The Woodward Academy, Year 6

Chapter 8: January

 "I hope people didn't have to pay too much to come tonight.  The music isn't very good," Penny said.

David murmured, "Is someone playing music?" as he nibbled on her ear.

The two of them were sitting at the back of the balcony in the small theater in Gorumshead.  They were invisible, so nobody noticed where David's hand was resting, except for Penny, of course.

"Hmm," she muttered in reply to his question, and then turned her head to kiss him.  It was always a challenge to have any sort of intimate contact when you couldn't see your partner at all, but it was a favored game for David and Penny.

During a break in their necking, David decided to focus on the music for a couple minutes.  He had to agree with Penny; it simply wasn't very good.  The man on stage seemed very adept with his guitar, but his singing voice was unpleasant.

If he'd just stop singing and focus on his playing, it'd be great, David thought to himself.  The guitar seemed to produce chords of a depth and tone that he'd never heard from a guitar before.

"David?" Penny asked.

"Hmm?" he replied warmly, expecting her to request a return to their necking.

"Look at the people."

"Huh?"  David looked around at the folks sitting near them.  They were all sitting in rapt attention, listening avidly to the singer.  The more he looked, the more it seemed unnatural.  No one was talking, whispering, or even moving.

"I'll be right back.  Don't... uh... move," David said.

"I'll stay here," she promised him.

David slipped down out of the balcony and walked out into the main audience.  Down here, too, the entire crowd was sitting almost completely motionless.  The only times he saw anyone move were for unavoidable body functions: a cough here, a sneeze there.

What the hell?  This guy's just not worth this kind of adoration... I mean, his guitar playing is outstanding, but I've heard better vocals from a yowling cat.

After walking up and down the aisles, David returned to Penny.

"Penny?" he whispered.

"Right where you left me," she called back softly.

David slipped down beside her carefully, so he didn't accidentally sit on her.

"This is weird," he whispered quietly.

"Mm-hmm," she replied.   "Kind of creepy, too."

"Yeah.  I'm gonna have to look into this guy.  Dammit."

"What's the matter?" she asked.

"How many nights out together do we get?  The one time I manage to actually take you out somewhere, and I still end up being a damn cop!"

Penny giggled.  "It's okay, David.  I get to see you a lot more now, since I moved in, and that's good enough.  It was sweet of you to take me on a date, but we could just as nicely have stayed home, listened to the mirror, and done naughty things to each other during the concert."

"We've been doing naughty things to each other during the concert," David pointed out.

"Yes, but we both still have our clothes on here.  I doubt that would have been the case in your bedroom."

David had to admit this was almost certainly true.  "But then we'd have missed the concert," he pointed out.

"If it had been this man's concert, I wouldn't have minded in the slightest," Penny told him.

David chuckled.  "Okay, c'mon.  Let's go home.  Maybe we can do naughty things to each other after the concert."

"I'm counting on it."

"Excuse me ma'am, would you mind if I asked you a few questions?"

"Not at all, Officer. Would you like to come in?"

David nodded and stepped into the room with the woman. She offered him something to drink, which he declined, and then sat down on the sofa at her direction.

 "So, what can I do for the Rimohrs today?" she asked.

"Well, I got your name from the owner of the theater in town. I understand that you attended the concert of Kresven Meslar last week,and that after the performance, he invited you back to his dressing room. Is this accurate?"

"The owner of the theater was able to give you all of that information? I don't even think he was there."

"I said the owner gave me your name, the remaining information came from other sources. The point is, is it true?"

"What business is it of the Rimohrs if it is true?" the woman asked testily.

 "Ma'am," David said politely, "we are conducting an investigation. I wouldn't be asking you questions if they weren't relevant to that investigation."

"And my private life is part of your investigation?"

"It's not your life we're concerned with, ma'am.. It's Mr. Meslar's."

"What's he supposed to have done?" she asked.

"I'm not at liberty to discuss the investigation, ma'am," David said as politely as he could.

"Well, if you can't tell me anything, then I see no reason that I should tell you anything. What Mr. Meslar and I may, or may not, have done, is none of your damned business. Now I think it's time you need to go," The woman said as she rose from her chair.

David rose from the couch and turned to walk to the door. Once he got there, he turned back to face the woman. "Did he threaten you?"

The woman grew indignant. "No, he did not. Good day, Officer."

The door was closed rather forcefully behind David as he walked off the porch. He walked down to the waiting coach and got in, shaking his head most of the way.

"What happened?" Vivian asked.

"Let's just say if we need her in court," David started, "she's gonna be a hostile witness."

"That bad?"

David just nodded his head.  He was confused by the woman's attitude; he had been ready for several kinds of reactions, but not outright hostility.

"Well, maybe the next one will be more helpful," Vivian offered.

"The only way she could be less helpful," David said, "is to try hexing me."

Vivian chuckled as the coach got underway.

By the time they arrived back at the office, David was utterly perplexed. The first woman's reaction turned out not to be unusual, but in fact the way almost every woman reacted to David's questions. He had obtained absolutely no useful information whatsoever, despite having talked to over a dozen people.

Garibaldi could tell just from the look on David's face that something had not gone right.  He walked over to talk to both of them and get an update on the not-yet-a-case.  After David explained the situation to him, he was as lost as everybody else.

"I have no idea what that means, David," Garibaldi said.  "Where do you go from here?"

"I want to go back further.  This guy's been doing concerts at this place for months.  Maybe, if he is threatening people,  we'll have better luck after people have been able to calm down. I'm also going to start looking into this guy's background.  Something hinky is going on, and I want to know what."

"How can you be so sure this guy is dirty?" Vivian asked.

"If you had been there you would know," David said.  "The way those people sat, spellbound, just wasn't natural.  No, something is going on," he repeated.

Garibaldi said, "All right, if you're sure, run with it.  Keep me informed."  Joe started to turn, then said, "And David, don't forget we've got that thing to do tomorrow."

"Right," David said, nodding.

As Joe turned back to his own work, Vivian asked, "So where do we start?"

"Can you call the owner of the theater and try to get a list of guests from, oh say, the last six months?  While you're doing that, I'm going to talk to Nancy, and see what records we can get our hands on."

"Sounds like a plan," Vivian said, and then picked up her mirror.

 "The thing" that Joe and David had to do had brought them to the Ramius Division headquarters of the Rimohrs.

"Can I help you?" the office manager asked them.

"Is Agent Wilson in?" Joe asked.

"In his office," the man confirmed.  He motioned across the room to an office with a closed door.

"Thank you," Joe said politely, then he and David walked over and knocked on the door.  They took note of the fact that there was no one else present.

"Come in," Wilson said from within.  His voice sounded disinterested, as if he expected it to be the office manager interrupting him.

When Joe opened the door, Wilson didn't even look up from his desk.  "I told you I didn't want to be disturbed, Daniel.  I've got to get this report finished."

"Sorry, we didn't get the memo," David replied sarcastically.

Wilson's head snapped up, an angry frown on his face.  "What the hell do you two want?"

Joe said, "We're just wondering if you've been filing any other reports lately.  Maybe that don't pertain to the Ramius office, so much as the Bolmont one?"

David watched Wilson's reaction closely.  What he saw was confusion.  David had noted that the initial reaction to their arrival had been genuine surprise.  Something wasn't adding up.

"What the fuck are you talking about, Garibaldi?  I barely have enough time to file the reports for this division, let alone worry about yours!  Or didn't you hear?  The department prefers bullies to investigators these days."

Joe snorted.  "Since when are you an investigator?  You haven't been in the field in any serious sense in over five years."

While the two older Rimohrs sparred verbally, David leaned against a filing cabinet and watched, both visually and using his divinatory powers.  Finally, he straightened up and put his hand on Joe's shoulder.

Joe turned to David.  "What?" 

"He didn't do it."

"How can you be so sure?" Joe demanded.

"Yes, how do you know I didn't do it?" Wilson asked.

"A lot of little things, really.  You were shocked to see us here.  If you'd been responsible for the reports, you'd have had to believe we'd come for you sooner or later, so you shouldn't have been surprised to see us.

"Your body language is all wrong for someone trying to cover their ass.  You're acting like a guy with wounded pride, instead.

"And... well, to put it bluntly, my divination says you're not full of shit this time, like you usually are."

"Well, there you have it," Wilson said smugly.  "The wonderboy says I didn't make your damned reports."

Joe scratched his head and looked at David.  "Are you sure?"

"Yes.  But that leaves us with the question of who did file the reports.  And I imagine that Agent Wilson might be able to give us some insight on that."

"Now wait just a damned minute!" Wilson snarled.  "Now you're saying that I just had someone do it for me?  Wouldn't I have still expected your arrival, then?"

"I didn't say you had someone do it for you.  I said you probably have some idea of who did.  For instance, I imagine you would be aware of who in the division was very much on your side concerning me, and who would be willing to endanger their career to try to get you back into the Bolmont Division."

"Even if I knew that information, why the hell would I give it to you?" Wilson demanded.

"The only reason for doing so is because you care more about the department than your own ego," David said, staring him down.  "This person has seriously disrupted the operation of the division, which has caused investigations to be delayed by weeks.  If that sits just fine with you, then don't tell us anything.  If, on the other hand, you really are the gung-ho Rimohr par excellence, then you wouldn't want anyone to get away with that, for any reason.

"So... are you really all about the regs, or has it always been about yourself?" David challenged.

Wilson glared at him for a long moment, but then he let out a sigh.  "I know of a few."

"You'd better be right about him," Joe said to David.  "I'm gonna be pissed if it turns out it was him, and we can't do anything about it."

David shook his head.  "Nothing to stop us from going after him if it turns out he was lying to us.  We didn't make any legal promises of any kind.  But I'm pretty sure it wasn't him.  It just doesn't add up."

Agent Keef asked, "So, now what do you do?"  They were standing in Agent Keef's office, along with Vivian.

"Wilson gave us a list of people he thought might pull a stunt like this in order to make the division look bad, in an attempt to get them to bring him back.  It's a short list."

"I notice Dikko's not on the list," Vivian said.  "And he hates you."

"True," David agreed, "but he also hates Wilson.  Dikko even hates Agent Keef.  I'm not sure that Dikko likes anyone.  Certainly he doesn't like anyone who doesn't kiss his ass constantly."

"Can I see the list?" Agent Keef asked.

"Are you sure you want to, Boss?" Joe asked.  "I mean... it would kind of bias you against some officers..."

Keef looked at him for a long moment.  "You know, you're right.  Okay, from this point forward, I am out of this investigation.  Joe, you and David run this one to ground when you've got the time.  Internal fighting is not to take priority over other cases, though."

"Yes, sir."

"Good luck.  Just let me know if you find anything relevant."

"Will do."

"How come you're not worried about biasing yourself against some officers?" David asked Joe with a grin.

"Because I'm not in charge of their careers.  Even the ones in my squad, I don't have any say about their promotions.  Besides, I already know who hates me and who doesn't.  And so do you."

"Yeah.  Well, what do we work on?  I have that serial kidnapper, and the damned musician, to work on."

"Okay, you tackle whichever of those you've got a lead on, and I'll take a look into these folks," he said, holding up the list Wilson had given them.

"Sounds good.  Say, where's Chloe?"

"Off on a case," Vivian said.  "She gets to go by herself," Vivian said, teasing David.

"Right.  Meanwhile, I get to be escorted by pretty girls all the time.  Which one of us has the better deal?" David asked with a grin.

Vivian blushed as Joe tried to hide his chuckle.

 "I think, little lady, that you are wearing more of your dinner than you have eaten," David said.

"Nuh-uh!" Grace insisted.  "I like spasgetti!"

David grinned.  "I like spasgetti, too.  But it's time for your bath."

"Don't wanna," she pouted.

"Now, now," David said.  "Your mom worked real hard to make you a nice, warm bath to get you clean after that great dinner.  It would be rude of you to not take your bath."

"Don't wanna!" she said, stomping her foot.

"Grace Garibaldi," David said sternly, "we don't take that tone with others, now do we?"

Grace looked at him with a deep frown.  "I sorry."

"Good girl," David said.  "Now give me a hug."

Grace nearly strangled David, wrapping her arms around his neck so tight that he was, once again, glad that he had no need to breathe.

When she let him go, he said, "Now go get in the bath.  Then you can come out and give me a... clean hug."  He grinned at her, and she giggled, then ran off down the hall toward the bathroom.

As David stood up, Joe chuckled at him.  "You're gonna need a new shirt."

David looked down and just smirked.  He pulled his wand and took care of the mess before he went to sit in front of the fireplace.

"I don't know how you get her to listen so easily," Joe said.

"I'm not her dad," David said.  "I think that makes a difference."

Joe shook his head.  "That ain't it.  I don't know what it is, but it isn't that."

David just shrugged.  "I don't worry about it, frankly.  Say, did those guys in Donunda really have anything?"

"It's not ready for use yet," Joe said.  "They're still working it all out."

"Is it supposed to be a cure, or just a better treatment?"

"A better treatment.  Once a year, instead of once a week."

"Well, anything helps..." David said.

"Yeah."

Joe and David chatted about nothing in particular while Grace took her bath under Zyla's watchful gaze.  Finally she had finished up, and she came out to the living room in her jammies.  She went to Joe first, and gave him a hug.

"G'night, Daddy," she said.

"Good night, Precious," Joe replied.

She then came over to David and gave him another stranglehold of a hug.

"G'night, Uncle David," she said.

"Good night, Gracie," he said.  He'd started calling her that the day she'd first called him 'uncle'.

Grace stood in front of him, twisting her foot and looking down.

"What is it, Grace?" he asked with a grin, knowing what it was she wanted.

"You read me a story?" she asked with a cute little pout on her face.

"What do we say?" he asked.  This was almost a ritual with the two of them.

"Pleeeeeeaaaaassse!" she said, stringing it out for seconds.

David smiled.  "Okay.  You go get into bed, and I'll be there in a minute."

"Yay!"  Grace bounded out of the room and down the hall.

Zyla just smiled at him.  "You're a good sport."

"What, I don't mind reading her a bedtime story.  She helps me with the big words."

Zyla and Joe laughed as David got up to go tuck Grace in.

It only took about ten minutes before Grace had fallen asleep.  David gave her a kiss on the cheek, pulled her blanket up snugly, and made sure her firefly was giving off just enough light to keep the shadow monsters away.

When he rejoined Joe and Zyla, they were in the midst of a serious discussion.

"Are we safe, even here?" Zyla asked.

"I don't know, Honey," Joe said softly, but earnestly.  "I know it makes you nervous, but you're asking the wrong guy.  Hell, David knows more about it than I do, ask him."

"Ask me what?"

"Joe says that the war is going to start soon," Zyla said.

"Pretty soon, yeah," David said with a frown as he sat back down in his chair.

"I'm worried about what happens if they come here.  I never learned much fighting magic, David... and you two will probably be off on some case or other... what am I supposed to do?"

"Oh, I wouldn't worry about it too much," David told her.

"What makes you say that?" she asked.

"Because you won't be here if it happens."

Joe asked, "Um... just exactly where do you think she's going to be?"

"At my house, behind about fourteen layers of protective charm and enchantment, where she and Grace belong.  She's right; we're probably going to be even busier, what with the damned weres causing trouble all over the place, and the rest of the people thinking the war means that law and order has gone out the window.  You don't think I'm just going to leave it to chance that she's not going to cross paths with one of those bastards, do you?"

"And when were you planning to tell me about this?" Joe asked.

"When it became important."

"Uh-huh."

"How many other people do you plan on harboring, David?" Zyla asked.

"As many as will fit.  I've got enough food for about sixty people for six months.  That is probably not sufficient, but I'm still working on it.  You guys, plus some friends I have that live here in Bolmont... a few of my friends from school... some neighbors... there will be others.  If those bastards feel the need to invade my home, I will turn Pendergrast Manor into Fort Bolmont.  No mere werewolf is getting past the shit I have planned for that house."

"I thought enchantments were difficult for you," Zyla said, trying to be kind, even though the question was somewhat pointed.

"So is not getting my head taken off by a gargoyle.  When it's important, I make the effort.  I've spent a few off days with Charlie and Endora."

"Who?" Garibaldi asked.

"Sorry.  Professors Phillips and Thropp."

Joe nodded.

"Are you worried, David?" Zyla asked.

"Yes."

"Should I be worried?" Zyla asked.

"No.  If the worst happens, you'll simply have to hunker down in the basement at my house while the battle flows past you.  They're not breaking those spells.  Even if I'm not here to stop them, the worst you're in for is boredom."

"How can you be so sure the werewolves can't beat those spells?" Joe asked.

"Because werewolves aren't so good with their spellcasting."

"What are they good at?" Zyla asked.

"Elemental manipulation seems to be one of their specialties.  And, of course, some of them are master morphers... their bodies are already attuned to making such changes, so metamorphosis is a natural fit."

"Now, if one of them is morphed... would they still become a hybrid werewolf on a full moon?" Joe wondered.

"Yes.  Nothing they do can prevent that."

Joe nodded.

Turning back to Zyla, he said, "No, you don't have to worry.  It's not my house here that worries me.  It's my home, up at Woodward, that I'm worried about."

"Why would the werewolves attack a school?" Zyla asked.

"I don't know.  All I know is, if they do, I'm going to make them pay for it."

 "So, what, exactly, do you want me to do?" Vivian asked.  The two of them were in the auditorium, waiting for the concert of Kresven Meslar.

"I want you to sit and listen to the concert, then tell me what you feel afterward."

"Wait... if you think this guy is doing something fishy...  What are you getting me into?"

"Vivian, would I put you in danger?  Most people seem to leave the concert with no effect whatsoever.  It's just those few that Meslar talks to afterward that seem to be in danger.  Because you're up here in the balcony, I'm pretty sure he won't see you, so won't talk to you.  I'll enact a containment charm on you, so that you will not be able to get out of your seat, no matter what."

"Well, okay, then.  I don't want some weird guy casting spells on me."

"Oh.  Well, I guess I can call Joe..."

Vivian looked at him in confusion for a moment, then got the joke.  "You're not weird... well, okay, maybe you are, but you're a good kind of weird, so it's okay."

David smiled at her.  The two waited quietly for the concert.  As soon as Meslar stepped onto the stage, David ghosted himself, and entered Haven.  This was how he had attended with Penny, and so it was the only way he was sure to not be affected.  He then quietly cast the containment charm on Vivian.

"I'm going to wander the audience, to see if I can spot anything unusual."

"Okay.  Try not to get thrown out."

"I'll be casting a Not-My-Problem charm."

"That'll work."

David nodded, then walked off.  He cast the spell, and then entered the lower audience area just as Meslar started his first song.  Once again, David enjoyed the guitar portions of the performance, but wanted to stuff cotton in his ears anytime the man started to sing.

Walking through the audience, David saw the same effects as last time.  Everyone sat, enraptured by the performance.  David stood right in front of the stage, staring up at the performer, who, of course, ignored David.  David studied the guitar.  It was a deep, shimmering black, but didn't seem like that was a stained color, but rather the actual color of the wood.  As the man strummed it, the tones emitted were so incredibly unlike any other guitar that David had ever heard, he had to figure there was something magical going on.

David cast a magical discovery charm, to see if it would reveal anything to him.  Unfortunately, it simply overwhelmed him with a sense of magic being used everywhere.  As he ended the charm, he realized that this wasn't necessarily a sign of foul play.  The auditorium used magic for its lighting, and to amplify the concert so everyone could hear it.  There were magical snack trays floating among the audience to provide refreshments.  These, David noted, had not been touched since the concert started.  In short, there was simply too much magic already in use to tell whether the performer was adding anything to it.

David walked up onto the stage.  He hoped the Not-My-Problem charm would continue to work.  Standing behind the performer and off to one side, he looked out at the audience.  He wanted to see how much of it Meslar could see.  He found that the balcony was completely invisible, and only the first four rows of the bottom seats were clearly visible.  He could make out shapes for a few more rows, but after that, it was blackness.

So... have all his targets come from these first four rows?  I didn't check that, but the information is in the stuff we have back at the office.  I'll have to look at it tomorrow.  If they are all from those seats, then what does that mean?  Well, I guess it means that he has to see his targets to affect them.

But that can't be right...  I mean, everyone here is affected...

But maybe he isn't the one affecting the audience.  Maybe that's being done by something else, and he's just taking advantage of it?  Or maybe it's a two-stage process, and the... whatever... is preparing the audience for whatever it is he does to his victims?

That's a thought.

David was standing so close to Meslar at this point that he could reach out and touch him.  In fact, he did reach out and very lightly stroke the wood of the guitar.  It felt strange to him; it was slippery in a way that mere polish wouldn't account for.  It almost felt wet.

What the hell is that thing made out of?

David left the stage, figuring there was little more he could gain from being there.  He walked slowly through the audience again, noting the continued trance-like state of every person.

Returning to the balcony, David found Vivian to be staring just like everyone else.  David reached out and put his hand on her shoulder.  She didn't so much as flinch.  He shook her shoulder firmly, but still there was no reaction.

Shit.  I hope she doesn't kill me for this later...

David reached out and slapped Vivian across the face, rather hard.  Her head turned away briefly, but as soon as David's hand was out of the way, she returned her gaze to the stage.

Okay, if she's not going to react to getting slapped that way, nothing's going to bring her out of it.  I could keep doing more and more painful things... or I could do more inappropriate things... but I don't think it's going to make any difference.  I think she's under for the duration.

Shit.

"Why does my face hurt?" Vivian asked, once the concert was over.  As soon as Meslar had finished playing and left the stage, Vivian and everyone else had snapped out of their trance and applauded wildly.  Now, the auditorium was empty, except for them.

"Sorry about that," David replied.

"What did you do?" she demanded.

"I slapped you."

"How hard?" she asked, rubbing her cheek gently.

"Hard enough that you should damned well remember it," David replied.  "You didn't even look at me after I did it."

"What... else... did you do?"

"Nothing you'd be mad at me for."

"So... what did we learn?" she asked.

"That there is some kind of spell going on.  Every member of the audience, including you, was completely entranced.  What do you remember of the concert?"

"Just some beautiful music.  The concert was wholly enjoyable."

"You even thought his singing was okay?"

"He sings beautifully."

"Yeah, no, he doesn't.  He doesn't even sing on key.  It must be part of the enchantment... no, I'd have to call this a curse.  He's obviously doing something he shouldn't be."

Vivian shrugged.  "I can only tell you what I witnessed, and my experience doesn't agree with your description."

"I know.  Damn.  I'm going to have to figure this out."  David turned to her and then raised his wand.  "Ayim sari."

"You already said tha-... ooh, that feels nice."

"Yeah, the spell does sound a lot like 'I'm sorry', doesn't it?  I wonder if that was intentional.  In any case, I am sorry I made your face hurt, but I couldn't think of a better way to try to snap you out of the trance."

"Oh, well.  All's well that ends well."

"Has this ended well?" David asked, looking toward the stage.  "I wonder."

Vivian frowned, but then said, "Let's get out of here."

"Yeah.  I guess I'll see you at work on Monday."

"Sure.  Good night."

 Tanya was waiting for David on the terrace when he arrived.  He had called her on the mirror to let her know he had a plan for possibly catching Tattered Tom.

"So, what's our plan?" Tanya asked.

David pulled out the Dalmajak Cynosure.  "This."

"I thought you already tried that."

"I did, but I think we tried to find the wrong thing."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, it couldn't find 'Tattered Tom', I think, because there is no such actual being.  We don't know the cat's real name.  It'd be like me trying to find you by asking it where Gertrude is."

"Okay, fair enough... but I remember you asked it to look for the thieving cat, and it went haywire."

"All cats are thieves.  They steal shit to survive.  So it was trying to show me every cat within a half-mile of here.  There are a lot of cats in the area."

"So how are we going to use that to find him?"

"We're not."

"But you just said..."

"What's the one thing we know he runs from?"

"Oscar."

"Right.  So we'll get Oscar to chase him, and we'll track Oscar.  Oscar is a known being, so the cynosure can track him no problem."

"But if he runs from Oscar, how does that help us?  We can't catch him if he just keeps running..."

"We've got to get him in the open.  Once we do, hit him with paralio, and voila!  Captured cat."

"This is going to take the entire department."

"Quite probably.  That's why I want to do it now, before the students get back.  This way, we're not distracted, and we don't have to look like idiots chasing a cat in front of two thousand students."

"Good thinking," Tanya said with a smirk.  "So let's go find Oscar."

It took them a little while, but they finally found Oscar sitting in the middle of a parchment on Coach Hall's desk.  That Coach Hall was attempting to write on the parchment seemed not to matter much to Oscar.  After briefly enjoying Coach Hall's predicament, they explained to the cat what it was they wanted him to do.  He let out a low meow and hopped down, trotting out of the office and down the hall.

David engaged the cynosure, which pointed after Oscar.  They hustled after him, and Tanya called in the other security officers, who fanned out throughout the terrace.

"What if he goes down into a dorm room?" Tanya asked.

"Then we've really got him.  We'll shut off the rock lifts, and he'll be trapped in one building."

"Could be a damned big building..."

"Won't matter.  Once the area is that limited, finding him won't be hard.  But I doubt he's going to be that cooperative.  The worst case scenario is that he finds a way inside the mountain itself.  Then we have an insane amount of area to cover."

"How would he do that, though?"

"How the hell should I know?  This place has more secrets than Area 51."

"What the hell is Area 51?" Tanya asked.

"Not now!" David growled.  Oscar was moving quickly, and keeping up with him was a challenge.

Suddenly, from behind a bush, a black blur streaked away from them at an angle.  Oscar bolted after the blur.

"There's no way," Tanya said, watching in dismay as Oscar rounded the corner of one of the school buildings.

"Keep in touch with the officers.  We'll use the cynosure to track.  Oscar will either corner Tom, or he'll chase him out into the open.  Right now, they appear to be heading toward Byron Hall."

Tanya informed her team of this, and she followed David quickly in that direction.

"Frank's got sight of them running across the terrace... he says they just passed behind Byron Hall and into a small stand of trees."

"Maybe Oscar will chase him up a tree and corner him."

"I doubt it," Tanya said.

Tanya turned out to be right.  The cynosure showed that the cats were still running all out.  Reports from the team members kept them aware of the location.

"Someone's going to have to try to zap that cat," David said.

"What if they hit Oscar by mistake?" Tanya worried.

"Then Oscar will be really mad at them," David said with a grin.

Suddenly, the cynosure showed the cats slowing down.

"They're over by Santana Hall," Tanya said, relaying information from another officer.

"What is it about that damned building?  Seems like all the trouble happens there."

"Musicians," Tanya said with dark humor.

David grunted, and the two trotted in that direction.

By the time David and Tanya arrived, Oscar had backed Tom into a corner, and three security officers were closing off means of escape.

"What the hell are you waiting for?" David asked them.

"Well, we don't want to hurt him..." the one guy said.

David snorted in disgust and yanked his wand.  "Paralio!"

Tom froze as the spell hit him, and then fell over, stiff as a board.  As David passed by, he reached down and petted Oscar on the head.

"Thanks for the assist.  Couldn't have done it without you."

Oscar meowed in satisfied triumph and then trotted off, most likely to go back to Coach Hall's desk.

Tanya picked up the paralyzed cat, and they all moved back to Fensterman Hall.  David and Tanya took the cat into one of the secure rooms, and set it on a table.

"Now what?  We still don't know if this is a regular cat, a familiar, or what," Tanya said.

David pulled his wand and pointed it at the cat.  "Mahono kigen akira kanisuru."  The cat was surrounded by a bright orange light, which then shifted to green.

"Okay, so he's not just a cat," Tanya said.  "But we don't know if he's a familiar, or a wizard."

"Binago ba," David said, pointing his wand again.  Another field engulfed the cat, and once again the field shifted to green before fading out.

"Not a familiar," David said.

"How do you know?  I've never seen that spell."

"It's a transformation detection spell.  If it was a familiar, it would not be transformed, but this being is."

"Oh, great.  So now we have to either convince him to change back, or we have to figure out the spell to force him back into his normal form."

"Easy enough to deal with," David said.  "He can either transform back to his normal form, or he can spend the rest of his life living in the animal shelter, eating cat food."

As soon as David cleared away the paralysis spell, the cat yowled, and began to transform.  In just a few seconds, a man who looked to be in his late twenties slid off the table and crumpled into a chair.

"Cat food is some of the nastiest shit you'd ever want to taste," the man said.

"Cats seem to like it just fine," David said with a smirk.  "Who are you?"

"I'm not saying anything without a lawyer present."

"You're not entitled to a lawyer, dirtbag," Tanya said.  "You are required to give your identity."

The man sat, silently staring back at them.

David sighed.  "I don't think he's aware of what happens to people who don't give their identities."

"Should we tell him?" Tanya asked.

"Maybe we should let him sit in jail for six months first."

"Six months?" the man suddenly cried out.  "For not giving you my name?"

"Until you reveal your identity.  If that takes you twenty years to do, guess how long you stay in jail?"

"But... you could get my identity by other means," the man objected.

"Not important," David said.  "The law is quite clear on this matter.  Once detained by an officer of the court, you are required to reveal your identity, and you will remain in custody until such time as you do so voluntarily."

"But you're not cops."

"Actually, I am," David said, pointing to his badge.

"Shit," the man said.

"Now, identify yourself, or I'll just haul your ass down to the Bolmont Jail.  I have better things to do than deal with your bullshit."

"Arthur Jackson," the man said sourly.

"And where are the items you stole?"

"I'm not telling you anything else.  You can't prove I stole anything at all."

"Hey, David?  Why didn't you just use the cynosure to find the stolen property?"

"Because until we had him in custody, and had an identity to compare to, I didn't want to disturb the evidence.  I actually know exactly where it is."

"Bullshit," Jackson spat.

"It's hidden in the hollow of a fallen log in the midst of the trees between Hughes and Savage Hall."

The look on Jackson's face was one of utter shock.  "You'll never prove I stole it, though," he tried.

"Wanna bet?" David said.  "Proving that is going to be very easy, since I very much doubt you were able to remove all of your cat hair from the area."

Jackson slumped, and said nothing further.  Nothing further was really needed, however.  David and Tanya left the room, letting Jackson face his misery alone.

"Thanks for the help, David.  This one was turning into a real embarrassment."

"No problem.  I wish they could all be wrapped up this easily.  I'll go get the stolen items and collect the necessary evidence."

"Thanks."

"Excuse me, Mr. Meslar?" David said.

"Yes?" the man said disinterestedly.

"David Stroud, sir.  I'm a reporter with the Gorumshead Crier.  I'm doing an article on the cultural options here in Gorumshead, and I was wondering if I could ask you a few questions."

David was wearing what he referred to as "street clothes", and he had on only his press pin at the moment.  He didn't want to tip Meslar off to any investigation that was going on, if he hadn't already been informed by one of his victims.  He had also felt that referring to what Meslar was doing as "culture" instead of "entertainment" might get his interest a little more.

"Oh?  Well, I do have a few minutes.  What would you like to know?"

David started off by asking Meslar some basic questions about where he'd learned to play music, whether he had formal training, and that sort of thing.  It was all just a smokescreen for his real question.

"Sir, I have to say that your guitar is one of the most unique of its kind.  I've never heard a guitar give off such a beautiful tone.  Can you tell me who crafted it?"

"Ah, yes.  It's wonderful, isn't it?  It's the only one of its kind, anywhere.  That guitar, my friend, is made of oilwood."

David allowed his surprise to show.  A reporter would be shocked, after all.  "Oilwood, you say?  So, you found the tree?  You were able to give it an unguessable riddle?"

Meslar snorted.  "I found the tree, yes.  The whole riddle thing is utter nonsense.  All the tree asked for was an agreement that, after I am dead, when I discorporate, I must do so within its branches.  It then absorbs my energy."

"A Dugerran tree can absorb Haven energy?" David asked.

"Apparently it can.  Don't ask me how that works, I have no idea.  All I know is what it told me."

"And it crafted the guitar for you?"

"Yes, indeed."

"Well, that would certainly explain its unique sound."

"Oh, yes."

David went on to ask a few more cover questions before taking his leave of the musician.  He now had an even greater reason to believe something untoward was going on.  Oilwood was known for strengthening spells, so if the musician was up to something dirty, he had the perfect tool to help him.

When Joe mirrored David, he was driving toward Maine, to do more interviews concerning the serial kidnapper.

"What's up, Joe?"

"Got another disappearance," he said.

"Goddammit," David snarled.  "Where is it this time?"

"Rochester, New York, wherever that is."

"Yeah, okay.  You want me to stop and pick you up, or just go straight there?"

"Where are you?"

"Concord, New Hampshire.  It'll add about an hour and a half to my trip to come get you, if that's what you're worried about."

"How long's it going to take to get there, anyway?"

"Over six hours."

"Shit.  Okay, go ahead and handle it on your own, then."

"Will do.  I'll mirror and let you know what I find."

"Okay.  Good luck."

"Detective Benson," David said, shaking her hand.  "David Stroud."

"Good to meet you.  What's wrong with your badge?" she asked, motioning to the tail, which, unlike a normal Rimohr's badge, had no crystal in it.

"Probationary officer," David said.

"And they let you handle cases alone?" she asked in surprise.

"My training officer was too far away.  It took me six hours to get here myself."

Det. Benson nodded.

"So, what do we have?  I can see the hole in the door.  What's going on inside?"

"Come on in and take a look."

As they walked through the door, David cast a magic-revelation charm, but the traces of magic had faded, since the incident was more than a day old.

It turned out that it wasn't important, however, as the scene looked exactly like all the other kidnappings, right down to the scorched walls and tossed-about objects.

"I sensed magic here when I arrived yesterday," Det. Benson said.

David nodded, not entirely surprised.  "Can I see your license?"

Det. Benson pulled out her wallet and handed him her wizarding license.  It showed that Olivia Benson had completed four years of wizard college, and had a higher wizarding score than David's.  He handed the license back.

"Tell me about our victim," David asked politely.

"Lynn Hackett, age twenty-six.  Born and raised here in Rochester."

"And what's her criminal background?"

"What makes you so sure she's got a history?"

"Humor me," David said.

"Okay...  She spent six months in prison for fraud.  She was acting as a life coach for people, and managed to fool them into signing a power of attorney.  After that, she would take their money and leave them penniless, and without having given them any good counseling.  She worked throughout the northeast, moving from city to city."

"She use aliases or something?  How did she not get caught doing that?"

"The powers of attorney.  What she did was, arguably, legal, once the victims signed that form.  She was finally caught by coercing someone into signing it who was unable to read.  That was the only case she could be convicted on."

"Yeah... in other words, a complete slimeball.  It fits."

"Fits?"

"We're working a serial kidnapping case.  The kidnapper seems to be targeting people they feel have gotten away with something.  Ms. Hackett would certainly fit the bill.  Plus, the scene looks entirely consistent with the perpetrator's MO."

"Any idea who it is?"

"Not a fucking clue.  I've been working this case for months.  He just doesn't leave us enough to finger him.  We have some images of him, but that doesn't do us any good, as we know he changes his appearance magically.  He hasn't left any usable physical evidence, even in the one aberrant case."

"Aberrant?"

"He wound up killing his victim instead of kidnapping him.  The victim fought back.  We're still not sure why he chose to kill him, rather than just leave."

"So he couldn't identify him?"

"But if he was morphed or glamoured, how was the victim going to ID anyone?"

Det. Benson nodded.  "Good point.  Okay, so... what do you need from us?"

"Has your forensic unit been over this place already?"

"Yeah, spent all day yesterday on it."

"Okay.  I'll want their report, but beyond that, I doubt there's much here that would help the investigation."

"I can get you that back at the office.  You'll keep me up-to-date on this mutt?"

"Sure.  Not that you're likely to hear anything, the way the case is going," David grumped.

"Good luck, anyway," she offered.

"Thanks."

 "Hey, David.  Hi, Lydia," Christa said as she sat down at the dinner table with the two of them.  It was the first day of the spring semester, and David was looking forward to time with Lydia.  Christa's presence was not exactly in his plans.

Lydia was obviously displeased, as well.

"Make her go away, or you're not getting laid tonight," Lydia demanded of David.

"As we have already discussed, I have no ability to make her go away.  And I don't like ultimatums or threats."

"Do you like getting laid?" Lydia growled.

"Yes, I do.  But if you really want to play it that way, then let me point out that I have several options for getting laid.  Including the person you're telling me to make go away."

"How dare you," Lydia snarled, and got up from the table.  She took her food and went to sit elsewhere.

"Thanks so much for ruining my evening," David said, looking darkly at Christa.  "What do you want?"

"Actually, I'd wanted to ask her about that guy I saw her talking to this morning."

"What business is it of yours?"

Christa frowned.  "It's just that he looked kind of unsavory."

"You're still on your kick about how she's evil?"

"I never said she was evil, David.  I just think there's something not quite right about her.  I don't think she's really your friend."

"And you base this on one conversation, and some guy who could, for all you know, have been asking her for directions."

"No, not just on one conversation.  Every time she and I have spoken, she's... like, challenging me.  There's just nothing to account for that."

"Except, of course, that you're trying to sleep with her boyfriend... and oh yeah, badmouthing her in the process..."

"It just doesn't add up, David.  Something's missing.  We don't know something about her.  And I say 'we', because I think you'd have mentioned it if there was something that explained her behavior."

"Maybe that's just who she is?  Maybe she doesn't like having her relationships threatened."

"Then why take it out on you?"

"Because she sees me as not taking a hard enough line with you."

"Okay... but, David... if that's how she really thinks...  Is she, in fact, your friend?"

David stared at her for a long moment in silence.

"All I'm saying is that you need to watch out for her.  I think she's going to cause you some kind of trouble."

"Well, you'd know all about that..."

"Hey!  I've left you alone since you got me in trouble with Dad..."

"That it took doing that is the problem."

 Christa frowned, but didn't respond.

"Why were you watching Lydia this morning, anyway?"

Christa shook her head.  "I wasn't watching her.  I just happened to see her talking to the guy.  I was walking between classes."

"Uh-huh.  But didn't fail to make note of what she was doing when you saw her."

"Actually, David, it was the guy who got my attention.  I didn't realize it was Lydia he was talking to until I stopped to look more closely," Christa said sharply.  "Look, I don't like Lydia, but no, I'm not wasting my time trying to catch her cheating on you or something.  I don't care that much, except that she's preventing you and me from having some fun."

"She is not the one keeping us apart," David replied.

"Well, whatever.  I don't give a damn about her, except that it looks like she's going to cause you trouble.  Since you're pretty much the only friend I have here..."

"I'm not sure that term applies, either."

Christa looked wounded, but didn't respond for a long moment.  Finally, she spoke.

"In any case, I wanted to ask her.  I can't exactly do that, since she left.  I'll leave you to your dinner."  Without another word, Christa got up and left.

David sat for a long moment, thinking about what she'd said.  Finally, David set it aside.  He couldn't put much stock in Christa's opinion of Lydia, since the two obviously hated each other.  And though he found Lydia's demands rather off-putting, they were hardly an indication of some nefarious motive.

It'll keep, David thought to himself.

 "Gotcha, you bastard!" David muttered enthusiastically.  He tossed a book on his desk and sat up straighter.

"Find something?" Vivian asked.  David was once again spending the day in the Rimohr office, instead of in school, where he belonged.

"That damned musician.  He cursed you."

"What?"

"The entire audience was under a curse.  That's why they looked like they were sitting spellbound:  They were spellbound!"

"Can you prove this?" Joe asked.

David just handed over the parchment he'd been writing on.  "Top lines are the lyrics to the song he sings.  Bottom line is the spellcasting translation."

Joe looked it over.  "But this is only the preparatory spell, isn't it?  Doesn't he have to case another spell to actually make you do something?"

"No.  This makes you obey his instructions.  It doesn't give any specific instructions of its own, other than to continue to listen.  But he doesn't need a spell to give the instructions, he just says what he wants them to do."

"So... but all by itself, this spell doesn't do anything except make them listen to his music, is that right?"

"Well... yeah.  I mean, it doesn't actually force them to perform any actions on its own..."

"Which means we can't bust him on just this.  He can say that he's merely using the - he would call it an enchantment - to enhance the audience's enjoyment of his performance.  Without any evidence of him forcing people to do things against their will..."

"So we have to catch him actually victimizing someone?" David asked.

"Unless you can get someone to go against him after the fact."

"He seems to have covered that pretty thoroughly.  No one I've talked to has been willing to say anything about their time with him."

"Well, there you are, then."

David sat back, frowning.  "I wonder..." he thought out loud to himself, but didn't finish the thought.

"You will need to have all of Chapter 6 read by the start of next class.  There will be a quiz at the start of the class.  You are dismissed."

There was groaning and grumbling as the students got up to leave the class.  David had been leaning against the back wall, waiting for the class to finish up.

"Oh, cheer up," David said to the students brightly.  "When she made us read Chapter 6, we had to read Chapter 7, too!"  He grinned at them as they all groaned again.

"David," she said, her voice friendlier than her classtime tone.  "How are you today?"

"Hey, Endora.  I'm all right.  I wondered if I could trouble you for another counter-curse."

"You should really learn how to do this yourself, you know."

"Add two extra days to the length of a week so I have time, and I'll consider it," David replied with a grin.

Endora chuckled.  "Right.  Do we know the curse this time?"

David handed over a sheet of parchment.  "I've included my translation, just as a check to make sure I know what I'm talking about."

Endora looked it over carefully.  "It looks correct to me.  This curse... is it accompanied by music?"

"It's sung, badly and off-key.  The singer is playing an oilwood guitar."

"Oilwood?  Are you sure?"

"He told me himself."

"That will make the curse a little harder to break.  You may have to chant it two or three times before it works."

David nodded.  "How long do you think it will take you to come up with a counter?  I know you have classes to teach..."

"Oh... give me a day or so."

"Really?  That fast?"

"This is a fairly straightforward curse.  Its effects are nasty, yes, but the curse itself isn't too tough.  Some are real bears to work through."

"Well, okay, then.  And your fee?"

Endora waved him off.  "We'll call this one a freebie for a friend."

"Thanks, Endora.  I'm sure his victims will thank you, too."

Endora nodded.

"Anyway, I need to go take someone to lunch, so I'll head out.  If you could just mirror me when you've come up with the counter..."

"Certainly.  Go enjoy your meal."

"Thanks.  See you."

David was leaving the lunch room with Olissa when he was confronted by a small group of students.

"How dare you bring this kind of evil into Woodward Academy!" one of them said.

As David raised an eyebrow, another said, "You should be ashamed of yourself!"

A third, apparently their leader, said, "I want you to know that I will be contacting the Rimohrs, and I will also be suing you on behalf of the woman you are holding against her will!"

The speaker was a woman, who looked to be in her early twenties, and, if the expression on her face was any indicator, a rather unpleasant individual.

"So you're going to call the Rimohrs on me?" David asked.

"Yes!"

"Lady, I am a Rimohr.  Would you like me to take your complaint here, or back in my office?  Just exactly what is your problem, anyway?"

"Slavery is evil!" she snarled.  "You have no right to hold anyone against their will!  This woman has as much right to freedom as you do!"

Olissa was about to speak, but David raised his hand to stop her.

"Let her talk!" the woman demanded.  "She has the right to let her voice be heard!"

"No, she doesn't," David said bluntly.

"Excuse me?" the woman thundered.

"You're from Earth, aren't you?" David asked the woman, remaining calm in the face of her growing ire.

"So what?"

"Well, it would explain why you are unaware that slavery is, under certain circumstances, entirely legal within Callamandia.

"For instance, indentured servitude is still a common practice here.  Apprentices are often the equivalent of slaves to their masters.  It really would help, when you find something offensive, if you found out if it was actually illegal before you go throwing around accusations.

"Now, as to your assertion that I am holding someone against their will, I would point out that Miss Volaire signed a contract.  That contract was signed in the presence of Callamandian officials, who performed magical checks for duress or coercion.  She is a voluntary slave who has agreed to act as my personal assistant in perpetuity.

"Whether you agree with that action or not is less than irrelevant to the situation.  You do not have the right to dictate to her what legal actions she is allowed to take, and which she is not."

"No one would agree to be a slave!" the woman shouted.

"She did," David replied matter-of-factly.

"You are a fucking liar!" the woman screamed in David's face.

At that point, Olissa stepped forward and slapped the woman, very hard.  When Olissa pulled her hand away, it was clear there was already a welt rising on the woman's cheek.

"You will not speak that way to my master in my presence," Olissa said sharply.

"I'm trying to help you!" the woman snarled.

"No you're not.  You're trying to impose your will on me.  I did not agree to follow your orders, only his.  My proper place in life is at his side, as his servant.  If you want to help me, then stop harassing my master.  Your actions will negatively affect his mood.  Since I would prefer that he be in a good mood rather than a sour one, I would humbly ask that you shut up and go away."

The group stared agape at her.  The woman whirled on David.  "This isn't over!"

"Oh, yes it is," David replied.

"Was that a threat?" she demanded.

"If you wish to take it as one.  But should you approach either one of us about this matter again, it will fall under the legal definition of harassment, and I will have you arrested for it."

"I have the right to-"

"No, you don't."

"Excuse me?"

"It amazes me how many times I have to say this to people.  You are not standing in the United States of America.  You do not have the same rights and liberties here as you do there.  You do not have complete freedom of speech here.  One of the things you are not allowed to do is to continually harass other people because you don't like something they're doing.  You are legally required, at this point, to shut up and go away, because that is what you have been asked to do concerning the matter, which does not, in fact, involve you in any direct fashion."

"So I'm not allowed to point out your evil actions to you."

"Evil is a concept that does not apply.  The word you're looking for is 'offensive', and that is a subjective opinion on your part.  And so, to answer your question, no, you do not have the right to force me to repeatedly listen to your opinion on an issue that you are not involved with."

"Everyone in society is involved where slavery is concerned!" she said.

"No, they're not.  This transaction involved two people directly.  Myself, and my slave.  You are in no fashion directly involved with that act.  In Callamandia, the citizenry is not the guardian of human rights.  The king dictates what rights you do and do not have.  The king has made it clear - by not abolishing it - that slavery is an acceptable practice in Callamandia.  And before you choose to speak your next sentence, be aware that there are many things you cannot say about the king.  As an officer of the court, if I hear you say one of them, I will detain you for violating the law."

"What kind of abomination is Callamandia?" She demanded.

"It's a limited-parliamentary monarchy.  Perhaps you need to take Civics.  If you don't like it here, you are welcome to return to Earth.  In any case, your contact with us had better end at this point."

"You are slime," she spat.

"And you're a narrow-minded bitch," David replied.  "So why should I care what you think of me?"

With that, the group turned and moved off.

"I am sorry, Master, that you had to-" Olissa started.  David cut her off by raising his hand.

"Dealing with idiots like that is part of my job now," David said.  "I understood that when I made you put on that collar."

"Do you regret it... ever?" Olissa asked.

"No," David said firmly.  "It still gives me a headache if I think about it too long, though."

Olissa smiled gently.

"C'mon, I've got work to do, and you can help me with it."

"What are we doing, Master?"

"Still working on that damned kidnapping case.  I've got to be missing something."

"Yes, sir."

 "So why aren't we inside?" Vivian asked.  She and David were standing outside the small auditorium in Gorumshead where Meslar performed his act.

"Because I have no way to prevent you from being affected by his spell, and I won't put you through that again."

"It didn't do anything to me, really..." Vivian said.

"It didn't do anything you noticed," David corrected.  "Had you then interacted with Meslar, he could have ordered you to do anything at all, and you would have done it.  That's why I chanted that counter-curse at you five times earlier."  Endora had been as good as her word, and it had only taken her a day to come up with the counter to Meslar's spell.

"Well, you could just do that again... I worry that they're going to point out that we can't verify that he used the spell tonight."

David shook his head.  "I placed a divinatory recorder in there, so that we could record the entire concert.  It's a special one, that can see better in the dark, and also has the ability to transmit."

"Transmit?  What do you mean?"

David pulled out a viewing lens and showed it to her.  "This lens is attuned to the recorder.  It will show us what the recorder is seeing."

"That's clever... I've never heard of this before."

"That's because it didn't exist until earlier this week, when I worked it out with Char... er, Prof. Phillips, up at the school."

Vivian grinned.  "Does it feel weird, calling all the professors by first name now?"

"I don't do it with all of them.  Only the ones who've told me to do so.  Since I helped Charlie and Cat get together, he and I are pretty good friends, and he prefers if I use his name."

Vivian nodded.  "You're in pretty tight with the school.  Maybe, when you become a full officer, you should try to talk them into creating a satellite office, so that you can stay there."

"Isn't that pretty much where I already am?" David asked.

"Yeah, but it's not an official office, just one that Joe sort-of created for you."

David nodded.  "I'm not going to worry about anything like that until after the war.  I will probably delay becoming a full Rimohr until the war is over, however long that takes."

"You could be an intern for a very long time..."

"I know.  The last war with Vrudena lasted forty years, if I recall correctly."

"I'm pretty sure they won't let you remain an intern that long.  You'd spend your entire career as an intern!"

David chuckled.  "Not that it would really matter.  I think, once the war starts, that Rimohrs are going to need to be traveling in pairs, anyway, for safety.  At least those of us who live up here in the north."

Vivian nodded.  "Probably true."

The two continued to chat as the concert progressed.  David was relieved to see that the spell did not, in fact, transfer itself through the viewing lens.  Vivian was unaffected by the performance this time.

"God, is that actually the same guy singing?"

"I told you he sucked."

"I kind of wish I was spellbound now.  He was a lot more pleasant to listen to!"

David chuckled.

Once the concert wrapped up, David watched what the performer did more closely.  He saw the man walk down into the audience, and approach four different people.  He spoke to each one briefly, and then those people stepped up onto the stage.  When he was finished, he joined them on the stage, and then led them into the back area.

"Come on," David said.  He entered the auditorium and quickly moved down the aisle.  He hopped up onto the stage and strode into the backstage area.

It wasn't hard to find Meslar's room.  The man had not bothered to even close the door.  Already the three women were naked, and one was slipping onto the bed.

"A bed?  In a dressing room?" Vivian whispered.

"He has to have someplace to play, doesn't he?" David whispered back sourly.

"Shouldn't we be in there stopping this?"

As David turned back to look, Meslar was sliding his dick into the victim on the bed.  "A little late, actually," David muttered.  He took a deep breath and let it out.  "Okay, let's do this."

The bonds of oilwood weaken,
The chains of lyric voice fade.
Your true mind now awaken,
No longer a subservient shade.

David chanted the countercurse four times.  Suddenly, in the room, a woman screamed.

"What... No!  Get off me!  Somebody help me!"

"Shut up, bitch!" Meslar snarled, confused and now angry.

Suddenly, he was also scared and in pain as a bolt of magical energy slammed into him, sending him five feet sideways into a brick wall.

The other women in the room screamed, first in surprise, then in realization that they were naked.

"Calm down, ladies.  We're Rimohrs," David said sharply.  "Please get dressed.  Your clothes are behind you."

The one man in the room was shaking his head.  "What the hell am I doing?  Oh, my god!  I've just signed over my entire bank account to this guy!"

"You'll get it back," David replied.

Vivian stepped over to the performer.  "Kresven Meslar, you are under arrest for misuse of magic, unlawful spellcasting, fraud, and rape.  On your feet!"

"I did not commit rape!  She was happy to have me!"

"Right up until your spell was broken," David said.  "At which point she told you to stop, and you refused.  At that point it became rape."

"You'll never make it stick!" Meslar insisted.

"Think not?  I know about your guitar.  I know about the song.  Do you still not recognize me?"

"You... you're that damned reporter!"

"That's right."

"Ha!  I've got you!  You're not allowed to impersonate a reporter!" Meslar said.

"Hate to burst your bubble, buddy, but I am, in fact, an employee of the Gorumshead Crier, as well as a Rimohr.  I wasn't impersonating anyone.  In fact, the article I wrote that included your interview was published yesterday."

"You actually published the article?" Vivian asked in surprise.

"Had to do the work, figured I might as well use it," David said.  "Besides, it allowed me to badmouth him, in case we aren't able to make it stick.  And it 'forced' me to take my girlfriends out to various cultural events, so I could do a proper article."

Vivian grinned, and then shrugged.  Turning back to Meslar, she said, "Get your damned clothes on.  You reach for your wand, and you won't survive the evening."

In short order, Meslar was bound by a handcuff hex.  Statements were taken from the four victims, and they were sent home.

"Big deal.  A minor fraud case and one charge of rape.  I'll be out in a year," Meslar said on the way to Bolmont.

"Meslar, I know how to break your curse.  I intend on going back to every last one of your victims.  I'm quite certain that there will be dozens of rape charges by the time I'm through with you."

Meslar paled at that.  Serial offenders were treated very nastily in the Callamandian court system.

"Look... just bust my wand and take me to Earth.  I'll never come back here."

"Fuck you, Meslar," David said.  "You're facing the penalty for what you've done.  I hope you suffer every single day of your sentence."

"That's pretty much a guarantee," Vivian said.

Meslar paled at the very thought of it, and said no more.

 "Hello," David said, pulling out his mirror.  He was in his Woodward office, still working on the kidnapping case.  He'd been working on it all weekend, with the exception of the time taken out to arrest and process Meslar.

"Hey, David," Joe said.  "We've got a call that someone is causing mischief down in the farmer's market outside of Gorumshead.  Go over there and find out what's going on."

"On my way," David said.  Joe fogged off, and David got up from his chair.

"Should I go with you, Master?"

"No, this could, conceivably, be dangerous.  Just keep doing your homework."

"Yes, sir."

David made his way down off the mountain and over to Gorumshead.  The farmer's market was a year-round affair, because wizard farmers grow some very strange things, many of which grew in winter.

When David arrived, it didn't take him too long to figure out what was going on.  He saw a vikifruit rise up, hover for a second, and then zip across the market until it smacked a woman in the back of the head.  Shortly thereafter, a man apparently tripped over his own two feet, spilling his basket of produce onto the ground.

David looked around at the people in the market.  Most of them were trying to ignore the trouble.  They were wizards, and this wasn't scary, it was merely annoying.  Others would chuckle occasionally.

A magic revelation spell would be utterly useless in a place like this, David knew.  Many of the patrons were using magic to float their baskets along, rather than carry them.  The place was rife with magical energy in use.

Moving around the perimeter of the market, David thought he spotted two boys who were a little too intent on the pranks going on.  He cast an ignore-me hex, and moved in closer.

"How about her?" the one pointed.

"Yeah!" the other boy agreed heartily.

Suddenly, a pummelo rose out of its bin and whizzed toward the woman in question.  At the last second, she leaned over to look at something, and instead, the pummelo hit a man square in the face.  It impacted with such force that it threw the man off his feet, and it was possible he had a broken nose.

"Aw, shit!  You missed!" the second boy said.

"Got the guy behind her, though..."

"Thank you for the confession," David said to them.  The two whirled to look at him, panicked.  It was clear both of them were considering running.

"Don't try it.  I can, and will, stop both of you at the same time.  And it will probably hurt quite a bit."

Both of the teens stopped at that comment.  David looked them over.

"Why aren't you two in class?"

"School is lame," the one teen said.

"School's for geeks," the other said.

"Geeks... and those who don't want to be arrested," David added for him.  "You both know that school attendance is mandatory.  Now, which school do you attend?"

"Woodward Academy, duh..." the one tried.

"Really.  Do you really want to face down Dean Lengel with these charges?"

The other boy shook his head.  "We go to GADA."  The Gorumshead Advanced District Academy was the advanced non-magical school for the entire area.  It was the equivalent of an American high school, though with slightly different subject matter.

"So.  You're just racking up them charges.  Start out with public mischief.  I'd have been willing to let you go with a warning on that one, until you hurt somebody.  Now we've got battery.  But not just battery, because you chose to use magic to do it, so now it's magical battery.

"But you didn't even stop there.  No, we've got you on unlicensed use of magic, because neither of you is even old enough to be doing the kind of thing you were just doing.

"And, to finish it all off, we have truancy.  Tsk, tsk, tsk.  I think your parents are going to be rather unhappy with you this evening.  For now, you two are coming with me up to the Academy."

"Hey!  We admitted we don't go there!" the one yelled.

"Maybe not, but I do.  It's also where my office is.  You'll be put into a security detention cell until we contact your parents.  Now let's go."

The two grumbled to each other as they walked ahead of David.  After a few minutes, they started to whisper.

David knew what was going on.  He said, "Before you get any funny ideas, I'm a full wizard, I'm trained in combat, and I'm a demighost.  If you cause me any trouble, your parents will be picking you up from the infirmary instead of the security office."

With that pronouncement, the two boys turned a little pale, then straightened up and walked meekly forward onto academy grounds.

 "Master, I remember you said you were going to go back to that musician's other victims.  How come you're not doing that?"

"There's no big hurry," David told her.  "With Meslar's confession, we don't need them for a court case.  I'll handle them when I have time."

"What, exactly, did he confess to?"

"An unspecified count of multiple rape, twelve counts of fraud, misuse of magic, unlawful spellcasting, and willful disruption."

"What's that last one mean?"

"It is illegal to perform a hex on someone such that it interferes with their life for more than a year.  The control hex he used was permanent."

"Oh... so, if he'd used one that only lasted a few days, then he wouldn't have been charged?"

"Well, not with willful disruption.  All the other stuff would have still applied."

"Okay.  How come there wasn't a specific count on the rape charges?"

"Because the motherfucker had raped so many women that he didn't know what the number was."

"Wow."

"Yeah.  Needless to say, he went away for a while."

"When you free them from the spell, they're going to remember that, aren't they?  That they were raped?"

"They remember having sex with him already.  They'll know at that point that it wasn't really their idea."

"Couldn't that cause them a lot of emotional problems?"

"Maybe."

"Isn't there anything you can do about it, Master?"

"Hell, Little One, I didn't even come up with the countercurse to break the control, let alone a way to help them through whatever psychological crap it will cause."

"Couldn't you just leave them the way they are, then?"

David shook his head.  "Too dangerous.  When he gets out, he'll be sent to Earth.  What if one of them encountered him again?  They would still be under his control."

"Oh.  Right."

"I'll talk to Charlie and Endora, see if there's not a way to mute the emotional impact of that night.  I don't want to just remove it from their memory; that has some side-effects that can be pretty problematic, too."

"Thank you, Master."

"Why are you so concerned about it?"

"A friend of mine in high school-"

Olissa's words were cut off by a shout from someone behind them.  Olissa screamed in pain as a blast of energy hit her and threw her off her feet, causing her to slide along the ground for several yards.

David said, "Fuck!"  He turned to see the man who had obviously attacked her, and saw that he was readying another spell.

"Scudo!" David shouted, and then stepped between the man and Olissa.  The man's spell bounced off of David's shield spell as David ran to Olissa, kneeling over her.  He rolled her face-up, terrified that she was dead.  She was breathing, raggedly.

David turned and saw a student standing nearby.  "You!  Call the infirmary!"

"Yes, sir!" the student - a first year - shouted in terror.  David's countenance was filled with malevolence.

Once he knew that help for Olissa was on the way, David turned his countenance on the target of his malevolence.  Out of the shadows of his mind, David's darker side stepped forward.

"PICHAC!" David shouted.  The other wizard went flying, landing five feet behind where he'd been standing.  He tumbled along the ground for another ten before he came to a stop.  He quickly rose to his feet, but it was already too late for him.

David was upon the man in an instant.  He punched him in the face as hard has he could.  The man staggered back, but was able to keep upright.  David's second punch broke the man's nose, and the third one broke his jaw.  The fourth punch sent him crumpling to the ground.

David reached down and hauled the man upright again, and resumed punching him.  The man's face was a bloody mess at this point, and he was barely coherent.  David didn't care; someone had hurt his loved one, and that someone was in front of him.  And that someone was going to pay dearly for their mistake.

David continued pummeling the man until he collapsed to the ground again.  This time, David followed him down.  David said nothing, he just continued to punch the man, over and over.  The man was groaning, feebly trying to push David off him, but there was absolutely no chance of that working.

Finally, David grabbed the man by the throat and pulled his head up off the ground.  The man stared into the depths of Hell, as reflected through David's gaze.

"No one hurts my family and gets away with it," David said in a seemingly calm, utterly emotionless voice.  With that, David slammed his fist full force into the center of the man's face.  The force of it drove the man's head against the ground, and a cracking noise was heard.

David didn't stop there, but continued to beat the man until his skull was clearly deformed.  The man had died several seconds before, but David's rage had not yet been expended.

Finally, at the point where the man's brain had actually been forced out the cracks in his skull, David stopped.  He looked down at the man, and then spat in what was left of his face.

As he rose, David saw half the security team, Dean Lengel, Sam, Annie, and several others, along with dozens of students, standing silent and aghast.  A great many of them were staring in terror, the rest were just in shock.

Looking squarely at Annie, he said, "You have a patient.  Get to it."

Annie snapped out of it quickly, and rushed to Olissa's side, kneeling down to look her over.  David stood a short distance away.  He was aware of the menace he was radiating.  It would take a while for it to dissipate, and he didn't want to interfere with what Annie was doing.

After only a short exam, Annie looked up at David.

"It's bad," she told him.  "She's probably going to live, but she's hurt bad."

"I know that," David said calmly.  "Do you need help getting her to the infirmary?"

"You're not going anywhere," one of the security officers said.  "I'm placing you under arrest for murder."

"You might notice, jack-off, that the man still has his wand in his hand," David pointed out.  "You might also notice that you are not wearing a law enforcement badge.  I am."

"The third thing you might try noticing is that none of your fellow security officers is backing you up.  That's because they don't want to die today, something you are in serious danger of.  Now get the fuck out of my face before yours looks like his."

David's menace had not yet dissipated entirely.  The security officer backed off quickly.

"I'll get her up to the infirmary, David.  I've got help, thank you," Annie told him.

David nodded.

Dean Lengel said, "He'll be up shortly, Annie."

"Right," she said.  The healer's helpers lifted Olissa in their grasp and made their way quickly toward the rock lift.

Dean Lengel and the professors gathered around David, while two of the security officers stood guard over the body.  The Rimohr office had already been called.

"David... first, most important, are you all right, physically?" Dean Lengel asked.

"I'm fine."

"And... emotionally?"

"Also fine," David replied.

"But," Cat said shakily, "you just... killed someone."

"He hurt Olissa.  There is still the possibility that she might die from what he did.  I heard it in Annie's voice."

"You were able to restrain yourself when that Keith boy attacked her.  Why not this time?" Dean Lengel asked.

"With Keith, I was afraid."

"Afraid of what?" Sam asked, confused.

David pointed to the dead wizard's body.  "Of doing that."

"But not this time?" Cat asked.

"This time, he got exactly what he deserved."

"You think he deserved to die?"

"He was clearly trying to kill someone else," David pointed out.  "But it's simpler than that."

"How so?" Dean Lengel asked.

"Nobody harms my family without paying a price for it."

"That must make Olissa feel very loved," Sam said wistfully, her tone almost envious.

David stared at her for a moment in silence.  "You don't understand."

Sam shook her head.  "What?"

David looked around at all of them, and then returned his gaze to Sam.

"You are all my family."

With that, David excused himself, and headed for the infirmary.

As expected, half the Rimohr division showed up an hour later.  The body of the wizard had been collected and moved into the infirmary, a sheet covering it out of respect that no one felt for the dead man.

"Feeling a little aggressive today, are we?" Dikko asked.

"Dickless, I've already killed one man today who made the mistake of annoying me.  Would you like me to make it two?"  David's gaze was openly hostile, and blatantly dangerous.  Dikko decided to leave the infirmary.

"You killed him because he annoyed you?" Keef asked.

"Yes, well... he chose to annoy me by endangering the life of a member of my household."

"How is she, David?" Vivian asked.

"Not good.  Annie's doing what she can.  She will be here, assuming she survives, for at least a few weeks."

"Tell me exactly what happened," Keef ordered.

"Olissa and I were walking across the terrace, talking.  That asshole was behind us, and shouted some kind of hex at her.  I couldn't actually understand him, he had some kind of accent that made his words indistinct, at least to me.  Anyway, the spell hit her, causing all the damage you see here.

"I raised a shield charm to protect me while I went to check on her.  When I saw the state she was in, I ordered a nearby student to call the infirmary."

"Then what?" Keef asked.

"Then I beat him to death."

"Was that your intent?" Joe asked.

"Yes."

"Why?" Vivian asked.

"Why what?"

"Why did you aim to kill, rather than to simply disarm or disable?"

"Because I was pissed off, and because he was clearly a threat."

"How much of a threat could he have been when you were sitting on his chest beating his skull in?"

"You might notice," David said, walking over and lifting the sheet off just the man's arm, "that he is still holding his wand.  Through all of it, he remained a threat, because he was still armed.  I continued attacking him, as I have been trained, until I was certain he was no longer a threat.  In this case, that meant until he was dead."

"But you've just admitted that your intent was to kill him," Keef said.

"Yes, I did.  It was very convenient of him to cooperate with that goal," David said coldly.

"I'm... not sure how the chiefs are going to handle this one, David," Keef warned.

"I wasn't acting as a Rimohr," David said.  "I made no attempt to detain him."

"But you were in uniform.  You had on your badge."

David shrugged.

"Look at the bright side of that," Keef said.  "It shields you from us looking at it as a criminal matter.  You might not come out on top this time... I think you went a little too far."

"No one hurts my family," David repeated.  "When they do, I will make sure that others know why no one hurts my family."

"And did you teach this guy why no one hurts your family?" one of the other Rimohrs asked.

"No, I just made damned sure that he'll never do so again," David replied, staring the guy down.  "If you're waiting for some sense of remorse about this man's death, you're going to be waiting a very long time.  He attempted to take the life of an innocent woman that, to my knowledge, he had never even met before.  He got exactly what he deserved, and I will not apologize for giving it to him."

The others murmured to themselves a little, and Keef nodded in understanding.  "I will have to pass this one up the chain of command, David.  I don't know what they will want to do.  They may want a normal hearing, they may do something else... I just don't know.  But this one is out of my league."

"You do what you have to, Boss.  I honestly don't care.  I did what I had to do.  I will pay the price for that as the chiefs, or the courts, see fit."

"Wait... you're not even going to try to defend this as legitimate?" one of the other Rimohrs asked.

David shrugged.  "Obviously I think it's legitimate.  Whether or not it was legal is a question for someone else.  I fully believe I was justified in my response.  But that's my opinion on the matter, and that and two granas will get you a cup of cocoa.  What the chiefs or the magistrates think is what matters, and I can't read their minds any better than anyone else can.  If asked to, I will explain my thought process and my motivation to them.  Beyond that, it is out of my hands."

Keef nodded again.  "You're an odd one, Stroud.  Especially for a demighost.  But okay.  I assume you'll want some time off to sit with your friend?"

"If you would, just don't give me any new cases.  If something comes in on that damned serial kidnapper, though, I want to know about it."

"Right.  Okay.  I will let you know what the chiefs say.  For right now, consider yourself on administrative leave.  Having said that, if something happens with that case, I will have Joe call you."

"Thanks, Boss."

"I hope your friend gets better," Keef said.  He shook David's hand, and then he, and most of the other Rimohrs, headed out.  Joe and Vivian stayed behind.

"Is she going to be okay?" Vivian asked.

"We don't know yet," David said.  He felt a bit numb about Olissa at the moment.  He thought he might be in a state of shock, or that he hadn't yet recovered from the whiplash of fear and rage that had coursed through him earlier.

"Are you going to be okay?" Joe asked.

"I'll be fine, in a day or so, I think.  So long as she pulls through.  I don't really want to think about life without her in it."

"She might still stay with you, as a ghost, though," Vivian offered.

"Maybe, but it's not the same.  Something goes out of a person when they die... I think it's that hope for the future... or just the expectation of having a future different from your present.  Dead people don't change, and neither does their environment, really."

"That's true.  Well, I hope she recovers," Vivian said.  She gave David a strong hug.  "Call me if you need anything, okay?"

"Will do.  Thanks, Viv."

"Do you plan on staying up here at the school?" Joe asked.

"Yeah.  I won't leave her side while she's ill unless I have to.  Plus, though I don't really think this is the case, there is the slight possibility that asshole was part of some plan to kill Olissa.  If that's the case, then her life is still in danger, and someone needs to be here to guard against that possibility."

"Shit, I don't think any of us thought of that," Joe said.  "I just naturally assumed this was another attack on one of your friends."

"It probably is," David agreed.  "But this one is just different enough to make me wonder a little bit.  His first attack could very well kill her.  All of the other attacks have forced me to prevent a death."

"Maybe just a mistake on his part?" Vivian asked.

"Attacking her in the first place was a mistake on his part," David replied darkly.  "And if this is part of whoever is attacking my friends, it was one hell of a mistake on their part, too."

"Well, keep us informed, okay?" Joe said.

"Sure."

"Take it easy, David.  I'm sure the chiefs will clear you on this one, too."

"I'd be surprised if they did, actually," David said.  "But I just can't bring myself to give a damn."

Joe nodded, then he and Vivian headed out.  Annie came back in to perform another set of healing spells on Olissa.

When she was finished, David said, "I'm sorry."

Annie looked up, startled.  "Sorry for what?"

David motioned to the dead man.  "For forcing you to put up with that.  For bringing more death into your space."

Annie came over to him and gave him a hug.  "Thank you, but an apology is hardly necessary.  You probably rid the world of a small bit of evil today.  As to dealing with death... it is an unfortunate part of my job."

"Mostly thanks to me, over the last few years..."

"Never thanks to you," she said.  "Someone else has always made the choice.  Even in this case, he made the choice to attack her.  He had to know your reaction would be a strong one.  He did it anyway."

"Thanks, Annie.  I'll keep an eye on her if you want to go get dinner."

"Actually, Coach Hall is bringing both of us something to eat from the cafeteria.  I know you don't need it, but I also know it makes you feel more human.  Now might be a good time for that."

David smirked.  "Couldn't hurt."

 David was sitting next to Olissa's bed in the infirmary, doing some divinatory objects research.  She had still not woken up, and Annie had informed him that she was still not out of danger.  Annie's spells were helping, but they had not yet improved Olissa's condition enough to be sure that she would live.

As David looked over the mechanics of building a device for locating specific items in a packed collection, his mirror buzzed.  David set down the book and pulled his mirror out.

"Yeah?"

Joe appeared in the mirror.  "Hey, David.  How's Olissa?"

"The same.  Minor improvement, but still unsure of the outcome."  Overnight, the emotional impact had hit David.  He had spent an hour in Penny's arms, crying and shaking in fear for what might happen.  Now, he was resigned to the fact that things would just have to play out.

"I hate to take you away from her, but we may have a break in the kidnapper case.  I need you down here ASAP."

"On my way," David said.  He fogged off and put his mirror away.  He packed away his books and shuffled his bag off to his Conjuring Room.

Leaning over Olissa, he whispered softly.  "I have to go to work, Little One.  I'll be back as soon as I can.  I love you."  He kissed her softly on the forehead, and then he straightened.  After informing Annie of his intentions, he headed out.

"What've we got?" David asked as soon as he was in the Rimohr office.  He saw a woman sitting in the chair next to Joe's desk, but she had her back to him.

"Tom saw this woman in the market when he was going for lunch.  He thought she looked familiar, and so he called me down.  Take a look."

David moved around so he could look her in the face.  He had studied the case files so thoroughly by this point that he knew every face in it by heart.

"What's your name?" he asked the woman.

"Antonia," she said.

David looked at Joe.  "She's freely admitted her name is Antonia Casini.  I haven't asked her anything beyond that, since it's your case."

David nodded.  "Where have you been since September?"

"I was with my new master," she said.

"Who is your new master?" David asked.

"Lyle Magus," she replied calmly.  There was no sense of fear in her at all.  She wasn't nervous or perturbed in any way.

"How did you meet your master?" David asked.

"My trainer introduced me to him," she replied.

"Trainer?"

"The person who taught me how to be a good slave," she explained.

"And who is your trainer?" David asked.

"I don't know."

"You don't know?"

"I was told to refer to him as 'sir'.  I do not know his name."

"How did you meet him?"

"I don't remember."

"How long ago did you meet him?"

"I don't remember."

"What does he look like?"

"I don't remember."

"Where does he live?"

"I don't remember."

"Where were you staying, during your training?  Did that happen in your old home, or were you staying with your trainer?"

"I don't remember."

David grumbled to himself.

"Okay... how long have you been living with your new master?"

"Three weeks."

"Where does he live?"

She gave him the address.

"What were you doing at the market?"

"Grocery shopping for dinner."

"Is your master at home right now?"

"No, he is at work.  He will not be home for a few hours.  He will be angry with me if I do not have dinner ready when he arrives."

"We'll explain that to him, don't worry."

Antonia nodded.

"Antonia... do you remember your life before September?"

"No."

"So... you have no recollection of anything before meeting your new master?"

"Right."

"Doesn't that bother you?"

"Should it?" Antonia asked.  "The only things that are important are the things my master tells me."

"Whoa," David said quietly to Joe.  "Somebody's done one hell of a number on her."

"Even if we save her, we can't save her," Joe said.

"Maybe, maybe not.  All depends on whether we can reverse the effects."

"And if we can't... I don't know if there's any protocol for helping someone like this," Joe told him.

"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it.  For starters, let's get the file on Lyle Magus."

"Right."

David turned back to Antonia as Joe went to talk with Nancy.  "Antonia, do you remember at all the day you met your master?  Before he took you home?"

"Yes."

"Where did he meet you?"

"In a small restaurant that my trainer had taken me to."

"What's the name of the restaurant?"

"The Green Room."

David nodded.  "Okay.  We're going to keep you here for a while.  We need to speak with your master, and we'll explain to him that none of this is your fault.  That way, he won't be mad at you."

"Thank you," she said quietly.

"For now, I'm going to have you wait in one of our side rooms, just to keep you comfortable.  Are you hungry?"

"A little.  I have not eaten lunch yet."

"Okay, well, we'll get you some food, then.  Just relax.  It may be a while, so don't get nervous if it seems like it's taking too long."

"Okay."

David closed the door to the interrogation room.  He turned and said, "Hey, Peter?  Could you go get her some lunch for me?"

"Sure.  I hope she likes burgers..."

David smirked, and then returned to his desk.  Joe was just returning with the file on Lyle Magus.

"Not much there," David said.

"Well, he's not a criminal."

"He is now," David said.

"Probably, but it would be the first thing he's done that we know about.  All that's in here is basic statistics.  Date of birth, address, schooling, job history... nothing significant."

"Is this guy wealthy?"

"Not particularly.  I mean, he's a business owner, so he does better than a lot of people, but he's not in your league..."

"But he's not struggling to feed her.  This says he has no other family..."

"Right.  Yeah, feeding a second person on his income isn't going to be a challenge."

"So we don't have that particular crime to charge him with."

"Crime?" Joe asked.

"Neglect.  All we've got him on right now is purchasing a sentient being.  And that only if money changed hands between him and this 'trainer'.  Can we get his bank records?"

"Take a few hours."

"Let's get on that now, then."

"Okay."

 "I was told to come down here.  My name is Lyle Magus," the man said to Chloe, who was nearest the door.

She pointed over to David.  "He's the one you need to speak with."

The man walked over to David's desk.  "Officer?  I am Lyle Magus."

"Uh-huh.  Sit," David said.  The man did so, a little concerned by David's tone.

"Is there a problem, Officer?"

"You could say that," David replied.  Are you aware of Royal Decree 1912-06?"

"Um..." Mr. Magus replied.

"It bars any Callamandian citizen from purchasing a sentient being."

"Oh.  Yes, I'm aware of the law.  I didn't know it by number."

"So, you're aware that it is a violation of the law to pay someone money to take custody of another human being," David said.

"Yes..."

"Then why did you do so?"

"Excuse me?"

"Peter?  If you would?"

Peter opened the door to one of the side rooms and motioned to Antonia.  She meekly stepped into the opening, her head bowed slightly.

"This woman identifies you as her 'new master'."

"I've never seen that woman before in my life!" Mr. Magus asserted.

Antonia looked as if she'd just been slapped.  David took note of this, understanding the import of it.  It would have been the same reaction Olissa would have had if he'd said that of her.

"Mr. Magus, please don't assume we're stupid.  We have already spoken to your neighbors.  They have already stated unequivocally that this woman is staying in your home."

"They're lying!"

"Then why did we find her fingerprints, and her DNA, inside your house?"

"What right did you have to search my home?"

David slid the King's Order across his desk.  "The search warrant was duly executed.  Now, could we please cut through the crap?  The woman lives with you, doesn't she?"

Mr. Magus sighed.  "Yes.  But she's not my slave!"

"She would beg to differ.  In fact, the only thoughts in her head are about being your slave."

"She's psycho!"

"I didn't say that it was the only thing she was thinking about.  Being your slave is literally the only set of thoughts in her head.  She knows of nothing else.  Once again, Mr. Magus, we have already proven this clearly enough for a magistrate.  Could we move beyond it, please?"

"Well... even if she is my slave, you have no proof I paid for her.  She just chose to be in that position.  Women do sometimes, you know."

"Yes, I'm well aware.  I have a servant of my own.  However, there is the issue of the twenty thousand granas that you withdrew from the bank on the day before you took custody of Ms. Casini.  That money is not in your home, nor is there any indication of a legitimate use for it.  Would you care to tell us where that money is?"

"I had to pay back a loan from a friend."

"Oh?  Who?"

"None of your business."

"Oh, yes, actually, it is very much our business.  Mr. Magus, let's be blunt here:  The charge you are facing is nasty, but you can choose to make the penalty better, or much worse."

"I don't know what you mean," he admitted.

"You aren't our real target.  We want the man who did this to her.  The man she refers to as her trainer.  If you give us him, then we are likely to recommend a more lenient sentence.  If, on the other hand, you shelter him from us, that is an additional charge.  In this case, we believe the man to be guilty of multiple counts of kidnapping and false imprisonment. The penalties for those crimes add up to a lot worse sentence than your current charge.  The penalty for sheltering him is equal to the penalty for the crimes he's committed.  You would go from a six-month to one-year stay in prison, to over fifty years."

The man paled.  "Look, I'd like to give him to you.  I would.  I don't want to spend fifty years in jail.  But I can't.  I don't know him.  I'm not even sure that the man I gave the money to is the one who trained her.  He didn't really seem like he was all that bright."

"It's a starting place, Mr. Magus.  Tell me what you know."

Mr. Magus did.

"Tobias Klerk?"

"Ya?"

"You are under arrest," Vivian said to him.

"On vhat charge?"

"Criminal conspiracy," David replied.  "Hold out your hands."

The man did so, and Vivian enacted the handcuff hex.  They escorted him to the coach, and took him back to the office.  David set him down harshly in a chair in one of the interrogation rooms.

"Mr. Klerk, according to your bank records, you have been receiving payments of two thousand granas a month, yet you have no known occupation.  Where does that money come from?"

"I do not see vhy I need to tell you," he replied.

"Because you are smack dab in the middle of a criminal conspiracy investigation, and if you don't want to spend a very long time in Barnard Hill, you want to cooperate with us."

"How much is a long time?" Klerk asked.

"Decades."

"Zat is not reasonable!  I have done nuhsing illegal!  I valk and talk, that's all!"

"What do you mean, you walk and talk?"

"I valk ze people into ze restaurant, and I talk to ze people who give ze money.  Zat's all I do!"

"And where do you get the people?  And what do you do with the money?"

"I give ze money to ze man who give me ze people."

"And who is he?"

"I do not know his name.  I meet him through message board in town.  He never show his face to me, it is alvays covered."

"And how do the customers contact him?"

"I do not know.  Zat is not somesing I am part of.  I am... delivery man?"

David nodded.  "Are you willing to work with us to take him down?"

"Vhat is in it for me?"

"A slightly reduced sentence.  Perhaps a more pleasant detention center."

Klerk considered it for a long moment, then nodded.  "Ya.  I vill help you."

"Good.  Be aware, Mr. Klerk, that you will be magically tracked.  We will hear what you say.  If you warn our target, your sentence goes way, way up."

"I understand," Klerk said.

"Good," David repeated.

 David was once more sitting at Olissa's side.  It had been four days since her attack, and only Annie's assurance that things were improving gave David any hope.  Olissa still had not risen to consciousness, though her eyes were now twitching occasionally, as if she were dreaming.

There hadn't yet been any word from the Rimohr Academy or the district chiefs concerning any disciplinary actions against him.  David wondered just what was taking so long.

"David?" a voice said.  David turned to see Christa.

"Hi," he said.

"How's she doing?"

"Not out of the woods yet.  Annie says there's improvement, but damned if I can see it."

"I hope she gets better soon."

"Thanks."

"Hey, Tanya sent me to come get you.  There's something she needs you for."

"Why didn't she just mirror me?"

"I dunno.  I was there, so she asked me, I guess."

"What were you doing in the security office?"

"Checking in," Christa grumped.  "Ever since Christmas, Dad is forcing me to report in to them twice a day.  Like I'm some kind of criminal!"

"Oh.  I didn't know that."

"Yeah, he didn't figure you needed to know.  Anyway, c'mon.  Tanya made it sound important, whatever it is."

"Okay."

David closed up his books, gave Olissa a kiss on her forehead, and then followed Christa out of the infirmary.

"They say you've been spending all your time in the infirmary."

"Who's 'they'?"

"The teachers.  I asked, because I haven't seen you around."

"Ah.  Yeah, that would be the group to ask if you want to know what I'm doing at this school.  Anyway, yes, I've been spending most of my time there."

"Aren't the Rimohrs going to get kind of annoyed that you're not going to work?"

"I'm on administrative leave."

"What's that mean?"

"I killed someone.  They're trying to decide if my actions are within agency policy or not.  While they do that, I'm not really supposed to do any work."

"But c'mon, he was trying to kill someone else!"

"That's not the issue.  The issue is, was it necessary to kill him, or could he have been taken alive?"

"Could he?"

"Probably."

"But..."

"But he was trying to kill a member of my family.  I made no effort to take him alive.  He attacked, and I counterattacked.  It's not my fault that I was better at it than he was."

"So what might they do?"

"Any number of things.  Approve it would be the best outcome, but I don't expect that.  They could reprimand me, which wouldn't amount to much.  They could suspend me for a while... they could fire me.  Or they could refer me for criminal charges for murder."

"No way would it be murder," Christa said.

"It probably wouldn't go to trial, but it would effectively end my career in the Rimohrs, not to mention negatively affecting any other jobs I might go for."

"That sucks."

"Choices have consequences," David told her.  "If you're not willing to face the consequences, don't make the choice."

"Did you choose to kill him, or were you just so mad you didn't care?"

"I knew what I was doing," David said, not entirely answering her question.  "And I knew ahead of time what it could cost me."

"But you did it anyway."

"No one hurts my family.  No one."

Christa nodded.  They reached Fensterman Hall shortly after that, and Christa said good-bye to him, heading off on her own errand.

David entered the security office.

"Hey, Sheila.  Tanya in?"

"She's waiting for you in Room 4."

"Okay, thanks."

David walked down the hall and entered Room 4.  Inside, Tanya was sitting with another gentleman that David didn't immediately recognize, but after a longer look, his memory came through.

"Mychel?"

"So you do know him?" Tanya asked David.  "He insisted on speaking to you."

"This is Mychel Corbray.  He lives in Travaysal.  He's a vampire.  I have a contract with his family to provide potions."

Tanya nodded.  "Mr. Corbray has been detained for disturbing the peace."

"What happened?"

"An extremely loud and disruptive argument with one of the students, a Lydia Maitland."

David nodded.  Turning to Mychel, he said, "Care to tell me what happened?"

Mychel said, "Ever since entering this school, Lydia has not been behaving as a loyal family member should.  She has essentially severed communication with us.  None of the family has heard from her since Yuletide of her first year.  She did not return home last summer, nor over the just-completed winter break.

"Now, the summer I wrote off as her wanting to enjoy what we call 'adult summer'.  It's the first summer that a vampire gets a chance to be away from the family.  Normally, adult summer happens after a vampire's third year in college, not their first, but I figured she'd found someone to escort her, so that was not a problem.  I even thought she might have been with you."

"No, I was busy all summer," David replied.  "I didn't see her until school started back."

Mychel nodded, then continued his explanation.

"Well, as I said, I was ready to overlook her summer absence.  The lack of communication, however, and especially her refusal to come home over Yuletide... those are serious breaches of tradition.

"Then, two days ago, a man came to see me."

"What man?"

"I don't know who he was.  He wouldn't identify himself, and I am quite certain he was glamoured.  He approached me at my place of business, not the way you managed."

David nodded.

"He told me that Lydia was now in a partnership with someone who means to do you a great deal of harm."

"Me... personally?"

"Yes.  He said that Lydia has been giving this man information about you, and also, she has brought harm to some of your friends."

"Did he say who she had harmed?"

"He gave me two names, though I do not know who they are.  Sam, and Louisa.  He also said that she had facilitated other attacks on people you know.  He didn't give specific names in those cases."

"Did he give you the name of the person she is partnered with?"

"No, he claimed he didn't know that."

"That seems highly suspicious," David pointed out.

"Yes.  For him to know all of this, and not know who was involved, seems very odd.  That is why I didn't contact you immediately.  I came up here to confront Lydia about it."

"And?"

"She didn't deny it.  She told me that what she did with her life was her business.  I am sorry, David.  I believe a member of my family is working against you.  Please believe that this is not a family-approved action.  I would very much like to keep on good terms with you."

"Like your garlic that much, do you?" David said with a grin.

"Frankly, yes," Mychel said with a corresponding smile.  "And the absence of the lust is liberating."

"I will need to verify some of this information for myself, of course," David said.

"Of course.  I would not have expected otherwise."

"If what you say is true... what is the family's position on retribution?"

"Against us?"

"Against Lydia."

Mychel's face sobered.  "Lydia's actions, and her words, have made our response clear.  Lydia is being banished from the family.  As such, she is no longer our concern.  What you do to her... is her problem."

David nodded.  "Okay.  Thank you for bringing this to my attention."  To Tanya, he asked, "Was any damage done during their argument?  Anyone injured?"

"No.  It was a lot of shouting.  Some items in the room were thrown about, but the room itself wasn't damaged, of course."

"In that case, just let him go.  There's little point in wasting your time over a piddly disturbing the peace charge when you know it won't happen again."

Tanya nodded.  "You're free to go, Mr. Corbray."

"Thank you.  And you, too, David.  And good luck, against whoever is threatening you."

David nodded.

Once Mychel had left, Tanya said, "You're a lot calmer than I would have expected.  I know Lydia's your girlfriend.  Or... was."

"I'm not as calm as you think I am," David replied.  "If you'll excuse me, I need to... be somewhere else right now."

"Yeah."

David walked out of the security office and across the terrace.  As he walked, he mirrored Dean Lengel.

"Hello, David.  How can I help you?"

"Emile... your plan was to demolish Greenhouse Five over the summer, wasn't it?"

"Yes..."

"And it's not in use right now?"

"No.  It's unsafe."

"I'm about to save you the trouble of demolishing it."

"Oh?"

"I need to... let off a little steam, shall we say.  This is the only way I can do so with enough force, safely."

"I see.  Well, be careful."

"Right."

David fogged off, and continued his walk over to Greenhouse Five.  He pulled out his wand, and set to work.  He focused all of his anger into his wand, and the blast of crimson light that shot forth was blinding to anyone looking directly at it.

It took only seconds before the greenhouse started to collapse.  Pieces of it fell off and dropped to the ground.  David took no notice, but continued his destruction.  Minutes passed as he singlehandedly reduced the building to a pile of rubble.

David did not stop there, however.  He continued to pour all of his energy into the mass until it began to vaporize under the onslaught.  The energy from his wand intensified as David neared the end.  He let loose all of the anger he was feeling, and in a final blast of light, the remaining pile of debris vanished into microscopic particles.

The target gone, David lowered his wand.  When he turned, he saw dozens of students staring at him.

"Show's over," he told them sternly.  Slowly they started to disperse.  As they did, Dean Lengel arrived.

"When you say you're going to demolish something, you mean it," she said softly.  "Is something wrong?"

"Yes.  But I don't want to talk about it at the moment."

"Okay.  Thank you for taking out your anger safely."

"Only one person needs to get hurt by my wrath."

"David..." Dean Lengel said.

David raised his hand.  "Don't bother.  There's no way I'm about to be dissuaded."

"Okay... but I'm concerned.  You've been very... aggressive of late."

"My dark side has been allowed to play a little more frequently.  Life has made that necessary."

"Allowed to play, or has taken over?" Dean Lengel asked.

"If it had taken over, Emile, I wouldn't have made sure not to hurt anyone just now."

"Okay, that's a fair point.  But please be careful.  Some roads you travel down, you can't turn back from."

David nodded.

"And... your target... is it a student?"

"No comment."

"If you harm a student, David, it becomes my business."

"I will not do anything for which you will have to take action," David said.  "If absolutely necessary, I will simply perform my actions off campus."

Dean Lengel frowned, but nodded.  "Very well.  If you feel like talking about it, my door is always open to you.  The one to my office, and to my apartment."

"Thanks."

Dean Lengel nodded, and then walked off.  David looked back at the spot where the greenhouse had stood.  The only way to know it had been there was that the area was clear of grass in a rectangular shape.  David walked off himself.

Jailla, who had been watching David's actions from a nearby tree, flew down to his shoulder.  "What made that necessary?" he asked.

David related Mychel's revelation to him.  "Are you sure you can trust him?" Jailla asked.

"He has no reason to lie."

"Perhaps he just wants you to not socialize with Lydia."

David shook his head.  "He knows I plan to get revenge for this.  He explicitly approved that by telling me that whatever happened, it was her problem."

"Ah.  Yes, that does make it less likely.  But can you trust the person who told Mychel?"

"That I don't know.  I will have to look into things as far as I can before acting on it."

"And if she has betrayed you?"

"Then she's going to be sorry she ever heard the name David Stroud," David replied coldly.

"Hey, David.  How's she doing?"

"Joe!  What the hell are you doing here?"

"Wanted to talk to you about our internal problem, and didn't want to do it in the office where ears might hear."

"On a Sunday?"

"You know as well as I do that some of the officers work on weekends."

"Ah.  Okay, well, what's up?"

"First off, you didn't answer me.  How's she doing?"

"About the same.  Very slowly recovering, but still in danger.  If something takes a turn, it could be very bad, very quickly."

Joe nodded.  "I hope she starts getting better faster for you."

"Thanks."

"Anyway, I wanted to show you a few things that I've uncovered so far, and get your opinion."

"What have you got?"

"Hey, David," Vivian said brightly.  "What are you doing here?"

"Joe and I have something to finish up," he said.  "How's life treating you?"

"Fine, I suppose.  Much better than it's treating you, in any case.  How's Olissa?"

"Slightly better, but still really bad."

"I'm so sorry."

"Thanks.  Is Joe in yet?"

"He's in talking to Keef."

David nodded, then headed in that direction, and knocked on Keef's door.

"C'mon in," Keef said.

David entered the office.  Joe was there, and there were papers spread out on Keef's desk.

"I see you've already started," David said to Joe.

"Wasn't sure when you'd be in," Joe explained.  "Didn't want to wait."

David nodded.  "So, what do you think, Boss?  Is it her?"

"Sure as hell looks that way.  Was she on Wilson's list?" he asked Joe.

"Yeah."

"Are we forcing this?  I mean, are we seeing what we want to see?"

"No.  There were others who had weird items in their packages, too, but nothing like this.  These are very specific, and all occurred within the last six months."

Keef nodded.  "Call her in here, would you?"

David walked to the door and stuck his head out.  "Sonja, you want to come in here a minute?  The Boss needs to talk to you."

Sonja nodded and came over.  David stood back to let her in the office, then closed the door.

"Have a seat," Agent Keef said to her.  Sonja sat.

"I'm sure you're aware of the troubles that have befallen the division over the last several months?" Keef asked.

"Yes, sir.  Everyone is," she replied.

"We have been investigating the notion that those events have been instigated internally, by a person or persons within the division.  I think we've found some results."

Keef passed over some parchment to Sonja, who took it and looked at it.  "What is this?" she asked after reading it.

"Proof that you're the one who's been reporting to the Office of Outlawed Magic about this division."

"There can be no such record about anyone.  Those reports are accepted anonymously," Sonja objected.

"By the inspectors, yes.  But you failed to take into account that things leaving this office are routinely tracked.  Though it took us some time to do it, we finally narrowed down the culprit.

"What I want to know is why you did it.  You knew that what you were 'reporting' was false.  What was the point?"

"To get you all fired!" she snapped.  "All three of you!  You were the ones responsible for making Wilson leave!"

"Um..." David said.

"What?" Sonja demanded.

"Well, Keef wasn't even part of the district when Wilson was demoted, and Joe had no say in what happened to Wilson.  My only role was not getting fired by the Academy...  Wilson signed his own travel orders when he made an ultimatum to the district chief."

"I don't care!  I just want my Freddy Teddy back!"

David nearly gagged.  "You're in love with Wilson?  Wilson?"

"Not all of us appreciate bullies, Intern Stroud!"

"Apparently not all of you know the definition of bully, either," David replied.

"So you freely admit to falsifying reports to the offices of the Auditor General, and the Inspector General?"

"Yes!"

"What else did you do?" David asked.

"Why would I volunteer anything to you?"

David shrugged.  "Because you might have a conscience.  Or because you might worry about what else we'll find if we keep digging."

"Okay, fine.  I had The Clan attack Garibaldi."

"You what?" Joe thundered.

"You realize they were trying to kill him..." David said.

"No one got killed!  Don't be so damned dramatic!"

"No one got killed because the healer arrived quickly.  A few more minutes, and that would not have been the case," David replied.

Agent Keef took back the paper from Sonja.  "Officer Otravanoti, your service is no longer needed.  You are hereby dismissed from the Rimohrs.  Whether or not criminal conspiracy charges will be filed on you is a matter we will have to discuss amongst ourselves."

Agent Keef pulled his wand and waved it at her, muttering, "Baraban corposa."

Sonja's Rimohr badge burst into a blaze of deep violet shards of light, vaporizing and leaving behind a scorch mark on the coat.

"Agent Garibaldi, could you please escort the former officer out of the building?" Agent Keef said.

"With pleasure, sir!" Joe replied.

As David turned to follow them out, Keef said, "David?"

David turned.

"I got a message from the district chief this morning."

"Oh?"

"Apparently it pays to have friends."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that someone told the king about your little incident.  The king then called the Rimohr Commissioner, who called the Academy Commissioner, who then called the district chief, who called me.  Your actions of last week are being summarily approved.  You are restored to active duty effective immediately."

"Holy shit," David said.  He had more than once thought the king had something to do with his career advancement, but to have it bluntly confirmed...

"Who do you think told the king?" Keef said.  "It wouldn't have been one of the commissioners..."

David considered for a long moment.  Finally, he said, "If I had to guess, I'd say it was probably Christa."

Keef smiled, and told him, "Like I said, nice to have friends."