Dr. Larsen gathered up her stuff. “I’ll call the tribunal tonight, Lou, and text the info.”

“What about work?” Lou mumbled as Trick slipped his arm under her shoulders.

“I’m going to rearrange both of our schedules tomorrow. You’ll be on hiatus until the tribunal clears you, anyway.” She kissed Lou’s cheek, patting it afterward like she could press the kiss in deeper. “I will be there for your hearing, baby girl. You won’t have to do this alone, promise.”

Lou squeezed her hand. “Love you, Mama Ami. Sorry to cause such a fu…fuss.”

She waved it off. “Excitement keeps us young. Now take your wolf to bed. You both need it. Try not to spend the whole night worrying. All your problems will keep until morning.”

Mama Ami smiled at me. Take care of her, please. The wolf chuffed and she must have been okay with that response, because she left.

I padded behind Lou as Trick helped her to her room. I’d been in Lou’s room before when I dropped off her laundry. A queen-sized bed rested against the wall under the window. She’d shoved her dresser into the closet to make room for a small desk along the other wall. The desk was made of a light wood—or so I guessed from the legs, since the top was covered in papers, books, and empty mugs.

Clothes were mostly in the hamper. A few framed family photos were clustered on the light-green walls along with a corkboard and a few posters. A small bookcase stuffed with paperbacks balanced out the room. It was the kind of messy that said she was more busy than careless, and it smelled like her and the clinic where she worked. Comfortable. Home.

Van’s ferrets perched on Lou’s pillows, her pajamas hanging from their mouths. They dropped them into her hands and chirped at her.

“I’m already wearing pajamas,” Lou said.

“Yeah, but they’re covered in blood and wolf hair,” Van said, snatching both the ferrets up and hugging them to her. “This is like a fucked-up version of Cinderella. Stop dressing my roommate.”

Lou wasn’t as messy as Van and Trick, but at some point, I’d managed to smear her with blood, right at her midsection. I whined.

“It’s okay. It’ll wash.” She frowned at me. “Not sure what to do with you, though. Too late for a bath.” She touched my fur, her fingers gentle. “They got a lot of it off. The rest is dry at least.”

“I’m going to go get changed.” Van kissed Lou’s temple. “Everything is going to be okay.”

Trick did the same and they both went to leave. Trick held the door open, staring at me.

I sat on the floor and stared back.

Trick shrugged and shut the door.

Lou stood by her bed, her pajamas dangling from her fingers. “I don’t think Mama Ami meant it literally. Just that we both needed to go to bed. You don’t have to stay in here if you don’t want.”