I saw Matias doing exactly the same thing with his wife and kids. We looked at each other, nodded, and went back to our families.
“Fitz!” Maggie cried out as my apprentice walked wearily over to me, while Bear lumbered along behind him. Maggie let go of me with one arm long enough to give him a high five.
“Hey, kid,” Fitz said to Maggie, grinning. “Harry. I’m sorry. I didn’t last very long.”
I shifted Maggie over to one arm and clasped hands with the young man. “You did just fine,” I said. “First fight, you kept it together, only hit the bad guys, and helped out when I really needed it. You survived. That means you won.”
“Wasn’t like I called down a thunderstorm or anything,” Fitz said.
Bear burst out in a laugh. She was still flushed and covered in sweat and she looked as if she’d lost ten pounds, but she was moving without pain. “Theseidrmadr’s been doing this his whole life. He hasn’t even been teaching you for a year yet. Give him a break.”
Fitz flushed and looked a little embarrassed.
I put my hand on his shoulder. “You made enemies today, kid. Those Malvora you burned. They aren’t going to forget it.”
Fitz’s face darkened slightly. “Then they shouldn’t have come to myhome looking for trouble, should they? And if they come back, maybe I won’t be so nice.”
“My man,” I said approvingly. He held up his fist, and we bumped knuckles firmly.
Basil and the gargoyles came out of the walls and floor in the aftermath, gathering around little Cinnamon. The monkey-cat little guy was in half a dozen broken pieces, where one of the Black Court had flung him into the castle’s wall.
“Mmmm,” Basil said, as I approached, still carrying Maggie. “My lord.”
“Uh,” I said. “Is he…”
“He is but injured,” Basil intoned seriously. “This isn’t too bad, my lord. With your permission, we will gather materials to mend him. There are many mounds of rubble in the city nearby where it can be done.”
“Go and be back before dawn,” I said. “Should be foggy tonight.”
“My lord,” Basil said, bowing his head. The gargoyles carefully gathered up Cinnamon’s pieces and vanished into the walls.
Ramirez came walking in the front door with Butters and Daniel and the werewolves, still in animal form. Father Forthill and Rabbi Aaronson were with them. The rabbi wore the shofar on a baldric of colorfully woven cloth.
“Rabbi,” I said brightly. “I didn’t see you during the action.”
“Because I’m too old to be fighting,” said the elderly man brightly, “and I am not so much a fool as the Catholic, and blowing the horn once was enough work for one night, I think.”
“Daniel,” I said to the younger man, offering my hand. He shook it, grinning. “Thank you for showing up. Again.”
“Glad to, Harry,” he said.
Butters grinned and shook my hand as well, and gestured at Ramirez. “I kind of like being the distraction,” he said. “Way less cardio involved.”
Ramirez smiled. “I haven’t really gotten to work with one of the Knights of the Sword before. It was a pleasure, Sir Waldo.”
Mouse barked happily and bounded up to Will and the Alphas. There were a great many wagging tails and sniffing noses and canine noises.
“Will,” I called. “War council in the gym in ten, okay? See if you can catch Lara before she leaves? I want her in on it. Ask her if she will.”
The most muscular of the wolves nodded to me, an eerily out-of-place motion on the lupine form, and ghosted outside.
“You gotta talk to people?” Maggie asked.
“Yeah.” I sighed. “You know. Wizard stuff. Sort things out.”
“Can we do a movie night after?”
“I’d be a fool to turn down an offer like that,” I said.
