With the mention of their real lives and their jobs, the bubble that had been erected from the moment they met finally popped. Lane was grateful for it, in a way. She had a habit of enjoying bubbles, even if after they had burst, trying to pretend that the thin layers that protected her still existed. Still, it was strange to think that something otherworldly might be hiding in her blood. It could not have been from her mother, Lane had skills that her mother greatly lacked, a much more solid aptitude for magic. Though her father lacked the skills to be a witch, there were other things that seemed to come to life around him.<br/><br/>"Seven. Yes. I'll see you then." Lane forced a smile and nodded, returning the kiss he offered. Their goodbye was not exactly what she expected, but then again none of this had been. Who could boast that their one night stand made them both coffee and a magical tea to remember a past life? None of her friends, even the magical ones. James had taken a chisel and hammer to her life and he continued to crack it wide open. It caused some solid trepidation when she thought about what they might discover that evening.<br/><br/>Lane dressed, wearing a black pleated skirt and pink shirt and a black jacket that was business-like, yet still feminine. When she arrived at the shop, Steve had actually beaten her there. He regarded his sister with curious eyes.<br/><br/>"So how did helping out your "friend" go last night?" He even lifted his hands to make the gesture of finger quotes as he said the word "friend."<br/><br/>"It went well. I'm actually going to see him again tonight," she replied. Steve looked suspicious but Lane waved a hand at him. "I'm a big girl and he seems a decent guy. If anything goes awry, I will text you. Even Vivi approved, she thought he was very handsome...Actually, I think if he hadn't seemed like he only had eyes for me, she might have snatched him right from under my nose."<br/><br/>Lane was not sure she believed in the so-called "girl code" and Vivi rarely held back when she found someone attractive. She was smart enough to avoid the guys her friends liked, but if did not adhere strictly to the rule that she could not date men her friends had dated. Lane couldn't blame her if she had gone for James, if she and James had lacked mutual attraction. The fact that Vivi approved seemed to shut Steve up. Vivi was known to have a better judge of character than his gold-hearted sister, which was part of why she had mentioned it in the first place.<br/><br/>She did her best to treat this day like it was average and normal, as if nothing huge had changed. Aside from the occasional flashes from Adella, it really hadn't. Everything was the same, even if she had not know that there was something else inside her, hidden. One of the girls that worked for her had a closing shift, so Lane ducked out a little before six and headed to the address she had received. The hesitation again budded up in her, even though she reminded herself that she had not changed, that this would just be a mission in which she sought more information about what was inside of her. She felt a little like the ingenue student, about to surprise her professor with questions about his work.