Chapter 14

The Bloodhound

Lauren arrived early as promised. They were just getting out of bed when her text appeared on their bedroom wall.

Guys, Can I come by now? Are you up?

Kyle replied.

Yup! the coast is clear. no muggles here.

That made Travis laugh, but he wasn't wrong Bruno and Bo were already gone to the community gardens.

A port door opened up in their bedroom and Lauren stepped through.

She was carrying a large bag with her. It bulged with items. Travis couldn't wait to see what was in it; as a non magic wielder, he rarely got to sit in on rituals. This was going to be fun.

He was beaming from ear to ear when he saw her. She gave him a friendly smile in return.

Kyle pumped his fist in the air and crowed," Yes I always knew I'd get a sexy girl into my room one day."

Travis groaned at his joke and blushed, but Lauren just laughed at his bad humor before saying, "guys I have so much to do today. Sorry if I have to hurry this along."

Things got serious then as she explained the process.

"As you may or may not know, there are as many ways to ward a home as there are types of homes." She began, "but I've chosen to combine the strongest rituals. I racked my brain all last night and I finally came up with what I hope is the perfect spell to repel even the strongest Enlightened creature."

Lauren sat crossed legged on the middle of their bedroom floor and started to remove items from her string tie sack.

"The five strongest spells to protect a home use: paper, stone, coin, blood and energy wards."

She took out an old yellowed scroll and placed it in front of her.

"the Japanese use paper wards hung in the entryways. These strips of paper have warded script written or draw on them."

She took out a plain hammer and chisel and placed them beside the piece of parchment.

"Stone wards are stronger then paper as long as they are prepared properly."

"The ancient Roman's used coins. They would put two coins for example over the eyes of their loved ones after death so that they could pay the ferryman when they crossed the River Styx They also put them there to prevent spirit from entering the dead body."

"The eyes are the window to the soul is not just a saying."

When she took out two syringes and placed it by the hammer, he cringed despite himself.

"We all know that blood magic is very powerful especially when it is given freely as a sacrifice by the castor."

The next thing out of the bag was a pestle and mortar. The kind used to crush herbs for potions.

"Energy wards are the best for wielders like myself, but they need to be maintained with regularity and infused daily."

Finally she removed a copper tray and an old hand held mirror.

She arranged all the items on the floor in order of importance he guessed and said:

"Hold on to your hats boys, because I'm going to suggest something really radical here. I suggest we use them all"

And she had surprised them -- so much so that the guys flopped down on the floor on the opposite side of her arranged items without saying a word. Even Kyle was quiet which was saying something.

"Firstly I'm going to use this magic mirror to draw out your magical sigil. I will imbue your sigil on to this ancient scroll, then I'm going to use magic fire to burn the paper and turn it to ash, I'm going to request you turn yourself to stone Travis and I'm going to very carefully chisel off a little bit, then I'm going to grind that down with the mortar and pestle, the next step is to draw blood from each of you and mix it with the crushed stone and ash. Kyle you will grant me the coins using your magic. I will divide the items into hex bags then I will use my magic to infuse them into the windows, doorways and any other possible entrance."

"Well," Kyle snorted, "that doesn't sound difficult at all."

They both watched in fascination as she worked, and her confidence never faltered even though she'd never done anything like this before, you had to give it to the girl, she had balls.

When she touched two fingers to his forehead between his eyes and the mirror with her other hand at the same time he saw a picture appear. She showed it to him with a smile. It looked like jagged lines depicting mountains.

"Travis that's your magic sigil," She beamed at him while she transferred the image to a strip of the old scroll.

Kyle seeing this spoke up excitedly and said," do me, do me!"

She touched him with two fingers and whispered the incantation. Suddenly Kyle's sigil appeared on the reflective surface. It looked like a wrapped gift.

"Ah nuts a present. That's my sigil" Kyle sulked. Which made Lauren laugh.

Lauren looked to him and said we just need two more ingredients. We need the crushed stone and hair from each of your foster parent's.

Without hesitation Travis turned to stone and presented both his arms to her. She chiseled very carefully in a few different places. When he turned back he'd have a few scratches but that would be all.

Kyle went to grab the hair while she worked and came running back to the room with two hair brushes.

"Here you go," he offered both brushes to her excitedly.

She crushed the stone and burned the sigils to ash adding them, then she burned the hair above the concoction. Letting the ash float down to the mortar she mixed the ash together and then said, "Kyle I need enough coins to safeguard every possible entrance."

He just smiled smugly and said, "hold out your hands palm up," and she did, as he placed his hands over hers he said, "Alakazam!"

She opened her hand with a smile and it was filled with coins. George Washington's face stared back at them.

She counted the quarters and set aside the same number of hex bags, then divided out the ash into each one and placed a coin in to each bag, but not without kissing it first.

She blushed when they looked at her questioningly, and laughed nervously before saying, "A kiss for luck."

She took two syringes next and took blood from both of them. Travis couldn't believe her hand didn't even shake or anything when she drew the blood. If she wanted to she'd make a good MedMage someday.

She poured the blood out in the hex bags a drop at a time and after pulling the draw strings of the bags tight she shook them feverishly -- whispering an incantation as she did. When she was done they turned a beautiful blue and green color as she explains, "The color is a physical representation of your magic."

His was the green and Kyle's was blue, he didn't know how he knew it, he just did.

They went clockwise around the house melding the bags using magic into the door frames and window sills. She even had enough hex bags left over to place one at ever vent. Travis had to marvel at the wonder of it all.

When they were done she placed a hand at both their temples and whispers an incantation. Suddenly he could see the crisscrossed blue and green lines of the wards on every wall. His place was locked up tighter than a drum.

He couldn't help himself when he saw the enchantment it filled him with such joy to know his family would be safe that he picked up Lauren and swung her tiny body in a full circle stating emphatically, "Lauren Evelyn Nash if I live to be a thousand years old -- and I might – I will never have a greater friend than you."

She laughed then, but he didn't miss the tiny pinpricks of moisture in the corners of her eyes, because he had them too.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

That afternoon at the shelter he spent as much time as he could with the Bull. He even managed to get him outside to the walking track in the back of the shelter. He's placed the travel kennel against the sliding door on the side of the kennel and told the dog to get in it. He growled at him for a moment but followed his command, but it broke his heart when he recognized he'd done it out of fear.

Trav put the heavy kennel on a dolly and wheeled the reluctant dog to the enclosed open air cage on the back of the clinic.

He released the dog into the open area and watched eagerly. He could tell that he'd spent most of his time indoors. Maybe he'd never even been outside before. It was a beautiful warm spring like day and the dog started to circle the enclosure sniffing everywhere.

Then he started to run excitedly around in circles and back and forth from side to side. Travis wanted to whoop with joy when he saw him smile. Oh yeah dogs smile. If he could save this guy he'd be pretty lucky and that's when it hit him the perfect name for the Bull.

Lucky!

Travis watched Lucky running around excitedly. He wondered if he could get him to play. So he grabbed a ball and threw it in to the enclosure. When Lucky went over to it and immediately started to maul it. Travis sighed and said dejectedly, "Looks like we still have a lot of work to do boy."

He let him run for another half an hour and then put the kennel up against the sliding door and called to the dog, "Here Lucky. Come on boy."

The dog stopped running and looked at him with a cocked head as if to say. What did you call me, but he came over after a moment panting happily.

He got into the kennel and Travis slid the door down before he hoisted him on the rolling dolly. This time Lucky only growled halfheartedly. Like he really didn't mean it, but he didn't know any other way of communicating.

Travis muttered happily, "progress!"

He worked with the other animals for the rest of his shift until 6pm when Kyle and Ryan came to pick him up for the trip to Lauren's.

They'd grab a slice or two or three for the road and be on their way.

They were the last ones to arrive at Lauren's again which made Trav wonder if they were the only two with a life outside of their little group. Travis couldn't help but pick up on the tension in the room when they entered and then immediately guessed at the cause.

Xander and Kelly were on opposite sides of the room with their arms crossed defiantly they wouldn't even look at each other. Everyone else just looked uncomfortable as fuck.

Zach looked relieved to see them which could mean only one thing, he was eager to get this party started and over with as soon as possible.

So they all obliged and sat down in their usual spots as quickly as possible. Lauren started the ritual to summon the blood hound.

She sat in front of an altar that was lit with candles. On it sat a ceremonial knife and chalice. There were other things there too. Things Travis didn't recognize, but he guessed they were the items that Brenna and Cameron had helped her locate.

She muttered the incantation under her breath and combined the ingredients confidently. There was no hint of doubt on her end, whatsoever. The girl must have a mind like a steel trap because she never missed a beat. When she started to chant louder and louder and then grabbed the knife in the blink of an eye to slice it painfully across her palm he winced. That shit looked like it hurt.

She milked her palm over the chalice and as each droplet hit the concoction, she created, it hissed and smoke. Suddenly the aroma in the air was sickening. It smelled like burnt hair and rot. Then he knew this shit was nothing they should be messing around with, but it was too late; it was done.

When a fissure opened up in the air behind her and a red eyed, black as night, blood hound walked out everyone jumped back. His heart started beating so fast it threatened to break free for his chest, but he stepped forward to protect his friends.

She threw her hand up to tell them all to stay back and she looked the blood hound in the eyes and pointed her finger to the ground by her feet to bring the dog to heel. And he'd be damned, but it obeyed her command and went to her without hesitation.

She opened a portal without saying a word and stepped through when Zach finally got with the program and realized that she meant to go through alone he hopped right over the couch but she was already gone by the time he made it across the room. He let out a frustrated growl when the portal closed in his face.

Travis had to marvel again at his fearless diminutive friend. She'd gone alone to their heavily guarded school with a killer mutt at her side. WOW!

Zach started pacing the floor almost immediately as everyone else looked on. Travis could actually feel the magic wafting off of him. Everyone else must have been able to feel the same thing, because they gave him a wide berth.

When the port door opened up again he was on it before it was big enough for anyone to step through. Travis knew without a doubt that Lauren was going to get an earful if she came through in one piece, but he was wrong as soon as she crested the door Zach scooped her up in his arms and hugged her tight, but apparently all was not forgiven, because he ground out through clenched teeth, "Never do that again!"

She looked apologetic, but responded in a flat tone, "Sorry it had to be done the more of us that crossed over the more chance we'd sound the alarm."

And she was right.

"How is the blood hound going to alert us if the barrier is breached anyway? Not that I'm doubting your mad skills," Quinn added"

"If someone with similar blood crosses the barrier tonight we'll all know it because he will howl loud enough to wake the dead." Lauren explained.

"Won't that let Liam know we're on to him?" CJ asked.

"No, only the ones present during the ceremony will hear it." Brenna informed everyone.

Lauren let out a face splitting yawn and Travis and Kyle followed suit.

When Zach noticed he addressed the group, "Guys, Lauren looks exhausted let's call it a night and let her get some sleep."

When she went to protest everyone insisted. Apparently Travis wasn't the only one who thought it must have been a really trying day for her. He could only imagine the energy it took to ward all those homes and then perform that super serious ritual.

Before they paired off to leave though Zach reminded them, "Guys don't forget tomorrow night's the start of the vernal equinox, so try to get some sleep. "

Yeah right as if any of them could sleep.

They were going head to head with a magical lunatic and his band of murderous friends to safeguard an item he didn't even want to get within ten leagues of. Yeah right . . . sleep, he thought . . . what's that?

Authors Note:

Hey gang. We are nearing the end of another month and one of my favorite months too. October holds one of my favorite holidays Halloween or Samhain.

****************** THANKS FOR READING********************

I hope you all liked this chapter.

Welp Lauren id the ritual. Here's hoping it doesn't back fire on her.

So tomorrows the big night. Who else here thinks they've bitten off more than they can chew?

Tune in tomorrow to find out.