Once we had all climbed into Greta’s van to conserve gas, Cerriwyn guided us to our first destination and pointed out various spots of interest while Goldie drove. Greta was letting the Vampire drive because she was still exhausted and, even if she had tried to hide it, we would have seen right through her. So, when Goldie offered to drive so she could rest, Greta took her up on the offer.

Our first stop was Shadowtown Bank since our Fairy guide thought that we might want to have some of the local currency for our other tasks. Most people used American dollars for day-to-day transactions in Shadowtown since it was easier, but a lot of Fae paid those employed by them in drams of gold and silver, which was why the currency exchange next to the bank did such a brisk business. The exchange of favors, magical or otherwise, seemed to be used as currency nearly as much as good ole greenbacks though, as we saw when we witnessed the exchange between Malafis and our new employer, the Fairy Godmother.

The Aos Sidhe who acted as our teller ran her hand over the marks on each of our arms in turn, causing them to vanish with a tingling sensation and quickly tapped out some notes on her computer. Once that was done, she would help each of us to set up a new account. Opening accounts with them was a little bit different than I was used to though. There would be no bank cards, checkbooks, or electronic transactions, if we wanted those types of things then we would need to get accounts with a bank that wasn’t run by Arcane and hidden from the outside world when we had our new identities set up.

Once we did have outside accounts, we would be able to arrange electronic funds transfers to them through Shadowtown bank, so long as we had the money available. Mostly the bank just handled deposits, withdrawals, and money transfers like we were there for and provided a safe place to keep one’s money and valuables. For a very reasonable monthly fee, customers could rent a safety deposit box, and they had another option as well.

Our reward for bringing in George Porgie was paid out in gold and silver, and once exchanged for the currency that we were all more familiar with, it was a little more than fifty thousand dollars in total. The Fairies really wanted him to pay for what he had done, I guess. Even split four ways, that was a nice chunk of money for all of us and would help us to get settled into our new home more easily.

One by one, the pointy-eared lady at the counter served each of us, setting up an account to place our new funds in and to take out enough money to get some of the things that we might need for our house. We each left the lion’s share in our accounts though, since we didn’t want to be walking around with that much loose money on us. We figured that a couple thousand each would be enough to get the most important things while we priced out the pricier items like furniture.

We let Greta go first so she could sit and rest while waiting for the rest of us, but my turn was right after hers. After giving my name, new address in Shadowtown, and naming the BriarRose clan as my new employer, she had me look into a small mirror that hung beside her station. Looking at the other two tellers, I noticed a similar mirror beside each of their stations as well.

“Just look into the mirror and say your name, Miss Hood. The magic mirror will record your voice, facial features, and aura for your account security. This mirror and the others are linked, so the next time that you come in, the mirrors can be used to confirm your identity,” the teller, whose name was Lalia, explained.

I did as I was asked and, after a moment, my reflection repeated my name in my own voice. Then she had me repeat the process again and the mirror said in my voice, “Identity confirmed. Welcome back to Shadowtown Bank, Red hood.”

Okay, that was just a little spooky, but at least the teller was quick making my deposit and then withdrawing the drams of gold and silver that had an approximate value of $2500. At least my withdrawal didn’t weigh too much and was easily put into the purse on my hip. As I was doing that Lalia inquired, “Will that be all today, Miss Hood? Or can I interest you in one of our safe storage options?”

“What? Like a safety deposit box?”

Lalia nodded in response to my counter-question and offered, “We rent those out for a fee of two drams of silver a month. There is another option for a one-time fee of three drams of gold though; we have someone on staff who can create a private demesne for you that you can access to from almost anywhere to store important items or funds that you want access to more quickly and conveniently than making a trip to this bank.”

I considered the options for a moment and calculated the prices in my head. Both services seemed reasonably priced, especially the one-time fee for the demesne. Even if it were only the size of a safety deposit box, having a secure place to store money and other valuables that I could access anywhere seemed worth the price, especially since the Shadowtown Bank only had one branch. After a moment, my decision was made and I replied, “Sure, I’ll take one of those demesnes.”

“Great! I’ll withdraw the fee from your account balance then and take you to see Jeannie then,” she eagerly agreed. Then, once the fee was withdrawn, she made her way out from behind the counter and led me toward a group of four desks off in a quiet corner adjacent to the tellers. “This is where we usually interview for lines of credit and such, but Jeannie’s desk is here too. for convenience.”

She led me toward the desk that said, Jeannie Wilson: Financial Security Advisor. The desk was well organized with a computer on top, a stack of forms to one side and a very pretty, pink-hued crystal bottle that added a bit of color and character to the otherwise boring workstation. Maybe it was a vase, but there were no flowers in it at the moment. To my surprise, Lalia tapped on the bottle and said, “Hey, Jeannie, I have a customer for you.”

My jaw dropped as the bottle suddenly started pouring forth pink smoke, which then seemed to coalesce into the shape of a woman. She was slightly exotic and attractive, with blonde hair and blue eyes, lightly tanned skin, but a slightly middle eastern look to her face. She had an incredible figure, and her large chest was straining the top of the purple night shirt that she was wearing as she covered a yawn. I was still trying to get my mouth to work properly as Lalia left me with ‘Jeannie’ and I sputtered. “G-g-genie.”

“That’s my name, don’t wear it out,” the blonde agreed as she sat back in the chair behind the desk and propped her feet, complete with pink bunny slippers, up on the desk. “Ah, judging by the stunned look on your face, you must be new to Shadowtown. My name is Jeannie, but I’m not a Genie, I’m half Jinn and half human, my mother just has a horrible sense of humor.”

“But… you… lamp!” I sputtered. Way to play it cool, Red.

“It’s not a lamp, it’s a bottle, I just thought it was pretty, so I used it as the entrance to my demesne. Keeping it here saves on a commute so I can work from home. I’m only half Jinn, so no phenomenal cosmic powers for me, kiddo, just a long lifespan, an ability to turn into smoke, and a talent for certain types of magic. I certainly don’t grant wishes either… unless you’re here to wish for a demesne of your own, which is probably why Lalia brought you to see me.”

I found myself almost disappointed, though I suppose that if she could grant wishes, she probably wouldn’t be here as a working stiff. I was blushing as red as my favorite hoodie as I replied, “I… umm… yeah. That demesne thing sounded kinda useful, so I paid the fee for one. I’m Red, by the way.”

“Yes, you are,” she teased with a grin. “Anyway, now that you’ve gotten used to my awesomeness enough to speak full sentences, let me tell you about what I can do for you, and then we’ll decide on a medium for accessing your new demesne. What I’m going to do is a little bit of space magic, mixed with soul magic. Every Arcane has a connection to magic and with some, like Witches or the Fae, that connection is obvious, allowing them to use magic to manipulate the world around them, but even with those with a less obvious connection, their very souls are touched by it. Do you follow me so far?”

I found myself nodding as I considered what she had said. “So, as a Werewolf…”

“Yes, that connection is there. It’s why there are no cures for curses such as lycanthropy and vampirism because the magic doesn’t just affect your body, but permeates your soul as well, becoming a part of you that cannot be separated. A soul touched by magic will affect the body as well, changing it. For some, they get magic, some change to reflect their curse. Those with a command of magic can create their own demesnes with time and effort, or they can come to me to hurry things along,” the half Jinn explained before asking, “You said that you’re a Werewolf, right?”

I nodded and she smiled. “I’ve never worked on one of your kind before, this should be interesting. Anyway, for folks like you, who can’t go around throwing around magic spells, the only time that your magic gets a workout is when you’re changing forms, but while that means your magic pool is constantly growing, that growth is slow since you have no way of consciously controlling the flow of that magic unless you can learn to control your shifts. The demesne is made by tapping into your soul itself, and the stronger that your soul and its magic becomes, the larger your demesne will become to reflect that.”

“But if I have no way to control that magic, how could I use a demesne?” I asked uncertainly.

“Most magic users use a focal point to enter their domain,” Jeannie explained. “I have my bottle, but I’ve heard of others who use paintings or other items. A demesne is like a room that only the owner can enter, and we create doorways that we can use to enter them, the key to those doors is our magic. You can’t consciously control yours though, to when I tap into your soul to create your demesne, I’m going to need to create both a door and a key for you as well. For your sake, it would be better if both door and key were something that you could always keep with you. Some people use body art so they can’t be separated from the key for their demesnes. Body art I could help you with, a magic mark isn’t hard to create, but if you want specific items for the door and the key, you will have to bring them to me.”

After several minutes thinking it over, and a few suggestions from Jeannie, we decided on what would work best and then Jeannie used her magic to create my new demesne. It was uncomfortable for a moment, a sensation like something inside of me was being stretched too far for a moment before snapping back into place. By comparison, creating the key was much easier. It was just a slight tingling on the palm of my right hand and then there was a tattoo of a key there.

Jeannie assured me that since the tattoo was magical in nature, that only other Arcane would be able to see it. As for the door, the half Jinn had been especially creative with that while following a suggestion I made. Instead of tying all of the magic externally on an item that I would have to carry around with me all of the time, she had tied it to a single concept inside of my own mind.

As long as there was a door or lock for me to press my hand against, I would be able to use it to enter my demesne. In theory, it didn’t even have to be a real lock or door, I should just be able to draw one if needed, so long as the general image and idea was there, and I was focusing on opening my demesne. Jeannie also suggested getting a tattoo incorporating a lock somewhere on my body that I could reach easily for emergencies.

Then it was time to test it. Jeannie took a pen and a stack of post-it notes from her desk and scribbled a rough padlock on it. I was half expecting to have to try again on an actual door, but I was pleasantly surprised, and a little shocked to find myself suddenly inside a dark, unfamiliar, and empty space. Fortunately, during our short talk, the half Jinn had prepared me for what would lay inside.

It was larger than I expected. I was expecting not much more than a small closet, but this was easily the size of the bedroom I had slept in last night, though it could use walls, floors and a few personal touches. That would be the easy part. This place was a part of me, part of my soul, so Jeannie said that it should respond to my thoughts. Nothing that I created in here would be real, of course, just very realistic illusions. Only whatever I happened to bring from the world outside would be able to be taken back outside, and I would need to have items on me or maintain physical contact to move them in or out of my domain.

I didn’t bother doing any decorating or anything more than getting an idea of the general size, before focusing my thoughts on going back to the real world and reappearing in the spot I had vacated a few minutes earlier. Unfortunately, I couldn’t appear anywhere I wanted since when people without some sort of space magic left the real world for a demesne, they could only return to the magical placeholder mark that took their place when they left. If that spot happened to be occupied, then I would materialize in the nearest unoccupied space.

Well, at least now I knew it worked, and I had a safe place to store my bike and other important stuff. I supposed that in a worst-case scenario it could give me a safe place to sleep as well. I had half considered it as a possible cage for myself when the full moon came around, but Jeannie had said that all that was really required for me to return to the real world was for me to want to leave my demesne. She had also warned me that since I was a werewolf that the wolf was part of me, so that would extend to her as well.

A moment after I returned, Goldie was brought over to get her own demesne and I left her and Jeannie to it while I went to join Greta and wait for Berry to finish setting up her bank account and stuff. Berry was finished first and it was almost ten minutes before Goldie joined us in the waiting area, her mind thoroughly blown after her time with Jeannie if the expression on her face was any indication. Out of the four of us, Goldie and I were the only ones who invested in a demesne, but Berry didn’t really have any belongings yet or need a lot of space and Greta could probably create a demesne of her own once her magic was more dependable.

With our banking done, we quickly headed next door to the currency exchange, where a Leprechaun happily exchanged our gold and silver for their current market value in American dollars. The exchange wasn’t really all that interesting except for meeting the Leprechaun. Cerriwyn assured us that there would be many more interesting things to see when she showed us around Shadowtown after breakfast so we could spend some of our hard-earned money. First though, we needed to find a place to eat before Greta passed out.