"A magician?" Luck asked, skeptically. With all of the buildup he had been expecting something more spectacular, or at least something that sounded more dangerous.

"A mage to be more precise," Star responded.

This made Luck pause for a minute. Picking up on his confusion Star elaborated.

"Magician simply denotes one who is capable of using magic. Not circus performers who pull rabbits out of hats. Classification is a mage, a combat mage to be more precise, but a mage no the less."

As Luck was processing this new information there came the sound of a quiet knock at the door before it was slowly opened. Luck looked up, slightly surprised by this, to him, unexpected visitor. Star, however, did not seem concerned at all.

"Hello, Donny," she said politely nodding at the hulking man who walked through the door.

"Hey Star," Donny said. "Jacuzzi got worried. About your leg. And walking home. So I, uh, came to get you."

Star nodded in acknowledgement of this explanation. Although she had only met Donny a handful of times she was already used to his halting manner of speech.

"I'll have to thank Jacuzzi," Star said, standing up before she turned to face Luck. "I guess I'll be seeing you later. Just think about what I said, and let me know what your answer is."

"Very well," Luck said. It was late and there wasn't much point in detaining her there, now that Donny had showed up.

"Alright then-" Star began, turning to face Donny only to find herself scooped up in the giants arms.

"Wah! Donny, you don't need to carry me!" Star cried out in surprise.

"No problem," Donny answered. He then turned towards Luck for a moment. "Good night."

And with that awkward farewell they left, Star still insisting that Donny did not need to carry her the entire way back to the Genoard mansion.

When Donny arrived back at the mansion with Star he entered through the side door to the kitchen.

"I'm back," Donny said as he walked through the door, still cradling Star in his arms like a small child.

"Wow, Donny," Jacuzzi said, seeing the two of them. "Did you really carry her the whole way back?"

"I told him he didn't need to," Star responded, slightly embarrassed.

"No problem," Donny repeated. "You're light."

Once inside the kitchen Donny put Star down and she took a hobbling step towards a chair that Nice had pulled out for her.

"I knew you'd be coming back soon, so I got this ready for you," Nice said, handing Star a hot water bottle.

"Thanks," Star said with a grateful smile as she placed the hot water bottle on her right thigh. "And listen, in the morning tomorrow, let me help out a bit. I mean you patched me up and everything after last night so it's the least I can do."

"But what can you do with your leg like that?" Nice asked, cutting off Jacuzzi before he could start on a nervous rant about Star aggravating her injury.

"What about helping out Fang in the kitchen? I mean I can help mix stuff together and chop up vegetable or whatever else I can do sitting down," Star responded.

"That's a great idea," Jacuzzi said. Happy that Star was satisfied with helping, but that she wouldn't be up and around on her injured leg.

After that they all sat around the kitchen table chatting for a while. Jacuzzi and Nice were left with the impression that Star must have come from some place out in the sticks because every once and a while she would comment on something that amazed her that she had never seen before, like the ice box, or the Ford Model T, even though by now the car was woefully out dated. Eventually they decided to call it a night and Nice helped Star up the stairs to the room she was going to share with Chane.

"Thanks for putting up with me for the night," Star said to Chane as Chane turned off the light.

Chane nodded slightly, a very faint smile at the corner of her lips, indicating that Star's presence was no great bother.

The two lay down to sleep and two quiet hours passed before Chane felt herself awake to a sound within the room. She had trained vigorously in order to protect Huey so that even the slightest suspicious sound would awaken Chane from a deep sleep.

Moving as little as possible, keeping her eyes open only a slit so she could still feign sleep, Chane turned her head to look across the room towards Star, to see if she had awakened as well. To Chane's mild surprise Star was sitting upright on the spare mattress that had been laid out on the floor. Star was examining her injured leg, sighing.

"I don't think I can put this off… especially not if things are going to get complicated," Star muttered softly. With a resigned sigh she placed her right hand over her left shoulder. What she uttered next confused Chane.

"Ten, release."

Chane couldn't understand the meaning of those words, but what happened afterward alarmed Chane so much that she nearly sprang from the bed, drawing the knife that she kept hidden under her pillow.

Star placed both of her hands on her injured leg and whispered a word that Chane did not understand. Right after that there came a soft green light from Star's hands that enveloped her leg for a moment before is gently faded.

"Goddess… what is my life coming to?" Star whispered in exasperation as she lay back down and curled up in her blanket, her back to Chane.

Chane, despite her best attempts, had opened her eyes wide in shock when she had observed Star. Chane has seen a lot in her time with Huey, the alchemist, but never had she encountered anything as strange as the event that had just taken place in her room. Chane could feel her heart hammering against her ribcage as she slowly rolled over onto her side, sliding one hand under the pillow and curling her fingers around the knife's handle. Just having the weapon in her hand did wonders to calm Chane. But despite that, she still found it difficult to sleep that night. Instead, Chane lay awake, watching Star breathe quietly in her slumber, gripping the knife beneath the pillow with questions chasing themselves around and around in her head until finally, exhausted Chane fell asleep just before dawn.

"Good morning," Star said with a smile as Jacuzzi, Nice and some of the others in Jacuzzi's gang entered the kitchen.

"Good morning," Nice responded.

"Guess what?" Star asked, a giant grin still on her face.

"What?" Jacuzzi asked.

"My leg is better! I guess all I needed was a hot water bottle and a good night's sleep."

"What? Really?" Jacuzzi exclaimed, surprised.

"Yeah," Star replied, standing up and walking a few paces without limping. "Look, I can even do this."

Star balanced on her right leg and hopped up and down a few times.

"H-hey, don't do that!" Jacuzzi cried out. "What if you hurt yourself?"

"Jacuzzi is right," Nice said. "Your leg might be better, but don't push it, ok? You don't want to make it worse."

"I'll be sure to take it easy," Star replied easily.

"Alright, time for breakfast," Fang announced from his place by the stove.

There was a rush as a mass of hungry people rushed through the kitchen to get their plate. Star quietly slid over to the wall next to the kitchen door, letting everyone else go first.

As Star waited, Chane entered the room, yawning and looking very tired.

"Good morning," Star said, smiling, as Chane passed her.

Chane flinched slightly and turned to look back at Star, her face emotionless. When she had awoken to find Star's bed empty, Chane had thought that Star had already left.

"Wow Chane, you look tired," Nick said as he passed her with a plate of food.

Chane turned to look at Nick and in that moment Star slipped past her to join the others. She was smiling and laughing, carrying on with the others like she always had, but Chane could not shake the uneasiness that had settled in the pit of her stomach. As Chane received her food and sat down to eat she resolved to find Claire that day. Claire was the only one she could 'talk' to, and Chane felt like she desperately needed to talk to someone about what she had seen.

After breakfast Star helped around the house with a few simple tasks as a way to say thank-you for the other night before she quietly slipped off. Star enjoyed the time that she spent with Jacuzzi and his gang, which is why she tried to avoid spending too much time at the house. If things became complicated Star did not want people who were so nice and… normal… to become involved.

On her way back to the park Star bought a soft pretzel from a street vendor. As she ate the pretzel Star became lost in thought, pondering her encountered with the immortals of Manhattan and whether or not they might be involved in her problem or not.

Suddenly Star felt a hand grab her shoulder roughly. Shocked from her thoughts Star pivoted swiftly, dropping her pretzel as she battered aside the hand that had grabbed her with her right arm while balling her left hand into a fist, preparing to strike.

"Woah, hold on!" cried a familiar voice, which caused Star to pause.

In that moment there came a loud whoosh as a car raced past inches from Star's back. The breeze caused by the car's swift movement played through Star's hair as she slowly turned to look behind her. She had been about to walk right into the street. Just as slowly as before Star turned back to face Maiza who had grabbed her just in time to keep from being run over by the car.

"Thank you," Star said the tension dissipating from her body.

"No problem," Maiza responded, "but you really should pay attention to where you're walking. Someone might not be there to pull you back next time."

"Yeah, I'll keep that in mind," Star answered, turning back to stare at the road. The pretzel she dropped had been crushed into a pasty colored streak that was already beginning to attract pigeons.

"Actually, I was looking for you," Maiza said.

This got Star's attention and she looked back sharply at Maiza, the dreamy look gone from her eyes.

"No need to look so serious," Maiza responded easily. "I just want to talk to you a bit."

"Alright," Star said, wearily. "Do you mind if we find someplace to sit?"

"Sure," Maiza replied, and strode off purposefully.

A few moments later the two were seated on a bench on a picturesque street lined with small stores. Maiza was leaning easily against the back of the bench but Star was hunched forward staring intently at nothing, her face dark.

Maiza had decided to try an easy approach. He believed that if he appeared non-threatening Star might be more likely to cooperate with him and answer a few questions. Maiza felt pretty sure that Star herself was not much of a threat to the Martillo family, but she had asked about a grimore, and Maiza needed to be sure that, whatever her intentions were, they would not cause any problems for the Martillo family.

"So, how long have you been in Manhattan?" Maiza asked affably.

"A few weeks," Star responded leaning back and turning her head to look at Maiza.

"And what brings you to this corner of the city?" Maiza continued, as though it was just a normal conversation instead of a semi-interrogation.

"The grimore," Star said. "That's what all of this is about, isn't it?"

Maiza raised and eye brow. It appeared that playing a fool wasn't necessary. Maiza dropped the false grin he wore but kept his demeanor as friendly as he could.

"Well, yes," Maiza admitted. "I haven't heard that word in quite a few years."

"Years, or centuries?" Star prompted, turning her head back to stare across the street.

This time Star succeeded in mildly surprising Maiza.

"I know you're older than you look. So you're about, what, two hundred years or so?" Star continued.

"Two hundred fifty is more accurate," Maiza said.

"I can usually guess within a couple of decades or so," Star responded.

"So this means you-" Maiza began.

"Know what you are? Yeah," Star finished.

"For how long?" Maiza questioned. Star did not seem hostile, rather she appeared exhausted. But Maiza needed to know how much she knew. If normal humans found out about immortality, it could cause trouble.

"Not too long," Star replied. "I had a feeling when I first saw you. I knew you were much older than you look. I really knew after I met Czes though. And then I ran into these two other guys, one really tall and skinny, and the other short and kind of round. I literally ran into them. I accidentally knocked the taller guy into a pile of debris from a building renovation. His hand got cut when he threw it out to stop is fall. That's when I knew for sure what all of you were. You all had the same tell-tale signature in you aura."

"Aura?" Maiza said. He had heard the word before but auras were more the territory of mystics and not alchemists.

"Yeah, the energy field given off by the soul. I can 'see' it."

Maiza absorbed all of this information and slowly turned it over in his mind before he asked his next question.

"Is that why you want the grimore?" Maiza asked.

"No," Star replied bluntly. "You asked me why I'm here, right? Well I'm here because that book hit me in the head, and the next thing I knew I was in this city and I can't leave. I've tried."

That answer, of course, explained everything and nothing. Maiza was about to ask for an explanation but suddenly a low growling noise emitted from Star's general area.

Star quietly stood up.

"I know you have a lot of questions, but right now I'm really hungry. If you want some answers, come to the park this evening. I have a feeling your questions are going to be the same as his, and I'd rather have to only explain things once."

"Very well," Maiza said. He had a feeling pushing the point would not get him anywhere.

Star turned to leave but Maiza, on a whim, spoke up and stopped her.

"You look very tired," Maiza said.

Star turned back to him and smiled wearily.

"Not really, just hungry. Very hungry," and with that Star left.

Maiza stood still a little while longer. Despite his suspicious Maiza was beginning to feel some sympathy for Star. He had lived a very long time and could recognize when life was beginning to wear someone down. Star had looked as though there was a great weight on her. Maiza thought back to Star's words from early. She had said that now she could not leave. Perhaps there was more to the events that were going on that just one lost girl. With that final thought Maiza turned and left, not knowing how right his suspicions were.