Siena wasn't expecting the sadness that overwhelmed her progressively as her plane eased into flight almost an hour after she said goodbye to James. She missed him, leaving him behind made her feel just as melancholic as returning from the book worlds.

Clutching at her necklace, she dabbed at the tears tingling the corners of her eyes with the sleeve of her cardigan. She could feel, rather than see, that the stone that had been glowing upon her chest for two weeks was fading gradually as the distance between her and James grew.

Siena sighed and settled more comfortably into her seat when the aeroplane flew into, then above the silvery fluff of low clouds, separating her from the world. She was simply tired; that was the reason why she was so emotional; she needed a couple of nights of good sleep to recover, to be herself again. Nights that she would spend alone...

She sighed again as she remembered the last night, the wonderful sensation of James' arms closed around her... He was so unexpected. So good and understanding. So different from the other men she had met before... She pushed the thought away quickly. Siena had promised herself that she would never stray down this path again. She had had her experience with men, and that was enough; she had Dante now who gave her more affection than any man ever would. And James, as perfect as he seemed, couldn't belong to her, there was a Claire in his life, he had already chosen...

Taking another shaky breath, Siena smiled. She missed her beloved cat, she couldn't wait to be back at home.

James put his earbuds into his ears and chose his favourite mix of classical music, closing his eyes with delight as the first notes of Claire de Lune entered his mind. Loud, well-selected-for-the-current-mood music always soothed him, helped him to focus, think, or forget... He needed to forget the temporary loss of Siena now. He felt her absence at his side as almost physical pain, but he couldn't afford to let this feeling drive him insane, it would be months before he met her again personally.

Why didn't she suggest for them to meet before Christmas? She was so afraid of getting hurt, betrayed, broken-hearted... He wondered what had happened to her before, what experience had shaped her into the woman she was now... Woman... She was twenty-three, but in so many ways, she felt so much younger, making him feel old at thirty.

He boarded the plane, nodding at the flight assistant who, with a polite smile, signed to him to turn the music down.

He obliged, staring out of the round window until it was time to turn the phone off. Then he took the small paperback copy of Frankenstein he had borrowed from the flat from his pocket. He needed to reread the book; he didn't remember all the events of its plot clearly and confused what he recalled with the few movie versions, significantly changed from the original, which he had seen. It would be dangerous to travel into this particular world without knowing it by heart. 

Siena was just considering whether she should take a bus or call a taxi when she received Alessandro's text telling her that he was on his way to pick her up. Smiling, she walked out into the sunlit, hot and humid Italian afternoon, taking off her cardigan while she typed a reply to Alessandro, then walked to the spot he suggested. 

"Ale," she greeted her best friend cheerfully from the back seat of his tiny, sky blue citycar where she sat behind smiling Luca, his boyfriend. They were such a great couple, Siena often wondered at their being together for almost ten years now when so many other couples she knew never lasted more than a few months, her own dating history included. 

"Don't ever do this to me again, girl, leaving like that, from one day to another, texting me from London. I've been worried the entire time, London is huge and dangerous, people disappear there on a daily basis!" Alessandro complained as he patiently eased the car into the thick traffic around the airport. 

Siena leaned forward and put her hand on his shoulder soothingly. "I'm sorry you were worried, but you shouldn't have, I'm fine as you can see..."

He didn't allow her to explain before he continued. "But how should I not have worried, you've never done anything like this before, you've never even gone on holiday since I know you, you're always at home after work, you don't even meet anyone."

Siena sighed. Seeing herself through his eyes was quite sad and boring.

"Well, I've never really had a reason to go anywhere, nor anyone to go with. But it all changed now, I'm leaving again for Christmas."

"What? Are you going to miss our famous Christmas party? You can't be serious!" Luca joined the conversation, turning around in his seat to face her, his dark brown irises lined by long black eye lashes ablaze with interest. 

"So what's so very important? What's this excitement that makes your eyes twinkle about? Come on, spill the beans Signorina De Angelis. And no fibbing, I did notice that ostentatious pendant you are wearing," Alessandro insisted, casting her surreptitious glances in the rearview mirror, laughing when her cheeks began to glow.

"Well... hmm," Siena mumbled, not knowing what to say. She wasn't supposed to talk about the Society but she couldn't leave her best friend without an answer. She needed to tell him a few things as close to the truth as possible without disclosing anything super secret. "I was asked to help with something that my grandmother had been doing before she died. I like the idea and see no reason for not getting involved. I'll be going to London each holiday in the foreseeable future. That's as much as I'm going to tell you, Ale."

She shrugged, and he nodded at her in the mirror, slowly and thoughtfully, his warm, chocolate coloured eyes framed by the thick black curls hovering around his handsome face alight with curiosity. But he was too polite to continue the interrogation in this direction.

"And you met someone," he announced smugly, "you can't hide that from me. You are afire with infatuation."

She stuck her tongue out at him, making Luca laugh, which earned him a playful slap on the head from his boyfriend. This was between him and Siena; Alessandro felt too honoured by being the chosen keeper of her secrets to share them with anyone. 

"You missed the reunion at school today. Everyone was asking about you as you've never missed any before. But there is no news, really. We're all supposed to turn up at eight tomorrow, as always," he mentioned, changing the subject. 

Siena nodded. "So what have you two been up to these two weeks?" she asked, looking outside. They have already reached the river, soon she would be at home, with Dante.

"Ale finally agreed to meet my family, and we spent a week in Sicily, can't you tell?" Luca asked, extending his arm towards her, showing off his tan.

"And how did that go?" Siena asked, her eyes intent on the back of her friend's head, too busy watching the hectic traffic crawling through the crowded streets of the city to risk a glance in the mirror. 

"Cool," he said simply. "Luca's parents are wonderful, unlike mine."

Siena could hear the profound sadness laced with resignation underlying those words. Alessandro hadn't had it easy, his parents as good as disowned him when he came out to them a few years ago.

She put her hand on his shoulder again and squeezed, earning herself a smile even as Ale parked his car outside her house. He preceded her out of the car.

"Bye Luca, thanks for coming to pick me up." Siena smiled at the other man before getting out.

"It's always a pleasure seeing you, Siena," the charismatic young man dressed in the latest fashion replied while Ale opened her door, and she passed him her bag. 

He walked with her across the street to the door of her house and waited until she unlocked it, then asked as she took her bag from him, "Can you manage? I can carry it for you to your flat." 

"I'm good, it's just three floors. Thanks, Ale." She put her arm around his waist when he drew her into an embrace. 

"I'm taking Luca to the gallery. They have a vernissage tonight, so I'm free. Do you want me to pop in later?"

"Hmm, why not? How about a dinner? I'll cook something quick..." she mused, trying to remember whether she had enough food at home to cook from. 

"No, I'll get us pizzas on my way. You have just arrived. No one's cooking tonight. I'll tell you about my holiday in Sicily and the reunion, and you'll tell me about your... new friend."

Siena shook her head at his insistence but smiled. "Just come whenever you are ready. I'll be waiting. A pizza with tuna for me, please, as always."

"So you can give all the tuna to Dante, as always." He laughed, already walking away from her, back towards the car. "I'll get you a decent Margherita and a can of tuna for your spoiled tomcat. See you after eight!"

She stood in the doorway, framed in the cool darkness of the ancient palazzo, until Ale drove by, honking, and she waved at the couple. Then she let the door close behind her, switched on the light, and rushed up the few flights of wide stairs to her third floor flat. 

She knocked at her neighbour's door the first thing, telling the elderly woman that she was back, thanking her for looking after Dante.

"It was a pleasure, Siena," she dismissed her thanks. "I'm so glad that you managed to get away before the school starts; your work is so stressful. Did you have a nice time?"

"I did, Signora Rossi, I'm just more tired than before the holidays." She smiled. "Did you have a nice time yourself?"

"Oh just the same old, really, well, I'll be seeing you around, go and rest, you'll have an early start tomorrow, I suppose."

Siena nodded and waved at the woman before she disappeared behind the door again. She unlocked her own flat then and switched on the lights, the closed shutters making it impossible to see anything even though there was still daylight outside. 

She dropped her bag on the floor then listened to the whisper of light paws approaching unseen across the tiled floors, the sound followed by their owner's fluffy ginger head peeking from behind the unclosed door to her bedroom. 

So he was rightfully angry with her; she had never left him alone for so long. His anger evaporating fast at seeing his beloved human, Dante moved towards her, weaving his way fast through the piles of books filling the sitting room which separated them, purring loudly even as she moved towards him, repeating his name followed by hundreds of soft words about how much she had missed him.

She didn't get to unload her bag nor take a shower for the next half an hour, when she had to carry the purring, overjoyed ball of ginger fur in her arms until he was satisfied with the amount of attention she had given him,  content to believe that she wasn't leaving him again any time soon. Only then did he go to lay down on his favourite dark blue blanket, which he had shaped into a spacious nest in her reading armchair. 

Siena's hair was still wet when Alessandro arrived at half past eight, two pizzas, a bottle of wine, and a can of tuna in his hands.