"Yeah, that one's not for me. What about the religious people?"

"Watchers. Pan-Abrahamic society, mostly pretty kumbaya about it, the big cheese is fine with anybody whose religion is about the big cheese and is very quiet on details. They think there's an apocalypse coming, from keeping track of who is having visions. They have a celestial plane called Eden. Their magic is like Consortation, but for angels; you do nice things and that pays for angels to show up when you ask. What nice things you get angels from goes by rank - kindness, charity, mercy, justice, grace."

"Everything I've heard about angels so far has made me approve more! Very glad to find out I live in a universe where there are cosmic forces of good and they even seem to have a balanced virtue profile instead of being all smiting evil all the time. And there's definitely an appeal to the magic—it doesn't just do cool stuff, it incentivizes the user to be a better person. I like that. But...even if I come to work with them at some point, it seems unwise to magically lock myself into the God faction when I just found out that He—or She, do witches say She?—exists literally today."

"Watchers say He, at least ones I have met. Very valid not to convert to a religion right now."

"What about the 'fairies and politics and monsters' category, what goes in there?"

"That is where I live! It is one fate twist one faction magic, but there is nesting upon nesting of courts and enclaves and things there. A lot of the fairyest species - not all of them witches, there are normal fairies and sprites and such that are not witches around also - live there. It is shocking beautiful. So do lots of magical critters, people playing silly buggers with magic or maybe the things just happen, who knows. Summarizing for the unfamiliar you say, there is the summer court, centralized and formal and fancy, and there is the winter court, chaotic and patchwork and crazy. I think this is probably not for you most personally but it is lovely for if you like it."

"Yeah, I also think probably not for me, especially since I took the monster disadvantage and it's a monstery sort of area; I want a good long chunk of time to practice my magic and build up defenses before I start throwing myself at those. Just to fully understand my options, though, what is the faction magic?"

"Covenants, magical contracty things."

"Yeah, not quite my bag either. And, to round out the set—'cells of mischief'?"

"Hespatians, organized in 'families', but not so family you cannot be in one. Run the gamut, some of them probably just like dancing naked in the moonlight and do not do murders. Lots of contact with Hell, friendly with Hawthorne, on the perpetual outs with Watchers."

"Yeah, um, not sounding like a promising general overview for my odds of finding one I'd get along with. So it's really down to Arcadia and Lunabella for me, and wow it's actually kind of a tough choice. Hmmmmmmmm—how does Lunabella treat kids that grow up there and don't want to participate in the system? Do they, like, help them get set up on Earth with a job and place and come back for frequent visits, or is it kind of a 'well you're of age now, better sign a contract or you're kicked out into the world alone' situation? I think I'd be able to work out a contract that doesn't offend my sense of dignity, in exchange for living on the frickin' Moon, but I wouldn't want to—prop up that system if not-fully-uncoercedly-consenting people are being conscripted into it, no matter how nice it's supposed to be once you're signed on."

"Children covered under their mother's contracts till they get their own or leave. There is really not a way to be Lunabellan without belonging to someone - even the king belongs to the constitution - but no respectable matron never lets her clients out of her bubble, and out of the bubble they can sign on with someone else or hop to another universe or something. I cannot guarantee no one is doing a sketchy, but I cannot also guarantee this about anywhere else."

"'The king belongs to the constitution', that's awesome, I love that. Actually significantly decreases the ick factor in itself even without knowing what the king and constitution are like—but if you can tell me anything about what the king and constitution are like, that would be greatly appreciated."

"He wrote the constitution about fifteen hundred years ago, his fellow founders act like a Supreme Court if there's any doubt that he is being a good slave of the constitution, there are lots of protections on everybody from being maltreated. I do not have the Iron Tablets in the memorization though."

"Fair enough! All good to know. Wow this is a tough choice. ...I suppose I could at least visit the Moon without joining Lunabella, while I couldn't do digicasting without choosing Arcadia, that's a consideration to keep in mind. Um, are there any other major choices I haven't made yet and could use to further procrastinate making up my mind on this one?"

"This is basically it, alas."

In the absence of a coin to flip, she does the "imagine a spinner" mental exercise with a circle half red and half blue, and tells herself she'll pick Lunabella if it lands on blue and Arcadia if it lands on red. It lands on blue and she feels a flash of disappointment that it wasn't red.

There we go.

"Arcadia, then. How many points would it take to get rank three in digicasting?"

"Triple affinity, so one point."

"Wow! I will take my spare point back from Hexes, then, and use it for that instead."

"Splendid splendid. Anything to double check? Last minute questions comments complaints?"

"No, I think I've covered everything I can without visiting places and meeting people myself. Thank you for all your help understanding my choices!"

"You are most welcome! If you are all set for sure no takebacks say go and we are go."

"Go."

And there is a rush of magic, a new but definitively magical sensation, and -

- she's out of the strange spangled void and back in the witchy shop, and she's got fox ears.

She reaches up and feels the ears. They are soft.

"Awesome."