Disclaimer: All familiar looking characters belong to Jim Butcher and the Sci Fi channel. Furthermore I do not practice, encourage or condone the use of magic in RL.

Chapter 3

Being a wizard does have some perks. Knowing that some people are more than what they appear to be is one of them. Knowing how to put wards up is another. Wards are shields, barriers, protection from the bad guys that want to do you harm. I have a bracelet from my mother that is warded. The banners at my front and back doors are warded. My banners can stop most of the creatures who want to put the hurt on me. Tonight, I was never so glad to be behind my wards once again.

Truth be told, if that demon or possible one of his hell spawns had followed us home there would have been little I could have done in stopping him from tearing us to pieces, with or without my wards.

Bob stuck his head out of the wall.

"Now wasn't that a pleasant wa…lk." He came all the out when he saw my face. "Harry, what happened?"

I went off on him.

"Oh, I just wanted to take a couple of minutes and run down to the mailbox and come back to my quiet little life here." I was lucky that I didn't have my blasting rod right now. With all this emotion I would have blown up a wall or maybe a skull. "But no, the ghost says to me why don't you take the girl out for some fresh air?"

I continued to rant, "I tell him she isn't a child and that I would rather not. But then he talks me into it, anyway. He tells me what could possibly happen in such a short distance."

It his most calming voice Bob tried again. "What happened, Harry?"

"Why don't you ask her?" I yelled and pointed at the frightened girl. I was too angry, too scared to see the pain that she was in.

Sally ran from the room and into lab. I followed her without really seeing her and grab my staff. She fled to her ring and thrown up the ward. I smirked. Good, at least one of us is protected now.

I slammed my staff down on my desk and slumped into my chair. I can be thankful that Bob was intelligent enough to not push me any farther at the moment.

I made some tea adding some calming potion to the brew. Finishing off the tea after a considerable amount of time, my stomach reminded me that tea was not a substitute for food. I pulled out the Franklin and smiled. At least the whole day wasn't complete wrecked. I headed for the door again and this time I didn't bother to tell Bob that I was going out to get some groceries.

The simple normal act of buying groceries went a long way in settling my nerves. So did the calming potion. It was quite late when I got back to my kitchen and started making some sandwiches. The candles had been lit but there was no sign of Bob and I didn't expect Sally to be anywhere but in her safety zone. I heaped a few sandwiches on a plate, threw on a few potato chips and made my way to the lab. It was pretty much dark there. I set the plate down and turned to go.

"Bob," I whispered as I closed the door to the lab and the sleeping woman huddled in the corner.

Being a grumpy wizard is who I am. I am not used to being nice. The kinds of things that I have to face on a regular basis aren't very nice either. Protecting people from those things that go bump in the night is something that I am good at. Being nice isn't one of the qualifications for the job. So why do I feel like such an ass right now?

Bob made his way to the kitchen as I was devouring my second ham and cheese. I gave him a weak smile to inform him that I was back to my normal grumpy self.

"Harry, are you alright?" Bob said cautiously.

"Yeah, Bob, I'm peachy." I tried to sound humorous but it came out rather caustic. "Sorry about earlier."

"No need to apologize to me."

"You think I should apologize to her?"

Bob raised his hands in defense. "I'm not thinking anything. Remember I still don't have a clue about what happened this afternoon."

Between bites I related to Bob the first half of the adventure. How Sally was in awe of everything. I laughed a bit when I told him about the parking meters. Then I began telling him about the rose peddler.

"Demons, are you sure?" Bob gasped, "In the afternoon, on a busy street corner?"

"Bob, I know a demon when I feel one."

"You could have been killed."

"Yeah I've been thinking about that, what were three hellions doing on a busy street corner, in the middle of the afternoon peddling flowers? They weren't after me."

"They were after Sally, then?" Bob looked shaken.

"That's what I don't get. They definitely noticed her. They didn't act hostile or try to follow us, chase us into an alley and make easy work of us."

"That's odd, Harry."

"Not as odd as what they said to Sally as we were walking away."

"What did they say?" Bob was really disturbed now.

"They said, 'Go home, Scepter, you don't belong here.'"

"Scepter?" Bob stared, "Are you sure?"

"Bob, I'm not hard of hearing." My temper was beginning to rise again. "What's a scepter anyways? I thought a scepter was some fancy stick or something that kings held in their hands." I looked for answers from my walking encyclopedia.

Bob closed his eyes and paced. "Yes, that is one definition of a scepter. It is usually a magnificent bejeweled baton held by royalty. I once held the scepter of Charlemagne, glorious moment that was." Bob was lost in his long gone revelry.

"Bob, you're stalling."

"Harry," Bob exhaled slowly. "A scepter is a symbol of imperial authority. Sovereignty, if you will."

I stared at Bob. Oh hell, I am not ready for this.

"I'm going to bed."