"Yes, this is an advantage. Though I don't actually know how to sort the sketchy people out from the non-sketchy people. It's not like doctors or lawyers or whatever where you just go to the person with the best credentials and the highest price and figure that person must be on the up and up. Spellcasters can be sketchy in lots of dimensions besides not knowing what they're doing or trying to cheat you out of money."

Yeah, I can see that being a thing.

What are the actual risks associated with the spell?

"Difficult to get specifics. The person who created it was an elderly Romani witch who probably knew way more than I do. The warnings in the secondary texts suggested that an incorrectly performed spell could backfire on the caster, and that an inexperienced caster who tried to perform it could - 'open a gate that could not be closed', I think was the phrasing? Possibly you lose control of the magic and then the magic is in control and it doesn't make the greatest decisions."

This sounds like a pretty serious deal. I can't make you do anything, since you can banish me on sixty seconds' notice, but I think it deserves a thorough search of potential help and maybe getting better at magic in general on background, first. How long is St. Mary's prepared to hold the vampires?

"Couple weeks. They don't really have the staff to hold them indefinitely, and - well if you're gonna try rehabilitating vampires, Imrainai's not really the first person you'd pick to spend your resources on. But she's - if it was me she wouldn't give up. So..."

You're a minor she was responsible for. I'm not sure it's a good idea to hold yourself to that standard in reverse.

If the set of my parents here have a me, he's probably up to his eyebrows in magic. Do you want to try looking for him?

"That's what Imrainai'd say, you know. But she's not here, and she doesn't get a vote. And I miss her. And I'm not done being a rebel. But I think rebels are allowed to get help so they can accomplish their rebellious objectives without blowing their faces off. So... yeah. Let's do it."

You up for another road trip to Forks? Or I could make a little spaceship, that'd be faster.

"That sounds kind of attention-calling. Car's probably fine."

Car it is.

Cam drives north.

Zana is driven north! She reads more old books on the way, because that's sort of what she does.

Cam listens to more books likewise.

After more hours and hours on the road, they pull up to a little house with a cop car in front.

"D'you want me to go in with you, or...?"

No, I don't think so. He's home, this shouldn't take all that long, I think. Can I have permission to make small harmless objects as a demo and I'll give you, I don't know, an ice cream cone or something?

"I like ice cream. Accepted."

She gets an ice cream cone. Uh, I feel sort of weird about leaving you alone even just in the car, so I'm going to leave a rolled-up nearly-complete circle that will get you me under a more sensible binding in the back seat, okay? Please don't try to summon anyone else, you don't have the training to do it safely.

She nods.

He leaves her the circle.

He goes and knocks at the door.

The man who answers him does resemble him enough to be his father, but doesn't seem to recognize him. Eventually Cam talks his way into the house anyway.

Zana stays in the car and reads over the circle Cam left for potential loopholes that could be used for acts of naughty evil.

It's in English, and it's better than the Latin binding, but it does let him speak and do things like self-caffienate without permission.

Seems sensible. It would be more of a stain on her honor that she doesn't know how to do this right if literally any non-demon in this dimension did.

She waits for Cam to come back out.

It takes him about an hour.

So, this one doesn't have a son, he says. Instead, he has two daughters. But I remind him very strongly of the older one, so it's possible that she's my local counterpart, just a girl. The bad news is, she has some kind of magic disability and spells don't work for her. The good news is, her little sister picks up the slack in that department. The other bad news is, he doesn't know where they are at any given time, because they live in a Winnebago and do not file travel plans with their dad. However, he holds up a slip of paper, I have their cell numbers.

"Sounds pretty useful for finding people! Although we still don't have a cell phone with a plan and stuff."

Yeah, I made him a bunch of groceries and fishing equipment and he gave me some cash, so next stop is to buy one.

"Sounds like a plan."