picked up the phone and began dialing. He looked at his mother, then at Anah. Livna had entered the room and took her place next to Moffitt, who bent over to pet her while waiting for Dietrich to pick up.

Eventually, Jules heard Dietrich asking who was calling, and Moffitt responded, "Well, fortunately for you, it's not Troy."

"I am guessing Jules told you what I called about earlier," Dietrich said.

"Yes. I want more information."

"If I had more, I would give it to you."

"Did Jules mention that the Black Shuck is in our area?"

"Excuse me?"

"Sorry—black dog. Sometimes known as a Grim. I'm not sure if this creature has a German equivalent."

"Ah. No, he did not mention it. Correct me if I am wrong, but is that creature not typically associated with bad omens?"

"It is, but there are also tales of it helping people and acting as a guardian. We're not sure which purpose it's here for right now. I also saw…" Moffitt cast a nervous glance to Jules and Vanora. "Before I encountered the Black Shuck last night, I saw a single magpie. It was Wintercress—not sure if you remember him."

"One for sorrow."

"He told me his appearance was not for reasons I would think. I'm wondering if… if all this is connected somehow."

"Well, you know my feelings on coincidences."

Jules was tempted to interrupt his father, but instead whispered to his mother, "He never mentioned seeing Wintercress last night."

"No, he didn't," Vanora added.

"That means Anah—"

"Oh, don't worry, she's in trouble, too."

Jules looked over at Anah, who had a rather nervous look in her eyes while she continued making dinner. He listened as his father and Dietrich continued their conversation, and leaned against the wall when Moffitt began telling Dietrich about the last sighting of the Black Shuck after a fire at a manor killed a young girl fifty years prior. It was tragic, yes, but Jules wasn't sure it had anything to do with why the Black Shuck attacked his father the day before. The only thing that seemed to connect them was the fact that the girl's father, Fergus Fairisles, had been heavily involved with railways throughout Cambridgeshire and later India. Then again, Anah suggested the vision might be metaphorical instead of literal. The connection could be coincidental, but over the years, Jules found himself agreeing more and more with Dietrich about the nature of coincidences. There were a hundred other things that Dietrich's vision could have depicted. It just happened to be a train? That had to mean something here.

Jules emerged from his thoughts when his father bid Dietrich goodnight and hung up the phone. Moffitt looked around at Vanora, Jules, and Anah before saying, "Alright, we're going to sit at the table and talk this over as a family. I want no miscommunications."

"Really?" Vanora glared at him. "You want no miscommunications when you and Anah didn't say a bloody word about seeing a magpie yesterday?"

"If you would let me continue, I was going to say that I am not exactly innocent here. That's why I brought it up. The only reason I didn't tell either of you was that I know how you both still feel about magpies."

"Even that is not a good reason to hide such a thing," Anah said, looking embarrassed. "I would know. We… never should have hidden it in the first place."

"No. You're right." Moffitt looked at the floor, then back at Vanora. "I'm sorry, darling."

"What else don't I know about this, Jack?" Vanora folded her arms over her chest.

"Nothing. That was the only thing I didn't tell you."

Jules gave both his parents nervous glances while sitting at the table, not wanting them to argue. Fortunately, they didn't.

Moffitt waited for Anah to climb up to his shoulders before speaking. "Like I said, I want no miscommunications. Let's go over what we know. As in, what we know for sure. Then we can discuss theories."

It was long past when dinner was typically served when they finished discussing what they knew about the situation. Jules was too anxious to think about food. He was impressed that his father, typically the most anxious of any group, seemed to be taking all this quite well. Then again, when he explained why he wasn't overly worried, it made sense.

"I don't think the magpie's appearance and Dietrich's vision are unrelated," Moffitt said. "The crisis with the magpies has been over for two and a half years, and Wintercress risked his life to deliver the prophecy to Anah. I have no reason not to trust him. When he showed up last night, he told me that whatever sorrow he was foretelling was not what I would be expecting. Now we have Dietrich's vision. What do we all expect with that vision and Wintercress's appearance? I get hit by a train. What do we not expect? Anything, really. It could very well be metaphorical, or simply a warning that I need to be mindful of."

Jules was looking down at the table. "You wouldn't let something like that happen."

"No, of course not."

"Evelina said there haven't been any recorded sightings of the Black Shuck since that fire," Vanora said. "Its motives have been unknown for centuries. Had Millington not discussed the story of the fire, I would think its reason for returning are new, but Mr. Fairisles's career in the railway coupled with Dietrich's vision makes me think there's a connection between us, the Black Shuck's appearance, and the manor fire."

"What could the connection be, though?" Anah asked.

"That, I think we will have to do some digging for," Moffitt replied. "For now, I think we should just have dinner and go about our evening like we normally do."

Jules didn't eat much for dinner. He took his shower immediately after, then went into his bedroom to get his bathrobe. He knew Anah had told him to study, but he didn't think he could focus. After tying the band of his robe, Jules left his room, seeing Anah pulling trays of chocolate chip cookies out of the oven. His mother was in her and Moffitt's bedroom getting her nightclothes before taking a shower. Jules looked into the parlor to see his father working at his typewriter, with Livna laying by his chair. It had gotten so cold now in the darkness of night that it was snowing a little. He stepped down into the parlor, watching the snow for a moment.

"Do you need something, Jules?" Moffitt asked.

"Me? I… came to talk to you, I guess," Jules said.

Moffitt looked over the page he had in the typewriter, then turned to Jules. "I'm going to assume it has something to do with what's been going on the last few days."

"It does."

Moffitt gestured to the couch. "Have a seat. Tea?"

"Yes, please." Jules sat, and noticed Livna getting up to go over to him. She hopped up on the couch, sniffing Jules before putting her head in his lap.

Moffitt came back into the room several minutes later, holding two cups of tea. He set the cups on the table, then sat by Livna. He patted the dog's back. "Right. What do you want to discuss?"

Jules took his cup to sip from it while thinking. "Well, it was a bit of a shock when Dietrich told me what his vision was. It sort of sent me on a downward spiral for much of the day. I didn't even want to tell you or Mum."

"I reckon it'd be a shock to anyone."

"I know… I know you said there's good reason to not worry. I can't help doing so, though."

"You're related to me. Of course you're going to worry despite not having much reason to."

Jules had a feeling his father would say that. He set down his cup. "Do you think it's something I shouldn't be doing at my age? Worrying too much about something I can't control? I was thinking earlier about how… how when I was working at the horse farm, I was always teased for not being like the others. About how I never bent the rules and how I care too much about what you and Mum think."

"Honestly, I'd be worried if someone had a vision of my father being hit by a train, even at your age. Then again, I was a bit like you. The only difference is that when I was sixteen, my relationship with my father wasn't the greatest. I still loved him. That never changed. Admittedly, yes, I had days when I wanted him to get off my back about preparing for Cambridge, and had some really bad days when I would think to myself that when I graduated, I was going to move away and want nothing to do with my parents. Eventually, I'd come to my senses and tell myself I didn't actually want that. Even when I left after I recovered from my illness to travel across North Africa, I had explicitly told my father, 'We just need some time apart.' That was it. Nothing permanent."

"I can't imagine doing something like that."

"Not out of anger, no. However, I do think that when you're old enough, you should do some traveling on your own."

"Why?"

"To learn about yourself in an environment where you have only yourself to rely on. You did well when you went looking for the silver sword, after all."

"I was still scared, and I really wanted to go home."

"I think it'll be different when you plan out a journey, but that's not something to worry about now."

"There're more immediate things to worry about."

"Yes." Moffitt sighed. "I don't think you worry too much, nor do I think you don't worry enough. It's a natural thing to feel, but it's a feeling that can become detrimental when it goes too far. Speaking from experience." He looked over his shoulder at the doorway, then lowered his voice. "Your mother was worrying about you all day, thinking the Black Shuck was going to go after you. What happened yesterday had her thinking about the bloody magpies again. I want us all to be in agreement that we're not going to do anything reckless, no matter what happens."

Jules bit his lip. "What if you're really in danger, Dad?"

"Well, it wouldn't be my first time. I can handle myself, and I don't want you or anyone else putting yourselves in danger for my sake. Please."

Jules thought back to the aftermath of his running away to find the sword, how Antheia had asked him to never do something like that again. His father had told him that sometimes things came along that warranted action, and worrying loved ones was a consequence that would have to be accepted. Jules just wasn't sure if whatever was in store for his father would warrant such action. He hoped it didn't.