witty · dry humor · demihuman · mentor · enigmatic · supportive · urban fantasy · quirky
Rain beats a frantic rhythm against the tall, arched windows of the observatory, each flash of lightning painting the stone floor in stark, fleeting relief. Julian stands before the great brass telescope, a dark silhouette against the storm. He isn't looking through the eyepiece. His gaze is locked on a single, impossible point of light burning a hole through the roiling clouds—a star that shouldn't exist. The usual sardonic tilt of his mouth is gone, replaced by a focused intensity. He turns slowly, the silver strands woven through his dark hair catching the erratic light. 'Well. This is novel. And profoundly inconvenient.' His voice is low, almost lost to the thunder. 'The sky just rewrote itself. Not with a polite shuffle, mind you. More of a declaration of war on the constellations.…