The Woodward Academy, Year 8

Chapter 14: May - Emile

David made his way downstairs and out the front door of the castle.  Tanya and JoAnne had helped - nearly carried - him up to the fifth floor master bedroom, and all three of them had slept in the bed.  They were both still asleep; David had, of course, only needed his usual four hours.  Even ghosts, apparently, still needed a full eight.

The sights and smells were the same as before he went to bed.  Though a protective charm had been placed over the bodies, there simply hadn't yet been time to do anything with them.  All of the people who would be part of that process were asleep, resting as comfortably as they could after seven straight hours of warfare that they had never planned to fight.

But then, neither did I, so why should they be different? David asked himself.

It didn't take long before David felt the loss of Jailla.  His friend would normally have greeted him as soon as he came out the castle door.  David did his best to shake it off, and moved on.

As he looked down the rows of bodies, he saw some of the underclassmen walking through the courtyard.  They were laughing and fooling around.  It angered David that they would show such disrespect in the presence of fallen heroes, but it was unfortunately their right to be assholes.

"Such crap," one of the boys said to the others.  "We could have handled this shit, but that jackass thug ran us off."

David growled.  "You!  Get over here!"

"Fuck you, asshole," the boy said.  "I don't answer to you!"

David put away his staff, which he'd been using to help him walk.  He reached out his hand, and then yanked toward him.  The four boys were suddenly flying forward, their feet dragging along the ground until they were standing in front of him.

"Two things," David said.  "First off, you do answer to me as, at this moment, I am the person in charge of this mountain.

"Second, look down."

The boys all looked down, despite themselves.  They saw Prof. Hellerhan's body, its throat ripped out and blood all over his chest.  David was gratified to see all of them go slightly pale.

"Now, I'm sure the word is pretty clear on this.  I couldn't stand this asshole.  But that doesn't mean he deserved to die.  But this dipshit got killed because he came looking for you dipshits.  He had no intention of fighting in this battle.  Had you stayed put, he would be alive now.  His death is directly attributable to your actions.

"As a Rimohr, I could have you arrested and charged for involuntary murder."

The boys grew paler still.

"I'm not going to, because you aren't worth my time.  Now get the hell out of here and show some goddamned respect."

"You don't have any right to order us around," the lead boy sniffed.

"Your arrest is becoming more valuable every second you're in my line of sight," David warned.  "Keep it up, and you can see the inside of Barnard Hill for a few years..."

"Danny, back off, dude.  He's not bluffing!" one of the others said.

The one named Danny glowered at David, but the group shuffled off, toward the gatehouse.  An earthen bridge had been created for the moment, so that people could come and go out of the castle.

As David watched them go, Emile stepped up to David's side.

"Do you ever sleep?" David asked her.

"I could ask you the same question," she replied.

"I get four hours of sleep a day.  I've had them already."

"I found it impossible to sleep for more than a half-hour at a time," she told him.  "All the deaths, all the destruction... how do you deal with it?"

"By doing bad things to bad people.  I wouldn't recommend that as an option.  But realize this battle isn't even close to the worst I've seen," David said.  "The only thing that makes this battle at all difficult for me is that I know these people.  Friends, enemies, mentors... the people here were like..."

"Family?" she finished.

"Yeah," David said with a sigh.

"Even him?" Emile said, motioning to Prof. Hellerhan's body.

"Every family has that one uncle nobody can stand," David said.

Emile grunted agreement.  "I have an entire side of the family I can't stand," she said.

David chuckled.  After a moment, he said, "Well, if you're not going to sleep, care to help me go on a treasure hunt?"

"Why not," she said.  The two started walking, slowly.  "What is it we're searching for?"

"I'll tell you when there are fewer possible ears to hear me," David told her.

"Fair enough," she said.

As they began to descend the stairs, David asked, "So why is it you don't like half your family?"

"If I told you who they were, I don't think I'd have to explain it to you," Emile replied.

"Why, who are they, the Quaydes?" David asked with a chuckle.

Emile replied with a frown, "The Savolars."

David turned so fast he almost fell.  "What?  You're kidding, right?  Please tell me you're kidding..."

"I wish I was."

"So your name is actually Emile Savolar-whatever-whatever-whatever-Lengel?"

Emile grinned.  "I see you remember how many times I've been married.  No, my last name was never Savolar."

"Then how are they family?"

"Because my father was Edgar Lamont Savolar, Douglas Savolar's father, Marcus' grandfather."

"I'm confused," David said as they continued to walk.

"My mother and Edgar had an affair," she said.  "They were together for almost a year.  When his wife found out, I had already been born.  The family was livid, and they forced Edgar to disavow my very existence."

"Just because of an affair?" David asked.  "They didn't want you horning in on the old guy's estate or something?"

Emile was quiet for a long moment.  Finally, she said, "I have never told anyone the answer to that question."

"Oh.  Sorry," David said.

Taking a deep breath, she said, "My mother wasn't human."

David turned again, just as rapidly as before.  "You're not human?"

"Not fully," she said.  "Mother was half an elf."

"Damn, she must have been really short, if she was only half an elf..."

Emile giggled.  "You know what I mean!"

David smiled.  "Yes, but you looked too serious.  So... you're one-quarter elf, then?"

"Yes.  Please, David... no one else knows that."

"I'm not about to rat you out, Emile.  Besides, what's the big deal?"

"Half-breeds are not well-regarded.  I doubt I'd lose my position at the school at this point, but certainly there are parents who would avoid sending their children here."

"Then those children don't deserve to be here," David said firmly.

Emile smiled at him.

"But... wait.  A few years ago, you told me your mother was exiled for theft, and you were raised by your father.  I didn't think they could exile non-humans to Earth."

"Those were my adoptive parents," Emile replied.  "My birth mother died under... mysterious circumstances when I was two."

"In other words, the Savolars had her killed," David growled.

"Possibly, but there wasn't any proof," Emile said.

"Yeah.  They're good at that."

Emile nodded.  "In any case, I was put up for adoption, and that's where the mother and father I told you about came in.  Of course there was no chance of Edgar taking me in; his family wasn't going to acknowledge me in that way."

"I'm glad they didn't," David said.

"Why?"

"Because then you'd probably have turned out like them.  Hatred is a learned behavior, and I like my friend Emile the way she is."

"Thank you, David," Emile said quietly, blushing.  The two walked in silence for a short ways before either spoke again.

"Does Marcus know you're related?" David asked suddenly.

"No.  By the time his generation was born, all memory of me had been destroyed.  Except for Edgar."

"Oh?"

"As I'm quite sure you're aware, the entire Savolar clan is very human supremacist."

"Yeah, I'd kinda noticed."

"That's a very old tradition in their family.  Edgar was the same way... until he met Mother.  He really did love her.  They were making plans to marry.  Oh, I know, you hear about men saying that to mistresses all the time, but he'd actually taken steps.  That's what got him found out.

"Anyway, though the family forced him to break off contact, he managed to keep track of me through the years.  When I became an adult and got my citizenship, he and I met in secret a few times.  We couldn't do it often, or the family would find out.  His own father was still alive back then, so there were inheritances and everything involved.

"Sadly, Edgar came down with some strange Earth ailment, and the family refused to take him to Earth to have it treated.  The healer couldn't seem to fix it and... well, he died."

"I'm sorry," David said, meaning it, then marveling that he felt sorry for the death of anyone named Savolar.  He reached over and hugged Emile gently, and she walked closer to him for a moment.  Finally he let her go, lest they fall down the steps.

"In any case, he had come to respect the non-humans before he died.  He wanted to do something for them, to make up for what his family had done over the centuries... but he wasn't able to manage anything, since his father still controlled all the family's money."

David nodded.  "That had to suck."

"Yes, I bet it did."

After a little while of walking further, David said, "Thank you."

"For what?" she asked.

"Trusting me.  Again."

Emile smiled softly.  "Lord knows you've earned it by now, David.  Why didn't you see this when I was possessed?"

"While I have access to everything in your head, I can't possibly actually see it all.  I was looking for something specific."

"Oh, I see.  So you don't really know all my secrets..."

"Something else you want to tell me?" David asked.

Emile blushed.  "No.  But there are other things in my head that could prove embarrassing if you knew them."

"Hmm," David said, but didn't reply.

Once the two made it down to the Academy level, they entered Beckett Hall.  David opened the supply closet door for Emile, and then the two descended the stairs into faculty housing.

"Wow, it's never this quiet in here this time of day," Emile said with a frown.

"Those who are still here are probably still sleeping," David said.

"Yes," Emile agreed.  "So we're looking for something in faculty housing?"

"No.  Well, I suppose it could be here, but I doubt it.  Just a second."

David pulled out the Dalmajak Cynosure, and said, "Show me the easiest path to the OmniPortal."

The rings inside the cynosure spun and twisted, and then they aligned into a direction.

"Come on," David said, walking slowly in the direction the cynosure pointed.

"What was it we're looking for?" Emile asked in confusion.

"The OmniPortal.  What I'm about to tell you is a military... no, a national security secret, Emile.  You can't tell anyone else.  I'm not sure if the school will be allowed to continue being here.  I will try to convince the king that it makes a good cover, but..."

David went on to explain about portals and the OmniPortal.

"And this thing just happens to be here?" Emile asked when he was finished.

"Yes.  It's what the Vrudenans were after.  It's why they sent an entire command-sized unit to take this mountain.  Ownership of the OmniPortal will make whoever has it the most powerful nation in Dugerra."

"I don't understand how..."

"Imagine having the ability to open a door into a nation's capital and just walk your entire military through the doorway.  No matter where your country is, the OmniPortal will reach there.  We would be able to send the army to Donunda, and travel would take a couple seconds."

"My god," Emile breathed.  "That's too much power for one side to have."

"Yes.  Unfortunately, someone has to possess it, now that we know where it is."

"Can't it be destroyed?"

"Not without destroying the magical energy field around Dugerra... and I'm pretty sure that's outright impossible, so...  This is a feature of the planet.  It's like asking, 'Can't you destroy the magnetic field?'"

Emile nodded.  "That is very scary."

"Of course, it could have good uses, too, but I don't know if they'll think those outweigh the possibilities of it being misused."

"Good uses?"

"Think how much easier it would make travel.  Again, a trip to Donunda from here would take well under five seconds.  Getting back, just as long.  In Pendergrast Manor, there are two normal portals.  They lead to Shovianox.  I've walked through them.  It was almost instantaneous travel, to the other side of the planet.

"Then there are things like shipping things back and forth.  Anything that would normally involve people moving from place to place would be made easier by the OmniPortal.  You could do away with the school carriage.  Just have the students travel by portal."

"But I like the carriage."

"You don't have to take twelve-hour rides in it," David said with distaste.

"True, I suppose.  Do you think it will be used publicly?"

"I don't know.  That's a matter that will have to be discussed a lot.  It depends on which philosophy wins out."

"What do you mean?"

"Secrecy, or strength.  You can try to hide the existence of it, guard it with a hidden unit of the military and pretend you've never heard of it...

"Or you can openly acknowledge you have it, protect it with a larger and public military force, and proclaim your readiness to defend it.

"Each option has its pluses and minuses.  Truthfully, I don't think the first method is going to work.  Too many people already know about the OmniPortal, and word will get around.  I think turning it into a public commodity would actually be a better option."

"That would mean closing the school, wouldn't it?" Emile asked.

"No.  It would actually bring the school revenue."

"How?"

"It's on school property.  Any transport hub usually has traveler support facilities.  The revenues from those facilities should go to the school.  And the students could work jobs in those facilities, just like if it was the campus snack bar."

"But... what about letting so many people so close to the OmniPortal?"

"What are they going to do?  The worst they can do is break it.  We'd just rebuild the gateway.  The thing to be feared is another power taking over the portal.  That we can prevent with military might."

"How do you prevent someone from using the portal to bring their army here?"

"The OmniPortal is always controlled from this end.  So, if we open the portal and you start to march through a battalion of troops... we just close the portal on you again.  Probably killing several of your men in the process, and taking captive whatever enemies did manage to come through."

"You've been thinking this through, haven't you?" Emile asked.

"I've been working on the OmniPortal since last October.  Yes, I've had plenty of time to think about it."

"So, where is this thing?" she asked.

David looked down at the cynosure, then ahead down the corridor they were walking along.

"This says it's that way," David said with a grin.

It took another half hour of walking deeper and deeper into the mountain, until finally they came to a wall.  The cynosure was pointing straight ahead, at an upward angle.

"Do you know where we are within the mountain?" David asked Emile.

"Yes."

"Is there anything down here?  How thick is this wall?"

"That's not a wall, David, that's a mountain.  There's not empty space in that direction for hundreds of feet."

"Great.  Okay... how tired are you, magically?"

"I'm more tired physically."

"Okay, well, do what you can.  We're going to make a stairway tunnel."

David carefully pulled his wand.  His left arm was in a sling, thanks to the damage that had been done by the demon, and he didn't want to jostle it too much.  The two of them worked together, and the rock morphed away, forming a tunnel three feet wide and six feet high, with steps rising out of the floor as they went.  They moved into the tunnel, and David stopped repeatedly to pull out the cynosure, checking to see that they were still on track.

Finally, the cynosure spun wildly, then its three rings stabilized on the axes.

"Now what?" Emile asked, seeing what it had done.

"I think we're standing in the portal-way.  Let's clear a little space straight back."  Once they did, and stepped beyond, the cynosure clearly showed the portal was behind them now.

"Now I think we can just wait for the military to get here," David said.  "They're going to have to hollow out this area to make any real use of the OmniPortal.  There's not much reason for us to do it."

David shut down the cynosure and conjured it away, then he and Emile left the tunnel.

As they were walking back up out of the mountain, Emile asked, "So, what will you do now?"

"Until the army shows up here in force, I have to secure the mountain."

"And after that?"

"I do what they tell me to.  This battle's over, but we're still in a war.  I'm still just another soldier in the machine."

"Vocators aren't generally 'just another soldier', David," she replied.

David grunted.  "Every army makes mistakes," he said with a self-deprecating grin.

"Uh-huh," Emile said, unconvinced.

 "...Security Deputy Chief JoAnne Van Ark," the dean intoned.  She was holding a memorial service to commemorate those who had perished in the battle.  David stood on the stage with her, attempting to remain at attention, but his knee was still hurting and it was difficult to maintain the posture.

"Security Chief Tanya Sahar," Dean Lengel continued.  Prof. Edgars, on the other side of the stage, rang a bell with each name, and they waited for the peal of the bell to fade before continuing with the next name.  As the bell was tolling, Prof. Whitaker engraved each name into the castle's curtain wall, creating a permanent record of all who had given their lives in defense of the school.

"Not all of our victims were human," Dean Lengel said.  "That does not lessen our loss.  We remember, Bushmaster..."  Slowly, just as with the others, she read off the names of the gargoyles that had died in the battle.  Finally, she ended with, "...and Jailla Stroud."

David fought back tears as Prof. Edgars once again rang the bell, and Prof. Whitaker engraved Jailla's name onto the wall with the others. 

David was gratified to see Oscar, sitting on Coach Hall's lap in the front row.  He had been seriously wounded, but not fatally so.  He was sporting some bandages, but was otherwise fine.  David had asked, but no one seemed to actually know exactly what Oscar was.  Legend had it that the cat had been at the school for at least sixty years, which was an awfully long life for a cat, even a familiar.

Dean Lengel continued, "In addition to the frightful losses in our student population and our staff, a great many of our faculty also did not survive.  We now remember their sacrifice for our beloved academy.

"Prof. Harry Anderson, Spells Master.

"Prof. Keisha Bahkeir, Art Department.

"Prof. Harry Blackstone, Conjuring Master.

"Prof. Irene DuPont, Potions Master.

"Prof. James Gardner, History Department.

"Prof. William Hatch, Technomandy Master.

"Prof. Dane Hellerhan, Herbology Department.

"Prof. Cesar Irwin, Animperium Master.

"Prof. Greg Mendel, Herbology Department.

"Prof. Wilhelm Nye, Potions Master.

"Prof. Catherine Phillips, Metamorphosis Master.

"Prof. Charles Phillips, Spells Master.

"Prof. Cris Sarantakos, Conjuring Master.

"Prof. David Silverfeld, Spells Master.

"Prof. E. Benjamin Snooch, Spells Master.

"Prof. Connie Webster, Spells Master.

 "These names will long be remembered as heroes, defenders of Woodward and shining examples of what it means to be part of Woodward Academy.  May their names never be forgotten."

David stepped forward at that point.  "Please rise," he said loudly.

As the audience rose to their feet, David said softly,

Rest in peace, you honored dead,

For not in vain was your blood shed.

The cause of peace, with justice, true

Advances forth, because of you.

And those of us who still remain

Remember, and revere your name.

David turned and motioned.  Up on the castle wall, a lone person stood.  They raised a trumpet to their lips, and played Taps.  The crowd stood silent as the last note echoed across the courtyard.

With that finished, the gathered students and faculty began to disperse.  David turned and saw a cadre of military officers standing respectfully across the way.  David nodded to acknowledge them, and they started walking in his direction.

Dean Lengel came over to David.  "It was a nice poem," she said.

"Best I could do on short notice.  You should have told me a couple months ago, then I could have worked up something really nice," he said.

Emile chuckled, and then she moved off, as it was obvious David was about to have company.

As the arkigo and his subordinates arrived, David came to attention as best he could.  He could not salute, as he didn't have a free hand, his left being in a sling, and his right holding on to his shortened staff to act as a cane.  The arkigo saluted, anyway.

"Stand at ease, Vocator, and give your report."

"The mountain is secure, Arkigo, thanks to the Woodward Volunteer Company."

"And Troop 42..." DeSantis said.

"No, sir, Troop 42 wasn't here.  Just me."

"You lost both of your teammates?" Schwarzkopf asked sadly.

"No, sir, just Giendia.  I asked Capadra Columbo to stay at my home after delivering her report, just in case I was wrong and Bolmont was the target."

"How bad was the fighting?" Arkigo Schwarzkopf asked.

"Seven hours.  We lost two-thirds of our force.  I had to incinerate this courtyard more than once just to clear the field of battle.  Sir, I'm a bit confused.  I thought that Ark South was covering this area right now, so... why are you here?"

"As you know, Ark South is a reserve unit.  As such, they are moving west, while Ark North moves east, to make sure we hold this mountain."

"I hope you brought a significant number of troops with you, sir," David said.

"A command will be here within the day."

David nodded.  "You might want more than that.  I don't know what the Vrudenans have nearby."

"We have more troops coming, but they'll take a few days to arrive, I'm afraid."

"Hopefully that's good enough, then," David said.

"How did you hurt your arm?" DeSantis wondered.

"Fighting a demon."

"You... fought... demons?"

"Badly, yes, sir.  It took the gargoyles, all of the professors, myself, and a firebird to take them down, but we managed it."

"And the OmniPortal?" Schwarzkopf asked, lowering his voice.

"I've identified its location.  Be aware, sir, that I had to brief Dean Lengel about its presence.  I needed an escort, given my current condition."

"Fair enough.  She'll be debriefed."

"Yes, sir.  What's the plan, Arkigo?"

"Build the OP," he said.

"Yes, sir... I more meant, what's the plan for me?"

"For right now, we want you to stay here as a liaison between the army and the Woodward personnel.  They know you, they trust you, as do we.  You're the logical choice.  After the portal is built... well... let's not get ahead of ourselves.  Can you show me where it is?"

"Yes, sir, but you're going to bitch about having had to walk up here, just to walk back down."

Arkigo Schwarzkopf chuckled.  "I'm not that old yet," he said.

"Yes, sir," David said.  "If you don't mind, I'll grumble for you, then.  Stupid knee..."

"What happened?" he asked.

"Battle.  I got knocked down, hit it on the ground as I fell.  It should be better by tomorrow, but until then, it's proving annoying."

"Can you estimate the size of the force you were up against?" DeSantis asked.

"A command-sized unit.  Around four thousand or so.  Plus a dozen demons."

"And you had..." DeSantis pressed.

"A dozen gargoyles, a herd of pegs, a cat, a bird, and about three hundred twenty people."

"A cat and a bird?" Schwarzkopf asked.

"Oscar, the school's mascot cat, was injured.  The bird was my familiar," David said, frowning.  "He was lost in the battle."

Schwarzkopf frowned.  "I'm sorry, son."

David nodded.  "It was a rough night."

"They all are," the arkigo agreed.

 David was glad to at least be able to walk normally again.  A full night as a ghost had taken care of the knee.  The arm, however, would take at least one more night to fix.

At the moment, he was working on repairing the gatehouse at the castle.  It was slow going, as construction wasn't his strong suit, and he wanted the job done just as well as Lord Woodward would have done it.  This was made slightly more nerve-wracking by the fact that Lord Woodward was, in fact, watching him do the job.

"An interesting facade pattern.  Where did you come up with that?"

"Something I saw somewhere, I guess.  Do you not like it?"

"Quite attractive, actually.  I'm just more of a traditionalist."

"I can change it," David offered.

"No.  It's your work, your hand should show in the result.  It is just as strong as what was there before."

David nodded and continued his work.  He paused when he heard someone coming up the steps behind him.  Turning, he saw Prof. Whitaker.

"Morning, Professor," David said to her.

"Good morning, David.  The dean needs to see you down in her office."

"Oh?  Okay.  We'll have to continue this later, My Lord."

"As you say," Lord Woodward said politely, and then faded off to invisibility.

"Do you know what the dean wants, Professor?"

"No, she just asked me to tell you, since I was coming up anyway."

"Okay.  Thank you."

"Of course."

David made his way slowly down the steps.  Though his knee was once again working, it was still a bit stiff and he didn't want to push his luck.

As David walked the rim of the Academy level, he was disturbed to see soldiers standing guard.  He knew it was necessary, at least for now, but he didn't like it.  He really didn't like that there were guards standing at the entrance to Beckett Hall.

"State your business," the soldier standing at the door said.

"Get the fuck out of my way, soldier, before I have your ass court-martialed," David snapped.

"Sir, I have my orders, directly from-"

"Oh, just shut the fuck up," David sighed.  He simply faded to invisibility and walked through the man.  The soldier shivered at his passing, but otherwise looked confused to have his accoster vanish in front of him.

David made his way down the hall to the dean's office, fading back to visibility as he went.  When he entered the office, he was jarred by seeing Tracy sitting at her desk, as if it was just any other day, and that nearly half the faculty had not been killed a couple days ago in a massive battle.

"She's waiting for you," Tracy told him.

"Okay.  Thanks," he said, and went over and knocked on the door.

"Come in," the voice called.

"You wanted to see... me, Madame Dean?" David said.  There was a person in the room he was unfamiliar with.

"Yes, David.  Please, come in.  This is Eliot Loudermilk.  He's with the Child Safety Bureau."

"Oh.  What do you want?" David asked brusquely.

"I was warned my reception by you would not be a warm one," Eliot said with a grin.  "Some of my colleagues had... interesting things to say about you."

"I could say a few choice things about them, as well.  Why are you here?"

"The Phillips children," Eliot said.

"Who?  Oh, you mean Cat's kids?  Shit, don't tell me you want me to tell them their mom died..."

"No.  I've already had that unfortunate duty," Eliot said.  "I'm sorry this took us two days, but there was a great deal of paperwork to get through."

"Sorry for what?  What the hell do you want?"

Eliot handed over some paperwork.  "In their will, you were named as guardian of the children.  Were you not aware of this?"

David slumped down into the chair next to Eliot.  "No.  They never mentioned it.  Then again, we haven't spoken over the last year or so.  I've been busy."  David absently flipped through the document in his hands.  "You want me to take on two kids?  I'm barely an adult myself!"

"You are twenty-five, correct?" Eliot asked.

"Be twenty-six in a few weeks, if it matters..."

"You are old enough, in other words, to fulfill the requirements of the laws.  You have the financial wherewithal to support them, and you have a home.  It is, of course, your choice whether or not to accept them."

"If I don't?"

"They would probably end up with their father."

"He signed away any legal right to them," David objected.

"Yes, I'm aware.  But if you refuse to look after them, we have to place them with somebody."

"What have the kids been told about all this?"

"Nothing, yet.  I told them that arrangements were being made."

"Are they down in the apartment?  All by themselves?"

"No.  I had them brought up here to campus, to facilitate the paperwork."

"I need to talk to them," David said.  "Where are they?"

"They're down in the conference room, David," Dean Lengel said.  "We'll be waiting here when you're done."

"No peeking," David admonished her.

"Would I do such a thing?" Emile asked with an innocent grin.

"Yes.  But don't.  It's rude."

"Hmph," she said.

David nodded to them both and walked out of the office.  He headed down the hall, and stopped outside room 108, the conference room.  He took several deep breaths, and then opened the door.

Garrett and Angela were sitting at the table, and looked up when he entered.  Angela immediately got out of her chair and ran to him, hugging him tightly.  He embraced her, as well.  Garrett was slower to come over, but David wrapped an arm around his shoulders, too, and soon all three of them were crying.

The tears lasted for several minutes, until the teens had finally cried themselves out.  David gently motioned them both back to their seats, and he took a chair at the table along with them.

"Uncle David, what happened to Mom and Charlie?" Garrett asked directly.

"What have they told you?" David asked.

"That there was some kind of accident or something, and they died."

David growled.  "I hate it when adults lie to kids."

"What do you mean?" Angela asked.

"Guys, your parents were killed.  A couple days ago, the Vrudenans attacked Mt. Woodward.  Your Mom, Charlie, a lot of other people, were killed by the werewolves."

"Why didn't they just tell us that?" Garrett demanded angrily.

"I don't know.  Maybe they're dumb enough to think it's somehow better to think they died from an accident.  Cat and Charlie died trying to protect each other."

"Are the werewolves still here?" Angela asked, fearful.

"No.  The army is here now.  We ran the werewolves off."

"Okay," Angela said.

"So... now what?" Garrett wanted to know.

"Now what... what?" David asked, making sure he understood Garrett's question.

"What happens to us?  We don't have any family left.  Dad's not legally our dad anymore... and I wouldn't want to live with that asshole, anyway."

"Garrett!" Angela scolded.  "Watch your language!"

"Who's going to make me?" Garrett challenged.

"Okay, settle down, you two," David said calmly.  "So, I'm going to answer your question, but you need to hear everything I say before getting excited or upset or angry or anything, okay?"

Angela nodded.  Garrett hesitated, but finally said, "Okay."

"According to that Eliot guy, your Mom listed me as your guardian in case of their deaths."

"What?" Angela asked.  David held up his hand for quiet.

"Just... hold on.  Right now, I have no idea what my situation is.  I'm still in the army.  The war is still going on.  I don't live at home at the moment.

"Also... I don't have a wife.  The woman I am currently seeing... is probably going to break up with me, if she hasn't already and I just don't know it yet..."

"So you're saying you're not going to take care of us?" Garrett demanded.

"I'm saying I want your input on whether you even want that... and letting you know the decision is not entirely up to me."

"Do you even want us to live with you?" Garrett asked bluntly.  David could understand the boy's attitude.  Cat's life hadn't been particularly stable for the last six years, and this was just one more giant shift in their lives.

"Yes, Garrett, I'd be perfectly happy to look after you two.  Obviously, your Mom already raised you.  I mean you're... what, fourteen?  Fifteen?"

"Just turned fourteen.  Angela's still twelve."

"So you guys know the drill, as far as, you know, life goes.  What you need right now is a quiet, stable home to let you finish growing up.  What I'm telling you is I'm not sure that my home will be all that stable.  Are you sure you want to risk it?"

"Where else would we go?" Angela asked.

"That Eliot guy said they'd probably send you to live with your dad."

"No," Garrett said flatly.

"I haven't even seen Daddy since that hearing.  I thought he wasn't our Dad anymore."

"He's not, but as that Eliot guy put it, they have to put you somewhere.  So, if you don't want to stay with me, whatever that's going to be like, then you'll probably end up with him."

"If those are my only two options, I'm sure as fuck going to want to stay with you," Garrett said.

David nodded.  "Please watch your language, it bothers your sister."

"She's a baby," Garrett said.

"No, she's just sensitive, and that's not something she should be ridiculed for."

Garrett growled, but didn't say anything else.

"When would you know about your girlfriend?" Angela asked.

"I don't know.  I don't know when I'm going to get to go back home to talk with her... if she's even still there."

"Where do you live?  Still in that big house down in Bolmont?" Angela asked.

"Yes."

"Wow.  That's a really big yard."

"With a pond."

"You have a pond?" Angela asked.

"With fish and frogs and birds," David confirmed.  "And a dragon."

"A dragon?" Angela squeaked.

"He's friendly," David assured her.  "Well, unless he's being grumpy, but you usually have warning about that."

Angela smiled, but it was weak.

"So what do we do until you decide?" Garrett wanted to know.

"For right now, I'll take you home so you can grab some clothes and stuff, and you can stay up here on campus.  Probably in guest quarters.  After my assignment here is over... well... let's play it by ear for now, okay?"

"Yeah, okay," Garrett agreed grudgingly.

Angela got up and came over and hugged David tightly.  "Do I call you Dad now?" she asked.

"No!" David replied firmly, but in a lighthearted fashion.  She giggled.

"Come on, let's go back and talk with Eliot," David said.

The three returned to Dean Lengel's office.

"Has a decision been reached?" Eliot asked.

"We have a tentative yes," David said.

"Tentative?"

"I am in the midst of a domestic problem at home.  I'm not sure if my partner is interested in raising more children."

"More children?" Angela asked.

"Oh, whoops.  Yeah, I forgot to mention, if she stays, my girlfriend has a daughter."

"How old?" Garrett wanted to know.

"She's five."

Garrett nodded.  Angela enthused, "I could have a baby sister!"

"She's not a baby, Angela," David chided.

Dean Lengel tried to hide her chuckle.

"In any case," David said, trying to push on, "I will take custody of the children, pending the outcome of my home life situation."

"And if that should prove non-tenable?"

"Then we'll be in touch," David said.  "I would personally prefer finding them someone other than their former father, if it were to come to that."

"Yes, well... no offense, but if you reject them, what you want isn't terribly important," Eliot said.

"It's also what they would want," David retorted, trying to keep his temper in check.

"They're children."

"Does that somehow make them not people?" David asked, letting just a little of his ire loose.  "See, this is why I can't stand your kind.  Everything to you is paper forms and little checkboxes.  If I have to refuse to raise them, it will be because living with me is not in their best interest.  All you care about is filling out your forms properly."

"Listen, Mr. Stroud, we all have a job to do."

"Yeah, too bad no one in your agency ever learned how to do theirs properly."

"I don't need to take abuse from you, Mr. Stroud."

"Who would you prefer to take abuse from?  I'll give them a call."

Angela and Garrett both giggled at that.  Eliot frowned.  "I can see that this meeting is at an end."

"Yeah," David agreed.

Eliot said some final pleasantries and then departed.

David stepped over and covered Angela's ears.

"Asshole," David said, then dropped his hands.  Garrett just grinned.  Angela hugged David.

"Emile, do we have temporary quarters for these guys?"

"Put them down in Phoenix Dorm.  They can have a single suite to themselves."

"I'm not sleeping with her!" Garrett objected.

"You'll have separate bedrooms, Garrett.  Chill out, okay?" David said.  "Is A42 available?"

Dean Lengel checked a ledger.  "Yes."

"Okay, I'll put them there, then."

"So you're just going to abandon us here?" Garrett asked.

"Garrett, I'm staying here myself.  I normally sleep in the castle, though, which is full of ghosts... not sure you'd enjoy that."

"Oh."

"Now, let's let the dean get back to work.  We need to go get you guys packed.  Emile," David said with a nod.

"Good luck, you two.  It'll all work out in the end," Emile said.  "David, I'll see you later."

"Sure.  C'mon, guys."

"So... how did Mom die?" Garrett asked.

"Garrett!" Angela cried.  "I don't want to hear about that!"

David put his hand on Angela's shoulder and squeezed gently.  "If it was really bad, I wouldn't say anything.  But... they were both killed by an energy blast.  Whether the same one or different ones, I don't know.  It wasn't really gory or anything like that."

"Oh," Garrett said.

"You sound disappointed," David told him.

"Well, I mean, if she had to die, she could have at least gone out in a cool way..."

"Garrett!" Angela shouted, and punched him in the arm.

"Hey!  Ow!" Garrett shouted, and started to go after her.  David immediately stepped in and separated them.

"Already, that's enough of that," David said.

"I don't have to listen to you, either.  You're not my father," Garrett snarled.

David got right in his face.  "Let's be clear about one thing," David told him.  "No, I am not your father.  That will not stop me from beating your ass so hard you won't sit for a week.  You will respect me as your mother's choice to finish raising you.  And you will respect everyone else who lives in my house, or you'll find out what unpleasant really means.  Do we understand each other?"

"Yeah," Garrett said, kicking the ground and unable to meet David's gaze.

"Ooh, look!" Angela said, pointing up into the sky.

David and Garrett looked, to see a pegasus descending for a landing.

"Now what's she doing back here?" David wondered.

"You know her?" Angela asked.

"That's Cupcake," David said.  "She's my peg."

"You own her?" Garrett asked.

"You don't own pegs," David said.  "Pegs are self-aware.  She is my peg, I am her rider.  We form a team."

"Oh."

"You ride her?" Angela asked, intrigued.

"Yeah.  You want to go for a ride?"

"Yeah!" Angela said.

"Garrett?" David asked.

Garrett suddenly looked pale.  "Uh... no, no thanks."

"Garrett's afraid of heights," Angela said gleefully.

"Hey.  His fears aren't something to make fun of any more than your sensitivity is.  Everybody's different."

Garrett looked happy to be getting supported instead of yelled at.

Cupcake made her landing then trotted over to David, nickering in pleasure to see him.

"Hey, there, girl," David said to her, patting her on the neck.  "Come to check on me, did you?"

Cupcake nickered and nuzzled him.

"I want you to meet some new friends," David told her.  He motioned the kids over.  "This is Angela, and Garrett," David said.  To the kids, he said, "You can pet her, just be gentle."

Angela was immediately petting Cupcake, staring up into her eye.  Garrett petted her, but he wasn't enthusiastic about it.

"What's the matter?" David asked quietly.

Garrett shrugged.  "Just not big on animals."

"Ah.  Well, you might want to go find something to do.  I'm going to take Angela for a ride, and that might take a while, if Cupcake is feeling frisky... and Angela doesn't puke."

"What?" Angela asked.

"Nothing," David called back, winking at Garrett.  Garrett grinned.

"What is there to do around here?" Garrett asked.

"You can check and see if the games room is open, up in the Student Center.  It's up there," David said.  "The building with the bookstore in it."

"Okay."

"If you're not there, I'll look for you back in the room before we go to dinner, okay?"

"Why don't I just meet you at the cafeteria?"

"That'll work, too.  Try to stay out of trouble; I hate being called to the dean's office."

Garrett grinned, and then headed off.  David turned to Angela.  "Think you can make it onto her back?"

"Not without help," Angela said.

David gripped her at the waist and lifted, and then Angela worked her way up onto Cupcake.  David mounted up behind Angela, and settled in.

"You ready?"

"What do I hold onto?" she asked.

"You don't.  You won't fall off, trust me."

"Okay..."

"Let's go, Cupcake... but not too fast... yet."

Cupcake whinnied, and they were immediately in the air.

"Whoa!" Angela screamed.  "I thought you told her not too fast!"

"I did.  And this isn't fast."

"Uh-oh," Angela said.  David just chuckled.

Angela had not outlasted Cupcake, and so David and Cupcake finished their ride alone.  Finally, though, even Cupcake was sated.  She brought David down for a landing in the paddock.

Sliding off, David walked with Cupcake, so she could cool down.  He then bathed her and brushed her out, and gave her some food.  He knew she wouldn't need much, since he was sending her home, but she deserved a snack.

While she was munching on callum apples, David wrote a brief note to the family, just to let them know he was in one piece, and that he was uncertain when he'd be able to make it home.

David considered how to attach the message.  Cupcake had no harness of any kind on her.  Making up his mind, he fastened the message to a sturdy piece of rope, and then he tied the rope loosely around Cupcake's neck, so it wouldn't fall off as she flew.

"Head back home, and make sure somebody reads that note, okay?"

Cupcake nickered in understanding.

"It was good to see you, girl," David said.  He gave her a hug and patted her, and then stepped back.

"Fly safe," he said.

With another nicker, she leapt into the air, and was soon out of sight.

David turned to go find the kids, so they could eat.

"Well, it's constructed," Btt. DeSantis said.  "Now what?"

David chuckled.  He had come down at the batalisto's request.

"Now we activate it," he said.

"How do we do that?" Akg. Schwarzkopf asked.

"I wrote instructions.  The hardest part, though, will be navigating."

"Navigating?" Schwarzkopf asked.

"Because the OP only has one fixed end, you have to steer the other end.  You do that by 'navigating' it around the web until you reach the node you want.  Then it forms the tunnel."

"Even without a gateway at the other end," DeSantis said.

"Yes.  That's why this is so dangerous."

"But... no one knows how to navigate this thing," Schwarzkopf objected.

"I know the theory," David said.  "It was in the notes.  It does require a diviner to do it."

"Why?" DeSantis asked.

"Because the navigation process is a form of divination."

DeSantis nodded.  "You were pretty good at divination, weren't you?"

"Fair, I'd say," David replied.  "I'm willing to try it.  Where do you want to start, sir?" he asked the arkigo.

"We want to take down the alpha," Schwarzkopf said.

"Sir, this is untested.  You don't want to start there..."

DeSantis asked, "Since this is divination, does familiarity with the location help in any way?"

"Probably, though we really don't know at this point.  This is something no one has ever done before."

"Then... how about HQ?"

"Which one?"

"You're most familiar with Scout Company 1," DeSantis pointed out.

David nodded.  Turning to the arkigo, he asked, "Sir?"

"Works for me, Vocator.  Give it a go."

"Yes, sir."

David sat down in a chair in front of a tablet.  The tablet was made of bronze, and it had various symbols etched into it.  The tablet was the control panel for the gateway, which was a gigantic rectangular frame, fifteen feet wide by twelve feet tall.  The gateway was made from the rock of the mountain, with a set of protective runes carved into it.  The runes would keep the magical energies from damaging the gateway itself.  Because of the pre-existing geography inside the mountain, the stairway that David and Emile had created had simply been widened to provide access to the gateway.  David assumed all of this was temporary; they were in a hurry to capture the Alpha, and had simply constructed the easiest setup.  

David set these thoughts aside as he turned to the task at hand: navigation.  Navigation was a type of runic interpretation, which David wasn't wonderful at, but he knew how.  He closed his eyes and breathed deeply, letting his mind settle.

When he was ready, he opened his eyes and cast the starting spell.  Suddenly, across the room, the gateway came to life.  A deep blue light shone from the rectangular gate, making the room appear to be underwater from the hue.  David ignored that, as his mind searched along tendrils of magical force, twisting this way and that, seeking the path he desired.  Each time he came to a node, he had to decide which way to turn.  The runes before him gave him the answers, based on where he was trying to go.  In his mind, he saw them light up, one at a time, and he would move his hand to touch that rune.  The portal energy would shift, then, moving off in the new direction.

It took David a minute and a half before he believed he'd found his destination.  He stabilized his position, and then, taking another deep breath, he cast the connecting spell.

Suddenly, the blue light in the gateway shifted to a brilliant white, forcing everyone to close their eyes.  When the light faded, and they were able to look again, they saw a yard through the gateway, with a building in the distance.  The building was, in fact, Scout Company 1 headquarters.

"Holy fucking shit," Schwarzkopf muttered.  "Now, David, can you go through there and rally this half of SC1?"

"Someone can, but it can't be me," David said.

"Why not?" DeSantis asked.

"I'm the operator.  So long as that gateway is open, I have to stay here.  If I leave, it collapses, and then has to be reformed."

"So... nothing really bad would happen," the arkigo asked, wanting to make this clear.

"Not at this end.  At the other end... it would all depend on where that was."

"What could happen?" DeSantis asked worriedly.

"Well, if you're sending people into enemy territory..." David said, and left the statement hanging.

"Oh.  Right," DeSantis said.

"Ron, go gather your company.  Bring them back here."

"Sir, why bring SC1 here?" David asked.

"They're our best small-unit fighters.  I want them to capture the Alpha for us.  Interested in joining the mission?"

"Interested, yes, sir, but I can't."

"Why not?" Schwarzkopf asked.

"Well, even if I didn't have to run the portal for you, Alpha Hurovlad is protected by ghost prevention devices.  I can't get anywhere near him."

"Oh, that's right.  I'd forgotten, since we don't use those for the king's security anymore.  Well, sorry, son.  Guess you'll have to sit this one out."

"Kick him in the balls for me, sir," David said.

Schwarzkopf chuckled.

David relaxed while they waited.  Holding the gate open wasn't nearly as difficult as navigation had been.  Soon the troops of the company started coming through the gateway, looking just a bit confused from their experience.  Seeing David and the arkigo there waiting for them, they all set aside their unease as best they could, and formed up to await instructions.

Finally, Btt. DeSantis came back through the gateway.

"That's all of them," he said.

David looked to Schwarzkopf.  "Sir?"

"Shut it down," he confirmed.

David cast peractus, and the gateway suddenly collapsed, a burst of blue light filling the room for a second, and then it was back to normal.

"Gentlemen," the arkigo said.  "Welcome to Operation Checkmate.  Your mission is to capture Alpha Hurovlad, and thus end the war."

The assembled company started murmuring loudly.

"Quiet down," David snapped.  The company was quelled rapidly.

"You want to explain how they're going to do this, David?" Schwarzkopf asked.

"As you wish, sir."  David turned to his comrades.  "Okay, guys, I know that what the arkigo just said sounds like a suicide mission.  Obviously, we must have a trick up our sleeve, or we wouldn't be trying it, right?"

There were murmurs of agreement throughout the ranks.

"What you are about to be told is not just sensitive, or secret.  This is, 'If you tell anybody, first we will cut off your balls, and then we will throw you in prison,' territory.  Understood?"

"Yes sir!" the room thundered.

David pointed to the gateway behind them.  "That thing you just came through is called the OmniPortal.  It doesn't just go from here to SC1 HQ.  It goes from here, to wherever we tell it to."

"Sir?" Jack asked.

"Yeah, Jack?"

"Where, exactly, is 'here'?"

David chuckled.  "That's something, Vigax, that we're not even going to tell you yet."

"What do you tell me?" the Alpha growled.

"The mountain has been lost, Your Majesty."

The alpha blasted his arkigo into oblivion with his scepter.  "How did those puny little humans beat our forces!" the alpha screamed.

No one had an answer.

Suddenly, the door to the hallway exploded inward.  It shot across the room, killing two guards.  Through the entrance poured three dozen human wizards, all from Scout Company 1.  They pointed crackling wands at everyone in the room.  The weres tensed, but had not been given an order yet.

"What is the meaning of this?" Hurovlad demanded in horrible English.

Through the door now walked Akg. Schwarzkopf.

"You, sir, are my prisoner," Schwarzkopf said to Hurovlad.

"Kill them all!" Hurovlad screamed.

Magical blasts filled the air.  Seconds later, there was only one werewolf left alive.

"Not sure why you felt the need to waste your men's lives like that, but this is happening, Your Majesty.  Secure him," the arkigo said to the scouts.

Hurovlad considered fighting it out, but he wasn't interested in dying that day.  He rose from his chair, but made no hostile moves.

Three wizards came over and enacted three different restraint hexes on the Alpha, who was now cursing them in Vrudenese.

"Take him out," the arkigo ordered.

The scout company dragged him clear of the room.  The OmniPortal had opened its gate a quarter mile from the fortress, but Alpha Hurovlad had assumed he was safe, and so had only a minimal guard force.  They had gone down hard and fast.  Hurovlad struggled the entire way back to the gateway.

When he saw it, Hurovlad came up short.

"How-"

"You stole the information from us," Schwarzkopf said.  "Don't be surprised we got there first."

With that, they manhandled Hurovlad through the gateway, and into the OmniPortal facility within Mt. Woodward.

"That's the last of us," Jack said to David.

David collapsed the gateway, then rose.  "Sir, with your permission?" David asked Akg. Schwarzkopf.

Schwarzkopf just nodded, curious what he was going to do to the alpha.

David walked over to him.

"You want us to uncuff him?" Jack asked.

"No."  David turned to the Alpha.  "Alpha Hurovlad I, as lawful ruler of Vrudena and commander of its armed forces, by order of the Council of Wizards, you are hereby placed under arrest for the crime of attempted assassination of a foreign leader.  You are also charged with beginning a war of aggression without provocation."

"You stole our land!" Hurovlad screamed.

"You know that's bullshit as well as we do," David replied, unmoved.  "Further, in connection to the charge of starting a war of aggression, you are charged with 7,482 acts of murder, in that forces under your control did illegally kill that number of foreign individuals, on foreign soil.

"The sentence, should you be convicted, is immediate execution.  Before that happens, your nation will be dismantled, piece by piece, from this very room.

"Or you could surrender, and we can come to some kind of agreement."

"And you'll let me go?  I'm not that stupid, human."

"I have no intention of letting you go.  Your fate is complete.  The question is whether you actually give a damn about your countrymen or not.  In any case, I'll leave that between you and the brass.  For now, you will be taken to a holding facility."

Jack stepped up to David, so he could speak without being heard.  "David... we haven't got anything secure enough back at HQ."

"I'll take care of that, Jack," David said.

"Where do you plan to put him?" Akg. Schwarzkopf asked.

"The castle has cells in its basement," David pointed out.

"Ahhh.  Good thinking!  Ron, take this bastard up to the castle.  Put ten troops on his guard."

"Yes, sir!"

As DeSantis left with half of the SC1 contingent in tow, Schwarzkopf turned back to the rest of SC1.

Jack asked the arkigo, "What about the rest of us, sir?"

"Vigax...  Damn fine job.  Damn fine.  You're all to be commended.  For now, you can return to your duties at headquarters.  David, if you could?"

David sat down at the tablet again, and in a few minutes, SC1 was back where they came from.

The arkigo looked at David.  "You, too, are to be commended.  Figuring out where this thing was, figuring out how to navigate it... You just won us the war."

"I did my part, sir."

"Your part was pretty huge, son."

"Glad to be of service," David said.

"Liar," Schwarzkopf said with a smile.

David grinned.  "Not gonna say I wouldn't have rather been at home, but since you did stick me in the middle of this thing, I'm glad I proved to be of use."

"And how.  Tell me, do you plan to stay in the military?"

"Sir, I will be out of this monkey suit just as fast as I can convince you guys to kick me out."

Schwarzkopf chuckled, but then frowned.  "Too bad.  You'd have made a hell of an arkigo in a few years.  David, great working with you."  he held out his hand, and David shook it.

"Stay close.  We'll probably be using the portal a few more times in the near future."

"Yes, sir.  I won't leave campus without informing you."

"Good man.  Dismissed."

 David entered the Portal Operations Center, as it was now being called, and slid into the chair behind the tablet.

"Destination, sir?" David asked the arkigo.

"The king's Cormatsen residence, or as close as you can get."

"It's in the courtyard, sir.  We already did the math."

"Very good."

David performed the necessary steps, and in just a couple minutes, they could see the king's home through the gateway.

"Now how do we tell them where it is?" David asked.

"One of us will just go through and escort them.  Ron?"

"Yes, sir," Btt. DeSantis said.  He walked through the gateway and headed toward the house.  In only a short while, he was heading back with several people in tow.  They each stepped through the gateway, and David could see the look of shock and disorientation on their faces.

"Is that everyone, sir?" David asked the arkigo.

"Yes, I believe so," Schwarzkopf said.

David collapsed the portal then, and rose to join the ranks of those greeting their king.  The military officers all saluted in unison, David included.  The king went down the row of them, uttering pleasantries, until he got to David.

"Been busy, I see," the king said.

"Trying to stay out of trouble, sir," David said with a grin.

"And... how goes that effort?" he asked.

"...better," David replied.

"Good to hear.  We'll talk later," the king said.

"Yes, sir."

With that, the king moved on.  David gently shook the queen's hand, and greeted her, before she, too, moved on.

The next person in line wrapped her arms around David and thrust her tongue into his mouth.  The two kissed for long moments while being stared at by the other military personnel.

When Christa finally let David loose, he smiled at her and said, "I think you just made me violate regulations."

Christa giggled.  "Do I care?"

"I doubt it," David said with a smile.  "It's good to see you."

"Couldn't miss a chance to come back to Woodward," she said.

David's smile wavered slightly.  "Or what's left of it."

Christa frowned for a second.

"David," the king said, "I wonder if you'd be so kind as to show me where our guest is, and then take Christa and Claire on a tour of the grounds while I have a discussion with my counterpart?"

"Of course, sir," David said.  "It's this way."

 "I'm glad to see you, at least, came through unscathed," the queen said to David.

"Oh, if only that were true," David replied.  "I had a shattered left forearm, some damage to my left knee, a gash on my right leg and serious bruising on my back.  But you'd have to have gotten here a lot faster to see all that."

"You really heal that fast?" she asked in surprise.

"Yes, ma'am."

"There's no one here but us, David.  My name, as I told you, is Claire."

David grinned in embarrassment.  "Sorry, it's a hard habit to break."

"I suppose.  So, tell me, how bad was this fight for you, personally?"

"Depends on how you mean that, I guess."

"She wants to know how many friends you lost," Christa explained.  "But she's trying to be nice about it."

David grunted.  "No need to worry about that with you, though, is there?' David said with a grin.

Christa blushed.

To the queen, David said, "This was a costly battle.  Both the security chief and deputy chief were good friends of mine.  Professor Blackstone and both Professors Phillips were also close.  And I lost my familiar."

"You lost Jailla?" Christa exclaimed.  "What happened?"

David explained briefly.  Both women could see he was fighting through emotions, so they wordlessly decided to change the subject.

"Can the school reopen?" Claire asked.

"Can it?  Sure.  They've got three full months to make what repairs are necessary.  The hardest thing to replace in that time will be the Sentinel Trees.  I don't know how easy it is to transplant something that big from one place to a whole different place.

"Will it?  That's not a question I have the ability to answer.  The OP makes for a major security issue."

"Bad enough to close the school?" Christa said.

"Is the security issue that bad?  Yes.  Are there ways to deal with it without closing the school?  I think so, but nobody's asking me."

"You'd think they'd have learned by now," Claire said with a grin.  David chuckled.

From a distance, they heard a voice call, "Uncle David!"

They turned to see Angela and Garrett running to catch up with him.  They stopped and waited.

When they arrived, Garrett said to him, "We're hungry."

David rolled his eyes, then said calmly, "Garrett, please remove your hat."

"What?  Why?" Garrett demanded.

"Because it's the polite thing to do."

"Just because they're girls?" he scoffed.

"No," David said, drawing it out, "Because they are the queen of the kingdom and her daughter."

Garrett jolted, and nearly dropped his hat taking it off.  "Sorry, Your Majesty, I didn't recognize you!"

Claire smiled at him.

David said, "Your Majesty, may I introduce Garrett and Angela Phillips."

"Your Majesty," they both said with a bow.

"Nice to meet both of you," the queen said to them.  To David, she asked, "Is it lunch time already?"

"Chances are they missed breakfast, since I was too busy to force them to eat it."

"These are... your children?" Claire asked delicately.

"No," David replied.  Turning to Garrett, he said, "I don't think the lunch room is open yet.  Go up to the snack bar.  Tell them to bill me.  And don't eat everything in sight!"

Garrett blushed.  Angela gave David a hug, and then the two headed off for a rock lift.

As the trio began walking again, David said, "Those are Prof. Phillips' children.  I was listed as their guardian in her will."

"So you have two kids now?" Christa asked.

"That really depends a lot on what happens when I get home," David said, then explained on very briefly about the situation with Zyla.

"Well, I hope everything works out for you," Claire said.  "I must admit, I expected a lot more devastation.... more... "

"More blood?" David asked.

Claire blushed.  "Yes.  I was thoroughly prepared to have to cut this tour short because it made me sick."

"You'll notice the scorch marks.  We incinerated whatever blood didn't soak in by itself.  We've had days to clean up the mountain, and the only building the Vrudenans even damaged was the castle itself.  The other buildings were ignored in favor of chasing the people."

"It was a good move, not fighting for the buildings," Christa said.

"You can always rebuild buildings.  We lost enough people as it was," David replied.

"Do you think the school can recover from that?"

"What, losing professors?  Something tells me there are already applicants for the open positions.  This is Woodward Academy, the next-best thing to being the Royal Daughter's private tutor."

Christa blushed crimson, and Claire laughed.

 "You wanted to see me, Your Majesty?" David asked.  They were in one of the classrooms in the castle, which had been converted to a conference room.  With the king were arkigos LeGrant and Schwarzkopf, and Btt. DeSantis.

"Yes, David.  Come in and have a seat.  We've been discussing the OP and the future of the school.  "I'm told you have some thoughts on the matter.  But first, in order to satisfy my own - and Queen Diana's - curiosity... your report says that you managed to construct the primal aegis, so your... personal endeavor, then, is...?"

"You can tell Queen Diana that I... changed directions at the final crossroads.  Thanks to a friend, I avoided a very unpleasant fate for all concerned."

"Good, good.  I'm glad for you.  And for us.  Now, to the OP and the school.  I'm told you have thoughts on how the two could co-exist comfortably."

"Comfortably might be a stretch, sir, but I think it can be done."

"Impossible," DeSantis opined.  "We can't let civilians anywhere near that thing."

David looked at him.  "Why not?"

"What do you mean, why not?" DeSantis demanded.

"Just that.  Why can't you let a civilian near it?  What, exactly, are you worried about?"

"They could blow it up!"

"Okay... yes, they could blow it up.  This would kill anyone too close by, and would force us to rebuild the gateway.  That took us, what, a day and a half?  And that was the first time we'd done it.  I imagine doing it again would take half that time.

"The loss of life is regrettable, but doesn't change, whether the school is above the POC or not."

"Except that the presence of the school means allowing civilians to get too close in the first place!" DeSantis growled.

"Sir... are you forgetting where we are, and who these people are?"

"We're in a school.  They're civilians."

"Yeah, that's what I thought.  You went somewhere else, didn't you?"

"What has that got to do with anything?"

"Because only someone with an agenda would overlook the fact that the people who live on this mountain are the best wizards in the country.  You think that between the military and the remaining Woodward professors, they cannot come up with a set of protections that would make the POC virtually impenetrable?  Hell, I can lay out a plan for you right now, and it took me less than twelve hours to come up with.  Put a couple weeks in, and I'd bet you could come up with something bulletproof."

"You have a plan, Vocator?" LeGrant asked.  "I want to hear this."

"Yes, David," the king said.  "Outline your idea."

David said, "It's really very simple, sir.  You just don't allow local outside access to the POC."

"You'd better explain better than that," LeGrant warned.

"The OP is a gateway, right?  So you use that to get people into the POC, as well as out of it.  There is no 'public entrance' to be used, to get there directly from the mountain.  You have one door, that remains locked, to be used in case of an emergency.  That door can have a one-way hex put on it, to prevent it from being used to enter the facility."

"A one-way hex?" Schwarzkopf asked.

"It's a security hex.  Except for those people specifically authorized, who the hex will leave alone, the hex always pushes people in one direction.  So, if you try to approach the door from the outside, the hex pushes you away from the door.  If you go through the door from the inside, because you're trying to escape some kind of emergency, then the hex still pushes you away from the door, but out of the POC, not back into it.  In other words, it would actually facilitate your escape.

"Another thing I thought of last night.  One of your biggest concerns would be someone coming through the OP and then grabbing control of it, right?"

"Exactly!" DeSantis said.

"Two things:  That has nothing to do with the school being here, and further, you can make this a complete non-problem."

"How?" LeGrant asked.

"The control tablet does not need to be in visual contact with the gateway.  Put it in a different room, with no direct access between the two.  So, if they come in through the gateway, they still have to figure out how to get to the control room."

"You can really do that?" the king asked.

"Yes.  The tablet has to be within a certain radius, like... I think it's something like a hundred feet or so, but the intervening space doesn't need to be empty.  There can be a solid wall between them; the OmniPortal doesn't care.  A simple mirror would allow for communication between the two rooms, and would allow for the control tablet to actually be destroyed in the case of an emergency."

"Surely the enemy would know how to rebuild one..." DeSantis grumped.

"Probably, but that would take them time to do.  Time that we would be using to kill them with."

"An important thing to note here, sir, is that you're going to have to train people to do this job.  The only reason I already know how is, one, I spent seven years at school, most of them learning Divination, and two, I had the resource materials to go over for months before trying it.  You're not normally going to want a Wizard Adept running these controls; the job's not worth that.

"What that means is, you're going to have to teach people how to be navigators, specifically.  That's going to be a lot easier to do if you have a school sitting right on top of the POC.  The students are going to have to practice, Batalisto."

"A two-week training course would take care of that," DeSantis replied.

"More like three or four months, sir, and that's if they got the necessary theory in their schoolwork.  That's three or four months you're going to be paying them, sir.  Instead of students paying you to learn how to do it.

"I don't want to point fingers, sir, but it very much sounds to me like you just don't want to give Woodward Academy any more prestige... and in fact see a possible opportunity to make the school go away altogether."

DeSantis went red in the face.

The king asked, "David, be honest, do you think that we could build a facility that was fully secure?"

"Sir, really.  I think even Dean Lengel would be offended by that question.  These professors could make a facility that's more secure than the fortress behind your palace."

"LeGrant?" the king asked.

"His plan is pretty sound, Your Majesty.  It could use a little tweaking, but I can't actually poke any holes in it..."

"Norman?" the king asked Akg. Schwarzkopf.

"I like it, sir.  It protects the military asset, and allows us to put it to use for the other ninety-nine percent of the time."

"All right.  I want you to get your staffs working on this.  Call on the professors and David as much as you need to.  David, there will be a gathering in the Great Hall in two hours.  I am... requesting... your presence."

"Uh-huh.  I'll be on time, Your Majesty," David said, groaning inwardly.

What the hell is this about, now?

 "Aw, shit," David said as he stepped in front of the open Great Hall doors.

Inside the Great Hall, the king was sitting on Lord Woodward's throne.  The queen stood behind him and to one side.  A troop of soldiers lined a green carpet from the doorway to the dais, their wands in their hands, but down at their sides.

Behind the soldiers, on either side of the room, were the professors of the school, along with some of the students.  A great many ghosts were also there, including Lord Woodward, Penny, Madame Barbonne, and several others he had grown familiar with over the years.

Suddenly there was a presence at his side.  He looked to see Christa smiling at him.

"Here to escort me, or to prevent me from running away?" David asked.

Christa's grin grew larger.  "You hardly need an escort, but Daddy knows how you hate ceremonies."

"Damn straight," David muttered.

"Go on, you can't avoid this one any more than any of the others."

"Couldn't you, like, blast me with your wand or something?"

"David, I'm not even a wizard yet, let alone good enough to actually hurt you," she chided.

"But I could fake the injury!" David offered.

Christa giggled.  "Get in there, Paladin!" she said with mock-sternness.

"Yes, ma'am," he replied with equal mock-servility.

David straightened himself, and then entered the Great Hall.

"Atten-HUT!" a voice bellowed off to his right.

David turned to the man.  "Is that your only job?" he asked him with a grin.

"No, sir.  I also get to preside over the flag raising every morning," he replied with a toothy smile.  "The king is waiting, sir."

David sighed, and marched the short distance to the beginning of the soldiers.

"Render colors!" the liderra called.  The soldiers lifted their wands to a horizontal position, and red beams of light shot out, connecting all the wands in a diamond pattern.

"Soldiers, SALUTE!" the liderra bellowed.  The wands went up to a vertical position, and the red-lined tunnel formed, as it had when David had become a Paladin.  He marched along the tunnel until he reached the dais.

Just as he was about to, the king said, "You kneel in front of me, and I'll take away every last one of your chevrons."

David grinned.  "As you wish, Your Majesty."

The king rose from the throne, to speak to the assembled group.

"We are here today to honor a man who has, time and again, proven his loyalty to this kingdom.  A man who has risked severe injury, even insanity, to protect my people.  This man, a Rimohr in civilian life, was pressed into service in Scout Company 1, one of the most dangerous jobs in the military.  He rose through the ranks quickly due to his skill, his creativity, and his... willingness to speak his mind."

There was a chuckle from those who knew David best.

"Many of you here are unaware of all that Vocator Stroud has done for us.  Let it suffice to say that, without his contributions, Callamandia might not exist today.  Arkigo?"

The king stepped back slightly, and Arkigo Schwarzkopf stepped forward from the side of the room.  As the commander of the Ark that David's unit belonged to, it was his duty to present awards.

Akg. Schwarzkopf said, "For bravery and heroism on the field of battle, performing well beyond the call of duty, and for never giving up, even in the face of overwhelming odds,  Vocator David Stroud is awarded the Verdant Star, for the fourth time.

"For intelligence, perseverance, and diligence in pursuit of new magical technology to aid in the war effort, Vocator Stroud is awarded the Cerulean Star, for the third time.

"For mastery and practice of a wholly new branch of divination, Vocator Stroud is awarded the Medal of Merit, for the third time.

For single-handedly taking charge of a military situation for which there is no precedent, rallying a group of untrained civilians, facing down insurmountable odds, and securing a victory, Vocator Stroud is awarded the Medal of Valor, for the second time.

For being responsible for locating, securing, aiding in the construction of, and operating the device that changed the course of the war,  Vocator David Stroud is awarded the Star of Rabb."

There were murmurs through even the military.  The Star of Rabb had been awarded only a handful of times in all of Callamandia's history.

"Finally, as befits his actions, his heroism, his leadership qualities, and his results, Vocator David Stroud is hereby promoted to the rank of Batalisto."

As Akg. Schwarzkopf stepped back, there was applause throughout the Great Hall.

The king held up his hand for quiet.

"The military has its awards, and David deserves every last one of them.  But the crown itself wishes to acknowledge that, but for this man, this demighost, no less... we would not be standing here today.

"In light of that, the crown awards David Stroud one chevron- his fifth - in acknowledgment of his vast service during this time of struggle.

"Next, in doing things that were asked of him, David put more than life and limb on the line.  He was asked to do things that no person should be asked to do.  He was put in situations that would drive a lesser man insane, and I do not mean that figuratively.  Despite knowing the risks to his mental health, and despite not wanting to perform these tasks, Paladin Stroud never once refused, because, he said, it was his duty to do that which his king had asked of him.

"The crown awards David Stroud his third crescent, in acknowledgment of the personal loyalty and service he has given directly to the crown.

"Further, many of you know that Paladin Stroud had to cut short his education, missing his eighth year of schooling in order to enter military service.

"After a review of his history and his record, and with the agreement of Dean Lengel and the Minister of Education, I am hereby awarding David Stroud, Master Wizard, his Magistrate's Decree by royal edict."

"And, finally... the last time I subjected David to one of these ceremonies, I made him a Royal Paladin.  This is a title he has lived up to, to the fullest extent possible.  It is our sincere hope that he will do so again...

"As the crown now awards Paladin David Stroud the official title of Lord Stroud, Royal Paladin and Knight of the Realm.

"Now you can kneel," the king said to David with a grin.

David dropped to one knee, bowing his head as the king drew a sword.  He tapped David on the left shoulder, and said, "You kneel as David Stroud."  He then tapped him on the right shoulder and continued, "But you rise Lord David Stroud."

As David rose, the liderra called out, "Full Salute!"  The soldiers raised their wands, and the crimson light flooded the room.

"Turn and face your people, Lord Stroud.  Your title means almost more than mine does.  You earned yours.  I just got elected."

"Yes, Your Majesty," David said.  There was nothing else to be said at that point.  As David turned to face them, the room erupted in applause and cheers.

"As you know, there must be a reception for this sort of thing.  It is being held out in the courtyard.  The pixies must have worked miracles to set it all up while we were in here doing this, so you wouldn't know..."

David snorted.  "I appreciate the honors, sir, but..."

"But you could have done without the pomp and circumstance.  Yes, I know that.  But other people need the ceremony, David.  It helps with things."

"If you say so."

"One last thing.  I was told that you lost your sword during battle."

"It was broken by a werewolf's club," David confirmed.

The king presented the sword he was carrying.  "It's yours."

David took the sword from the king's hands.  It wasn't overly ornate; it contained a large sapphire in the center of the crossbar, on either side of the sword, and another in the pommel.  The dragonscale wrapping on the handle was exquisitely done.  The crossbar contained gold accents among the silver.

Inscribed just above the crossbar, directly on the blade, was a capital letter R, in calligraphy script.  It didn't take long for David to figure out what that meant.

"Sir... this was the sword of King Rabb I.  I can't take this..."

"It's one of five owned by the kingdom.  It won't be missed, it's been sitting in a vault since long before I became king.  The most ornate of Rabb's swords is on display in the palace museum.  This was Rabb's work sword, the one he carried with him into battle.  If there was anyone who should possess this weapon... it's you."

David handled the sword for a moment, feeling its balance, its speed.  It was very close to, but not exactly the same as, his old sword.  He would need to practice with it.  Turning back to the king, he said, "Thank you, again."  He slipped the sword into the coat pocket he had enchanted for the purpose.

"Shall we go to the reception?" the king asked.

"Sure."  As they walked out of the Great Hall, David finally got up the nerve, and said, "Jonathan... I have a question."

"Ask away," the king replied.

"How much of what you've done for me was to simply keep up with your plan to keep me on the side of good?"

"My plan?"

"I know about the conspiracy, Jonathan," David chided.  "You, Dean Lengel, the Minister of Education?  To help a demighost along, so he'd turn out to be a good little boy?"

"That was you?" the king gasped. 

David looked at him skeptically.  "Just how many demighosts do you get passing through your kingdom?"

The king blushed.  "Okay, fair enough.  Sorry.  But to answer your question, though I do remember what you're talking about, now that you explain it, I had no actual role in putting that plan into action.  By the time I'd met you, the day the lamias visited... I had forgotten all about that plan.  There was no great conspiracy going on behind the idea.  We weren't meeting monthly, plotting out new ways to manipulate you.  It was a simple idea, and I, for one, left it in Madame Lengel's very capable hands.

"Nothing I have ever done in relation to you had anything to do with that idea, David.  I promise you that.  What brought this information to your attention?"

David explained about Lord Dailey, and what he'd said about Dean Lengel, and about possessing her.

"My word, David... to have had that doubt in your head for over a year... to have lost that support when you could have used it the most...  How much calmer could your year have been if only?"

"Yeah.  If only.  Had I known, I guess I'd have confronted Dean Lengel sooner, but... I didn't want to accuse her of that.  Emile and I have been through a great deal together over the last eight years, and that felt like stabbing her in the back."

"I can understand that.  Well, it's past now.  You survived, we survived.  Now, I asked you this the last time I felt the need to embarrass you in front of people.  I know the title is meaningless to you.  What can I do to properly say thank you for all you've done for us?"

David looked at him, and then stopped walking.  "Your Majesty, there is only one thing that I could possibly want at this point in time."

"Yes?" the king asked curiously.

David grabbed his own coat, and pulled it away from his body.  "Get me out of this damned uniform."

The king smiled.  "I should have known."  The two started walking again.  "Would you be satisfied with being taken off active duty status, and placed in the reserves?"

"What, exactly, would that mean?"

"For a while, we will need your help with the OmniPortal.  It would make everyone more comfortable if you were still a military officer when working in conjunction with that project.  I swear to you; no other duties."

"That would be acceptable."

"Good.  I will file the necessary order before the day is done."

"Thank you."

"And, before we start enjoying ourselves, one last thing.  There is another small ceremony I wish you to be part of.  It will happen around midnight, at the top of the north tower in the castle.  You will be there?"

"Yes, sir."

"Good.  Now, go, enjoy your accolades.  You've earned them." 

David made his way to the top of the tower shortly before midnight.  Since he was still sleeping in the castle, it was a short walk.

Emerging onto the top of the north tower, David saw Lord Woodward speaking softly and somberly with Madame Barbonne.  The king stood off to one side, looking out to sea.  A few other ghosts were present, but not Penny.  David wasn't surprised by this; Lord Woodward made her uncomfortable, and so if this had something to do with him, she wouldn't want to be there.

Emile was the only other living person present.  David greeted her quietly, as that seemed to be the mood of the moment, though David had no idea why.

David suddenly felt another presence behind him.  He knew the sensation well enough that he didn't need to turn, but politeness forced him to, anyway.

"Gabriel," David said quietly.  "Why are you here?"

"Performing one of my functions," she said, but didn't elaborate.  She merely stood off to one side.

Lord Woodward wrapped up his conversation with Madame Barbonne, and she stepped back.

Lord Woodward looked around, making eye contact with everyone present, then he began to speak.

"Once again, this castle, my home, has faced, and successfully repelled, an invasion from our nation's enemies.  I take pride in how well this fortress has stood the test of time and war.

"But a castle needs but one lord, and the time has come when another has arisen, able to take over the stewardship of my charge.

"Lord Stroud... David... I am officially turning over the care and supervision of Castle Woodward, and her residents, to you.  Control of the castle passes to your authority, and the well-being of the ghosts who live within is now your responsibility.  I know, as do they, that you will always have their best interests at heart."

David was clearly expected to say something at this point, though he didn't know if there was a formal way for him to respond.

"While I accept with respect and honor the duties you pass on to me, I confess a lack of understanding as to why."

"It is time that I move on, David," Lord Woodward said.  "My time here has come to an end.  I long ago lost interest in this world, but was waiting for someone who could stand as protector of this castle, not as military monument, but as a home for all those who do, and will, reside within.  Until now, no one has come forward capable of accepting the job.

"For eight years, I have watched you call this place your home, even when you did not live here.  That is the kind of attitude I have been waiting for.

"And now, with that mission complete, it is time for me to say good-bye."

Madame Barbonne was weeping now, and the other ghosts looked somber.

"Where will you go?" David asked, still not understanding the truth.

"That... is a very good question, to which no one has an answer," Lord Woodward said.

Gabriel stepped forward at this point.  "His Lordship is discorporating tonight, David," she said.  "Whether this is a final end, or merely a transition to a new existence, no one, not even the banshees, knows with any certainty.  The only thing we know for sure is that he will no longer exist here."

David turned to Lord Woodward.  "Are you sure you're ready for this, sir?  There is much you could still teach me..."

Lord Woodward snorted.  "You have proven that you no longer need my assistance, Lord Stroud.  Your defense of this castle was as good or better than anything I could have produced with the same resources.  And I have nothing else to teach that you have not already learned better from others.

"Yes, I am ready to say good-bye for the final time.  If a new horizon opens up to me, then I will face that new challenge with interest and vigor.  If, however, what awaits is nothing more than eternal rest... that, too, will be welcome.

"I want to tell you that I am proud of you.  You have grown by leaps and bounds since the day we first met, and I leave this place confident in its future.  Good luck to you, David.  Good-bye."

The two men hugged, and then Lord Woodward turned to Gabriel.

Gabriel asked, "Lord Peter Alexander Woodward, are you officially requesting discorporation?  Please understand that your answer is binding; do not answer in haste."

Lord Woodward nodded.  With a breath, he said, "Yes."

"Prepare yourself for what awaits," Gabriel said.

Lord Woodward took several more deep breaths, and nodded.

Gabriel raised her hand and placed her index finger and her ring finger on Lord Woodward's forehead, just above his eyes.  Gently, she slid her fingers downward, forcing his eyes closed for the last time.

A soft orange glow, like that of a candle, suffused Lord Woodward's ghostly body until there was no sign of his actual form inside the glow.  Slowly, the orange light faded, and he was gone.

Gabriel turned to David, a slight frown upon her face.  "I have never liked this particular task.  The one thought that sometimes heartens me, David, is that I will never have to perform this task for you."

Gabriel bowed her head to him slightly, and then she turned and left, fading to invisibility as she walked toward the stairs.

"Friends," the king said, "Let us have a moment of silence for our departed friend."

They all stood quietly, looking up at the stars.  One by one, the ghosts left, until it was just the humans on the tower.

"What, exactly, do my duties to the castle entail?" David asked quietly.

"You will be responsible for negotiations with the school in regards to activities within the castle.  Any troubles between the students and the ghosts will be up to you to solve.  And, of course, you are now in charge of the Night of Haunting," the king told him.

"What if I'm not living at the castle?" David asked worriedly.

"Then you will have to appoint a representative that you trust... though most negotiations would still require your involvement," the king said.

"And... are there any official privileges, being steward of the castle?"

"The castle is your domain.  You may do with it what you wish, so long as you live up to the agreements already in place, or as they may be revised in the future." the king answered.  "As I'm sure you already understand, actual ownership of the castle has never been placed in anyone but the crown, but in practical terms, the castle belongs to you."

"Oh.  Okay."  David turned to Emile.  "Get your damn school out of my castle!" he said with a big grin.  The other two chuckled.

"Nice to know where you stand on the matter," Emile told him with a smile.

"It's going to feel weird, not having Lord Woodward here," David said, growing serious again.  "He was always such a... presence, such a foundation of this place."

"Yes," Emile agreed.  "Even if he was often grumpy and uncooperative."

"If it makes you feel better, I can continue those traditions in any negotiations we have..." David offered.

Emile smiled.  "I'd prefer you didn't."

"David," the king said, "I'll be heading back south tomorrow.  I would like you to have breakfast with Claire and myself in the morning."

"Yes, sir.  The cafeteria, or are you eating here in the castle?"

"The cafeteria.  This is not my castle, after all."

"Sir, if you want to eat here... heck if you want to sleep here, you are most welcome..."

"Claire feels uncomfortable around so many ghosts," the king explained.  "We're staying in faculty housing.  Trust me, quarters are quite acceptable."

"Yes, sir.  In that case, I'll see you in the cafeteria in the morning."

"Good deal.  Good night, both of you."

As the king headed off, David returned to looking up at the stars.

"Are you all right?" Emile asked.

"I guess so.  It's just... another lost friend.  Somehow, even worse.  I mean, Cat and Charlie have moved on, but at least JoAnne and Tanya are still around.  They're both staying here at the school, so I didn't really lose them, you know?  And if I really needed to, I could find Cat or Charlie.  But Lord Woodward, he's... well, he's as gone as Jailla is."

Emile hesitated, but she finally reached over and hugged David.  He wrapped one arm around her, appreciating her closeness, while he stared up at the stars and contemplated everything that had gone on.

 The next morning was gray, and a slow, soaking rain was coming down.  David stood on the balcony of the castle's Master Bedroom, looking out over the water.  David wondered why Lord Woodward would have chosen this view, instead of the land.  There was virtually nothing to see out on the ocean.  At least a view of the land would have looked down on the courtyard of the castle.

There was especially nothing to see right now, as visibility was severely reduced by the rain.  All was gray, and it matched David's overall mood.  He wasn't feeling depressed, as such, but the discorporation of Lord Woodward the previous night had brought home all the losses, starting with Joe, and Lise, and making their way through to Cat, Charlie, and Jailla.

"David?" a voice asked.  David started; there wasn't supposed to be anyone in the bedroom, he had slept alone the previous night.

David turned to see Emile standing at the bedroom door.

"Good morning," David said quietly.

Emile crossed the bedroom and stepped out onto the balcony, which was covered, so neither of them were getting wet.  She looked down at his clothes.

"You... just don't look right," she said with a smile.

David was wearing what he referred to as "street clothes".  Since he was no longer an active-duty military officer, he wasn't supposed to wear that uniform.  He wasn't a student at the moment, so he didn't feel right wearing his Woodward uniform, and he had not returned to active duty with the Rimohrs yet, so he didn't wish to wear that uniform, either.  Left with no other options, he had to dress like a civilian.

To Emile, he said, "Yes, well... I don't feel quite right, either, so I guess that fits."

"What's wrong?" she asked.

"Just feeling a little out of sorts," he said.  "Troubles at home await me, so I'm not really eager to go there.  Once the king heads back south today, I probably won't be needed 'downstairs' any time soon.  I'm still on leave from the Rimohrs until the paperwork clears through... In other words, for the first time in I-haven't-even-got-a-clue, I have nothing to do, and nowhere I really need to be."

"Welcome to relaxation," Emile said.

David grunted.  "I don't feel very relaxed.  What are you doing up this time of day, anyway?"

"I'm usually up with the sun," she replied.

"I see no sun..." David pointed out.

Emile smiled.  "It's up there somewhere."

"So what are you doing in the castle?  I've been here long enough now to know you don't generally wander around this particular part of campus."

Emile shrugged.  "I know you get up early, too.  I came to say good morning."

"Uh-huh," David said, unconvinced.  "Have they given you any solid answers about the future of the school?"

"The king has assured me that, thanks to your ideas, the school will open as normal in the fall.  A few minor structural changes, but those will be out of sight."

"Are they hiding the energy cannons in Santana Hall, or Firebird Stadium?" David asked with a grin.

Emile chuckled.  "Nothing like that.  But facilities in the mountain have to be built, to house a company of troops for security."

David nodded.

The two stood quietly, watching the rain for a while, before Emile asked, "What's the trouble back home, if I may ask?"

"My girlfriend doesn't want to be an also-ran," David said.  "Can't say as I blame her, but it's not a pleasant situation."

"An also-ran?" Emile asked.

David explained, in a condensed form, the issues with Zyla and Olissa and the others.

Emile said, "If she truly loves you, she may be able to overlook those things."

"That wasn't the impression I got when I left last time," David said.

"How long has it been?"

"Uh... oh, shit, this month has been so crazy... late last month, at some point."

"So she's had a few weeks to think about it.  Perhaps she's changed her mind."

"That would be nice, but I don't hold out much hope," David said.

"Well, if she says no, it's not the end of the world," Emile said.  "There are plenty of women out there who would be happy to take her place."

"Including you?" David asked with a smirk.

"What?" Emile gasped.

"Just what would the dean of students have said if I'd asked her out?" David queried with a slight grin.

"Oh, god, you saw that?" she asked.

"Yes, I saw that.  I gather that was one of those 'embarrassing' secrets you were worried about."

"I'm sorry, David.  I mean, it's not..."

David put his hand softly on her cheek to quiet her protests.

"With me now having my Magistrate's Decree, I'm not allowed to be a student here anymore, am I?" David asked.

"No.  You are considered to be fully educated at this point, making you ineligible for admission."

"So, since I can no longer be a student here, it's not disrespectful for me to do this," David said.  He leaned in very slowly, slipping his hand onto her shoulder and rubbing his thumb gently against the base of her neck.  As their lips met, she closed her eyes and stepped in, enjoying and encouraging David's actions.

The two remained like that for some time, their lips the only parts of them moving.  Finally, however, they had to separate.  Emile was blushing fiercely from a mix of embarrassment and arousal.

"David..."

"Shh.  The only reason I never expressed any interest in you was because I figured it would be improper for you to date a student."

"Didn't learn anything from Sam and Louisa, did you?" Emile replied with a smile.

"They're teachers, not disciplinarians."

"Hmm," she said, and then leaned in again, to see what he would do.  He pressed his lips to hers tightly, and let his hands slide onto her hips, holding her gently.  She wrapped her arms around his neck as they kissed.

Finally, when they separated, she looked over her shoulder, back toward the bedroom.

"If you think, after all this, I'm letting you off with a kiss, you are sorely mistaken."

"But... I gave you two kisses," David jokingly objected.

"The second one only dug your hole deeper, Mr. Stroud," she said.

David ushered her back into the bedroom and closed the doors so they would have some warmth.  He waved his hand, and the bedroom door closed, to give them privacy.  That done, he turned back to Emile.

The two resumed kissing, and David ran his hands along her back, inside her coat.  She was slender, but not thin, and it felt very nice holding her.  The kissing went on for long moments, until finally she stepped back slightly.  She shrugged off her coat, which fell to the floor, and then she began to kneel, but David stopped her before she got very far.

She frowned slightly and asked, "Do you not enjoy oral sex?"

"I love oral sex, it's just..."

"I'm a normal woman, David.  I am just as sexual as the next girl."

"Oh, that's not it.  I would really like if you did that to me.  I just... can't deal with having you kneeling in front of me right now.  Could we move to the bed?"

Emile smiled softly at him.  She leaned in and kissed him, while her hands worked at the fasteners on his pants.  In short order, she had them undone and pushed his pants, and his briefs, to the floor.  As he stepped out of them - he hadn't yet put on shoes or socks - she took hold of his cock, which was already quite hard, and began to stroke it softly.

After another long kiss, she finally let him loose.  He removed his shirt as he walked over to the bed and sat down on it.  He noticed she hadn't yet approached.

"What's the matter?" he asked.

"I was trying to decide whether to disrobe myself, or let you do it later," she admitted.

"Come over here, and we'll take care of the problem together," David offered.

"Mm," she hummed, and stepped over to him, kicking off her shoes as she went.

Once she was within range, David reached up and ran his hands along her sides, and then he softly moved his hands over her breasts.  She closed her eyes and enjoyed the sensations for as long as he'd let her.

Finally, though, he moved his hands off her breasts to begin unbuttoning her blouse.  She untucked the garment from her skirt and unfastened her cuffs, while he finished undoing the front.  That finished, she shucked the blouse and let it fall to the floor.  She was about to reach back to undo her bra, but he stopped her.

"I want to save that for later," he said with a smile.  She returned the expression, and let her hands drop.

David took no time to unfasten her skirt, which slipped easily to the floor.  He ran his hands over her outer thighs, caressing her skin softly and arousing both of them.

As her arousal got the better of her, Emile pushed David backward, onto the bed.  He scooted fully onto it as she joined him.  Her fingers encircled his shaft once more as her lips re-engaged his, and they resumed kissing.

After a short while, Emile slid down his body.  She kissed the shaft of his cock gently, and then licked its entire length.  David moaned softly, enjoying the feel of her tongue.  Especially after the stress of the previous week, with no release, it felt wonderful.

Emile licked David's cock until it was good and wet, and then she brought her mouth to the head of his dick, and took him in.  He was large enough that she could barely get half of him into her mouth, but then she began to stroke him with her lips, and her hand.

"Oh, damn, that's nice," David whispered to her.  She kept up her moves, sliding her tongue back and forth across his dick as her mead moved up and down, along with her hand.  She didn't get frenetic in her movements, but kept up a smooth bobbing motion, which was driving David rapidly toward his peak.

As he passed the point of no return, David grunted to warn Emile, but she didn't change a thing about her movements.  In a few more seconds, David came, blasting a load of cum into her mouth.  Emile slowed her movements, letting him fill her mouth with his spunk, and then she swallowed it, still holding his cock in her hand, her lips still pressed firmly against his flesh.

Once she was finished, she slowly withdrew her mouth, letting her lips ride in contact all the way, until they slipped off the tip, and then she gave his cock a soft kiss.  She moved back up to cuddle David, knowing he would need a moment to recover.

"Wow," was all David could think to say.  "That was nice."

Emile smiled softly.  "I'm glad you liked it.  I was a little worried about being out of practice."

"Trust me, you did just fine," David assured her, and then rolled slightly to kiss her.  He then continued to roll, pushing her onto her back.  Their lips remained locked, but his hand wandered slowly across her skin, caressing her side, her stomach, her thighs.  He carefully reached his arms around her and unfastened her bra, drawing it off her and tossing it aside.  He studied her breasts for a moment, enjoying the small, pale areolas on her slightly larger than average bust.  Finally, he slid his hand onto her breast, cupping it gently and massaging the flesh.  His thumb slowly meandered across her nipple, making her shiver and mew in pleasure.

David eventually moved his hand to her other breast, giving it just as much attention.  When she was squirming from her arousal, David let his hand shift off her breasts and downward, slipping over her stomach and down toward her vee.

As his fingers slipped under her waistband and approached her groin, Emile spread her legs, giving him room to slide his hand in.  As his finger slid past her clit, he could feel the heat radiating off her, and his hand soon felt her wetness.  He slipped a finger into her easily, but he didn't keep it there for long.

Breaking their kiss, David looked into her eyes.  "Your turn," he said, and then moved down her body.  He stopped for only a few seconds to tongue and kiss her nipples, then continued on his journey.  As he went, his hands grasped her panties and tugged them off her hips, sliding them down her legs and out of the way.

As David's destination was completely obvious, Emile slipped her panties the rest of the way off and spread her legs apart, giving him all the room he could want.  He slid down between them, and then he very, very slowly ran the tip of his tongue from the back of her pussy, along her lips, past her opening, and up until he circled her clit.  By the time he reached that point, Emile was trying to control her hips, and shivering in pleasure.

David let his tongue caress her clit now, slipping wetly back and forth over it.  He slid a finger inside her pussy and began to slip it in and out.  Emile moaned in bliss, her eyes closed, her head pushed back into the mattress.  She could feel the tingles beginning, and she welcomed their arrival.  Her breathing quickened as her body prepared for the impending climax.

After only a little while more, she knew that it was an imminent event.  She rocked her hips against David's face, and he took her clit between his lips, sucking on it.  His finger continued to fuck her, and she finally lost it.  Screaming out in passion, Emile's body twitched and bucked.  David kept his lips against her until finally she had to push him away, simply too sensitive to continue.

Emily was panting now, out of breath from the intense ecstasy she had just experienced.  David let her recover without interference, but grabbed a pillow from the head of the bed, as they were currently lying on it cross-wise.  He didn't slip it under her head, but simply set it behind her for the moment.  It would have a use when she was ready.

Lying down next to her, David took Emile into his arms and cuddled with her some more.  She pressed herself against him and mewled softly, just enjoying being held.

After a couple minutes, Emile looked at David with a smile.  "That was... almost good enough for you to be off the hook," she said.

"Damn," David said with a fake frown.  "You're just gonna force me to make love to a beautiful woman, aren't you?" he asked.

"No, to me," she said, a slight frown crossing her face.

David looked deeply into her eyes.  "You are a beautiful woman, Emile," David said.  He kissed her tenderly, for the first time slipping his tongue out against her lips.  She opened her mouth and their tongues began to slip wetly against each other, but slowly, sensually.

Leaning back, David had Emile roll over onto the pillow he'd placed behind her.  It was now beneath her hips, pushing her butt up into the air.  David moved on top of her, and caressed her ass.

"If I'm so beautiful, how come you want my face buried in the bed?" she asked mischievously.

"Because your backside is also beautiful, and I wanted to look at that for a little while," he said with a grin.

"Hmm," she said.

"And besides," he said, "It's a good position for me to do this."  He leaned over her and placed the head of his dick against her pussy opening.  He paused for a long moment.

"What's the matter?" she fretted.

"How long has it been?" he asked gently.

"A very long time," she admitted easily.

"I'll go slowly," he promised.

Emile just sighed and laid her head back down on the bed.

David pushed his hips forward, the head of his dick easily sliding into her pussy.  Emile moaned quietly and shifted her hips, giving him the best position for entering her.  He continued to press forward, but as slowly as he could manage.  She was wet, but very tight, and he didn't want to hurt her.  Finally, however, he was fully inside of her, his hips resting against her ass.  He stroked her butt cheeks while he held himself up with his other hand.

"Are you all right?" he asked her.

"Oh, yes, just fine," she assured him.  He could hear the lust in her voice.

David began to move, trying to keep his thrusts smooth.  He started slow, but as it was clear she was ready for more, he began to pick up speed.  He continued to caress her ass and back as he plunged into her, trying to make her feel as good as possible.

He was doing a very good job of that, as Emile's heat was quickly rising.  She was soon on the verge of her next orgasm, and she began to whine in eager anticipation, letting David know.

David thrust just a little harder and faster, and Emile was quickly over the edge.  She shoved her hips back at him, burying him as far as possible into her pussy, and then she froze, letting out a guttural cry of ecstasy that filled the room.  David kept still, except for his hand, which continued to caress her back as her shudders slowly died away.  When she started to come down, he leaned forward over her and kissed the base of her neck.  She moaned at that, loving his touch.

David softly caressed Emile's sides while he waited for her to calm down from her high.  He was in no hurry.  He had fantasized about being with Emile for several years, and he felt no need to try to rush its conclusion.

When she seemed ready, David pushed himself back upright.  He gently rolled Emile back toward the headboard, until she was lying on her back.  He straddled her left leg, lifting her right leg behind the knee and holding it against his hip.  He then pushed his cock slowly back into her.

"Oh, so nice," she murmured.

David thrust into her quickly now, able to watch her face for any signs of discomfort.  All he saw there was happiness and enjoyment.  Her eyes were closed as her body rocked in rhythm with David's thrusts.  She was panting and moaning, her body shivering and her hips rocking.  It was clear that it wouldn't be long before she would be awash in bliss one more time.

David held her leg in one hand, and caressed her thigh with the other, as he continued to plunge into her.  He could sense her arousal, and he was working to keep her from coming.  He wasn't able to manage for long, however, as she soon bucked up into him several times, hard, and then she screamed out, "Oh, god, David, yes!"  Her body shuddered as he continued to thrust into her, prolonging her enjoyment.

When she seemed to be recovering from her high, David gently set her leg down, and then leaned over her.  He kissed her softly, and let his free hand rest on her breast, squeezing gently and fondling her flesh.

The two remained like that for a couple minutes as Emile recovered.  Once she was ready, she let David know with a look.

David had never removed his cock from within her, and so he once again began to stroke.  This time, he kept his moves slow and easy.  He knew that he would come soon, but he wanted to prolong things, and he also wanted to feel close to this woman who had meant so much to his life for eight years now.

The two kissed repeatedly as their bodies coupled, their movements synchronizing so that they acted as one being.  Their passions rose together, and their moans and cries soon filled the room.

As her orgasm washed over her, Emile cried out David's name, her pussy squeezing him wonderfully.  David couldn't take that, and so he pressed himself fully into her and froze, his cum gushing into her pussy as his body shuddered above her.

Once his climax was done, David slipped his arms beneath Emile, pulling her very tightly to himself, and then he rolled onto his side, taking her with him.  She instinctively  nestled her head against his shoulder and tucked herself against his body, enjoying the afterglow of wonderful sex, and the feel of a slowly shrinking cock still inside her pussy.

For a long moment, nothing was said.  They just lay together and felt.  When someone did move, it was Emile, and she didn't go far.  She rolled over to face the French doors, and then she snuggled back against David.

"Thank you, David.  That was..."

"Shh," David told her.  "There's no need to thank me.  I didn't do this as some kind of favor to you.  I did it because... well, because it was time."

She looked over her shoulder at him, and smiled very tenderly at him.  She then lay down and rested for a few minutes, his arms around her, his body tight against her.

Finally, she said, "David... I need you to stay here with me."

"Excuse me?" David asked, not sure he'd heard her correctly.

Emile blushed crimson.  "That didn't come out the way I meant it!" she said.

David loosened his hold on her.  "Care to try again, then?" he said, his voice light.

Emile turned over to look at him.  He quickly gave her a kiss, which she happily accepted.  After he leaned back, she tried to get her thinking under control.

"As you know, we lost a lot of professors during the battle," she said.

David frowned.  "Yeah."

"I don't know if you've given it any thought, but we lost both Professor Blackstone, and Professor Sarantakos."

David looked at her blankly.  "Is that somehow more important than the others?"

"Only because it puts a whole department out of commission.  David, those two professors were the entire Conjuring Department."

"Oh... right.  Yeah, I guess I knew that, but hadn't really bothered to think about it."

"David... I'm going to play dirty here.  The school needs your help again."

"I think for once, I'm kind of even with the school..."

Emile smiled.  "No, I'd say at this point, we owe you.  Would it change your thinking if I tell you that I need your help?"

"Now that's playing dirty," David said.  He sighed.  "You want me to teach, is that it?"

"Not just teach," she said.

"What else is there?" David asked.

"I want you to head the department."

"Emile, I don't know anything about running an academic department."

"How much did you know about running a scout company this time last year?" she asked.

David grudgingly said, "Absolutely nothing."

"Look how well you managed that.  Please, David.  I won't be able to find two people for professorships by the fall.  It was hard enough replacing Quayde.  And I can't expect whoever I find to be good enough to handle the entire department.  We both know you will pick up the task in a matter of weeks.  The school really does need your help, or we will not have a Conjuring Department next year."

David frowned.  He didn't want to let the school down.  He didn't want to disappoint Emile.  Teaching, however, was still uncomfortable for him.

But at least it doesn't make me want to kill anybody...

David was quiet for a long time, and Emile just waited, watching his face to see if he'd come to a decision.

Finally, David looked back at her, and ran his hand along her side softly.

"Does the job come with any... fringe benefits?" he asked.  His hand was now resting in a spot that made his question entirely clear.

Emile blushed.  "You would want that?"

"I think it's pretty unavoidable, if you're going to make me stay on campus," David admitted.  "I'd been fighting my urges for a couple years before I left."

"Really," she said softly.  She snuggled in close.  "What kind of relationship would you hope for between us?" she asked.

"My normal answer to that question, Emile, is I'll take what I can get.  From you, I would want as much as you're willing to give me... keeping in mind all the stuff I mentioned earlier about my life."

She looked up into his eyes.  "You want a relationship serious enough where that would matter?" she asked.

"I don't know how quickly it would matter to you," David admitted.

"You already have a girlfriend," Emile objected.

"I may have a girlfriend.  I have no idea, really.  I fear she won't even be there when I get back home.  She as much as said she wouldn't be.  But even if she is... you and I have a history... we've been through a lot of trials together.  Trust issues, revelations, missing fish..."

Emile giggled about that one.

"Missing crimson-colored fish, by the way, which kind of gave you away even before I possessed you..."

Emile blushed, but then she leaned up and kissed him.  "I haven't been in a serious relationship at any level in more than twenty years.  If ever there was a man I'd be willing to try again with, it would be you.  But we should take things slowly, especially if your girlfriend is staying."

"Well, I wasn't going to ask you to marry me next week," David replied with a grin.

"You're impossible," Emile said, and kissed him.  Growing more serious, she asked, "So, you are going to take the position?"

"Like you really gave me any choice in the matter?" David asked.

"I'm sorry, David.  I hate to corner you like this, but... I don't have anywhere else to turn."

"Don't feel bad.  This may turn out to be a very good thing for me.  I'm far less likely to encounter people I want to choke to death as a professor, than as a Rimohr."

"True... I hope," Emile said with a smile.

"Besides, you're family.  I won't abandon my family when they need help."

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

David held her tightly as they kissed.  Finally, they broke apart.

"I'd love to stay here and have more fun, but I have to be to breakfast with the king."

Emile ran her hand across his chest.  "That's okay.  Honestly, I don't think that would be a good idea right now, anyway.  Certain parts of me are already protesting a workout they haven't undergone in a really long time."

David smiled.  "Well, then I wish I had the time to give you a nice back rub.  But I should really get up and get moving."

After about a half-minute, during which David didn't move, Emile said, "You don't seem to be going anywhere."

"I said I should.  I didn't say I wanted to," David admitted.

Emile blushed, then kissed him for a long moment.

"Go on.  It's not like we're not going to be seeing a lot of each other from now on."

"Hmm," he said.  "True."

"Of course, you're going to be regularly assaulted by Sam, too, now... especially since she hasn't seen you in a year..."

"Ugh.  Such hardships," David sighed theatrically.

"Uh-huh.  David?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you really want to be close to me?  You're not just feeling sorry for this old woman?"

"Emile... okay, this is impolite, but... just how old are you?"

Emile blushed, and then she whispered in his ear.  David's eyebrows went very high.

"Okay, wasn't expecting that.  I can say, without a doubt, you are by far the most beautiful woman that age I have ever encountered.  And very sexy, to boot.

"But more than that, you are a friend.  A true friend.  You didn't even bitch too much when I called you a traitor."

"You called me a traitor?"

"Betraying me, in the middle of a battle, would have been treason," David pointed out.

"Oh.  I didn't think of it that way.  And I can understand the spot you were in, David.  How do you know who to believe?"

"I should have believed you, and the last seven years of my life.  I'm sorry."

"It's all right," she said, and kissed him again.  "We both have trust issues, we know that."

"And that's the other reason I'd like us to be closer.  You understand things about me that maybe others don't see quite so clearly.  Hell, you've understood things about me that I didn't know."

Emile giggled.

"So, no, it's not pity."  David paused for a long moment, then, with a huge grin, he said, "Trust me."

Emile laughed.

"Good morning, David," the king greeted.

"Good morning, Your Majesties.  Hey, Christa."

Christa grunted in response, as her mouth was full of food.

"You know, they'll feed you at lunch, too.  You don't need to gorge yourself at breakfast," David told her with a grin.

Once she swallowed, Christa stuck her tongue out at him, then went back to eating her breakfast.

After David ordered his breakfast, the king said, "The construction below is well underway.  It should be finished by the end of the week.  How long do you think it would take to train two or three operators?"

"Unless you can find good diviners, you're going to have to start basically from scratch.  That means three to four months."

"And if we could find a couple high-level diviners?"

"A couple weeks, mainly for practice.  The theory of it is pretty straightforward.  You saw how easily I picked it up."

"Yes, but you're a Master Wizard," the king said.

"That's hardly relevant.  Anyone who made it into Advanced Divination should be able to perform this task, once they've got a handle on the concepts."

"Good.  That group of people isn't so small as to make life difficult."

"I'm sure that, in a pinch, Professors Zoroaster and Dartson could both manage the task.  It would probably not take them more than a few days to master the process."

"Will you be here long enough to train them?"

"If we do it quickly.  I have things in Bolmont that need taking care of."

"And returning to work with the Rimohrs?" the king asked.

David frowned.  "No.  I'll be resigning that position as soon as I return to Bolmont."

"Why?" the queen wondered.

"I've been asked to head the Conjuring Department here at the academy.  Both of our Conjuring masters were killed in the fighting.  As I am a level 7 conjurer, and have some limited teaching experience, and because conjuring instructors are really hard to find, Madame Lengel asked me to take the post."

"Wait, you mean I have to treat you like a professor now?" Christa asked.

"Yes.  And don't make me give you detention."

"Aw, man..." Christa said.

The queen said, "It's all right to sleep with your professor, Christa.  Just ask David!"

Christa blushed crimson, and David shook his head in embarrassment.

"Look at the bright side," David said.  "You can't even have me as an instructor until the year after this next one."

"Why not?"

"Conjuring isn't allowed to be taken before third year," David explained.

"So you will be remaining on the mountain, then," the king said.  "Which will make training new operators much simpler... and increase our security with your very presence."

"Sir, you promised..."

"I will give you no mission, David, but I highly doubt you're going to sit on your hands if an enemy shows up on your doorstep wanting to cause trouble..."

"No, probably not," David agreed.

"I have to wonder if Prof. Teller has considered talking to you about teaching a combat class," the king mused.

"Feel free to not say that out loud ever again, sir," David replied.

The other three chuckled.

"Uncle David, what are we doing up here?" Garrett asked.  He looked pretty leery to be in the castle at nightfall.

"Introducing you," David said.  "Penny?" he called out.

Immediately, Penny faded to visibility.  "Hello, Lord Stroud," she said with a smile.

"Don't you start with me," David warned.  Penny giggled.  David asked, "Could you gather the ghosts into the Great Hall for me?  I would like to get their permission for something."

"David, the castle belongs to you, not the ghosts..."

"Just because I'm responsible for it doesn't make it entirely mine.  I'm also responsible to those who live here."

"As you wish.  It will take a few minutes."

"No problem, we have all night.  Come on, guys, we'll wait in the Great Hall."

"You own a castle?" Angela asked.

"No, the king owns the castle.  I'm allowed to use it.  Because I'm going to be a teacher here, and with you two, plus Olissa and Denise, and maybe Zyla and Grace... it makes more sense to live up here in the castle than in faculty housing.  So I want you guys to meet the ghosts, and vice versa."

In short order, most of the ghosts arrived in the Great Hall.  David stood up on the dais, but refused to sit in Lord Woodward's seat.

"That's everyone who's coming," Penny told him when she reappeared.

"Is there a problem, Lord Stroud?" Madame Barbonne asked.

"Only if you keep calling me that instead of David," he said to her with a smile.  "There was only ever one lord for this castle.  We lost him last night.  I have no intention of trying to replace him, I am merely carrying on his task.

"In any case, there's not a problem, as such.  I wanted you all to meet Angela and Garrett.  These were Prof. Arpilla's... sorry, Prof. Phillips' children, and it is now my privilege to look after them.

"Also, I wanted to make sure that no one had serious objections to me living in the castle permanently."

"David, you are one of us," Geoffrey Watkins, one of the other ghosts, said.  "Of course you can live here.  It is your home as much as ours."

"Thank you, Geoffrey, but the reason I'm asking is because, of course, I don't live alone.  Some of these... what did I hear them called?  Smelly flesh bags?  Would be coming with me.  Including Angela and Garrett."

"Our distaste for having humans among us is about the students tramping all over the place, and disrespecting our space.  We know that you would not tolerate that behavior of anyone who lived with you," another ghost said.  There were murmurs of agreement through the crowd.

"That you even ask us this question," Madame Barbonne said, "Is all the proof any of us need that you will be respectful of our needs.  I cannot speak for everyone, but I think most of us would welcome your family here."  Again, there were murmurs of assent.

"Thank you, all of you.  I'll probably be moving in over the next week or two.  The family will be housed on the Master Level, of course, in case any of you wishes to avoid contact with us."

With that, the ghosts faded out.  Penny remained, but she waited for David to talk to the children.

David turned to the teens.  "So... how weirded out are you by that?" he asked.

Garrett just sort of shrugged.  Angela said, "I'm kind of creeped out, and interested, at the same time."

David chuckled.  "A reasonable place to start from, Angela.  Just remember, ghosts are people, too.  They're just dead people.  Now, there's no place up here for you to sleep yet, so you can go back down to the dorm.  You want me to take you?"

"I'm fourteen, Uncle David," Garrett said.

"Which is why I asked, rather than assuming," David said.

Garrett grunted.  "I think we can find it."

"Just don't go wandering off into trouble.  I'll see you guys in the morning."

Angela gave David a hug, and then Garrett followed suit, and the two teens left the castle.

Penny and David began to ascend the stairs.

"They seem like nice children," Penny said.

"They're good kids, though I expect trouble, especially from Garrett.  Too many shifts, too much upheaval.  Living here won't really help that.  This is a crazy place for a teenager to live."

"You're not as worried about Angela?"

"Angela's not as rebellious.  If she has problems, she'll internalize them, become withdrawn.  That's easier for me to deal with.  I'm comfortable with trying to draw someone out of their shell.  Having to restrain their actions without getting overbearing will be tougher."

"I can see where that would come hard."

"Speaking of 'coming hard'," David said with a grin.

"I was hoping you would catch my hint," Penny said.

The two had a very enjoyable evening.

 "Evening, Tracy.  I expected you to be gone home already," David told her.

"Just heading out now," she confirmed.  "She's in there, if you need to see her."

"Thanks," he said.  He walked over and knocked on the door.

From inside, he heard, "Come on in, David."

David opened the door and stepped inside.  "How'd you know it was me?" he asked.

"Because there's nobody left on campus who would actually wait after knocking," she said with a smile.

David grinned in embarrassment.  "Good evening, Professor," David said to Prof. Rutherford, who was also in the office.

"Niobi," she reminded him gently.

"Boy, that's gonna take some getting used to," David said.  She smiled at him.

"What can I do for you, David?" Emile asked.

"You said you'd have a list of people for me to look over."

"Oh, yes," she said.  She opened a desk drawer and pulled out a folder, handing it over to him.  "It's not a very long list, I'm afraid."

David flipped it open and looked it over briefly, then closed it.  "Well, then I guess it won't take long to decide, will it?" he said with a smile.

"I suppose not.  Was there anything else?"

"Only if you were available for dinner."

Emile blushed, and Niobi grinned at her.  Niobi said, "I think we're done for now, David.  She could really use some food, good company, and some relaxation.  She's been working all day on getting the school back in order."

David frowned.  "In what way, other than losing the professors, was the school disrupted?"

"Various small facilities aren't working now... we lost all the sentinel trees except for six up on the castle level... it's just a bunch of details," Emile said.

"Ah.  Small details that, presumably, can be dealt with over the next three months?"

Emile smiled.  "Yes, probably."

"Then you are free for dinner..."

"Okay, okay, you two.  I'll stop fussing over it."

"Thank you, David.  I've been trying to get her to take a break for an hour now."

"You didn't invite me to dinner," Emile said with a smirk.

"That's not my territory," Niobi said with a grin, and winked at David, who smiled back.

"How's your daughter?" David asked Niobi.

"She's fine.  I'll tell her you said hello.  Good night, you two," she said, and headed out of the office.

"I'm sorry if I embarrassed you," David said to Emile.

Emile shook her head.  "It sounded very strange, coming from you, I admit."  She rose and walked around her desk, and then slipped her arms around his neck.  "It also sounded very nice."  She kissed him softly for a second, and then let him go.  "And, truthfully, I am hungry.  I get so wrapped up in the details that I forget to eat."

"Well, come on, I'll treat you to some nice cafeteria food... or would you prefer to go into town?"

Emile stopped and looked at him.  "As in, go out together?"

"It doesn't need to be that formal..." David objected.

"People will talk," Emile said, slipping her arm through his.

"Let them.  They'll just be envying me."

Emile blushed, and then the two went for dinner.

"I'll be honest, David... I just can't see you killing a child, werewolf or not."

Yeah, well... you remember what I said about being told that the 'you' I knew was a lie?  Sometimes I feel like this me is a lie.  It wasn't me threatening those kids.  It was, as Olissa puts it, 'the other David.'"

"I don't think I'd like to meet the other David," Emile said.

"No, you wouldn't.  Just ask the woman who had to face off with him.  Speaking of that... have you filled the security chief job yet?"

"No.  That's low on my priority list, frankly."

"I may have a candidate for you.  I'll have to ask her."

"That would be a help.  How did we end up talking about work again?" Emile asked with a grin.

"Because we're both workaholics?" David offered.

Emile chuckled.  "There is that."

"I do know of one way to prevent us from talking about work," David said.

"Oh?"

David turned to her and said quietly, "Would you like to spend the night with me?"

"Hmm," she said, rubbing her hands across his chest and smiling at him.  "That sounds very nice, but... your choice of residence makes me uncomfortable.  So how about you spend the night with me, instead?"

"I'm flexible," David replied with a smile.

As they walked for the nearest entrance to faculty housing, Emile said, "Twice in one week... you're growing attached very quickly.  Not that I'm complaining."

"Well, I'll be leaving tomorrow to go deal with all of the rest of my life.  I might be gone for a week or more."

"I see.  Will you tell your girlfriend about us?"

"Yes.  That's only fair.  Assuming, that is, that she's around for me to tell her about you."

"You're nervous that she won't be, aren't you?"

"Does it show much?" David asked with a grimace.

"Only if I look in your general direction," Emile replied.  "You love her very much, don't you?"

"Yes," David said.

"Then I hope she stays.  Even if it means I have to go."

"I don't think I'd really like that option," David said, surprising himself somewhat.

"Really?"

"Don't get me wrong, I'm not in love with you," David said.  "I don't think..." he continued, slightly more confused.  "But I also don't want to not have you in my life, either.  Especially not now that we've grown closer.  I don't think I realized just how much I missed you, your perspective, while I was gone, until I got back here."

"Aw," Emile said, slipping close to him and wrapping one arm around his back.  "I'll be honest, I did notice how much I was missing you while you weren't here.  I hate to say it, but I've gotten very used to your help, and your general support.

"I will also admit," she said, lowering her voice, "That it is very nice to be treated like a woman again."

"Hmm.  Well, get that door open, and I'll treat you like a woman all night long," David said with a grin.

"It's a deal," Emile replied.