"...well, no, but... you can still do a lot of good work as a civilian, and save many lives! And, and..." She stops, takes a few calming breaths, then continues, more slowly, "Um, sorry. ...it's not true that I don't know any Empyreans who had a family, because—my father was one. Empyrean, I mean. He was, he worked with the Nightwatch. And five years ago, when I was 17, he sacrificed himself—but I'm filled with respect towards anyone who wants to be an Empyrean of the Nightwatch."

She gives a solemn nod.

"I'm sorry to bring up a hard topic so casually, then. Uh - I don't really want to start a family? I know I could just stay civilian side and have a comfortable life and still help a lot of people, just..." she gives an awkward shrug. "... I dunno, I have the strong intuition that the spooks are not done with me?"

"Oh, but that—that's only going to get worse. My father once said that you shouldn't think you can make things easier to deal with or less dangerous by becoming more powerful or advancing your Sequence. He said it's the opposite, you always run into more terrifying matters, stranger things, more powerful things... It's like powerful Empyreans attract danger. When facing the unknown, death and insanity are the only two outcomes, he said... That was two weeks before he died." She pauses. "Sorry, that was, um, it's been years, I'm fine now, my life is great! I really like the work we do here. But it's really very dangerous. If you think that scary things are after you now, there will be even more scary things after you if you become an Empyrean..."

"... Yes, but in that case, I'd also be a scary thing for them to watch out for? I would rather be able to defend myself than not. Having any degree of power over the situation is very important to me?"

"...I guess that's probably true," she says, a bit deflated. "Sorry, I don't mean to shoot you down. Will you promise me to be very, very careful? Don't do anything dangerous you don't need to, don't take any unnecessary risks! I know we've just met recently but I would be very sad if—something happened to you."

"Aww. Thank you. I'll do my best to be safe if I decide to go through with it. I was actually thinking about one of the more supportive pathways, like what Neil has? Instead of, you know. Going to directly fight things."

"Oh! You mean Diviner? That's the other one that isn't about fighting. We haven't had a Diviner in a long time, not since I joined, I think..."

"Yeah, that's the one I was thinking about. But I hear I'm not supposed to be pressured about it, so." She playfully puts a finger to her lips. "Please don't tell everyone just yet."

Elaine absolutely expects Rozanne to tell literally everyone. She kind of hopes she'll be proven wrong, in which case she will internally apologize for the assumption she made but didn't say, but. ... she suspects that by the time she shows up for work tomorrow, people will have opinions about it.

She puts a finger to her lips, too, and nods. "I won't tell a soul! And—that's relieving. I know it's selfish of me but the fact that we don't know the Sequence 8 potion formula puts my heart to rest."

She will not immediately point out that the entire point of being a Diviner is being able to find stuff, or that she probably has at least one in-road to securing her own advancement via the stupidly named Secret Order apparently having some sort of ties to that specific Pathway. Nope. Not pointing those out at all. Rozanne can live in ignorant bliss.

"I'm glad I could reassure you, even as I acknowledge that... it's totally a dangerous decision and I'm sorry for worrying you. I will try to be as safe as possible, if I go through with it."

"Then, then I fully support you! You're much stronger than me, I could never do this. But I know you'll do a lot of good with it, if you go through with it, I mean. I just know it!"

"Thanks. That's the idea!"

The entrance to the Nightwatch's secret base closest to where James's latest investigation led him happened to be the Blackthorn Security Agency, so in he goes.

Rozanne is there, holding a newspaper open in front of her face, covering it entirely.

...she's asleep again, isn't she. James grins and tiptoes around until he can see her behind the newspaper.

Yes, she is. She has mastered the ability to nap while sitting down and holding a newspaper.

Ah huh.

"Good afternoon, Rozanne!" he calls loudly.

She squeaks and glares at him. "That's rude, you know."

"And falling asleep on the job is unprofessional."

She tilts her head from side to side and finally shrugs, lowering her newspaper. "Let's agree to call it even."

He laughs. "Sure."

That's when she remembers, "Oh! James! Did you hear—"

And then she remembers the other thing. "—oh. Hm. I'm not supposed to say, actually. Never mind."

"...not supposed to say? Is the Captain about to spring some unpleasant surprise on me that I'm not allowed to prepare about?"

"Oh, it's nothing to do with the Captain." ...wait, she shouldn't say that. "Unless... it is?"