LONDON CALLING

"You ever see those iconic pictures of those little Alpine cities that look like they would be the perfect place to hold an Oktoberfest? Yeah. It looks like that, picture perfect. Classic German food like wiener schnitzel, sauerbraten, apple strudel. All of that. I bet you'd like it."

"Thank you, Michael for an amazing meal," Angus told him. "Jacks' right. It was great."

"Glad you all enjoyed it."

"I'll finish the washing up so that Nigel can check your back, Michael," Kate said.

"I'll help you, Kate," Angus said.

"Now's our chance," Robert told Edward, teasing Nigel. "Let's make a break for it." Edward laughed out loud.

"I could make it, but you're screwed, Robert," Edward replied.

"You'd both be screwed. I could still catch you both," Nigel replied.

"Maybe I should tell him that we're behind on all the organization physicals. That would keep him busy all day for a couple of days," Robert said. Edward laughed, envisioning how much everyone in the room were likely to hate Robert if Nigel decided he would push through and get the annual physicals done.

"If he starts in alphabetical order, that puts you first, Angus," Robert said.

"I don't get intimidated from that," Angus said. "Besides, mine was completed. That means Brian is next.

"Well," Brian said, "Perhaps we need to lay a wager on it. Whichever person gets the best results--if we end up ever catching up on the physicals--gets a bonus in their check that is the equivalent of an additional check--in other words a bonus equal to your entire weekly pay."

"Now that's just blackmail," Angus said

Ruby listened to Angus and chuckled " well I guess you'd have to show me as I've never seen one." she told him with a slight smirk. Listrning to the others she thought about the order and realized she mira would be next then she would before Jack and Jess. " ho boy, pysicals." she said " what do they entail?" she asked out of curiosity. " please say not needles or peeing in a tub?" she asked

Jess and Jack smiled " we'd be happy to have ours before any one else " Jack said and Jess nodded as she ate her desert. " I got nothing to hide and am as fit as a fiddle." Jessie frowned slightly but with Kaden holding his hand smiled.

"im up for it, last one I had was before I was discharged." he said " they said I was not fit for duty, im hoping it will be diferent this time." Kaden gave Jessies hand a squeese and smiled to him.

"it will your in a better place now pysicaly and mentaly" he told Jessie with a smile.

"I can do that," Angus told Ruby. "I have a photo album."

"You're thinking of muggle medicine," Nigel said. "This checks all the bodily systems one by one, mostly by touch because we find they're more accurate than muggle means. It generally isn't too bad of thing. Not like some of muggle tales I've heard. Just so you know, it doesn't get Edward or Robert off the list. I don't get distracted easily."

"Well, that didn't work," Edward laughed, looking at Robert. "What else have you got?"

"Give me a minute. I'll think of something," Robert laughed.

"Alright, you two," Nigel said to them, "time for you two to try to settle in your rooms. And, Tremaine, you're all mine. Now, march."

"I'll help Kate with the last of the washing up, and then I'll be up," Angus told Ruby.

Ruby chuckled " and heres me thinking you actually show me." she said and chuckled but when he said he'd help Kate then be up she nodded to him, kissing him she moved to head up to their room " don't be too long" she teased with a smile then headed up the stairs. Once in their room she showered and changed into her PJ's.

Jack headed out for his patrol while Jess headed to check Abby beore headeing to bed her self " I'll sat sleep well" she said to them all. Jack gave her a kiss then headed out the door.

"I'll let the wolves know where we are so they don't worry" he said as Jessie joined him for their patrol " also I'll mention about the trolls too." both men said good night to Robert and Machael and then left.

"We'll get there," he laughed. "You do realize that there are 195 countries on our planet, and hopefully we'll see them all, but we do have to take time out from travel for work, right? I'll check in with Gabe though, if you really want to go, so if he arranges a meeting, maybe you and I can go and pick up this saddle. Right now, though, with trolls perhaps on the move in our direction, safety really must come first. Alright, I won't be long. I'm off to do some dishes." He headed into the kitchen, and they did the washing up.

Then Angus made up a breakfast casserole and a large bowl of mixed berries and made up some dough to make something different. He decided to make some orange danish. They were similar to his cinnamon rolls but they had orange juice, orange zest and orange extract in the dough and in the icing. He made the dough and set it out for the first rise. He made the icing and set it in the refrigerator. None of it took very long, but it did give him a huge head start for the morning.

Then he went up to his room, set an alarm the middle of the night to go punch the dough down and set it for the second rise. Then he showered and, feeling tired, he went to bed.

He got up when the alarm went off and went downstairs, punched down the danish dough and set it for the second rise. Then he went back upstairs and back to bed until his normal morning waking time.

It was still dark out when he got up and dressed and went downstairs. He brewed both coffee and tea, and then he put a sheet pan of sausage and bacon in the oven, along with the breakfast casserole. He sliced the roll of danish dough into individual rolls, put them on a sheet pan and stuck them in the oven.

While all of that was cooking, he set up the breakfast sideboard with plates, mugs, juice glasses, silverware, napkins and trivets for the breakfast meats and the breakfast casserole. He poured a large pitcher of orange juice and put large pitchers of hot coffee and tea on the sideboard. By then he was able to set out the mixed berries, the breakfast meats, and the breakfast casserole. The last things to do were to bring in several copies of the morning newspaper and put them in the dining room on the end of the sideboard, and then to ice the orange danish, garnish them with just a little more orange zest and set them out.

With breakfast ready, he finally had a moment to pour himself a mug of coffee, and he checked the clock. Those going either out to run or to Paris had just enough time to eat before they needed to leave. Breakfast was ready, and with time to spare. He was about to sit down to take a break and get his first sip of coffee when Abbey came in sleepily, and she was crying.

"Aggie," she called, with big tears rolling down her face. He quickly set his coffee aside and he went over and picked her up. She wrapped her arms around his neck and buried her face in his shoulder, clinging tightly and still crying. "What happened, Half Pint? Bad dream?" She nodded. "Aw, I'm sorry. Well, you can stay here with me. What'd you dream about?"

"Monsters," she told him. "Goggies and monsters in the yard."

"Well, come look. There are no doggies or monsters in the yard this morning. Let's go look. You're always safe with me. Look. See? Nobody here but you and me." He took her outside onto the back porch to show her that there indeed were no monsters or werewolves in the yard. As he held her, he heard her stomach growling loudly. "Uh oh. I think I hear a monster. Right here..." He tickled her stomach, and she giggled. "I think its right here." He continued to tickle her, and she giggled.

"I wuv you, Aggie," she said, cuddling into him.

"I wuv you too, Abs," he smiled, getting out his handkerchief and wiped her nose and wiped away the tears. "You want some breakfast?" She nodded. "Let's go get some." He took her into the dining room, put her in a booster seat at the table and fixed her a plate.

Ruby had gotten up before Angus as she needed to head to Paris and Owens. After intensive trainning she ported back and smiled seeing Abby and Angus outside talking before heading inside. "Good morning." she said as she entered the dinning room kissing Angus on his cheek and lightly tickaling Abby. " I thought about what you said last night and I agree, plenty of time to see other countries, we need to make sure Robert and the family are safe first." she moved to the kitchen and washed her hands clean of the dirt before poring some tea for herself and making two plates and a bowl for Abby.

" I went to paris this morning and did some trainning with Owens, he says Im not too bad just need my muggle weapons brushed up on and to quicken up on my wand and spell skills." she told him then looked at Abby " so what do you want to do today?" she asked her as she saw Jess walk in with her breakfast and Jack return from patrol.

"I'm not sure how I missed you," he sighed. "I got up extra early and had breakfast ready so that anyone that needed to go to Paris would be able to eat before they go. I'll try to have it on the table at 3:30 am, I guess, instead of 4:30." He particularly was frustrated with himself when he had made the extra effort to have breakfast ready extra early and it still didn't work out. Oh, well, he could adjust, he decided. Instead, he changed subjects.

"Well, that sounds promising. I would go by Owen's judgment, then," Angus said, setting his mug on the table. "Sorry, but I delayed my run in order to get breakfast early, and since that task is done, i really do need to get my run in. I think it's going to be a very busy day. I'm really sorry. It's not even 8 am, and I'm already behind. I'll see you later." He cast her a smile, transfigured his clothes, and dashed out the door, stressed before he started, he realized he probably wasn't going to have time for the breakfast he had fixed for everyone else.

"Magic dolls!" Abbey told Ruby as Kate came in.

"Magic dolls?" Kate asked.

"Like Daddy makes!" Abbey nodded.

"Oh," she said, understanding. She looked at Ruby. "Brian enchanted the little dolls in Abbey's dollhouse with a simple animate spell, and it thrilled her to no end. Now she thinks the dolls are magic. That was with her dollhouse in her room at Brian's. There is a victorian style dollhouse here, but I haven't gotten it out yet. It's in the closet in her room here. It was Khaat's when she was small, but I'm sure its still in good shape. Might need a bit of a cleaning spell to refresh it, but it should be alright otherwise, if you want to bother with it. If not, I'll try to get to it in the next day or so."

Ruby looked at Angus worried at how he looked stressed already " its a beautiful breakfast, I just got up early becuse I wanted to start the training, and you don't need to get up earlier, I'll just have breakfast when I return." she said then heard him say he was going for his run. " do you want some company, or you running on your own?" she moved to pck up her plate and place it in the washer.

Jess and Jack ste breakfast as Jess looking some what unkempt walked down Kaden behind him. " oh breakfast, thanks Angus" he said and made a plate for himself and Kaden.

Ruby looked up at both of them and smiled then looked to Angus. " Its okay if you do I've got to tend to Robert and Edward" she and looked to Kate for some guidance as she felt something was off.

Kate motioned to Ruby to let Angus go for his run. Then she went over and sat with her.

"I can tell you he's on edge. He's stressed, and he really doesn't want to take it out on anyone. I heard him last night. The first time I heard him, I looked at the clock, and it was just about 12:30. He must have been heading to bed then. And I heard him up again at 2. And, then, he really did get up earlier because I heard him finally get up for the day at 4. Any way you figure it, that's about three hours of sleep. That might be bothering him. A short night like that certainly would bother me, that's for sure.

"And, you'll find that he holds himself to a very high performance bar, particularly in the kitchen. Next time you get over to Brian's house, open up the cabinet door that's right next to the broom closet. You'll see sort of a battered manila file folder in there. It's got odds and ends of recipes and notes of things that he has kept for some oddball reason or another. And then, if you look clear at the back, there's a piece of parchment in there. Take a look at it. It's a diploma. He's never talked about it and never framed it, but he actually completed culinary school seven or eight years ago. He really is a certified executive chef. That's why the kitchen stuff really gets to him if it isn't right. He absolutely loves the kitchen duties, but it has to be right. He's fine. He just needs to run off the frustration. You'll see. He'll be fine when he gets back.

"He does probably have a lot on is plate today. I know that after breakfast, he tends to the barn. And, twice a month, he orders groceries for the estate. That would fall on his calendar for today. And so does balancing the estate budget and taking care of payroll to make sure that everyone that needs to be paid here or in Paris or in Colorado gets a check. That's 119 people to pay. And, he'll still somehow fit in cooking lunch and supper for all of us. So, I'm sure when he told you he felt overloaded, he was telling you the truth. Besides, I've never known of him to lie anyway."

Ruby sat with Kate and listened to her explain she nodded " yeah, I guess I just don't want to make it worse for him, I want him to be happy and not stressed I guess." she said listening more she nodded " I'll start on the barn after I have checked on Robert and Edward." she said "it will be one less thing for him to worry over."

Thinking more she listened to Kate explain about the Kitchen and nodded then she spoke of the small cupboard with recipies in she smiled noted the diploma she knew was pushed to the back. Now Ruby wanted and understood his need to make everything right in the kitchen. But he didn't have to for her she was indipendant and could cook for herself. " with the way his family treat him when they showed up, and how my family are I don't want him to be pulled into my mess and stressed out even more but...I do love him so." she sighed looking to where he's gone.