Very long chapter coming up - Forgive the larger font size than previous chapters as it might be easier for you to read. (it also looks as if I've written more )

Hope you like, I've tried to address any comments you have like me overlooking Jenny Greenteeths death in a short story in the last chapter so thank you for pointing it out to me.

Anyways keep reading!

Chapter 3

I woke up as soon as it happened. I didn't realize what it was until after a few moments, but when I did, I couldn't help smiling slightly at the irony of the situation. It was the abrupt end to the flow of energies that passed through my body that had brought me out of my sleeping state.

I was healed!

The smile on my face reflected the fact that it had been so long since I had been completely free of pain I had forgotten what it felt like not to have a broken nose, not to be covered in bruises and wishing I could sleep for a week. The irony was that I felt like this and I was a guest at Arctis Tor as Mab's new ally and not as a servant to her wishes.

I rose from the bed slightly unnerved by the lack of pain that usually accompanied such a motion before going to the sink. Next to the sink was a mirror I had not noticed the night before, though I could've been mistaken for missing it as it was just a vertical sheet of ice if you looked at it from the wrong angle. I used the mirror to help adjust the robe I still wore and to try and adjust my unruly hair, noticing that the ruby set into the amulet around my neck gave off a harsh light in contrast to the rest of me.

Taking a sip of the water from the sink almost froze me on the spot. I was not afraid of it being anything other than water as Mab gave her word, but its chill rooted me to the spot so successfully I might've been an ice statue for a split second. When I was done, I picked up the staff and made sure everything I had was on my person before I exited the room.

The two guards were still outside and as I emerged from the room, automatically turned on the spot and led me quietly out the way we came. When we returned to the courtyard, they led me towards the gate that stood open for me. Still inside the tunnel they motioned that I go the rest of the way myself so the gate could then be closed behind. With a silent curse to their lack of hospitality, I strode through the gate and into the desolate snow plain as the gate gave a thunderous boom as it closed behind me.

After a few steps, I grasped my mother's amulet and the knowledge within told me that on the other side was an abandoned town in Alaska. A few yards later, I consulted it again and it told me the other side was now in Iceland. I reasoned that the snowy reaches of Arctis Tor were somehow connected to the polar reaches of the mortal world. I started to walk to get further away from Arctis Tor to get a closer hit to Edinburgh. As my fading vision beheld the fortress one last time, I saw Mab amongst the defenders, somehow clearer than those around her and I could've sworn she looked right at me before disappearing in the distance.

Half an hour of walking later, I consulted the amulet again and got information on two ways nearby; one being in Glasgow which is damn close to Edinburgh, the other however was Chicago. I realised that this must be a way to the cinema that I took to rescue Molly. In that moment, all I wanted was to step into my hometown and see my friends again and at least let them know I was alive.

Remembering Murphy cry as she realised I might be gone forever broke my heart in two, as well as the look on Molly's face as I realised she was slipping the bounds of her sanity. Those and a hundred other visions of the damage I had caused in Chicago glued me to the spot as I realised that they were all on the other side of a Way in front of me.

Ten minutes later, the urge to see them dimmed to cold, calculated reason. I couldn't do them any good by disobeying Mab. Even if I wanted to, the Council was still my best hope of solving the problems quickly and getting specific information fast.

With a heavy heart and a deep sigh of regret, I turned away from Chicago and opened the way into Glasgow.

I came out onto a dark street in the middle of the night. Shops and small taverns were dotted on either side of the road, even with the late hour, some were still open. Turning aside from a particularly inviting looking bar with more than a few patrons still inside, I walked down the street with my hand occasionally touching the amulet to correct my course. Unless I want to get beaten up for wearing this "dress", a drink can wait I thought as I passed a drunk man swaying on his way home give me a second look after he saw my robe shimmer in the streetlights.

After opening a second way, I found myself a stone's throw from the entrance to the Councils headquarters. The path led to a clearing and in the centre was a mound of earth about a dozen yards across and almost as high, thick with stones and vines. Massive slabs of rock formed the posts and lintel of a black doorway. Instead of the usual lone figure in a grey cloak, there were three figures that stood beside the doorway; amongst them was the lean young man with sharp cheekbones cobalt blue eyes. Beneath the grey cloak, he wore an expensive suit that I could never have afforded ever, with a pressed shirt and a light-coloured tie. A black bowler topped off the ensemble along with the usual silver-headed walking cane in his right hand.

The other two wardens however were guarding sections inside the tunnels last time I was here. Indeed one of them nearly took a shot at me when Peabody betrayed the Council and tried to run away.

All three of them came alert as I approached and even when they saw who it was, they were not eager to lower their weapons, not even Chandler, who I was on good terms with. Their faces registered complete shock as I stepped up to them with arms out wide in a peaceful gesture.

"Ho there, Steed! It's just me, your not-so-well tailored friend from across the pond. What's with the hostility?" I asked jovially, eager to disarm the three deadly enforcers of the Council.

"Dangerous times Harry, if it really is you. I heard you were dead?" Chandler replied in his Oxford accent.

"Bahhh, I just took a ride on the ghost train until I decided to get off. It just wasn't for me in the end, you see. What news from our Senior Council?"

"Nothing concrete to give you, I'm afraid. A lot of weirdness raised its head after whatever happened to the Red Court and no one has any answers. Wizard McCoy is aiding the Wardens in dealing with some nasty beings from the Nevernever and we could sure use that Knight you had aid us against them the last time." Chandler said with a searching gaze.

"No can do with Michael. He's retired and now living under the constant gaze of some guardians not even the Merlin would dare mess with. I don't know about Sanya, but the other swords need masters and there are none to be found last time I checked." I answered, watching as the wardens tried to make sense of my answer. The Knights of the Cross were not well known amongst the magic community, even amongst those close to the Senior Council.

"Man that's a shame. I saw only a glimpse of the man, but his entire body looked like it shone from within and that sword of his was a living flame. None of the vampires within its light survived. You brought his little girl for trial when he arrived, didn't you?" he asked.

"Yeah well, I figured I owed the man to look after Molly. Even though I haven't helped her recently." I added, wincing at the truth of the words.

Chandlers face became troubled as well, "I have heard some reports from your neighbourhood as well regarding her. The new man on the Senior Council is pushing for her execution and yours Harry, because of the Doom placed on you both, and the Merlin is obviously being pressured to agree."

"Pressured? Really? I thought the Merlin would have had a celebratory tea party when he heard he could get rid of me" I said, my eyebrows raised.

"McCoy and Injun Joe have countered that there is no evidence to convict either of you to death. It seems that the supposed victims of your apprentice weren't killed by her at all but by each other or third parties and with mortal weapons. According to them, there is no evidence that the girl has broken her probation apart from her recent lack of education under your tutelage."

That's what Molly had said. A veil here and an illusion there had been as efficient a way as any to get scum off the streets and into body bags.

"And that's why there isn't a bigger Warden presence in Chicago to hunt her. They just want to get her here to see for themselves whether the Doom should be lifted or her head falls?"

"Aye, but for some reason, Warden Ramirez is coming up empty on the search. Very soon he will have to go to Chicago in person and look for himself on the ground." Chandler mused. Chandler knew as did others that me and Ramirez were friends and probably knew his efforts were half-hearted at best.

"Aye good luck to him, she is devilishly tricky when it comes to veiling herself and staying out of sight. As for her teaching, let's just say that someone else is dedicated to her advancement in our ways." I said cryptically. "Time presses me however on another matter, so where can I find McCoy at the moment."

"War Room I'd imagine. The guy practically lives there now and he's constantly complaining about not being back at his farm. Go easy on him though Harry, he never accepted that you could be dead and seeing you again might be like watching a damn break...or worse."

I started. I completely forgot about my grandfather in my musings, never imagining that less than a day after telling me I was family, news would have reached McCoy and the Council that I might be dead.

Shaking my head off any more cobwebs, I put on the solemn and formal sincerity required for the ancient protocols as I said, "Thanks Chandler. I now seek entry to the Hidden Halls, o Warden. May I pass?"

Straightening, Chandler sobered up and with a twitch of his head, nodded, saying "Be welcome to the seat of the White Council. May you enter in peace and depart in peace."

Chandler stepped aside as did the other two silent guards. With a nod to all three, I took a deep breath and plunged into the darkness beyond the archway.