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the fly, so I just blurted out the truth. “I’m researching a magical symbol, and I’ve only got a week to do it or the vampires might kill me.”
    I expected her to run screaming. I didn’t expected a bouncy hand clap and a huge smile. “Seriously? Let me guess, you’re an elf.”
    Huh? Whatever gave her the idea that I was an elf? “No, I’m a Templar. Not a Knight though. I left the Order before I took my oath.” Honesty seemed to be working so far so I figured I’d just keep on with it.
    “A Paladin! I’m so psyched to find out that you are into RPGs. We’ve got an Anderon game on Wednesdays. I’ll totally see if I can invite you. Do you LARP, too?”
    I was fluent in four languages, but she’d lost me. “I love to LARP.” I had no idea what that was, but if it got me out of the apartment and gave me the chance to make friends I was going to LARP.
    “Oh. My. God. Next Saturday is the LARP in the Park. We could use a Paladin. Meet us there at noon and wear your armor. Oh, and bring a dish for the potluck.”
    Brandi skipped off, shouting, “Can you believe it? Aria is a Paladin.”
    I didn’t have the heart to correct her. Paladins were Templar wannabes, do-gooder vigilantes who ran around fighting evil. Their average life expectancy upon taking their own version of the Oath was about six months. Not that it mattered. I was more worried about where I was going to find armor by next Saturday. And figure out what the heck a LARP was.

    I’d scored a three hour power nap after my shift that had left me feeling more groggy than refreshed. I powered onward with quick hits off an energy drink chased by a pot of coffee, sorting through books and putting ninety percent of them back on the shelves.
    Three people might be able to help me. Well, two people and one… other thing.
    Dad was a Librarian class Knight, which meant his specialty was cataloging and researching the vast sources of information inside and outside of the Temple. He was one of the few Templars who were entrusted with sacred texts and written-word artifacts outside of the Temple. If he didn’t have what I needed in the vault at home, then he’d know where to find it. Of course, that meant I’d need to return home—supplications always must be made in person, and that rule went for us Templars as well as the humans we were supposed to help. I hadn’t been back home since I left six months ago. This wouldn’t be a quick in-and-out research trip. I’d be expected to stay for dinner, to catch up on family news, and to face the mess I’d made of things when I left. Eventually I’d do that, but I wasn’t quite ready yet.
    I’d briefly been a member of the magical society Haul Du . Like eight months briefly. My departure hadn’t been my idea. Some jerk had discovered I was a Templar and leaked the information. Racist pigs. Although I understood their reluctance to have someone as a member who was sworn and duty bound to reclaim any item of magical significance and stash it away in what amounted to Fort Knox. Still, I felt a combination of resentment and hurt every time I thought of my dismissal from Haul Du . I’d made friends there—the first non-Templar friends I’d ever had. And I’d felt at home—more at home than I did even with my family. They understood the excitement of magic, the need to do more with it than lock it away in the Temple. They felt there were secrets in this world and the next, puzzles that could be unlocked through study and partnership with those above and below.
    Which was my third option. There wasn’t anyone at Haul Du who would speak to me anymore, even Raven, who had been my closest friend. I hadn’t had time to find other connections in Baltimore who might be legitimate practitioners. And I was understandably reluctant to seek them out anyway. I really didn’t want to get close to a group of people, to feel a sense of belonging only to be thrown out once again. Still, I hadn’t spent my eight