A Birth day

Aria heard Angus and ran up stairs to shower and change . While she saw Aria head up she looekd at Marcus and listened to what he ahd to say " that makes me want to take that woman down a peg or two all the more" she said softly to Marcus " but your right, caprice is acting up today more than usual" she added " and I am giving him a bit of space because of what that woman has done, I do hope he finds a way to block her soon he can't go much longer with that amount of sleep, its also why I'm stepping up with some of the cooking, take the heat off him." Ruby said patting Marcus arm " Just look after him for me please." she said softly knowing she could not so what Marcus could and she understood that.

Aria showered and headed down wearing slacks and a light shirt and slip on shoes so she was relaxed but able to move should she need to. Ruby walked over to her and told her what Marcus had said , Aria looked to Marcus and nodded. " we'll do our best with the kids, you make sure she can't do any more damage until Robert finds a wall he can put up" she said with a smile as she walked over and kissed his cheek gently..

"He's working on it, believe me," Marcus said. "I'm sure he's had Nigel on it and anyone else he believes might be able to help. Robert's been on top of this all day, as much as he can be, and his advice to Angus was indeed to stay awaken as much as possible to reduce her ability to get ahold of him. Robert has seen every mark Angus has, and he's tended every single one himself. As a healer, Robert is very aware that he doesn't have much of any time to spare to get Angus some sleep. He knows he's making Angus push himself extra hard. I promise you he hasn't forgotten. I just know how he works. I can guaranteed this has been almost the only thing he's had on his mind all day."

When Angus came back, he had Edward with him. Edward had two perfectly chilled bottles of white wine from his fridge rather than anything from the wine cellar.

"This'll be far superior," Edward was saying, as he cut the seal off the wine bottles with his pocketknife.

"Can you open them?" Angus was asking.

"In my sleep, Boy," Edward smiled. He looked at Ruby and Aria. "Can you two set the table and the cheeseboard, and Marcus, do me a favor and go get the girls. I just saw Victor washing up. He should be back soon too. I'll keep Angus awake and in the kitchen because I smell that crab cooking, and I'm not gonna let him buggar that up."

"Absolutely," Marcus laughed.

"So where was she taking you this afternoon?" Edward asked, decanting the wine into a large crystal decanter.

"Back to the swamp," Angus said, taking the fish out of the oven and drizzling some fresh lemon juice across it.

"The bitch," Edward said. "She's mine now. I'll have that wench, and I'm gonna do worse than one of Robert's jars."

"Have at it," Angus said. "Trust me. Her, I will not miss."

Ruby and Aria heard Marcus and nodded " trust us we know hes working on it and we're doing our part too" Ruby said not hearing Caprices Aria looked to Ruby .

"I'll fetch her she still need to eat" she said and headed up to the nursery. Picking up a red eyed Caprice she wiped down her face and carried her down to the play pen where she set her down . Caprice sat quietly watching every one as they went about their business. Aria sat and watched Caprice and Dimond while Ruby went to watch Edward open the wine.

"that a Estoras Grüner Veltliner, Esterházy, Burgenland 2021?" Ruby asked " it's delicious in harmony with fish & chips, shellfish, smoked fish, and traditional, dry-cured meats, so I'm told" she said with a chuckle.

"Well, it's similar. This one is from our vineyards, but I think you'll like it just as well," Edward said. Marcus went and got the girls from Evan's, and they appeared glad to get home. Today they looked stressed.

"Not good at school today?" Angus asked.

"We lost a student today," Ginger said. "A boy in his seventh year, studying his apparition and porting. He splinched himself and bled out in seconds. He died, and there was absolutely nothing anyone could do."

"We're not going to take that class. We don't have to travel that way," Anise said. Angus could see they were both panicky. Angus put his chef knife down on the kitchen counter, and he went over to them. He gathered both of them and gave them a hug and kissed their foreheads.

"It doesn't have to happen that way," he reassured them. "Things can happen, but there are safe ways to learn. Something happened that he buggared it up. They'll...."

As he spoke, he was interrupted by the sound of loud, diabolical laughter filling the house so loudly that they all had to put their hands over their ears. It was Priscilla. He would know that voice anywhere.

"Behind!" He heard his grandmother shriek at him. He spun around, keeping the girls behind him, and he saw every knife in the kitchen knife block hurtling at him at blinding speed.

"Protego!" Angus shouted, and he used wandless magic to cast the fastest slashing spells he knew, clashing with the blades. Marcus was seemingly there in the fraction of a second, and what knives Angus was missing, Marcus was getting. The knives clattered to the floor, and in the midst of it, there was another sound--the sound of thunder, then there was a flash of bright, brilliant white light, and a column of whirling pure white smoke rising up from the floor, and in the center of the column was Kate. She was furious.

"Not my family, you don't, you hag!" She began an elaborate incantation, and in that moment, she was joined by all the Fae that had been in the garden, and they seemed to be matching her incantation, stroke by stroke.

"Stand down," Edward told Angus and Marcus softly, focusing on what Kate was doing. He recognized the incantation. "Kate's got this." When she and the Fae finished the spell, they all heard what sounded like hundreds of crystal glasses breaking. Then the room fell silent. And Angus and Edward and Marcus saw that the air looked like it was looking through an opal. It shimmered and sparkled with all sorts of rainbow colors.

"That'll fade in a moment," Edward told everyone. When the light faded, Edward looked at Kate. "Thank you. You came just in time. How long will this hold?"

"Anywhere from two to four hours. I can't be sure," she said. "But you should be safe for a little while now."

"This is a rare seer's spell. Kate has used her own energies to block Priscilla very temporarily," Edward said.

Ruby and Aria both listened to Marcus but as he paused they looked around then hearing the booming voice covered their ears , the sound making the babies cry out , Aria made her way to them and picked both of the up handing one to Ruby as they held them close protecting them as Angus protracted the girls from the knives that seem to head in their direction. Seeing the column of light Aria turned Dimond away to protect her eyes as Ruby did the same with Caprice. Both saw Kate and were relived as she took control along with the Fae.

"glad they are on our side " Ruby said to Marcus and looked to Edward as he told them to stand down once Kate and the Fae were finished with the spell. " now that is one badass witch" she said chuckling a she looked at Kate " thank you Kate she almost spoiled Angus stuffed fish with jasmine rice and veg, not to talk of the wine Edward brought" she said checking on Caprice who clung to her now but then held her hands out to Angus calling to him " doesn't matter how he discipline her she's still a daddy's girl at heart" she said handing her to him " just for a moment to calm her down" she said softly.

Aria looked at Dimond who sat in her arms and looked to her then Marcus unphased by it all " huh one of them isn't bothered" she looked to Marcus and chuckled " that a good thing?" she asked smirking to him knowing it could be." Taking a deep breath Aria looked at Kate " why the hell did she attack like than now?" she asked " was it the fae potion that blocked her making her mad?" she asked.

Ginger took Caprice, sensing that Angus needed a moment, but no sooner than she had taken Caprice than Robert apparated in without any invitation. Kate was feeling a bit woozy from using so much energy, and Edward was going to steady her but Robert had arrived, and he took hold of her.

"Nice shooting, Slick," Robert smiled. "I felt that all the way to London. Sit. Edward, got any brandy?"

"Not sure. Got firewhiskey, though," Edward said, looking in Angus's cabinet. "Ah. Brandy. Good man." He poured some brandy into a whiskey glass and handed it to Robert.

"Here. That will recharge you a bit," Robert told Kate. "Did you get her?"

"I sure as hell did," Kate said. She looked at the Fae who all seemed to be right as rain. "Thank you. I'm very grateful for your help."

"Oh, so you got your extra zap from them, did you? Nice," Robert said. "Thank you all. We appreciate it." Minos gave Robert a thumbs up sign. "I'm not a seer, but as a healer who heals by touch, I could feel something was going badly amiss here. Not sure I know how but then Kate signaled me."

"I signaled him before I came here," Kate said. "I'm not entirely sure how she was able to use her energies here."

"How did she break in?" Angus asked.

"She didn't," Kate said. "She used her energies from a distance. I'm not sure how she managed it yet, but I think the key is in the thought thread I took from you about last night's events. Give me some time to sort through it, and then I'll know. It's rather like she had a bit of a remote control on those knives. I'm glad you were on it, and I'm glad Marcus has such fast reflexes. When I figure this out, it might help us to find a way to block her. This very well might have been the mistake we needed her to make to help you get free of her."

"Don't tell me I need to hope she hurls more knives at me," Angus said.

"Certainly not," Kate frowned. "As I said. I think my spell will hold for anywhere from 2-4 hours."

"And Nigel and I are working on something we hope will help. I think we might be able to use a combination of Minos's potion, Kate's spell and our potion to buy you some time. Or at least that's my hope." Robert said. "I'm hoping we can buy you some sleep time. And, at the same time, I'm hoping we can come up with a longer block. We're working as fast as we can. Is everyone else alright? You all okay?"

Ruby let Giger take Caprice whom seem to settle with her too she tensed as she heard more porting but relaxed seeing Robert it was then Jess arrived right behind Robert and she chuckled " might want to put more fish on the go" she said but saw Kate waver. Walking over she placed a chair behind Kate so she could sit down as directed by Robert. Jess seeing everything was in order ported back to St mongos to continue her shift.

"call me if I'm needed " Jess said softly to Robert as she looked to Kate " it shook all our healers, I haven't felt anything like that for years. " she said chuckling nodding to Robert she ported back to the hospital. Ruby moved to pore herself a glass of fire whiskey along with Marcus and Angus " here I think we all need one" she said handing them out and downing her own in one. " wow that's really good stuff" she said and gave a short cough.

Aria took her drink and downed it to but didn't cough after " that was some display from both of you" she said to Kate. " we really need that woman off our backs she could have hurt the babies never mind make a shish kabab of Angus and Marcus." it was now she walked over to a knife and poked it where it lay 2 phew , yep dead" she added and chuckled as she picked up all the knives and put them back where they had come from.

"Angus. Look," Edward was looking at the landing at the top of the stairs. Angus turned and saw a vibrant, crystal clear, full body apparition of his grandmother. She was dressed from head to toe in her own black leather mission wear, with a black cape draped over her shoulders, and she looked as real as anyone else in the room. This was not the vision of his grandmother that he remembered from his childhood, who wore faded jeans and embroidered peasant tops. This side of her clearly was a fearless gladiator and was not afraid to battle back death itself to fight for her grandson. Angus thought she looked pretty freaking impressive

"Oh my god. Is that her? Is that Caprice?" Ginger asked. It was then that Angus realized that she was appearing clearly enough that everyone in the room could see her. At that moment, Victor came through the door and saw the woman at the top of the stairs.

"Whoa! A ghost! Cool!" Victor said, surprised.

"That's Grandma, Idiot," Sam replied.

"Thank you, Gran," Angus said to her. She gave him a bright smile to show how much she adored him, and she threw him a kiss.

"So that's Caprice," Robert said. "Thank you, Caprice."

"You did good, Love," Edward said to her. Smiling, she shook her head and pointed back to Edward. Edward understood the meaning. Caprice was saying she didn't see that warning Angus to look behind him measured up to the incredible job Edward had done in raising Angus to be such a fine man and a fine fighter. She put the fingertips of both of her hands to her lips, as if to throw Edward kisses with both hands, but when she opened her palms to him, she showered him instead with images of red roses that flew threw the air and cascaded over him before they faded at his feet. Edward understood. She was still, even now, showering him with her deep, undying love.

"I was vulnerable," Angus told Ruby as they all took glasses of firewhiskey as Ruby passed them around. "I was lucky that I had all of you right here. That helped because you weren't vulnerable, but I was focused on cooking. And that made me vulnerable because I wasn't thinking of needing to have my guard up. She's somehow tuned into my energies."

"Angus," Marcus said, "let's not forget one thing, though. You are so damned well trained that you didn't need to have your focus on it to be able to protect yourself and your family. The very instant Caprice shouted at you, you spun around, and you were firing. You were already blocking those blades before I even got there. Priscilla screwed up. She honestly believed she could blindside you, and she failed completely. Don't sell yourself short."

"She has somehow formed an attachment to you, Angus," Kate said. "I am starting to wonder if she took a sample of your hair or your blood or something when she captured you in the swamp. Something she's used to cast one of her folk magic spells that allowed her to form an attachment."

"Well, it certainly is possible," Robert said, remembering the state Angus had been in when they had pulled him from the casket that night. "If that's the case we have to figure out where she might have put that contact item and steal the damned thing back."

"If we can find it," Kate said.

"First things first," Robert said. "Slow down, Team. Let's not get ahead of ourselves. That's not the first plan. The first plan is a block that will hold Angus for at least eight hours at a time. He has to have some rest. He's not ready to go into a contest with her. We have to buy some time, and not just a few hours. He needs a few days. I need time to get him healed before he can face even one more contest with her. Once he's healed from last night, and he's rested, we can talk about step two. But, frankly, we're not there yet. Nigel has a team over at the farm, and they're camped there working on it until they have something."

Ruby looked at where every one was looking and saw Caprice in her in her mission wear . Ruby smiled as she watched her interact with Edward and angus she looked to Angus and smiled as he spoke to her then she moved to him " we will always be right here and we all will fight for you, in what ever way you need." she said softly to him as he took the drink she held out for him.

Aria listened to Angus and Ruby then looked at Marcus who spoke to Angus " your training has become reflex, and that's a good thing." she said placing Dimond back down in the play pen. She listened more to Marcus and Robert agreeing with what he said about waiting as he had a team working on a solution.

Ruby listened to Robert and nodded " we will well are trying when he lets us" she said with a chuckle knowing he was fiercely independent about his fight with Pricilla and not involving his family that could get hurt.

"I understand that," Robert said to Ruby. "I tend to feel that way myself more often than not." He looked at Angus. "Here's the thing, though. There are times when you need fighters who outrank you, and there are times when you need back up."

"And times when you need both," Marcus added.

"Precisely," Robert nodded. "I will fight with you because I outrank you. Marcus will be with you because I say he will. And every other first stringer will be there because they will always choose to be. So, as much as you want to shelter them and leave them behind, just suck it up and deal because this is not a fight that you get to do alone." He looked at Kate. "Feeling a little better, my dear?"

"I will be," she told him.

"You did some good work. You broke her off for awhile. How about I take you home and get you some seers' tea? That'll help for now," Robert said. She nodded. Robert looked at the rest of them. "I'm going to take her back to the main building, and then I'm going to the farm to help Nigel. If she's needed, she'll be here. In the meantime, you lot keep your defenses up."

"Understood," Marcus said.