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Chapter 151: George Montagu-Dunk

Nick woke up five minutes before his alarm was set to go off. Well, Micah's alarm clock, anyway. Once again, he'd been booted from his room and forced to sleep with Mikey, so Liam-sensei and Faelen could sleep together -- in every sense -- in his bed. He didn't even get fucked, not even spanked, for his generosity. It wasn't fair. Micah, of course, was happy to share his bed, but then again, Micah was almost _always_happy. Talk about unfair. To be honest, Nick didn't really mind giving up his bed to Sensei and Faelen, especially after last night.

Nick curled up around Micah's goomba and choked back a sob. The image of Nats trying to crawl out of bed only to collapse to the floor, the look of pain and terror in his eyes, the sight of his brother -- who'd withstood so much over the years -- dying right before his eyes and hearing that Mikey was in mortal danger... He'd been so close to losing Nats so many times over the last few years, but to see it happening like that, it was too much. It hurt in ways he didn't think possible.

Why Nats? Why him, always him?_Why were the gods -- who never seemed to interfere in _anything --_suddenly sending storms through the city to kill him? Trapping their mom -- fuck that, _helping their very willing mom -- stick around so she could brain-fuck Nats into suicide, not that it would take much, given how fragile he was...not that Nick could blame him after everything he'd suffered. It was like the sudden arrival of Sensei and Geoff sent a signal to the world that it was open season on Nats.

That wasn't really fair, though. It was more like Beriatana was the signal, and the forces on Nats's side, Hades maybe, sent Sensei to protect him. Did Sensei know he was 'assigned' to protect Nats? He was a priest of Hades, and he liked keeping secrets, so it could certainly be possible, but what did Hades get from it? Was it just to fuck with Zeus? Going by the stories, that wouldn't be much of a surprise, but then why would keeping Nats safe be a bitch slap to Zeus? What did Nats ever do to him? It was almost as if the standard roles were reversed and it was Zeus_acting out of jealousy for an indiscretion on _Hera's part.

Well...if Micah had been implanted in Mom by a Fey, how much easier would it be for a goddess of Hera's power to do the same? Was Nick Lily's only child? Nick snorted at the absurdity of the thought. Nah, they looked too much alike to be just half-brothers, but then what Jeff said was probably true -- they looked freakily like Dad did at their ages...and almost nothing like their mom. Lily's eyes were the only feature Nick had that could be directly attributed to her, but they said the same thing about Micah, and he obviously didn't get his eyes from her.

Nick forced himself to think of something besides Nats and last night. 'Speaking of Mikey...'

The Changeling was already up and about, probably singing to Nats's roses in the sitting room, or out back playing. It was a really good thing Micah was so good at sneaking or Nick wouldn't get any_sleep. Micah was just fine with two hours of sleep -- and a fuck-ton of sex -- but Nick needed at least four, plus the sex. If it was Sensei fucking him, Nick mightn't need the full four hours' sleep, but he had to make do with the less filling sex with Micah. The _alpha, on the other paw... Nick shivered in delight at the thought and felt himself get hard as a fucking rock.

'Shower or the gym?' Nick flipped the covers back, and rolled out of bed, turning off the alarm clock as he did so. 'Neither, probably. Mikey should be bouncing in looking for "breakfast" any second now.'

As if summoned, the door cracked open, and Micah's small black nose popped past the edge of it, quickly and silently followed by the rest of his head. "Nick!" Micah's happy exclamations, as if he had any other sort, always grated on Nick's nerves at this time of the morning. Gods damn anyone who could be that hyper so early. However, Nick could never stay pissed at Micah for long; it was like getting angry at a rainbow for having colours. Micah was just..._Micah._The small half-Nymph slipped into the room, closing the door behind him, and bounced over to kiss the Succubus-cursed Mage.

About forty-five minutes later, Nick finished going through some kung-fu forms and showering in preparation for school. He followed Micah upstairs for breakfast. Wandering into the kitchen, he saw Nats passing a large bowl to Dad. "Here, Dad, take this into the ballroom, please." It was odd seeing Dad...period, but even over the last month or so he only ever saw Dad in a suit this early. Seeing him dressed down in his evening attire -- jeans and a tight t-shirt -- for a weekday breakfast was jarring. He looked exhausted. He probably could use several more hours of sleep.

Nats saw their father glancing down at the bowl curiously; Nick could smell Dirk's beef hash in there. "It's a breakfast the Spirits seem to like; Dirk calls it a 'hash.' I find it odd having potato this early, but I figured it might be popular."

Micah began laughing. "Deedle-dee-dee! Potato!"

Nick smothered a smile. A chorus of _"Potato!"_echoed down the hall. Micah tore off to joke around with Faeden and Dirk. Nats winked at Nick; he must've seen the comedy act last night.

Nick was tempted to follow, but that'd be too uncool. Instead, he sidled up to Garret as nonchalantly as he could. "What are you doing up, Dad? I thought you weren't going in to work, and you don't look too good."

Dad snorted. "Morning to you, too." He turned toward the hallway, calling over his shoulder. "Smells good, Nathanial. Yes, I've had hash before." He didn't wait for a response, and instead answered Nick's question. "I'm not going to work, no. I just got up to see you two off to school."

Nick stopped dead in his tracks and barely managed to keep his jaw from dropping. Dad... Dad got up just to see Mikey and him off? When...? Did he...? How...? Neither Mom nor_Dad _ever got up to do that. Ever. He remembered his first day of primary. His parents had gotten in a huge fight over who'd take him to school. Mom wanted to head out early to do some shopping, and Dad said it'd make him late for work. Their cook and sometimes nanny, Susanna, was obviously trying to keep from hearing anything but failed. She looked mortified and like she was in pain. Nathanial had tried to fight back his own tears, and when he saw Nick crying, he just grabbed Nick's paw and walked out of the kitchen. They got halfway down the block before Dad pulled his car up beside them.

Garret's voice boomed frighteningly out of his shiny car. "What are you stupid-ass brats doing!?" To the small, six-year-old Nick, everything about the sharply-dressed Akita was huge and frightening. "Haven't I told you shit heads not to wander off like that? Those damned Knights are just_looking _for an opportunity to catch pups like you!"

Nats quailed in fear but kept dragging Nick along. "I'm taking him to school. If we hurry, we can still get there in time." Nats was so grown up. He walked to school all by himself most of his first year of school. He could make his own sandwiches, pick out his own clothes, make sure he had all of his school stuff, and so on. It was Nats that packed his book bag last night, following all the words on the paper. It was Nats carrying both_of the really heavy bags, too._

Dad looked into his car mirror to smooth out some fur. "And why didn't you say something earlier? You'll probably fuck it up like you do everything else, but at least I could have left for work at a reasonable time." The scary eyes shared by the ogres in his nightmares turned back to the pups.

Nick tried to hide behind Nats. Nats didn't even look over at the meany. "You were yelling too loud."

"You're damned lucky I'm late and flying out today, or you'd get it later, fuck-wad. You know what? I don't give a damn. Get lost or kidnapped for all I care." The fancy car they were never allowed in roared like a dragon before screaming away.

Nats said nothing the rest of the walk. Silent tears soaked the fur around his eyes, but Nick's big brother brought them all the way to school like an adult. He even led Nick through all the moms and dads dropping off their children -- with loads of hugs and kisses -- and made sure Nick got to the right classroom.

Nick quickly recovered and fell back into step with his father. "Oh." He tipped his muzzle up in a quick salute. "Cool."

Garret noticed the falter in Nick's steps. "Something wrong? Am I not allowed to wake up to wish you a good day?"

Nick shrugged. "Eh. Whatever. You just look like you could use a bit more sleep." He didn't need anyone to wish_for it to be a good day; having Dad wake up like this _made it a good day.

Dad laughed. "I could. Maybe I'll take a nap later on." The 'ogre's' eyes sparkled with amusement. They looked so different from the way they did when Nick was growing up; there was no way these_eyes would haunt his nightmares. They looked the way they sometimes did before they moved into this house. Full of fun. Of love. Garret grinned broadly when he winked at Nick. "But I wouldn't be able to talk to you until _after_school if I stayed in bed. Priorities, Nick, and you three top the list." Sure, Dad _always had that acerbic side to him, but at that point it wasn't all there was. It was like how Mom used to laugh and have tickle-fights with the three of them, or kiss Nats and him good night after tucking them into bed. It was only sometimes that she would go on about needing this and that, or resent spending time on anyone but herself.

Nick blinked away a tear. No fucking way would he let anyone see him lose it over something so stupid. He was an adult,_damn it, and he didn't need _anyone. He could take care of _himself._Then, maybe, Nats would stop worrying so much and get better. "Yeah, yeah. Whatever." He heard Nats hurrying to catch up to them and tried to prove he'd been paying attention to the calendar just like Nats always did. "So, what's your week looking like? Hockey tonight with Geoff, and...soccer practice tomorrow? You guys got a bunch of matches coming up. Don't forget that we have that appointment in Ottawa on Tuesday."

Dad nodded approvingly. Nick felt his ears heat up, but ignored them. "Yes, Nick. I'll have to swing by the office to grab the tickets. Yes, I do have practice to coach tomorrow from one to two in the afternoon." He sighed with a half-growl. "Our defensive line-up could use a month of daily practices, but I think we stand a good chance on Wednesday. I didn't forget about Tuesday; Nathanial has it marked on my digital calendar in such big letters that it obscures the rest of the month." Dad must be trying to tease Nats. "Sunday and Monday are quiet, so far. Nothing on Monday should keep me in the office after hours. Thursday and Friday look good, too. Will you be coming to Truro for the games next Saturday? I'll be on the bus, of course, so you'll have to catch a lift with Conor and Dirk."

Sure as shit he'd be going. Over an _hour_in a car with Dirk? Hell, yeah.

Dirk cut in before Nick could answer. "We_may be needing a bus. Word has spread that Geoff has a double-header, and a lot of people want to come over to watch it." Maybe Nick _wouldn't want to go watch the matches...but if more people did come over, the alpha_would almost be _guaranteed to be one of them. Perhaps Nick would just 'end up' sitting next to him. For over an hour. He shivered in anticipation. Dirk shrugged. "Unfortunately, neither Conor nor I have a class two or four Nova Scotian licence. We've looked at it knowing we might want to move larger groups of Spirits around, but the time it'd take was too much of a deterrent. We may end up renting a bus and driver, though. It'd just take more research to ensure we get someone we could trust."

Nathanial caught up. "Does Alpha Luke's wife like watching soccer?"

Nick shot a dark look over his shoulder. 'Fuck off, Nats.' Nathanial didn't even attempt to look innocent; he met Nick's eyes as if daring him to make a scene.

Dad rubbed Nick's ear. "I'll ask her tomorrow. She's coming over for supper, remember."

'Fuck.' Nick shook his head to dislodge Dad's paw. 'Why does that bitch have to be coming over? It's not like she appreciates the alpha like_I _do.'

Dad sighed. "Nick, you can stop scowling. Neasa is Geoff's grandmother, and Luke's wife. Of course she'd want to meet Nathanial, especially since Luke has essentially given Geoff and Nathanial his blessing."

"I'm not scowling." He glared up at his father. "And I know all that. Neasa McDougal nee O'Fihelly. A Breeze Spirit. Lowest tier Air subtype, but potentially useful in gathering intelligence since breezes are extremely common even in enclosed buildings. A non-combatant, and it'd be an extreme loss of honour to challenge her." He looked up at Dirk to make sure he got it right. He was rewarded with an affirming nod. "See, Dad? I know who she is. I've been trying to learn more about the Cork Clan, especially its traditions and key people." Gods, Dad should know this; h_e_ was the one that used to stress it when clients were coming over. "It's standard business practice."

Garret frowned down at him in exasperation. "Don't be a smart-ass. It's good to do research so you can put your best paw forward, but don't show it off. It'll have the exact opposite effect." The warning in Dad's eyes -- hells, Nats's, too -- was clear and said he knew exactly why Nick had inquired about the alpha's wife. Of course, Dirk knew, too, and stressed how badly it'd reflect on Nick, Nats, and_the alpha to challenge her. It was almost insulting. There would be no way he'd challenge someone who couldn't fight back. Maybe he could set up a challenge that was a test of skill? One she had a chance -- or would _think she had a chance -- at?

Something must've shown in his eyes or whatever. Nats exhaled sharply through his nose. "No, Nick. I'm not sure what you're plotting, but no."

Nick shook his head. "I'm not plotting, I'm planning. You going to kung fu like usual? I wanted to go hang out with some guys from school before supper."

They walked through the butlery and into the ballroom. Nats and Dad looked at him suspiciously. Dad shook his head. "I don't think he should, but Sensei will have to answer that. As for you, Nick, I don't have any problems with you going out this afternoon. Just make sure you're back in time for supper."

Nick snorted. "Right, and where could I go eat that'd be half as good?" The back-pawed praise of his cooking made Nats lose that suspicious look. Dad's chuckle as he rubbed Nats's head made Nats blush; damn, he looked hot even when he acted cute. Nick wished he could look so good all of the time. He laboured over what clothes to wear while Nats could just throw on anything and turn heads. "Now, can we eat? I have to head out, soon."

'George Montagu-Dunk Junior High. What a dump. It's a newer building, less than a decade old, which makes it an infant compared to the other schools outside the neighbourhood, yet somehow all the halls look dingy, the lights dim, the lockers scratched up and dented, and...' Nick rolled his eyes and stopped cataloguing the failings of the building he walked into. 'What a dump.' He padded through the crowds, nodding to people he knew and had the social standing required to be acknowledged by him, and made his way to his locker. A cluster of his acquaintances were already there, waiting. He glanced at them.

"Hey." There was Jessica, a Ragdoll Cat who fancied him and fancied herself his girlfriend. Melissa, a Burmese Cat; she was one of those touchy-feely people -- in that she was always hugging, tapping, or otherwise physically in contact with you -- that aggravated him to no end. Sam Falkner, a black Angus Bull and the bane of Nathanial's life the last two years; Nick despised him. Some little Ferret boy that hung around Melissa; the kit seemed to be crushing on Nick. Lastly, Joe, a Lynx and the only one here Nick might consider calling a friend.

Nick opened up his locker and bumped fists with Joe. He ignored the letters that threatened to spill out. Every day a few more showed up, all unsigned, all with different coloured inks and writing styles, all dosed with bits of perfume or decorated with girly drawings. He always found time to surreptitiously incinerate them. The first time he dumped them out he got teased and really hurt the watching girls' feelings. By ignoring them and then frying them, he raised his mystique. Higher mystique, higher desirability. Higher desirability, higher social standing and less chance of being bullied. If he didn't get bullied, there would be far less of a chance he might accidentally lose control of his magic and turn someone to ash or turn them into a mindless puppet.

Melissa slipped up beside him and wrapped her arm around his waist. "Hiya, Nick." Jessica glared daggers at her. Melissa smiled at her friend apologetically and let Nick go. "How are things? We saw the news." 'The news' would be Nathanial. Sam glowered and pawed the ground with his right hoof. He hated anyone talking even obliquely about Nats if it wasn't derogatory. That Ferret kid clutched some comic or magazine to his chest and bounced excitedly.

Nick shrugged. "Meh. All good."

Jessica pouted. "You said that the first day you got back after your mom died. Try again."

He rolled his eyes where she could see. "Whatever. It's all good." He pulled his books out for first class. "We still heading out to the mall at four?" Last year they would've just left from school, but he wasn't the only one who went straight home to 'take care of things.' He bet the whole school did, including the teachers.

Sam snorted. "I've kicked his ass that fast before."

Joe waved his paw at Sam dismissively. "Whatever. That's why you're still in grade nine. It's also why you aren't allowed on any sports teams and have no chance of getting a sports scholarship."

The Bull flexed his biceps. "Looking for trouble? Keep shooting your mouth off and you'll find it."

Nick closed his locker and leant back against it. He coolly stared at the aggressive teen. "And you'll find yourself expelled in record time, Sam. Cost versus gain. Is it really worth the price?" He could feel the demonic energy in him trying to rise up and heard his grimoire start to whisper all the ways Nick could turn Sam into his slave. Nick clamped down on his magic before it was more than that faint whisper. He was sure these foci were supposed to prevent this shit from happening. He ignored the itch encircling his neck.

"It might be." Fortunately, Sam couldn't say any more. The bell rang, sending the crowds of kids off to their various destinations.

English class wound down; it was only two minutes before the bell would ring for lunch, and no one -- not even the teacher -- could focus. Nick felt bad about that, sort of, but trying to keep his magic under tighter rein than he already was would create a lot of pain by the time school was over. Damming up his magic built tons of pressure, and it all settled in his balls. He settled back in his desk, spreading his legs wide. It might be just some psychosomatic bullshit, but it did seem to help. Even seeming_easement would be a godsend by the final bell. Fuck, if only he could get laid during school; even if he had _more magic afterwards, it was so much more easily managed...for the following hour.

Suddenly, Nick felt a...feather light touch against his mind. He recognized it -- fuck, did he ever recognize it. That bitch, that fucking evil, sexy, murderous bitch, Beriatana. She was close. Gods, all of this was her fault. What he would give to crush her graceful throat between his paws, feel that luxuriously smooth skin blacken and split as he slowly incinerated her. Watch her--

A crack nearby snapped him out of his murderous daydream. Some classmate or other must have been more sensitive to his pheromones and snapped their pen in half in a fit of anger. He hadn't been paying attention, and his magic broke free, again. Fuck, that damned bitch. This was all her fault.

Joe leant over to whisper, "You all right, man? You're awfully fidgety."

Nick shrugged. "Need to piss." He glanced at the clock. Ten seconds. "I'll catch up to you."

"Sure."

The bell rang, and Nick hopped out of his seat before anyone else. He was glad none of his other closer acquaintances were in that class to delay him. Now, to get to a loo. He wanted to take care of that infernal Succubus himself, but he couldn't pin her location, and he didn't dare risk losing track of her.

The washroom door closed behind Nick but not before he checked to ensure it was empty. He whipped out his phone and hit Nats's number. Nats picked up on the second ring. "H--"

"She's close by! I can--" Nick suddenly lost the vague impression of her. "Fuck! I lost--"

Nats cut him off. His voice was harsh and full of wrath. "Which direction?" Nick faltered as he tried to get his bearings. "Which direction!?"

'Shit.' He pointed toward his best guess. "I-I can't feel her anymore."

"She's not in range. Hide your damned collar as best you can. She's not going to get away." The call suddenly ended.

Nick quickly cast Voyeur's Gaze, a scrying spell he'd found in his grimoire and the strongest concealment spell he knew. The Voyeur spell had a short range, only a few hundred metres, and required the caster to have some familiarity with the target, but it _seemed_simpler than the agents' spell, and the description said that it was hard to detect and could get by a lot of anti-scrying wards. Reining in his magic even _more_would hurt like hells in a mere pawful of minutes, but avoiding the inevitable pain wasn't worth the risk of drawing the unwanted attention to him. Nats wouldn't have told him to hide his collar if he wasn't expecting some investigators or unknown agents to pop up.

He wasn't surprised to 'see' that Nats was on the roof of the school or that he was talking on the phone to someone else. "...telling you I caught a glimpse of her magically. She's been eluding you for how long, now? You should be jumping at every damned tip you get!" There was a brief pause before it sounded like Nats cut whoever this was off. This was the 'Nathanial' that Nick didn't like to see in person but was still part of his real self, not the crazy one. This was the 'parental' Nathanial, though he rarely got so worked up. "Moron! Gordon modified that spell easily, and he can probably still change the sensitivity of it at a whim.I figured out how to do that in a few minutes!" Another brief pause. "Really? Care to wager on that?" The thrum of almost audible magic made Nick's ears hurt. It wasn't from Nats directly, but something Nats did made a layer of magic up in the sky vibrate like a tuning fork.

Six people suddenly appeared on top of the school, followed by eight more less than three seconds later. Four of them wore that grey-and-red scheme Investigators Gordon Ahjeet and Lara May wore when they crashed Nats's birthday; the other ten were agents, including Jay, Ella, and Arrie. They all looked wild-eyed and frazzled. Nick grinned openly at their expressions. Gods, he loved seeing authority figures get taken down a peg, especially by Nats. They never seemed to expect it from such a timid-looking guy.

Arrie squawked first. "Nathanial Marks! I should've known." She pointed a wand at him. "You've been a Demon Mage all along." Fucking bitch. Did she work at being such a stupid cunt?

Nats crossed his arms. "Don't be a fucking ass, Arrie. I 'jangled' the detection web with the full knowledge of the local investigators. Of course they didn't believe I could, so I had to prove them wrong. That Succubus was nearby, and they refused to come try to find her, or even figure out what she was doing." He pointed the direction Nick had. "She was over that way, roughly, but I'm not sure how far." He pocketed his phone. "I don't know any spells to track Demons; otherwise, I would've chased her down myself."

Ella frowned. "No. You've been told to stay out of this, Nathanial. If you get any information, call." She glared at one of the investigators, a Grizzly Bear woman. "They've been informed of some of your talents and should immediately follow up on your tips." Ella's long and sexy tail lashed the air behind her like a fuzzy whip. "We don't want children -- even sixteen year-olds -- chasing down Demons of any calibre, especially one that's aided by a rogue investigator. Regional Director Hugh made that very clear to the Department of Heretical Magic." Nick bet the Society didn't want Nats going on a rampage fighting Gordon and Beri out in public. The statute of secrecy would be shot to the hells and back if that happened. Gods, the amount of damage that could come out of that melee...

The Grizzly glared back. "A Demon as strong as a Succubus should trigger the grid as soon as she does more than walk. Teleporting around would certainly be picked up." Even Nick could tell that was a stupid comeback.

Oddly, it was Arrie that called her on it. "Not if it was Gordon moving her around. The grid doesn't pick up on Mage magic, even if it's cast by a Demon Mage."

Nathanial sighed heavily. "Or if Gordon muted her magic." Everyone, including Ella and Jay, stared at him blankly. Nats pointed at the sky. "Don't you know how that works?" The agents shook their heads while all but one of the investigators tried to look like they knew how it did without nodding.

The one person, an elderly male Aardvark, shrugged. "It's a newer addition. In my day, we didn't use these automated detection systems, and we certainly didn't have computers monitor them. We trusted in our skills. Our power. Nowadays, we let any Tom, Mutt, or Slithery in if they can click a few buttons."

The Grizzly growled and headed off what sounded like a common rant. "You've been told to stop using those slurs, Jamie." She turned her head to glare at Nathanial. The bulky lady smoothed out her grey-pleated skirt; the inside of the pleats were panels of red fabric in keeping with the investigators' colours. Nick thought it worked quite well. "Of course I know how the grid works. I'm in charge of it now."

The Aardvark smirked. "Now that Gordon is gone. He was the one who knew how it worked; you just push the buttons, Nahanni." Nick might actually get to like this guy. He appreciated the application of a well-timed bit of snark.

"And keep the log, run the diagnostics, tweak the settings--"

Nathanial's snort of derision stopped her in her tracks. Nick could see her blood pressure rising; Nats seemed to have that effect on Society goons. Nick felt so proud. "That's knowing how to use_a program but says nothing about the _theory behind it. It resonates with different, um, frequencies, if you will, of magic. All Gordon would have to do would be to enchant some bauble to mask her magic enough so it resonates outside of the tolerance of the grid."

Jamie's eyes narrowed. "There aren't any spells going that way, pup." He nodded grudgingly. "There are_several spells designed to shift the alignment of magery to mimic other forms of magic. We _used to use them for training new investigators before the 'crats began relying too much on pretty tricks. Gordon knows all of those spells. Of course, we have nothing to hide Demon magic." But the Cabal would, and Gordon was part of the Cabal. This Jamie guy must've thought the same thing. His long snout twitched about before he pointed away. "That way, was she?" Nathanial nodded. Jamie nodded in return and vanished.

Nahanni growled in vexation. "This better not be a wild goose chase." She vanished, too. The silent agents, presumably guys from neighbouring offices, left with various gestures. Some shrugged, others smiled in amusement, rolled their eyes, or just gestured farewell to each other.

One, a Vixen, briefly addressed Ella. "No wonder Hugh is spending all of his time at your office. The pup is more than a pawful. I think that was the first time I've ever seen Nahanni put in her place or Jamie look almost approving. Tyche bless you, Ella. You need it." The petite Fox vanished.

Only Ella's team and the other two investigators were left. Ella shook her head in annoyance. "Between you and Hugh, Nathanial." Her feline growl made the fur on the back of Nick's neck stand on end. "I hope Sensei lets him go back on duty soon, or he'll drive me 'round the bend by day's end." She fixed Nathanial with a fierce glare. "But you... You..." She flexed her paws so her claws fully extended and yowled at the sky. "Aaargh!" She stalked away from him along the edge of the school's roof. Her tail whipped about even as her back remained ramrod straight.

The taller of the two remaining investigators, a female Spotted Skunk, smiled faintly at Ella's back for a few seconds before studying Nathanial. "Nathanial Marks, son of Garret Marks, son of Wallace Marks."

Nathanial nodded. "You've read my file."

The faint smile grew a little. "Of course. I think everyone in...well, probably everyone with access has read it, and half of those who don't." Arrie opened her mouth to protest, but fell silent when the Skunk raised her paw. "Don't delude yourself, Arrie. He's a fascinating subject, and for all the talk of law and order, the members of the Society seem quite willing to ignore the laws when they don't serve their purpose. That's why we have law enforcement, after all. You are almost as well-known as Nathanial is, now. Perhaps you should watch the tone of your reports when writing them, hmm?"

If there was a file being made about Nathanial, did that mean the Society was compiling one on him and Micah? Would all these people know Micah was a Changeling, now? That could put him in a lot of danger.

The Skunk directed her attention back to Nathanial. She took a monocle out of her breast pocket and peered at him through it. "It seems that young healer is as remarkable as reported. Fascinating. Not a trace of Taint." Damn right, Sensei was remarkable. She pocketed the lens, paused, and waved her paw while chanting a short phrase. It must've been fairly benign because Nats didn't react at all. She smiled. "So what did I cast?"

Nathanial smiled back and shook his head. "I haven't seen it before, but it was a divination spell of some sort. It was focused on a specific marker, and I believe it was something dealing with Demons. I assume, based on the topic, that you were double-checking what your monocle told you in case the enchantments on it had been tampered with." Nats paused for less than a second. "Either by Gordon or by me."

The Skunk laughed openly. "Or anyone in the Cabal." She sighed and waved Arrie off again. "Yes, it exists, Arrie. I know that the official position by the Society is that it doesn't. Of course we say that to keep people from being afraid. If you're actually serious about joining the investigators, stop believing everything you hear and investigate. Rule one: sceptics live; the gullible die or live just long enough to be Turned."

Jay chuckled and nudged Arrie with his elbow. "Told ya, Sis." The Dobermann stepped away from Jay with no other acknowledgement that he existed.

The other investigator extended his long-fingered hand. The pale brown Frog had golden eyes, and his suit was oddly loose. Nick noticed why when the guy's arm extended farther: he was some sort of Flying Frog. His hands weren't webbed, but he had gliding folds connecting his arms and legs. "I'm Huy Quang, and this is Arianna Goldberg." When Nathanial clasped the Frog's hand, Huy's index finger went six centimetres past Nathanial's wrist. Those were fucking long fingers.

Just imagining someone shaking his paw like that and having those fingers slip up under the cuff of his shirt... Ugh; it made Nick shiver in revulsion just thinking about it. Then if he ran the backs of his fingers of his other hand along the side of Nick's muzzle... Nick swallowed a bit of bile.

To distract himself, Nick pulled his phone back out to check the time. 12:08. Micah should be on lunch and might have his phone with him. He sent a quick text, 'Beri was near. Beware. Nats knows. Investigators out looking. Useless twats.' Micah shouldn't have much trouble with her, without her mind-affecting magic she probably lost over half of her arsenal and all of her subtle magic. Their training together should enable Micah to drive her off or force her to pull out her big guns, which would set off this grid Nats was talking about. Or maybe _Micah_would set it off with his Fey magic; the Succubus Grimoire didn't have much in the way of more powerful spells Micah could use. The only problem Micah might have would be Gordon.

On the roof, Arianna shook Nats's paw, too. She turned her head to address Jay. "Have you personally seen him go to the Elemental Plane of Darkness? I read the initial findings you published on the Shadow Mastiff and the...gecko of...doom."

Jay laughed and slapped his leg. "Ah, man! I can't believe they actually published it with that name!" He stepped up and pulled Nathanial into his side. "Bro, you totally got to tell Sensei that it got published! Gecko of doom! Someone actually said it! He'll kill me, but it was so worth it!"

Arrie growled and stepped farther away, muttering, "Brainless child. Boys never grow up."

The Akita in Jay's grasp smiled weakly. "He will kill you, figuratively speaking. I think you should be the one to tell him; I certainly won't." The two investigators exchanged looks, and Nick noticed Nats's ears twitch for some reason. He sighed. "Yes, I can go to the Plane of Darkness whenever I want. No, it doesn't hurt me. Yes, I can bring other people. No, I don't really know how. I'm working on that, and I'll probably need Jay's help." His last word came out more like a choked squawk when Jay's arm tightened around his neck.

"You still mean it? I get to go to E-PoD?" E...PoD? Elemental Plane of Darkness? How could Jay be so cool at times and, like Arrie said, a complete child at others? He was acting like he was seven years old and his parents told him they were going to Disney World.

Jay continued crowing on in excitement, but Nick tuned him out. He leant his head against the frame of the window. His attempts at suppressing his magic were working, but he could really feel it in his balls. With those investigators a mere two metres above him, he didn't _dare_let up or go into a stall and rub one out. Not that jerking off really helped all that much.

The door behind Nick opened, giving him quite the start. He turned around to lean against the wall, but his balls felt too tender to stand in his normal posture; instead he leant forward and braced his paws against his knees. He knew it'd make him look like he was feeling ill, but that was less uncool than looking all emo. Nick didn't do emo.

It was that Ferret boy that liked him, whatever his name was. Ferret looked surprised and way too excited by having run into him by accident in the loo, and the spike in his arousal -- which was _not_Nick's fault -- surged freakishly high. Did he think he might get Nick to fuck him or something? Just because they were in the can together?

The brief thought of relief threatened Nick's control. He dropped his head, closed his eyes, and focused on damming up every bit of magic in him. His balls stopped merely aching and throbbed in outright pain._It didn't matter. He _had to stay in control. He couldn't turn this kit into a puppet. He couldn't draw the investigators' attention. He couldn't make Nats worry or have to fight for him. This was his battle, and only he could fight it. Why wasn't that damned focus he made doing what it should be?

The faint voice of his grimoire slithered through his choker and into his mind. *Don't fight it, master, it won't work. Control it like the banks control a river. Let the magic flow, but direct it where you want.* The image of a placid river meandering through the countryside bounded by rush-cloaked river banks floated into his mind. He squelched a sour laugh and brought the image of a raging torrent to mind, one that tore out parking lots, ripped out the ground beneath houses, and consumed everything that lay in its path. The grimoire countered by 'pouring' concrete into the image to build up a floodway around the destructive cascade.

The touch of a soft paw -- a timid, delicate, kind touch with the concern of an infatuated heart behind it, one that could be so easily talked into any sexual act he might desire even without using magic -- on his shoulder stopped the internal argument. "Nick, are you okay? I thought you might be here to, um..." He trailed off. "But you don't look so good." Nick opened his eyes and looked at the Ferret. The kit's eyes shone brightly like Micah's with a mix of lust and concern, a battle recreated throughout the Ferret's body language. Only the bulge in his jeans, a modest but throbbing bulge, spoke with one mind.

So Ferret did think Nick was here for sex. Fuck, talk about hubris. The magic surged again, buoyed by the thoughts of sex. Nick's pheromones flowed out before he could catch them, and little Ferret sharply inhaled through his nose. Ferret shivered and squirted a bunch of cum into his shorts -- a bit too much to be just pre, but not enough for a full orgasm. Nick's magic told him it felt damned good, and it served to act as an appetizer before a long awaited banquet.

The small paw on Nick's shoulder slid down Nick's front. "I know what can help. Sex is supposed to be great for headaches and stuff. You just stay there and let me--"

Nick caught the kit's paw before the boy dropped to his knees or reached down too far. "No." Fuck, no. Control. Control!

*Let it go. Let it go. Can't hold it back anymore.* The image of the raging river breaking free of hastily erected dams filled his mind. The only thing keeping it from destroying everything were the concrete walls the grimoire made.

'Stop!' There was no damned way Nick would lose his cool because some whelp wanted to get fucked. He was cool. People said he was damned icy. If the grimoire wanted to play with imagery, then play with this. He staggered away from the crouching kit and focused. 'Ice.' Freeze everything in place. The river began turning into ice wherever it touched something solid. The banks turned white with thick rime. Snow covered the ravaged landscape. The river -- and the magic surging through Nick's body -- eventually slowed to a near stop.

The grimoire's normally faint voice was even quieter, as if the slowed magic made it even harder for her to reach him. *You and I are fire, not ice. You won't be able to keep this up long. The burning lust will rise, and eventually it will break free if you try to deny it. I'll always be here, master, but if your magic breaks free from your control it might not be you who remains the master.* Yeah, and that's why Nick didn't trust her 'guidance.' The faint awareness of her presence vanished.

Nick braced his left arm against the wall a short distance from Ferret-boy, and leant his head against his forearm. He focused on freezing his magic in place for a bit longer. _'Control. Ice.'_The ward and scrying spells he had cast flickered and went out as if he didn't have the magic to maintain them any longer. Even his balls stopped hurting so much. Well, who cared about what happened on the roof as long as that pain stopped?

He opened his eyes. "I just came here for some quiet, nothing more." He could see the pain of rejection on the kit's face, but it was better than the alternative. He knew how much the kit must be hurting; gods, did he know. "Sorry, but find someone else."

"A lot of guys come here for blowjobs; there doesn't need to be anything more, and I won't tell anyone. I promise. I won't even charge you like I do them."

'Wh-What? This..._child _was sucking guys off for money? And people were paying?' Nick felt the 'river' thawing and focused on re-freezing it. The grimoire was right; there was no damned way he could keep this up for long. He stepped away from the kit, though he was afraid it looked more like a stagger. "No. Stop asking." This was his fault. If he had better control of his pheromones, the school wouldn't be thralls of their sex drives. 'Apollo bless Sensei; help him find some solution to this soon.'

The kit sighed morosely. "All right. Um, what's wrong? If you need to talk, I'll listen. I'm very good at keeping secrets, too."

Nick began walking toward the washroom door. "None of your business. It's not like it's exactly a secret, though, since it's all over the news. Still nothing I want to talk about, to you or to anyone else."

"Oh. Okay. No hard feelings? I-I didn't mean to upset you, I just thought..." He trailed off when Nick turned around.

Nick raised his fist as if waiting for a bump. "Nah. It's cool; just not interested." The kit raised his fist, too, and Nick 'bumped' the air between them. "No one ever told me your name."

Ferret's thick tail thumped on the tiled washroom floor. His smile reminded Nick of Micah; the guy was only about five centimetres taller than Micah, too. Cute, but not Nick's type. "Greg. Greg Eiklenboom."

That last name sounded familiar, but Nick couldn't place it. Nick turned and began walking again. "See you around." He opened the door and stepped aside to let the captain of the hockey team in. The bulky Beauceron Dog rubbed his blatantly bulging crotch with obvious anticipation. He didn't seem to notice Nick at all. Nick smirked and let a bit of pheromones drift out to inflame the guy even more. Hey, if Greg couldn't get Nick's dick, he may as well have fun with this one.

Nick froze his magic again and let the door go. He heard a muffled voice behind him. "Fuck, Greg, I need it _bad._Please, a muzzle won't cut it. I'll give you ten if you let me fuck you. Damn it, make it twenty! Thirty if you let me tie!"

'Heh, you're welcome, Greg.'