Two men herded a few small children down the sidewalk of Trick’s street, but otherwise the neighborhood was quiet. I sat in my SUV, calling Zoey before I forgot, leaving her a message when she didn’t answer telling her that I made it to Seattle okay. I loved my sister, but I felt a little relieved that she hadn’t answered. This morning had left me both exhilarated at the idea of my new start and sad because of everything with my sister, so I felt a little wrung out. That done, I got out to stretch and check out my new home.

Trick lived in a gray Craftsman house with white accents and a front porch large enough to have rocking chairs on one side, a porch swing on the other. It was rather domestic and normal looking and not at all what I expected from Trick. It didn’t look like it would spit out Gomez and Morticia Addams, for one thing. Maybe he planned on doing the goth transformation slowly as cash allowed. Trick made pretty good money as an elementist, but he wasn’t exactly swimming in it.

For a second, I wondered if I’d written down the address wrong. Then I saw the grotesque door knocker and the doormat that said “Go Away” and figured I had the right place after all. I dropped my bag on the mat and was about to knock when the door swung open, revealing Trick and his big shit-eating grin.

“You’re here! And you’re bearded now, which is exactly what I expect from anyone coming up from Portland, but I’m going to hug you anyway.”

I hugged Trick back, instantly enveloped in the smells of clove, coffee, and fire, scents that I enjoyed on their own, but also found comforting because I associated them with Trick. He was also one of the human guys I knew that could hug without doing that awkward back-pat thing. Wolves are very touchy. We hug and comfort with touch, and it’s weird to watch humans go out of their way to avoid it. Humans were also pack animals, they just liked to pretend they weren’t.

“You smell the same,” I said, releasing my friend, feeling better than I had in days. I straightened up, smiling.

“Well, that’s not creepy at all.” Trick squinted at me. “What do I smell like?”

“Like morning goth—coffee, clove and smoke.” In Trick’s case, the smoke smell was complex—woodsmoke, but also coal, solvents, and hot steel. “Did you just come from work?”

He held the door wider for me. “Yeah, I knocked off early today so I could be here to welcome you.” He cocked his head to the side. “What does evening goth smell like?”

“Coffee, clove, and ennui.” I picked up my bag. “The ennui is there in the morning, but it takes all day for the smell to really set in.”

“You’re seeking revenge because of the beard comment, aren’t you?”

“No, I plan on doing that later. When you least expect it.” I wiped my feet on the mat and made my way in, leaving my bag in the entryway. “It’s not like you don’t have the exact same hipsters here as we do in Portland, you just like to make fun of Portland.” I toed off my shoes. “It wasn’t a big fashion choice, I just didn’t feel much like shaving lately.” I hadn’t felt like doing much at all, really.