I woke up late and hungover. I hadn’t stopped at two. The events of the day had been too hard on me.

I groaned as I got out of bed. I felt like I’d been hit by a truck. Repeatedly. This would be a shower first morning. Coffee would have to wait.

As I got out of the shower my phone dinged. It was a text from Eileen, reminding me of that night’s meeting. How could I forget? I’d been working my ass off for months for this exact moment. I was both dreading it and looking forward to it.

But before that I had to get through the day. Coffee, smoke, and checking up on my emails and texts would take me a good hour. I felt lazy.

The shower hadn’t helped as much as I’d hoped, and my head was, as usual, pounding. I was happy to be working from home. There was no way I could’ve handled the noise from the office.

My breakfast done, I selected clothes for the day. I found myself unsure of what to wear. I wanted to look good for Eileen. Or was it for the prince? The prince who would be hopefully wedding my friend in the coming two months? I had to get rid of this stupid crush.

Either way I picked a dress for once. One with a low back and a turtleneck. That way I could spread my wings without damaging the fabric, and it wouldn’t fall off if I were to take flight. The dress was black with slim rainbow stripes. It would do. I’d tie my hair in my usual ponytail and call it good.

I didn’t know what to do with myself. I was waiting for a call from Liliane, but otherwise all my cases were up to date and I had nothing to do until 8 that night.

I checked the time : 11. Too early for lunch. I needed to find something to do before I went mad.

I checked my phone again, but still nothing. I opened my novel reading app and made myself comfortable in the kitchen chair. I lit a smoke and caught up on Romance Splits, my favorite web novel. It was the story of two married idiots who both felt the romance in their couple was dwindling, and tried to rekindle it. A nice read.

I tried to make it last as long as possible, taking my time reading, but it only took me another hour before I was all caught up and daydreaming of romance.

At least it was lunch time. 

In an effort to make time pass less slowly, I decided to cook instead of using magic to make my lunch. I made banana chicken curry with rice, and an apple crumble for dessert. Another hour gained.

As I sat there eating my homemade lunch, I wondered how to spend my afternoon. First, call Liliane.

The ringing was making my headache worse, but I needed to check on that last case. I knew Liliane’s voice would make my head spin as well, but I powered through.

“Tiiiiinaaaaaa Tina love how good to talk to you how are doing what news?” Ouch. “Hey love, I was coming for news on the girl I sent you to see yesterday. Did you get around to it?” Silence on the line.

“Hello?” I heard a deep breath taken, then a sob. ”Tina, she was covered in bruises… I tried to talk to her and you know I’m good with teenagers but she wouldn’t tell me anything, she said it was fine and she just fell down the stairs. She had so much fear in her eyes love, I didn’t know what to do!” Oh dear.

“Liliane what did you do?” I could tell there was something she so desperately did not want me to know.

Another deep breath, then in a whisper “I may have taken her to the Agency-” I was stunned. “YOU WHAT?” We never, ever did that. Not that it wasn’t allowed but it just wasn’t right. These things had to progress on their own, we weren’t supposed to meddle so immediately.

Liliane’s voice was so small and apologetic I could barely understand her as she tried to explain her reasoning to me. She had taken the girl to the makeup team for a glow up, then introduced her to Josephine. She’d thought it was the best thing to do at the moment and knew I’d be upset but she’d followed her instincts like I was always saying to do so she wasn’t going to apologize for it.

“Liliane, breathe. You’re not in trouble. At least not with me.” She stopped talking. I heard her squeak. “I’m not?” I sighed. “No, you’re not. I’ll just need to talk to Jo to figure out what to do next. But please never bring anyone else to the Agency.”

She promised to never do it again and I cut the call. My headache was getting a headache. Time for another coffee.

I was lighting up another cigarette when my phone buzzed. It was Josephine. Shit, I wasn’t ready for that conversation. I picked up the phone anyway, no need to get into even more trouble.

“Hey Jo, has Liliane talked to you yet?” No need to go through all the pleasantries, Jo didn’t have time for it and my head didn’t either. “I was just on the phone with her. She’s sorry.” Sorry wasn’t enough but at least I’d have said a word for her. I was the one who made her go and see the girl, after all.

“Sorry doesn’t cut it, Tina. She dropped the girl on me and disappeared in tears. What the fuck do I do with this mess?”

I had no idea. “Well, you’re the boss, Boss. You’ll do what’s best. I’d come in and talk to her if you want, reveal who I am and all that. Maybe it would make her leave the bastard who covered her in bruises.”

“Bruises? She has no- Did she- Did Liliane take her to the make up team? Oh I’m gonna fire her so hard her backside won’t recover from it.” I winced.

“Please don’t, it’s my fault. I’m the one who sent her. I didn’t think she’d do something so stupid. Maybe you can just punish her by making her push paper for a year? Or turn her into something. Temporarily.”

Jo sighed. “I know I know, I’m not gonna fire her. But damn what a mess. Okay here’s what I’m gonna do. I’m gonna take her over to your place since you’re NOT coming to the Agency for another 3 months, and we’re gonna talk it out. Coffee, tea, and water only. Clear?”

As if I was going to drink on the job. Again. “Clear, Jo. Half an hour?” “Half an hour. You better be on your best behavior.” She cut the call and I took my head in my hands. Thanks, Liliane.

I was already dressed and ready, so I grabbed yet another smoke and got some coffee brewing for when they’d arrive.

Half an hour later the bell rang. I opened and let them in. I’d taken that time to tidy up an already clean place, so the living room was spotless. I made them sit on the couch while I offered them coffee. Jo took hers with milk, August with sugar.

I took a chair and waited while we all stirred our coffees. The silence dragged, uncomfortable.

“So, August, I hear you’ve had a tour of where I work?” I tried to break the silence. August looked at me in confusion. “Who the fuck are you and what am I doing here?” Ah. Jo had not explained. I took that as punishment and accepted my fate.

“I am your fairy godmother-” she coughed. “My what? Are you insane?” I took a deep breath and let the insult slide. Then drew out my wings. My dress was well chosen after all.

August gaped and stared at me as if I’d grown… well, I had.

“As I was saying, I’m your fairy godmother. My name’s Tina. I’ve been looking after you since you were little more than a baby. I know all about your father, and most importantly right now, all about your boyfriend. I sent Liliane to check in on you, and she freaked out. You weren’t supposed to know about me yet.”

I took a break and a sip of coffee, letting the poor girl digest the informations. Her eyes were wide and her coffee untouched.