Yo. So just as a heads-up, this is my first attempt at something like this. I was inspired by the only other lone Undertale/Dresden Files-author, jgjemmett, who mentioned somewhere in their chapters that they had expected to see more of this kind of mash-up. So, here I am. Have fun!

Chapter 1: A Case

Some days, you're just lucky. Nothing much going on, your bank account for once doesn't look like you're going to be homeless soon. The pretty new mail-woman greets you with a friendly smile, a friend comes over to enjoy two bottles of the world's best beer together. No vampires ambush you in the parking lot, no faerie queens come to coerce you into being their errand boy, no zombies try to break and enter your flat.

You're allowed to feel relaxed.

This was not one of those days.

I'm not sure when I last had had one of these, if ever.

I'll admit, it wasn't anything life-threatening like the situations listed before, but it managed to ruin my mood all the same.

My day started in a mess. Molly Carpenter, daughter of one of my closest friends (I don't have many of those), ex-warlock (now under the Doom of Damocles), my one-year-apprentice and, most of all, moody misunderstood teenage girl with all the sass and edge, had decided to wake me up with some extra training of her own. It resulted in me trying to convince a handful of annoyed, stressed-out firefighters not to report either of us for alleged possession of dangerous explosives, and having to call someone to have my windows repaired. It's absurd how long wizards and magic have been around and there's still no potent spell for repairing your house if a potion blows up in your face. Not one that I know of, at least.

That was my Wednesday morning, and I was close to going back to bed and wait for Thursday to be better. That was when the phone rang.

"Dresden," I answered.

The female voice on the other end of the line sounded apprehensive, which I'm used to. Human clients usually aren't completely set on the idea of tapping into the world of magic, not at the beginning at least. Sometimes, they changed their mind in the middle of hiring me and went on to try something else. Of course, there was the other side of the coin too, but being hired by those kinds of people was often even more of a hassle. They tended to ascribe everything they saw and disliked to something supernatural – and turned to calling me a charlatan if I told them that no, their neighbor was not a werewolf, and no, their boss was not possessed by evil spirits, he was just a jerk. They often also were even shorter on money than I was, so working for them didn't even pay that well.

That's why I react more complaisantly when the potential client sounds hesitant, but desperate. It has nothing to do with them being a woman, although I admit that it helps. Chivalry is a concept I refuse to let die.

"Yes, hello. This is Emma Harris, from Aspen."

Well, that was new. "As in Aspen, Colorado?"

"Yes."

"However may I be of help, Mrs. Harris?"
"Well, I… I was wondering, if… gosh, this is weird."

"No need to feel embarrassed, Mrs. Harris. You're not the one calling themselves a wizard in the Yellow Pages." Joking around a little usually helped to ease the tension. Made you look more trustworthy and charismatic. Just had to watch out not to get too self-deprecating.

From the other side of the line came something close to shy laughter.

"Yes, well... I meant to ask you if you had any colleagues in Colorado."

Oh. Rude. You don't just call a business and ask for the contact info of a rival.

"None that offer their work like I do, as far as I know," I said, a little annoyed. "Please, do tell me your problem, maybe I am just as qualified to assist." A little passive aggressive, but I could still smell the burnt parts of the room and the stench didn't help my temper. Mrs. Harris's voice became hectic.

"Oh God, no! That's not what I was insinuating, I just… I'm not sure if I can afford the working fee plus travel expenses, and I didn't think that you worked outside of Illinois. I'm terribly sorry!" She was getting panicky. I regretted my earlier snarky comment and tried to sound conciliatory.

"No harm done, Mrs. Harris. Maybe you could describe your problem to me first and then we can discuss what to do next. I'm sure we'll figure out a solution that's benefitting to us both."

"If… if you think so, Mr. Dresden," she sighed. "To be honest, this is my last straw. I don't know what else I could do." She paused for a moment, gathering her thoughts. "I'm a teacher at a middle school in Aspen. One of my classes… had been on a school trip last week. Three days ago, on their way back to school – maybe you've heard of it, it has been all over the news here – the bus had to make an emergency stop on the State Highway 82, to the East of Mt. Elbert. When they came back, ten students had gone missing." Her voice cracked a little, as if she was in pain. She stopped again. I waited patiently for her to continue.

"All of the returnees, including the accompanying teacher and the bus driver were in a weak state of mind. Some were under shock or terrified, most were just somewhat… confused. They didn't know where they were, or what they had been doing for the last few hours. Some were better than others, but… it was really eerie."

"I can imagine," I said, sympathetically.

"The police are working together with the park rangers to search the area, but they have had no luck so far. They've tried using a drone with an infrared camera, but as soon as they reached the area where the bus had to stop, the drone wouldn't fly."

That actually did sound like magical involvement. Electronical gadgets don't go well with magic. It's why I drive an old VW Beetle. It's why I have candles instead of lightbulbs, no computer and even no running hot water. It just comes with the job.

"They also had search dogs with them, but…"

"But?"

"I've been there, Mr. Dresden, as a voluntary searcher. I've… seen them. The dogs… apparently they could smell something strange. One of the police men said that they were acting confused. Some even aggressive, as if they smelled something dangerous. That place… I don't know how to describe it, it just felt… strange."

I threw a short glance at my giant temple dog. Mouse was lying next to the couch, his ears twitching, probably dreaming. I mentally noted down to take him with me, if necessary. Anything those police search dogs could sniff out, Mouse could find and probably fetch, too.

"I think your hunch is right, Mrs. Harris. It definitely sounds like something supernatural is involved."

Mrs. Harris let out a short gasp. "Oh God. God, no. What am I… what does this thing, whatever it is, want with the children, Mr. Dresden? Please, if you know anything-"

"Please calm yourself. It's too early to assume anything."

"But didn't you just say, that something supernatural took the students?"

"No, I said that it was involved." I rubbed my forehead, thinking. "The way you describe it, there is definitely something in these mountains. That doesn't automatically mean that its aim was to kidnap a group of children. It could just be an unfortunate side effect and the children could still be wandering around somewhere. That being said…" I glanced at the broken windows and scorched walls. "It certainly wouldn't hurt to have me take a look at it."

"Yes, certainly," she agreed. "About… about the payment…"

I already knew that I had to check on whatever was going on in Colorado, no matter how much the payment would be. I'm not made of stone, if there's a distraught woman asking for help and kids missing, maybe being in great danger, I wouldn't be able to turn her down with a clean conscience. That's just being decent, and I like to think of myself as a decent person. Not great, but… decent.

"We can figure that out once I've gotten to Aspen," I said calmly. "Don't worry about the travelling expenses, I… it's not going to be a problem."

"Are… are you sure?" She wasn't convinced. "How do you plan on coming here?"

Via a Way through the Nevernever. I knew one that would take me to Colorado in ten minutes. It led to a training camp of the White Council that had been set up ever since the war against the Red Court Vampires had started. It wasn't perfect, but if there wasn't another feasible way. My trusty Beetle was under repairs at the moment, and if I took a bus, I ran the risk of it breaking down somewhere in the middle of the trip. Not to mention that most bus drivers weren't all that ecstatic with having Mouse as an additional passenger. Taking the Passage through the Nevernever was a considerable risk, but at least I had a chance to arrive.

"Don't worry about it, Mrs. Harris. Let's plan a meeting point for now, okay?"

"Yes, okay. … Mr. Dresden?"

I nodded absently. "Yes?"

"Thank you."

See? Decent.

"Who was that? A client?" Molly asked later.

"Remember what I told you earlier?" I replied, still a little annoyed. She stuck her lip out.

"Yeah, yeah. Don't talk to you until the window has been repaired. I'm learning my lesson, alright."

All the sass.

"It was nothing that would concern you," I said.

"I heard you mention Colorado before," she continued. "I wonder if we're going on a hiking trip."

"We are going nowhere, Molly. Mouse and I will go. You stay here."

"But why?!" she exclaimed, frustrated. "I can help! I-"

"With causing a fire hazard in another state? No thanks."

"You know what I mean," she grumbled. "Why can't I come with you, but Mouse can?"

"I need someone that watches out for me, not the other way round," I said.

"You don't have to watch out for me, I can handle myself," Molly exclaimed, raising her chin defiantly. "I've been a great help before and you know it."

"That was when we kind of knew what we were up against," I retorted. "I don't have the slightest idea what this thing could be. Could be life-threatening, could be boring. With my luck, it's probably not going to be the latter. You stay here, end of discussion. And that's enough talking."

"Three pairs of eyes see more than two. If you're just investigating, then my coming with you won't hurt. You're going to take a path through the Nevernever, aren't you? I could create a distraction if we're spotted…"

I raised an eyebrow, causing her to shrug in that 'I don't give a rat's ass about what you tell me to do'-teenager attitude.

"What's he looking so grumpy for?" she asked, focusing on one of the few parts of wall that had survived her experiment unscathed. "I'm just thinking out loud. Or am I not allowed to talk to myself as well?"

"I'll join you in your out-loud-thinking," I said. "And I think you should stay at your parents' house for a few days."

That hit where it hurt. My student opened her mouth in protest, closed it again after thinking it over and proceeded to pout.

"If you manage to restrain yourself and your raging adolescence hormones, then maybe I'll consider being gracious and decrease the religious 'house-arrest-camp' to a 'stay and watch the flat'-time with Murphy and Michael checking up on you from time to time," I said.

"I don't need a babysitter," Molly objected, not putting too much force into her voice.

"True, no babysitter could handle you and your arsonist tendencies," I agreed. She sighed audibly.

"You're really mad at me this time, huh?"

"I kind of prefer my home not burned, yes," I said. Another sigh.

"Fine."

After clearing things up with Murphy and Michael, I went on to start my research. Others hit up the internet or the library, if they feel particularly old-school. I have my own information storage for that, and he's arguably more and less efficient at the same time. Mostly depends on how interesting the topic is to him and how much he liked the last smut novel I gave him.

Bob was the skull I kept in my secret basement lab. Well, to be more accurate, he's the spirit of intellect that lives inside the skull. When I went down the ladder, two little lights sprang up in the skull's sockets, where the pupils would have normally been.

"Hey boss, sure was a good 'kaboom' first thing in the morning." The lights flickered curiously. "Do we have to move? Do I finally get my own shelf? Can we go to a place that has female joggers running by in the morning? Asking for a friend."

"Very funny, Bob," I responded. "You know that the apartment has seen worse than this."

"True. You're oddly obsessed with the old sinkhole. Anyone else would have left ages ago."

"I need your help with something, Bob."

"So what else is new?" The skull groaned. "Hit me up. I'm kind of in the middle of a good scene and I know you won't leave me alone until you're satisfied."

I told him everything I had gotten from Mrs. Harris.

"So something happened," the skull emphasized. "Incredible. It's like I know exactly where to start."

"It doesn't sound like the Red Court would be behind this," I offered helpfully.

"That's not a start, that's leaving aside the obvious," Bob retorted.

"Try creatures associated with mountains that let people disappear," I said.

"Sure. Wanna start with the Moth Man?"

I blinked. "Is that actually a thing?"

"Not that I know of."

"Bob," I growled, slowly losing my patience with the wisecracking head.

"Spoilsport." Bob went silent for a while, checking his memory. "Could be Oreades. Mountain nymphs. Maybe you should take me with you, to… make sure."

I frowned. "Do Oreades normally kidnap a group of children?"

"Eh, no," Bob admitted. "Mostly pick up left behind babies and nurture them. Or petrify nasty men."

"Highly doubt it's Oreades then."

The spirit sighed. "Let a man dream."

I gave him a warning stare.

"Could also be Patupaiarehe," he continued after a while.

"I'm sure they have a name I can actually say and you're just being a smartass," I said and groaned.

"Also sounds an awfully lot like faeries."

Bob didn't care for my disdain. "Pretty sure it's gonna be some kind of faerie in the end, to be honest."

I groaned louder. "Let a man hope."

Bob grew silent again. Then: "Satyrs?"

"The Summer Court is more subtle than that, I think. I hope." I rubbed my forehead pensively.

"Oh! There's one kind that actually lives on mountains and abducts children from time to time."

I straightened up. "What kind?"

"Where are you going again?", the skull asked.

"Colorado," I repeated, annoyed. Bob doesn't forget what I tell him. He just loves being dramatic about his reveals.

"Eh. If you're not planning to go to East Asia, forget it. They're very particular about their territories."

Great. "Great. Anything else?" Something useful for a change?
The lights in the skull's eye sockets went from one side to another, as if the head was shaking.

"Nothing I can think of at the top of my skull."

"So I'm going in completely blind," I murmured, far from enthusiastic.

"Still placing my bet on faerie business," Bob commented. "You could try asking your little gofer.

Maybe they're more up-to-date with the Court politics."

Bob's advice was genuinely not a bad one, but I didn't get much out of it all the same. After getting him out to talk with some pizza as usual, I asked Toot-Toot if he had heard of a group of human children that had been abducted – by Summer Court, Winter Court, Wyldfae or anything in-between. Toot, as loyal as the Wee Folk can get, scratched his nose, trying comically hard to be of help.

"What, you mean… this week?"

I shuddered at the implication. It's not that I didn't know what kind of deals the Faerie made sometimes, but I liked to not think about it as much.

"I don't mean single lost children on their own, Toot. Abducted as a group."

"Hmm." Toot went from scratching his nose to plucking at his lower lip. "Not that I know of. But I'll keep my eyes, ears and everything else open, don't you worry! If you don't mind, I'll enjoy my pizza now."

Another dead end. Off to a great start. Hopefully the returnees from the school trip could give me some more helpful info.