Chaos was all around him. He tried to put at least his thoughts in order, but soon voices started to protest and shout at him to let them be. Some voices seemed almost familiar, but he couldn't say for sure. Then another voice came. Nathaniel, you need to relax. Stop thinking. But he couldn't stay still. He didn't understand anything and he felt he was slowly going insane.

„Summon him the same way as me, just use his birth name."

„But how is it possible?"

„Who knows? No one before us ever tried something like we did. Maybe we really were one and the same when he dismissed me. But do it quickly, i don't know for how long he'll last without me."

In a few seconds pentacle was no longer empty. He appeared, just the way she saw him last time. Ragged and messy black coat, untucked white shirt with red spot spreading at his side, old boots and every part of visible skin scratched like he was in the wind for too long. He seemed in pain, a little bent, with eyes shut and his right hand clenching his head. Than he realised something was different. Pain retreated into the back of his mind and he opened his eyes. There was his hand and the rest of the body, with wooden floor under his feet. He's alive. His joy was struck with a sudden thought – he drew aside his shirt to see an ugly wound in his side. He touched it, the blood stained his hand but he felt nothing. Sudden familiar voice made him aware that he's not the only person in the room.

„Nathaniel, you're not really bleeding and it's not Halloween yet, so you have no excuse to look like this. Do something about your form, you're scaring Kitty." Nathaniel lifted his head and saw Bartimaeus as Ptolemy lying on the bed. Bartimaeus. He's here with him. Just as always. And than he noticed Kitty staring at him.

„Kitty.." he started, and looked worriedly on her, but after a second of seeing her face he realised that Bartimaeus wasn't very precise. There was not a trace of fear on Kitty's face. But there was enough anger to make him the scared one. It shook him and he took step back only to touch pentacle barrier. Sharp pain ran through his shoulder and that was the first moment he realised he and Kitty were standing in their own pentacles. His mind stopped.

„No..." There was only one way to understand the situation, but he wasn't willing to believe it. He looked at Bartimaeus and Kitty and hoped at least one of them will say something and deny the truth. But Bartimaeus was looking at wall and scratching it's surface and Kitty... Kitty stormed out of her pentacle. Barrier was broken. Nathaniel had no time to react.

„You!" Kitty pushed him angrily with her hands, he lost his balance and fell on his back. She was standing above him, panting, fists clenched and she took as much air inside as she could. „And you too," she looked at Bartimaeus. „I'm angry at both of you. You lied to me. Again."

Bartimaeus decided it was the right time to change topic. „I mark some double standards here. I only got a hug." Kitty looked angrily at him but then a sudden wave of weakness ran through her. She had to take a few steps back to find balance again and not fall. Slowly she sit down on bed. Bartimaeus was already with her, trying to help and support her.

„Just sit down already, you've just summoned two spirits. And in your state, are you crazy or what?"

„I'm fine."

„No, you're not, you need rest and ten days was clearly not enough to heal from your journey. You should let me go now, we'll talk later." She looked at his serious face and than at Nathaniel who was just trying to stand up and was silently waiting for what she'll say as he was still too shook to react in any way. „Okay, that would be probably for the best right now. I really need to eat something."

When Nathaniel entered his house, the stillness and darkness surrounded him. He could feel in the air that no one came into the house during past ten days. Even his two human servants probably never came again when they found out there's no way for them to get paid. He felt like an intruder in this dead house. Flashes of his conversation with Kitty came to his mind as he was walking to his old workroom.

„How long has it been?" Nathaniel shook the momentary indecisiveness of himself and replaced it with cold composure. „It's been 10 days." She sit back on the bed with her tea and cookies. „ Crystal palace is still in quarantine. Nobody wants to come very close to it because of the residual magic energy. I went there once, but with Amulet of course, it was really quiet there, not a very lively place." She sipped her tea. Nathaniel couldn't take her look, so he turned his eyes to the window.

„ There was no other way."

„We could have find another way." We wouldn't have to deal with this situation, whatever it is, she thought.

„It's pointless to talk about it now. All's well that ends well." Kitty took a bite from the cookie and looked at his bloody shirt and the way his eyes distanced himself from her, this place and whole situation. „I guess you are right." They will have to talk about it all, Kitty tought, if this situation is even sustainable, but probably now isn't the best time. They'll do it later. „There was no sign of life from Nouda during past ten days. There were only four more spirits running around London, but they were all caught. Interrim Council took care of it. It consists of representatives from the survived commoners and magicians. So a lot have changed, or at least something. Not for spirits though, i guess.

Everythng in the house was exactly as he left it. Yet everything seemed out of place. Maybe it was just him who didn't belong there anymore.

„I'm leaving London. That's why i summoned Bartimaeus in the first place. I'm going to Brugges to stay with Jakob and his family for a while."

„So he survived too."

„Yes. Listen. I wasn't expecting this. You. And i don't know how much energy it would cost me if you stayed in London while i would be gone. What if i summoned you once i get there. Maybe it would be good for you too, not to come back to your old life right now."

„There's no way i can come back to my old life."

„One more thing you should probably know. Everyone knows about what happened that day. Your name was in all newspapers, and i don't mean your official name. Some people heard it even during our talk in palace and after that ... it seemed like it didn't matter anymore."

„That is true. It doesn't matter."

There was not much light coming into the office from the lamps on the street. Yet he could see it all pretty good. Pentacles, his desk and cabinet with summonig supplies. He looked at it for a while. Then he opened the cabinet.

„I think i should go. I'll stay in my house till ... till it will be okay for me to come to Brugges." Standing at her front door, he looked one last time at her. Her aura was shinning so brigthly her face seemed as young as before and her white hair burning like a crown. He smiled a little for the first time. Kitty forgot to breath. When she looked at him, she didn't see a lot that she could recognize. Resolution, purpose, strength, determination. All of that was gone. All of him that was so similar to her, and what helped her that day since he showed up at the bar and took her to the theatre, wasn't visible anymore. He was just an empty shell. And then she saw that weak smile. She came to him and hugged him. Nathaniel, really surprised, didn't know what to do at first but than wrapped his hands around her and accepted the warmth that radiated from her. „I'm really happy you're here," she said. Nathaniel was glad she couldn't see pain in his eyes at that moment.

A strong pain ran through Nathaniel's body when he opened the cabinet. All the smells of summoning supplies and cold sharpness of silver hit him unprepared. He backed away a little but because he left the doors opened, he could still feel the content of cabinet. He just stood there and let it all come at him. Maybe it will pass in a while. Maybe it's just temporary. But the pain was only getting more uncomfortable. Desperate and angry. Detonation hit the cabinet. Some of it's content ended all around the room, some burned. And instead of cabinet there was just a black shadow on the wall.

Imagine my utter confusion when i opened my eyes upon materializing and saw an empty pentacle before me. It took me so of guard i didn't even try to touch the barrier. I'm not sure what to think about my future if even pentacles can summon me now. Was it really that long since i last time left Earth? Did some apocalypse occure in the meantime and pentacles took over the world? This planet could really catch a break from uprisings. But no, it was just Nat. We were in the office in his house. For some reason he left his pentacle before i even came and was currently sitting on some chair, hand in his hair(or hair in his hand?) and still in the same lively form i saw him last two times. Technicaly, i could try to kill him, but you know, i couldn't be sure about extent of his new powers. He was just sitting there, deep in thoughts. It was really boring. And rude. So i sent a weak pulse of energy in his direction. He literally fell on the floor and took that chair with him.

„You know, you probably forgot by now, but you summoned me sooooo, hi," and i gave him a wide grin. „I see you didn't managed to change your form to something less hideous so i'll gladly help you. Just think and feel as what you want to look like. We can start with something simple." Egyptian boy was no longer there and instead there was a wery fancy pigmy hippo, with loincloth and all. „If you could do this, it would be an amazing improvement. Right after that we can try if you can make some fire or Detonation. This house needed reconstruction anyway." Then i saw a black shadow on a wall where, if i remembered correctly, was a cabinet. At least last time i've been there. Nathaniel, still on the floor on his elbows, seemed like he was about to burst with anger, but than his face just lost any expression and he collected himself from the floor. I guess he started to get used to the whole floor thing.

„No," he coughed in an attempt to regain his composure, „that's not why i called you."

I didn't like it. He was different. I mean, maybe that's what dying does to you, you loose interest in your hobbies you had in life, like arguing with certain djinni or something. What do i know, maybe it's a universal thing with dead people ressurected as spirits. He didn't look at me, turned towards the table and pretended he had some very important things there.

„I wanted to talk about the Other Place." I changed back to Ptolemy's form. Hippo somehow didn't suited the direction this conversation was heading. „I don't know how it is possible you ended up there with me." Nathaniel was still turned to me with his back. „Indeed. The thing is, i don't feel like going back there." „Well, if Kitty keeps you here, you don't have to." He shrugged at this. Yes, he is dependant on her now. I guess that doesn't really brighten up his mood. „But i do think it would help your essence if you went there once in a while. Although only for a short time."

„And the pain -"

„The pain you're feeling will last. It will be with you for every moment, somewhere in the back of your mind, even though you will be too busy to notice. The only thing that helps, although just for a while, is changing form."

„That won't help me then," he muttered. It was really depresive to even look at him. Even i felt bad for him. But not for too long. I mean, after all, he is wailing here because he became something i've always been. And he acts like it's the end of the world. I must say it offended me a little. He finally turned to me.

„One more thing. How much did i change, Bartimaeus? How obvious it is that i'm a demon?"

Demon. That word again. I took a closer look at him on all planes. „You look like your normal self on all planes, even on the seventh. Well, the first one is different, there you look like you're about to bleed out. And your aura is on a level of a spirit now, but still just a little brighter than Kitty's. Otherwise..."

As i wavered, Nathaniel looked me in the eyes for the first time. „Otherwise?"

„Otherwise you're still the same person you were before."

I tried to convey him my message as best i could. He just averted his eyes again. There was probably some nice dirt on the floor worth contemplating. But i didn't know what else to tell him anymore. He didn't really wanted to listen. „I have an idea Nat. Next time you'll call me, i'll teach you how to actually hit something with detonation without burning down your house." I walked back into the middle of room and stood into my pentacle. „Next time...?" He seemed taken aback, but after a moment he stopped staring at me and finally took his place in the pentacle as well. He was confidently looking at me. He almost fooled me into thinking he's back to his usual self. „Yes, i'll summon you another time." He opened his mouth to dismiss me, but then he froze. „Thank you, Bartimaeus." And with that he spoke dissmisal formula and i left him there all by himself.