Marriage is Murder

Jess watched Khaat and Robert and smiled as he placed one of her scones on Khaats plate. Steven listened and rubbed his chin " I have one at my place not far from here, Jack and I could pop over and bring it back" he asked " its our back up so losing it wont be an problem" he said standing up and grabbing his coat. " no one need come back Im sure with a levetation spell we can manage it together." Jack stood up and looked at Robert and Brian.

" I think thats a good idea " Cassidy said and Steven nodded as they both looked to Robert then to Brian realizing they were looking at the wrong person since it was Brians house and home.

"I think we might well want to prepare a station to perhaps install that secondary one of yours as a backup," Robert said, "if we should need it. And we might need to use it for a couple of days to keep power to the house. But, we've quadrupled the size of the estate, easily, since the house was originally built here. The truth is that we need to invest in one of the large commercial wizarding transformers."

"Why I am hearing the sound of my accounts being drained?" Brian scowled.

"It won't be that bad," Robert said. "I can easily justify splitting the bill with you because I'm here more than I'm at my own farm. And, secondly, it does provide a safehaven for the organization and could more than house everyone in the organization and all their family members without a single hitch and be completely self sustaining. It is just prudent business.

"However," Robert continued, "If you're going to get a power source that size, you're going to have to go to a wizarding establishment large enough to make them."

"And where, pray tell, is that?" Brian asked. "I presume you know."

"Of course I know," Robert frowned. "As Minister, I am responsible for several commercial buildings. You'll have to go to Ireland--to Cork. There's a wizard there who..."

"I don't know a damned thing about Ireland," Brian said.

"And you're Irish," Robert said.

"By birth alone. I don't claim it. I was raised in Northern England," Brian said, a bit sensitive, not claiming his birthplace as his heritage but rather, he claimed his childhood with Robert and Kate--where he had been accepted and raised.

"I know," Robert said. "Look, I don't have time to go with you. Perhaps Jim or Jack know Ireland enough to be able to not get you lost. Or you could take Fi with you since she lived in Ireland until the last couple of years. You'll need to go and buy a new transformer. I'll write you a letter with the specifications of one large enough to drive this entire estate and send a portkey for them to use to get here, along with a bank draft to pay for it."

"Surely your signature is sufficient until you can get to the bank, Robert," Kate said. "Its not like they don't know where to find the Minister."

"True," Robert said. "And I do enough business with them that my word should probably be fairly good."

"At the size of the government and the hospital, your word should be impeccable," Michael said. "Unless you just stopped paying your bills."

"Anybody know their way around Cork?" Brain asked.

Jim chuckled and stood up " I do very well" he said smiling at Brian as he walked over to him grabbing his coat as he moved past the rack. " okay wheres he at this wizard." he asked waiting for the address from Robert " though Fi would be a goos idea thins do change " he said and loked over " saves the embaresment of me getting us lost" he saw Jack chuckle and threw him a daggered look with a hint of a smile.



" yeah it is embaressing " he said as Jess slapped the back of his head.

"yeah, you know all about getting lost" she said and smirked at him then looked to Jim " he got lost in a mall" she said Jack folded his arm as her words.

" in my defence it was a large mall" he said pouting as Jess kissed his forhead gently.

"I won't send you then, Jack, and especially not alone, until you can at least find your way around a muggle shopping center," Robert said.

He left the room to go to Brian's office. He wrote up the letter to order the large commercial transformer and its installation, along with removal of the old faulty transformer. As an after thought, he did include the purchase of a second, smaller transformer and its installation. He was very specific about how he wanted the payment handled.

He developed a limited use portkey that allowed only one use and was only good for 3 days before the charm would wear off. He deliberately made the spell weak so that it didn't open the access to the house for any more than necessary. Then he sent messages to Paris to alert them that additional security would be needed during the installation of the new power source.

He placed the letter and the portkey in an envelope and sealed it with the seal of the organization. He wrote very simple directions down on a piece of paper. Then he took the letter out to the living room and handed it to Brian.

"Directions are here," he said, holding out the piece of paper to whichever one of them would take it. Then he took a key made of a green colored key off his own keyring.

"If you loose this, I will personally make you both walk back to Cork to get another. Do you understand me?" he asked. "You can use my portkey but do not lose it unless you have a pair of new hiking boots. Its a very long walk. You're looking for an alchemist named Alistair Marwick. He's very good but overly precise and very demanding. Treat him respectfully and you'll have no problem."

"This should be all you need," he said. "If I've forgotten something, Marwick will handle it. You'd better get going. Marwick is a very busy man, and you wont' find him in his shop much past midmorning. He'll be out working. Questions?"

Jim turned around hearing footsteps and chuckled as he saw and heard Robert, nodding at his words. " Got cha do not lose this" he cliped it to his own keys and then to his belt he looked around for fiona. " any one seen Fiona " he asked. Jack just pouted as Jess chuckled as she held him.

Cassidy stood and listened as she refilled the coffee pot on the table . Jim smelt the coffee but choose to forgo it as he knew it was important for the transphormer to be installed. Jim waited. Steven walked back in from the barn.

"A tree branch came down threw the barn roof lukcaly its in the hay loft part" he said grabbing some toast and a cup of coffee. " going to be best part of the day to repair" he said.

Brian took the directions and read them. "I don't know that we need her, really," Brian said. "The directions look fairly simple, providing that the portkey gets us where the directions says it does."

"If you know how to use a portkey, then it does," Robert said. "It always gets me right into the same cellar. You presumably can find the stairs, go upstairs into the pub and out into the street. Go left when you go out of the pub and follow the directions. All should go well..." He was interrupted by the sound of a wail from Julia, followed by the sound of her crying. Not altogether an uncommon occurance in a house full of little ones.

But a moment later, Fi came into the living room, carrying Julia who was cuddled into her, and with her free hand, Fi was holding onto Julia's little hand.

"Pardon me, Robert," Fi said, "but might you have a moment? It seems she's somehow cut the palm of her hand on something sharp in the nursery. I'm not sure what it was unless there is a broken toy in there or something. But I can't blame her. I'm sure it hurts."

"Come here, Sweetie," Robert said, taking the child from Fi. "Fi, I think I still remember how to handle a boo boo. I'm sending these two to Cork for a new commercial transformer. You still remember your way around?"

"Are we going to Alistair's?" she asked.

"He's the best," Robert said. "Yes. I prefer not to deal with sub-par if we don't need to. Can you keep them from getting lost?"

"That's two different questions," Fi said. "Can I find Alistair? In my sleep. Can I keep them from getting lost? That's a much bigger job. If they keep up, they've got a better chance."

Jim saw Julia with fiona and smiled,but chuckled at Fiona's reply " at least we don't get lost in a mall" he said and looked at Jack who just rolled his eyes at him and drank his coffee he then moved to the nursary to find out what had cut Julia's hand. Jess walked over to Robert and Julia.

" Fiona did you see where she was when she cried out?" she asked hoping to figure out what cut Jilia and how it got into the nursary to hurt her. Jim looked at fiona and moved to stand with her.

"Maybe we should head out to Alistairs and that trasphormer before it gets dark again" he said looking from Brian to Fiona as he took out the port key Robert had given her.

"It shouldn't take that long," Brian frowned. "Its just barely sunrise now. I'm still working on my first cup of coffee, but if it would make you feel better we can go. Fi?"

"Okay," she said, accio'ing her purse. Brian drew his wand and offered Fi his other arm. "And no, I didn't see what she cut herself on. I was helping little Robert get the blocks out of their box."

"Let's go," Brian said. "They'll sort it out, Fi."

Robert watched them app port out to Ireland. He took Julia's hand in his and closed up the rather deep cut. If she had been muggle, it would have needed stitches.

"Jess, we need to dress this for a day or so until it stops seeping. "In my potions lab, in the second drawer on the right, are some bandages I colored just for the kids. There are some teal ones that I made in case Julia ever needed them. She rather likes teal right now. There is gauze there too. We'll cover it with gauze and wrap it with the teal dressings." He brushed his hand across her forehead to take away her pain and held her, letting his littlest granddaughter cuddle into his neck, as he listened to her sniffle.

Jess nodded and moved to the lab finding the bandages she headed back just in time to see Jim, Brian and fiona port out. Moving to Julia she took her small hand and bandaged it gently after she gave it a gentle kiss. "There all better." She said smiling as she sent the remailing bandages back to Roberts lab. Steven stood up and went back out to the barn. Climbing up the ladder he pulled several broken shingles from the roof and began to replace them. Jack searched he was nursary and found nothing he was puzled as to how she had her self. Wallking back out he scratched his head.

" well Im stumped I can't for the life of me find anything" he said Jess looked puzzled and moved to look herself as Cassidy moved to Robert.

" I'll take her if you want to look as well" she said softly holding a peice of water mellon knowing she liked it.

Robert frowned. That didn't make sense. If it had cut Julia that deeply there should not have been time for it to just disappear between when she had gotten cut and now.

"I have an idea," he said. "I don't know if it will work, but its worth a try." He went to the playroom and found Abbey there. "Abbey? Can I talk to you a minute?"

"Papa!" she ran to him and wrapped her arms around his leg. He picked her up. "Abbey, were you here when Julia got her boo boo?" Abbey looked at him and then nodded. "Do you know what she got her boo boo on? Did you see?" She though a moment and then nodded. "Can you show me?"

"Noooo," she shook her head.

"Why not?" he asked.

"I hide-d it," she nodded. "It broke-d. So I hide-d it."

"But you can show me," he said.

"Nooo. It makes boo boos. I hide-d it good," she nodded proudly. "I no want it to make a boo boo on you."

"Thank you. I appreciate that. But I promise o be careful. Now, show me?" he asked. She shook her head no. He couldn't help but laugh gently. This was going to take awhile.