Small Packages

He hoped she had listened. He prayed she'd gone to the tobacco shop. He didn't want her in this. This wasn't how this was supposed to have been. This wasn't at all the dream proposal. This was a ring, shoved into her hand, while he was running the other way. Damn. There was nothing storybook about their relationship, was there?

He found James, his young recruit, and the young woman. They had certainly drawn blood. The young girl was bleeding heavily, and she was so terrified, she was utterly frozen. Angus fired his wand and immediately got James' attention.

"You again? Don't you know when to leave well enough alone?" James was miffed. "You're meddling where you don't belong, you git."

"I know exactly where I belong," Angus replied, firing his wand and stunning James' younger partner. The boy fell to the ground in a heap.

"Really?" James sighed, annoyed. "Was that necessary?"

"I'd rather it just be between us," Angus said.

"Before I kill you, you should at least tell me your name so I know who to mail what little remains of you," James grinned sarcastically.

"Donohue," Angus said. James paused a moment.

"Are you, then?" James asked, intrigued. "So Old Edward has cubs?"

"I'm not a cub. I'm a grandson."

"Should I be afraid of you, then? Do you think you're the man your grandfather was?"

"Let's find out," Angus said confidently.

The fight lasted several minutes. In the end, James ended up accidently offing his own partner instead of hitting Angus. A pure misfire. Angus had dodged a couple of James' slashing spells by simply turning sideways to make himself a smaller target, and had managed to land both James' spells across his left upper arm instead of into his chest.

He'd gathered a bit of a crowd but no one who dared assist him for fear of pitting themselves against James. Once James gave up and left, though, they came forward and offered to tend to the girl. They had missed getting his name, and, anxious to pass on the gossip, they wanted to know it.

"I don't remember," Angus said, not wanting to pass it on. He didn't want fame. He liked his privacy. He left the alley and made his way back down the alley towards the tobacco shop.

He went into the shop, but before he could say anything to Bella, the shop owner was frustrated with him.

"Again? Why is it that when one of Robert's blokes come to town, you always bleed all over my floor? Go on, take it out of here," he said, annoyed.

"Oh, come on, Simon," Angus said, "You're not that big of a twit." The shop owner tossed him a couple of clean rags from behind the counter, rags that were most often used for dusting the shelves.

"You're nothing but trouble, you are," the owner sighed, shaking his head. Angus looked at Bella and gave her an amused smile, wadding one of the rags against his arm.

"Trouble. That's me," he said. Then he said quietly to her, "I'm sorry. I really did have that all scripted a little better in my head."

Bella was nervous beyond belief she paced the floor of the tobacco shop trying to keep her mind from thinking anything bad. She knew this was his job and she knew that the best thing to do was to be there for him when they returned. She watched out of the window of the shop waiting to see him emerge on the other side with a smile or anything. She wanted him to be safe but she knew that you couldn't stay safe and protect yourself at the same time.

She saw people walking fast away from where Angus had went and there was only a few that went in that direction. She wondered if they were going to help or they were waiting until the battle was won then jump in. She stayed where she was as she wrung her hands as she looked up and down the street trying to see him coming towards her.

She was looking somewhere else when the door opened, she turned and saw him relief showing on her face.

She wanted to throw something that the shop keeper but didn't think it was worth the fuss.

She looked at his arm and knew that she had to get him to Khaat or someone who could heal him. Hearing the shop owners next words she shook her head knowing full well he was trouble. Taking the other rag she ripped it down the center but made sure both sides were together still. She wrapped it around the one he had waded against his arm then tied it carefully against his arm.

"Yes you are trouble." She said with a smile. Hearing his next words she smiled, she cupped his face in her hands and kissed him. "It's ok baby, I understand. Maybe our wedding day will be a little more scripted." She smiled at him softly. "Come on let's get you cleaned up and patched up. We can go shopping a little later or I can take Marcus with me to go shopping." She said taking his hand and leading him towards the shop door. She now figured out what she might be able to make him for Christmas but she knew that she was gonna need some help.

She'd said yes. That was all that mattered.

"You know," he said softly, "if we script it, we might ruin a good thing. Maybe we ought to just wing it like we do everything else." Then he laughed, shrugging lightly. "If its any consolation, the Donohue women who have owned that ring have all had very long, happy marriages with very large happy families." He wasn't going to actually say that his grandmother, great grandmother, and all the other "greats" had learned, just like Bella was learning, to get used to all sorts of cuts and scrapes. It was just another day "at the office" for Donohue men.

He took her hand. "Khaat and Robert are at work," he said to her. "If we drop by St. Mungos, they'll make quick work of it, and we can get back to the much more important job of shopping."

It was just a quick apparation spell to St Mungos. He knew he should have probably followed protocol and gone to the emergency room, but he wasnt' interested. He knew Khaat's and Robert's schedules.

"They'll be upstairs this time of morning," He said to Bella. He led her to the lift and took her up to the fifth floor, to the administration offices. It was quiet here, much quieter than the first floor had been. He greeted Khaat's secretary. Seeing Khaat's door was closed, he went down the hall to the next door, and saw it slightly ajar. He knocked on the door.

"Come," Robert's voice called, in a preoccupied monotone.

"That means he's up to his eyeballs in paperwork and he's bored out of his skull," Angus said in a near whisper to Bella. He pushed the door open to Robert's office, and motioned Bella to go with him.

Robert's chief of staff office at St. Mungos was a bit more formal than his office at the Ministry, and this one had a little bit more of a military flavor to it. And, as Angus had expected, Robert had stacks of patient charts on his desk, in tall, neat piles. There were far more than were completed than not. Angus knew his boss enough to recognize serious boredom. Robert looked up from the paperwork on his desk and when he saw Angus and Bella, he lowered the glasses farther down the bridge of his nose so he could look over top of the frames at them.

"Well," Robert " I'd ask what brings you two here, but I think that's obvious." He motioned them to sit, as he got up and went over to a glass cabinet. "I thought you two were shopping this morning."

"We were," Angus said.

"You weren't shopping," Robert corrected. "You were hunting." Robert gathered some first aid supplies out of the cabinet.

"No, not really. I was not the hunter."

"I see," Robert said. "At any rate, I think this is the first time you've brought Bella here. It's about time you decided to show her around a little. Good seeing you here, Bella, even if it is for one of his little scrapes. Make sure he shows you around when we're done here. Its certainly changed in the last few years. We've done extensive remodeling and updating."

He went over and untied the bandage and looked carefully at the wound. "James, I see. Well, at least its just claws and not teeth. Well, let's clean it up and then stop the bleeding." He took just a moment with an antiseptic to clean the wound. Then he laid his hand over the wound for a long moment.

"Robert and Khaat work a bit differently," Angus told her. "They heal by touch."

"I heal by a lot of ways," Robert said, still working, "Potions, spells, common sense, some muggle ways--and touch. Whatever works." He finally took his hand away. The wounds were largely closed, except for some residual seepage. Angus was used to that. "Better," Robert said. "When the seepage stops and it completely closes, you won't see a scar at al. Like it never happened. What exactly was James doing, anyway?"

"Grocery shopping by the looks of it," Angus said dryly.

"Looking for little blondes again?" Robert asked, tired of James's antics.

"No, this time he was looking for gingers."

"Hm...All the same, I'll send out a few more aurors to keep Diagon Alley safe. You can finish your shopping if you like. Hannah can remove the bloodstains from your clothes, unless you'd rather go home to change. Or--I'm sure Khaat's got a change of clothes for both Marcus and Brian in her office. You could borrow something."

"She looked busy."

"Pfft. She's working on the budget. Its just a pain in the butt, that's all. You can certainly interrupt that."

Angus looked at Bella. "What do you think? Should I get a clean shirt and we keep going?"

She laughed at his words, "Maybe we should. It would be a lot more fun if we just wing it, then we can see where it lands us." She said laughing. "Well I hope that continues with us," She said honestly with a smile. She put her hands on his chest and kissed his lips, "I love you Angus." She thought about how big his family was and wondered how big there would become. She definitely wanted a big family but she wanted to know what his idea of big was.

"Well let's hope their not busy." She said with a small smile. "That will be good to drop by and get fixed up so that your no longer bleeding. Yeah I think that it's gonna take a while to get everything."

She held on tight to his hand as he apparated them to St Mungos.

"I've never been upstairs," She said with a smile to him. When they reached the fifth floor she looked around as they walked. She saw him greet a Khaat's secretary then they walked down the hall to the next door that was slightly ajar. She looked around when Angus knocked trying to see what the floor looked like from where she was able to see.

"He sounds bored," She whispered to him softly trying to not giggle. As she walked into the office and looked around surprised by it. She saw the stacks of files on his desk and her eyes went wide with how many there were. She looked at Robert himself and could tell he looked bored, but she almost laughed because of how he looked at the desk among the files. When he looked up she gave him a warm smile after he lowered his glasses down his nose.

"I tried to use one of the towels to put pressure on it to help slow the bleeding." Bella said softly as she took a seat in one of the chairs.

She let them talk knowing that Angus would need to tell Robert everything that happened. She saw Robert get some things from the glass cupboard. She looked down at her hands that had some blood on them from where she put the cloth around Angus' arm. She touched the ring that he gave her and smiled, she was still listening to the conversation between them.

"Well it's good to be able to see you at work Robert." She said smiling, then laughed slightly when he said even it was for one of Angus' scrapes. "I will. I haven't been anywhere in St Mungos except the first floor where the emergency room is. I would love to see what's been updated and remodeled."

She looked at what Robert was doing and thought it was amazing. She had only ever done the most basic of healing spells but she wondered if Robert could show her a little more. She wanted to be able to help if only a little bit but it would be something.

"That's amazing." She said softly looking at how Robert was healing Angus by touch.

"You definitely have way more experience than I do when it comes to healing someone. I know only a few basic spells to heal but the rest is muggle ways." She said then looked in amazement at how there was only some seepage. She smiled thinking that it was pretty amazing what he could do.

She was glad that Angus wasn't more injured since he had been going up against James. She knew that she had to make his present soon so she would have to get some fabric. Which was just as well when she had to get some things for Kate. She listened to Robert say about removed bloodstains from the clothes or borrowing clothes from Khaat's office.

She laughed when Robert said she was working on the budget. "Sounds like it is, especially if something doesn't add up right or it looks off."

She looked over at Angus, "Well you definitely need to get a clean shirt and see if there's any other blood on you that needs cleaned up." She said looking at his shirt. "I think we should just toss the shirt."

"Healing by touch is pretty simple in theory," Robert said. "It's largely disciplining your mind and learning to channel your own energies--much the same way you do with your wand to cast a spell properly. There, Angus. I think you'll live now."

"Do avoid the ER on your tour, though. It certainly isn't glamorous," Robert said. "Well, actually, there isn't a lot about a hospital that's glamorous."

"Now, now," Angus said. "There's that health center down in the basement. I don't know if a more comprehensive fitness center and spa in the wizarding world."

"You can get in on his membership for now, if you like," Robert said to Bella, "if you decide to try it."

"And, since Bella has an interest in the kitchen, I think I'll show her the food services." He looked at Bella. "Odd as it sounds, Khaat and Robert have hired a five star chef to head the food services here."

"You've hit a good day, then. The chef is working on some special Christmas desserts. He was preparing a chef's tasting for me, but I really don't have the time. You'd be doing me a favor if you'd both step in and taste the desserts and pick two of them for the Christmas day menu."

She listened to Robert speak and smiled softly, "Almost everything is simple in theory." She said. "Does it take a lot of practice to do that?" She asked curious about healing.

"Well I wouldn't think any would be glamorous considering everything." She said honestly. "True but I think it's the way patients are treated and how good the staff are is something that makes the hospital."

"Wow, fitness center and spa." She said with a grin. "I bet some of the staff loving having that in the basement."

"I may use it to try out the spa once just to see what it's like. I've never been to one," She said to Robert with a smile.

"Really?" Bella asked looking at Robert. "Who is he or she?" Her interest was piqued because she knew several five star chefs.

She grinned when he said they'd be doing him a favor by tasting the desserts. "I'm definitely not gonna turn down taste testing desserts for the Christmas menu." She said laughing softly. She had a sweet tooth and she loved most holiday desserts most people made.

Robert smiled at her wisdom.  "You're right, you know. Everything can seem simple, depending on how its put.  However, healing by touch works a lot like other advanced spells.  It depends on the intent of the caster, largely."

Angus didn't say anything at first.  He'd seen how many times Robert had put himself in the gap between a patient and the possibility of death.  There was something that Angus could not exactly put words to, but there was something in Robert in those moments that was more than just intent.  Something fierce and unyielding that seemed to refuse to take failure as a possibility.  

Angus also knew chapters of Robert's life that just was not public information.  He believed it had given Robert very little fear of death, and drove him to be far more interested in saving those he loved than himself.  He believed Bella needed to know those chapters, if she were to truly understand the man that seemed to be such an enigma to so many.  Especially since she was now going to be part of the family.

"You're in a mood," Robert's voice said suddenly. Angus glanced up at him and saw Robert's piercing stare on him.

"You know how much I'd like to get James out of our lives once and for all," Angus made a hasty excuse.

"Pfft.  We'll get him. Fenrir can't shelter him forever.  Fenrir is an old man, and James isn't all that bright. Lots of brawn, very little grey matter." He looked at Bella.  "The chef downstairs is a Beaubaton graduate. Florian Bonnet. He's particularly gifted in pastry sculpture and sugar artistry.  He's promised some wonderful things, but as I said, I just truly don't have time." He patted Angus on the shoulder. "We'll get him. Don't worry. He's not just your problem. He's primarily mine."  He looked at Bella. "Go get him cleaned up and then get him doing something fun. Its entirely too close to Christmas to let James darken anyone's thoughts for long."

She gave Robert a smile nodding at his words. "Intent of the caster?" She said her mind starting work on that thought. "If someone had a bad intent on the person would the healing not work? Or would they make it worse?" She had many questions about healing but she didn't think that she should ask all of them. She knew that Robert was a busy man but she didn't want to hound him with questions.

She went through several scenarios in her head at everything about healing by touch. She knew that she would never be at Robert's or even Khaat's skill but she would like to learn as much as she could from them. She wanted to help Angus when he got hurt or injured while working, she didn't want to have to go running to Robert or Khaat at some odd hour of the night. She knew Angus wouldn't want to go to the ER for something because he trusted Robert and Khaat more.

Bella looked up at Robert's voice then looked over at Angus whom he was staring at. She also saw something on his face but she couldn't explain what it was she saw.

She looked at Angus when he said that he wanted to get James out of the picture. She knew there had to be something a little more than that. She didn't say anything and she also didn't give anything away in her expressions or eyes.

She tilted her head to the side when she heard Fenrir. "Are you talking about Fenrir Greyback?" She asked curiously wondering if it was the same one she heard about. "I've heard about him when I lived in France. Some of the really good wizarding chefs there had nothing but good things to say about him. I always wanted to try some of his food but wasn't able to because I didn't know where he was working." She said with a smile on her face. "Ok I will. I don't know about the fun part but I'll definitely try to get him to do something. Yes that is true, nothing should darken ones mind for too long during a season like this one." She said standing then kissed Robert's cheek patting his arm softly. "Don't work to hard." She said then looked at Angus. "Come on Angus, let's get you cleaned up."

"Good question," Robert said, always appreciating a quick wit.  "Most of the time, if a caster tries to cast a spell with an intent of the opposite, they cancel each other out. Most of the time, anyway. The spell is short circuited but somewhat blocks the caster from causing any real harm. I think the problem is that magic is a sort of science. It functions on certain truths, logic. It can keep many secrets, but in the end, magic cannot betray itself. And magic won't be lied to. It just can't happen. I saw once where the spell seemed to reflect back and blast the caster, but I can't say for certain that's what caused it.  That's my best guess."

"Likewise, though, a healer is not at his or her fullest potential unless they are willing to put themselves fully into their work. Its a sort of exchange. One is willing to put himself out there, to take a risk, and in so doing, magic gives back exactly what the caster is willing to put into it.  Like so many other things, particularly magic. Focus has much power. You could learn to do some healing spells, you know. Angus's grandfather isn't a healer by trade. His magic skills are in Defense Against the Dark Arts and in potions. He's a potionsmaster.  But, in his line of work, he has had to learn some rudimentary healing spells."

"Except that they never bloody work for one to heal oneself," Angus shrugged.

"Of course not," Robert said. "That's elementary. A wand is only an amplification device of a wizard's own skills and life force energies. That's why Ollivander had to match them so precisely. If a healer is injured, his own energy systems are already damaged and compromised.  He can't possibly turn a damaged system back upon itself and expect it to be fixed. Even in the wizarding world, two wrongs never make a right. Nor is anyone limitless."

She mentioned Fenrir. Angus gave her a slight smile. "You're right. That old buzzard is still alive, and still a pain in the arse," Angus replied.

"That 'old buzzard' is probably the only thing that has any control of James Blood," Robert said. "We either catch James or pray Greyback lives a very long time. At least at this point, anyway."

When she mentioned hearing of the chef, Angus supressed a laugh. "Robert's not telling you everthing," he said, finding it truly funny. "He's found out that Florian makes exceptional fish and chips. Kate hates it when Robert stops off for pub grub on his way home from work.  He promised her to quit stopping for it on the way home. That certainly hasn't stopped the fish and chips, though."

"Oh, now you've done it. Now the cat is out of the proverbial bag," Robert said. "Lord, don't tell Kate. I'll never hear the end of it." Angus watched her kiss Robert on the cheek.  

"Let's go tear Khaat away from those budget figures," Angus said.

"Next door," Robert motioned to the office next to his. Angus simply went, unannounced to Khaat's door, tapped lightly on the door and opened it.

"You home?" he called.  He'd been in her office several times, mostly to bail her behind out of some sort of threat or attack. Of any place Khaat spent her time, this had been the most vulnerable. She had always rejected security, protection spells, or anything that would come between her and her staff. Marcus was, now, the exception--the only one there had ever been.  Angus knew Marcus's reputation. He'd been the bodyguard for magical heads of state. He was tough, no nonsense, known for keeping professional distance and staying true to his mission, and was at his best when he worked alone. Robert had given Marcus one order and only one. He was to protect Khaat, above all else, above anyone else, and at every cost. Period.  

Khaat had been focused, feeling knee deep in endless expenditures and deposit slips and ledgers. Marcus, on the other hand, was alert, attentive, and when he saw Angus, he motioned for them to enter. He saw Angus's bloodstained shirt and cast him a slight frown.

"Ruin more of your wardrobe, did you?" he teased. "Need a bandaid?"  When Khaat heard voices, she looked up.

"Ah, he's had the bandaid, I see," Khaat said, noticing her father's handiwork straight off when she saw the bandage.  "He's here for the wardrobe, I think. You've got a tux in the closet, don' t you?" Angus saw Marcus shoot her a dirty look, and then Angus laughed. It was hard to get Marcus out of a suit and tie for much of any reason.

"I'll see what I can find," Marcus said, opening up the door behind her desk and going into a back room.

Bella listened to his words and understood what it was quickly. "In a way depending on the spell and it's intent, if someone has the opposite intent that the magic knows and reacts to it. Have they thought about putting something like that into theory? I meant not do it on a live person but put it in a safe enough environment that it can be tested of it's reaction to certain spells." She said then thought about it some more. "Even that might not work if the spell reflects back and hits the caster then it would do more damage if that happened. Then that person who casted it might end up putting themselves in danger. Magic is most definitely complicated and full of surprises."

"Which is why their able to heal such extensive injuries right? They put themselves into the magic to help heal someone which is why it's so complex." She said understanding what it was to be a healer but still wanted to learn more. "Oh I do want to learn to do some healing spells that way I know just in case. I like to be prepared for anything I can be. I might have to talk to him about potions, it was one of the things I did well in at Hogwarts was potions. I know some minor healing spells but I would like to know some more different ones that will help more." She said making a mental note to send an owl to Angus' grandfather.

"It makes sense that an injured healer can't heal someone if they are injured let alone themselves. A person who is injured is already at risk so they can't give what they don't have at that moment." She said feeling like she could learn a lot from him. She knew that if she had a question about anything that she should ask him or Khaat because there were healers. They would know more about what it takes to heal and any aspect of the healing.

She listened about how Fenrir was still alive and how he was keeping control of James Blood. "We can only hope both of them leave the picture soon." She said softly.

"Ah so he's still getting his fish and chips but doesn't have to leave the office to do so. Very sneaky Robert." She said laughing.

She laughed more when he asked her not to tell Kate. "I promise to not tell Kate." She said still laughing.

"Okay." She said to Angus.
When they entered Khaat office she looked around at everything just because she was curious. Seeing Marcus in the office she gave him a warm smile.

She laughed at Marcus' teasing of Angus trying to not be too loud. However that wasn't something easily done especially with Khaat's teasing of Marcus. "Hello Khaat." She said after her fit of laughter had waned. "How are you today?"

She saw Marcus disappear behind a door in the office to get Angus a new shirt to wear.