The Woodward Academy, Year 6

Chapter 12: May

"So what is it we're going to see?" David asked.  He and Joe were driving down into Boston in David's truck.  It was Saturday night, and David would really rather have been home with Olissa, or maybe out with Lydia.

"A magical performance."

"In Earth?"

"Yes, well, most of it is standard fake magic, but the report is that our magician is a wizard, and he's doing things he's not good enough to do, getting people hurt in the process."

"Really?  I didn't see anything about that in the papers you're still forcing me to read, even though I noticed there's a new guy in the office..."

"You're still lower-ranked than he is," Joe said with a malicious grin.

"Asshole," David said, mostly good-naturedly.

"It's not been in the papers.  Apparently the wizard has been paying off his victims to keep it quiet."

"Then how did we find out?"

"Another wizard saw his performance and called us."

David nodded, and then focused on the drive.

The first portion of the performance had been boring.  David had seen enough real magic at this point to find Earth "magic" to be completely lame by comparison.

At the end of the show, however, the wizard started to do something he shouldn't.  He started to work with conjuring.  David sat up a little straighter; this was one of his subjects, and if the guy was any good, he might learn something.

It quickly became clear that the guy wasn't, in fact, any good.  He had tried to conjure an apple from one pedestal to another, and wound up with applesauce.  He played it off with humor, and the audience assumed it was part of the act.  His next trick involved a young lady from the audience.

"Now then," the wizard said as he positioned the woman so she was facing sideways, "we're going to play a game of William Tell... only a bit backwards."  The wizard positioned a pedestal right in front of the woman, so that it was touching her chest.  On the pedestal was a frame in the shape of a cube.  Inside the cube sat an apple.  Behind the woman, he placed another pedestal.  On this one was mounted a contraption that held an arrow in place.  The tip of the arrow sat inside another cube framework.

"What we're going to do," the wizard said, "is to pierce the apple with the arrow.  But instead of shooting the arrow at the apple, we're going to shoot the apple at the arrow.

"But, you say, there is a beautiful woman in the way!  How will you make the shot?

"I will pass the apple through the lovely lady, and onto the tip of the arrow.  Don't worry, my dear, it won't even mess up your dress."

The audience laughed, and the woman smiled, though a bit nervously.

The wizard pulled out a black silk handkerchief, and he placed it over the framework holding the apple.  He lifted the edge, to show that the apple was still there.  Next, he moved over and covered the arrow point with a similar black cloth.  Returning to the lady's front side, he lifted the silk one more time, to demonstrate the apple was still there.

"Now then!" he said, dropping the edge of the silk to cover the apple again.  "We say the magic words, beleya miguli!"  With that, he thrust his hand forward, shoving the box with the apple seemingly into the woman's chest, as it completely disappeared beneath the cloth.

There were some gasps from the audience, and the young woman looked a bit frightened.

"How do you feel, my dear?" the wizard asked the woman.

"Um... fine, I guess," she said.

"Of course you do!" the wizard enthused.  He set the cloth down on the pedestal and moved it away from her.  "The real question, of course, is, did we get a bull's-eye?"  He took the lady's hand and moved her off to the side, facing the audience.  The wizard then gripped the cloth over the arrow tip and whipped it away.

Sure enough, the apple was impaled nicely on the arrow tip.  The audience applauded heartily.

"Nice trick," Joe said.

"Not much of one, really.  I mean, it's just a simple act of conjuring.  But where's the problem here?  I wouldn't think this use of magic falls under the Prohibition of Distributing Magical Information."

"It doesn't.  But apparently that trick doesn't always go so well.  It's too late now, but tomorrow we'll interview a couple of people who don't think it's such a simple trick."

"Okay.  We gonna go back to Bolmont, or stay here?"

"No point in remaining here.  Home is close enough."

"Yours, maybe," David said with a grin.

 "Yes, can I help you?" the woman asked the two strangely dressed men standing at her door.

"Are you Diana Marsh?" Joe asked.

"Yes, who are you?"

David, sensing Joe's hesitancy, said, "We're special investigators of the American Magical Society.  We understand that you were recently injured during a performance of one of our members.  When anyone gets injured, our bylaws require us to investigate, to see whether or not disciplinary action against the member is warranted."

"I can't talk to you," she said.

"Why not?" Joe asked.

"He made me sign an agreement not to talk about what happened."

"That agreement was in violation of his contract with us, making it a non-valid contract to begin with," David assured her.

"Oh.  But, he gave me money for my doctor bills, plus some..."

"That, also, was against society policy.  That money would have come from us had this been handled properly."

"I see.  Okay, well, it's no big deal, now.  Hurt like hell when it happened, though.  Come on in."

As she led them to the living room, David asked, "What trick was he attempting to perform?"

"His William Tell stunt," she said.

David looked at Joe, who nodded at him.

"And what exactly happened?"

"Well, it wasn't that serious, but I guess he forgot to change out the apple, because when he went to shove it through my body, well, it was still there.  The amount of force he used caused a bruise on my sternum.  Also, it shoved me backwards, and somehow that frame around the arrow moved, because the arrow tip got shoved into my back by about a half-inch, the doctor said."

"That had to hurt like hell," David said.

Diana nodded.  "Bled a lot, too.  They rushed me to the hospital, but the doctor said, because it was just a pointed tip, not flared or anything, that it didn't even need stitches.  He just cleaned the wound - that hurt like hell, too, by the way - then put some anti-bacteria crap on it and a bandage over it."

David nodded while Joe took notes.  "And at what point did 'The Great Mancini' ask you to sign the contract?"

"As we were driving to the damned hospital!  He was shoving it in my face, telling me he'd take care of all the medical bills, plus give me money, if I agreed not to say anything to anyone about how the trick had gone wrong."

"Would your insurance have covered this?" David asked.

Diana snorted.  "I have a $2,000 deductible on my insurance.  I don't make $2,000 in a month."

David nodded.  "So you felt rather cornered into signing the contract, is that correct?"

"You could say that."

"Thank you.  We may need your testimony at his... disciplinary hearing.  If so, we will cover your travel expenses to and from the hearing."

"Oh.  Okay."

"Thank you very much for your time."

Diana showed them out, and they walked down to David's truck.

"I have a question," David said.

"Shoot."

"How do we handle it if we need her to testify?  She doesn't know about magic."

"If it gets to that point, it will be explained to her.  At that point, it becomes a necessary distribution of information, thus exempted from the prohibition."

"I've not read that law through.  How does it handle accidental distribution?"

"Like what?"

"Like... what if you're in your house, using magic to wash your dishes, and someone happens to see you through your window?  Certainly a bit careless, but hardly an intentional act..."

"In those cases, we often try to make the person who saw it forget what they saw."

"Try?"

"The potion in question doesn't always get the right memory."

"Oops."

"Yes.  It has caused some rather interesting foul-ups over the years."

"Maybe I should look into that."

"How so?"

"I am a Potions Master..."

"Oh.  Yeah, I'd forgotten about that."

"Some days, I do, too," David grumped.  "I haven't even been in my workroom all week."

"Sorry."

"My problem, not yours.  Anyway, who's the next victim?

"Joyce Werner?" David asked.

"Yeah, who're you?"

"David Stroud, this is my partner, Joe Garibaldi.  We're with the American Magical Society.  We'd like to talk to you about your recent problem with The Great Mancini."

"Okay, yeah, sure.  You guys gonna boot him out?  He's a horrible magician."

"Various forms of discipline are being looked at.  Kicking him out of the society is one of them."

"Good.  Say, you guys gonna cover any legal fees if he sues me?  He made me sign a contract not to talk about this."

"That contract is void, as it violates the contract he signed with us," David said.  In truth, wizard law stipulated that no wizard could force someone to sign a contract to withhold information concerning the wizard's activities from a Rimohr.

"Oh.  Well, that's fine, then.  What do you want to know?  You want some coffee?"

"No, thank you.  What trick was he performing that went badly?"

"Trying to pass a coin through my hand."

"Okay, and what happened?"

Joyce shrugged.  "Apparently he's forgetful or something.  I figure he pockets the coin or something before he smacks his hand down on yours.  Well, he didn't, and when the coin hit my hand, it must have had a sharp edge, because it gashed my hand and nicked a ligament.  My finger doesn't work right.  The doctor says it should heal, but it's going to take some time."

"During this trick, did he utter 'magic words'?"

"Yeah."

"Do you have any recollection of what they were?"

"No.  Why, is it important?"

David shrugged.  "Probably not, but I like to be thorough."

"Right."

"You mentioned a contract.  What did the contract say?"

"He would pay my medical bills, and give me some money, but I couldn't talk to anyone about what happened."

David nodded.  "And at what point did he mention this contract to you?"

"On the way to the hospital.  I'm sitting there bleeding, my finger twitching uncontrollably and hurting like hell, and he's jabbering about contracts."

"Would your insurance have allowed you to pay the medical bills yourself?"

Joyce shrugged.  "It would've been a bit tight, but yeah, I guess."

David looked at Joe, who just shook his head.  "Okay, well, I think that's all the questions we have.  If we need you to appear at his disciplinary hearing, we will, of course, cover your travel expenses."

"How long you figure it'll be before you finish up your investigation?" Joyce asked.

"Well, it may sound a bit cold, but we'd like to actually see him make a mistake.  I realize that puts someone in jeopardy, but otherwise, he could suggest that you were lying to get him in trouble."

"You think I'm lying?" Joyce asked, offended.

"No, I don't, but I'm not the one making the decisions."

"Oh," she said, mollified by that.  "Well, okay.  You'll contact me if you need me?"

"Yes, ma'am.  Thank you for your cooperation."

"No problem."

They left Joyce's house and walked down the sidewalk.  "He's definitely guilty," David said.

"Yes, but without seeing him do it ourselves, we can't prove that."

"Yeah.  Kinda sucks for some other woman."

"Can't be helped."

"What's Zyla making us for lunch?"

"Us?"

"Transportation fee.  I'm driving you home, you have to feed me."

"And if I don't?"

"Then next job we go out on, you get to walk home," David said with an evil grin.  "And I'll make sure we're in Earth!"

"Damn, you don't play fair."

"And before you get any funny ideas, by 'you feed me,' I mean Zyla does the cooking!"

"Aw, but I make a mean grilled cheese sandwich..."

"Uh-huh.  I've been poisoned before.  I didn't enjoy it."

"Ouch!" Joe said, then laughed.

David was sitting at his work table, stirring a potion, when he suddenly felt a feathery, wet sensation start at the bottom of his left earlobe and make its way slowly upward.  David had to wait until she stopped before he could turn to greet her properly.  He was abashed at himself that he'd not even heard her come in.

"Morning, Sam," he said, then gave her a strong kiss.

"Mm.  Morning to you, too.  I heard you in here from my office."

"Was I being loud?"

"The rumble of your fire pit carries through the wall.  It's just a background noise, but it let me know you were here.  Whatcha working on?"

"Incognizance Potion."

"Oh?  What's that for?"

"The Rimohrs use it to erase the memories of technos who have seen things they shouldn't have."

"Use?  So this is already developed?"

"About a hundred years ago or so."

"So... what's to work on?  Just practicing your skills?"

"Incognizance doesn't always target the right memory.  Sometimes it misses, and erases the wrong thing."

"That could be a problem."

"Yeah.  I'm trying to see if I can refine it, to make it work better."

"How would you test something like that?"

"Unfortunately, there is only one way to test something like this.  Luckily, I have a slave I can force to help me."

"But you could hurt her..."

David shook his head.  "I wouldn't do it if it would hurt her.  But even when it misses, it misses by a couple of hours.  It's not like I could accidentally erase her schooling.  I could just... accidentally make her forget what she had for lunch.  Or that she had lunch."

"Oh.  I see.  So there's a targeting issue."

"Yeah."

"Well, I'll let you get back to it..."

David slipped his hands around her back.

"I think I've been working on it too long.  I think it's affecting me.  I can't remember, for instance, the last time I saw you naked."

Sam grinned at him.  "Well, we can't have you forgetting things like that!"

David's memory was quickly refreshed, and for a prolonged period of time.

"And so, I need a volunteer from the audience.  Ah, yes, you, young lady.  Come on up here!"

The woman looked to be in her early twenties.  She introduced herself as Willisa.  She was a pretty black girl, and obviously nervous to be in front of everyone on the stage.

"Now, my dear," Mancini said, "all you have to do is stand very still."

"I can do that," she told him.

"Good!  Good!  Now, you see, in this hand, I have a coin, there it is, everyone see it?  Good.  Turn this way, my dear," Mancini said, turning Willisa so she faced to the audience's left.

Mancini stood behind Willisa, so that his left hand was behind her, and his right hand was in front of her.  He opened his right hand to show that the coin was still there.

"Now, at all times, our lovely lady will be between my hands.  Sounds like more fun than it is, trust me!"

The audience laughed at that.  Willisa blushed.

"Now.  One..." he said, and opened his hand to show the coin, then closed his hand on it.  "Two..." he showed the coin again, then closed his hand once more.  "And... paray tidrugoy!"

The magician opened his hand to show the coin was gone.  The audience almost applauded, but at that very moment, Willisa collapsed onto the stage.  Gasps and screams filled the audience.

"Uh... that will be the end of tonight's show, folks.  The young lady's obviously had a shock, seeing the coin disappear right in front of her eyes.  We'll take her backstage and let her lie down a bit.  Drive safely!"

The magician's stage hands came out on stage, and they picked up the girl, hustling her off into the back.

"Come on," Joe said.  "We should have enough now."

They got to the back of the theater just in time to see them hustling the woman out to a car.

"They're going to take her to the hospital," David said.  "Come on, we'll get my truck."

Despite having a head start, the magician did not arrive at the hospital before David caught up with him.  The magician parked in the emergency entrance.  David found a free slot in emergency parking.

"We need a cop," David said.  "We'll never get back to see her without one."

Joe pointed.  At the entrance, there was a police officer standing guard.

David nodded, and they both walked that direction.  The cop nodded, but didn't stop them entering the emergency room.

It didn't take them long to find the woman.  The wizard was still with her, trying to get her to sign a form.

"Get that fucking thing away from me, you asshole!" she screamed.  "What the hell did you do to me?  I can't even move my legs!"

"If you'll just sign the contract, I'll get you the best medical care..."

"I'm sure that won't be a problem for her," David said.

The wizard turned, saw David, and tried to run past him.  David clotheslined him across the throat, causing the man to collapse to the floor.

"You want to take him out to the truck?" David asked.  Joe nodded.

"What are you gonna do?"

"Try to save this poor woman from having pointless surgery that could permanently paralyze her.  Is this a situation where I can make some revelations?"

"Yes."

"Good."

"Who are you people?" a doctor suddenly snapped.  "This is an emergency room, not a coffee shop!  You need to leave."

"Those two will be, doc," David said.  "I'm staying.  The woman has a metal disk embedded against her spine.  It's caused her to lose all feeling and control in her lower body."

"And where did you get your medical degree from, Dr. Scholl's?" the doctor snapped.  "Go get security," he told a nurse.

The nearest security was, of course, the police officer standing at the entrance.  They were back in a matter of seconds.

"What's the problem, doc?" the cop asked.

"I need this kid removed."

The cop looked at him, and David looked back.  "You know what I am?" David asked.

The cop nodded.

"If I don't help this woman, she may be crippled for life.  Get this doctor out of my face before I have to force the issue."

The cop paused for a moment, then said, "Doc, just give him a minute, okay?  Let's step out and let him do his thing."

"But-" the doctor tried.

"Doc, you don't want to know, okay?  You just don't."

Once the doctor was gone, David turned back to the patient.  He suddenly realized there was still a nurse there.

"I hope you're better at conjuring than that idiot was," the nurse said.

"I trained with Prof. Blackstone," David said simply.

The woman nodded.  "One of the best.  I was stuck with Prof. Quayde."

"My condolences," David replied.  Turning to the patient, he said, "Willisa?"

"What do you want?" she demanded.

"I'm here to explain what happened to you, and to try to fix it."

"Well?"

"The man you know as 'The Great Mancini' is, in fact, a real wizard.  What I mean is that he can do real magic, not just the sleight-of-hand stuff that most of his show is filled with.  The problem is, he's apparently not a very good wizard.  When he tried to move the coin from one hand to the other, what he apparently actually did was to conjure the coin directly inside your body.  It is now pressing against your spine, which is, I hope, why you can't move your legs."

"You expect me to believe that bullshit?"

"Do you have a better explanation for why you can't walk?"

Willisa didn't respond to that.

"Now, what I am going to do is to remove the coin magically."

"Wait a fucking minute!  How do I know you're any better than he was?  Not that I believe your shit for a second."

"I am a Level 4 Conjuring Master," David said.

"Holy shit," the nurse gasped.  "Oh, sorry."

David smiled at her briefly.  "As you can see, that's 'something', where we come from.  I don't screw up."

"Whatever."

"Now, I must warn you.  Depending on just exactly where the coin ended up, you might not be able to walk after I remove the coin.  If he's actually severed your spinal cord with the coin, then more drastic measures will be needed."

"Like what?" Willisa asked nervously.

"We'll have to take you to a magical healer.  That will require a trip you may find a bit unsettling."

"Oh.  But... I'd be able to walk again after that?"

"Most likely."

"Okay."

"Now, please just lie still.  This shouldn't take too long, and you shouldn't feel any pain.  If you do, it'll be because the pressure of the coin has been relieved."

Willisa nodded.

David gently rolled her onto her side, then placed his hand against her back.  He slid it along her spine until he found the spot.  He could actually feel it with his hand; there was a slight protrusion.  David closed his eyes and concentrated.  In just a second, the coin slipped into his palm.

Returning Willisa to her back, he held up the coin.  "Tada!"

"I felt... something... in my back move."

David nodded.  "That was me removing the coin.  Can you wiggle your toes?"

It took a moment, but she smiled.  "Yeah!"

David gripped her leg and squeezed.  "Feel that?"

"Yeah!"

"Let's see if you can stand up."

David and the nurse both helped her off the bed, and she was a bit shaky, but was able to stand without support.

"Oh, god, thank you!" she said, hugging David.  "You have no idea how scary it was not being able to move!"

David patted her on the back and hugged back until she finally let go of him.

"Do I need to be here now?"

"Nope."

"Then let's get the hell out of here."

"Nurse..."

"You were never here, I know."

"Thank you."

When David and Willisa walked out of the treatment room, the doctor was stunned.  "They said you couldn't walk!" he shouted.

"I fixed that," David replied.

"Impossible," the doctor spat.

"For you, yes.  That's why I didn't want you touching her," David replied, staring down the doctor.  "Don't assume you have all the answers just because you spent ten years in school.  Some things, you weren't even taught exist.  And that's all you need to know, Doctor.  Thanks for your help, Officer."

The cop nodded, and David and Willisa left the ER.

"C'mon.  I'll drive you back to your car."

"Thanks.  What about that scum-sucking magician?  I want to sue his ass."

"He's in the truck.  He's been arrested."

"For assault?  Will I have to testify?  I want to help nail that fucker."

"Yes, you will need to testify, but the crime is negligent use of magic."

"Negligent use of magic?  That's a law?"

"Only where we come from.  We'll tell you about it on the way," David said as he opened the back door to let her in.  "Feel free to elbow him in the ribs a couple times," David said.

"Hey!" 'Mancini' hollered.

"Shut up, asswipe, or I'll just call all your victims together and let them have at you."

"They're only technos," he sniffed.

"You're only an incompetent wizard," David replied, just as derisively.  "At least they're good at what they do.  Now shut up while I'm driving."

"Good afternoon, Professor," David said as Prof. Rutherford sat down next to him on the bench.

"Hello, David.  Why did you want to have your evaluation meeting out here?"

"The last time we spoke, you asked me to go large.  Hard to demonstrate that indoors.  Or at least, not exactly safe."

Prof. Rutherford smiled.  "That's true.  So, show me what you've achieved."

David stood up and took a few steps, then raised his one hand, palm facing outward.  He closed his eyes for a second, then exhaled sharply.

Wind rushed in from all directions, centered on him.  The air began to swirl, forming a tighter and tighter circle, and rising as it grew closer to him.  As the speed of the wind rose, it began to collect dirt and grit, making itself a visible tube of air, soaring into the sky.  It reached over a hundred feet up before it started to dissipate, widening and tossing the dirt free, forming a familiar funnel shape.

"Very impressive!" Prof. Rutherford called out.  She had to shout to be heard over the roar of the wind.

David was just about to collapse his dust devil when, out of the corner of his eye, he saw a student being harassed by two others.  He immediately swiveled toward them, and brought his other hand up, even with the first.  He pushed outward, and the swirling air suddenly plummeted to the ground and rushed forward, slamming into the two attackers and tumbling them fifty feet along the ground before he finally let loose the wind, which disappeared as quickly as it had arrived.

"Nice transition, but I think you may have seriously injured them."

"That was my intent," David replied darkly.  He then pulled out his mirror and called the infirmary.  "Annie?  You have a couple things to collect on the terrace level, over by Hughes Hall.  No rush, they're not going anywhere."

As David put away his mirror, he told Prof. Rutherford, "They have to know by now how annoyed such behavior makes me.  To do it right in front of me speaks of either a complete lack of respect, or no brains at all.  In either case, they don't belong here."

Prof. Rutherford tilted her head in semi-agreement.  She then asked, "So, that was your strongest?"

"Yeah.  I managed something slightly larger than that once, but it felt like my brains were going to fly out my nose.  As I've already done that once this year, I didn't want to do it again."

Prof. Rutherford chuckled at David's joke, then said, "Well, it was very impressive, in any case.  Did you have time to work on fine control?"

"Yeah.  Let's take a seat."

The two returned to the bench, and David conjured a small, lightweight doll from his Conjuring Room.  The doll looked like a cat, and was made from balsa wood for the paws, head, and end of the tail, and string for the rest of the body.

"What are you going to do with that?" Prof. Rutherford asked.

"Make it dance," he replied.  He blew outward gently, and a soft wind came up.  It was just strong enough to lift the little doll into the air, but it was still pretty formless, since the string body gave it no structure whatsoever.

David concentrated, and the cat finally took shape, the air moving the body parts into their proper places.  The tail twitched back and forth in the breeze.

"Ready?" David asked the professor.

"For what?"

David pulled out another music cube and tapped it.  As it began to play a soft tune, the cat's wooden feet began to bob up and down in time with the music.  The cat's head bounced back and forth, and the tail twitched.  Each part was moving completely independent of the others, some moving up, others moving down or side to side.  He kept up his concentration, making the cat doll do a bright little jig to the music.

As the song wound up, David moved the cat into a "standing" posture, and had it do a typical cartoon-style ending to its dance number, its one forepaw stretched forward and down, it's other stretched backward and up.  Its tail continued to twitch in the wind.

"That... was... ingenious," Prof. Rutherford said finally.  "How do you think these things up?"

David shrugged as he let the little doll collapse into his hand.  "Couldn't think of any other way to experiment with control, other than making very small columns of air, and moving them individually.  This let me see what I was doing."

"Well, I must say, it was absolutely marvelous.  Strong elemander or not, you are certainly one of the most creative elemanders I've ever met.  You put your skills to uses that most people just don't think of."

"That's because they're busy doing the useful stuff," David said with a grin.

Prof. Rutherford snorted.  "This sort of thing can be useful, trust me.  That kind of fine control of small columns of air... I'm sure you'll find uses for that."

"Could be.  So, do I pass?"

Prof. Rutherford grinned.  "As if there was any question of that.  Not that it matters though, does it?  Do you plan to pursue elemandy further?"

David frowned.  "Do you see anywhere that I can make significant progress with it?"

"Truthfully, no.  Not without a lot of practice.  The amount of time you'd need to put in to improve your skills would probably prevent you from working on anything else."

"I kind of had that same feeling," David agreed.  "So... what?  I guess my directed study is over?"

"Yes."

"Do I get a diploma?" he asked with a grin.

Prof. Rutherford smiled.  "No.  You get the knowledge of knowing you're damned good at it."

"Oh, yeah?  When did that happen?" he asked.

"David, you are a good elemander.  You're not a particularly strong elemander, but what you lack in strength, you make up for in control and creativity.  You find ways to do what you need to do even when you can't just power through it as others would.  In many ways, that makes you a better elemander.  In a sense, you know more about elemandy than others do, because you have to work more closely with your elements."

"Maybe, but others will find their skills more useful in everyday situations."

"Perhaps, perhaps not," Prof. Rutherford said.  "In any case, I'm proud of what you've accomplished."

"Thank you, Professor," David said seriously.  "And thank you for all your help and instruction.  If it hadn't been for your encouragement, I'd have given up after the first semester."

"And what a loss that would have been," she replied.

"Anyway, thanks," David repeated.  He held out his hand, and Prof. Rutherford shook it.  "I've got to go do some paperwork now," he said.  "Say hi to Lyssa for me."

"Will do.  Have a good day, David."

David walked back toward his office, feeling slightly saddened.  He'd spent a lot of time with Prof. Rutherford and with Elemandy, and it felt as though he was giving that up.  Even though he would still use his elemandy, and even though he could still see the professor whenever he wanted to, it still felt like an ending.

Nothing to be done about it.  I'm probably going to have this feeling a lot over the course of the next... million years...

David was expecting the knock on the door, so he quickly went to open it.  He wasn't expecting the people on the other side, however.

"Prof. Dartson!" David exclaimed.  "What are you doing here?"

"Prof. Zoroaster has been called to Senesty for consultation," Prof. Dartson said, entering David's dorm room.  "He asked me to handle your evaluation.  You of course remember Mr. Thornton?"

David had been trying to remember the man's name since he'd opened the door.  "Oh, yes.  From the Ministry of Defense."

The man shook his hand as he entered the dorm room. David shut the door as the two men looked around.

"An interesting paint color," Mr. Thornton said.  The room was currently bathed in a shade of green that was hardly healthy.

"It's not paint," David said.  "It's a mood room."

"Excuse me?" Prof. Dartson asked.

"It's a room that does what a mood cube does.  It shows your emotional state."

"And you are... feeling ill?" Mr. Thornton asked.

"The color indicates confusion," Prof. Dartson corrected.  "And that would be understandable, given that he wasn't expecting us.  But I have to wonder why you'd want your room to mimic your emotional state."

"It's a middle step," David replied.  "What I want to do is actually get it to color itself so as to improve or enhance the mood I'm in.  For instance, what I'd like for it to do right now is to show a more relaxing color, like a shade of blue.  If I were depressed, I'd like it to show bright colors, and like that.  I haven't yet had a chance to figure out the appropriate colors for each emotional state.

"Seems a simple enough task..." Mr. Thornton objected.

"I've been a bit busy getting shot," David replied deadpan.

"Yes," Mr. Thornton agreed uneasily.  "There is that."

"Was this all you were able to work on?" Prof. Dartson asked.

"No.  I also developed something that I'd discussed with Prof. Zoroaster.  It's a seeing device that is... probably going to be illegal."

"Why?" Prof. Dartson asked.

"Because it's a major invasion of people's privacy.  The device allows me to watch someone virtually at all times.  So long as they are in the presence of a shiny object of any type, I can watch them."

"You can do that with any mirror," Mr. Thornton said.

"No, you can't," Prof. Dartson corrected.  "Mirror connections can only be made one at a time, and the receiving party must 'accept' them.  You're saying this will automatically move from object to object?"

"Yes.  And if there are several shiny objects near the subject, I can switch between them, to get the view I want."

"I'd like to see this device," Prof. Dartson said.

David went to a locked drawer of his desk and retrieved the seeing crystal.

"Awaken," David said to the crystal.  Immediately, an image appeared.

"Who is she?" Prof. Dartson asked.

"My girlfriend," David replied.  "She's aware that I'm tracking her."

"You mean, she knows you're watching right now?" Mr. Thornton asked.

"No.  I mean she knows I could be watching at any time.  If I hadn't gotten her permission, this would already be illegal."

"So how could this ever be used legally?" Prof. Dartson asked.

"I developed it as a possible tool for the Rimohrs to use.  For that purpose, a King's Order could be granted."

Prof. Dartson nodded.  "Yes, it could.  Show me how you can switch views.  I see a couple shiny objects here in this image."

David merely swiped his finger across the lens, and it switched to a different image of Olissa, who was in her own room, working on her homework.

"And she isn't made aware of when you're watching?" Mr. Thornton said.

"That would have defeated the purpose," David replied.

"Can the use of this be blocked?" he asked.

"Standard impedivating will prevent this from working."

"So we couldn't use it to track, say, Alpha Hurovlad."

"No.  For two reasons.  First, as we know, he has master impediveurs blocking us, and two, in order for this device to work, you have to 'activate' it in the presence of your target.  So you'd have to activate this in the Alpha's presence, and since I don't think he's seeing any Callamandians these days..."

"Except the diplomatic envoy, no."

"There you go."

"Well," Prof. Dartson said.  "This is impressive.  I would say that you are coming along rather well with your directed study.  Do you intend to continue on with this subject next year?"

"Yes, sir, if I'm allowed.  It'll be the only subject I've got left."

"Certainly you'll be allowed.  You are excellent at divination.  Which is why Mr. Thornton is here again."

"You want another seeing?  After the demand for land, the assassination attempt on the king, and that little raid in the north last week, I would think it'd be pretty clear what's coming..."

"Yes, but how bad is it going to get?" Mr. Thornton asked.

"Bad enough," David replied.

"What have you seen, regarding the school?" Mr. Thornton pressed.

David told him.

"Do you see a way of avoiding it?"

"Not since I don't know what causes it."

"This is most distressing.  You were wise to request the gargoyles."

"But will they be good enough?" David asked.

"By themselves?  Probably not.  There aren't enough of them.  But they're a start."

"Right."

"In any case," Prof. Dartson said, "we'll let you get back to what you were doing.  You have certainly shown more than adequate progress in your directed study, and I will let the registrar know that.  Good work, David."

Prof. Dartson and Mr. Thornton shook his hand, and then both of them left.

David frowned as he closed the door.

If the gargoyles are only a start, what do we follow them up with?

"Morning, David," Flo said, trying to sound cheerful, but it was obvious she was a bit nervous.

"Hey, Flo," David said, giving her a warm hug and a kiss.  "Are you ready for this?"

"Sure," she said, completely failing to sound convincing.  "You?"

"Hell if I know," David replied.  "I've been so damned distracted lately, I'm not even sure if I'm sure what's on the test."

"I've been studying like crazy, but I'm still not sure if I know it or not," Flo said.  "How about you?" she asked Olissa, who had shown up with David.

Olissa shrugged.  "I studied... but I honestly don't care if I pass the test or not, so I'm not worried."

"Must be nice," Flo grumped.  Olissa smiled slightly, and David gave Flo another hug.

Because all the government administration classes were part of the History department, and thus taught at the castle, the test itself was held in the Great Hall of the castle.  The three made their way up the castle steps, and then into the Great Hall.  They checked in, and were assigned a specific seat.  None of them were near each other, so David gave each of them a kiss for luck, and headed off to his particular spot.

Once everyone was in the room, an official got up and stood up on the dais.

"All right.  Everyone's here, so there's no point in waiting further.  The exam you are about to take is your Government Administrator's License, Level 1.  If you pass this examination, you will be eligible for clerical, scribal, and other office management positions within the government.  Possession of your A1 license is required to become an elected official.  Also, as should be obvious, you cannot test for your Government Administrator Level 2, or A2, license, without possessing an A1 license.

"The test covers Callamandian civics, as well as theory of government operations, along with some specifics about practical government operations.  The exam is graded in such a way that a blank answer is not as damaging as a wrong answer, so if you are unsure of an answer, do not guess.  For those of you who simply loathe leaving questions blank, writing in the phrase, 'I don't know,' is equivalent to not answering.

"There are two hundred questions on the test.  You have three hours to complete it.  Your time begins now."

David flipped over the test on his desk and set to work.  As usual, he went through the test answering the easier questions first.  Once he'd done that, which took him an hour, he started back through to work on those he was unsure of.  By the time he'd finished his second pass at the test, another hour was gone.

There were only three questions left on the test, and David was racking his brain trying to work out the details.  After another twenty minutes, he decided he had the best answers he could come up with, and so he got up and turned in his test.  The clerk who took his test nodded to him, and motioned him out of the hall.

As David stepped out into the sun, Jailla swooped down and landed on his shoulder.  He had been enjoying the sunny day while David had been inside.

"So, how did you do?" Jailla asked.

"I don't know.  I guess I passed.  Probably."

"That's much less confident than you usually are about exams."

David shrugged gently.  "I just didn't have the time I needed to make sure I knew all the material."

"Yes, you've been quite distracted these past few months.  Are you sure that you wish to continue with so many tasks?"

"Frankly?  No.  I've been considering making some changes to things."

"That might not be a bad idea," Jailla said.

David didn't say anything in response.

"Hey, David... you seem a bit down," Vivian said.

David shrugged.  "Just feeling a bit drained, I guess.  I had my A1 test yesterday."

"How'd you do?" she asked.

"Passed, but not by a whole lot.  I got a 73."

"73 is 'not a whole lot?'" Joe asked.

"The cutoff for that test is 70."

"Oh.  Is it really that hard?"

"I didn't have much time to study," David replied in half-explanation.  "Anyway, you said you had a case that I absolutely had to work on?"

"Yes.  In fact, you're the only one who can work on it."

"Oh?  Why?"

"It's an unwanted haunting," Joe said, handing David the folder.

David looked through it quickly, as it was only a single sheet of paper containing the complaint.

"Guys, I've never actually evicted a ghost before.  Sure, I was taught how, but I've never done it."

"Hopefully you won't have to go that far," Joe said.  "But we need to be able to back up the discussion with that ability.  Normally, we would hire out a demighost to accompany us on such a case.  Since we've got you, we don't have to."

"Do I get the extra pay?" David asked, knowing the answer.

"Hell, no!" Joe said.  "Didn't they tell you that 'intern' actually means 'slave'?"

"I had a feeling..." David mused.  The three of them chuckled about it.

"Well, the sun should be down in another hour.  Might as well go and talk with the complainant," David said.

"Right.  Take us twenty minutes to get there, anyway."

The home they were going to was only a few miles outside town, and the ride there was uneventful.  David stepped down out of the coach and paused, closing his eyes for a moment.

"What's up?" Vivian asked quietly.

"Lots of ghosts here," David said.  "The report said there was a problem with a ghost, not a couple dozen..."

Joe shrugged.  "Maybe she didn't want to freak everyone out."

"Maybe," David allowed.

"Anyway, c'mon," Joe said, leading the way up to the front door.  He knocked, and they had only a brief moment to wait before it was opened.

"Yes?" the lady asked.

"You are Mrs. Dickens?" Joe asked.

"Yes.  Charlotte Dickens.  But it's Ms. Dickens now."

"Ms. Dickens, this is David Stroud, our haunting specialist."

David shook the woman's hand.  "How do you do?" he asked.

"Fine, thank you.  Would you like to come in?"

"First, I'd like to clarify something.  Your complaint said that you had an unwanted haunting of one ghost.  Yet it's clear to me that there are at least ten ghosts here right now."

"Yes, and that's the problem."

"Ma'am?"

"If it was just the one ghost, I could put up a ghost prevention device and make him go away.  But, you see, I have a lot of ghost friends that visit all the time, and I don't want to harm them or prevent them from coming here."

"Ah, okay, that makes things clearer.  And the intruder, does he come into the house proper?"

"Won't leave it," she confirmed.

"We'd best step inside, then," David said.

The woman ushered the three of them into the living room, and offered them seats.  They declined drinks when she suggested them.

"So, who exactly is this ghost?  Is he some relation of yours?"

"My ex-husband," she said sourly.

"I note you say ex husband, and not late husband..." David pointed out.

"We were divorced two years before he committed suicide.  He claims that, this way, he and I will always be together, and there's nothing I can do about it."

"Yikes," David said.  To Vivian, he said, "Some guys are real control freaks."

Vivian smirked and nodded.

To Ms. Dickens, David asked, "What have you tried in order to get rid of him?"

"Pleading, yelling... what else can I try?  I don't have any way to hurt him without hurting the others."

David nodded.  "His name?"

"Huffam Dickens."

David tried, and failed, not to snort in derision.  Once he had control of himself, he asked, "Is there a particular room he prefers to haunt?"

"The bedroom, of course.  I haven't had a successful date in six months."

David nodded.  "If you'll all just wait here, then."

David walked back to the bedroom portion of the house.  It was easy to tell which was hers, thanks to the very feminine decor, as opposed to the neutral decorations in the other bedroom.

Standing in the middle of the room, David looked up and said, "Huffam Dickens, my name is David Stroud.  I am a Rimohr, and I am here to discuss with you your unwanted presence in this abode.  I respectfully request that you show yourself so that we can discuss the matter reasonably."

David stood, waiting, for a few minutes, with no reaction whatsoever.  He'd already checked, and knew there were, in fact, two ghosts present.

"Would any ghosts who are not Huffam Dickens please exit the bedroom area for a little while, so that I may discuss this matter privately with Mr. Dickens?"

David sensed that one of the entities left, leaving only one ghost present.

"Mr. Dickens, you can either come out of your own free will, or I will be forced to draw you out.  Please be aware that I am a demighost, and, though I do not wish to assault you in this manner, it is part of my job, and I will do it if I need to."

Several more long moments passed, with no result.  David knew that the ghost was still present.

"Very well, Mr. Dickens."

David pulled out his wand and began to cast an enchantment.  The tip of his wand drew a unicursal hexagram in the air as he spoke the spell.  Once the spell was complete, a red hexagram appeared on the floor.

"Huffam Dickens, departed spirit, you are commanded to appear!" David snapped.

Suddenly, a ghost appeared in the middle of the hexagram.  Instantly, a red circle surrounded the hexagram on the floor, and a faint crimson field filled the area, keeping the ghost in place.

"What do you want?" Dickens demanded.

"I wanted to speak with you calmly.  You chose to not make that possible," David replied.  "Your presence in this home is unwanted."

"So what?" Dickens sneered.

"So you will leave this home."

"Or what?"

"Or I will banish you from the area permanently."

"That's not possible."

"I told you, I'm a demighost.  It is possible.  I don't wish to do so, as it is unpleasant for both of us.  However, if you will not vacate this home of your own free will, I will have no choice."

"You haven't got the balls," Dickens said.  "The uproar from the other ghosts would be so bad, no one would be able to live here."

"Since such banishment wouldn't affect the other ghosts, I highly doubt that they would care that much.  You'll note that there's no one here defending your right to be here."

"You ran them off!"

"I asked them to leave.  If they were so all-consumed with worry over what was going to happen to you, why didn't they stay?"

"You won't do it.  You can't do it," Dickens tried.

"I will ask you one last time.  Will you leave these premises of your own free will?"

"Fuck off," Dickens replied.

David pulled his wand again.

"Transiflumina!" David shouted, pointing his wand directly at Dickens.  A blast of silver light shot out of his wand and encircled the ghost, holding him in place.  Dickens tried to free himself, and David had to struggle to keep his concentration.  If Dickens was able to break free of this, it was unlikely David would ever be able to catch him in the trap again.

The two struggled back and forth, David slowly tightening his grip on Dickens.  Finally, when Dickens' struggles were reduced to mere wriggling, David enacted the final part of the spell.

"Tuin dabox, redita go.  Weebe fastan daybie slo!"

With a scream of pain and a brilliant flash of light, Dickens vanished.  David sensed the area, and didn't find his energy nearby.  He wasn't sure just how far away the spell would send him, but he knew that he would be barred from coming within a thousand feet of the bedroom.

David dispelled all the magical energy from the room, and then went back out to the living room.

"All gone," David said simply.

"Did he go willingly?" Joe asked.

"Are you kidding?"

"He wouldn't have ever left willingly," Ms. Dickens said.  "You didn't get hurt, did you?" she asked.  "You look troubled."

"Thank you for asking, but no, I'm fine.  Just a little winded.  The spell I had to use draws down on my energy quite a bit."

"Oh.  I'm sorry you had to stress yourself.  You won't have to do this often, will you?  How long will he remain gone?" she wanted to know.

"He is permanently banned from this house," David explained.  "If you move, and he knows where you've gone, he could follow you there, but he will never be able to set foot in this neighborhood again."

"And none of my other friends is affected by this?"

Suddenly, another ghost faded into being.  "We're fine, dear."

Ms. Dickens heaved a sigh of relief.  "Good.  I didn't want to lose you all."

"The demighost knows what he's about," another ghost said as he appeared next to David, causing him to jump.

"Demighost?" Ms. Dickens asked.

"That would be me," David replied.  "Only a demighost can do what I just did."

"Thank you for at least giving him a chance to leave on his own," the first ghost said to David.  "Even though it was futile in this case, many demighosts never offer the chance."

"Having to banish him was quite unpleasant.  I can't imagine why anyone would want to do it if they didn't have to," David told the ghost.

"Some people like power trips, David," Joe reminded him.

"Too true.  In any case, he won't be back, so you should be able to enjoy your company in peace."

"Thank you very much."  Ms. Dickens shook their hands and accompanied them to the door.

As they were riding back to town, David said, "I hope I don't have to do that again."

"That bad?"

"When you're done, they kind of pop out of existence.  You haven't, but it really feels an awful lot like you just killed somebody."

Vivian nodded in sympathy.  The rest of the ride home was quiet.

 "...this is your new class of citizens. From what I see standing behind me, Callamandia's future is a bright one. Congratulations, one and all!"

David applauded with everyone else.  He smirked when he realized that Dean Lengel used the same speech for each class of graduates.  He had come to watch Anne get her citizenship, but he was sitting alone.  Gwen was sitting with her mother, and David knew that was not someplace he could be.

As everyone started to file out, David followed behind the Hasterscants without making his presence known.  He kept his distance as they stopped at a group of benches to wait for Anne.  It didn't take long before she joined them.  At that point, David walked over to the family.

"David!  Hey!" Anne said, and gave him a strong hug.  He hugged back, then let go.

"Congratulations.  I knew you could do it."

"Thanks."

"I don't want to interrupt your celebration, so I'll make this brief.  I need you to come to my office at five o'clock tonight.  You, too, Gwen.  And if you could get Jess to come with you, it'd be good."

"What's this about?" Anne asked.

"You'll see.  It's important."

"Okay, I'll be there."

"Me, too," Gwen said.

David nodded to both of them, turned and said, "Mr. Hasterscant," then left.  He didn't even acknowledge Denise, except for one very cold look as his eyes passed over her to her husband.  Nothing more needed to be said than what had been shouted the previous year.

"Hey, you guys," David said as the three appeared in his office doorway.  "Come on in.  Sheila, could you see that we're not interrupted for a little while?"

"Of course," Sheila said, and closed the door.

"Hi, Bonnie," Gwen said, recognizing the woman sitting beside David's desk.  "What're you doing here?"

"We'll get to why she's here in a minute," David said.  He went over and gave Anne a big hug.  She hugged him back, and then she leaned back and kissed him.  He gladly kissed her in return.  For a long moment, they stayed that way.

"I missed that," she said quietly when they separated.

"Mm.  Me, too," David replied.  He stepped back from her a little.  "I wanted to let you know how proud I am of you.  I asked your testers about your exam.  You did damned well."

"That's supposed to be private," Jess objected.

"I'm a school official," David replied simply.  Turning back to Anne, he said, "And I wanted to give you your citizenship present."

"Hey, I didn't get a citizenship present..." Gwen objected lightly.

"You didn't want to go out with me after the first time," David replied.  Gwen blushed purple, and Jess laughed at her.

David retrieved an envelope on his desk, then turned and leaned against the desk.  "Have you figured out what you want to do yet?"

"Not really.  I've gotten a job as a bank clerk down in Cormatsen.  That's it for now."

David nodded.  "Well, then this should help you get a nice place to live."  He handed her the envelope.  She opened it, to find inside a transfer note worth thirty thousand granas.

"Holy shit, David... I can't take this.  I dumped you, for crying out loud!"

Gwen chuckled at that, and David grinned.

"Maybe, but you gave me five months of happiness.  They're worth at least that much.  Besides, you mean at least three times as much to me as Ellie did."

Anne blushed at that.

"Anyway, I just wanted to help you get a good start.  Use it for whatever you need it for... or just put it in the bank and save it for a rainy day.  Or go buy, what, like a hundred pairs of new shoes?"

The girls all laughed at that.

"Thank you," she said, and kissed him again.

After they broke their kiss, David smiled at her, then turned more serious.  He moved behind his desk, and then motioned everyone to sit down.

"Now, a little birdy tells me that you passed your entrepreneurial exam," David said to Gwen.

"Yeah.  Now I can work on getting a business going to sell my crystal batteries... and the AC adapter thing.  I need a name for that."

"Have you picked out a store location yet?"

"Hah!  We have to find a way to get the money, first.  This is going to cost a lot to get started, and we're more or less broke."

"And now you know why Bonnie is here."

"Huh?" Gwen asked, confused.

"I work for the Bank of Callamandia, in the Contracts Division."

Gwen still stared back, a blank look of confusion on her face.

David said, "What you need is an investor.  Someone with money, and faith in what you're doing.  That would be... me."

"What?" Gwen asked.

"It's simple.  I'm willing to put up the money to get your business started, in return for a share of the profits.  I will put up two hundred thousand granas in exchange for a twenty-five percent ownership of the business."

"Are you crazy?" Jess asked, floored.  "What if it fails?  What if we go bust?  What if you lose your entire two hundred thousand granas?"

David stared at her, to make sure she was fully paying attention.  He said, "I wouldn't even notice."  He leaned back and said, "If I thought you were going to fail, I'd have tried to talk Gwen into doing something else.  But she's smart, she's creative, and she's determined.  I'd just give you the money, but I don't think you two would take it outright.  I'd make it a loan, but then you'd feel obligated to pay it back, even if something did go wrong.  This way, if things tank, that's on my head.  I made the choice to back you.  If I'm wrong... whoops."

"So... I still don't get why Bonnie's here," Gwen said.

"Someone's got to write the contract," David said.  "Besides, I hadn't seen her in a while, and I missed her."

Bonnie blushed at that.

"So.  Let's work out the details," he said.

For the next hour, they hammered out all of the items that needed to be in the contract, with Bonnie's guidance as to the necessary sections and such.  When they were done, a new account had been opened at the bank for a company called Gwen's Gadgets, Gizmos and Gewgaws.

"I don't know how to thank you, David," Gwen said for the tenth time as they were leaving his office.

"Don't work too hard.  Make sure to have some fun, and remember to put your family," he said, motioning to Jess, "first."

"You got it," Gwen said, and gave him a kiss.

As the three ladies left the security office, Tanya looked at him.  "They look awfully happy."

"I can be pleasant when I'm not arresting people..." David said with a grin.  Tanya smiled.  "Speaking of which, I'd like to have a talk with you, outside the office."

"A personal matter, or business?" Tanya asked curiously.

"Kind of both.  Let's just say I'd like us to talk in a setting that doesn't make either of us think we're on duty."

"Okay..."

"How about dinner tomorrow night?  We can go down to town and have a quiet meal and some conversation."

"This is a very strange pick-up line, Chief..."

David grinned.  "This is not a pick-up line."

"Okay... but with both of us off-duty, who'll run the shop?"

"Sheila can do it."

"What?" Sheila asked, panicked.

"What?  There's nobody left on campus.  Anyway, Tom can do it."

"Right," Tanya said in agreement.

"Great.  I've got to get going.  I'll see you tomorrow."

"Good evening, my name is Naomi, and I'll be taking care of you this evening.  The special this evening is fresh lobster.  The soup of the day is Chascan Onion.  Do you know what you'd like to drink?"

"I'll have a white wine," Tanya replied.

"Honey mead, please," David said.

The server nodded, handed them their menus, and departed to get their drinks.

"This is a nice place," Tanya said.  "I've never been in here before."

"This is about as upscale as it gets, for Gorumshead," David replied.  They were in the Churchill Hotel's restaurant.  It would not have impressed the social elite of New York, but it was by far the fanciest restaurant in the area.

The two made chit-chat until their meals were served.  After that, for a while, there wasn't much talking at all, while they both started in on their dinner.

Finally, David said, "So, I wanted to get a sense of how you've felt about your job."

"What do you mean?"

"Have you enjoyed it?"

"Most of the time.  It's interesting work."

"Which parts didn't you like?"

"Well, no offense, but covering for you when you were away kind of screwed with my days off."

David nodded.  "Sorry about that."

Tanya shrugged.

"Do you see yourself continuing in the job?"

"I hadn't planned on leaving, if that's what you mean," she replied.

"Well, but do you think you'll be with the academy long-term?"

"I'd say so.  It's a good mix.  We deal with a lot of problems, but they're mostly minor issues, so not too much danger.  The investigations that have cropped up have been quite interesting to work on, from strictly an intellectual standpoint.  I mean, I didn't want Rose to be raped, but the case was a challenge, which I enjoyed."

"Right.  I know what you mean.  Sitting in the office filling out paperwork is dull."

"You know it."

"Do you have any complaints?  Other than my absences, I mean."

"Some of the professors treat us like peons rather than people.  Also, there are a couple members of the squad that aren't pulling their weight."

"Why haven't you mentioned that before?"

"I've been giving them a chance to improve."

David nodded.

"As to the faculty, I'm afraid you'll never get over the arrogance of some of them.  They've had eight years of schooling, they're master wizards, and they think they know everything."

Tanya nodded this time.  "Thankfully, it's only a few of them."

"Yeah, most of the faculty are good people."

"So... not to be too blunt, but what is this all about?"

David took several bites of his food before he answered her.

"Mainly, it's about my absences, and the problems they have caused."

"It's not something I can't deal with," Tanya assured him.

"I'm sure.  But you shouldn't have to deal with them.  The Chief of Security should be putting Woodward Academy as their first priority.  I haven't really been doing that, because I can't.  I told Dean Lengel this when she asked me to take the job, but she thought the situation would work out.

"Well, it hasn't worked out.  I don't think the school has been well served by its current chief."

"You've done a great job, David.  Sure, there were a few times when you weren't available, but the rest of the team is fully capable of stepping up in your place when necessary."

"I've done an acceptable job, when I was here.  But the job could have been done better, and that's the point."

"I'm not sure what you're getting at."

"Tanya, I want you to take over as Chief of Security."

"Um... then what would you do?"

"Resign.  My Rimohr duties, which are only likely to grow in the coming year, simply don't permit me to properly fulfill the duties of the job.  The school needs a security chief who can be, and is, devoted to Woodward's safety above all else.  I can't do that, because I have made a commitment to protecting a wider jurisdiction."

"But... you think I'm ready to be Chief of Security?"

"Shit, Tanya, you were ready to be security chief the day I hired you.  When have I ever had to help you with an investigation?"

"You found out about that glamour thing with Rose..." she pointed out.

"But that wasn't something I already knew about, it was just something I learned in the course of the case.  You could have done that just as easily.  No, you have all the qualifications for the job.  This year has given you what little experience you needed to get ready to act as chief.  You've handled the leadership position well, you've got organization down cold... You'd probably do the job better than I do."

"I highly doubt that," she said.

David shrugged.  "Point is, I plan on resigning.  I would like for you to take my place.  That way, when I tell Dean Lengel, she won't fight me on it."

"Would I have my own deputy chief?"

"Once you hired one."

"Would I get a raise?"

"Probably.  I don't let the school pay me, so I'm not sure if I would be making more than you do or not."

"You're doing your job for free?"

"I get paid by the Rimohrs.  I saw no reason to get paid twice."

Tanya nodded.  "I have to admit, I looked forward to the day when I might get promoted... but I never expected it to be this fast.  I figured you'd be security chief for five or ten years."

"That was never in the cards.  Once I finish school, I have a commitment to the Rimohrs.  That means, at most, I'd have been in the job for two more years.  While I'm sure you'll get better at things over the next two years, there's no reason for you to wait; you're qualified now."

"Well, thank you for the vote of confidence.  I accept the promotion."

"Good.  And good luck.  Hopefully you won't need it."

Tanya chuckled.

There was another long pause while David finished off his dinner.  Finally, he said, "Now that I'm not your boss anymore, there's something else I want to ask you about, of a more personal nature."

"Okay," Tanya said, setting down her fork and looking across at him.

David took a couple deep breaths, mainly as a delaying tactic.  "This is a bit uncomfortable for me, since we've never really gotten very personal between us."

Tanya merely waited.

Finally, David said, "Okay, I'm not going to beat around the bush.  I'm looking for a bisexual woman who would be interested in helping me introduce my partner to girl-girl sex."

Tanya's eyebrows went way up at that.  "And... you'd like it to be me?"

"If you're interested.  If you're not, then perhaps you could help me meet someone who would be.  You're the only woman I know that I know is bisexual."

"So you're not really interested in me, as such," Tanya said.

David tilted his head down, pressed the tips of his fingers to his forehead, and grimaced.  Finally, he straightened back up.

"See, this is why this is uncomfortable.  I knew I would give the wrong impression.  You are very attractive.  I like you.  I wouldn't mind, for instance, seeing you naked in the shower.  But I have no expectation that you have any interest in me, so I didn't want to seem too aggressive."

"Are you looking for a long-term partner, or a one-night encounter?"

"The answer to that honestly depends on how my partner reacts."

"Which of your partners are we talking about?  I've seen you with several women, including a couple professors."

David grinned in embarrassment.  "Olissa.  She's the black girl I'm with a lot."

Tanya nodded.  "I've seen her.  She's cute.  Not my normal type, but I wouldn't kick her out of bed, if you know what I mean."

David smirked.

"If I say no, you still going to promote me?" Tanya asked with an evil grin.

"The one has nothing to do with the other," David replied seriously.

Tanya nodded.  "I know, but you look a little ill.  I figured it would lighten your mood."

"I've never been comfortable approaching girls."

"Given the number of women you associate with, it seems like it would be easy by now."

"In almost every case, they approached me."

Tanya nodded.  "What are your kinks?"

David cocked his head for a minute, and considered.  "I'm not sure I actually have any."

"You like oral sex?"

"Love it."

"Giving, or just receiving?"

"Both."

"Anal?"

"Yes... giving only!"

Tanya chuckled.

"Bondage?"

David frowned.  "Olissa enjoys that.  I do it for her, but it's not really my thing."

"Discipline?"

"Again, at her insistence.  I guess I should explain.  Olissa is, by her own demand, my slave."

Tanya's eyebrows took another trip north.

"So she will do whatever you tell her to."

"Yes.  So, she will participate in a threesome.  I need to find out whether or not she will enjoy it."

"I see."

Tanya sat for a long moment, considering.  Finally, she said, "I know several women who would happily join you for a one-time encounter..."

"But?" David asked, sensing the hesitation.

"But I'm trying to decide if I want to keep you for myself."

David grinned at her.

"There is just one thing, though," Tanya said.

"What's that?"

"I will only ever have one new partner at a time.  So I would need to sleep with one or the other of you alone before joining both of you."

"As I said, as far as I know, she's never had girl-girl sex."

"Right."

"So..."

"So we should go upstairs and see if you actually like seeing me naked in the shower."

David raised his hand to ask for the check.

"David, Tanya, what can I do for you two?" Dean Lengel asked.

David merely handed his security badge to her.

"What's going on?"

"I'm resigning, ma'am, effective immediately."

"What?  Why?"

"Over the course of the last ten months, it has become abundantly clear to me that I am unable to perform all of the tasks that I have committed to, and do them as well as they should be done.  All of them have suffered to some extent, and that's not something I can tolerate.

"Apart from various other things, like guild activities and potions work, I have two responsibilities that directly clash.  I am Chief of Security, and I am a Rimohr Intern.  I have discovered that it is simply not possible to do both of these jobs at the same time, and do them both well."

"I've had no complaints from anyone about how you're doing your job," Dean Lengel objected.

"That's not the point.  I know the job could be done better, but not when the security chief has all this other stuff to do.  Since I have made a long-term commitment to the Rimohrs, I have to give them priority in this.  As such, it is necessary for me to step away from my security job."

"Could you stay on at least long enough for us to find a replacement?"

"I've already done that for you.  Tanya has agreed to step into the position.  She is more than qualified, she is already familiar with the school and its problems, she knows and is trusted by the team, and I have complete faith in her abilities."

Dean Lengel sat back in her chair.  "I can't talk you out of this?"

"No, ma'am.  Apart from doing what's right for the school, this is what is right for me.  I have too many things going on, pulling me in too many directions.  I've been trying all year to finish up my petition for advancement in the Royal Potions Guild, but I've barely had the time to fulfill my duties to the vampires in making potions for them.  My directed study work has been heavily slowed by the fact that I've got so much else going on... in general, neither the school nor I am being served well by the current system."

Dean Lengel sighed.  "Very well.  I accept your resignation.  Tanya... your position will have to be approved by the trustees, but I don't anticipate a problem there.  Until then, you'll be Acting Chief of Security."

"Yes, ma'am," Tanya said, accepting David's old badge from her.

"If you'll excuse us," Dean Lengel said to Tanya.

"Of course."  She turned to David and said, "See you this weekend."

David nodded, then waited while Tanya left.

"I'm sorry that things turned out so rough for you this year," Dean Lengel said.

David shrugged.  "Neither of us realized how bad it was going to get.  Of course, spending a few weeks in the infirmary didn't help matters."

"No, I'm sure they didn't.  We are left with the same problem that you brought to me last summer, now."

"What do you mean?"

"You're a Rimohr intern.  How do you now relate to the school?  I can't very well make you a security officer after you've been head of security.  It would undermine Tanya's authority, as everyone would listen to you instead of her."

David nodded.  "I'm not sure what to do about that, frankly.  I will have to ask the commission about it next week."

"The commission?"

"The Academy Commission.  I'm up for review."

"Oh.  Well, good luck."

David grunted.

"By the way, I know you feel like your classwork was slowed by your job, but I must say that the reports from your advisors don't indicate any problem with your advancement."

"I did enough to keep them happy.  How much more might I have done if I'd had the time?" was all David said in reply.

Dean Lengel nodded.  "Well, take a few days off.  I think you've earned it."

"Thanks.  Unfortunately, it's not up to me.  It's up to my supervisor, and since he doesn't like me much..."  David shrugged again.

"Maybe he'll forget to harass you for a couple days."

"That'd be nice," David said with a grin.  "Anyway, I'll let you get back to work.  I'll see you... well... uh... 'later.'"

Dean Lengel laughed.  "Right.  Have a good one."

"So, how did your first day in charge go?"

"Sheila started hitting on me now!" Tanya said with a laugh.  David laughed with her.  It was obvious that Sheila was the ultimate brown-noser.

Turning to Olissa, David said, "Sheila's the office manager in the security department."

"I remember," she told him quietly.

David nodded.

"Did you ever take her out?" Tanya asked.

"Sheila?  No.  She's not got much going for her except being pleasant and very friendly.

"She's got big boobs..." Tanya offered.

David put his arm around Olissa and said, "Does it look like I'm having trouble in that department?"

As Tanya laughed, David pulled Olissa toward him and kissed her.  She kissed back readily, even as his tongue invaded her mouth.  She almost forgot the other person was in the room.

That was, until the other person started to lick her earlobe.  Olissa broke their kiss in shock.

"Master..." Olissa started nervously.

"Let her do what she's doing," David said firmly.

Olissa nodded, her expression fretful, as David pulled her back to him and started to kiss her again.  He reached down and started to unbutton her blouse, and Tanya started to massage her shoulders while she took Olissa's earlobe between her lips and sucked on it.

In short order, Olissa's shirt was gone.  David reached back and unfastened her bra.  Tanya slid her hands across Olissa's shoulders, pushing the straps down her arms.  The bra quickly fell loose, exposing Olissa's breasts to them both.

Tanya let loose of Olissa's ear and looked over her shoulder.  She murmured, "Nice."  Tanya slipped her hands down off Olissa's arms and onto her tits, softly molding them as her tongue slithered across Olissa's ear again.

When Tanya began to tug on Olissa's nipples, Olissa broke free.  She jumped up from her place on the couch, and then turned to face David, her head bowed.

"Master... I can't continue to do this.  I want to obey you, but this is making me feel sick to my stomach.  I'm afraid if I go on, I might actually throw up on one of you."

David frowned, and stared for a long moment.  Finally, he said, "Very well.  Please go to your room.  Obviously I need to take care of the state we've left our guest in.  I will be in to talk with you later."

"Yes, Master," Olissa said, and fled the room.  Her assigned bedroom was one of the first floor servants' quarters, which David had fixed up very nicely for her.  She hadn't wanted to take up any of the guest quarters, in case David wanted to have many friends over again, as he had for his first Yuletide.

"Maybe I came on too strong?" Tanya wondered.

"No, I don't think so.  I just think she's purely heterosexual.  I shouldn't find that odd; after all, I am, too."

Tanya grinned.  "So.  I really am rather... 'excited' now..."

"I know," David said with his own grin.  "Let's go upstairs, though.  I have a feeling she feels bad enough without having to listen to us."

The two made their way to the lift, and kissed each other passionately for the entire trip to the third floor.  The two remained in the lift long after it reached their destination, and when they finally did leave it, there was a pile of clothes on the floor of the lift.

Tanya led David quickly into his bedroom.

"Very nice," she said, then turned to face him.  They were immediately kissing again, David's hard cock pressing against her abdomen, her ample tits pressing into his chest.  For a long time, they stood there, kissing and letting their passions rise as high as they could.

When they finally separated, Tanya looked over her shoulder, then back at David.  "Can we have sex on the deck?"

"Absolutely," David replied eagerly.  He led her through the French doors, and over to the railing.  "You want to live dangerously, or more safely?"

"I don't want to die for sex..." Tanya said.

"Party pooper," he said with a grin.  "Bend over and grab the railing, then."

Tanya immediately did as requested, and David's cock was soon pressing firmly against her hole.  As he slid inside, she mewled.  Their first time had been great, and she was hoping he'd be able to at least equal it.  So far, he was doing just fine.

Once David had slid his entire length into her, he paused.  He leaned forward and ran his hands along her sides, then cupped her tits.  He molded them gently in his fingers, and started to make small motions with his hips, slipping his dick in and out of her in short strokes.

"Oh, yeah," she said.  "That's nice."

David started to rock his hips in bigger moves, taking longer strokes inside her.  He moved his fingers to her nipples, tugging firmly on them and twisting gently.

"Oh, fuck yes," Tanya murmured, rolling her hips to help him get as deep into her as possible.

Their coupling continued, David's heat rising.  He could sense his climax coming, and he grunted in warning.

"Yeah, do it!  Fucking do it!" Tanya moaned.

With that, David slammed his hips into hers and froze, blasting his seed deep into her.  For a long moment he stayed that way, until finally the spasms subsided and he was able to catch his breath.

"God that was great, but I didn't come yet," Tanya said.

"I know, but I never said we were done."

"Mm-hmm," she replied, then dropped to her knees.  Without any preamble, she took his dick into her mouth and began to lick it clean of her juices.  She was, of course, also trying to get him hard again.  David put his hands gently on her head to help him balance; he was a bit unsteady, still, from his orgasm.

After a couple minutes, Tanya had him nice and hard again, so she let him loose and stood up.

"I get to choose this time," she said.

"Okay," David agreed.  "How do you want to do it?"

"Go lie on the bed," she told him.

David quickly complied, lying down in the middle of the bed.  Tanya joined him, then squatted over him.  She took his dick in hand and held it upright, then moved herself into place, settling down onto his cock until her ass was resting on his legs, and the only things touching him were her ass and pussy.

David reached out and took her hands.

"For balance," he said.

Tanya smiled, and then she started to move on him.  The sensation was wonderful, as his concentration was completely focused on her pussy rubbing the length of his dick.  Tanya had closed her eyes, and she was moaning as her dirty blonde hair bounced with her moves.  She was ramping up to her peak, and David loved watching her face contort as she did.

In only a couple minutes, Tanya slammed herself down onto David's cock and her body began to shudder.  She was uttering sharp barks of pleasure, her climax washing over her.  David held onto her hands, keeping her upright.  He allowed her to work through her orgasm, and waited for her to start to come down.  Once she did, he pulled her down against him, and rolled them both over, so he was on top.

Tanya looked up at him a moment later, and smiled.  "I love doing it that way.  It's the quickest way to orgasm for me."

"I'll keep that in mind," he said with a grin.

"Mm.  And now it's your turn.  Are we doing it old school?"

"Yes," he said, sliding his dick out of her until just the head was inside, then slowly pushing it back in.  "I want to see how long it takes you to come this way."

"This could take a half hour," she said, a soft moan punctuating her words.

"Oh.  Maybe I should slow down a little, then?" he asked with a mischievous grin.

"Hmm," she murmured, closing her eyes for a long moment as he continued to slide in and out of her at a leisurely, but highly enjoyable, pace.  After a minute, she opened her eyes and looked at him.  "You said you'd keep in mind my favorite position.  Does that mean you're going to want to use it again in the future?"

David did not falter in his pace.  It was an odd time to have that discussion, but he wasn't going to stop the pleasure just because of the pain.

"Whenever you'd like," he said.  "But... I mean, you have to realize I'm probably not the guy you want to take home to Mom and Dad."

"Why not?"

"Well, for one thing, I'm a demighost."

"Oh, yeah.  I keep forgetting."

"Thank you."

"For another thing?" she asked, moaning again as his dick hit a particularly sensitive spot.

"For another thing, I have a slave.  A slave that I don't intend to give up, and with whom I regularly have sex."

"Yeah, my mom might not go for that.  Dad would, from your angle, but not for his little girl."

David smirked.  "Exactly."

"Not to mention there's every likelihood that in a couple years, I'll be moving, and you wouldn't be able to."

"Wouldn't be able to?"

"Woodward Academy doesn't get up and walk around."

Tanya chuckled at the image that produced.  "I could get another job."

"Not one as prestigious."

"You really love that school, don't you?"

"After my friends, that school is the most important thing in the world to me.  When I first became a demighost, Woodward became my home.  The teachers became my family."

"Even Prof. Quayde?  I've heard some interesting things about you and him..."

"There's one of those in every family," David said dismissively.

"Two in mine, actually," Tanya agreed.

"Do you really want to date me, Tanya?" David asked seriously.

"I don't know.  I think you and I could become a good couple.  But I see your point.  We'd be starting out with two strikes against us.  But... mm, do that again...  Oh, shit, yeah.  What was I saying?"

"Two strikes against us," David said with a smile.

"Yeah.  But we can still be really good friends, right?"

"If I don't get to see you naked in the shower at least once a year, I will be very sad."

Tanya laughed.  She then put her arms around David's neck and pulled him down so she could kiss him.  With that, David sped up their lovemaking.  Tanya began to roll her hips in time with his thrusts.

For long minutes, the two kissed and coupled.  David slipped his hands beneath her, holding his weight on his elbows, but pulling her tightly against him, the hard points of her nipples digging into his chest.  She kept her arms around his neck, and crossed her ankles behind his butt, giving him a better position for penetration.

Inevitably, their passions rose.  The process was slow at first, but it fed on itself, causing them to move a bit faster, which caused their arousal to go higher, causing them to go faster still.  They were stoking the fires of their passion, and the flames grew hotter with every second.

Finally, their fervor exploded in cries of ecstasy, the two writhing together as they rode the blast of pleasure that rocked their bodies.  Their bodies slowly settled from the fireworks, and they were left breathless and heaving, their forms still crushed together on the bed, as they had not released each other yet.

After a long time, Tanya finally let her arms and legs slip off David, and he slowly settled down beside her on the bed, pulling her close to him and kissing her.  She kissed back tenderly; their passions were sated, and what was left was a friendship and caring for each other.

The two lay together silently for many minutes, until Tanya stirred.  "I'd rather spend the night here, but I think I'd best get back to school.  I left Tom in charge of things."

"He's competent... for the number of people still at the school.  Hell, the security staff almost equals them in number."

Tanya chuckled.  "I know, but I don't want him getting ideas.  I don't plan on promoting him to deputy, so..."

David nodded.  "I'm sorry you didn't get your girl-freak on," he said.

Tanya laughed.  "That's the weirdest way to put that I've ever heard!"  After she settled, she said, "It's okay.  You made up for any loss."  She kissed him again, sliding her tongue into his mouth for a moment, and then letting him loose.  "Anyway, now you know how she feels about it, which was the point of the encounter."

"Yeah.  Thank you, for being willing."

"My pleasure.  And if you really want a threesome, I'm quite sure I can find another girl to join us."

David arched his eyebrows for a second.  "I'll remember that, too."

Tanya smiled, kissed him again, then rose.  He stayed on the bed and watched her look around for her clothes.  "Where did we... oh, shit, they're on the lift, aren't they?"

"Yep.  C'mon, I'll walk you out.  I have to go talk with Olissa, anyway."

"Don't be too hard on her.  This isn't something she can really control."

"I know. The problem isn't that she wasn't willing, it's how she handled it.  And she will expect to be punished, so I'll have to come up with something."

The two got dressed as the lift took them down to the first floor.  David stepped out with Tanya, and then she looked a bit dismayed.

"How am I going to get a coach this time of night?" she asked.

David said, "Take my glide car."

"Then how will you get it back?"

"You can come back during daylight and drop it off."

"Hmm," she said with a grin.  "But what if you need to go somewhere?"

"If I really need to get somewhere, I can call on Cupcake to take me."

"Cupcake?"

"My pegasus."

"Oh, that's right.  I'd forgotten you were a Peg Rider.  Well, in that case, thank you."  She kissed him again, and then they separated.

David watched Tanya get into the glide car, read through the quick guide that he kept on the dashboard, and then speed off into the night.  With that, he turned and went back into the house.

Olissa was, of course, just where he'd told her to be.  She wouldn't leave that room until he'd talked to her.

As soon as David entered the room, Olissa came to her feet, her head bowed.

"In your position, on the bed," he told her calmly.

Olissa immediately moved onto the bed, kneeling with her knees wide, her hands clasped together behind her head, her eyes pointed slightly downward.

"You're aware of the rule you broke?" David asked.

"I didn't obey your order," she said simply.

"And you're aware how serious an infraction that is?"

"Yes, Master.  It's probably the worst thing I could do."

"Yet you did it anyway.  Why?"

"Because, Master, I would rather face your punishment than what we were doing."

"Even without knowing what my punishment would be?"

"Yes, Master."

"What if, as punishment, I chose to put you in the bondage field, and let Tanya have her way with you?"

Olissa visibly paled.  "I had not considered that particular punishment, Master."

"Right.  I can always think of something worse.  Remember that."

"Yes, Master.  Is that what you're going to make me do?"

"No.  Do you know what you should have done this evening?"

"Forced myself to continue with the two of you," Olissa said.

"No, that would have been a violation of another rule," David said.

"It would?" she asked, briefly looking up, then resuming her downward gaze.

"I told you never to do something that was completely against your character.  If the situation resulted from an order I had given, you were to object - politely - and explain yourself, then await my decision."

Olissa was quiet for a long moment, then said, "Yes, Master.  I had forgotten.  I was so uncomfortable that I didn't think about what you'd told me to do, only that I needed to get away from what was happening."

"So it was a gut reaction," David said.

"Yes, Master.  I'm sorry."

"I know that, Olissa.  I never thought you were disobeying me out of disrespect.  If I'd thought that, I would be very angry, and you would know it."

"Thank you, Master, for your... forbearance."

David smirked.  "The problem is how to help you understand that you must, at all times, trust me, and turn toward me, instead of away from me, when something unpleasant happens.  You need to remember that I am here to protect you, not to terrorize you."

"Yes, Master.  I know that, when I have time to think.  My immediate reactions are a little slow to catch on, I'm afraid."

David nodded.  "I want your punishment to also be a learning experience.  As such, I'm going to have to think carefully about what I'm going to punish you with.  For right now, you are free to do as you please... right after you change the sheets upstairs."

"Were you two that messy, Master?" she asked, then blushed.

"Not particularly, but there's a wet spot where you're going to sleep."

Olissa looked up at him in surprised relief for a moment, before dropping her eyes again.  "Thank you, Master," she said, the happiness in her voice clear.

David stepped close to her, and put his finger under her chin, to force her to look up at him.

"I love you, Olissa."

"I love you, too, Master," she said, right before he kissed her.

"Where's your partner?" Joyce asked.

"We figured it'd be too crowded in the truck with five people," David said.  He was driving Joyce, Diana and Willisa, the three witnesses against the rogue wizard, up to the travel gate.  The trial against the wizard was set for later in the day.

"Why's it so far from home?  Shouldn't he be tried in New York?"

"I told you, he's a wizard.  He'll be tried in wizard court."

"And there's no 'wizard court' in New York?" Joyce asked derisively.  She still had trouble believing the whole concept.

"There's no wizard court in Earth," David replied as he pulled into the parking lot of a hotel.

"Uh... we spending the night?"

"No.  Come on."

The three women followed David into the hotel.  He nodded to the man at the desk, who just nodded back.  Down a hallway, David opened the door to room 7, and ushered the three women inside.

"Now what?  If you're trying to get with us, you could have at least picked a room with a bed," Diana told him.

David just arched an eyebrow, then moved past them, to the back wall of the room.  He placed his hand on a certain spot, and suddenly the wall disappeared.

"What the fuck?" Willisa exclaimed.

"Ladies, if you would," David said, motioning them forward.

"Would what?" Diana asked.

"Walk into the other room," David elaborated.

"Uh..." Diana hesitated.

"It's just some kind of illusion," Joyce said.  She stepped forward, stopping a foot from the wall, and then slowly put her hand out, expecting to feel the solid wall stop her hand.

But it didn't.

She stepped forward, her hand stretched out in front of her, until she was actually in the other room.

"That's one.  Now, if you two would follow her..."

"What the hell is this?" Diana asked.

"It's a travel gate.  I told you about this when I picked you up.  The trial is held in Callamandia.  This is the only way to get to Callamandia from Earth.  Well, this gate, and several others like it.  Now, please."

Willisa shrugged and walked through.  Diana still struggled with the idea.

"Is it safe?"

"Safe compared to what?  You live in New York City."

"Good point."  Diana finally walked through the travel gate, to find herself with the others in a storage room.

David passed through the gate, and it disappeared, leaving behind a blank wall with the faint outline of an archway.

"Come on," David said.  "The coach is outside."

"You said it was a trial, not a football game," Joyce objected.

As David led them through the pub, he said, "Not that kind of coach."

They stepped out into the light, to see the typical Rimohr coach, harnessed to a team of horses.  The ladies boarded the coach, then David followed them.  In a brief moment, they were moving.

"Now, I must ask that all three of you stick close to me while you're here.  As non-wizards, it is illegal for you to be in Callamandia unescorted."

"And what would happen if we ran off?" Joyce demanded.

"You would be tracked down, detained, and deported back to Earth."

"Big deal.  I'm going back to New York, anyway."

"I didn't mention for how long you would be detained," David pointed out.

"Oh."

David didn't say anything for the rest of their trip to Bolmont.  The ladies stared out the window at the countryside.

Once at the courthouse, David escorted the women into the courtroom, and sat them in the witnesses seats.  He sat next to them.

The trial was mostly dull.  The three women were each called to tell their story.  The defense tried to discredit them, but there was little he could say to harm their credibility.

Finally, David was called.

"Officer Stroud, can you tell us anything more about what happened the night Willisa was sent to the hospital?"

"The defendant had conjured the coin to a spot inside of Willisa's body.  The coin was lodged against her spine, pressing in such a way as to render her unable to move her legs.

"I conjured the coin out of her body, and luckily there was no persisting damage.  I entered the coin into evidence.  It's that one on the table."

"Note that Officer Stroud is referring to King's Exhibit One, Your Honor.  Officer Stroud, did you see the defendant conjure this coin into her body?"

"Yes."

"Objection!" the wizard, who referred to himself as The Great Mancini, shouted.

"On what grounds?" the magistrate asked.

"Since the inside of her body was not visible, he cannot claim to have seen anyone conjure it to that location."

"Would you care to rephrase your question, Madam Prosecutor?"

"Officer Stroud, tell the court exactly what you did see that night."

"I saw the defendant holding the coin in his hand.  I heard him utter a conjuring spell.  I saw the flash of the conjure between his fingers.  Then I saw the young woman fall to the ground, unable to move her legs.  Later that night, I found the coin embedded into her body next to her spine, as I said earlier."

"Very well.  No further questions."

"Does defense wish to cross?"

"You bet.  Officer Stroud, you said I cast a conjuring spell.  On what basis do you make that statement?"

"I know what a conjuring spell sounds like," David replied.

"Oh?  Are you a conjuring expert?" the man asked derisively.

"Actually, yes.  I'm a Level 4 Master Conjurer of the Royal Conjuring Association, and I have taught Conjuring at the Woodward Academy of Magical Arts."

The man paled, and the audience gasped.

"Um... no more questions for this witness, Your Honor," the defendant said.

"I didn't think so," David replied snidely.

The magistrate tried to hide his grin.  "You are dismissed, Officer Stroud."

David took his seat to watch the rest of the trial, which didn't take very long.  The verdict was a foregone conclusion, and then everyone was dismissed.

As David drove the three ladies home, they asked, "So what does his sentence mean?"

"It means he gets to spend ten years in a place you would never want to visit," David replied.  "Wizard prison is not a nice place.  It makes Alcatraz look like fun."

"You mean no cable TV?" Willisa asked derisively.

"I mean mental and emotional torment twenty-four hours a day," David said.

"That's barbaric," Diana objected.

"So is being a criminal," David replied simply.

"So you sink to their level," Diana said.

"You have your ways of doing things, and we have ours.  We do what works in our world, with our citizens.  You have your way which... um... does something or other..."

"The crime rate is dropping all over the place!" she snapped.

"I've heard that.  And yet people feel less and less safe.  I wonder why that is.  In any case, yes, wizard prison is harsh, nasty, and brutish, and people work very hard to not go there."

"And how long until he gets out?" Joyce asked.

"Ten years," David said.

"I know that's what he was sentenced to, but how long..."

"Ten... years," David replied.  "There is no such thing as time off for good behavior.  If you're sentenced to ten years, you are going to serve every minute of that time."

"Must be crowded there," Diana put in.

"No, Barnard Hill is about half empty.  As I said, people work very hard to not go there."

"I'm just as glad that bastard is stuck in jail for ten years.  Fucker nearly cost me the use of my legs," Willisa said.

Diana could see she was outnumbered, so kept her peace after that.

"Stroud, get your ass outside.  Your ride to the Academy is waiting," Agent Wilson said smugly.

Vivian said, "Good luck, David.  I'm sure you'll do great."

Joe said, "If my report carries any weight, you should do fine."

David nodded, shook both their hands, and then turned to leave.

"Nice knowing you, Stroud," Wilson said.  "My report made it abundantly clear just what kind of 'officer' you are.  There is no chance you're coming back here."

"Well, I don't know, Fred," David said, intentionally insulting the man by using his first name.  "I mean, all your report will tell them is that I'm a different kind of officer from you.  And, well, not to put too fine a point on it, but how many chevrons from the king do you have?"

As Wilson's mouth flopped agape, David turned around and walked out of the office.  It was a six hour trip down to Cormatsen, where the academy was located.  He would have his review in the afternoon, and he'd come back the next day, since pegs were never asked to fly at night.

As he boarded the coach, he was a little concerned.  The Rimohrs were a bureaucracy, and bureaucrats didn't really like people who rocked the boat.  David knew that he wasn't so much rocking the boat as threatening to capsize it at times.

Oh well.  I have other options.

"Up next is David Stroud," the senior member of the commission stated.  "Joined the Rimohr Internship Program last June.  We have reports from his training officer, his supervisory officer, and the supervising agent of the Bolmont Division."

"Question, sir," David said.

"Yes?"

"I know that my training officer is Joe Garibaldi, but who was my supervisory officer?"

The commission member looked down at the paperwork and said, "One... Vivian Columbo, assigned by your training officer.  You weren't aware of her role?"

"No, sir.  She and I worked together frequently, but I was never told that she'd been given an official position relative to my training."

The commission member nodded.  "Your training officer states that he wanted to see if you acted differently when you thought no one who was part of your internship was watching."

"Yes, sir," David replied.  Sneaky bastard.

"In any case, the reports from your supervisory officer are glowing.  She gives you high marks across the board."

"I'd like to point out, however," another commission member said, "That Vivian Columbo has been a Rimohr for seven years, and has yet to make agent, despite having come up for promotional review four times."

"Your point being?"

"What she considers an exemplary officer might not be exactly what we'd consider exemplary."

"Perhaps, but she backs up most of her observations with concrete examples of the intern's behavior."

The dissenting commission member did not respond to that.

"Carrying on, the report from your training officer is mostly positive, as well.  He states that you do occasionally have difficulty accepting the limitations of the system.  Care to comment on that?"

David said, "I don't like seeing innocent people hurt, which means I don't like seeing guilty people go free because of some stupid legal technicality."

"A land without laws is thrown into chaos," the commission member replied.

"A land with stupid laws is also thrown into chaos," David retorted.

The commission members all raised an eyebrow at that.

"Carrying on," the senior commission member said after a moment, "The report from Supervisory Agent Wilson is... shall we say, less than glowing.  He gives you negative marks in every single aspect of your job.  How do you reconcile the high marks of your immediate supervisors with the negative response of your commanding officer?"

"Would it hurt my review if I call my commanding officer a bombastic twit with his head shoved up his ass?"

Two of the commission members almost choked trying not to laugh.  The senior commissioner took things a bit more seriously.  "Obviously, there's a personality clash."

"No, sir.  In order for our personalities to clash, Agent Wilson would have to have one first.  The truth is that Agent Wilson lives and dies by the minutiae of the regulation book."

"And what's wrong with that?" the dissenting commissioner asked sharply.

"Simple.  The regulations cannot anticipate all situations.  Most Rimohrs that I have asked have not even read the regulation manual from cover to cover.  I have, but I find that when I am in the field, the regulations are usually in direct opposition to actually solving the crime.  As such, I choose to solve the crime, since that is the point of my job.  Agent Wilson has a problem with this approach.  He is far more interested in making sure his paperwork looks good than helping the public."

"You know, he came up through the ranks, just like any other Rimohr," the commissioner said.

"And the last time he was in the field was two and a half years ago.  He was already head of the Bolmont Division at that point.  Before that particular job, he hadn't been in the field for another year.  If he has any recollection of what field work is actually like, I've seen no sign of it."

"You're awfully arrogant for an intern," the dissenting commissioner said derisively.

"You asked me to explain the reason for the difference between Agent Wilson's and Agent Garibaldi's evaluations of me.  In order to do that, it is necessary for me to give my opinion."

"Agent Wilson also says that you regularly disrespect him and talk back."

"Absolutely true," David replied.

"You admit to insubordination?"

"I will not follow the authority of someone who doesn't deserve it."

"So why the hell should we continue you in this program?  You've admitted to being a rogue."

"The only reason to continue me in the program, sir, is because I've actually done the job the way it's supposed to be done.  If you don't think that I have, then you shouldn't continue me in the program."

"You're not going to defend your actions?" the senior commissioner said.

"I don't feel there's anything to defend," David replied.  "I did the job as best I could, with the goal of actually catching dark wizards and preventing injury to others.  Doing the job in some other way would be to change the goal I'm trying to achieve.  Since I'm not willing to do that..."  David shrugged.

"I think we've heard enough," the senior commissioner said.  "It's time to vote on this candidate.  All in favor of continuing this candidate forward?"

Two hands went up.

"Opposed?"

Two different hands went up.

The senior commissioner, who had not voted, said, "As of now, we have a two-to-two tie.  Under normal circumstances, it would be my job to break the tie.  However, in this case, we have a directive from the Commandant.  At his direction, David Stroud is to be continued in the Rimohr Internship Program."

"So why did we even bother with this?" the commission member who had been so vocally opposed asked.

"So that I could see where the commission members stood on the issue.  The Commissioner was interested in knowing that.  Officer Stroud, you are officially continued in the internship program until your next review.  The date of that review will be relayed to you when it is decided upon."

"Yes, sir.  Sir, may I ask, which way would you have voted?"

The senior member smiled and said, "Wouldn't you like to know.  Dismissed, Officer."

"So it was a close call," Jailla said.  "You could have been dismissed."

"Well, no, not really.  Apparently, I was never in jeopardy.  I mean, the note from the Commandant was in that commission member's hands before the hearing started, so it really didn't matter what was said there."

"Why do you think the Commandant wants you to continue so badly?"

"I doubt that was his own decision.  Someone further up the line must want me in the Rimohrs.  Why, I don't know."

"So, will you now be even more aggressive in your prosecution of justice?"

"Not consciously... but I guess it's possible I may be slightly snottier to Wilson."

"You really don't like him."

"He's almost as bad as those CSB assholes I had to deal with when Cat was in trouble.  Appearance is so much more important to him than substance.  I just can't stand that kind of thing."

"Yes, I know.  So, where are we headed?"

"Ellen wanted to meet, to go over the agenda for our next guild meeting."

David was walking across the terrace, and he was startled to see Cupcake galloping toward him.  When she reached him, she stomped her feet and reared up in a highly agitated state.

"What's wrong, girl?" David asked, concerned.  She stopped rearing up and turned her head to face back toward the paddock.

David jumped up onto her back.  "Show me," he said.

Cupcake was immediately running flat out.  She leapt the paddock fence, clearing it by five feet.  She used her wings to bring herself to a quick stop, and David slid down off her.  She had stopped just outside a circle of pegs, who all moved back to give David room to move through them.

Lying on the ground amongst the pegs was a body.  David dropped to his knees and turned the body over.

Ellen Abernathy stared blankly up into the sky.  She did not register David's presence at all.  He felt for a pulse, and was relieved to find that her heart was beating strongly.  She was breathing, as well.  David called her name loudly several times, and even slapped her quite harshly, with no response, except for the reddening of her cheek.

"Fuck, what the hell happened here?" David asked no one in particular, since there was no one who could answer the question.

"Cupcake, we need to get Ellen up to the infirmary."

Cupcake was immediately next to him, standing steady so that he could shove the unconscious caretaker onto her shoulders.  David climbed up after that, and Cupcake was immediately off.

The infirmary was empty when David came in.  He set Ellen down on the first bed he came to, then looked in Annie's office.  Everything made him believe that she had gone on vacation already.

Pulling out his mirror, David called Dean Lengel.

"Hello, David," she said.

"Hi, Emile.  Is there a healer on campus?"

"You know better.  There's almost no one on campus at the moment.  Even Sam is off on vacation.  What's the matter?"

"I found Ellen Abernathy in the pegasus paddock.  She is completely unresponsive.  I'd call her state catatonic."

"There's a new healer down in Gorumshead, but she's very young, so she might not be of much help."

"Probably more help than I am," David said.

"Perhaps, perhaps not.  Give her a call and see."

"I'll do that, thanks."

David broke the connection with Dean Lengel, and called the healer in town, who said she would be up as quickly as she could.

David paced until the healer arrived.

"I'm Healer Dixalena McCall.  You can call me Dixie.  You are?"

"David Stroud.  I'm not a healer, I'm just the one who found her."

"Okay.  Tell me what you know."

"I found her in the pegasus paddock, lying face down.  She has a strong heartbeat, and she's breathing fine, but she was staring blankly.  I closed her eyes to protect them, but they were wide open... like, wider than you would normally have them if you were just looking at something."

"As if she'd been surprised?"

"Or hit by sudden pain, something like that, yeah."

"Has there been any change at all?"

"No."

"How long ago did you find her?"

"About twenty minutes, I guess."

"All right, let me look her over."

David leaned against a table as the healer examined Ellen.  It only took her five minutes.

"She's been hexed."

"With what?"

"Hell if I know," she said bluntly.  "I've never seen anything like it.  I've never read about anything like it.  Her mind seems to be stuck in some kind of loop, and unless the loop is broken, she'll remain stuck there."

"Shit.  Um... okay, I once had a friend who had been attacked with Gelert Potion.  I was able to bring her out of that coma by possessing her mind.  Would that work here?"

"Possessing her mind?" Healer McCall asked dubiously.

"Sorry, I forgot to mention, I'm a demighost."

"Oh.  Okay, and that's something demighosts can do?"

"Yes."

"You could try it, but I wouldn't expect it to work.  Gelert Potion works very differently to what this is doing.  In Gelert Potion, the mind isn't given anything to do, it is simply told to stay asleep.  In this case, the mind has all sorts of things to do, and it keeps doing them over and over again.  So, like I said, you can try, but I wouldn't expect results."

"Could you stick around while I try it?  If it goes bad, I could get hurt."

"Sure."

David ghosted himself, and then he lay down on top of Ellen, lining his head up with hers.  He made himself invisible, and then he tried to force himself to solid form.

David's ghost self was thrown clear across the room.  He slammed into a table, knocking it over, and tumbled over the wreckage, finally coming to a stop against one of the beds.

Healer McCall was quickly at his side, lifting him up onto the bed.

"I'd say that worked spectacularly poorly," she told him.

"Ungh," he replied.  The room was still spinning for him.  Slowly, things started to come to a stop.

"Lie still," she said.  "You have a broken arm."  David had been resolidifed as he was thrown clear of Ellen's body.

"Hang on a second," he said.  He closed his eyes, wincing with the pain, and then faded to ghost form.  He stayed that way for a minute or so, and then turned himself solid again.

"How about now?" he asked.

The healer scanned him and said, "That's incredible.  You only have a slight fracture now."

David went back to ghost form for another minute, and his arm was back to normal condition.

"Fascinating," she said.

"Be fascinated with the person still in trouble," David grumped.

"Sorry.  I'm sure it gets old, having people gawk at you.  In any case, I'm sorry, but there's nothing I can do for her.  I'll go back and look through some texts, but I have no idea at all what she's been hit with.'

"Okay.  Thank you.  Please let me know if you come up with something.  I will try to do my own research, and see if I find anything out."

"Good.  Maybe together, we can solve it.  Good luck."

David shook her hand, then watched her go.  He then looked back at Ellen, lying unconscious on the bed.

"Fuck," he said out loud.

Flo, Lydia, Gwen, Sam, and now Ellen.  That's five friends, all attacked for no apparent reason...

...Who will be next?