Chapter Twenty-Two

Spending the day in Cornwall was fun. Benedict did his best to forget about the upcoming battle, because in his head his issue with the Council had been that for a long time. Instead he focused on showing Dixon some of the places that had been part of his summers growing up. A lot of Cornwall had changed, progress and time would do that to any place, but there were still enough snippets from Benedict's memories that made the day a happy one.

On the plane, Dixon had clearly picked up on his mood, and they sat and drank, laughing at silly videos on Dixon's phone. By the time they hit the sheets in the London hotel, Benedict was ready to lose himself in Dixon's arms, and his wonderful bear mate didn't disappoint. His sleep, when it came, was blissfully dream free. If the spirits had any messages for him, Benedict didn't hear them.

Langley had called, while they were eating breakfast, requesting a meeting with them before the Council appearance scheduled for ten o'clock. Benedict and Dixon took a taxi, arriving at Langley's offices just after nine. Benedict was surprised to see Terrence, the tiger shifter looking very comfortable in Langley's office.

"Terrence, Langley, what's all this about?" Benedict was wearing a suit for the occasion, as was Dixon, and Benedict unbuttoned his jacket as he sat down. Dixon chose to stand, nodding at Terrence and Langley.

"Apparently the Magical Council is a bit rattled about today's event," Terrence said with an easy grin.

"Rattled would be an understatement." Langley's lips were pinched as he shuffled some papers on his desk. "We've been fielding calls for the past two days, asking for delays in the first instance. I said that wasn't possible." He peered at Dixon. "I told them you had pressing matters to attend to in the United States. I hope you don't mind me taking the liberty of using your name."

"Suits me." Dixon shook his head. "I'm sure I have a houseplant that needs watering back home or something similar, but go on. What else are they asking for?"

"Well, when your old pal Councilor Jefferson couldn't get the delay he wanted so desperately, he stank of it," Terrence said. "Councilor Hancock chimed in, claiming he was concerned that he and his fellow Councilors wouldn't be able to follow any proceedings, given as how, and this is in his words, ‘they aren't able to see or hear any ghosties that might show up'."

"Ghosties." The disgust was evident in Langley's well-mannered tones. "This is one of the key problems with the Magical Council. They are so narrow-minded with the fields of magic they support and believe in. They have absolutely no respect for the dead and no idea how Necromancy works."

"But you power-boosted all of the spirits that came to help us fight that last time. Everyone could see them then." Benedict could feel Dixon's concern and looked up to meet his gaze. "Was that a fluke? I could be the ignorant one here, but I thought something similar was going to happen when you called your family this time."

"If they show up." Benedict nodded. "Actually, I should correct myself there. My family will show up, because if they don't come willingly then the Council will likely insist I forcibly summon them, so they have no choice but to appear. However, I haven't met a Necromancer who can make a spirit talk if they don't want to."

"But will people be able to see them?" Terrence asked, and as he seemed genuinely interested, Benedict was happy to explain.

"I will make sure they can be. From what you, Dixon, and Langley have already suggested, it would seem my father has been waiting for this meeting to take place, which is why he hasn't shown himself to me before, with that one exception." He smiled up at Dixon, before addressing the others.

"He was looking out for my mate, and I believe that's the only reason my father showed up when he did. But even then, it wasn't like he stopped to chat. He told me about the changeling and what needed to be done with them, and warned me the Council was going to make their move and then he quite literally disappeared."

"I couldn't believe it when Bobby told me the esteemed Councilors all believed the spirits of your dead family might have dissipated in the explosion." Terrence quickly slapped his hand over his mouth, as Dixon growled, and with a quick glance at Dixon, he removed and said quickly, "I'm sorry, Necromancer. That was insensitive of me."

"No, no, it's fine." Benedict reached over, touching Dixon on the leg. His bear would appreciate the connection. "It's honestly fine. I prefer blunt speaking over platitudes. And you're right to be shocked at the Councilors' attitudes. I have never heard of a spirit ceasing to exist no matter how they died. That belief ties into what Langley said about the short sightedness and sheer ignorance of the Councilors we'll be dealing with today."

"So can we assume that the attending spirits today will all be visible and will be heard?" Langley asked.

"Yep." Benedict grinned. "The Council doesn't realize it, but their attack on us when we first went there helped me understand something fundamentally important about the Tower. Something the Magical Council failed to factor into their plans."

"There's something special about the Tower of London?" Dixon tilted his head.

Nodding, Benedict said, "Oh yes, indeed. The one amazing thing about the Tower of London, besides being a place steeped in history, is that it has also been a prison as well as the site of many executions over its thousand year history. The executions there date from as far back as the thirteen hundreds."

"Do spirits typically hang around the place they were killed?" Terrence leaned forward in his chair.

"That's debatable," Benedict said. "However, there have been tales of ghost sightings at the Tower since stories like that have been recorded. You've probably heard of the ghost of Anne Boleyn?"

Terrence nodded. Clearly he was a fan of the supernatural.

"Well, did you also know there have been reported sightings of her leading an entire procession of knights and ladies from the parish church. There are a huge number of dead associated with the Tower, even animals. They could've been shifters for all we know."

"The ghosts can get in line. There'll be some live shifters running amuck if those Councilors give you any grief," Dixon growled as Terrence grinned.

"I'll be there right by your side, running on four legs," Terrence promised.

"Yes. Well, there's also the little matter of the Councilors also wanting to block the Paranormal Council representative attending." Langley looked up. "I might not be able to draw power from the dead, but I am no slouch when it comes to negotiations. Dr. Thomas Morgan, a Paranormal Councilor will also be attending today along with a Clerk of Records to ensure that the Magical Council doesn't try and hide anything from their bosses."

"Thank you Langley." Next to Dixon, Langley was the only person Benedict trusted to negotiate on his behalf. He saw Langley share a worried look with Terrence. "Come on Langley, what is it? I can see something's worrying you about this."

"The Paranormal and Shifter Councils wanted this meeting to be open to members of the magical community. The Magical Council did not, for obvious reasons. However…" Langley trailed off.

"What my esteemed learned companion is trying to say," Terrence jumped in, "is that we prevailed. Now, I'm not certain what the etiquette is when it comes to summoning with an audience, and again I apologize if I've been insensitive in this matter as well. But Langley and I talked about what Dixon believed might be happening, and well, I only met your father once, but I believe he'd be a man who wanted an audience if he has something to say, don't you?"

Shit. The attack they went through via the Council aside, Benedict had done most of his summoning work in private. The thought of speaking to his dead family with an audience was nerve-racking when he thought it would just be the Councilors present, but with other people too… Dixon's hand landed on his shoulder. "Is the plane ready at the airport?" he asked, patting Dixon's hand.

"Yep. I double-checked before we left the hotel."

"Doing this with an audience might help improve the status of Necromancers everywhere," Langley said tentatively.

"There're only about a dozen of us the world over, if that." Benedict chuckled. "It's fine. It really is. At least if we hear the truth, the Magical Council won't be able to ignore it, or the consequences, that any revelation might bring." He let out a long breath. "We'd better get going. My family have had ten years to think about what they want to say. Let's hope it's something worth listening to." He ran his hand over his hair. "Do I look all right? I didn't realize I was going to be performing in front of more than the Council." The question was for Dixon.

"You look powerful, my mate," Dixon said warmly. "Sexy as sin in your suit and super powerful. Let's go show the Magical Council what you can do."

/~/~/~/~/

Langley had a couple of papers he needed Benedict to sign, so Dixon and Terrence stepped out into the waiting room to give the two men some privacy.

"Here. You might need this later today," Terrence said, fishing in his pocket and pulling out a small card.

"What is it?" Taking the card, Dixon frowned at the words on it.

In every situation, the right to protect a mate from imminent harm, whether it be from verbal, physical, or emotional attack, is the fundamental right of all and any shifter.

Paranormal Council Directive Article One, Paragraph One (1898)

"You seriously think I will need this?" Dixon snorted. "I don't need permission from a Council edict that's over a hundred years old to protect my mate."

"You're American. An unknown element." Terrence shrugged and grinned. "We weren't sure how gung ho you might go if your mate is threatened in any way. My boss thought you'd feel more… more supported if you knew you had the Paranormal and Shifter Councils behind you. You know, if you decide to run amuck and tear the faces off the Magical Council members. Lord knows they need more new blood in that Council."

Dixon chuckled, tucking the card into his inside jacket pocket. "I'm sure you'll find as foreign as you imagine us Americans might be, every shifter the world over understands the instinct to protect a Fated Mate. Benedict supported me through one of the worst episodes in my life, and we'd only just met. He has my absolute one hundred percent love and loyalty. Protecting him is part of my DNA, my friend."

"I'm jealous. I want to feel like that about someone." Terrence shrugged again, his grin not as cocky. "I keep waiting. I put myself out there, do all I can, but anytime I get close to someone, my animal half turns up his nose and has a nap."

"You know, my friend Gordon, he felt the same way you did and he's likely a lot older than you. Then Benedict's cousin Monica came over to help us with the changeling. I don't know if the stories of a rampant elephant running through the streets of San Francisco one night with a shrieking female in his trunk hit the news here…"

"You're kidding me? That was your friend?" Terrence slapped Dixon on the shoulder, laughing loudly. "I said to my boss when I saw it on social media. I told him that was a shifter running amuck. And the woman was Benedict's cousin?"

"Monica, yes. She lives, or should I say lived, in Cornwall. Her and Gordon are currently packing up her house for her move to the States. She's a magic user who does research studies on shifters. She had written her thesis on changelings, so when we were having issues…"

Dixon shuddered. "You do not need to know what a colossal fuck up that was, but picture this. It's the dead of night. We're on a golf course with that… that thing in an urn trying to get out. The dead are rumbling the ground beneath our feet. The damned changeling had morphed into something you'd see in a horror movie.

"Benedict had warded the area, yelling at everyone to get back. Monica, because she's a headstrong woman who doesn't listen to anyone, clearly wanted to help and was trying to get near the thing. Put simply, Gordon lost his shit. He shifted in the middle of the golf course, picked her up in his trunk and carried her off screaming, and they've been together ever since."

"I wish I'd been there." Terrence was still chuckling. "Seems to me I should take some vacation time and come for a visit. Maybe I've been a bit limited in my horizons."

"If you haven't found your mate here, then it means they are somewhere else." Dixon turned as he heard the office door open. "All done?"

Benedict came over and wrapped his arms around Dixon's waist. "I've done all the lordly admin Langley has for me. Let's go and shake up the Magical Council."

"With luck, we'll be done by lunch." Dixon rested his arm over Benedict's shoulder as they headed for the Tower.