She had been expecting an answer to that effect, partly because no one would want to admit to being unlucky and partly because she wasn't inclined to believe that particular bit of lore herself. Juliana did not consider herself a superstitious person (her belief about fate and destiny aside), and she did not put stock in things that could not be proven. The fact that there was no academic publication that even mentioned a proclivity of twins to experience bad luck was evidence enough for her that it was most likely fictitious. Something in the way that Miss Smith phrased her answer struck her, though, and Jules leaned forward slightly with her elbow leaning on one of the arms of the chair.

"So you believe in fate, but not in luck?" she asked curiously. "What a fascinating point of view."

  

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Prof. Marlowe Forfang

Jules

Jo had engaged in limitless conversations in her life and this one might actually have rocketed up to the most peculiar of them all. Had she appeared in any other shop, the assistant would've accepted the error and sent Jo on her way. They wouldn't have brewed a pot of tea and arranged a tray of biscuits for someone that wasn't even a potential customer. Not for the first time since sitting on the sofa Jo felt completely bewildered.

"What of you, then? Do you believe in luck or fate?" Thus far the conversation had centered mostly around herself (which wasn't an uncommon occurrence in itself but Jo didn't know Ms. Binns well enough yet to have her entire psyche picked apart) and she was eager to turn it around.

  

"Fate, certainly," she agreed with a nod. Most people, when they talked about the two concepts, used the word fate and luck interchangeably, and Juliana had never taken the time to parse out whether she felt differently about luck. She took a moment to do so before answering, while taking a long sip of her tea. "And luck too, but in a different way. It's like... fate is what will happen whether you help it along or not, and luck are the little hints you get about it as you go. So there is room, I suppose, for a bit more agency in luck than in fate," she reflected.

She took another sip of her tea and considered. "This is the first time I've been asked about that distinction, you know; I don't know that many people differentiate them. Perhaps it's more a difference of semantics than anything else. I haven't fully considered it yet," she admitted. "So you'll have to forgive me if that isn't the most articulate explanation."

  

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Prof. Marlowe Forfang

Jules

Articulate explanation or not, Jo found herself readily agreeing with the assessment. Fate was an inevitable force guiding one towards their final destination, visible in both incredibly simple or complex ways. Such as the Sorting Hat shouting a young child's house or the decision on where to go next in life. Fate was, in her opinion, what her family's religion mistaking named as God.

"Fate is why I mistakingly arrived here today. Luck is why I chose not to immediately leave." She explained as an example to Ms. Binns' response.

  

Jules nodded appreciatively as Miss Smith elaborated on her explanation. She may have only come up with it a minute before, but it had a nice ring to it. She could, perhaps, stand to refine it a bit more with some reflection and deliberate choice of words, but it had a general feeling of truth to it and she was pleased that the conversation had turned this particular direction and allowed her to discover it.

"Your fate that the floo malfunctioned," she added with a small smile. "My good luck that you stayed."

  

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Prof. Marlowe Forfang

Jules

The temptation to flirt was tempered only by the sound knowledge that she was, in fact, still in London. Ms. Binns didn't seem to mind an impromptu tea with a stranger, but she might very well be offended by Jo's advances. Or, she might not. Ms. Binns didn't seem the type to make harsh judgements on people within minutes of meeting them (like Jo so often did). Though, out of respect for Zechariah, Jo wasn't about to try.

Instead, she stole a glance towards the ornate clock on the wall and noted it was close to the time Mrs. Abercrombie was set to arrive. Despite having never met the married woman Jo had an inkling she wouldn't be pleased to find some degenerate sitting on the sofa when the place was set to be open onto to her. Jo drained the remnants of her tea, stopping only for a few seconds to see if there were any obvious foretellings at the bottom of the cup. There weren't as far as she could tell, though divination was never her specialty.

"Thank you very much for the tea, Ms. Binns." Jo said with a grin. "I should be on my way now, though. I'd hate to upset Mrs. Abercrombie." She stole a shortbread cookie from the plate and stood, looking once more towards the clock. "Perhaps fate might bring us together again sometime. I promise to have more eloquent answers for you then."

  

"Indeed," Jules said pleasantly as she set her own tea cup down. She'd have to clear these things away before Mrs. Abercrombie arrived, but it wasn't yet so close to three that there was any particular hurry. It wasn't as though the sight of used tea cups was likely to offend anyone, even the staunchest member of upper crust society.

"Perhaps so," she agreed as she rose and went to get the woman's coat. She didn't know whether they would meet again or not, actually — the workings of fate were a bit beyond her scope, after all. It had been important that Miss Smith come to the House of Lytton this afternoon, she knew, or else it wouldn't have happened — but whether the message from the universe was that the two of them ought to meet and become friends, or whether Miss Smith's dress hem was due for repair and this was merely a method of reminding her, it wasn't for Juliana to say. Anything was possible.

"You needn't bother about trying to be more eloquent," she said as she returned the coat. "I enjoyed our unexpected chat. Though if we do meet again, perhaps you can tell me more about archaeology," she suggested. "I didn't even ask if you'd published anything I might have read, and now, looking back, I think it was probably quite rude of me — but it was an oversight on my part, you'll have to believe, not an intentional slight." She smiled brightly at Miss Smith. "Until then!"

  

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Prof. Marlowe Forfang

Jules