Alan greeted Wren as they entered.

"Hey boss! How was your day off?"

"It was good. Very.. busy. Speaking of, someone will be coming by later this afternoon. He should be here before the rush hits, but either way, just send him into my office when he arrives." Wren whacked the side of an old vending machine they had bought for a steal a few years ago, and a soda tumbled out. They cracked it open.

"A he huh? Am I finally going to meet one of your elusive lovers?" Wren choked on their soda at the suggestive tone in Alan's voice. He laughed as they started coughing.

"Relax, I'm just joking. Don't die on me here." He stood and gave Wren a tissue. They took it with a look of reproach. "Seriously though, who's coming by?"

"He's... a new business partner. His name is Damen Renaros. Reese introduced him to me. Have you had lunch yet?"

"Not yet."

"Chinese sound good?" Alan nodded.

"There's a new place by the university. They are apparently having a grand opening special on delivery." Alan knew Wren's cheapskate ways well.

***

It was two by the time the delivery driver arrived. Wren was behind the receptionist desk with Alan, working on arranging the next month's scheduled patient visits. While they mostly did walk-ins, certain patients needed regular check-ups and care. The sound of the door opening had them looking up in relief.

A man in a motorcycle helmet and a leather jacket entered the clinic carrying a large bag.

"Delivery for Wren?" His voice was deep and cultured, and Alan sat up straight when he heard it.

"That's me. Wait there one moment." Wren stood and stepped into their office to grab some cash for a tip.

Alan swallowed nervously. "Um, you can set the stuff here if you want." He stood and gestured to the counter. The man set the package down and pulled his helmet off. His red hair was messy, which wasn't helped when he ran a pale hand through it. A light smattering of freckles ran across his nose and cheekbones.

"Do you want a soda?" Alan blurted out.

The man smiled. "Sure, if you don't mind." Alan rushed to grab one from the vending machine, handing it to the man.

"We only carry cola right now. Wren had me order different kinds, but it'll be a few days before they get out here. I hope you don't mind."

"Cola is great. Thank you." There was a pause. "Do you go to Liberty University? You seem familiar." Alan was taken aback by the stranger's question.

"Y-yeah, I'm a medical major. My name's Alan."

"Nice to meet you, I'm Sean." Wren finally left the office at this point, cash in hand.

"Here you go! Sorry about the wait; I keep saying I'll clean out my desk, but it never happens."

"Thank you, enjoy your food.If you have any thoughts or concerns, please complete the survey on our site or give us a call. Thank you again!" He left quickly, leaving Alan gazing after him long after the door swung shut.

***

Damen and another man in a business suit came into the clinic right before four. Damen greeted Alan warmly.

"Hola señor. I have an appointment with Wren Arcanist?"

"You must be Damen. The doctor's office is right through here." Alan led the men down the hallway and opened the office door. Wren waved at them, the phone to their ear.

"Alright, bye Ms. Jones, you take care.. Uh huh, bye." Wren set the phone back on the receiver. "Sorry about that, sometimes patients call my line directly. Please, come in. Can I get you any refreshments?"

Damen shook his head. "No, but thank you. Let me introduce my cousin, Luciano Renaros. He is Lune's chief legal officer. I gave him the recording of our conversation yesterday, and he has a rough draft of our contract."

Luciano stepped forward and shook Wren's hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you. I'm looking forward to working with you." His hand was warm. Wren was struck by how much he and Damen resembled each other. Luciano's eyes were much lighter though, a startling bluish grey.

"I'm looking forward to it as well. Please, sit, make yourselves comfortable. May I see this draft?"

***

Damen ran his hands through his hair in frustration, leaning back in his chair.

"I understand that you don't want to draw attention to yourself, but we can pay you inconspicuously. Why won't you accept?" They had been in the office for an hour discussing the logistics of the project, and Damen was no closer to convincing Wren to accept any more compensation than what they had originally asked for. Wren laughed a bit at his obvious exasperation with them.

"I'm sorry, I don't mean to laugh. It's not about attention. I just don't want anything except what I've already outlined. You won't change my mind. Moving on, I do have a question about the way this draft is phrased."

"I can explain any legal terms if you need," Luciano began, but Wren stopped him by shaking their head.

"It's not the legal terms per say, but why do you use my full name every time I am referenced, but you don't with the other parties involved?"

Damen blushed then, and nervously covered his mouth. "Uh, that's my fault. I wasn't entirely, um, sure about whether you were, uh, well─"

"My cousin was unable to tell me if you went by male or female pronouns." Luciano stated bluntly. Wren looked at them in shock for a moment, then began to laugh.

"Oh, I didn't realize. That's why you sounded so unsure yesterday! No, I'm sorry. I shouldn't laugh." Wren was unable to completely erase their grin. "Tell me, what do you know about witches?"

"Not much, frankly." Damen was embarrassed, yet intensely curious. Witches were usually very secretive.

"Well, the term witch itself doesn't have a gender. Both men and women are called witches, as you may be aware. Being a witch isn't just a profession, anymore than being a vampire is a weird diet. You are either born a witch, or, more rarely, you become one when a dormant magickal gene is activated. That isn't to say all, or even most, witches don't have a gender. In fact, most you will meet do. But, a large percent of witches use they/them pronouns, and many identify as non-binary. I, myself, am agender, and use they/them." Wren never lost their understanding smile. "I know that the lack of assigning gender to things, or people, can be odd to outsiders, but don't ever be afraid to just ask. I'll answer any questions I can."

"I'm sorry I didn't ask yesterday, I wasn't sure if it would be rude." Damen smiled back at them, and Luciano cleared his throat.

"Thank you, I will edit the draft to include your preferred pronouns. And there's just a few more things to address. Do you agree with the terms regarding pricing?" Wren flipped to the relevant part of the document.

"I understand that Lune needs to make money to survive, but I will not take part in anything that doesn't allow everyone to receive assistance easily and affordably. This seems to be in order, but the section regarding what is and isn't too expensive is very vague, which is to be expected." Wren looked up at Luciano with a serious expression. "I understand the market rises and falls better than most. However, I do not care. I want to reserve the right to fully revoke all of Lune's rights to anything I make or discover at any point, if I deem Lune to be setting unfair prices."

"Fully revoke all of Lune's rights? I'm not sure─" Luciano was interrupted by Damen.

"Do it Luce."

"Damen, you can't be okay wi─"

"I said do it. On one condition. Wren, I want your guarantee you will only revoke Lune's rights if you truly believe Lune is in the wrong, and if you bring your concerns to Lune and give us a chance to correct before you go through with it." Damen watched Wren, serious, as a slightly amused smile spread on their face.

"I wouldn't have it any other way, Damen."

Luciano cleared his throat again. Wren looked at him.

"Sore throat? I have a tea that will help if you would like?"

"No, I'm fine. There's just one more thing to address. You mentioned in the recording that you would only willing to report your findings to Damen. We have a large team of scientists and researchers to aid you, and you can report through them─"

"Let me stop you there, Mr Renaros. I don't plan on spending a lot of time in a Lune lab. I prefer to work in my own space. On that same note, I don't want anyone coming by my apartment unless it is absolutely necessary. Damen has been there before, so I mind slightly less, but only slightly. I'll leave finding test subjects up to Lune, but I want to be in charge of everything else." Wren sighed and rubbed their temples, the first sign they had shown the men that the talks affected them.

"I am a very private person. I have met a lot of people in my life, and I have only liked a few, and trusted even less. You, Damen, seem genuine. That may not get you far in the business world, but it is the only reason I was willing to consider this entire deal. I don't plan on trusting some random intern with something of this magnitude. No, I will give my reports to you. I'll send any samples I have prepared to whatever lab you plan on testing them in, or deliver them myself, but don't ask me to explain my process more than in my written and verbal report. I'll even let you record it."

The two men glanced at each other, and Damen gave a short nod.

"Alright, I'll revise the contract."

The door to the office burst open, and Alan rushed in.

"Wren, we've got a problem."