The Woodward Academy, Year 3

Chapter 9: February

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"Morning, David," Gwen said as she sat down at the table. She yawned as the pixie showed up to take her order. When she was done, she said, "God, I envy Olissa. She gets to sleep in."

"But she misses breakfast," David pointed out.

"I'll take sleep over food any day," Gwen said.

"I guess. Say, your family's lived in Dugerra for a long time, right?"

"Over five hundred years, yeah. Why?"

David pulled out the picture he had imaged of the amulet. "Do you recognize this?"

Gwen looked at it for a long moment, then handed it back. "Nope. What is it?"

"If I knew that, I wouldn't be asking you!" he said with a grin. Gwen grinned sheepishly.

"I mean, is it something you saw, or what?"

"Someone sent it to me in the mail. I think they were trying to steal it back, so I'm hoping I can figure out what it is and what it does, so I know how much trouble it's going to cause me."

"Why not just give it back to them?"

"I don't know who gave it to me. Besides, what if it's a strong magical item?"

"Why'd they give it to you in the first place?"

David explained about the crystal.

Gwen said, "Well, good luck. I've never seen it before. Ugly thing, if you ask me."

"Yeah."

As Simon showed up at the table, another pixie popped in place, but this one was Kippy.

"David Stroud?" she asked.

"No, Casper the Friendly Ghost," he told her. He chuckled when he saw the confused look on her face. "What's the dean want, Kippy?" he asked.

Kippy shook her head. "She would like you to come to her office when you have a free moment. She said not to miss class for it."

David nodded, and Kippy disappeared.

"What's that all about?" Gwen asked.

"Hell if I know. Guess I'll find out later. I can't go now, I have class."

-----

"Hey, Tracy," David said in greeting.

"Well, hey, David," she replied brightly. "Need to see the dean?"

"Yeah, she said she wanted me to drop by when I had a chance. Any idea what it's about?"

"Even if I did, you know I wouldn't tell you," she said, smiling tolerantly at him.

"Aww, c'mon. Not even for a nice guy like me?"

"Especially for a nice guy like you!"

David chuckled.

"You'll have to wait, though. She's having a conference with another student at the moment."

David nodded, then went over and took a seat. It took several minutes before the other student came out, looking quite unhappy and chastised. Dean Lengel appeared at the door behind the student.

"I'm going to lunch, Tracy. Oh, David, I didn't see you."

"I can come back later, ma'am," he said, standing.

"No, that's okay. We can walk and talk. I assume you, also, haven't eaten lunch yet."

"Not yet, no," he said with a smile.

David followed Dean Lengel out of the building, and walked beside her toward the rock lift.

"How is your Conjuring class going?" she asked him.

"Oh, just swimmingly," he said, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "If you like spending time in detention and being annoyed by a hostile TA."

Dean Lengel frowned. "His assistant is also harassing you?"

"His chosen 'assistant', ma'am, is Marcus Savolar."

"Oh, good lord."

"Yeah. Needless to say, I don't get any breaks now. Marcus still has it in for me, so he makes sure that if Prof. Quayde doesn't have a chance to annoy me, he takes care of it himself."

"Do I need to step in?"

"I can handle Marcus, ma'am, as I've already reminded him."

"David..."

"Don't bother with the warning. I won't put up with his crap for very long. I'll take the detention weeks."

Dean Lengel frowned.

"Was this what you wanted to talk about?"

"No." She took a deep breath. "As I'm sure you know, since you always stay through the spring break, we hold orientation for new students during that time. It allows us to let them see the campus without getting in the way of the current classes and such."

David nodded. "I've seen them. I made sure to stay as far away from them as possible."

Dean Lengel cocked her head. "Why?"

"Didn't want to scare any of them away by showing my face. Is enrollment down because I'm here?"

Dean Lengel snorted. "Not in the slightest. Perhaps there are some people who don't apply, knowing you're here, but I frankly don't want those students in my Academy, anyway. And it's funny that you actively avoided them before... because of what it is I'm asking you to do."

"And that would be?"

"I want you to be one of the group leaders during orientation. See, we break up the new students into small groups, so that they can tour the school, ask questions, and not feel lost in the crowd. Each year, we ask sixty students from the third- and fourth-year classes to act as group leaders, to conduct the tours and answer the questions, etc."

David held the door open for the dean as they entered the lunch room. He followed her over to her table, so they could continue to talk. "Why me?" David asked.

The dean ordered her food, waited for David to do the same, then answered him. "You've made a point of learning not just your lessons, but learning the school itself. Your work on the handbook last year advanced that even further. I can't think of anyone more qualified to be a group leader than you. In fact, I'm asking all of the handbook people, except Jared, to participate."

"What, exactly, does this entail?"

"Truthfully, it will take up two days of your life. One day, right before break, will be a training day. It'll give you information about what you need to tell them, the very few things you should not tell them, and just some guidelines and suggestions about how to conduct the tours. Then, the day of orientation, you'll act as escort for your group, showing them around, making sure they get fed, that kind of thing. And that'll be that. So, are you interested?"

"Sure. I guess. Hopefully I won't be busy recovering from a dark wizard attack this year..."

Dean Lengel smiled at him. "Yes, let's keep those to a minimum, shall we?"

~~≈≡≈~~~≈≡≈~~~≈≡≈~~

"Good evening, David," Penny said. She gave him a brief, soft kiss, for she knew that he was dating now. He hugged her for a long moment, and finally let her go.

"What brings you up to the castle tonight?"

"I can't come just to say hi?" he said, teasing her.

Penny blushed. "Yes, you can, but you usually don't," she replied.

"Ouch," David said. "Harsh."

"But true."

"I suppose. And you're right, I did have a reason for coming."

"Something I can help with?"

"Well, I'm hoping someone here can." David pulled out the image of the amulet. "Have you ever seen this before?"

Penny studied the image, then shook her head. "I'd never wear something that ugly."

"Good to know, for next Christmas," David said with a chuckle.

Penny smiled. "You have not disappointed me with any of your gifts," she told him. In fact, he regularly saw her wearing the things he got for her. Right now, she was wearing the necklace he had bought her for this past Christmas. "I'm sorry I can't be more help. Is this important?"

"I'm not sure. That depends on what the amulet is." Penny nodded. "I figured I'd wander around and ask whatever ghosts I ran into. The only other person I want to make sure to ask is Lord Woodward, of course. As long as he's been around, he has the best chance of having seen it before."

Penny nodded. "He is probably in the South Tower."

"Okay, thanks. You want to come with me?"

"I would, but I can't. I was on my way to visit with someone when you showed up."

"Oh. Well, sorry for delaying you."

"I'm not," she said with a grin. She kissed him again, and then they separated. David headed for the South Tower of the castle.

David located Lord Woodward at the very top of the tower, looking out over the ocean.

"Good evening, David," Lord Woodward said without turning around.

"I won't ask how you knew it was me, sir," David said.

Lord Woodward laughed. "My wizard powers haven't yet faded completely," he said. "Besides, your ghost energy is quite unique."

"Yes, sir," David replied.

"Since it borders on the nigh impossible that you made your way all the way up here by accident, I will assume you're looking for me. What can I do for you?"

"Yes, sir, I was looking for you," David replied. He pulled out the image of the amulet again. "I was wondering if you had ever seen this before, or if you know what it is."

Lord Woodward looked at the image for a long moment. Finally, he said, "Well. Of course, any object I would have seen like that would have been a thousand years ago. A long time to think back on things. The design does look vaguely familiar, but I don't seem to be able to pull up a memory to go with that impression."

"Can you give me any suggestions who to ask, or where to look, where I might find more information?"

"You can try the castle library. I assume you've already looked in the Academy's library."

"I did once, but it was a brief look. I'd planned to look again, if no one I asked could recognize it."

Lord Woodward nodded. "A wise course. If I am remembering correctly, that I have seen that amulet somewhere, and my old mind isn't just playing tricks, then what you have there is very, very old. At least a thousand years. Perhaps much more than that. As I said, check the school's library, and the castle library. In the castle library there are several books on talismans. You will have to search each of them individually, of course."

"Yes, sir. Thank you. I'll go have a look now, if that's all right with you."

"Be my guest, David. Someone should get use of the collection. I certainly don't."

"Good night, sir."

~~≈≡≈~~~≈≡≈~~~≈≡≈~~

"Can I help you?"

"Yeah. Can you tell me where the references on ancient talismans would be found?"

"Oh, geez. I'm new here. Let me get the librarian for you." The girl stepped back and called into a back room. "Paige? There's someone out here who needs help."

The librarian made her way to the desk. "Yes, can I help you?"

"Hi, Mrs. Turner. I'm looking for a reference book on ancient talismans."

"Any talisman in particular, or are you looking for basic information?"

David pulled out the image. "I'm looking for information on this amulet."

Mrs. Turner looked at it. "Why must magical items always be so gaudy? Okay, I can show you the books you'll need to look through."

"I take it you've never seen this amulet before, then," David said.

"Me? No. But then, ancient artifacts aren't my thing. Now then, right here, all the books on this shelf, from here to... oh, I'd say here... might have something useful in them for you."

"Okay, thank you, ma'am."

"Certainly."

~~≈≡≈~~~≈≡≈~~~≈≡≈~~

"Hey, David... you look a little harried..." Simon said at breakfast.

"Spent too much time at the library, then had to work overtime to get my actual homework done. I nearly didn't finish my Conjuring homework."

"Why bother?" Gwen asked. "He's not going to give you the grade it deserves, anyway..."

"I don't want to give him any excuses."

"Did you get any sleep?" Olissa asked.

"Oh, I got my usual four hours. It just wasn't very restful. Speaking of, why are you here on a Monday?"

"Woke up from a bad dream, couldn't get back to sleep," she said.

David nodded.

Simon asked, "What were you in the library for? More Conjuring reports?"

"No. I'm trying to identify this stupid amulet, to see why someone might want it. It's big, ugly, and I haven't seen it do a thing, other than flash some lights at me."

"Maybe it's costume jewelry," Gwen said with a smirk.

"Uh-huh," David said sarcastically.

"I wouldn't worry too much about it. Have you hidden it someplace safe?" Olissa asked.

"I've rented a personal vault at the bank for it, and for my potions book. If whoever it is can get in there, then I don't know why they'd need the amulet, whatever it does."

There was general consensus on that point.

"Might as well just let it rest, then," Simon said, agreeing with Olissa. "You've got more important things to deal with at the moment."

"Ain't that the truth," David replied.

~~≈≡≈~~~≈≡≈~~~≈≡≈~~

"Damn, dude, you been up all night? What is all this?"

"Conjuring," David said. "I slept, but I'm starting to worry about my other classes. Quayde is giving me so much work to do that something's going to have to give sooner or later."

"You finish that report he's making you do yet?"

"No. I've got about half of it planned out, nothing written, and I'm not done researching. Then there's these extra assignments he's giving me."

"Talk to the dean?" Jim suggested.

"I already have. There's nothing she can do about it."

"That sucks."

"Tell me about it."

"How much more you got to do?"

"About twenty questions."

"Well, give it a rest. Let's go to breakfast. You've got until tomorrow to finish those up, anyway."

David sat back and sighed. "Yeah, I guess you're right. Let's go."

"You know he's going to flunk you, so why are you trying so hard?" Jim asked as they walked toward Byron Hall.

"I don't want him to be able to claim he had good reason to flunk me. If I do all the work he gives me, then he can't say I didn't do the assignments, and that's why he flunked me."

"You said you challenged for 301. You know you're probably going to have to challenge for 302, so..."

"Ah, and there's the rub. The dean decides whether I can challenge for 302. If he can show her a history of not-done assignments, she just might not let me challenge out."

"Ouch. I hadn't thought of that."

"Yeah, don't worry, I did. Dean Lengel may be on my side, but she's still got a school to run, and discipline to uphold."

"Yeah, I hear ya. Say, you got a date for the Festival?"

"Of course. I'll be going out with my girlfriend. What about you?"

"I guess so. Devyn hasn't mentioned it yet."

"She may just expect that you two are going together, or maybe she's waiting for you to say something."

"Which do you figure?" Jim asked.

"Hell if I know. I never figured her out."

"Oh."

With that, they entered the lunch room, and joined their friends for breakfast.

~~≈≡≈~~~≈≡≈~~~≈≡≈~~

"Hello, Professor," David said to Prof. Fibblebitz curiously. He had just entered his Metamorphosis class, but she was not his instructor. "How are you today?"

"I'm fine, David. Can I speak to you for a minute, privately?" She led him to the side room which was used for the practical examinations.

Once the door was closed, she turned and he took her into his arms, kissing her passionately for a long moment. It took a solid minute before they separated.

"Mmm, I missed that," she said with a smile.

"Want another one?" David asked.

Lise wavered for a moment, then shook her head. "If I do, you'll be late for class."

"The teacher will understand. Trust me," David said with a smirk.

Lise blushed, but pushed him away. "I just wanted to know if you'd made plans for the Festival."

David cocked his head. "I forgot to ask you if you'd go with me, didn't I?" He saw the look in her eyes. "I'm sorry, Lise. I just assumed we were going together. You're my girlfriend, after all."

Lise smiled in relief and happiness. "Don't fret. I'm just too much of a worrier. So, what're we going to do?" she asked.

"Have you ever been to Earth?" he asked her.

"No. I was born here in Dugerra, and haven't had a reason to travel there. Why?"

"Well, I thought we could go to Earth for dinner, then perhaps a movie, or a walk through a park, then come back here and enjoy some of the Festival here."

"That sounds nice," she said moving close to him. He put his arms around her, and she laid her head on his shoulder for a moment. Finally, she looked up, and they kissed again. "I love you, David. You're so very good to me."

"You're worth it," he told her, and kissed her softly again.

"Come on. You're probably late for class, and I know I am."

They stepped out into the classroom just as Prof. Arpilla was about to begin her lecture. They both nodded to Cat, and David took his seat while Prof. Fibblebitz made her way out of the room. Prof. Arpilla looked at David to see if there was a problem, but he just smiled slightly at her, and so she knew things were okay, and she began her lecture without further interruption.

~~≈≡≈~~~≈≡≈~~~≈≡≈~~

"God damned mother fucking cunt bitch dyke whore," Jim said upon entering the dorm room. It was clear that he had been muttering such obscenities for some time now, as he seemed to have settled into a rhythm of it already.

David looked at Jim as Jim threw his backpack into a corner with some vehemence, more vitriol spilling from his lips.

"Um... hey there... uh... problem?"

Jim glared at him for a long moment, then sat down on his bed. David didn't know that people could sit down quite that angrily.

"Fucking bitch Devyn just broke up with me! The night before the goddamned Festival! That little cow... she never even gave me a handjob or anything! Four blue-balls-filled months of her bullshit, and then she dumps me tonight? God I wanted to punch her right in the face!"

"You didn't..."

"Hit her? No, but fuck I wanted to!"

"What reason did she give?"

"She just said she didn't feel like going out with me anymore, and that she had a date with some girl or other tomorrow night."

"Sorry dude. I did warn you how much of a bitch she was..."

"Yeah, I know. But... goddammit, I wanna get laid!"

David tried not to laugh, but it was difficult. His friend had every right to be angry, but the tone of his voice was just pitiful. David turned his head to hide the smirk, and Jim went back to muttering about unpleasant women.

~~≈≡≈~~~≈≡≈~~~≈≡≈~~

David returned to the dorm room, glad that Prof. Rutherford had ended class early. It gave him time to take a shower and change before he was supposed to pick up Lise for their date. He was also glad that Jim wasn't around; he was still upset about the day before, and David was just as happy that he was still in class, so that they didn't have to try to converse.

Once he'd finished getting dressed, he stood and looked out the window. He had to kill about a half-hour before he should leave to go get Lise.

"You're not wearing your uniform tonight?" Jailla asked him.

"No. We're going to Earth, and it just looks conspicuous there. No one there knows what it means, so it doesn't really show my pride in the school, it just makes me stand out for no reason. I'm sure Lise is going to be uncomfortable enough without people staring."

"True. Why take her there at all, if it will make her uncomfortable?"

David shrugged. "Anything I do that's different is going to make her at least a little uncomfortable. This way, at least, she doesn't have to worry about the students seeing us. Besides, I live in both worlds, kind of... it'd be nice if she was able to handle both worlds, too, if we're going to be together."

Jailla's head turned all the way around at that. "You've never talked like that about a girl before."

David shrugged again. "I guess I feel a little different about Lise. Maybe because I know she loves me."

"Do you love her?" Jailla asked.

David didn't answer for the longest time. Finally, he said, "I'm not sure."

"How can you not be sure?"

"Well, it's not like I've been in love before..."

"Except with Olissa."

"We're not talking about that," David said sternly.

"My point is, you know what that feels like. Does this feel the same?"

David sighed. "Kind of."

Jailla chirped in understanding of that. "Well, if you want my opinion, and you probably don't, but you could do a lot worse than Lise."

"You like her quite a bit, don't you?"

"She and I are closely compatible. If the situation had been possible, I could have ended up as her familiar."

David nodded. "I guess my main worry is, do I love her, or do I just feel the need to protect her?"

Jailla smirked in his bird fashion, cocking his head just so. "I'm not sure there's a lot of difference."

David nodded, and they lapsed into silence. After a little while longer, David said, "Well, it's time for me to go pick her up."

"Have a good evening," Jailla said.

"Thanks. You want to go out and see if you can find a nice female jay?"

Jailla squawked. "Remember what I said about screaming chicks?"

David chuckled. "Just thought I'd offer. See you in a few hours... or possibly in the morning."

Jailla nodded, bobbing his head.

David made his way out of the dorm room, and up to the entrance lift. He waited patiently while all the people there cleared out, going down on the lift ahead of him. Finally, when no one else was around, he got on the lift himself.

"Magister pasu," he intoned as he slipped below ground level. The lift slowed to a stop and David stepped forward. He always put out his hand, just in case he'd gotten turned around. This time, as usual, he was fine, and he found himself in the entrance tunnel to the faculty housing dorm.

It didn't take David long to be standing in front of Lise's door. He knocked, and waited. The wait actually took longer than he expected, but finally, the door opened.

David caught his breath at the sight of his date. Lise had done up her hair in a bun on top of her head, using her usual butterfly combs to hold it in place. She had applied the slightest hint of makeup, which she didn't usually bother with, but it made her look very pretty. She wore a loose-fitting pale yellow blouse and a flowing light tan skirt that came to just below her knees. She wore low heels and stockings, and David thought she was beautiful.

"Hey," she said to him softly, noticing his gaze and waiting for his evaluation with some nervousness.

"Hey, yourself, Gorgeous," he told her. She smiled at him. He handed her the bouquet of roses he had bought for her, and her smile widened a notch.

"Thank you," she said. "Come on in so I can find a vase for these."

David stepped inside while Lise housed her roses, and then she returned to him. She leaned up and gave him a soft, but lingering, kiss. When she stepped back, she blushed. "Should we go now?"

"Yeah, we'd better, or you won't be going anywhere at all," David said with a grin. Lise blushed crimson.

The two made their way back down the hall, and through the tunnel. They stopped and waited for the rock lift at the end of the tunnel. When it arrived, the wall illusion faded, so that they could walk through it. It was quite solid when the rock lift wasn't present.

"Down, please," David told the rock lift. It immediately descended, depositing them at the entrance to the school.

The two walked into town holding hands and chatting. They avoided any unpleasant conversation, and stuck to things that would keep their mood light.

When David led her toward the Slyther Inn, she objected lightly, "I thought we were going to Earth for dinner."

"We are. This is just the bus station."

"Huh?" Lise asked, but didn't question further. David led her inside, and waved to Bonnie and the bartender on their way through. He led her into the back room, where the travel gate was found. As David placed his hand on it, it evaporated, and they stepped through into an empty room.

"What was that all about?" Lise asked.

"You've never even seen a travel gate?" David asked.

"Oh, is that what that was? No, I know what they are, but like I said, I've never been to Earth, so..."

"Well, you have now. You're in Earth."

"Really? Looks about the same," she said with a grin.

David chuckled, and said, "Come on. Dinner's waiting."

They walked out of the hotel room and down to the front desk.

"Evening, folks," the clerk said to them, completely unfazed at seeing people come from the back of his hotel that he'd never seen before.

"Could you call us a cab, please?" David asked.

"Sure thing. You heading into Boston?"

"Yes."

The man nodded, and picked up the phone.

When David ushered Lise outside, he asked, "Did you take Earth Studies?"

"No. I never really figured to need it."

David pursed his lips, then nodded. "Try not to freak out unless I do, then," he said with a grin.

Lise smiled, and wrapped her arm around his. It didn't take too long before their taxi arrived. Lise looked at the vehicle with a bit of trepidation, but David opened the door and helped her get in. He slid in next to her, and told the cabbie where they were going. As the cab moved off, David took Lise's hand and squeezed.

The ride was uneventful, and not too long, and they arrived at the restaurant. David paid the driver and then escorted Lise inside. As they were seated, she was looking at the lights.

"How do they work?" she asked David, pointing to them.

David got a concentrated look on his face, then got an idea.

"You know how, when you heat up metal, it starts to glow?"

Lise nodded.

"Okay. Well, inside a light bulb is a very thin piece of metal. It is heated up very hot, and it glows very brightly. White-hot, literally. So it gives off white light, to light up the room."

"So it never gets used up?"

"Oh, it will eventually break. The metal becomes brittle from all the heating and cooling, and sooner or later, the little piece of metal breaks off, and you have to replace the light bulb. Of course, this is just how this one kind of light bulb works. There are other kinds, which would be even harder for me to explain to you. Technology is just a different kind of magic, really. How would you explain metamorphosis to one of them?" he said, gesturing to the people around them. "To you, it makes perfect sense. To them, it's utterly bizarre and incomprehensible. It's... well, it's magic."

Lise smiled and nodded.

-----

After dinner, which was thoroughly enjoyable, David led Lise out onto the street. The restaurant he'd chosen was close to a park, and David led her that way. Kids were building snowmen and couples walked hand in hand, just as David and Lise were doing.

"So many people," Lise said.

"That's Boston for you. Half a million people, all living in one little area."

"Half a million?" she said, astounded.

"Yep. Hey, you want to go ice skating?" David asked, seeing folks out on the frozen pond.

"Um... no. I can't skate, and I don't feel like looking silly in front of all these folks," she said.

"Okay," David said, kissing her on the cheek and continuing their walk.

After listening to a small band performing at the edge of the park, they decided it was time to return to Dugerra. David knew that Lise was uncomfortable, and so he wanted to finish their night off in a place she would feel at home.

Once they were riding back up on the rock lift to enter the school, David said, "So, what do you want to do now?"

"I'm not sure. I don't want our night to be over yet, but..."

"But you're still not ready to be seen with me?"

Lise nodded, frowning. "I'm sorry."

David hugged her. "I have an idea," he said. When they reached the top of the rock lift, David led off. He wasn't holding her hand now, and they moved somewhat briskly toward the rock lift up to the Academy level. Further walking took them to the stairway to the castle.

"Up there?" she asked, a bit nervous.

"Don't worry, they won't bite. I might, but they won't," he told her with a grin. She blushed at that. David took her hand now, and led her up the stairway, which wrapped halfway around the mountain before ending at the entrance to the castle.

"I've never been up here at night," she said, looking around.

"I come here a lot," he told her. "Especially at night, if I've had enough of studying." He led her into the castle, and then up the stairway to the roof.

When they had reached the roof of the castle, David took out his mirror and dialed. "Food services, please."

In just a second, a pixie popped in. "Yes?"

"You have a prepared order for David Stroud?"

The pixie nodded and disappeared. David said, "I got this idea from a friend of mine." A picnic basket popped into place just then. David reached in and pulled out the blanket, which he unfolded for them. Lise sat down on it, and then David joined her, sitting close to her. Before doing anything else, he put his hand up and said a brief charm. The immediate area around them suddenly grew comfortably warm. Lise smiled in gratitude, and removed her heavy coat. David doffed his, as well.

Reaching into the basket, David pulled out a small bottle of wine. Her eyes widened, and she smiled at him.

"I was really surprised to find out that food services would provide alcohol. Especially to someone my age," he told her as he opened the bottle. He took out two glasses and poured.

"You're well above the drinking age," she told him. "Have you had wine before?"

"No."

"Might want to be a bit careful, then. The taste can be strong."

David nodded. He raised his glass to her. "To you," he said, "and to us."

Lise smiled, softly clinked her glass against his, and then took a sip of her wine. David winced slightly at the flavor, but didn't say anything.

After Lise had finished half her glass, she shifted. She sat crosswise to David, her butt between his legs, her knees over his one thigh, and she leaned against him. David wrapped his one arm around her shoulders, pulling her tight against him, and he rested his other hand on her outer knee. The two of them sat quietly, staring up at the artificial aurora that the school created for the festival, and through that, the stars, which shone brightly without any competition from the moon this night.

David reached into the picnic basket and pulled out a small bowl of strawberries. He picked one up and offered it to Lise, who took it with a smile.

The next strawberry, David put between his lips, and then offered it to Lise. They kissed as the strawberry slipped into her mouth, and their lips remained locked long after the strawberry had disappeared. David massaged her leg with his hand, sliding it back and forth. He slipped his hand beneath her skirt, and slowly moved up her thigh, caressing the skin as he went. When his hand reached close to her hip, he slipped it from her outer thigh to her inner thigh, brushing his fingers against her panties.

At that point, Lise broke their kiss and leaned back a bit. She looked nervous.

"Here?" she asked.

"You're safe," he told her. "No one's around. No one can see you, no one will hear you. And I don't think I can keep my hands off you any longer."

As proof of this, he slipped his hand in between her legs, and ran his middle finger along her panties, caressing her pussy lips through the fabric. Lise closed her eyes, enjoying the sensation of it. When David pulled her panties aside and rubbed her pussy directly, she moaned.

David slipped his finger into Lise's pussy which, despite her nervousness, was already wet and ready for him. He fucked his finger in and out of her while they returned to kissing, and he let his thumb rest against her clit, so that as his hand moved, it rubbed back and forth. Lise moaned into his mouth, her breath quickening as his hand picked up speed.

Suddenly, Lise squeaked, and her body shuddered. David's hand was covered in her juices as she enjoyed her orgasm. He didn't break their kiss, and he had shoved his finger all the way inside of her when she started to climax. His palm now rubbed over her clit as she jerked with the sensations.

Finally, Lise came down from her high, and then David slowly removed his finger from inside of her. She was out of breath, but she smiled at him as they broke their kiss. When David cupped her tit and squeezed, Lise closed her eyes and snuggled against him tightly.

"You make me feel so good," she told him.

"I'm not done making you feel good," he said. She leaned back and looked at him, nervous again.

"You don't want to... right here..."

David nodded. "Right here. I want to feel you wrapped around me."

"But... what if someone catches us?"

"Who's going to catch us? No one comes up here at night."

David shifted himself, and in the process laid Lise down on her back. She still looked very nervous, but she parted her legs as David moved over her. He unfastened his own pants, and she looked down to see his extremely erect cock slip out of his underwear. She licked her lips as he lifted up the front of her skirt.

Pushing her panties to one side again, David ushered his dick to her entrance and pushed forward. Lise moaned as she felt his cock slide into her in one long, smooth stroke.

"Oh, David," she purred, squeezing his dick with her pussy muscles.

David smiled, and then he started to move in and out of her, his rhythm smooth and unhurried. Lise rolled her hips with his motions, allowing him to penetrate her as fully as he could. They kept eye contact throughout, silently communicating to each other how they felt.

After a few minutes, Lise said, "Let me be on top."

Without pulling out, David rolled the two of them over, so that she was now on top of him. She brought her knees under herself, and sat up. As she began to slide up and down on him, he reached up and cupped her breasts, massaging them through her clothes. She closed her eyes, enjoying his cock and his hands, forgetting about her worries of being caught and just immersing herself in the pleasure of the moment.

As her heat rose, Lise's movements grew faster and more aggressive, her hips rocking as she moved up and down. David molded her tits more firmly, urging her onward as they both moved toward their peak. Finally, Lise screamed out her pleasure, her back arching, pushing her tits more forcefully into David's hands.

David, who had been holding back his climax for some time, let loose, and his cum burst forth, filling Lise's pussy with his spunk. The two shivered and grunted in the throes of their climax for some time, before David pulled Lise down on top of him, allowing her to recover from her pleasure as his dick slowly shrank and slipped from within her.

After a while, Lise recovered, and rolled to David's side.

"I love you," she told him. David was about to respond, but she put her finger to his lips, then kissed him. When she broke their kiss, she asked, "Will you stay with me tonight?"

"Absolutely," he replied, then kissed her again.

After they had cleaned up, returned the picnic basket, and were on their way down the stairs to the Academy level, Lise asked, "Should you call Jailla, and let him know, like last time?"

"No need. I already warned him I might not come home tonight."

"Hmmm. Anticipating, were we?" she asked with a grin.

"Just covering my bases," he told her, then gave her a strong kiss. After that, they continued their walk back to her place.

~~≈≡≈~~~≈≡≈~~~≈≡≈~~

David joined his friends for breakfast the next morning. He tried not to look too happy, since he was, once again, the only one among them who'd had a date the night before.

"How'd your date go?" Jim asked. "Must've been pretty good, since I didn't see you come in..."

"It went fine, thanks." Turning to Gwen, he said, "You look upset."

"Anticipating trouble," she said. "And here it comes."

David looked up to see Devyn walking over to the table. When she got there, she said to Gwen, "You told Sally you wanted to see me..."

"Yeah, I wanted to see you. I wanted to let you know that what you did to Jim was sleazy and underhanded."

"I do not know what you are talking about. All I did was break up with him."

"The night before the festival!" Gwen snapped. "And we both know you were dating him to try to get back at me. Don't bother to deny it, you had already told me you didn't really like Jim!"

"Ouch," Jim said, frowning. Both Gwen and Devyn ignored him.

"So what if I was?" Devyn asked archly.

"So this: You and I are done. I won't be friends with someone who thinks that the best way to deal with a problem between two people is to hurt a third person. I really thought you were a better person than that."

"Perhaps you have not noticed that you and I have been 'done', as you say, for over a month now," Devyn replied coldly.

"Yeah, well, since you didn't have the courage to talk to me about it, nothing was 'official'. Now, it's official."

Devyn stared at her. "May I go eat with my girlfriend now?" Devyn asked, hoping, David was sure, to cause Gwen pain.

"Sure. But rest assured, I'll make sure that any new girl you go out with knows what you're capable of."

Devyn's look darkened. "Stay out of my life."

"You have no say in what I do now. You broke up with me, remember? I'll do what I damned well please. Have a nice life."

Devyn glared, then turned and marched away. Gwen slumped as soon as Devyn was gone, and David reached over and took her hand, squeezing it in reassurance. She smiled at him in gratitude, and then gently extricated her hand.

"Well, that's over," Gwen said. "Sorry you guys had to witness that." Just then, she realized that Jim was there, and she blushed crimson. "And I'm sorry you heard what I said."

Jim waved it off. "I should have known, really. I just didn't want to miss an opportunity."

"An opportunity you probably never got, did you?" Gwen asked.

Jim frowned. "No."

"Sorry about that, too."

The group ate their breakfast, trying to change the subject. It seemed, however, that it was going to be the morning for unpleasant chatter in the lunch room. At the table next to theirs, an argument broke out.

"I don't want to talk about it!" the guy said.

"I just want to know how you feel about last night," the girl responded pleadingly.

"How I feel, how I feel! You always want to talk about my feelings. Well, I don't want to talk about my feelings, and I can suck my own dick now, so get the hell away from me!"

The girl ran off, crying, and David, looking at Jim, could not keep a straight face. He burst out in a fit of the giggles. Jim just blushed crimson.

-----

"David!" a voice called. David turned to see who it was.

"Hey, Jess," he said, greeting Flo's roommate. "What's up?"

"Hey. Flo's birthday is coming up at the beginning of next month. I wanted to throw her a surprise party, and I wondered if you'd want to come?"

"Sure," he said enthusiastically. "You gonna have it in the dorm room?"

"No, I'm gonna try to get a professor to let us use a classroom. Not sure which one, though."

"I'll handle that, if you want... I know a few of the teachers personally..."

"So I've heard," Jess said with a grin. "Okay, I'd appreciate that. Just... don't let Flo know, okay?"

"Of course. What day is her birthday?"

"March 2nd."

"Cool. I'll let you know. Hey, is this just a basic party, or is there a theme?"

"Nah, just your everyday surprise party."

"Okay."

"Anyway, gotta run. Thanks for helping out. See ya."

David smiled as she hurried away, then he turned and headed for his own class.

-----

"Okay, everyone, that's it for today. I'll see you all next class. David? Could I speak to you for a minute?" Prof. Rutherford asked.

David sighed as he finished packing up his book bag. He hefted it, and walked up to the front of the room.

"What's up, Professor?" he asked.

"Actually, the problem is what's down. Your grades lately. I understand that you may be having some difficulties, but you're capable of better than this..."

David frowned. "Yes, ma'am. I'm sorry."

"What, no excuse?" she asked.

David shrugged. "There isn't any excuse for not turning in my best work. All I can say is that one of my other classes has me so run down that I'm not able to give you my best. I'm trying to adjust, but so far, it's not working."

Prof. Rutherford frowned. "What's the other class?"

"Conjuring."

"Quayde," she said, not quite snarling.

"That's the one," David confirmed evenly.

Prof. Rutherford sighed. "Are you having similar trouble with your other classes as you are in here?"

"Not as badly, but yes. TEM is my hardest subject, as far as comprehension goes."

"So, you understand Conjuring, but..."

"But I have been given so much work to do that it is nearly impossible to get it all done. It is impossible to get all of it done, and do the work for my other classes properly."

"And, just out of curiosity, why does he get first crack at your energies?"

"Well, to put it bluntly, ma'am, because I know that you'll grade me fairly. I'm not saying you're going to give me an A for bad work, but if I deserve an A, you'll actually give me one. He won't. That means I have to maintain a good enough record so that, at the end of the semester, I can present my case to the dean."

"I see. While I can sympathize with your position, David, I can't do anything but grade this work on its merits... and that is not going to look pretty."

"Yes, ma'am. I will try harder."

Prof. Rutherford smirked. "Something tells me you don't have much more energy you can put forth into trying. You look overworked, David. You look," she said, unable to help the chuckle that escaped her lips, "like the walking dead."

David grinned. "Thanks, Professor. I needed that. I guess I'll just have to cut out some of my rec time."

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," she warned. "You already look like you're headed for burn-out. That would only make it worse. I would recommend that you spend a bit more time relaxing, in fact. You're stressed out, and a stressed mind isn't a focused mind. Perhaps you should visit Louisa a bit more often."

David's mouth dropped open in shock.

Prof. Rutherford smiled. "David, do you really think there are any secrets among the faculty? Those of us who consider Louisa a friend are glad she found someone. But right now, I think you may need her even more than she needs you."

"Well, I try to spend as much time with her as I can. Quayde is making that difficult, since he eats up half my weekend."

"How's that?"

"He gives me detention nearly every week."

"That's ridiculous. I know there's no way you can deserve that. I've had you as a student for long enough to know how you act in class."

David shrugged. "He doesn't like me, and he's trying to make that abundantly clear."

The professor frowned. "I don't know what to tell you about that. I'm sure you've already spoken to the dean about it, and gotten unhelpful news."

"Yes, I have."

"Cheer up. It's only three more months." She smiled at him, and he grinned sardonically in return.

"Yes, ma'am."

~~≈≡≈~~~≈≡≈~~~≈≡≈~~

"I've had enough. Come on," Lise said to David. David shrugged, packed up his bag, and followed her out of the detention room. When she arrived at the front desk, she told the guard, "I'm cancelling Mr. Stroud's detention for the day."

"Yes, ma'am," the guard replied, merely writing a note in the log book. He was in no position to argue with an instructor. If the professor who had ordered the detention wished to make a stink, that was his business.

"So, what are we going to do today?"

"We're going to go down to the dorm so you can put your books away, get Jailla, and then we're going to go for a sleigh ride."

"Okay, sounds good to me. Let's go."

-----

David entered the lunch room for dinner. He and Lise had spent all day together, including some very pleasant time back at her apartment, but finally, they'd decided to call it a day. He looked around, and didn't see any of his friends here. He figured they had all eaten already.

He was about to simply sit down at an empty table, but then someone caught his eye. It was Anne. She was sitting by herself, which he knew was not unusual, but she looked somewhat distraught, which was different from her typical annoyed appearance. David made his way over and, without saying a word, sat down next to her.

Anne's head jerked as the fairy popped into place to ask David what he wanted. After he told her and she went away, he turned his head to Anne.

"Hey," he said quietly.

"Hey," she replied dully.

"You seem to be upset about something. Want to talk about it?"

"What's it to you?" she replied automatically.

David shrugged. "Just thought you might like someone to vent at."

Anne sat silently for a long time. David's food arrived, and he started to eat while he waited to see if she was going to say anything. Finally, she spoke.

"I've been at this school for seven months. I don't have a single friend. I might as well have stayed in ad school."

David furrowed his brow. "Not to change the subject, but... ad school? What's that?"

"Dugerran non-magical school. We have primary, intermediate, and advanced. You go to each one for four years. They usually get shortened to pri school, med school, and ad school."

"Oh, okay. We call it something different in Earth. And if you ever hear a techno saying they're going to med school, they are not talking about their childhood! Anyway... I don't want to sound like a broken record, Anne, but you've kind of been pushing people away since you got here. I'm really not surprised you don't have any friends."

Anne frowned at him, but didn't snarl a smart remark like she normally would have. "What was I supposed to do, act like little Annie Sunshine?"

"No... but acting like little Annie Stormcloud didn't help things. Just be yourself. Gwen says that you used to be more outgoing and social. I know you lost your friend that last year of school... but no one here knew her, so they couldn't care less."

"Yeah, it's easy for you to sit there and say how easy it is to fit in here. You have all sorts of friends."

David let out a short bark of a laugh. "Anne, I'm a fucking demighost. Probably a quarter of this school hates my guts for that alone. You think you're an outcast? I don't see people pelting you with rocks on a daily basis. I went through that my first year here."

"No one messes with you now..." she objected.

"Because... well, because I got lucky. Some shit that went down allowed most of the school to realize I was just another guy trying to make his way through school. Since then, yeah, for the most part, the school leaves me alone. It doesn't mean they all like me. I doubt even Prof. Phillips is liked by everybody. That's not going to happen. But you've worked very hard at being disliked by everybody. That is, unfortunately, a lot easier to do."

"So what am I supposed to do now?"

"Well, for starters, stop being so damned grouchy all the time. Try to get some enjoyment out of life."

"How will that help me get friends?"

David sighed. "Anne, I'm quite sure that, despite what it may feel like, not everyone hates you. There are probably some people who simply won't approach you because you're always in a bad mood. If you're not in a bad mood, then perhaps some folks will come over and say hi."

"And if they don't?"

"Cross that bridge when you come to it. You try to worry about too many things at once, and you'll wind up not getting anything accomplished."

Anne sat silently while David finished his dinner. Shoving his plate back, he turned to her.

"Anyway, that's my opinion. That and two granas will get you a cup of cocoa. Take it or leave it. I've got to go do some homework."

David left the table, and Anne just sat there, thinking over what he'd said.

~~≈≡≈~~~≈≡≈~~~≈≡≈~~

"I was informed that you did not attend your detention time on Saturday, Stroud," Quayde snarled. The class all looked over, even though they were supposed to be doing an assignment.

"It was canceled by another instructor," David replied, not even bothering to look up at his professor.

"No other instructor has the right to cancel my punishment!" Quayde yelled.

David looked up at him with the maximum level of disrespect and disdain he could manage. "Then I would suggest you go yell at them. She told me to follow her. I obey my instructors."

"You didn't obey me!" Quayde snarled loudly.

David smirked. "Do you really expect me to respond to that, Professor?"

Prof. Quayde went white with rage. "Don't think this is over, Stroud! And you now have two Saturdays of detention!"

"Whatever you say, Professor," David replied, and returned to his work, dismissing the teacher as the irrelevance he was.

Quayde stormed off, back to the front of the class.

"You're digging yourself a bigger hole, you know," Olissa whispered.

David shrugged. "I'm quickly approaching the state of don't-give-a-shit."

-----

"What are you doing?" Gwen asked as she stopped next to David.

"What does it look like I'm doing?" he asked.

"You never read the bulletin board," she objected. "I have never before seen you stop and read any of this stuff."

"I heard some guys talking about a notice posted, and I wanted to get the full story."

"Which one?"

"Apparently the Vrudenan Alpha is visiting Callamandia in a few days. I was considering going over to Bolmont and watching."

"Why's he coming to Bolmont?" Gwen asked.

"Well, it is the northern government center for Callamandia. I guess he didn't want to go all the way down to Senesty."

"Or the king wouldn't let him," Gwen said. "Why would you want to go watch?"

David shrugged. "I've never seen a werewolf, that I know of. Besides, he's the leader of another country. It's one of those things you just... do."

Gwen smirked. "Right. How would you get to Bolmont?"

"That I'm not sure of. I could ask Joe to come get me, but that's an awful inconvenience for him, and he might be busy anyway. Maybe Sam or, uh, my girlfriend would want to go, and I could go with them."

"This says it's on a Saturday. Aren't you likely to have a detention?"

"Oh, I already do. I think I can get out of that, though," he said with a smile.

"Uh-huh. Good luck. I don't know why you want to see him, but whatever. I've got homework to do."

"Yeah, me, too."

~~≈≡≈~~~≈≡≈~~~≈≡≈~~

David was sleeping soundly when an awful wailing rousted him. The sound grew in volume and pitch until it became almost unbearable. He clamped his hands over his ears to try to shut out some of the noise.

Suddenly, the curtain was flung back. Jim was standing there, his hands over his ears, as well. Melissa was highly agitated, jumping up and down on Jim's bed. The first thing that David did was to put on clothes, and then he went to the room door. He motioned everyone out, then joined them in the hallway. The door filtered out a lot of the noise, but not all of it, and it was clearly audible up and down the hall.

"What the fuck is that?" Jim demanded.

"I don't know what, but I'll give you three guesses on who..."

"Quayde," Jim snarled. "Goddamn that fucker. I have a test in the morning!"

"You guys stay out here. I'll see if I can figure out what's going on, and if I can fix it."

Jim said, "Don't forget to use a protective spell."

David nodded. He cupped his ears and closed his eyes, then silently thought of the hearing-protection spell. Suddenly, the noise from the wailing was subdued. Instead of opening the door to assail everyone with the noise again, he faded to ghost form and walked through the door instead.

Looking around, David finally found a small box lying on the floor of the room. The lid of the box was open, and the wailing was coming from inside. David reached down and closed the box. The noise stopped immediately. David cracked open the box, and the noise started again. He shut it, cutting off the sound, and then picked it up and set it on his desk. He dissipated his protection charm, and then went and opened the door for the others to come back in.

"So, what was it?" Jim asked.

"Just this damned box."

"This guy's really pissing me off," Jim said.

"Pissing you off?" David snarled. "This one requires payback."

"What're you going to do?" Jim asked.

"I'm going to give him his box back," David replied. He finished getting fully dressed, then picked up the box. "Might as well go back to sleep. I'll be back in a little while." With that, David and the box faded to complete invisibility.

Jim shrugged and went back to bed. He needed the rest. David, meanwhile, headed out of the room, and out to the rock lift. He made his way to the secret entrance to faculty housing, and walked along the hallways until he found Prof. Quayde's room.

David tried to imagine the interior of Prof. Quayde's apartment. He could have simply gone inside, but that would be trespassing. So far, he had obeyed the rules as given to him concerning his presence in the teachers' dorm.

Concentrating, David conjured the box inside of Prof. Quayde's apartment. He 'accidentally' broke the box lid when he did so, and so, when the wailing began, David knew that Quayde would have no easy way to stop it.

Once he heard the irritating noise begin inside, he walked away, still completely invisible. He didn't even chuckle to himself until he was in the tunnel heading back to the rock lift.

Take that, you motherfucker.

-----

"You wanted to see me, ma'am?" David asked the dean as he walked into her office.

"Yes, David. Prof. Quayde has accused you of invading his privacy."

"Oh? How?"

"He says you entered his apartment last night and left a prank box behind."

"I have never set foot in Prof. Quayde's apartment, ma'am."

"Like anything you say can be believed," Quayde snarled from the side of the room.

"Did you see me in your apartment, Professor?" David asked reasonably.

"You are a demighost!" Quayde shouted.

"I don't believe that's the question I asked. Did you see me in your apartment?"

"No, I didn't see you! You were invisible!"

"How very convenient. Did you hear me? Smell me? Bump into me? Did anything happen to actually prove I was there?"

"You left that damned screaming box!" he shouted.

"And what makes you think it was me?" David replied.

"Don't toy with me, Stroud! I know you had it."

"How do you know?" David asked. Dean Lengel was sitting back, allowing David to interrogate Quayde. Normally she would not have allowed a student to disrespect a teacher quite this far, but in this case, she had a feeling Quayde deserved it.

"I... just know!" Quayde retorted, not about to admit to having 'given it' to David.

"Could it be because you're the one who put it in my dorm room in the first place?" David asked.

"You can't prove that!" Quayde snarled.

"No, you're right, I can't. Which is why I didn't come tell the dean. Likewise, you cannot prove anything you are claiming. Here are the facts, Professor: I never set a single foot in your room last night, or any other night. Last night, someone conjured a noise maker into my dorm room. I currently have only two enemies who would try this: you, and your assistant, Marcus Savolar. Did I put the box in your room? Yes, I did. I was merely returning it to you, lest you accuse me of theft."

"So you admit to being in my room!"

David sighed theatrically. "For a Conjuring professor, you are amazingly dense where your own subject is concerned."

Dean Lengel leaned forward at this point. "David, are you saying that you conjured the prank box into Prof. Quayde's room?"

"Yes, ma'am, I did. As I said, I was just returning it to him. The box looked kind of expensive."

"And you broke it!" Quayde said, getting sidetracked.

David shrugged. "I'm only a second-semester Conjuring student, what do you expect from me?"

Dean Lengel had to turn her head to avoid letting David, or worse, Quayde, see her smirk of utter enjoyment at that. Once she'd composed herself, she turned back. To David, she said, "Don't you feel that was an invasion of his space?"

"No, ma'am. I didn't see anything inside his home. I didn't set foot inside his home. I in no way violated the rules given to me by Prof. Rutherford when I was allowed into faculty housing."

"Wrong!" Quayde said. "You were expressly forbidden from wandering around unescorted!"

David turned and said quite reasonably, "But I wasn't wandering, Professor. I had a very specific destination in mind. Just because I did not go inside your apartment doesn't mean that your apartment was not my intended destination."

Prof. Quayde looked at him, almost apoplectic. "How dare you play word games over the rules!"

"There's no word game being played, Professor," David said. "I followed the rules to the letter, without any interpretation. I was told that I was allowed to go to a specific destination, without escort. What is the difference between me stopping in front of your door, then leaving without knocking, and me going to visit Prof. Stott, remembering that I forgot something, and leaving housing without seeing her?"

Prof. Quayde snarled in disgust.

"What's the matter, Professor?" David asked. "Did you not enjoy being on the receiving end for a change?"

"David..." Dean Lengel said in warning.

David looked at her. "Ma'am, I'll make no bones about having pranked the good professor here," he said, managing to make 'good professor' sound like an insult. "But I have violated no rules that I am aware of."

Dean Lengel sat back in her chair, and was silent for a long moment, thinking. Finally, she leaned forward and looked at Quayde. "He's right."

"WHAT?" Quayde shouted.

"He's right," she repeated simply, staring him down. "He hasn't violated the rules. Okay, he woke you up out of a supposedly sound sleep. That assumes you weren't sitting in your room enjoying the torment of what you'd just done to him. He walked down the hallway, to a specific location, and he used his conjuring skills. What he conjured did no damage whatsoever, therefore not being explicitly against school rules. You cannot prove in any way that he entered your apartment without permission. In fact, I dare say that if we went to your apartment and checked, him doing so is probably impossible, because I would expect someone like you to have erected the necessary ghost-prevention devices."

Quayde did not respond to that.

"So, as he said, he hasn't broken any rules."

"He skipped detention last Saturday," Quayde objected.

Dean Lengel looked to David questioningly.

"Another professor told me that my detention was canceled, and that I should follow her instead."

"Which professor?" Quayde demanded.

David turned to him. "Prof. Fibblebitz," David replied calmly. "If you have a problem with her actions, I suggest you take them up with her."

"I wouldn't advise it," Dean Lengel warned Quayde. "Unless you like living as a bullfrog."

"So you are going to do nothing to this student?" Quayde demanded.

"For doing what? You haven't given me any proof of wrongdoing."

Without another word, Quayde stormed out of the office. David smirked, but didn't leave, as he had not been dismissed.

"Okay, level with me. Did you go into his apartment?"

"No. There was no need. I did exactly what I told you I did. I'm not going to lie to you, ma'am. If I was trying to hide my actions, I'd simply not have volunteered any information at all."

Dean Lengel nodded. "You did violate the... well, the intent, I guess, of the rules about wandering the halls. But I really don't care about it anymore. As far as I'm concerned, you are free to move about faculty housing as you please. You must still use that one entrance to come and go, however. That is a... security issue concerning other students."

David nodded. "Yes, ma'am. Thank you. I do have one question."

"What's that?"

"Ghost prevention devices?"

"It's possible to set up a set of enchanted devices that produce a field that ghosts cannot enter. The field is harmless to solid objects, but as it passes through the barrier to Haven, it becomes an impenetrable field that will drive a ghost away."

"Would that work on me?"

"When you're in ghost form, I don't see why not..."

"But you said it changes when it crosses the barrier into Haven. I am often in ghost form here in Dugerra."

Dean Lengel's eyebrows went up. "I hadn't thought of that. I don't know. We could set one up and find out, I suppose..."

"Maybe later. I'm going to be late for class as it is," he said.

"Let me write you a note," she told him.

As she withdrew some parchment from her desk, David said, "Also, for the record, when it comes time for me to challenge my Conjuring class at the end of the semester, today is the day where my Conjuring homework is going to start taking a back seat."

Dean Lengel looked up. "What do you mean?"

"Prof. Quayde has been giving me so much work to do that I have been failing to properly complete my work in other classes. From now on, I'm going to make sure to get them done first. I'll do whatever I can of the work Quayde wants me to do, but I'm not going to stress over getting it finished."

"Just how much more work is he giving you than the average student?"

"At least twice as much. Probably more."

Dean Lengel nodded. "Whose class are you in now?"

~~≈≡≈~~~≈≡≈~~~≈≡≈~~

David was leaving Conjuring class the next day, chatting with Olissa. As he reached the door, he saw a slight flash of light above him. He looked up just in time to get a water balloon to the face. The turbid water cascaded down over him, and caused a couple of gasps, and a few chuckles, from the people still in the room.

"You asshole," Olissa said to Marcus, who was clearly responsible. David wiped the muddy water out of his eyes and walked over to Marcus.

"I spent months dealing with people throwing rocks at me and trying to morph me. Do you honestly think this is going to have any effect, other than to piss me off?"

"Oh, I don't know," Marcus said maliciously. "I'm getting quite a bit of enjoyment out of it..."

David surreptitiously pulled his wand. He kept his hand down as he stepped closer to Marcus. "And how much will you enjoy it when I decide I've had enough of your bullshit, and take you out once and for all?"

Marcus' eyes narrowed. "I'm acting on the authority of..." he started.

David cut him off. "Of someone the dean already knows is a troublemaking asshole. But more to the point, do you really think he can save you if I decide to throw the rule book out the window and come after you? You can hide behind his robes in here... but he has to sleep sooner or later. Just to remind you which one of us is the better wizard..."

Suddenly, a zapping sound was heard. Marcus doubled over and grabbed for his crotch. The light from the lightning bolt spell had illuminated the area, and everyone knew what he had done... though no one had actually seen it, which was what David had intended.

"Keep playing your little games, Markie, and what I did to you during our fight will seem like a kiss on the cheek. I am not the same guy you tormented then, and I've had quite enough of you, so piss off."

David turned and left the room with Olissa, who had waited for him.

"You think he'll tell on you?"

"Tell who, what? Even he didn't see me actually do anything. I love being able to perform spells silently."

"Wish I was as good at it as you are," Olissa said. David put his arm around her briefly, and squeezed reassuringly.

"Practice more," he told her. "You hungry?"

"Starving."

~~≈≡≈~~~≈≡≈~~~≈≡≈~~

"Hey, Carol," David said.

"Hey, David. Mail time?"

"Yep."

She handed him the small bundle of mail. He thanked her, and left, sorting through his mail as he walked. Most of it, as usual, was junk. One envelope, however, looked interesting. He found a place to sit and opened it. Inside was a simple note.

You have something that belongs to me, and I want it back. Now.

Next to Santana Hall, towards the ocean, there is an old tree. That tree has a cavity just below the crotch. Put the amulet in that cavity on Sunday, no later than 6pm.

If you don't, the consequences for you will be grim. Don't test my patience.

David flipped the note over, looking for clues as to who had written it. Once again, there was no information he could glean from it.

"Well, now you know who was breaking into the room," Jailla said.

David nodded. "He must figure I've hidden it elsewhere, which is why he hasn't kept trying."

"And he would be right," Jailla said.

David snorted. "Yeah, I'd like to see him get to it."

"Are you going to give it back?"

"Hell no. If he had asked for it back, I might have considered it. But I don't take orders from people I don't even know."

"So what are you going to do? Just ignore it?"

"Oh, no. I'll go to the tree on Sunday. I want to find out who the hell is doing this."

Jailla nodded.

~~≈≡≈~~~≈≡≈~~~≈≡≈~~

David had his arm around Lise as they rode in the carriage to Bolmont.

"Prof. Quayde is probably going to yell at you again," Lise said.

"Don't care. I realize I'm kind of using you to get out of detention. I'm sorry about that."

"Don't be. Him sending you there every week is idiocy, and everyone involved knows it. I don't really care what I have to do to get to spend time with you."

David smirked. "And then I ask you to take me to see a werewolf speak."

Lise snuggled close. "The ride is nice, though."

David leaned over and kissed her softly. She responded in kind, and then they settled back and just enjoyed the ride.

-----

Having arrived earlier than most, David and Lise found a good vantage point from which to see the alpha speak. They chatted quietly while the street filled in. They were perched on a balcony of a hotel. David had rented the room for the night. Lise smiled at the thought of that.

Finally, several minutes late, a carriage being pulled by several large oxen pulled up. When the carriage stopped, the oxen morphed, becoming wereoxen before everyone's eyes. The lead wereox stepped to the door of the carriage and opened the door. Four burly werewolves stepped out, forming a safety perimeter, and then Alpha Gadevok himself stepped down from the carriage. He wore a sash and a crown, and carried a halberd, which he used mainly as a walking stick, though it looked extremely sharp. He was in his human form at the moment, unlike all of his escorts.

The alpha stepped up onto the podium, and the crowd hushed. He still looked fit and able, despite the reports of his illness. After a long moment where he surveyed the crowd, he began to speak.

"Good afternoon," he said. His voice was firm, but had a softness to it that took the edge off of it. "I thank you all for coming to hear my words.

"As I'm sure all of you are aware, the history between our two nations has not always been pleasant. Mistakes on both sides in the past have led to wars and death. These things are unfortunate, but they are also well behind us. For the last hundred years, the peoples of Vrudena, and the peoples of Callamandia have lived in peace, without skirmish, or even serious disagreement. I credit the recent kings of Callamandia - as well as myself, of course - with this extended period of peace."

There was expected laughter at this point, and the alpha smiled to acknowledge it. He then went on to discuss all of the things that had improved between the two nations in the last hundred years.

"And yet," he said, after his praise of history was finished, "our two nations are not friends. There is some barrier, a distrust, between us, that prevents us from considering each other as anything less than rivals. I would like to change that.

"As some of you might have heard by now, my time as alpha is coming to an end. While I have achieved much for my people, within our borders, I have not managed as much as I had hoped in relation to our neighbors. Before it is time for me to step down, and let my successor take over, I would like to put into place agreements between Callamandia and Vrudena that will work toward a lasting friendship between us.

"I cannot, and do not, expect that our differences can be resolved before my death. I will not live to see the result of my actions, no matter the outcome. But I will pass more gently into the eternal moonlight if I can say that I did everything within my power to foster peace between us."

The alpha went on to outline, in vague terms, what he hoped to accomplish when he traveled to Senesty to see the king. It included such things as encouraging tourism and establishing permanent envoys in each capital.

"In closing," he said when he was done, "I thank you for listening. I appreciate your consideration, and I hope that someday we might call each other friend. Thank you, and good day."

The crowd, all of which was a bit nonplussed about the whole speech, applauded politely, but they were too stunned to be truly enthusiastic about it all. Vrudena had been an enemy of Callamandia for nearly two thousand years. How, they wondered, could they ever be considered a friend?

David and Lise stepped back into their room as the alpha returned to his carriage and the crowd started to break up.

"What do you think?" Lise asked David.

"Mainly, I wonder if he has the backing of his people to say what he just said."

"Why do you worry about that?"

"He's dying. He told us... well, okay, strongly implied... that his successor has already been chosen, but he either wasn't with the alpha, or he wasn't introduced. That says to me that maybe the successor doesn't agree with what Alpha Gadevok is doing. If that's the case, then this could all be pointless."

"It would be nice if it were true, though," Lise said. "Then we would have only friends on our borders."

"Granted, it would be nice. I'm just not holding my breath."

"What difference would it make if you did?" she said with a mischievous grin.

David laughed.

"So," Lise asked, stepping closer to him. "What are we going to do now?"

David settled, but still grinned. "I know what you're thinking, but can we go see my god-daughter first? We have all night for the other."

"Okay, let's go."

~~≈≡≈~~~≈≡≈~~~≈≡≈~~

David sat on a rock, invisible to everyone. Jailla sat high in a tree, watching to see if anyone was approaching. Six o'clock had come and gone, with no sign of anyone approaching the tree. It was now nearly eight. David wasn't sure how much longer he should sit there, waiting to see if someone was going to show up for the amulet or not.

Finally, around nine o'clock, he walked away from the tree. He walked over to Santana Hall before making himself visible, and then calling out to Jailla to join him.

"Do you think this has all been some kind of prank?" Jailla asked.

"No. I think whoever it is, they're just clever enough not to go looking for the amulet immediately. That tree is out of the way, the hole in the trunk faces away from the public... something could be stuck in there for years without being noticed. He probably figures he can just come get it whenever he likes. Unfortunately, I can't sit and watch the tree forever."

"Perhaps he was watching to see if you would show up? When he didn't see you, he figured that you weren't going to give the amulet back?"

"That's also possible. I didn't see or hear anyone, but that doesn't mean much. In any case, whoever they are, they have the next move. I, for one, have to go do my TEM homework. With that handbook work going on this week, I'll have less time in the evenings to get my work done."

"I would suggest setting aside your Conjuring report. I know you had planned to start writing it this week..."

"Yeah. Not gonna happen. Maybe next week. Or I might do it over break."

"That might be the best option," Jailla agreed.

"Anyway, come on. Nothing's going to happen here."

As they walked back to the dorm, Jailla asked, "What do you think our elusive amulet owner might try next?"

David shook his head. "I don't know."

~~≈≡≈~~~≈≡≈~~~≈≡≈~~
~~≈≡≈~~~≈≡≈~~~≈≡≈~~