Marriage is Murder

Jim chuckled thinking this whole thing was amusing. Jack moved and sat down watching the dishes march back to their place in the kitchen. Jack was glad they did and with out a single chip one knife seem to want to poke him but he pointed and growled at it and it quickly landed in the draw. Cassidy watched James as he toddled behind the couch calling out for one of the cats as he did so. Steven motioned he'd get James and moved just in time to see a blue butt disappear behind it.

" ow no you don't " he said and grabbed him lightly pulling him out holding a small stuffed cat in his hand

Brian yawned, and he apologized. "Sorry. Don't know what's gotten into me. I guess I'll make sure the kids are safely in bed and then head off myself."

"I know what's gotten into you," Kate said. "Youve been trying to sleep on a sofa. You know better. At least configure the sofa up there to a twin sized bed, for pity's sake. You need a good night's rest. We arent' going to talk you into leaving her but at least do try to get some sleep."

"Yeah, maybe I will. Sorry to be a party pooper, but I'm tired."

"Get some rest, Son," Robert said. "If we were smart, we'd all be going to bed soon. I'll go check on Khaat myself so you dont have to worry about that. I'll do that while you're checking on the kids." He excused himself for a few moments to go upstairs and check on her.

"I take it that we shall have another early morning, then, shall we?" Michael asked.

"Always," Angus said.

"Do you plan on sleeping sometime tonight?" he asked Angus.

"I guess it is past my bedtime," Angus laughed.

Steven stood with James in his arms who nestled against him and yawned too" seems your not the only tired one" he said and chuckled carrying one of the children up the stairs while jack and cassidy took the rest up. Jessica sat in a chair her body aching now from the cold she had.

" Jess go back home. " Jack said and jessica stood up pulling her cardigan around her tight " I'll be along in a bit " he told her and saw her nod as she left he carried the kids back to his home he placed Alex and Catlin in the cribs then went back for Andrew while Steven had James and jaylen and cassidy held a sleeping Fallon. " I'll do a patrol and then be back , thought I smelt something down by the creek this morning" Jack said and headed out.

"You shouldn't go alone, Jack," Kate said. "And Brian and Robert are upstairs. You should take someone with you. It might well be nothing, but you don't really want to run into difficulties by yourself. As I see it, we have Jim and Angus as part of our regular aurors that could go along. If you get desperate, you could ask Michael or me. That's about your lot at this time of night, I'm afraid." She looked out the windows and said. "Don't dally out there. We're going to get a storm." Kate could feel it in her seers abilities that the energies outside were changing. And they felt like lightning. Rain. Thunder. "Get out and get back. This will have a great deal of lighting."

Jack looked at Kate then was about to talk when Jim stood up and spoke. " I'll accompany him Kate " he said and grabbed a wind breaker from the hooks close to where he had sat. Slipping it on he moved to the main doors Jack followed and headed right down to the creek finding what it was that peeked his interest. Small foot print in the soft mud " could be a dog?" said Jim jack shook his head but looked up as he saw the dark clouds rolling over them both and the first flash light up the sky.

" ok back in " Jack said standing as he looked both ways seeing nothing he and Jim dove back to the main house as the rain tumbled down from the sky soaking jack, but not Jim as he slipped up his hood and chuckled.

" should have taken a jacket Jack. " he said and Jack rolled his eyes but chuckled

When robert came downstairs, Kate was peering over an antique pensieve made from cobalt blue crystal. She was studying something she was seeing in it. Robert came back in and saw she'd gotten the portable pensieve out. He had two mugs of tea. One for himself and one for her.

"Looking for something, Dear?" he asked her quietly, not truly wanting to disturb her.

"There's a storm coming," she told him.

"I know. I could smell the rain earlier. Is that what you're looking for? Judging by the sound of thunder I'd say we found it."

"No..Just checking. Energies are odd outside. I'll be glad when they get back. Oh, wait..maybe that's it," she said looking deeper into the waters in the large blue crystal bowl."

Jack and Jim ran for the house a lighting bolt hit a tree as it fell to the ground close to Jack Jim pulled him out of its way and together they headed across the grounds to the house and inside " shesh that weathers bad" said Jack " I almost became a shesh kebab" Jack said shaking off the water Jim cried out.

" Hay aim the other way," he said and shook off the water from the coat as he slipped it off and hing it back up " what jack is saying is that the storm took down a tree near the creek " he said " got men on it already clearing it"

From his experience on the farm, Robert knew well the sound of a falling tree. Brian did as well. Brian came dashing downstairs, dressed only in a pair of forest green pajama pants, barefooted. He flew to the kitchen to snatch up Angus's black leather duster, when Michael hollered at him.

"Stand down, Junior," Michael called. ""We're not on fire that we know of. We'll let you know."

Robert came in from the kitchen, not able to speak to Brian before Michael had, and he brought with him a mug of chamomile tea for him and one for kate. He saw Kate was working with the antique pensieve, which he had bought for her for Valentine's Day.

"Something wrong, Dear?" he asked, putting the mug on the coffee table beside the pensieve.

"I don't know," she said, preoccupied and concentrating. "I just want to be certain."

"What are your senses picking up?"

"A difference in the energies outside," she said. "And I don't think its just the lighting." She looked at Jim and Jack, narrowing her gaze at them. "You had to have seen something odd out there. What was it?"

Jack looked at Kate and sighed " I found a small foot print down by the creek, I couldn't tell what it was though then the storm came and I couldn't look around" he said Jim nodded as he moved to the chair and looked at Kate.

" might have thought it a child's foot print but it had claws " Jim said " though I'm not sure what creature might have that kind of print " he said softly and opened a book on magical creatures hoping to spot witch one it could be. Jim flicked page after page reading each creature.

"Give me that thought thread, Robert," Kate said. Robert complied and took the thought thread from Jim and deposited it into the pensieve. Kate swirled it around with the tip of her wand and then peered into it again. She watched for a long moment. "That is not a werewolf," she told them quietly. "Its the wrong shape."

"Then what the hell is it?" Robert asked.

"Give me a moment," Kate said patiently. "Its...a child. A child not much older than 8 or so. He's...an animagus. And he's too young to control his transigurations. I think he's a dog...sort of. He's...dirty...wet...hungry...." She looked up at Robert. "He's been alone for a long time. He's here by accident, and he's lost. And tonight, he's scared. Its his wonky accidental magic I was picking up on."

"Where is he, Kate?" Brian asked, transfiguring his clothes quickly and summoned his own tan leather duster and his leather hat, rather than using Angus's.

"I'll draw you a map," she said. He's hiding from the storm.

"You two have already been out in this mess," Brian said. "I'm going. But if either of you want to go, you're welcome to."