A Birth day

"Come along, then," Marcus said to Yu. They walked the path til they got to the spot where the hole was in the path. Angus looked carefully at the hole in the path. The area all around the path was charred, as from a blast. Angus looked for the path light and found that the path light had been obliterated. Blasted to bits."

"I'm not buying it," Angus looked up at Marcus and Yu. "Lighting striking twice, mere inches apart? I don't buy it." He cast a reveal spell and it showed him some little glint of metal in the hole, He knelt, intending to try to reach it.

"Uh uh. Don't touch it," Marcus said. "Let's levitate it instead. I don't trust anything that's been buried like that."

"Well,yes. Probably wise," Angus said. He levitated the object and found it was some sort of broken pendant. it was a glass tube, wrapped in black wire, with a black metal cap of some sort on the top and the bottom, and it was all attached to a black metal chain. The glass tube was broken, but it was what Angus didn't see that bothered him.

"What are you thinking?" Marcus asked.

"There's some glass missing from the tube. Probably still down in the hole. The problem I have is that there's no glass inside the tube."

"Meaning?"

"Meaning, I think there was something in the tube that was alive or had energy of some sort. The tube was broken from the inside out. Something made a jailbreak out of that tube and whatever it is, it's on the loose," Angus said.

Yu waked with Marcus and Angus over to the spot he looked around and saw the two burnt marks on the ground. Seeing the pendant broken he thought for amoment " could this be how the ..snot monster got out?" he asked looking at the pendant that now lwvitated infront of him " or was it something else" he said softly as he looked around the ground for any signs of what could have been inside it.

Jessie cleaned up and started the dish washer going while he fed one of the twins Once done he burped him and changed his diper before doing the same with the others. He made sure to wrap both up in a blanket to keep them warm but not too warm. Sitting down he saw Jess walk over to the duplex again " okay Evan let check that ankle" she said and placed her hand on it to reduce some of the swelling ." okay not broken just twisted, I've took down some of the swelling and taken off some of the pain, keep it iced abit longer and try and stay off it for two hours " she told him gently.

"I don't know," Angus said. "I'm not sure how, though, since we got the bundimun before the hole in the pavement was even made. I mean, it might be possible, but whatever was in here, it was way smaller than the bundimuns we caught. I think Robert needs to look at this, but he should be at St. Mungo's right now." He whistled loudly for Archangel or Pip, and a moment later, Pip flew over and landed on his shoulder. "Good boy, Pip," Angus stroked the little bird. "Now be a good lad, and go find Kate, would you? Bring her back. Do give it try, please? Kate. We need Kate." He launched thelittel bird, and he fluttered off towards the main house.

"He's a little bloke," Marcus said. "Might take him a moment."

"Yeah, but that's alright," Angus said. "I just hope he's got enough training now that he knows what I've sent him off for."

"Otherwise, we could be sitting here til next week," Marcus teased. Angus laughed.

"I have no intention of missing my sons' homecoming," Angus said.

It took a few minutes, but soon, Angus saw Pip fly back to them and land in the tree above them and screeched. Kate showed up there a moment later, following Pip.

"What on earth..." Kate frowned.

"Someone's punching holes in our running track," Angus told her, and we found a bit of something in the hole. Look here." He levitate the pendant, and she frowned deeply.

"Oh, that is not good," she said. "Nothing in it, was there?"

"No. It was just like you see here," he said.

"I've seen one of those before," she said. "Years ago, and it was in a window and Borgin and Burkes..."

"What were you doing in Knockturn?" Angus frowned.

"And now you sound like Robert. Anyway, they were selling one of these. The one I saw had some sort of poisonous slug. Rather like a poisonous snake. They start out small enough to fit in one of those little rascals, and when they break out of the tubes, they hunt. And they grow. This is not at all good. Do me a favor. Warn the pack to look out for something that looks like a black slug or might look like a black snake. If they see it, they should not try to catch it. They can set it on fire, I suppose. Warn the outdoor crew, and bring all the animals into the barn. I'll try to find some magic zoologist who might be able to come and get it. And make sure you take Finn indoors with you."

"Could there be more than one?" Angus asked.

"Unlikely, since the track wasn't damaged last night. He seems like a new arrival to me, but I want him caught. Take no chances," she said. "Oh, and yes, they can travel underground, I presume, like any other slug or snake." She turned and went back to the main house.

Yu listened to Angus and nodded " agreed" he said then saw Pip and chuckled at Marcus words " Im sure hes capable" Yu said and smiled seeing him fly back moments later followed by Kate . Hearing her explination he shivered " yuck" he said and looked around his feet " is there a preditor to these slug snake things?" he asked " maybe we could find it and use it to track the disgusting thing down" he added still looking at the holes and ground around them.

Jess smiled at Evan " hows it feeling now?" she asked not taking her hand off his shoulder as she kept a watch on him and the swelling as she made subtle changes in his treatment.

"Well, now, that, I don't know," Kate said, as she headed to the house. "I will try to find out."

It wasn't more than about fifteen minutes, and she came back from the main house, with a young man with her. He carried a thick briefcase. He was thin, average height, with brown, somewhat unruly hair, and he did appear to Angus to be slightly anxious. He was dressed in a pair of khaki cargo pans, an offwhite button down, and some field boots, almost looking like an archeologist--except the fact that he had put an old tweed suitcoat jacket over top, and he had probably the ugliest glasses on that Angus had ever seen. He reminded Angus of an archeology graduate who had never been out of the university.

"Boys, this is Trevor. Trevor Ash. He's a magic zoologist that Robert suggested me to call. I've told him of our little problem, and he thinks he can help," she said.

"Could I see the tube, please?" Trevor asked. Angus levitated the tube, and Trevor plucked it out of the air with a pair of long forceps and examined it for a moment before getting a jar out of his briefcase and put the tube in it and closed the jar tightly."

"It's a venomous night slug alright," he told them.

"Is there a predator for it?" Kate repeated Yu's question.

"Well, yes, but that won't help us today. It's natural enemy is a Peruvian Vipertooth dragon hatchling."

"Oh fabulous. Not anything any one of us happens to have just lying around," Angus sighed.

"No," Trevor agreed.

"So how do we catch it?"

"I'll set bait for it in the hole, and hopefully, we'll catch it soon enough," Trevor said. "I suggest you all stay away from the hole because it needs to be quite disgusting and potent to work. I'll set an enchantment on it so that it rings an alarm when the trap is triggered. I won't be far away. I'll keep an ear out for the trap to be sprung."

"And that's it?" Angus asked.

"So far as it goes," Trevor said. "As for who planted it here? That's a matter for the aurors, more so than me. It's highly illegal to own one of these little devils. They can grow large enough to eat livestock if you let 'em, and we'd rather not have that because they're bloody hard to get rid of then. They especially prefer humans, but we don't want him doing that either. So, off you go, then, go as far away as you need to not smell this, and then go a little farther just to be safe."

Yu watched as Kte spoke and then left returning several minats later with a rather odd looking man who spoke about the venomous night slug that had some how been released onto their grounds. When he spoke of Aurors he looked at Angus knowing they would find out who had put such a creture there. When he said the only preditor of the slug was the Peruvian Vipertooth dragon hatchling he sighed and shook his head moving away from the hole the pendant had been in.

"okay so we wait until its caught, and how long will that be?" he asked Trevor waiting to see if he had any idea. Looking to Angus he spoke again " we'd best let the boys and the others know , no running until the path is cleared." he said knowing Jessie would not find it too dificult not to run, but Jack would as he ran every day twice.

"I suppose that all depends on how hungry the little blighter is," Trevor said, almost slightly frustrated with the fact that someone wanted an actual estimate on how long it might take. Trevor had no control over how quickly that bug would be drawn to the bait. "Some unethical fellows think these little bugs can live in a airtight test tube indefinitely with an enchantment or two, but there aren't that many wizards who know how to keep creatures in jars for years, not unless they tend to be potions masters and have a need for doing it. When we find one like that, they tend to be ravenously hungry when they can finally break out. If that's the case, then the bait might well draw him sooner. I'll do the best I can, you know. Nobody wants a carnivorous pest hanging about. I get it."

Trevor got the trap out and deposited it into the hole, and set the enchantment alarm on it.

"Move back," Trevor said. "The stench on this is quite horrendous." Angus and Marcus didn't to be told a third time. They moved well away from it, whistling for Pip and Finn so that they were away from it too, and Trevor looked at them and scowled.

"Gonna have to be farther than that," Trevor told them. They backed up farther, and then, when Trevor opened the jar of bait and put it in the trap. and the stench was clearly the very worst thing either of them had ever smelled. Angus caught the scent on the breeze, and it made him immediately sick. He fell to his knees, trying not to lose his breakfast.

"Come on," Marcus told him, feeling quite green at the gills himself. "We've got to get out of here. Grab the dog." Marcus whistled for Pip again, and Pip landed on Marcus's shoulder while Angus scooped up the dog. Marcus apparated them to the front porch of the duplex.

Yu listened and nodded " all right" he said and stepped back wheh Angus and Marcus did but had to cover his nose at the smell that eminated when Trevor put the bait down. Grabbing finn he followed Marcus and ported to the deck outside the duplex before putting Finn down and leading him inside. " that was horrendus." he said glad to be awy from the smell. Jessie watched as Marcua hd brought a very green Angus home .

"wow what turned him green?" he asked moving to clean out the recliner ready for Angus to sit in and making some tea for Angus feeling it might settle his stomach. "Here you go drink this , its will setle that green stomach." he said placing it on the table next to Angus. " dod you fina out what happened on the run course?" Jessie asked.

"Thanks," Angus said, finding it hard to talk for a little. Marcus helped Angus inside and to his chair.

"Sip at that tea, and rest a little if you can," Marcus told him. "How about I try to find one of Simone's scented candles and see if I can't find something more pleasant to have in our noses?" Angus nodded.

"You do not look well," Evan said to Angus.

"He's not. He'll be alright shortly," Marcus said. He borrowed a peach cobbler scented candle and put it on the kitchen table and lit it to help them get the foul smell out of their memory. Then Marcus explained to Jessie and Evan and Edward what they had found.

"That sounds completely disgusting," Evan said.

"No, that doesn't begin to cover it," Angus managed, sipping his tea.

"Well, I hope that zoologist gets that thing out of here. So who would have done such a thing?" Evan asked.

"It's batty enough that I can see Suzanne sending James or one of James' goons to do it," Angus said. "That's my first guess. James seems to still be able to get in and out of here whenever he wants."

"That woman sounds certifiable," Evan frowned.

"Yup. She is," Marcus replied. "We gotta get people working on that cake. I'll send word over that we're ready whenever they are."

"Thanks," Angus said.

Jessie and Jess sat and listened to what ahd happened and shook their heads " okay so that path is off limits for now" he said Jess gave him a look of , Ya think' and he chukled. Yu waslked over to the sink and washed his hands just as Nicky walkign in to start on the cake he showed her where it was and left her to it while he preped some of the icing to make into things for the cake, like little figures of the boys with tiny brooms.

Jess took her hand off Evan and smiled " should be much better now" she said and looked to Angus " I can take the babies back to their pack if you want so you can rest, Jessie can help carry the boxes." she looked over at him as he stood and nodded to Angus.

"I can do it , it would be like me saying bye to them." he said smiling as he moved to the boxes a shrunk them down to fit into his pocket before moving to Ty and picking him up as Jess picked up the other twin. " you want to say bye befoe we leve?" Jess asked Angus.