Chapter 5: October

"No, no, no," David said gently to the girl. "If you do what you were about to do... bad things would happen," he told her seriously, but with a slight grin.

"Like what?" she asked.

"Like imploding your Conjuring Room and losing anything that was in it."

"Oops," she said, embarrassed.

David grinned. "Yeah, oops."

"What was I doing wrong?"

"You have the whole hand motion wrong. What you did was this," David said, mimicking her action. "What you're supposed to do is this," he said, demonstrating the correct move, which was completely different from what she had tried.

"Ugh. I'm never going to get this," she complained.

"It's tough. Don't give up on it. Just keep trying. Now, let me see you do the movement."

The girl tried, but she still didn't have it down. After another five minutes, David decided she wasn't going to get it today.

"Okay, still not quite right. What I want you to do is study the diagram in the book. Practice it between now and next class, and when we get back together on Monday, I want to see it again."

"Okay," she said, dejected.

"Hey, cheer up. This isn't supposed to be easy."

"Well, it's doing its part, then," she said. David chuckled. "Thanks," she told him.

David nodded and moved on to the next student who looked to be having real trouble.

By the end of the class, David had been able to spend at least a little time with everyone, making sure that they either had a handle on what they were supposed to do, or they had some guidance as to how to figure it out.

"I know this is tricky, everyone. Retrieving things from the Conjuring Room can be very complicated. There is a secret to making it easier, but it requires you to be fairly good at storing things in your Conjuring Room before you can use it."

"What's the secret?" Flo asked.

"Organization. If you're good at storing things, then you can arrange them within your Conjuring Room to make them much easier to find when you need them. The task of actually locating a specific item within the Conjuring Room is really the hardest part of retrieving it. You can't see what you're after, so you have to be able to feel it, in your mind. That's made much easier if you've got some idea of where it is to begin with. But that's really only important when you have a lot of things in your Conjuring Room. Right now, yours are almost empty, so finding what you're after shouldn't be too hard. All I can tell you all is to keep practicing. Best to do it outside, though, so you don't have to worry about breaking things.

"Well, that's all for today. I want all of you to practice this over the weekend, and we'll try it again on Monday. Also, read the first section of chapter 22. It's only four pages, so it shouldn't take you long, but it's a good lead-in for what we're going to work on next. Have a good weekend, everyone."

David let out a deep breath as the students got up and left. He turned and organized his papers, waiting for Prof. Blackstone to come up and critique him, as he usually did.

"Not bad," the professor said. "You're still suffering from a desire to help everyone, though."

"Isn't that my job?" David asked.

"Not everyone will be a conjurer, David. You have to figure out who will, and who won't. Those who will never be good at it... you shouldn't be taking time away from others who might."

"But, maybe, with more effort..."

"David... do you think you would ever be good at Metamorphosis?"

David frowned. "Not without a lot of practice."

"More than you'd ever have time for here at school, right?"

"Way more."

"Okay, so we could say, for practical purposes, that you can't do Metamorphosis, beyond a certain level."

"Yeah." David saw where this was going.

"You were smart enough to pull yourself out of a losing situation when you decided not to continue with those classes. What you now have to do is apply that same understanding to your students. Some of them will never be able to conjure, in practical terms. It would simply take too much time and effort on their part to become any good at it. You have to learn to accept that."

"But then, do I just write them off? Ignore their struggling?"

"No, of course not. That would be cruel. But you have to manage the time you spend with them more carefully than with the others. Make sure you're not spending more time with them than you are with more productive students. Basically, you want to put your time where it's going to actually have a benefit. You can also counsel those students, in private, to reconsider their interest in Conjuring. You don't want to tell them outright to go away, but you should be encouraging them to not continue."

"It's too late for them to change classes at this point, though."

"True. Ultimately, you're really just preparing them for their rejection from the program at the end of the semester. Better that they expect it than be surprised by it. That way, they can spend some time considering what to replace the class with in their schedule."

David nodded. "Professor... how, exactly, is all of this teaching stuff helping me learn conjuring?"

"It's not," Prof. Blackstone admitted. "But life is full of trade-offs. The teaching itself is doing wonders for your skills. I've seen improvement in the things you can do already. The attendant paperwork and seeming busy-work are the necessary evil of teaching."

"Yes, sir."

"You're doing pretty well, especially for your first class. You should consider becoming a professor."

David snorted. "Yeah, right."

"I'm serious, David. Students naturally turn to you for help, anyway. Might as well make it a formal occupation. Anyway, think about it."

"Yes, sir. I'll see you on Monday. I have to go do some potions work."

"I thought you'd already reached mastery on that."

"I have... but I still have to use it. Besides, I have an agreement with some vampires to make potions for them."

Prof. Blackstone nodded. "Good luck. See you on Monday."

"David, do you really think this gang thing is going to become a problem here?" Leslie asked. David was currently patrolling with Dusty and his team for the night, Leslie Callahan and Martin Mahoney.

"It looks like it might. The discipline problems just keep getting worse here. I wish I understood their motivation, though."

"What do you mean?" Dusty asked.

"What would a gang want with a school? They can't possibly believe they can take over the actual running of the school. Dean Lengel would never cave in to pressure from such people, and even if she did, the king would immediately deal with the issue. So I have to wonder what they're after."

"Recruitment, maybe? Not wanting to take over the school, just establish an unshakeable presence, so that they can get new members in the future?" Martin suggested.

"That's possible," David admitted. "Seems like a hard way to go about it, though. But then, if they're trying to show the supposed benefits of being a gang member, I guess maybe thumbing their noses at the school's authority might be a way to go."

"Is this important to our job?" Dusty asked.

David shrugged. "It might be. If you know why they're here, you can anticipate what they might try."

"Oh."

The conversation lapsed at that point, and the team continued walking across the terrace on their patrol.

It was nearing the end of their shift, and Dusty was leading the group back toward the maintenance building, when they saw magical sparks fly in the distance.

"Those were angry sparks," David said. He'd learned to tell the difference over the years.

"Let's go," Dusty said, taking off at a trot. The rest of the group kept up with him.

Once they got close, it became clear that there was a magical battle of sorts going on. There seemed to be a half-dozen people on each side.

"What do we do?" Leslie asked.

Dusty stood, transfixed, staring at the battle. David looked at him, waiting for several seconds to see what he was going to do. Finally, David said, "Well?"

Dusty didn't answer him. He merely stood, watching.

David growled to himself, then turned to the other two. "Let's go. Watch yourselves. Stick together, and watch each other's backs. I will announce us once. After that, if they don't settle down, just take them down. Try not to hurt them too much; Annie doesn't need the business."

David led Leslie and Martin toward the others, who had not even taken notice of their presence yet.

"DISCIPLINE RESPONSE TEAM! LOWER YOUR WANDS IMMEDIATELY!" David bellowed as loudly as he could, to make sure that everyone heard him.

"Well, if it isn't the Ghost Squad," one of the combatants sneered. He hurled an energy ball at David, who simply swiveled to allow it to fly past. David formed his own energy ball and threw it back at the guy, nailing him in the chest and knocking him to the ground.

David quickly looked to see where Leslie and Martin were, but they were keeping each other safe, and had taken down two of the fighters already. David stunned another one, and then quickly glanced back at Dusty, who was still doing his impression of statuary.

David sensed an attack coming from behind him, and he rolled to avoid it. Coming back to his feet, he was nearly fried by another attack from the same person. He dove to the ground, then rolled onto his back and fired a bolt of lightning from his wand. The attacker went down, his body shuddering and shivering from the hit.

David rose, and then he took stock. There were six of the fighters still standing. Martin was holding his arm, but still standing, and Leslie was currently battling one of the fighters. David lashed out a whip-hex with his wand, aiming at the feet of the fighters. Every one of them was dumped to the ground. This didn't stop them right away, however. Two of them continued to fire back. David launched a massive energy ball at one, who would be unconscious until morning. Leslie lanced a bolt of magic at the other, and he went tumbling across the grass until he wound up face down and unmoving.

Suddenly, David felt a presence at his side. It was Dusty. "All right, you're all being detained!" he said.

"Big words, for someone who didn't fire a shot," David said to him as an aside. Dusty blanched. "Keep an eye on them while I call for backup."

David called for his two other patrol leaders, Healer Hall, Seth, and Dean Lengel. After that, he went over to check on Martin.

"Is it bad?" David asked.

"Hurts like a son of a bitch," Martin said, gritting his teeth.

"Let me see," David ordered. Martin removed his hand, and David saw a scorch mark on Martin's skin. It was actually still sparking. David decided this was beyond his ability, and he left it to Healer Hall's more capable hands, as she would be arriving shortly. David patted Martin on the shoulder and moved on.

"Good work. You took down how many?" David asked Leslie.

"Four, total. Probably could have taken at least one more, but you knocked them all down," she said with a grin.

"Four is plenty," David told her. Just then, Charlie arrived.

"What we got... holy crap, what happened here?"

"A little battle."

"What do you need me for? Looks like it's all over."

"I didn't want them to get any ideas. Colleen should be here soon, too."

"Right behind you, Cap," she said, coming up to join them.

"Just... keep your eyes on them. Don't let them get up. Collect their wands."

The two patrol leaders nodded and went to do as instructed. David, seeing they had that under control, went back to Dusty. He pulled him far enough away that the others would not hear.

"What the fuck just happened back there?" David demanded.

"I... don't know. I just... froze. I wasn't sure how to handle the fight. I've never had to deal with a magical fight before. I didn't want to get Leslie or Martin hurt..."

"Getting hurt is part and parcel of the job. Every last one of us is likely to get hurt at some point this year."

"I know. It's just... I don't know. I froze," he said again.

"Uh-huh," David replied, then walked away. He made another call on his mirror, and then he waited for the dean to show up.

Healer Hall arrived first, and David directed her to Martin.

"Some of these others look to be hurt worse than him," Annie objected.

"The others are guilty of violating school rules. Martin isn't," David pointed out.

Annie pursed her lips, then went to look at Martin's arm. While she was doing that, Dean Lengel showed up at the scene. She was accompanied by another DIRT member.

"Madame Dean," David said in greeting. "Chloe," he said to his teammate, who nodded in return.

"What in the world happened here?" Dean Lengel asked.

"Dusty's team was on patrol. I was accompanying them. As we were making our way back to Fensterman Hall, we came across these folks, who were in the midst of a magical fight. I very loudly announced our presence and told them to lower their wands. They chose not to do so, and we were forced to incapacitate them."

"Any idea what the fight was about?"

"No, ma'am, no one has been interviewed. I figured it would be hard enough just to keep this many of them under control."

"Fair enough. Ah, Seth, good."

"Sorry I'm late," he said, out of breath. "I was actually off campus."

"No harm done. I want you and the DIRT members to escort these people to detention. I will talk to them in the morning to figure out what to do about things."

"Before you leave, ma'am, there's one more issue to discuss." David motioned for the other DIRT members to join the conversation.

"Okay, what's on your mind, David?" she asked.

"As of tonight, I'm relieving Dusty of his patrol leader status."

"What? You can't do that!" Dusty shouted angrily.

"Yes, I can. You froze in the middle of a highly dangerous situation. Had I not been here, either the fight would have continued, causing serious injury to some of these students, or your teammates would have had to enter the fray without you, which could have gotten them seriously hurt. What you did is inexcusable for a patrol leader."

"So you're kicking me off the team? After one mistake?"

"I'm not kicking you off the team at all. But you've admitted to not knowing what to do in that situation, and I need patrol leaders who can make decisions. I'm not even asking you to leave the team, but I am taking away your leadership position."

"Whatever," Dusty snarled and marched off.

"He froze?" Charlie asked.

"Like a statue."

"Who do you plan to put in his place?" Seth asked.

"Chloe, you up for the job?"

"Me?" she asked, surprised.

"All three of my patrol leaders, including Dusty, have given you outstanding assessments. I've seen you work, and you have the right balance of knowing when to talk, and when to kick ass. In short, I think you're the best one for the job. You want it?"

"I'll... try to live up to your expectations, Captain," she said nervously.

"Good. Anything else you need from us, ma'am?" he asked the dean.

"No. Get these students to detention, and then write up the report. I'll need that when I talk to them in the morning."

"Yes, ma'am. Good night." Turning to the miscreants, he said, "All right, folks. On your feet." A few were hesitant, but a few zaps of the kiskissippet hex got them up and moving. The two unconscious ones had already been taken off to the infirmary.

"Leslie, Martin, I'll need you guys to stick around to help with the report," David told them as they walked behind the group.

"Yes, sir," Martin said for both of them.

David moved over to speak quietly to Chloe. "Sorry to put you on the spot," he said, "but I needed to get a new patrol leader fast, and I needed to see how you'd react to sudden stress."

"Yes, sir. It's okay, I was just surprised."

David nodded. "Don't forget to have Dean Lengel change your badge tomorrow."

With that, they continued to herd their charges toward the detention house.

David stepped out of the cab in front of a nice, but modest, home in the suburbs of Boston. He walked up and rang the bell, only to wait for a full minute before the door opened.

"Yes, can I help you?" the woman asked brusquely.

"Lynn Trebschau?" David asked.

"Hopkins, now," she said tersely. "I took back my maiden name."

David nodded. "My name is David Stroud. I would like to speak to you about your late husband's business."

"What business is it of yours?" she asked coldly.

"Do you really want to discuss it in public?" David asked, motioning to the porch he was standing on.

"Fine, come in," she said. She led him into the house, and then into the living room, which was the closest room to the door. "So what is your interest in my husband's business?"

"My interest is in wondering why you are harassing your stepdaughter over it," David said.

"I'm sorry, who exactly are you?" she asked in non-answer.

"I'm Zyla's business partner."

"She has a partner now?" Lynn asked angrily. "She'll share the profits with a stranger, but she won't give her own mother a penny?"

"Actually, our current arrangement doesn't entitle me to any of the profits from the business. And you're not her mother. You're her stepmother. Technically, you're not even that, as that relationship was terminated by her father's death."

"What's your point?" Lynn snapped.

"I wasn't making a point, just correcting your mistake," David said, pausing to let that sink in. Continuing, he said, "Now, Zyla tells me that you have been causing both legal and operational difficulties for the business. You are contesting the will... on what grounds?"

"What do you mean, on what grounds? Her father was clearly unhinged. The man claimed to be a wizard, for Christ's sake!"

David held out his hand, palm facing up, and muttered quietly, "Tenaga bado melyn." Suddenly, a bright yellow orb of light appeared in his hand. Lynn stared at it in dismay. "And?" David asked, waiting to make sure she understood the implication of what she was seeing. After several seconds, he continued, "You didn't live with the man for six years and not know he was a wizard. As such, we both know that using this as a claim of unsound mind is complete crap. Uray," he said, and the ball of light disappeared.

"Prove it in court," she sneered.

"I plan to, and it won't really be all that difficult," David said. "Now, you have also, apparently, been disrupting the business by riling up the workers with disinformation about Zyla's intentions toward the company."

"That's a complete lie on her part. If she's having trouble, then maybe she should turn the company over to me. I'm sure I could handle it."

"No, I think not. And further," David said, handing her a folded sheet of paper, "you are hereby banned from setting foot on the property."

"You don't have that right! This issue is still being contested," she snarled.

David tapped the paper. "I don't, but he does." The paper was signed by a judge. "The court gave Zyla operational control. All I had to do was tell him you were interfering with the operation of the business. If you set foot on that property again before this issue is resolved, it will be trespassing."

"You think you've got it all covered, don't you?" she replied snidely.

"No, probably not. I'm simply covering what avenues I know you've been using. I'd also like to know what it's going to take to make you go away, short of giving you the business, which is simply not going to happen."

"That business, like everything else my late husband owned, belongs to me!" she demanded.

"No, obviously not, as he stated otherwise in his will, which, despite your assertion, is a completely valid legal document."

"We'll see about that."

"I'm sure we will. May I assume, then, that there is no accommodation to you that could be made to settle this issue quietly?"

"Certainly. Sign the business over. That's very quiet."

"But not going to happen," David reminded her.

"Then I'll see you in court."

David nodded. "Yes, you will. And you probably will wish you hadn't. Have a good day, ma'am."

"Go to hell," she retorted.

David looked at her with a smirk on his face. "If only you really understood who you were talking to..." he said, then turned and walked out the door. He used his cellphone to call a cab as he walked down the sidewalk.

David hadn't expected this meeting to go any better than it had, so he wasn't particularly upset by the outcome. The court hearing would be the most important part of the situation, he thought. For now, he had to go back to school and focus on a more personal legal matter, as the petition to form the riding guild would go before the king in less than a week.

"Are you ready to do this?" Madame Abernathy asked David.

"No, but why should we let that stop us?" he replied with a lopsided grin.

Madame Abernathy chuckled, and they walked through the entrance together. They were in Senesty, at the royal palace. They had come down the night before, as their appointment with the king was very early in the morning. David had missed his Conjuring TA class, but he'd cleared that with Prof. Blackstone. He would also miss his Sword and Staff class, but Prof. Teller hadn't been overly concerned, either.

Now, he was staring up at the face of the palace as they walked across the courtyard. Where Castle Woodward looked utilitarian and formidable, the royal palace was ornate and regal, made of marble and gilded decorations. The face of the building shone in the sun.

David and Madame Abernathy walked up the black granite steps and stopped at the front door, which was guarded.

"We have an appointment to see the king," Madame Abernathy told the guard.

"Names?" he asked politely.

"Eleanor Abernathy and David Stroud," she said.

The second guard checked a list, and nodded.

"Please proceed to your left as you enter. Enter the sitting room, and wait to be summoned. There are refreshments waiting."

"Thank you," she said.

As David and Madame Abernathy passed into the entrance hall, David wondered aloud, "I wonder how sick of reciting that little speech that guard is."

Madame Abernathy chuckled, and they entered the sitting room. There were others present, but no one greeted them. Madame Abernathy got herself some tea. David just stood and felt uneasy.

After a short wait, a page stepped into the room. It was a young boy, perhaps twelve or thirteen.

"The king is ready to see you all now," he said. "If you'll please follow me."

Everyone stood up and hurried out of the room behind the page. He led them to the doors to the throne room. David was familiar with this room, at least.

To Jailla, David said with a grin, "You planning to abandon me again this time, too?"

Jailla nipped him on the ear in reply.

"Ow! You bastard," David said with a chuckle.

"If Madame Abernathy and Master Stroud could be first, please," the page instructed. David and Madame Abernathy stepped in front of the doors. The page arranged the other folks as protocol demanded, and then he nodded to the guards and walked off.

The guards opened the doors, and the people stepped into the room.

"Oh my god," Madame Abernathy said.

"Never been here before?" David asked.

"No. You?"

"Just once." David did not say that once had been plenty enough for him. They walked down the carpet in step. As they arrived, everyone in the party dropped to one knee.

"You may rise," the king intoned in a way that showed he was tired of people doing that in front of him.

One of the king's attendants stepped up and said, "Madame Eleanor Abernathy, Animal Caregiver Level One, and Master David Stroud, Potions Master Second Class, to petition for the formation of a new guild. In support, Douglas Fogbottom, Animal Caregiver Level Two. In opposition, Darryl Shasta and Marjorie Limpet, both Animal Caregivers Level Two, and Jane Bullock, concerned member of the King's Council for the Bolmont District."

"Master Stroud, welcome again."

"Thank you, Your Majesty," David said.

"I'm told you recently spent some time back in the criminal management facility."

David cringed inwardly. "Yes, sir."

"Your lady friend is okay?"

"Yes, Your Majesty, thank you. She has recovered fully."

"And her attacker?"

"I'm told he'll be out of the infirmary in another month or so."

The king nodded. "I'd like to say that I probably would have done the same in your shoes, but the truth is, I'd probably have killed the son of a bitch."

David nodded. "But then I wouldn't have been able to be here to file this petition, Your Majesty."

The king chuckled. "That's true. Well, then, let's move on, shall we? Madame Abernathy, you're listed as the primary petitioner. Explain to me exactly what kind of guild you are seeking to create, and why you feel it needs to happen."

Madame Abernathy took a deep breath to get herself under control, and then said, "Yes, Your Majesty. What David and I are seeking is permission to form a pegasus-riding guild, to promote the continued amity of the human and pegasus species, as well as to properly educate people on the care of pegs, and proper riding technique."

"If your guild is also going to focus on pegasus care, why call it a riding guild?" the king asked.

"Sir, riding a peg, we have discovered, is a key part of its care."

"You're suggesting that a pegasus needs to be ridden?" Councilor Bullock asked derisively. "That's nonsense. No animal enjoys being burdened."

"Really?" David asked. "So those Wingless Wyrms, which do their job without even being asked, aren't enjoying themselves?"

"Those aren't animals. They're dragons," Bullock sniffed.

"And the difference would be..." David asked.

"They understand what they're doing," Bullock replied.

David snorted.

"You don't think dragons understand what they're doing?" the king asked David.

"I'm quite sure they do. My response was to her assumption that pegs don't."

"Before we delve too deeply into this, I would like to hear the formal opposition. Which of you speaks for your position?"

Darryl Shasta stepped forward. "I will, Your Majesty."

"And your objection to this new guild?"

"We see little point in it. The pegs are already under the care and nurture of the animal care guilds. To form a new guild to deal with a single species seems frivolous."

"Your response, Madame Abernathy?"

David touched Ellen's arm, and she nodded at him.

"Mr. Shasta... the animal care guilds are tasked with seeing to the health of animals, correct?"

"That's right."

"Do you treat dragons?"

"No. They're sentient."

"But... Madame Abernathy treats familiars, in her job at the school. They're sentient..."

"That is a specialization within our guild, reserved only for level one caregivers."

"I see, so only the best of you can treat sentient creatures?"

"Correct."

"Okay, going back to the dragons, what about drakees? They're not really sentient..."

"Only in a life-threatening emergency. Drakees are still self-aware. They're just somewhat... well... stupid."

"I would assume that, in a life-threatening emergency, you'd work on anything, including a human, correct?"

"Well, yes, if we thought we could help. What has this got to do with..."

"I'm getting there. So, you don't consider any dragon to be part of your jurisdiction, because they are self-aware, correct? In fact, the only self-aware creatures you choose to deal with are the familiars, right?"

"That's right."

David nodded. "Then I submit to you, sir, that you never should have been dealing with pegs in the first place."

"What?" the man asked in shock.

"Perhaps you'd better explain," the king said.

"Your Majesty, have you ever interacted with a pegasus?"

"No, I can't say that I have."

"These are intelligent creatures. The pegasus I ride knows me. I don't mean that she recognizes me, sir, I mean that she knows me. She understands speech. Not in the way a dog gets a vague sense of what you're saying, or that it recognizes a few word-commands. A pegasus will be able to follow what you tell it. You could, for instance, give a pegasus a list of instructions to do, that might take it all day. It would understand you, and do them. To give an example, when flying on my pegasus, I have given 'orders' such as, 'Land next to that lake,' or 'Fly around that peak once.' That's not the behavior of a mere flying horse."

"You're suggesting that pegs are self-aware?" Shasta asked.

"Yes, I am. I think that all magical creatures are self-aware to some extent, but pegs have a high degree of awareness. They don't help man because we make them. They help us because they want to."

"Right," Bullock said.

"Excuse me?" David asked.

"I have never approved of using pegs as beasts of burden. Such a magnificent creature should be allowed to run free and do as it pleases."

"And... if it pleases to help us?" David asked.

"You expect me to believe that?" she asked.

"Ma'am... have you ever spent any actual time with pegs?"

The woman hesitated, and then said, "No."

"I have. I spend time with them every week. I ride Cupcake at least twice a month. The pegs at the school are not tied up. They're not kept in cages. They are kept in the stables at night, and during bad weather, but during the day, they are out in their paddock. If they wanted to 'run free', as you put it, all they would have to do is fly away. They stay because they enjoy being with people as much as those of us who take the time enjoy being with them."

"And you think that... what did you call her? Cupcake? You think she enjoys being ridden?"

"Well, let's put it this way, ma'am: she won't let me ride anyone else."

"Really?" the king said.

"I've tried, Your Majesty. See, pegs enjoy flying. What animal capable of flight doesn't? But they also enjoy being ridden. So, for them, to be ridden while flying is the best of both worlds. It keeps them in close company of a human, and they get to be up in the sky. So, in order to give all of the pegs exercise, we try to fly all of them regularly. There aren't enough members of the school's riding club to pair off all the pegs, so I have tried to ride some of the others, so they get worked out, too. Cupcake, upon seeing me with a saddle, will run off any peg I walk toward, and stand in front of me, until I give in and saddle her, instead."

The king chuckled.

"And this is typical behavior?" Bullock asked.

"It is," Madame Abernathy said, picking up from David. "What we have discovered is that pegs will bond with their rider. They will not readily allow anyone else to ride them, and they get very upset if their rider tries to ride another peg. Cupcake was not happy during the summer while David was gone. Her attitude improved markedly when he returned to school. She wants his presence, Madame Councilor."

"Can I ask how you got involved with the pegs in the first place?" the king asked David.

"A couple years ago, while I was working on my Potions mastery, Cupcake came down with a case of wing rot. I happened to find out about it... rather accidentally, actually... but decided to see if I could help her. I discovered an aid in an old potions book I have, and from that point on, Cupcake and I have been friends. I borrowed her from the school to do some traveling the summer before last, and since then, well, she kind of adopted me."

The king nodded. To Mr. Fogbottom, he said, "You're in favor of this guild?"

"Yes, sir. I've had a fair amount of interaction with pegs, and I've always felt like they were a bit different from your typical animal. They follow instructions without prodding. They tend to understand that you're trying to help, even if you have to cause them pain or discomfort. There's also just a certain... well, a certain look in their eyes. You can tell there's an understanding behind them."

"Why are you not a co-petitioner, then?" the king asked.

"Well, I wasn't asked, but also, I don't have the time to devote to running a guild, so I wouldn't have been able to agree even if I had been asked."

"Come to that, Madame Abernathy, why did you ask a potions master to co-petition for an animal guild? To my understanding, Master Stroud has no animal care experience."

"David was a founding member of the riding club. In fact, it was his idea in the first place. His interest in, care for, and connection with the pegs is self-evident to anyone watching him interact with not just Cupcake, but any peg he comes across. He is a staunch supporter of the relationship between the two species, and... well, honestly, Your Majesty, I figured I needed someone with just a bit more stature than I possess, to make the petition worthy of your attention. Master Stroud does carry a commendation from the crown and two chevrons for service."

The king grinned. "So, you figured I'd be more lenient on someone I'd already rewarded, eh?"

Madame Abernathy blushed. "No, sir... more like, I figured you already had a sense of what David was made of, and would take that into account when considering the petition. That his opinion would carry considerably more weight than my own."

The king nodded. He turned back to the two guild opponents. "Do you have any other serious objection, besides the fact that this removes an animal from your jurisdiction?"

"How are two people supposed to care for the entire populace of pegs in Callamandia?" Marjorie Limpet asked.

"Madame Abernathy?" the king asked.

"Our petition covers that, Your Majesty. Each guildhall would cover a specific geographic region. Pegs outside a covered region would still be dealt with by the animal care guilds. It may take several years before the Peg Riding Guild could handle all pegs within the kingdom."

"So what's the point?" Shasta asked. "If the animal care guilds still have to do the work, why do we need a new guild?"

David said, "You have to start somewhere. There is a fundamental difference between what the animal care guilds do, and what the riding guild is designed to do."

"Explain," the king ordered.

David turned to the king and explained, "The animal care guilds focus solely on the physical well-being of the animals. They do this by curing and treating illness and disease. What they do not do is spend a lot of time interacting with their subjects. When Mr. Shasta said earlier that the pegs were 'under the care and nurture' of the animal care guilds, he mis-spoke. The animal care guilds do not, in fact, nurture any of the animals they are responsible for. The animal care guild members do not, for instance, take dogs for walks, or encourage the birds under their care to go flying. For whatever reason - and I'm not belittling them for it - the guild has chosen not to focus on this aspect of care.

"The pegs, however, require that level of interaction for both their physical and mental health. They want and need to run and fly. They are happiest when doing it with not just any rider, but their rider. As the relationship really is similar to a marriage, with that same level of commitment, it makes sense to train the riders in the proper way to interact with their pegasus. Part of that interaction is care. If the riders are already taking care of the pegs, why do the animal care guilds need to be involved? If you accept the notion that a guild of peg riders is important, then it only makes sense for the riders to learn the care of their own partners. If the riders themselves can take care of the pegs, then no one else needs to."

"What about unpartnered pegs?" Limpet asked.

Madame Abernathy replied, "Such a peg would be the responsibility of any aware Peg Rider. Part of our oath as riders obligates us to render aid to any pegasus in need that we come across, even those which are wild."

"Are there such creatures?" the king asked curiously.

"I'm told there are a few herds still living up in their original range, Your Majesty," David said.

"So, your point," the king said to David, "is that your guild's primary purpose is to aid in the establishment of the relationship between a peg and its rider, but that part of that relationship is learning to take care of the pegasus, and so therefore the animal care guild no longer would need to do so. Correct?"

"Yes, Your Majesty," David and Ellen said together.

"And your point," the king said to the two opposing guild members, "is that the animal care guild has already got this covered, as far as care goes, and that the riding thing really isn't important to you, correct?"

"Yes, Your Majesty," Mr. Shasta replied.

"And your concern, Madame Councilor, is that the pegs shouldn't be ridden, period."

"That was my concern coming in here, Your Majesty. I don't know if that position is valid, anymore. I would need to actually spend some time near pegs to clarify, and... well, frankly, I don't have the time to commit to that. Therefore, I would have to withdraw any formal opposition I made to the petition."

The king nodded. "Very well. I will need to confer with my advisors for a little while. If you will all return to the sitting room, you will be called when I have a decision."

The group all filed back into the sitting room. As the page was about to leave, David stopped him.

"The king has researchers, right?"

"Sir?"

"People he asks to find information for him... to look things up? People who gather factual information."

"Oh, yes, sir. The royal scribes handle that job."

"Would it be possible for me to speak with one of them before I leave? I have a question about an artifact that I can't seem to find an answer to."

"An ancient artifact, sir?"

"Probably. I'm not sure how old it is."

"That would be Master Elderwok's area of expertise. I will ask him if he has time to speak with you."

"Thanks."

The page nodded and departed. David hoped that the scribes could help him figure out what the Emmig Amulet was for. As soon as they had learned the date of their meeting with the king, David had decided to see if anyone here had any information. After all, if the king didn't know, who would?

"How do you think we did?" David asked Jailla.

"I don't have any better idea than you do," Jailla replied. "I don't know the king."

"Hmph."

Madame Abernathy came over to David after a while. "What will you do with the guild hall if the king rejects our petition? That's a very expensive building you've purchased."

David shrugged. "Maybe I'll open a brothel," he said with a grin. Madame Abernathy blushed. To extend the joke, David said, "For ghosts."

Madame Abernathy laughed at that.

"Do you think he's going to reject the petition?" David asked her.

She shook her head. "I don't know. I think we had good arguments, but bureaucracies tend to fight change."

"Yeah, I know. Let's hope the king sees the merit of our request, then."

"We can hope."

"Have you made up a list of people to invite to join the guild?" David asked after a short pause.

"Not a list, no. I have one or two people in mind, but I didn't want to get too far ahead of myself."

David nodded. Just then, Councilor Bullock came over to them.

"Do you believe what you said in there? About pegs really wanting to be ridden?"

"Ma'am," David said respectfully, "if you'd ever ridden one, there wouldn't be any doubt in your mind."

Madame Abernathy said, "You're familiar with how they 'break' horses in Earth, right?"

"Yes. That's exactly what I'm worried about," she said.

"Do you know how you 'break' a pegasus?"

"No..."

"You don't."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, there's nothing you have to do to get a pegasus to allow a human to ride it. With the exception of bonded pegs, they will allow anyone on their back."

"And bonded pegs?"

"Require a bit of coaxing, if it's anyone other than their bonded rider. I sometimes think they see it as a betrayal of their rider."

"That's very interesting. How much time do you spend around pegs?" Bullock asked.

"There's an entire herd of them at the school. I have to keep them all healthy. I interact with each of them at least once a week."

"And you... how often do you spend time with Cupcake?"

"A few times a week. My schedule doesn't really allow for more often, since she's not awake at night, which is when most of my free time happens."

"I'll admit, my concerns about them were an Earth-induced reaction."

"You were born there, then?" David asked.

"Yes."

"So was I. I've been around horses, ma'am. Pegs are not horses. They just look that way."

Bullock nodded, thanked them, and moved off.

After a moment, Marjorie Limpet walked up. "Couldn't wait until the guild brought you into the council? Had to run off and make your own guild?"

"I have no intention of leaving the animal care guild, Marjorie," Madame Abernathy said. "The riding guild has a completely different purpose. But, since you chose to bring up the council, why isn't one of them here, instead of a couple of level two caregivers?"

"The council chose not to take an official stance on your petition one way or the other," Darryl Shasta said, coming up to join Marjorie. "That doesn't mean the rest of us can't see what you're doing."

"And what, exactly, is it I'm doing?"

"Looking for power," Marjorie said.

"By forming a completely unheard of guild, covering a small - and diminishing - number of interested people," Madame Abernathy said. "Apparently, I don't know much about grabbing for power."

"If the number is diminishing, why bother? Your guild will be gone soon, anyway," Darryl said.

"We're kind of hoping to reverse the trend," David said.

"And what would you know about anything? You're a mere student."

Madame Abernathy snorted derisively.

"Did I say something funny?" Marjorie inquired.

"Yes, you did," Madame Abernathy said. "You're referring to a fifth-year as a 'mere student' when you never even tried to go for yours. David is a member of a royal guild. You are not. He is apprenticing for a second time already. You haven't got another skill to apprentice in. He has two chevrons from the king. You haven't got any. He completed his citizenship exam at the top of his class. You barely squeaked by on yours. In any quantifiable way, he's your superior. I don't think you have any place in referring to him as a 'mere' anything."

"But what does he know of the real world? He's lived a nice, sheltered life up there at the school," Darryl said.

This time, David snorted.

"What?" Darryl said.

"You apparently have a very strange notion of what being sheltered is like. I spent my first year at Woodward ducking rocks and hexes, and spending days in the infirmary. I have been harassed by a professor and betrayed by my roommate. If, by 'real life', you mean what do I know of people acting like assholes, I've got all the education I need.

"Oh, and then there's that other little thing," David said.

"What other little thing?" Marjorie asked solicitously.

"Being dead," David replied, staring her in the eyes. "I am a demighost. Believe me, I've seen all of 'real life' I ever wanted."

Marjorie paled slightly.

Before anyone had a chance to say anything further, the page returned.

"The king is ready to announce his decision. If you will all follow me, please."

Everyone made their way back into the throne room. After the kneeling and the resigned pronouncement to rise, the king got right down to business.

"Madame Abernathy, as a Level One caregiver, your opinion carries a fair amount of weight, all by itself. You need not have sought a co-petitioner merely to add clout.

"Having said that, I doubt you could have picked a better advocate for your cause than Master Stroud. He is clearly passionate in his support of this petition.

"I have checked with my advisors, and it is fairly clear to them, at least, that pegs do, in fact, possess a rather startling understanding of humans, which goes beyond what they would consider typical.

"Further, I do agree that there is no need for two guilds to handle the same task. So, the question is whether or not the riding guild serves a sufficiently useful purpose, in training peg riders, to warrant its existence. After all, we've managed for centuries without such a guild.

"Master Shasta, Madame Limpet, your opposition to this petition is based entirely on the loss of responsibility of the animal care guilds. I cannot give that argument any real weight, as it smacks entirely of trying to hang on to power. Further, the fact that you come as individuals, rather than as an actual representative of your guild, denies you any additional credibility that might have allowed. As such, I discarded your opposition while making my decision, which left me only the merits of the idea itself.

"To make that decision, I did... well, the simplest thing I could think of. I walked out to the stables and talked to a pegasus. I observed it, and then I asked it to walk in a circle for me.

"It did.

"As our pegs aren't trained to walk in circles, I can only assume it understood me on an intellectual level. If that is, in fact, the case, then our interaction with them has been woefully lacking.

"Your petition for a peg-riding guild is hereby granted. Further, if, within ten years, you have been able to establish your initial guildhall in Gorumshead, and an additional guildhall here in Senesty, I will grant royal status to your guild, due to what I consider the important nature of the task. We go to great lengths to interact intellectually with dragons and familiars. We haven't been doing so with pegs, and it seems clear to me that we should have been. As such, I would encourage you to grow your guild responsibly, but quickly."

"Thank you very much, Your Majesty," Madame Abernathy said.

"Thank you, Your Majesty," David said likewise.

The king nodded to them in dismissal, and they were led out of the throne room.

"Royal status?" David asked in surprise.

"Someone impressed him," Madame Abernathy said.

"I guess," David replied.

As they were about to exit the palace, the page caught up with David and tugged on his sleeve.

"Master Elderwok can see you now," the page said.

"Oh! Right! I'd forgotten. We have time, don't we, Ellen?"

"Sure."

The page led the two of them down a hall and into a room filled with books. Some of them were on bookshelves. More of them sat in piles on floor and tables.

"Master Elderwok?" the page called out.

"Yes, yes. Show them in," a voice shouted from behind a pile of books.

The page motioned them forward, and then left. David led Madame Abernathy around the pile of books, to find a tall, thin man with a bald head and a thin, white beard. He wore a dress shirt and a formal coat, along with dark pants and what looked like suede boots.

"Master Elderwok?" David asked.

"Livelius Elderwok, at your service," the man said with a grin that was crooked, and two sizes too large for his long, thin face. "What can I do for you?"

"Well, sir, I was wondering if you knew, or could find out, anything about a talisman known as the Emmig Amulet. Here's a picture of it," David said, pulling out a copy of the image he'd taken of it the year before last.

"Ugly thing, isn't it?" Livelius asked.

David just grinned.

"You... possess the amulet?"

"Yes. It came into my possession a couple years ago, but I have never learned what it does."

"I see. Well, I have not heard of this particular bauble... or I can't remember it, if I have. At my age, I've heard of a great many things, but can only remember a small number of them."

"Yes, sir."

"What I can do, is do some research. So long as you're in no great hurry to find out, that is."

"We do have to be back to school, David..." Madame Abernathy said.

"Right," he said to her. To Master Elderwok, he asked, "Could you write me, and let me know what you find out? I'm a student at Woodward Academy."

"As if I didn't know that already," the man said, motioning to David's coat. "I'm old, not blind."

David grinned in embarrassment.

"Very well. It will be an interesting diversion. When I have free moments, I will look for your amulet in the records. If I find anything, I will let you know."

"Thank you." Livelius tried to hand back the image. "You can keep that. It might help you in locating information."

Livelius nodded, and wished them both a good day. With that, they left his cluttered office and made their way out of the palace. They would arrive back at the school late, and so they would begin their work on the guild the next day.

David was returning to his room after a long organizational session with Madame Abernathy, working out the final details of the riding guild before they began to invite in members. He would have to go to the DIRT briefing in three hours, but he figured he deserved a bit of down time before then.

In Thunderbird Dorm, each student's room had a covered patio, where they could sit and enjoy the view, or do homework, if they wanted. The patios were separated from the outer walkway by a half wall, to delineate the personal spaces. As David turned to enter his own patio, he found someone sitting in one of his patio chairs.

"Hello, David," Prof. Qwellyn said, rising from the chair.

David was a bit shocked to find her there. "Uh... hey, Miss J. What brings you to my doorstep?"

"I'd like to talk to you, if that's okay."

"That's always okay. What's on your mind?"

Prof. Qwellyn hesitated, then said, "Could we go inside?"

"Oh! Sure, no problem. Come on in." David led her into his dorm room and closed the door. He took off his coat and hung it on the back of the door.

"Can I get you some juice, or some water?" he asked.

"No, thank you. I'm fine," she replied.

"Okay," David said. "Do you want to sit, or..." he asked, leaving the question unfinished.

"I think standing might be better," she said. To David, she seemed a bit nervous, but was trying to hide it.

David nodded, then asked, "So, what did you want to talk to me about? I see you're coloring even more of your hair pink this year. It looks nice." Prof. Qwellyn's hair was a fiery red in back, but in the front, her hair was pink. The two colors blended together about midway back on her head. When David had first come to the school, the pink stripe had been a single lock of hair at the front.

Prof. Qwellyn blushed. "It's not coloring. Fairy hair changes color throughout our lives. In a few years, my hair will be completely pink. But thank you for the compliment." She took a long breath, and then, rather than speak, she reached out and touched David's arm. As she did, she blushed. "I see you haven't changed the way you think about me over the last few months."

David grinned in embarrassment. "No, I haven't."

"That's what I wanted to talk to you about," she said.

"Okay..."

"You remember, I guess, what I said last spring..."

"That you weren't ready to have a physical relationship with anyone, and that it was too uncomfortable to be around me, given how attracted to you I am," David confirmed.

Prof. Qwellyn nodded. "I want you to know that I have missed our time together over the last several months. I feel as though I've lost one of my best friends. I would really like to fix that, and for us to be able to spend time together again."

"I'd like that," David said, "but what about how uncomfortable I make you? You said there was nothing I could do to fix it myself..."

"There is one thing," Prof. Qwellyn said.

"Oh?" David asked.

Prof. Qwellyn took a deep breath. "You could have sex with me."

David arched his eyebrows. "I thought you weren't ready for that."

"I wasn't, when I said it. And I'm not entirely sure I am now. But after talking to Prof. Stott, I at least feel like I'm willing to try. I want my friend back. This is the only way I know that might fix the problem."

David stepped a little closer, and then reached out and took her hand. "Miss J... I don't want you to do anything you're not comfortable with."

"I know. You have never once pressured me to give in. I appreciate that a great deal. But I can either find out if we can fix this problem... or I go on not knowing. Even if everything goes wrong, I'm still slightly better off than I am now, because I'll know."

"I understand that. So... did you want to go on a date first, or..."

Miss J shook her head. "That would make me far too uncomfortable. If this works, maybe we could go on a date after."

David smiled in understanding. "Okay," he said. He looked into her eyes and saw nervousness and fear, and a little bit of anticipation. He stepped close to Miss J and slowly embraced her. She wrapped her arms around him and then laid her head on his shoulder. David rubbed his hands up and down her back, just trying to help her relax a bit.

After a very long moment, David leaned back slightly. Miss J did, too, and David could see the uncertainty in her gaze. David moved in very slowly, and Miss J waited for him. Just before he made final contact, she closed her eyes. His lips pressed gently against hers, and she sighed at how good it felt. The two kissed softly for a long time, David rubbing her back, and Miss J just absorbing the sensations.

Finally, David ended the kiss. He leaned back again, to look her in the eyes, and Miss J smiled at him. He smiled softly back, and then slipped away from her. He reached down to take her hand gently, and said, "Let's go somewhere more comfortable." He led her back to the bedroom, not hurrying or rushing her.

When they were standing next to the bed, David kissed Miss J again. She enjoyed the second kiss just as much as the first one, and she was beginning to understand the appeal of physical contact. She pressed herself more fully against him, to encourage him to continue.

David continued to kiss her, but he moved his hands up to the back of her head. She currently had her hair in a ponytail, and he wanted to see it loose. He tried to be careful as he loosened the hair band, but it snagged. She grunted softly in discomfort, and at that instant, David thought he saw a flash of light. His eyes were closed, however, and he figured he had just imagined it. He worked more carefully, and so eventually got the band out of her hair. He moved his hands back down to hold her close, and continued to kiss her for another long moment, which she happily enjoyed.

When David stepped back from kissing Miss J, he began to undo his shirt. He did so casually, not wanting to appear too eager. He didn't want to scare her by moving too quickly.

"Should I take off my top, too?" she asked.

"Please, let me," David said.

Miss J smiled softly at him and nodded.

Once David had his own shirt off, he moved back to Miss J. She was wearing a fairy-style tunic made of a lightweight fabric. It covered her completely, but gave wonderful hints at what lay beneath. The tunic tied on the side, and when David pulled the bow loose, the front of the tunic fell open, not quite revealing anything just yet.

David fixed that as he folded the flaps of the tunic back, exposing her ample chest to his view. Miss J was a voluptuous woman, with some very nice curves, and David admired them for a long moment before he finally moved his hands to her shoulders and pushed the tunic the rest of the way off her. He moved behind her to pick up her tunic, and then lightly tossed it onto a nearby chair.

From behind her, David could see that Miss J had what looked like a tattoo on her back. There were a pair of butterfly-style wings there, in colors that actually shimmered on her skin. David gently ran his hands over them, sliding her now-loose hair out of his way so he could see.

"Is this just a tattoo?"

Miss J shook her head. "They are my wings. When we become human-sized, our wings meld into our body, to keep them out of the way."

"They're very pretty," he said. Moving close and putting his hands on her hips, he guided her back against him and said quietly into her ear, "Just like the rest of you." David's hands were sliding back and forth across her stomach, and Miss J moaned very softly. Finally, David let his hands glide up until they were each cupping a breast. He didn't squeeze very much yet; he wanted her to be comfortable with his touch, first.

"That feels very nice," Miss J said.

"Do you ever touch yourself?" David asked curiously.

"I have, from time to time, but it never feels this nice," she admitted. David smiled, and then leaned down and kissed the base of her neck. He was a little bolder with his hands now, gently squeezing her breasts and then reaching up to run his fingers over her nipples. She jumped at that sensation, but then quickly settled back to enjoy it.

David continued to massage and fondle her breasts until her nipples became fully erect. Once that happened, he slipped back around to her front, and then leaned down to take one of her nipples into his mouth. She gasped in surprise at how good that felt, and then she hummed in contentment.

While he worked over her nipple, David reached down and untied the skirt she was wearing. Like her tunic, it was held with a simple bow, and once that was undone, the skirt slipped quickly to the floor. Now she had on only her panties; her feet, like always, were bare already.

David took hold of Miss J's panties and gently slipped them down off her hips. Miss J cooperated, sliding her feet apart slightly to allow her panties to fall free. She was now completely naked, and David was still sucking on her nipple.

As David switched to Miss J's other nipple, he ran his hands around to cup and fondle her ass. She hummed again in approval. She didn't know if she was supposed to be doing anything to participate or not, but what was happening to her so far was very nice.

After a long moment, David slipped his one hand back around front, and he let it rest on her inner thigh. Slowly, he moved that hand upward. As he did, Miss J slid her legs even further apart, to give him whatever room he needed. When his hand reached her vee, David could feel the heat there, and first contact indicated plenty of moisture. He cupped his hand upward, and rubbed her pussy with his fingers. Miss J moaned in obvious pleasure. When David slid his middle finger slowly into her depths, she cried out loud.

David only fingered her for a few seconds before he stood up straight, his finger still inside her. She smiled at him in encouragement. Putting his hand behind her to help her balance, David backed Miss J up to the bed, and then he slowly laid her down upon it, his finger still fully inside of her, her legs hanging off the edge of the bed.

David kissed Miss J as his finger returned to sliding in and out of her, and her moans returned quickly. After a few seconds, he slid his tongue out and ran it across her lips. It took several seconds before she got the idea, but then her lips parted, and he slid his tongue into her mouth so that it could play with its partner.

As Miss J's heat started to rise, David could tell, and he broke their kiss. As he slid his finger out of her, causing her to moan in discontentment, he slid down her body until he was kneeling on the floor. He took her one leg in hand and lifted it, so that he could slip between her legs. He looked down now at her wet pussy, which was nicely framed by red pubic hair that was either well-trimmed, or grew neatly. After a moment to admire it, he leaned in and ran his tongue over her lips, then slid it in-between them, slowly running it along the entire length of her slit.

"Oh!" Miss J cried out, the wave of pleasure hitting her hard. "Oh, David, that feels good!"

David smiled to himself, and then he slid his tongue upward, to slip over and around her clit. Her cries got louder, and her thighs began to twitch. David knew that she was close to her orgasm, and so he continued his ministrations. He slid his finger back into her and moved it in and out slowly as his tongue continued to work over her clit.

It wasn't very much longer before Miss J's entire body began to shiver, her climax imminent. Finally, she couldn't take any more, and she screamed out, her body shuddering as her orgasm took hold. David continued to lick her clit, but he removed his finger. When her climax seemed to be subsiding, David leaned back, and then he stood up, moving away from her.

While Miss J was recovering from her orgasm, David removed the rest of his clothes. He lay down on the bed next to her, his legs hanging off, too. He slipped his hand onto her stomach and rubbed in small circles, just to let her know he was there.

After a couple minutes, Miss J turned her head to look at him, and smiled. "That felt incredible," she said.

"And that was just the warm-up," David told her.

"Mm," she replied. She rolled toward him, so they were both on their sides. Her breasts were touching his chest lightly, and he could feel her nipples pressing into him.

Slowly, Miss J reached down and let her fingers brush over David's cock, which was fully erect. She slid her fingers back and forth along his length, exploring more than anything. Once she was satisfied with her investigation of him, she moved her hand to his hip.

"Am I supposed to use my mouth on your lower region now?"

David smiled at her phrasing. "You can, if you'd like to."

"Would you enjoy it?"

David's smile grew a bit. "Almost certainly."

"Okay." Miss J slid off the bed onto her knees, as David had done. David rolled onto his back and moved one leg so that she was between his legs. Miss J looked closely at his cock for a long time, and then reached out, touching it again. She softly wrapped her fingers around it, feeling the way it was both hard, and yet yielding. She looked up at him.

"I'm not actually sure what to do."

With some guidance from David, Miss J's tongue was soon sliding along the side of David's dick. She made sure to get both sides, and paid special attention to the head of his cock. When she was ready, she slipped her lips around the head, and then pushed forward, taking in as much of David's prick as she could. She then backed off and did it again, going a little further this time. She repeated this until she could feel him hitting the back of her throat, and knew she couldn't go any further. At that point, she began to move back and forth on him in a slow, sensual rhythm.

David sighed in pleasure as Miss J's mouth worked him over. He hadn't had a blowjob since his last encounter with Flo, which was over a week before, and so he was really enjoying the feeling. Miss J's mouth felt quite nice, and David was quickly rising toward his peak.

He had already warned her about his cum, and so he merely grunted a warning as he was getting close. Miss J decided to try it, to see what it tasted like, and so she didn't stop, but started to take shorter strokes. She used her hand to jack the portion of his cock not in her mouth, and in only a few more seconds, David growled and came. He pumped his jism into her mouth for several seconds before his climax finally subsided. When it did, Miss J swallowed.

Miss J let David's cock loose and slid up onto the bed next to him.

"That was fun," she said. "Did I do well enough for you to enjoy it?"

"Oh, hell yes," David replied with a smile. He slid his hand onto her breast and squeezed gently, massaging her tit as he recovered.

"What comes next?" she asked with interest.

"Well, I need a couple minutes to recover," David told her. "So, while that happens, why don't we scoot the rest of the way onto the bed?"

The two adjusted themselves so that they were lying on the bed the right way, and David had returned his hand to her abdomen. Instead of sliding it back up onto her breast, however, he moved his hand downward. Miss J, knowing what he was after, slid her legs apart to give him room.

David slid his hand between Miss J's legs, to insert his middle finger deep into her pussy. He didn't leave it there, though, and Miss J frowned when he pulled it back out. Her unhappiness passed quickly when he started to massage her clit with his finger, however.

"Oh, my, that feels... nice," she said.

David chuckled softly, and then leaned down to kiss her while he continued to finger her clit. Miss J kissed back passionately and pressed her upper body against him as her hips moved against his hand. David could sense her heat rising quickly, and so he moved his finger faster, and slid his tongue into her mouth. She happily accepted that, her tongue dancing wetly with its partner as her hips rolled in time with his movements.

Finally, Miss J screamed into David's mouth, and her body shuddered, an orgasm washing over her. David moved his hand off her clit and up to her side, holding her tightly against himself.

It took a long while for Miss J's peak to pass. When it finally did, she smiled broadly up at David.

"I'm really starting to like this sex thing," she said.

David chuckled. "Are you ready for the main event?" he asked.

She bit her lip with a grin, and nodded.

David rolled so that he was above her. She spread her legs as far as she could to give him access. He rubbed his cock against her pussy lips several times, to help it finish hardening, and then he put the head of it against the opening to her pussy. Slowly now, he pushed forward, allowing his dick to penetrate her tunnel without discomfort.

Miss J's eyes went wide as David began to slip inside of her. "That feels... indescribable," she said, almost in awe.

David continued to push into her slowly, not wanting to hurt her. After one long, smooth push, his hips were resting against hers. He paused then, and looked down at her.

"How do you feel?"

"I feel wonderful. What do we do now?"

David grinned. "This," he said, and began to move his hips back and forth. He didn't move too fast, since it was her first time, but he set up a rhythm.

"Oh! Oh! Oh, my!" Miss J was quickly screaming. "Oh, yes! I like this!" Miss J kept up her cries and encouragements as David continued to slide into her.

"Can you go faster?" she asked after a couple minutes.

"Sure," he replied, and increased his pace.

Miss J screamed out again as the extra sensations ran up and down her spine. Her hips were rolling and her head twisted back and forth. It was clear that another orgasm was approaching.

David sped up even more, and Miss J was almost immediately screaming out as her climax overtook her. Her pussy squeezed and rippled along his cock as her body shuddered. He continued to move inside her, but slowed down, so her orgasm could settle.

When she had caught her breath, David pulled out of Miss J.

"Aw," she pouted cutely.

David smiled down at her. "We're not done," he assured her. She smiled at him.

David took hold of her hip, and gently rolled her onto her stomach. She readily did what he wanted, and when he began to lift her hips, she got up on her hands and knees quickly. He got into position and slid his cock back into her pussy. Miss J mewled at her renewed pleasure.

There was no point in starting slowly, and so David returned to thrusting hard and fast into Miss J's pussy. She was immediately moaning and muttering encouragements. After a minute, Miss J looked over her shoulder at David. In-between thrusts and moans, she asked, "Can I ask something that might be a bit strange?"

David kept up his thrusts as he said, "Go ahead."

"Could you pull my hair?"

David raised his eyebrows, but it wasn't as if he hadn't heard that request before. Rose had asked far more than that of him. He reached up and took a firm hold of Miss J's hair, wrapping it around his hand. With that, he carefully pulled back, continuing his thrusts as her head was pulled backward by the force of his tugging.

"Oh, yes! Oh, so good!" Miss J cried out. Suddenly, her body was infused with a bright red glow. There was no warmth to the light, but it was brilliant, and almost hard to look at. David closed his eyes as he continued to fuck her, moving even harder and faster.

Miss J went into overload, her cries becoming louder, and her encouragements almost incoherent. David grunted as he thrust, his orgasm approaching.

Miss J's climax was somewhat closer, and her body began to tremble and rock as it approached. Finally, it overtook her and she screamed out loudly. Her body thrashed and her head fought his grasp. Her cries grew even louder as that happened, and David could tell the light was pulsing each time she jerked her head. Her pussy squeezed his dick wonderfully, and he could finally take no more, slamming his cock fully into her and spewing his load deep into her pussy.

Miss J screamed for a long moment as her orgasm reached its peak, until finally, breathless, she collapsed back onto the bed. David didn't move, remaining inside of her until he could catch his breath. Only when he saw her eyes close and her breathing deepen into obvious sleep did he slide out of her. When he did, she let out a quiet, discontented mew. He smiled about that.

"I never imagined that sex would feel that good," Miss J admitted. They were sitting on his couch now, dressed and relaxing.

"I'm very glad you enjoyed it," David said sincerely.

"And when you pulled my hair... wow, that really... what was that term? Oh, yes. That really 'turned me on.'"

"Like a light bulb," David replied with a grin.

"What's a light bulb?" Miss J asked. David chuckled.

"I'm sorry that I passed out on you, though," Miss J told him after a moment of comfortable silence.

"It's okay," he told her.

"This may seem like an odd question but... did we finish having sex?"

David chuckled, but tried to control himself. He didn't want to offend her. "There's not a checklist to follow. You've finished... whenever you stop."

"But... was there more you wanted to do?"

"There's lots of things I'd like to do. And I'd love to do all the stuff we just did, again."

"I'm afraid I can't do more right now," Miss J said seriously. "But maybe tomorrow."

David's eyebrows went up. "You want to do it again tomorrow?"

"Oh, yes," she confirmed. "When can I visit you? Unless," she said, hesitating, "you don't want to."

"Hell, yes, I want to!" David assured her. He thought for a second, and then said, "Flo's supposed to come over to study Conjuring at four. Night times are bad for you, right?"

"Yes. I'm too sleepy to play."

"Then... any time in the morning, I guess."

"I'll be here. Thank you, David, for showing me the joy I've been missing... and for not turning me away, after I did so to you."

David leaned over and kissed her. "Trust me, it was my pleasure."

"And it soon will be again," she promised him with a smile.

David chuckled.

"I have to go now, though. It's getting dark," she said.

"Yeah, and I have a briefing in an hour, anyway," David said. He stood with her, but didn't bother to walk toward the door.

"Till tomorrow, then," she said.

"See you."

They kissed once more, and then Miss J popped out of existence. David smiled to himself, then went to take a shower before he had to go to his meeting.

"Hello, David," Prof. Rutherford said in greeting. "You're here for your advisory meeting?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"Okay, so... what do we need to discuss today?"

"I had a question about what you like to call multimandy."

Prof. Rutherford chuckled. The accepted term for using two different forms of elemandy at the same time was actually "blending", but she thought multimandy sounded more fun. "What about it?" she asked David.

"Well, some of them, I can immediately see the usefulness of. Pyromandy and aeromandy can work together to produce a larger and more agile fire effect. Aeromandy and aquamandy are the basic elements of weather control, and so on. But I'm having trouble fitting terramandy in with any of the other elemandies. For instance, if you mix earth and water, you get mud. But do you really need blending to act on the mud? Wouldn't terramandy alone be sufficient?"

"It depends on what you're trying to achieve," Prof. Rutherford said. "For example, let's say that you wanted to use the mud to entrap a dangerous animal. Moving the mud to where the animal is won't really stop it. In order to stop it that way, you'd have to bury it, which would kill it. You can't 'mound up' mud, because it is runny.

"If, on the other hand, you use terramandy to move the mud where you want it and hold it in place for a minute, you can then use aquamandy to remove the water content. This leaves you with dry earth again, and that will secure the animal."

"Is that really blending, though? I mean, you're just using two at the same time. They're not really working together..."

"Sure they are. Let's take this example further. What if you want to entrap the animal, which is standing next to a lake, but you don't have any actual mud to deal with? Trapping it in dry ground without hurting it will be difficult. However, if you use your aquamandy to make mud, then do as we just talked about, you will have achieved your goal. Truthfully, none of the elemandies can work 'together'. You use one to do one thing, while you're using the other to do something else. But the two actions, together, achieve your goal. The key to blending is being able to split your attention between the two skills, so that you can do them both at the same time. What that really means, though, is that you have to become proficient enough to think of them as a single action, because your conscious mind can't really process two complex tasks at once."

"So blending is really just multi-tasking," David said.

"Only on a higher level, since regular multi-tasking really doesn't do things at the same time, whereas blending does. It's why blending is so hard to do."

"Okay, I guess I get it. So, any time you are using two elemandies at once, it is blending, even if the two don't seem to be interacting directly."

"Right."

"Okay, but aren't most blended tasks capable of being done by a focused single elemandy?"

"Yes."

"So why bother with blending?"

"Speed and power. While it is possible to, say, create a fire vortex strictly using pyromandy, you will find it is a time-consuming and straining process. It will also never generate the kind of wind power that your aeromandy can. While the blended process requires greater concentration, it can achieve results much faster, and with a greater power. As another example, say you wish to bombard someone with clumps of earth. If the person moves, you could use your terramandy to redirect the clumps as you're pushing them forward. But it actually requires less energy to change the air around the clumps to cause it to push them onto a new course. You will have greater agility and control with a blended attempt than with a single elemandy approach."

"So... better results, but higher concentration required."

"Yes. Why didn't you ask these questions in class last year?"

"We spent so little time on the blending topics, I never really had time to sit down and consider their implications."

Prof. Rutherford nodded. "Fair enough. We do tend to gloss over it in class, because it takes so long to learn to do it right. We usually reserve multimandy for the DS students."

"I can understand that."

"Okay, so... did you have anything new to show me?"

"Not really. I'm getting better at my terramandy, but all I've managed is some refinement of what I showed you last week."

"Okay. Any other questions?"

"Not that I can think of. I'm going to go back and take another look at blending, and see if I can't find practical uses for each of the combinations."

"Just remember, electromandy and aquamandy do not play nicely together."

David grinned. "I remember."

"Okay. Well, if there's nothing else, I guess I'll talk to you next week. I have to go teach a class."

"Yeah, me, too. See you later, Professor."

"I didn't expect how hostile everyone is being," Karen said to the others. David was on patrol with Chloe's team, which tonight consisted of Karen Hooks and Kyle Copeland.

"Be fair, Karen," Chloe said. "Not everyone is being hostile. Just those that think we're in their way."

"Well, that seems like everyone I interact with lately," Karen said. "They've ruined two uniforms so far."

"You didn't submit a request for replacement," David said to her.

Karen shook her head. "I didn't want to complain."

"Complaining is one thing. Monetary loss is another. The school is prepared to deal with damages we incur. They knew that we would become targets."

"Someone forgot to tell us," Kyle groused.

"We did tell you, more than once," David retorted. "It's not our fault if you weren't listening."

"Easy for you to say. You've been through all this before. We haven't," Kyle said.

"And you think I enjoy going through it again? But believe me, this is nothing like my first year here. Yet."

"You expect it to get worse?" Chloe asked, concerned.

"Yes. The gang will try to find a way to either subvert the team, or overpower us. If they can get to a point where we won't challenge them, it's the same as if we don't exist. To reach that goal, I think they will keep upping the individual harassment."

"Just great," Kyle opined. David scowled at him.

"Speaking of harassment," Chloe said, "What's going on down there?" They were currently walking through the hallway of Griffin Dorm. They saw what looked like three older students forming a semicircle around what looked like a first-year. They saw two of the older students make menacing gestures, and then the first-year reached into his pocket to pull out his money.

"Extortion," David said.

"Let's go," Chloe said. David faded to invisibility and moved very quickly, slipping past the students, so he was on the other side of them.

One of the older students said, "Trouble," and jerked his head toward the DIRT members coming down the hall.

The leader of the group said, "Let's get out of here." To the first-year, he said, "You say anything, and I'll pound you into hamburger."

The three toughs turned to move away from DIRT, but at that point, David faded back to visibility.

"Going somewhere?" he asked. "I think the lieutenant has some questions for you."

The three tensed, figuring they could overpower David, but then they heard from behind them, "Don't even try it, gentlemen," They each looked over their shoulders, to see three wands pointing at them. The first-year student was plastered up against the wall, out of the way.

"What's going on here?" Chloe asked the lead older student.

"What business is it of yours?" he sneered.

"We saw you take his money. He didn't look happy to be handing it over," Chloe explained patiently. "I have to wonder if the money was given willingly."

"He was paying me for something I sold him," the guy said.

"Really? What?"

"A SkyRider," the guy said, after a brief pause which indicated to every DIRT member that he was lying.

Chloe looked to David. She wasn't sure how to refute the obvious fabrication.

David turned to the first-year. "Mind if we search your room?"

"Go ahead, but you're not gonna find a SkyRider in there. He didn't sell me anything! He just told me to give him my money!"

"Shut up, you little twit, or I'll-"

"Sus!" David said, tapping the guy on the forehead. Suddenly, the guy was completely unable to make sound come out of his mouth. He looked furiously at David.

"You should thank me," David said. "What you were about to do was commit an actual crime, for which you would have spent actual time in an actual jail." Turning back to the first-year, David asked, "So, you did not buy a SkyRider from him?"

"No," the first-year said. He was feeling more confident, now that the DIRT clearly had the older students under control. "He said if I didn't give him my money, his buddies would beat me up. He said that The Clan would see to it I was beaten every day until I gave him money to make it stop."

"The Clan," David said. It was not a question. "Have you heard of them before?"

"No, but I mean, I figured he was talking about the guys he hangs out with. I've seen him around campus."

David nodded.

"Okay, we're going to have to take these guys before Dean Lengel. You'll need to come with us, to tell your side of the story."

"Okay."

With that, they secured the hands of the three gang members, and marched them off to Beckett Hall.

"We witnessed the three perpetrators -" Chloe said.

"I object!" one of the guys said. "It hasn't been proven that we did anything wrong."

Chloe snorted. She said, "Okay, fine. The alleged perpetrators appeared to be intimidating the younger student. When we saw money change hands, we decided to investigate."

David continued. "Before we announced ourselves, I became invisible. I moved to a spot on the other side of the defendants. When they turned to run from Chloe's team-"

"Objection!" the same guy said again. "He cannot testify about anything while he was invisible."

David looked at him and said, "You know, your earth lawyer crap isn't going to get you off on this one. I am not testifying to anything that happened while I was invisible. Further, the information can be corroborated by witnesses who are entirely human. Therefore, your objection is nonsensical, out of line, and ineffectual. But just to make you happy, I will rephrase. When I returned to visibility, the three defendants were moving away from the DIRT in a determined manner. When they saw me, they pulled up short. I asked them where they were going in such a hurry, and it appeared as if they were considering whether or not to get violent. At that point, however, Chloe and the others arrived, and the situation calmed down immediately."

Chloe continued, "When I asked Randall why he was taking money from the first-year student, he claimed that the first-year had purchased a SkyRider from him. However, the first-year refutes this."

Dean Lengel looked at the first-year student. "Did you buy a SkyRider from him?"

"No, ma'am. I've never bought anything from him, and I wouldn't buy a SkyRider from anyone. I have horrible balance."

Dean Lengel nodded. "Did these students threaten you?"

"Yes, ma'am. They said if I didn't give them my money, they were going to turn me into hamburger."

"He also said they mentioned 'The Clan'. This would be the first time we've had a name associated with the activity going on on campus," David said.

Dean Lengel nodded. "Follow up on that."

"Yes, ma'am."

"Anything else?"

"Randall attempted to threaten the first-year when he started to tell us what really happened. I... encouraged Randall not to speak further."

"What do you have to say for yourself?" Dean Lengel asked Randall, the leader of the three gang members.

Randall opened his mouth, but again, no words came out.

"Oops," David said in mock embarrassment. He waved his hand at Randall and said, "Peractus."

"You motherfucking-" Randall started to say to David.

"Watch your language, young man," Dean Lengel snapped.

"Fuck off, cow," Randall replied. "You can't touch me, or anyone else in The Clan."

"Can't I? Try this on for size, mister. You'll be spending the next two months in detention, until Winter Break. We do not put up with extortion on my campus. If it happens from you again, it will result in a call to the Rimohrs."

"And the other two, ma'am?" Chloe asked.

"Same thing. They were clearly in it together."

"Shall we escort them there now?" David asked.

"Yes."

"You're going to regret this, bitch," Randall said.

Suddenly, Randall was having trouble breathing, with David's hand wrapped around his throat.

"If you call her that again, you're going to regret it... briefly," David warned. "After which, you won't be capable of regretting anything. Now move." David shoved Randall backward, and the guy stumbled a few steps, before righting himself. He turned away after glaring at David. The other two turned and followed their leader resolutely out the door.

David paid the cab driver and stepped out in front of Zyla's factory. He had come to make his own inspection of the facility. While he'd been with Zyla, they hadn't really delved into the physical operation of the factory. David wanted to see for himself how everything worked.

Approaching the large, open door, David saw the same three workers standing there that had been there when he had come with Zyla. He wondered just exactly what their jobs were, that they could afford to be standing around all the time. The three moved to block his path, and one of them called to others. By the time David arrived at the door, there were six of them standing there.

"Private property, Mac," the one in the lead said.

"And you're well aware that I have every right to be here. Now get out of my way." David looked to see that several of the people in front of him had items in their hands. One had a heavy wrench. Another had a crowbar. A third, apparently the janitor, or stuck with crap-duty, had a broom.

"I don't see your name on the sign," the man said.

"Since you don't know what my name is, you don't know whether it's on that sign or not. Assuming, that is, that you're capable of reading in the first place."

The man's look darkened. "Listen, kid, you'd better turn around now, and-"

David cut him off. "No, you listen. If you don't get out of my way peacefully, I will go through you. I have legitimate business here, and as Mrs. Garibaldi's business partner, I have every right to be here. And whether you believe this or not, I also have all the ability I need to get past you, whether you decide to be smart and move aside, or not."

"Tough words, little man," the leader said. "Boys, I think this kid needs a lesson in manners."

Two of the men moved in while the first reared his fist back. David acted quickly, sidestepping the leader and then kicking him in the side of the knee. The leader screamed in pain, but didn't quite go to the ground. David didn't worry about that for the moment. Instead, he headed directly for the one with the broom, who tried to pick it up and swing at David, but he had no skill with it. David rolled under the man's swing and then punched him in the jaw, silently chanting the pichac hex as he did. The man went down, losing his broom in the process. David picked up the broom and quickly detached the bristle end, so that he was left with merely a stick. To David, this was a very nice, if short, makeshift staff.

David twirled the staff in his hands a couple times as he turned to face the remaining four attackers. The leader was still rubbing his knee. The one with the wrench came at him, swinging it wide. David stepped in tight and swung his staff hard, connecting with the man's ribs. The man groaned in pain and the wrench flew out of his hand, barely missing one of the other attackers, who had to dodge quickly to avoid getting hit by it. David shoved him, hard, and he fell to the ground, as well.

Turning, David saw the man with the crowbar coming at him. He didn't have time to move out of the way, so as the man swung the crowbar, David quickly faded to insubstantiality. The crowbar swished right through David's head, and the man, looking shocked that he had missed, was too surprised to swing back. David stepped forward and swung his staff downward and out, taking the knees out from under the man, who collapsed to the ground.

Turning, David planted the end of his staff on the ground and leapt, using it to guide his jump. His foot connected with the jaw of the next man, who went flying to the ground.

David twirled and spun his staff, and rather than attack the one remaining uninjured man, he leapt toward the leader, who was just now straightening from his knee injury. David swung his staff hard, and as he landed in front of the man, he stopped his staff a mere inch from the man's head.

"Enough!" he snarled. His look bored in on the leader. "If I had continued this move," David said quietly, but in earnest, "you would be dead now. Nobody here has been seriously injured... yet. Now, get out of my way, and stay out of my way. The next time I have to deal with you, you're going to need an ambulance. Is that understood?"

"Yeah," the man said grudgingly, and limped backward, out of David's way.

"Good." David walked past them, dropping the broom handle on the floor inside the factory. He didn't bother to look behind him.

David walked the length and breadth of the factory, looking at each machine, and asking what it did. He asked if any of the machines needed maintenance. The workers answered him, but they were not friendly.

Finally, after he was done with his tour, David went up to the office. He looked at his watch along the way. He had to be back at school at one o'clock to meet Miss J. Normally he would have met up with her in the morning for sex, which they had been having every day since their first time the previous Saturday, but he'd needed to do this inspection, so he'd pushed her off until the afternoon. He certainly didn't want to be late for that; she might get upset with him.

David stepped into the office to find yet another problem waiting for him. He saw the office manager going over the books with Lynn Hopkins. David stepped back out into the hallway, so they would not hear him, and he phoned the police. Once he'd gotten off the phone with them, he went back to the office.

David leaned against the door frame before speaking.

"What the fuck do you think you're doing?" David asked. His question was directed at the office manager.

"I'm going over the books with Ms. Hopkins," he said dismissively.

"For what reason are you revealing private company information to an outsider?"

"This is as much my company as-" Lynn started to say.

"Shut up," David told her bluntly. She was so shocked that she actually stopped talking.

David said to the office manager, "I will be discussing this with Mrs. Garibaldi. Don't expect to have your job much longer." Turning to Lynn, he said, "And you are breaking the law."

"I didn't make him show me anything," she said derisively.

"No, but you did violate a court order," David said.

"So what are you going to do about it?" she said snidely.

David heard a car pull up outside. He turned to look, and was surprised to see that the police had arrived so quickly. Turning back to Lynn, he said, "Me? Nothing. They, on the other hand, will escort you off the property, and file a report with the court."

Lynn flushed in anger. "You have no right-"

David interrupted her again. "I have every right. Every legal right, to insist that you be removed from the premises. You have no legitimate reason for being here." David turned to see the workers starting to harass the officers.

"Officers," David called out, "Up here, please. And any worker who gets in their way will be fired on the spot."

The workers were being led by the same man who had assaulted David, who glared up at him, but motioned the workers out of the way.

"Good thinking."

The officers came up the stairs and the lead one asked, "So, what's the trouble here?"

Lynn piped up before David could say anything. "This kid is causing a ruckus, and won't leave, even though we've asked him to a dozen times."

The cop looked to David. David looked at Lynn. "Nice try, but stupid." To the cop, David said, "I am a partner in this business. Ms. Hopkins has been legally barred from these premises. I would like her removed, please."

"Like any kid is going to own a business," Lynn scoffed.

David said, "First off, I'm 22, a perfectly normal age for a business owner. Second off," he said, and reached into his coat pocket and pulled out two documents to show to the officers, "Here is my agreement with Mrs. Garibaldi, the full owner of this business, and a copy of the court order barring Lynn Hopkins from the property."

The cop looked both documents over, then handed them back to David. Turning to Lynn, he said, "You'll have to come with us, ma'am."

"You're not going to listen to a snot-nosed kid?" she asked incredulously. "Those documents are fake!"

"Ma'am, please don't cause more trouble for yourself," the cop said, unmoved by her tirade.

The second cop asked David, "Do you want to press charges?"

"Not this time, but I would like a report filed, noting her violation of the order."

"In order to do that, we would have to arrest her."

David pursed his lips, then said, "Then I guess you're going to have to arrest her. I need a record of this violation."

The officers nodded, and turned to Lynn. The lead cop turned her around and said, "Put your hands behind your back, ma'am."

Lynn glared at David, who looked back at her impassively.

"Don't glare at me," David said. "You're the one who apparently can't read."

"Have your little victory," Lynn spat. "I'll have mine in court next month!"

"I highly doubt that," David told her calmly. The lead officer then led her away, while the other officer stayed and got some information from David.

By the time David got out of the factory, he knew he'd have to hustle to make his date with Miss J. This only made him even more annoyed at Lynn, and more determined to see that she didn't get a penny out of the business.

"Is something wrong?" David asked Miss J. The two had just finished having sex for the third time that day. It had been a week since their first time, and they had been together every single day since.

"Yes," Miss J said. She sat up on the bed, and then pulled her knees up to her chest. David sat up next to her and rested his hand on her back.

"What's the matter?" he asked softly.

"Us," she said, frowning.

"I don't understand. You seemed to be enjoying this. I mean, am I still making you uncomfortable with my thoughts?"

"No. Now it's my thoughts that are making me uncomfortable."

"Now I'm really confused," David admitted.

"I'm becoming obsessed, David. I want sex all the time now. I never knew just how enjoyable it was, how much fun it would be. I'm having trouble concentrating on anything else."

"Oh," David said, understanding how that would be an issue, but not knowing what to tell her about it.

"I think we need to stop," she said.

"Okay," David said. "Stop... just having sex? Or do we need to stop seeing each other again?"

Miss J started to cry. "If I see you, I will want to have sex with you. It feels way too good for me not to want that."

David asked, "Is it possible that, as the newness wears off, this problem will go away?"

Miss J shook her head. "The problem's getting worse, not better. I even want to have sex with you again right now... even though we just finished! No, I think the only way I can get myself back under control is if you and I don't see each other."

David frowned now, at the thought of losing her as a friend again.

"I understand your reason, but I don't like it," he admitted.

"I don't like it, either! I don't want to give up sex. I really don't want to give you up as a friend," she said. "But I need to. For my job... for my sanity. I could so easily just submerge myself into sex with you. I'd just lie here on your bed, waiting for you to come in and make me feel oh so good... but that wouldn't work for either of us. I need to get back my control, and I can't do that if that temptation is so easy for me to fulfill. I'm very sorry, David. I know I'm hurting you again, but I just can't let this go on."

Miss J was sobbing heavily now, and David wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close. He stroked her hair while she cried, and just let his mind go blank. Finally, after long minutes, she settled, and leaned back from him.

David looked at her, and then he leaned in, kissing her softly. She kissed back, still loving every touch of his body.

When David broke their kiss, he said, "I understand why you have to do this. I'll manage, so don't worry about that. But, if we can't be together anymore, could we do it just one last time, before you leave?"

Miss J smiled softly at him. "You know I can't refuse that request."

Their last time took a very long time, indeed.

David knocked on Prof. Arpilla's office door. "Cat? You wanted to see me?"

Cat just motioned around the room, which was once again filled with white roses. Several of them were currently glowing their rainbow colors.

"Again?" David asked with a smile. "Someone really likes you."

"You sure it's not you?" she asked. "Now you know I like flowers..."

David chuckled. "Yes, I'm sure it's not me. I wouldn't steal someone else's idea this blatantly. At least, I wouldn't use it on the same woman."

Cat giggled about that. She walked over and stroked one of the roses, which immediately started to glow. After a long moment, she turned back to David.

"I hate to ask this of you... I'm sure your schedule's busy enough already... is there any way you can find out who's sending them? I wouldn't even know how to start looking, but you... have a knack for that kind of thing. Not knowing who's sending them is driving me crazy!"

David grinned and chuckled. He said, "Well, no promises, but I'll look into it. Not much in the way of clues to go on, though."

She came over to him and kissed him strongly. "I have faith in you," she told him.

David said, "Gee, thanks. No pressure, now..."

Cat giggled. After a pause, she said, her voice silky smooth, "Do you want my flower man's reward again?"

David said, "I would love it, but I can't. I have to be up at the castle in a half-hour to start the Night of Haunting."

Cat frowned. "Oh, well. Guess I'll just have to wait until you find out who it is..."

"Oh, sure, now there's an incentive for me to never find him," David said with a big grin. Cat's face took on a mock-grumpy expression. After a second, David said, "Well, so your admirer likes festivals. I guess that's a start."

"What do you mean?"

"Your first flowers came on the Festival of Merlin. Your second ones, on Halloween. I'd expect your next ones to arrive during Yule."

"Aww," she said.

"What?"

"I have to wait two whole months for more roses?" she asked.

David laughed at her.