LONDON CALLING

Angus followed her to a stall with tables and chairs and he got down from the griffin, glad she had chosen a table closest to the street so he could hang onto the griffin and enjoy some tea. The hot, flavorful tea was a welcome treat.

"You know, the boys really would understand if we didn't stay the entire duration of the carnival," Angus told her. "I think it meant a lot that we showed up at all. We could always go home and then if we decide to go back, we certainly know the way. Sergio is a big boy. He can find his way back. We've done our duty as hosts and as parents, as far as I'm concerned. If the tea rejuvenates us, then fine. If not, then we need to head home. That's my thought. I expect the others to have supper and finish out some of the evening here. And I expect they'll all be entirely knackered when they come home...."

As he was speaking, Kate came up to them.

"Sorry to interrupt, but Robert sent me with this for you, Angus, if you want it." She reached in her pocket and handed him a small glass vial. "It's a double dose of energy potion. He knew you would need it, and he knew you wouldn't remember to bring some with you. In fact, he said it would be perfectly safe if you wanted to divide it in half and share it with Ruby, under the circumstances. But--there's also another option. Michael apologizes for not thinking of it, but he said if you wanted to go to his place and go in and take a break, rest up and then come back, you're absolutely welcome to do that." She handed Angus a key.

"If you don't mind, regardless, whether you go home or go to Michael's I might send Fudge and Archangel and the pygmy puff with you. The boys don't need to have the animals with them til midnight tonight. The animals may have had enough far before the boys do."

"Agreed. Thank you, Kate. And tell Michael we said thanks. We'll try to find you when we make our decision and let you know," Angus said.

"Fair enough," Kate smiled. "The boys took Abbey over to the rides for the little ones, if you need to find them."

"Thanks," Angus said.

"Oh, thanks," Kate smiled. "I'll give it to him." Kate left, and Angus listened to Ruby talk about their options.

"I forgot about the costume contest. You're right. We ought to show up for that. That isn't until about supper time. Let's take Michael up on his offer, then, and go next door. Hopefully the griffin will be safe in the backyard. Michael has some outdoor lounge chairs somewhere. If I can find one, I can stay out with the griffin to try to help protect it, for whatever good I can do, that is," Angus said. "If that's what we're going to do, I'll try to pass a signal to Robert or Kate, and when we finish with our tea, we can head over to Michael's."

Angus caught Robert's attention and signaled him with a small hand movement. Robert understood and then he finished his tea.

Once at Michael's, Angus sent Ruby inside, and he stayed outside for a moment to secure the griffin and to leave more water for the griffin. The more he pushed himself, the more exhausted he was. He sat down on the back steps outside for awhile because he didn't think he was going to make it back into the house. After a bit of a rest, he managed to make it to the sofa but that was as far as he could go. He sat down, his fatigue making him nauseated. Ruby asked him who he thought would win the contest.

"I have no idea. Everyone's costumes are so good. I would hate to have to choose," He said. He wanted to lie back and rest but he didn't feel like he could. He did not want anyone to come and attempt to hurt or take the griffin. "Snidely," Angus called the hat rack. "Can the coffee pot brew coffee by itself?" Snidely scrambled off to the kitchen, appearing to be glad to be a good host.

"Thanks. I appreciate that. I think I've done well today, all things considered, but its starting to catch up with me." Angus replied when she offered to take care of the griffin. "I gave the griffin more water. I think he shouldn't need food again for awhile. If we check Michael's freezer, he might have some meat or some fish that we could thaw out and give to the griffin and I'll replace it. I'm more concerned now that someone might come and try to take him or muck with him. I suppose I could ask Snidely to just keep an eye and let us know if someone comes into the yard. That, and if the griffin leaves a pile of griffin poo, I might have to clean that up before we go home tonight. Or, you could use a quick spell and make it disappear, I suppose." He leaned back against the back of the couch, starting to smell fresh coffee brewing. "God, that smells like heaven," Angus closed his eyes, not intending to sleep. Then she asked what they do when Michael wasn't there.

"They play poker when Michael isn't here," Angus told her, with an amused grin. "And Snidely cheats, so watch him if he breaks out the cards. They do keep the house and the garden up for Michael. And--Snidely has a girlfriend. He and the mailbox have had a relationship going for years. Don't ask me how that all works because I have no clue. But Snidely is, for all practical purposes, the butler here, and from what I've seen, he actually does a good job of keeping everybody else in line."

In a moment, Snidely brought Angus a mug of coffee, and then he seemed to be looking at Ruby.

"Thank you, Snidely. That smells wonderful. Ru, I think he wants to know if he can get you something to drink too," Angus said.

"Snidely basically takes his job seriously," Angus said, taking a few sips of the fresh coffee, his eyes getting heavy. He set his mug down on the coffee table and accidently slipped off into sleep a moment later.

He only slept for about an hour but what little he slept did seem to help. He woke and drank the cold coffee that was in his mug, not wanting to disappoint Snidely. He checked his watch.

"Sorry, Ru," Angus apologized. At the sound of Angus's voice, Snidely hurried back to the living room to see if he could be helpful somehow. "Is the coffee still hot, Snidely?" Angus asked. The hat rack scooped up Angus's mug, dashed off to the kitchen and refilled the mug and brought it straight back. "If Michael ever gets tired of you, you can come and work at Khaat's house." Snidely nodded. After all, Khaat was responsible for the fact that Snidely had any life at all.

"We've got about 90 minutes before the Hogwarts' costume contest. That's followed by the children's contest, and that's followed by the adult's contest. I'm not sure I know how the contestants are being chosen or how the winners are decided, but it might be nice to see at least the Hogwarts's contest," Angus told Ruby. "And then maybe we can make sure the boys have enough money to get themselves some supper. I'm sure they're not going back to the school until they absolutely have to, so I'd like to make sure they're not going to go hungry tonight. I can take over babysitting the griffin so you can rest if you need to."