The Apprenticeship of Julian St. Albans (Consulting Magic Book 2)

by Amy Crook

  "We can't permanently protect a temporary Charge," said James, "so Alex is helping us extend our temporary reach."

  "We trust you and Alex not to abuse it," said Jacques. "Plus, we'll help strip it of power at the end."

  "And then I'll put it in my little safe, in case we need it again," said Alex. "Which reminds me, I'm going to need another contribution from you."

  Julian giggled. "More hair or something else?" he said, touching the back of his head. "I'm going to have to go see Michelle soon to fix the mess you all keep making."

  "Blood," said James. "We'll all contribute after dinner."

  "Well, second dinner," said Julian. "Supper?"

  "Food," said Jacques, amused. "Finish yours, we'll have pudding after bloodletting."

  "I've made something special, I've been reading on that electronic tablet thing you gave us," said Alys, "and I wanted to try something new."

  "Ooh, that sounds excitingly ominous," said Alex. "Is that what smells so amazing?"

  "Possibly," she said.

  "I'm meant to get a delivery of some wood tomorrow," said Nat. "Will anyone be home, or should I have them leave it down in the parking garage until you can clear it?"

  "Depends on when it gets here. Don't you usually do that yourself?" asked Alex curiously.

  Nat nodded, "Aye, but it's special circumstances, isn't it? Your Guardians are better'n me, and I'd hate to miss anything. Brownies aren't much for subterfuge."

  "You do your share of sneaking around," said Julian with a fond smile. "But you can keep the wood hidden downstairs if no one's home, can't you?"

  "That I can, I'll send you a message if it arrives without you, then." Nat had another bite of his potatoes and grinned. "It's nice, having an excuse for this sort of food sometimes, makes me feel right powerful." He waggled his eyebrows at Alys.

  "Oh, you," said Alys, fluttering her eyelashes at him and grinning fondly.

  Julian took a big drink of tea and tried very hard not to visualise anything. At all. He concentrated on finishing everything on his plate, and on feeling the tiny potential in each little bit of dried herb without having to put his power into them to get feedback. "It's all really good. I think your jar of savoury is getting old, though, it doesn't feel the same as the rest."

  Alys chuckled. "It is, I believe your Emmy's sending over some fresh for me to dry myself. The jar's nearly empty, anyway."

  "Ooh, I love drying herbs," said Alex. "Will you hang them in here?"

  "Nah, you'd only get hair in everything, you great beech tree," she said. "We'll hang them in our room, Nat don't mind."

  "Smells nice," agreed Nat, busy with his chicken.

  They talked about ways of drying and preserving herbs for the rest of the meal, and then it was time to go see what had become of their hard work for the evening. Julian's keep-safe was laying in a pile of silk in a copper bowl, set to one side. His old amulet was looking rather rough around the edges, and Julian resisted the urge to touch either one of them. "Do I need to contribute for those, too?" he asked, fingers trailing along the counter next to them.

  "Later," said Alex. "We'll both contribute to re-consecrate the keep-safe charm, and I'll be making your amulet over from scratch."

  "All right," said Julian, feeling relieved. He didn't mind the old amulet going to the scrap heap so much if his charm would come back to him; he felt vulnerable and naked without it, even inside the house wards.

  Horace flew up and perched on Julian's shoulder, chirping happily. Julian could feel his concern, and his happiness that Julian was safe and sound. He also felt like he had a secret, which probably meant another message for later. Julian rubbed his cheek against Horace's head affectionately, and then joined the other three around a small glass bowl.

  "We'll each contribute three drops of blood," said Alex, "and the spell on the bowl will keep it fresh and ready for when I actually cast the metal."

  "And I'm first?" guessed Julian.

  "You're first, I'm last," confirmed Alex. "Pin or knife?"

  "Oh, um, a pin please," said Julian. Alex handed him a long, sharp pin, and Julian took a deep breath and poked his finger. It hurt, sharp and sudden, but it wasn't any worse than pricking himself on a thorn, and considerably less painful than a scraped knee or sprained ankle. He dripped in the required three drops, adding a little of his own energy on purpose this time, and then handed his finger to Alex for cleaning and bandaging.

  James and Jacques actually gave theirs at the same time, using their Guard-Knives to nick their fingers, then bandaging one another. Alex took the same pin Julian had used and went last, adding his three drops of magic-laced blood, and then getting Julian to do the honours with the sticking plaster.

  "There we go, not painless but easy enough," said Alex. "That'll sit until I'm ready for it, do you want to stay here and read while we work, or go to bed early?"

  "Bed," said Julian apologetically. He snuggled up and whispered in Alex's ear, "But you could wake me when you join me."

  Alex blushed and smiled, giving him a sweet kiss. "I'll do that, love," he said warmly.

  They shared another, longer kiss, and then Julian took himself and his bird to bed, along with a pair of fresh cream puffs from Alys, who wouldn't let him go without yet more sugar. Horace did indeed have another note from Alex, this one short and fretful but full of love and determination. "I'll write tomorrow, I think," said Julian, tucking the note back in Horace's chest. "You keep that safe for me?"

  Horace chirped, hopping over to turn out the beside light while Julian snuggled down into bed. He came back and cuddled up, his cold body warming quickly under Julian's hand. "Thanks, Horace," said Julian, sending love to the construct. He was a little disappointed he didn't have Alex to hold him tonight, so he was grateful for Horace's affection and attention.

  Julian dozed off still gently stroking the metal feathers, and woke to find Horace replaced by Alex's hand, tangling with his own. Alex spooned up behind him and kissed along his neck, his body radiating heat and his touch full of affection and desire.

  "I was so worried I'd lose you, my love," said Alex.

  Julian twisted around to claim a proper kiss, and was pleased to realise that Alex had forgone pyjamas for now. "I'm still here," Julian assured him. "But I seem to be overdressed."

  Alex grinned and kissed him again, and between them they got Julian's clothes off. "Can I have you?" asked Alex shyly. Julian loved how he treated it as a great favour every time they made love, hardly ever taking his right to Julian's body for granted. No one was perfect, of course, but Alex was good at appreciating what he had, at least when he wasn't too distracted by work.

  "Please," said Julian, kissing him hard. He shivered at the feelings that echoed back to him in the kiss: fierce love that was nothing at all like the cool appreciation of a plant or even Horace's warm affection; an almost desperate worry over Julian's safety; and a shining admiration for Julian's resilience. It was all coloured by Alex's simmering desire, but the love rose above all of it, first and last in the emotions that washed over Julian when Alex opened to him. "Oh, oh, please," he said again, feeling twice as desperate to have Alex inside him.

  "Yes, love, of course," said Alex, his voice low and soothing, mistaking Julian's desire for the same sharp need to remind themselves that they were alive that was prickling at Alex now. "Soon, I'll have you soon."

  "Please, need to feel more of you," said Julian, kissing him again. He fed a little trickle of energy into Alex as he ran his fingertips over the long stretch of Alex's lean body, and Alex shivered and let out a little moan.

  "When did you learn to do that?" asked Alex. He curled back under the covers with the lubricating potion in hand, and kissed Julian passionately.

  Julian blushed and kissed him again. "Well, Geoff showed me, but I don't think he meant it for this," said Julian, repeating the trick. "He was teaching me to pay attention to my power output."

  Alex gave a low, sensual chuckle. "I approve of this
non-medical use of your knowledge," he said. This time when their mouths met, Alex pushed a tiny bit of power into his mouth and fed it to Julian along with the kiss.

  Julian moaned, feeling a rush of magic and desire. "Oh, you can, oh," he said. "Why didn't you ever do that before?"

  Alex looked sheepish. "Not all non-mages like it," he said, "so I usually don't, even though it's amazing."

  "I like it a lot," said Julian, and then he grinned. "I suppose I'm a mage now, anyway, of a sort."

  "You are," said Alex seriously. "You get more magical every day, and not just with plants," he said. He got his fingers slick and fed Julian another of those heady, power-laced kisses as he slipped one inside. Julian could feel the love and desire that Alex had put in the potion when he brewed it, and he shivered as Alex added a little tingle of power along with his finger.

  "Oh, god," said Julian, "that's, wow." He wanted to have more to say, wanted to tell Alex he could feel that he'd made the lubricant after they were together and had Julian in mind when he'd made it, wanted to tell him how good it all was, but he couldn't seem to string together two coherent words. Julian's world narrowed to Alex's kisses and Alex's fingers, and the magic that was building between them.

  "Give it back to me, now, love," coaxed Alex, and Julian ran his hands over Alex's body, feeding warmth and magic back into him, completing the circuit. Alex moaned, and Julian found the bottle and slicked lubricant over Alex's cock, teasing his power along the length. "Not, oh, not too much," gasped Alex with a laugh. "Don't want to finish too soon."

  Julian giggled and wiped his hands, moving them up to tease at Alex's nipples, hips rocking in time with the movement of Alex's hand and those teasing, tingling fingers. "R-ready," he stammered, "Need, oh, need you, p-please."

  "Need you so much," agreed Alex, pulling his fingers out, leaving Julian empty and bereft.

  There was a moment of awkward shifting and then Alex was inside him, and this time they didn't even need to think to share their magic, to find the perfect motion of bodies and energies. Julian drank in the feeling of being so very loved, drank in the warmth until he was hot to his core in the best of ways, and he gave back all the wonder, magic and love he'd found with Alex.

  They found their peak together, linked as they were by the energy flowing between them. It felt amazing to give and take in a burst of pleasure so intense that for a moment Julian wasn't sure what was his, and what was a reflection from Alex.

  "Wow," said Julian, drifting down into the warm afterglow.

  Alex grinned down at him. "Wow," he agreed. "That was amazing, love."

  "Really, really amazing," said Julian, still breathless. "I am going to send Geoff chocolates and never, ever tell him why."

  Alex laughed and kissed him again, this time with only the usual exchange of warmth and affection. "That sounds like a perfect plan," he said. "Though he might guess."

  Julian giggled and blushed. "He'll only be more jealous of me for snagging you," he said. "We'll tell him it's for helping save my life, then."

  "Yeah, we will," said Alex, and Julian felt that ache of worry and sadness swell up.

  "Hey, none of that," said Julian, pulling him down for more kisses. "You're safe and alive, I'm safe and alive, and James and Jacques are going to give us so much shit in the morning about this we'd better enjoy it now."

  Alex laughed, surprised out of his concern, at least for now. "Yeah, they really are," he said. He dipped his head down for another kiss. "But it was worth it."

  "Oh, yes," said Julian, wrapping his arms and legs around Alex and giving him another long, magic-laced kiss. "Definitely worth it."

  CHAPTER 13

  Julian woke to Alex the sound of trying to both hold an angry phone conversation and not disturb him.

  "You might as well yell," said Julian, hiding his face in Alex's hip with a yawn. "M'awake."

  Alex stroked his hair. "Sorry, love," he whispered, covering the phone. Then his face hardened and he removed his hand and said, quite loudly and angrily, "You are not welcome in my home, Agent Fischer, and I am absolutely positive you don't have a warrant and can't come in uninvited."

  "Ugh, him," said Julian, snuggling closer. "He's a jerkface."

  "No," said Alex one more time, and then he hung up. "One more call, sorry." He stroked Julian's hair. "This one will have less yelling."

  Julian yawned. "Wha' time'sit?" he mumbled.

  Alex chuckled. "You've got a few minutes if you want to sleep more." He found the right name in his contacts and tickled the shell of Julian's ear before hitting the call button. "Supervising Agent Mallory? It's Alex Benedict."

  "Ooh, gettin' someone in trouble," said Julian with a grin that turned into another yawn. He didn't think he could get back to sleep, so he settled in to listen to Alex threatening to file a formal harassment complaint against Fischer. Despite Alex's obvious annoyance, Julian was enjoying the mental images of Mallory giving Fischer a well-deserved scolding. Julian had only met Mallory once in passing, but he'd always thought the man had the perfect face for disciplining his Agents.

  Julian sat up when Alex rang off the call and rewarded him with a kiss. "My valiant protector. What does Fischer want now?"

  "He wants to rifle through my work room," said Alex, annoyed. "Can you imagine how fast a team of techs would mess up my filing systems? Not to mention the man-hours it would take them to catalog it all!"

  "Ugh," said Julian again. "Better tell Murielle that Agent Jerkface is on the rampage again." He stretched and stole another kiss, then got up and claimed first dibs on the bathroom. He splashed some water on his face and brushed his teeth just to feel properly human before arming himself with dressing gown and slippers.

  "I'll be out in a minute," said Alex, back on the phone and still in bed.

  Julian interfered and kissed him anyway, then went out to face their houseguests. "Alex is right, you two are disgustingly perky," he said. James and Jacques were already up and getting ready for the day, with a whole arsenal of weapons laid out on their coffee table that the two men were making systematically vanish. "Did you shower already?"

  "We did, you guys slept very well after last night's," James smirked, "excitement."

  Julian blushed red, but he couldn't hide the giant grin that came with it. "Yeah, we really did," he said smugly.

  Jacques laughed. "We didn't have this problem last time, you might see if Alex can do something about the way sound carries."

  "Can't," said Alex from the bedroom doorway. "You have to be able to hear us if we call for help. Is there tea?"

  "There's breakfast," said Alys, and they all trooped in and took their seats around the table. Alys had made a hash of leftover lamb and potatoes fried into the tastiest little rounds imaginable, along with eggs, scones, and bowls of what proved to be curried fruit. There was fresh-squeezed blood orange juice to go with their tea, and even a little plate of kippers that only James and Nat were interested in eating.

  "You take such good care of us, Alys," said Julian, after a few delicious bites. "What did I ever do to deserve you?"

  "You have good taste in men," said Alex smugly.

  Alys laughed. "You keep your half of our bargain just as well, the house is safe and well-provisioned, and you don't interfere."

  "You don't even poke your nose in," said Nat with a nod. "That's rare, you humans are a curious lot."

  "You say that like fairies aren't," said Alex, amused. "Curiosity is a trait all the races share, I think."

  "Besides," said Julian, "you always make the wait worthwhile."

  After that the talk turned first to more compliments, and then to the mundane details of their day. Father Stephen wasn't expecting them at a specific time, but they didn't want to dawdle, either, so Julian and Alex ate up. Alex took a shower while Julian did his rounds of all the plants again, more conscious of where he put his energy. Julian let the plants have their little trickle on purpose this time, since it obviously helped them.

  J
ulian did a sketchy wash before his day of getting dirty in the Temple garden and put on his work clothes. He wore shoes he could slip easily into and out and made sure that Alys could get the dirt out for him if he didn't always have time to wash his feet. "I'm all set," he said, fingers nervously fingering the amulet at his chest.

  "Jones is downstairs," said Alex. "Alys made up lunches for all of us, including Father Stephen, can you carry the box? That way..."

  "That way everyone who might need them has his hands free to protect me," said Julian. "You know, what if I brought Horace along?"

  "What for?" asked Jacques curiously.

  "He could go find someone else if there's trouble, he's really smart," said Julian.

  Alex looked pleased. "He could, and if we introduce him to the people he'd need to find, it would be as good as an address. Horace's magic wouldn't have any problem with your confusing corridors."

  "He'll like being useful again, too," said Julian fondly. "Horace, wanna come on an adventure?"

  Horace chirped happily and flew over to rest on Julian's shoulder, rubbing his beak against Julian's cheek.

  Alex grinned. "That's really smart, plus he can come find me if you guys need me for anything." He hefted his satchel, which contained his work flute and some materials; he was planning to consult with the Temple mages about protecting the apprentices while Julian worked.

  "All right, that's everyone. Get your stick and let's go," said James.

  "See you for dinner!" called Julian, picking up the box. "One of you will have to swap out the fairy-offering, please."

  "I'll do it," said Alex. "I think my amulet will protect you, but they're better to have on guard if something happens."

  "Thanks," said James, looking relieved.

  Jacques opened the door and stepped out, glancing back and forth and up and down. "Alex next, to do the bowls," said Jacques.

  They went through the same dance for Alex, and then Julian emerged and James hurried after him. Jacques had already called up the elevator, and Alex whistled to the wards one last time before joining them. Julian felt ridiculously exposed, for all he was shoved in a tiny metal box with three big men, and he was relieved that Jones had both trunk and car door open for him when they got down to the parking garage.