"Is there some reason you weren't just - living with your dad informally in the first place by the time social services heard about your mom?"

"Well, dad didn't know he was going to adopt us, then. He found us 'cause of our dad and was trying to tell us about how we were perytons, but - noticed our mom. For him, he just found a couple of kids that were in a bad situation and went to try to fix it. It was after we were in the system that he realized how it wasn't helping either and decided to try and adopt us."

"Oh - got it. So you were in a series of unstable foster homes that had already handed in all their homework when it would've been better if he'd gotten you more or less as soon as he inquired, basically?"

"Basically, yeah."

"Makes sense."

"If it didn't, my life would be really confusing."

"I don't suppose the system is noticeably more functional for kids who are not perytons?"

"Noooot really. It never got out that we were perytons, I don't think that had much effect on things. I think some kids were luckier than we were, but other kids were definitely unluckier."

Bella nods.

"Plus," says Darren conversationally, "if there are other - critter kids in the system, I might be in a better position to spot them. Obvious medallions, sneaking off to places without telling anyone where they're going, so on. That is a thing that I would like to add in my mission to fix the adoption system."

"You could just wear your medallion out and see who stares at it," Bella points out, "since you aren't a fairy princess."

"True. But then people might also want to - do something stupid, like steal it."

"And then you would be abruptly quadrupedal. Right. ...People don't prank each other like that in the Avalon, do they? Ha ha now Bob is in fullform at a slightly inconvenient moment?"

"Nope. It's actually really, really rude to try and do that. Thankfully."

"Okay, good."

"Yeah. Not just because like - awkward moment, but because if a medallion breaks, the person that had it is basically screwed. So, not really the kind of thing you use to casually prank."

"So as long as I don't make any dire enemies I'm probably good."

"I think even then you might be good. With there being a cap on how many medallions there are - also not willing to break them just to get back at someone. It's petty and not worth it."

"Right. Far better to just resort to outright murder, and then someone of the same species who you like better can have that medallion."

"Yeah. Or if you don't have any friends that could use it, you can sell it and make money. Not very honorable, or ethical, but it happens."

"Eugh. Well, I'd want to avoid dire enemies anyway, but someone is already sending lava monsters after me... I wonder what the odds they identified me personally are."

"I have no idea. Hopefully slim? But probably not none, you... Do sort of obviously look like your human form, as a sphinx."

"Yeah. Which on the one hand, yay I don't have facial hair, and on the other kind of a terrible disguise. Kind of the opposite of a disguise, really."

Darren snorts. "A bit, yeah."

"...heh, I literally have a secret identity."