A/N: A simple revision. This one reads better, I hope. Also, my decision to split it into three like this is variable. If people don't like it, I can change it. The word-count may be lower this time around, but that's just the lack of author's notes for each 'chapter'. The actual story is mostly unchanged.

Regarding scene breaks: I have yet to find a way to do them that I like. Hopefully I can make it work this time around.

DMT

Molly Carpenter sighed, gazing forlornly up at the starry sky, her legs swinging freely in the open air. She was sitting outside, on the balcony of her old tree house. Yup. Out in the chilly night air while her family was all bundled up, nice and cozy, inside. Probably watching some movie with lots of furry little animals and show tunes. On the modestly sized TV. That she was no longer allowed within ten feet of.

Sometimes magic really sucked.

She sighed, and shook her head, finally just deciding she'd go for a quick walk around the block. There wasn't any reason to be worried about the 'danger'. Not in this neighborhood. And even if someone (or something, for that matter) decided to cause trouble, she was pretty sure she could handle herself. While she wasn't anywhere near as good as her mentor when it came to fighting, her abilities in stealth and distraction more than made up for it...

It didn't hurt that she knew her dad was nearby.

A plan firmly in place, Molly stood. She dusted herself off, checked her pockets for anything she might need, and turned toward the ladder down.

She froze when she saw the figure on the top of the tree house.

It was (or seemed to be) a girl, about her age. Her dress shifted and moved with the breeze, the skirt swishing around her knees spun, slowly, on the spot, reaching for the sky...

Molly really wasn't sure what most people would do when confronted with a random, barefooted girl dancing on their tree house late at night. So she decided to wing it.

"Hello?"

The girl's attention shifted away from the stars, and Molly couldn't help but take a step back as it fell on her. Beneath a screen of long, lanky hair, the girl's dark eyes were piercing, shining too bright to be healthy. They carried wisdom, brilliance, and insanity.

They reminded her of Mab.

After a moment, she swallowed, finding her voice again. "What are you doing?"

The girl looked up, seemed to consider, and nodded. "Trying to get home. Got lost. Serenity can't find me."

Molly blinked, really not sure what she was supposed to make of that. But now she was curious…moving on, then.

"Maybe I could help? What's your name?"

The stranger shook her head. "Can't help. Not ready yet. Time must pass." She tilted her head, twirling around again. "Aces full of nines, pockets full of time. Lots of little rips and tears. She fell through them. Got lost off Serenity. Far out in the black…"

Molly's eyes widened slightly as the girl spoke. Riddles. Roundabout answers…

"Babbling like a brook, but that's not quite right." She stilled. "My name is River."

A name. That was good. Molly latched on to that, swallowing as she fought to keep her voice. "Right. River. Nice to meet you. I'm Molly." She glanced over her shoulder, at the bright, warm safety of home. "Um…I think I can help? Or, try, at least...do you want to come inside?" She had to get to her dad…

River tilted her head thoughtfully...before nodding and moving towards the edge of the roof. She dropped easily, and moved to stand just in front of Molly. Waited.

Molly was quick to make her way down the ladder, and carefully led the other girl toward the house.

DMT

I honestly don't know why I have a phone sometimes.

All it ever does is get me into trouble. I'm not being melodramatic here. It seems like every time I pick the damn thing up, bad things start to happen. Usually all at once.

That doesn't stop me from picking it up when it rings. Maybe I'm a masochist.

"Dresden." I said, without any hint of muddled drowsiness.

"Harry, I'm sorry. Did I wake you?"

It was Michael. And he sounded tense. That...wasn't normal.

"No, 'Course not." I sat up, rubbing the sleep out of my eyes as I swung my feet over the edge of my bed. "What's up?"

"There's someone here…we need your expertise."

I frowned. Exactly what would be considered my 'expertise'? "What is it?"

"I don't know." Michael let out a heavy breath. "But I know you have that…familiar, of yours…"

"Yea, sure, I'll get Bob and be right there."

"Bless you Harry."

"No problem."

I hung up, and took a second to just sit there and prepare. Get psyched up before the inevitable shit-hitting-the-fan scenario. Of course, after that I went to get dressed and get my things together.

Time to go wizarding.

DMT

My battered old beetle ground to a stop in front of the house, dying. Again

It got me there, of course. That's what really matters.

I grabbed my bag and staff, pat the dash consolingly before pushing the door open and piling out. A short walk up to the door, and I rang the bell.

There was some muffled cursing as the bag hit my leg again, and I looked down. "Stow it Bob. Not much longer."

A few more mumbled words. The door opened, and Michael filled the doorway. He didn't look so great. Worry made the lines in his face stand out, giving him a tired, worn sort of look. Something was bothering him. And there was a very short list of things that got under Michael's skin.

I don't wait for pleasantries. "What's wrong."

"I think you'd better come in…"

My guard went up, then. "What happened?"

"I think it would be best explained inside. Come in, please." He said simply, moving aside to let me in.

I stepped through the threshold with his blessing, felt it part around me. I went ahead and fell into my 'detective' thing, getting a good look around, casting out with my senses to see what I could pick up.

There wasn't much.

Michael led me into the den. I saw Charity first, her serious expression now lined with caution. Molly was nearby, radiating uncertainty. The little ones were upstairs apparently…

My attention drifted to the only other occupant of the room. I'm honestly surprised I hadn't noticed a stranger earlier, but chalk it down to how still she's sitting.

A girl, maybe a little younger than Molly, was curled up on the big easy chair, knees pulled to her chest. She was watching the television as if it held the answers of the universe. The fact that it was powered down didn't escape me.

"Um…?" I sent a questioning look at everyone who was actually paying attention.

"I found her outside." Molly answered quietly. "She was on the tree house. Said she was lost."

I frowned. "Isn't a missing person something you should take to the police?"

Michael shook his head. "If I could be certain that it was only that…Harry, look at her. Really look at her."

I looked again, hesitated slightly...and closed my eyes. With a familiar focus, a tiny bit of power, I opened my eyes. And with them, my Sight.

To my right stood Michael, bathed in such a fierce white glow I dared not look at him directly for fear of going blind.

Charity sat to my left, and was emitting the same glow, albeit with a strange feeling of cold warmth as well. Molly was barely containing her fear, and I watched her imagination spinning with horrible ideas of what could happen.

I turned my attention to the girl.

And immediately wished that I hadn't.

It took me a couple seconds, but I managed to shut my eyes, moving a hand up to my forehead.

"Bathroom…"

Michael wasted no time in leading me to the toilet, where I promptly threw up what was left of my dinner.

As I wiped my mouth and tried not to think about anything much at all, he glanced out the door. "What was it, Harry?"

I shook my head, spitting a bit of the bad taste from my mouth before taking a deep breath. "She's not right…someone messed with her head. It's...not pretty."

I'd seen scars. Scars upon scars. Piled up over each other, each one cold and precise. Each one with a malevolent certainty. Whoever did it had known what they wanted. And they'd gotten it.

And the scars hadn't been the worst of it.

While she had looked calm and collected on the surface, staring into space...on the inside, she had been so tense it was painful to see. She'd been staring around at every one of us, staring into us, with unblinking, lidless eyes.

I shuddered, pushing the memory back before speaking again.

"The important thing is, she's human. And I'm pretty sure she's...relatively safe."

Michael nodded, glancing over his shoulder. "I was fairly certain of that, though there was doubt." He looked back at me, expression grave. "I will not keep her around my family, Harry. I will help, if I must, but...Harry, I believe she may be dangerous…" He glanced away. "I hate to…"

"Ask me to take care of it." I finished, shook my head. "Not a problem…" I saw the look in his eye, heaved out a sigh. "Michael, how many times have I dragged you or your family into danger?"

He didn't answer.

I nodded, with a sense of finality. "I like to repay my debts. And I owe you, big time." I put a hand on his shoulder, then passed out of the bathroom and moved downstairs.

I had to keep from flinching as I saw the girl again, but quickly swallowed the feeling and got a little closer.

"Hello…My name's Harry. Harry Dresden."

She looked up at me, expression calculating. After a few moments, I began to sweat. It was a relief when she finally answered.

"River Tam."

I let out a breath, nodded. "Well, River…You're lost. And my specialty is lost things." I forced myself to be relaxed, laid back like I usually was. "Come on kid. I'll help you find home."

River stared at me for another few moments before pushing herself up out of the chair and smiling...a nice smile that didn't at all fit with anything I'd seen so far.

"You won't be able to find it."

Hells bells...nothing is ever easy.

If I got really lucky, my first stop might also be my last. Seeing as I had a missing person, I'd have Murphy search the database, report...things...for anyone matching River. Seeing as how we would have a name and a face, logic dictated that it would be easy.

Logic and I don't tend to get along well, unfortunately.

My first hint that something was up when I saw the Crime Scene Tape.

Right, so I know it's pretty obviously a sign of something bad. But you gotta admit, you don't often see it at the entrance to the police station.

"Come on." I said to my passenger as I stepped out of the car. She followed quietly as I approached the group of officers standing around the entrance. Most of them looked at me like I was at fault, and one started toward us, probably to warn me away.

I pulled out my nifty little name tag that labeled me an official consultant for the boys in blue.

The guy looked more than a little suspicious, but let me (and my 'guest', thankfully) through. I made sure not to touch anything and to step carefully until I reached the bottom of the stairs, where another yellow strip marked the edge of the scene. I ducked under and headed upstairs.

Murphy's office was just off the main hall, marked with a homemade hanging sign (because city hall was too cheap to pay for a plaque). I knocked, not wanting to fry her computers…again…

"Dresden?"

I blinked, having been unaware that Murphy had started exhibiting psychic abilites. "Uh, yea…How…"

She opened the door, pressing a hand to my chest to force me back a step or two. "You're the only one who actually knocks." She smirked, then peered past me, curiosity lighting in her expression.. "Who's this?"

I glanced over my shoulder at the kid. "Oh, yea. Murph, this is River. River, Karin Murphy."

The girl gave a small smile, ducking her head. It was strange. The first time she'd actually seemed human.

"She's sort of the reason I'm here…" I frowned suddenly. "Are you okay?" She was looking tired.

Murphy glanced at River, then shook her head. "Almost got shot, out front."

Color me surprised. "Jesus, Murph...someone shot at you?"

Murphy nodded, waving a hand dismissivly. "Sniper. Obviously not a good one, because he managed to miss." She shook her head again. "I'm fine. Just a little...rattled, I guess." A pause, and I watched with concern as she visibly gathered herself. "So. What do you need?"

"Oh, right, well…" I didn't want to push it. Murphy was touchy about this sort of thing. "I wanted you to help me find a missing person."

She just nodded, turning down the hallway. "Walk with me."

I glanced at River, jerking my head after Murphy, then started walking. Kid didn't miss a beat.

"So." Murphy turned a corner, keeping a brisk pace through the halls. "Who's missing?"

I had to do a little hop-skip to get the timing down, but managed to match her pace. "Well…River."

She glanced over her shoulder, raising a curious brow. "River is missing?" A pointed look at the girl who drifted beside me…jeez, the kid was quiet. And apparently, I needed to get her some shoes. She was still in her bare feet.

Oops.

"Yea, she's lost, and doesn't know where to go."

"Knows where." River said suddenly. "Knows when." She did a little twirl as Murphy came to a halt in front of a doorway. "Just doesn't know how."

Murphy's raised eyebrow lifted a little higher. I shrugged. "Don't ask me."

She shook her head, pulling out a key.

Just before she could open the door, however, someone appeared at the end of the hall.

"Lieutenant Murphy."

Murphy turned, frowning slightly. "Yea?"

The man flashed a badge. "Mark Carver, Internal Affairs."

Oh, wonderful. The guys who had been bothering Murphy for the past several years.

Funny. I figured evil incarnate would be more…intimidating.

"I'm here to inform you you've been put on paid leave for the next two weeks while we sort this out."

Murphy blinked. "What?"

The suit pulled out a slip of paper, handing it to her. "Here's the order. Apparently, your superiors think it would be best for you to take a vacation."

Murphy growled slightly, then nodded. "As soon as I finish here, I'll leave."

The agent shook his head, practically oozing false sincerity. "Sorry ma'am, that order is immediate."

Murphy shook her head and made to open the door again. The agent's hand stopped it.

"I could have you escorted from the premises, if you prefer..."

Murphy's eyes narrowed, and she slipped into that deadly relaxed stance that had seen the fall of men twice this guy's size. I stepped in quickly, setting a hand on her shoulder. A calculated risk, but seeing as how I'm not kissing the cheap carpeting I'll roll with it. "It can wait."

She glanced at me, stared at the agent for another moment...then turned to stalk off down the hall. Headed for the exit, I noticed.

I caught up quickly, checking to make sure River was still following. We made it to the sidewalk before Murphy slowed down. I matched her, again, walking behind her, to her right. River was on my left, staring up at the sky and humming.

Weird kid.

I focused on Murphy for the moment, took a deep breath.

"You okay?"

She coughed out a laugh. "Crap, Dresden. What do you think?"

Oookay…

"Sorry I couldn't get your info." She continued, waving me off "If you don't mind too much, I can access some stuff from my home computer."

I shrugged. "It's fine, I guess." A pause, and I wince. "And...y'know...River does need a place to stay…"

Murphy turned, giving me a Look. I frown defensively. "Well, she can't stay at my place."

She sighed, rolled her eyes, and nodded. "Okay then. Guess I have a guest…

"All around the carpenter's bench, the monkey chased the weasel..."

I looked back at River, blinked a few times at the muttered rhyme. Turned my attention to Murphy again. "I'll walk you to your car."

I could almost see Murphy rolling her eyes. "I feel so protected."

"All around the carpenter's bench…"

Murphy pulled out her car keys, sighing as she looked around the small lot. "Where did I park again? Man, it's been a long day..."

"The monkey chased the weasel."

I swept my gaze over the parking lot, taking advantage of my height. "Over there." I pointed the spot out, and we started toward it. Murphy fingered the remote...key whatever, and I absently wondered if I would end up frying it.

"The monkey thought twas all in fun…"

There was a sudden pressure on my senses. Something was happening…in front of us…

"Get down!" I reached out and pulled Murphy back, pulling her against me as I turned on my heel. I crouched, ducked my head, and prayed that the enchantments on my duster would stand up to whatever was about to happen.

River...how the hell did I forget...

There was an explosion from behind me. I could feel the heat, and the shrapnel that bruised me though the spell-covered coat covering me was enough to tell me it was probably the car.

My ears were ringing, but I reached out with my other senses to check. Everything was...settled, it seemed. I stood, carefully...

River stood there, dress fluttering slightly in the breeze. The fire behind me cast her in an unearthly orange glow, flicking shadows dancing across her form. There were several tiny cuts on her face and arms, apparently from the bits of metal that had gone flying...but she didn't seem to take any notice of them. \

She looked down at me, and I saw the flames reflected in her eyes.

"Pop goes the weasel."

DMT

I moved through the wreckage, scanning the blackened asphalt. Little sparks of flame still burned, here and there, the tar and whatever else having yet to burn away entirely.

I found what I was looking for in the center of the whole mess. As I crouched next to the small crater, I reached out with all my senses.

The faint outline of a circle was still visible. It was vague, at best, and technically could have been anything. But the Power that still clung to it was hard to miss. This hadn't been a bomb.

It had been a spell.

I looked around for a moment, checking to make sure the Crime Scene guys and uniforms were all a decent distance from the scene...then pulled a human skull from my bag..

"Hey. Wakey wakey. Need you to look at something for me."

Orange lights flickered in the eye sockets of the skull, its teeth clicking as Bob grumbled. "You shove me in a smelly bag for hours, then expect me to help you? Really Harry..."

I pointed the skull at the charred array.

He let out a low whistle, his jaw clicking closed again. "Fancy stuff. Looks like it used thaumaturgy to sense a target. When they get close enough...well...'Kaboom'."

Huh. "Magic trip mine?"

"Mmhmm." The lights in his eyes flickered. "Basically. Who set it off?"

"Probably Murphy. Someone tried to kill her earlier. Sniper." A failed attempt...the array had been pretty damn quick for a second try...

Bob gave the impression of nodding, staring down at the circle. "The killer had to have gotten a piece of her then, most likely some blood. Set up the circle on the parking place with some chalk, and activate it after the lady cop is inside. She comes out to the car, looks like a car bomb."

I reached up to rub my jaw, gaze drifting around the scene. "Jeez, Bob…Why would someone from my side of the fence be gunning for Murphy?"

"Mavra has a bone to pick with her."

That was true. "But Mavra's not stupid. She knows damn well I'd kill her if I found out."

"Well, what about those Denarian guys?"

"Ungh. Don't remind me." I had a fallen angel in my head to do that for me.

I waited a few seconds, but she didn't make an appearance. Strange. Usually she was just waiting for a straight line like that.

"Okay. Well, we can't find anything right now…I'm going to go check up on Murphy…maybe suggest she take a few days at Father Forthill's." That church was one of the better protected places in the city.

"Right. And maybe I should…you know…go with her…for...advisement."

"She's not going to let you ogle her."

Bob huffed, sounding insulted. "Really Harry. I do sometimes think of other things."

I gave him a Look.

"Oh, just shove me back in the bag and get it over with."

I did just that, ignoring the muttered Greek curses.

DMT

River followed the dark man, Harry, in his little, spluttering, combustion engine machine. It reminded her of Serenity. Worn, and cobbled. But dependable. Loved...

She knew she had to follow him, this magus. Practitioner of myth. He was the first step. Always finding steps. Steps that led down paths that led down lives, every one different…

They stopped in front of an old building, wood and stone. She followed as he went to a door, mumbled more words to part a shining curtain. Exerted energy opening the door, resistance and friction making the simple action problematic.

A creature came out, attempting to topple the tower. Mammal. Felis Catus. Cat.

She crouched down to see it, and it saw her. Spoke to her. Said 'I am the master here.'

She smiled and patted him, spoke more words, syllables, sounds, letters.

Followed Harry inside.

Here it was familiar. The wall hangings and furniture, while old and dusty, reminded her of the companion's shuttle. Inara. So sad the bad man couldn't see her.

And there were sounds. The structure was speaking to her, singing. Alive. This place was like Serenity, too.

She spoke, knew she spoke, didn't know what she was speaking. Why. Heard but didn't listen. Understood but didn't comprehend.

Flame came then, with another whisper. She mimicked. "Flickum Bickus". The effect wasn't repeated. Obviously not capable of physical manipulation as this one was…

Another mammal, Kanis Lupus Familiaris, trotted up to look at her. It's thoughts were clear, simple, pure. Also guarded and protective.

"Good boy." She whispered, reaching out to stroke it's head.

The dog just tilted his head and licked her palm.

DMT

"We're hungry."

I turned, a little bemused as I looked at River. She was just standing there, staring at me.

So was Mouse.

Both were giving me puppy dog eyes. And don't look at me like that, I'd like to see you try standing up to two pairs of big brown eyes giving you that look.

"Okay…What do you want?"

River's head tilted to the side. "Is pizza good?"

I blinked. "What?"

"Pizza." She repeated. "He likes it." She patted Mouse's head, and he gave her a doggy grin.

"Um…"

She was talking to my dog. Wonderful.

"Yea…I'll get right on that." I'd had a pretty good month, so a bit of delivery was fine. I went to the phone and called in my usual order. Delivery took about twenty minutes, so I made sure River was settled and excused myself to my lab/sub-basement/cave-hole-thing.

After lighting the candles and slipping into my robe (Note to self: Need new robe) I pulled Bob out of my bag and set him on his shelf.

"Finally." He grumbled, eyes flickering to life. "Decide to start appreciating me yet?"

"Nope." I answered cheerfully, moving around the large table that stood in the center of the room. "Now, we need to find where River comes from, and the best way I can think of is to use a reverse tracking spell."

There was a brief pause, before Bob spoke. "You're going to try and use the original to find the bits?"

"Uh huh. And you're gonna help me."

"And how long do we have to work?"

"Pizza's here in twenty minutes."

"….Harry…are you feeling well?"

"Start thinking, Bob."

Bob sighed. "Got it, Boss."

DMT

"Harry, I think I figured it out." Bob's eyes glowed a little brighter. "Fix the imbalance by adding an extra layer"

"Where, here?"

"Right there." He looked down at the sketch of the array I was doing. "Where you're intersecting the North."

"Oh…Right, that'll work." I made the change before examining the sketch. "I think…We're ready."

Bob nodded, clacking as he heard a knock at the door. "Just in time too. Pizza's here..."

I nod and head upstairs. It tookmaybe ten minutes to get everyone fed and sit River down for a quick talk.

"It won't work." She said quietly, when I was done explaining my plan."

I just shrugged. "It's a possibility. After all, I've never tried something like this…"

"Not that." River cut in. "Think you can follow the bits, sniff them out. But can't follow far enough. Can't lead home."

Well now, if that wasn't just ominous. I shake myself, clear my throat, and nod. "Well...I'm going to try."

River was quiet.

"Right then…come on."

I led the way down to the sub basement, moving past the table and towards my circle.

"An analog representation of the outside city?"

I glanced over my shoulder. River was staring at Little Chicago, taking in every detail.

"Uh, Yea. A lot of it. I use it for…"

"Searching. Finding. The large is linked to the small. Bate's theory of reflection and similarity."

I blinked. "The what now?"

River looked up, frowning. "Mistaken again…information isn't relevant. Lost the stars, found the sky, the city." She closed her eyes. "Can't be found. Simon can't reach here."

I moved over, filing away the name for later use as I led River over to the circle. "You need to stand here for a little while."

River nodded and froze, eyes still closed.

I did some thinking about Murphy's problem as I prepared. How I was going to help. It wasn't quite meditation, but it got me focused enough. And it helped me avoid thinking of the creepy feeling that crawled down my spine when River spoke like that.

"All right." I murmured, when everything was in place. After a brief pause, I stepped into the circle with her. Took a deep breath. "Stand still, keep calm, and don't break the circle."

A whisper of power and a drop of my blood was enough to activate the array. I started to chant nonsense syllables, meant to focus my intent.

It took another few minutes, but finally it was ready. "Localous." I whispered, whipping out a hand to release the energy that had been building in the circle. It flew out, swirling into a prepared crystal I had hanging from a leather cord.

Without waiting, I went and picked it up, letting it dangle over Little Chicago.

It swung to the right, and I followed it until it was pulled down with a slight glow. My apartment.

It traced the way back to the police station, stopping there for awhile.

And then to Michael's house.

I expected it to continue on in one direction.

Instead, it started to swing.

Pretty soon, it started to hover.

And then it was pulling on the cord, pointing up.

I blinked.

"You have got to be kidding me."

DMT

"Okay…So, simplest explanation…She's an alien."

I blinked.

"What?" Murphy shrugged. "You have any ideas?"

"Jeez, Murphy, I've seen some crazy stuff, but come on…Aliens?"

She looked considerate for a moment, then sighed. "Well then, did you do the spell wrong?"

I threw up my hands. "I wish I had! It would have made things so much easier." I shook my head. "But…That's not the reason we're here."

Murphy's expression sobered. "Right…I'm still in the loop, sort of, so I've got some basics. Ballistics came back on the bullet, but they found the gun on the rooftop. Completely clean, stolen, as close to untraceable as you can get."

I reached up to rub at my eyes, thinking. "Okay…I know a few things. Like, whoever pulled of the magic mine was not a lightweight. I'll have to check with my friends in the council to be sure, but there's a likelihood we're dealing with an unknown."

"And obviously someone who has it out for me."

"That too." I let out a deep breath, dropping my hands.

"You okay?" Murphy asked, looking worried. I didn't answer, and she continued. "Did you sleep at all last night?"

A pause. "Um…No?"

She sighed. "Dresden…"

"Yea, yea, I know..."

"Can I take your order?"

We both looked up at the sudden appearance of the waitress.

"Um…Yea…I'll have, umm…this one." I pointed at the menu, unwilling to bother trying to read it off. "Yea."

Murphy smirked. "The same."

"Oh, and, I guess, one of the kid's…things…"

The waitress frowned at the obvious lack of child. "Which one?"

Joy. More choices. I waved it off with a huff. "Surprise me."

The waitress raised an eyebrow but wrote down the order, took the menus, and walked off.

Murphy watched her go, then rolled her eyes. "I can't believe you insisted on meeting at IHOP."

I shifted in the booth, defensive. "I happened to be hungry."

She shook her head, smiling.

A few minutes later, the food came, and I dug in. Murphy followed suit, grabbing the pitcher of syrup to drench her pancakes.

There was a sudden noise, and we both looked up. River stood there, looking annoyed and sheepish.

"How'd it go?" Murphy said with a smile.

River glanced over her shoulder, fidgeting. "The machine was problematic."

I smirked, scooting over and letting River into the booth. I pushed her the plate with the smaller set of pancakes on it. She tucked in right away.

"See Murphy? What kind of alien would allow a claw machine to beat them?"

River looked up, chewing on a bite of food. "Alien…One who does not belong."

Murphy nodded. "Yea, but I think he meant Alien like Space alien." At River's vacant look, she frowned. "Not human. People from outer space. Fly around in spaceships and things."

River nodded back. "Like Serenity."

We both stopped eating. River just continued to chew, bringing another bite to her mouth.

"Serenity?"

River swallowed, cutting at the pancake but not looking up. "Serenity. Mid-bulk transport. Firefly class."

Silence fell over the table while we stared at River, who didn't seem to notice anything other than her pancakes.

"She could have come from a cargo ship." I said suddenly.

Murphy gave me a Look. "You ever hear of a 'firefly'?"

I frowned. "I'm way outside the general knowledge thing." And I was. Stupid internet.

Murphy continued to give me that Look.

"You can't be thinking this Murph. It's stupid. I mean…"

"She knew my car was going to blow up."

I frowned. "That doesn't mean…"

"You told me she'd read your dog's mind and knew all about that little model in your basement. How do you explain that?"

I tapped the table, thinking. "Well, some kind of…Neuromancy." It was dangerous stuff, sure, and almost never worked out, but hey...

Murphy scoffed.

I growled. "Look, Murphy…There's something weird going on, but she's not an alien. She doesn't even look like an alien."

Murphy smiled suddenly. "Easy way to tell…River?"

River looked up, reaching for a glass of water.

"Are you from Earth?"

River tilted her head "Earth-that-was. The Sol System. The Milky way galaxy." A pause. "No."

I blinked.

"But my family can be traced back five hundred years to Asia Minor."

Murphy frowned, taking a second. "On…Earth-that-was."

River nodded.

I blinked again.

Murphy looked at me, expression unreadable.

"Um…River…Do you know where you are?"

River shook her head. "Constellations are unfamiliar. However, I am fairly certain, from the level of technology and geographical feature, that this is Earth-that-was, before the great migration."

We stared for a bit longer, before I dropped my head against the table, the crack of wood against my skull drawing a few stares.

"I never should have answered the phone…"

DMT

'Ivy,

Need to speak to you soon. Important matter.

Harry Blackstone Copperfield Dresden.'

The note burned easily, and I settled back for the wait.

After what happened at the restaurant, I decided it would be smart to get a hold of some information, fast. So, Murphy took River back to Father Forthill's, and I went home to contact an omniscient twelve year old.

Fun fun fun.

My phone finally rang, and I jumped for it.

"Hello?"

"Mr. Dresden?"

I recognized the voice instantly, smiling slightly. "Hey Ivy."

"You said it was important?"

"Yea, I wondered if you could check a couple things for me…"

"Harry, I must remind you, and the council, that I am a neutral party in this affair. Out of necessity."

Uh...okay. "What?"

I could hear her frown. "You're not calling to barter for Red Court intelligence?"

I...hadn't ever thought of that before…dammit.

Too late now to call in a favor.

"Erm, no, Ivy. This isn't council business. Personal only. I need to look someone up."

"Mm. Name?"

"River Tam." Murphy and I had procured River's last name after several minutes of careful questions.

The reply was immediate and simple.

"No record."

"…What?" Ivy knew everything that was written. How could she not know…

"There is no River Tam on any written record."

"How is that possible?"

"Perhaps a fake name?"

I shook my head. "Girl wasn't lying." I sighed. "Okay then…How about a ship." I focused, remembering what River had called it. "Serenity. A, uh…Firefly class, mid-bulk transport."

Ivy took a second this time. "Uhhuh…Serenity has so many hits its ridiculous, but there aren't any that correlate with the rest."

"Oh…"

"But there is reference to the ship…yes, it's a concept design for a spacecraft, designed by one…Joseph Mandell. And posted on his website. Rather crude, really…"

Yet another moment of shock. "It's an actual spaceship?"

"A concept of one, yes." Ivy reminded. "Now…Anything else?"

I reached up to run a hand over my face.

There was a pause.

"Is there anything leading someone to kill Murphy?"

Ivy was quiet, then, "Give me a minute."

The minute passed quickly.

"One print. That's all I can find, Harry…I didn't even see the police report until just now…I should have seen it earlier, been looking…"

"Whoa, Ivy, calm down…I mean, you can't possibly be thinking about all of it at once…" Jeez, I kept getting some shocking reminders that The Archive was still just a little kid. "Now…what is it?"

Ivy swallowed. "There was a letter. Addressed to a P.O box in Chicago. In it was a set of simple instructions on payment and where to find Karrin…enclosed with it was a check for four million dollars."

I blinked.

And coughed.

"Four million?"

Ivy swallowed. "Tracing now…account and funds are clean. Nothing on official record that would suggest something was wrong. The money would have been transferred and verified as a legal transaction. No government would notice anything."

I shook my head. This was…bad. Very bad. Someone with that kind of money, thatkind of power, gunning for Murphy…

"I'm sorry Harry. That's all I have."

I rubbed my eyes, nodding. "Yea…Thanks Ivy."

"Of course." I heard a small sniffle. "Bye Harry."

I forced a smile into my voice. "Bye Ivy."

DMT

"Yea, that's everything."

Murphy said a bad word.

"My thoughts exactly."

I heard her fidgeting for a moment before speaking again. "Okay, so we have a possibly extra terrestrial girl flying around in a ship that's nothing but a drawing by some geek in their mom's basement…"

"I told you Murph, she could have just seen the thing. Thought it looked cool…"

"And just decided to build a fantasy around it, huh? Come on, Dresden, you're not stupid...

I frowned, shifted my grip on the phone. "Word can hurt, you know." She snorted, and I shook my head. "Look, this isn't important right now…we have to figure out who's throwing away money to hire a practitioner to take you out."

Murphy went quiet.

"I thought so…so…let's talk."

DMT

River watched the guardian. Watched as the rust crept onto the shield. Watched as the light burned away the rust, missing more spots every time.

She was upset, because of what she was hearing. Fear crept around her, and images of Harry flashed in her mind.

Of a Harry that wasn't.

A Harry that burned.

A Harry that maimed and destroyed fantastic creatures, every day.

And an image. Of a Harry with old, old eyes. Destroying and creating. It was beautiful. It was horrible.

River turned away.

The angel was too bright. Broke in through the shattered remains of her mind, stabbed her thoughts through her eyes.

"Brother…Simon…" She held her head in her hands, rocking back and forth as the sounds assaulted her senses. "She doesn't belong, doesn't fit…Doesn't fit here, doesn't fit there…Always falling through the cracks…"

Murphy glanced over, frowning. "Hey, Harry…yea, I'll call you back…it's River. I need to check on her…yea."

She hung up, walking over to the distraught girl, reaching out to lay a hand on her shoulder.

"River…River, sweetie…what's wrong?"

She suppressed a shiver as the girl looked up at her, eyes shining out from behind her bangs.

"She's broken. Fell too far, and shattered when she landed. The Earth isn't friendly. Too bright…" Her eyes closed, and she pulled her legs up onto the simple cot she was sitting on, curling in on herself. Her breathing quickened, and she was shaking. "The girl belongs in The Black. Where it's quiet. Dark. Nothing to speak but the stars and Serenity…"

Murphy was worried now, wondering if, perhaps, the girl was having some sort of episode. She prepared to call Father Forthill just in case. "River, calm down…"

"I can't calm down. Can't change. The secrets left broken walls. Always whispering, scratching at the pieces…they all want in…make them stop…" River was sobbing now, and she started to scratch at her head. "Make them go away! Make them STOP!"

Murphy grabbed River's hands, pressing them down to the cot, holding them there. "River…River!" She used her 'cop' voice, trying to calm the frantic girl. "River, what's wrong!"

River stopped suddenly.

She looked up.

Blinked.

Murphy let go, sat up. River stood.

"There's a bad apple, fell from the tree." She looked around, eyes widening. "Found its place, sprung a deadly sapling. Roots drinking up blood."

Murphy blinked twice, then took to her feet as well, moving to stand in front of River. "Hey, why don't you just sit down…"

"There isn't the time. The circle must be squared, and the hawk cannot comply."

"Babbling incoherently is not a good sign, River…"

Murphy grunted as something slammed into her stomach, knocking her back several feet.

She watched as River walked out, taking her service weapon from the table she'd been sitting at as she went.

"Nnnngg…." She groaned, forcing herself to stand up, stagger to the door. Locked.

"Dammit."

Murphy looked around, moving quickly to the phone.

She had to call Harry.

DMT

"Murph, Murphy, just…just slow down, alright? Take a deep breath…Okay now, go over that again."

She did.

I swore.

She agreed.

I pulled my hand over my face, taking a deep breath. "So…We have an unstable...possibly extraterrestrial..." I'm leaving something out, I think. "Uh...psychic teenager running around Chicago...with a gun."

"I think we established that with 'Harry, she ran out and took my gun'."

"Who's the smartass here?" I frowned, shifting slightly. "I'll go look for her. You stay there."

I could almost hear her bristling. "Harry, I can help."

"And leave yourself open to your assassin."

She was silent.

"Just stay there. I'll find her in no time."

"You'd better. That's my gun. If anything happens..."

"I'll call when I have her." I assure her. I'm not sure if it worked, because she just growls and hangs up. I scratch at my head, then move to collect my things.

My staff, blasting rod, coat, and shield bracelet all went on. I turned out the lights, whistled for Mouse, and hooked him onto the leash before pushing out of the door.

Mouse would be able to follow her a bit. I still had a bit of her hair (Which I snagged when she wasn't looking), so if worse came to worse, I could track her that way. I hoped she would go to one of the places we knew…

Then again…

I avoided my car for some reason. Maybe it was a bit of paranoia. Either way, it was fine for now. Walking tended to be more thorough.

I decided maybe it hadn't been my smartest idea ever.

I sat down on the curb, resting my barking dogs.

My mercifully quiet dog sat next to me, letting out a deep breath before letting out a little growl.

That was worrying…he didn't usually growl.

I looked around, casting out with my senses. There wasn't anything near me. And Mouse had quieted down…well then.

I stood again. Only a couple more blocks to Michael's house…

I'd made it a whole half step before getting tackled from behind.

There was a shout, which may have been me, as I went down. Something heavy was on my back, pulling at my coat. I cursed.

The weight vanished as a savage growl rent the air. My faithful dog.

I pushed myself up, spinning to face my threat.

It looked like a monkey. Covered in large stony scales. With huge teeth and wicked claws. Mouse was wrestling with it, pushing it back.

I let out a high whistle, and my dog dropped back. At the same time, my blasting rod whipped out and the creature snarled.

"Fuego!"

The shaft of flame flew out, splashing wildly against the creature.

The thing just snarled some more and started moving forward.

"Oh, wonderful…Mouse!"

Discretion being the better part of valor, I ran like a sissy little girl.

Towards Michael's house of course. I may have been a sissy little girl, but I was a tactically responsible etc...and after all, what was the use of having a friend that's a big, bad Knight of the Cross if not to scare off the random attacking spiritual predators?

Mouse ran on ahead of me, barking the whole way. I smiled...then remembered the old saying about not having to outrun the shark...just the other guy in the water.

"Ah jeez…" I poured it on as I heard the clattering behind me.

So close…I could see the house. Michael was walking out the door, eyes wide. He had the sword with him. Good man. Recognized Mouse's bark for the warning it was.

There was a pressure on my shoulders, and suddenly I couldn't balance. Damn thing had jumped me. I went down hard, which is never fun. Especially considering what I was running on (Asphalt. Ever had road burn?).

I could practically feel its jaws around my neck. It would be over quick, probably before I knew it. Michael was too far away to help. There was no way…

BANG!

I jerked, and so did the thing on top of me.

BANG! BANGBANG!

Three more jerks from the creature, and suddenly the weight vanished. I scrambled away, stumbling to my feet and spinning around. The thing was writhing on the ground, gouts of white fire pouring from several wounds.

I looked over my shoulder to the source of the gunshots…and saw River. Holding Murphy's gun. Her eyes were locked on the creature, and she stepped forward easily, passing me and moving toward it.

"Whoa, kid, back off, that thing's…"

Her hand snapped around like a marionette's, and suddenly, that gun was pointed at me. Somewhere in the back of my head I must have realized there were still bullets in it, because I shut up quick.

She continued to approach the creature, eyes glued to it...gun still pointed at me. When she reached it, the weapon dropped, hanging limply in her hand. She crouched next to the thing, watching it twist and turn.

It snapped up suddenly, like a striking snake. I thought for sure she was dead.

But she'd caught it by the neck, holding it there while it struggled. She was still staring at it, eyes wide, as if trying to see in complete darkness. Her head tilted to the side, and she whispered something.

The creature stopped, and stood still. She let it go, and it sat there.

I blinked.

She continued to stare at it, that expression still in place. I vaguely noticed Michael standing beside me, figured his face looked a lot like mine. Covered in shock.

After another minute or so of this staring, River pulled the gun up and rested the barrel carefully on the thing's forehead. There was another loud bang, and the thing went up in white fire, vanishing a moment later.

She turned to look at me, expression unreadable.

"It was a pawn." She whispered. "Escape the check, sacrifice the pawn, take the knight. But the bishop took it first, unexpected. King is weakened, a hole in his defense." I could feel her eyes burning into me, and I quickly averted my gaze. I didn't want to see the in her head. "The knight must move to protect the queen. Must take the chance of failure and attack the king." She blinked. "Checkmate."

"Hell's bells, kid." I breathed. "You really know how to make things difficult, don't you?"

River just gave an enigmatic smile.

DMT

"Yea, she's fine. Uhhuh. Course, I'll get it back to you. No, I'll tell you about it later…" There was a crackle of static, and I winced. "Yea Murph, I gotta go…I'll check by later. Yea. See you."

I sighed and set down the receiver, leaning back and rubbing my eyes.

"River…Please don't do that."

River looked down, frowning.

She was hanging from a rafter, by her knees. Apparently very comfortable.

"I needed a new perspective."

I gave her a Look.

She rolled her eyes and arched back, unhooking her legs at the same time. She landed in a graceful crouch, standing up and turning on her heel to face me.

"Why is it you've suddenly decided it's perfectly acceptable to do impossible things?"

River tilted her head. "I miss Serenity. Dancing in the hold." She smiled. "Running from Kaylee because I took her apple."

I sighed. "So you're sticking with your 'Space person from the future' story."

River smiled. "Story doesn't change unless it wants to."

"Uh-huh…" I closed my eyes again, yawning. I hadn't really slept in awhile, other than the couple hours I'd grabbed the night before. Time had sort of muddled together at some point.

"Well…" I yawned, "…I still need to get into contact with the White Council…tell them about the new spell slinger in town…"

Blackness closed over me unexpectedly. And I slept for a time.

At some point the real world intruded again. I shifted, grumbling slightly. Though the haze of sleep, I heard talking.

"No. The circle must not exceed the area of the equation."

"Young lady, let me tell you something. While mathematics isn't really my forte', I've been putting together magical arrays since before you were born."

"I am under negative four hundred years old."

"…So the circle has to fit that?"

"The circle must be squared."

"Of course it must." There was a clacking. "You know, I don't think Harry will enjoy waking up to this…"

"…I needed space to work."

More clacking. "All right then…Where were we?"

I drifted again.

When I drifted into consciousness again, it was dark, only a few of my candles lit. I could hear talking again…

"Shouldn't we wait for Harry's help?"

"The magus is not required. The wormhole will be self sustaining, gathering energy from the ambient space."

"Doesn't it require a ridiculous amount of energy?"

"Designed to capture little bits from what can handle it. Range is approximately twenty two thousand miles."

"…That's a lot."

"Physics is pliable."

I blinked several times and pushed myself up.

What I saw just confused me more.

The furniture in the middle of my apartment had been pushed against the walls, the carpets pulled up to reveal the stone floor.

And the floor was covered with chalk lines.

What looked to be hundreds of complicated mathematical equations, several strange pictograms, and in the center of it all…a circle.

River stood in the circle, examining what was apparently her work.

"Hello." She said simply, not even bothering to look up.

"Heh…hey boss…" Bob's eyes flickered slightly from his spot on the floor. "Ms. Tam sorta…requested my assistance."

My eyes were wide as I looked around, standing up. "What are you doing! What is this!"

River looked up, expression bland. "Took what I needed. Found it in your mind, the mind of Rath'ghealt. Applied it to what I knew, and formed it into a cohesive whole." She nudged the skull by her side. "Your familiar helped."

"Bob?"

"Well, you see, Harry…it should actually work."

I growled. "And just what is 'It'?"

Bob clacked his teeth nervously. "Seems to rip a tiny hole in time and space."

I gave him an incredulous look. "Oh, is that all?" I shook my head. "Isn't that, oh I dunno…a bad thing? Not to mention completely disregarding the laws..."

"She'll be able to go back to Serenity. The rip will be harmless and undetectable."

Without waiting for an answer, she stepped out of the circle, picked up Bob, and drew a single line between a set of numbers.

Lighting seemed to arc up from the central array, stopping at a point three feet above what I could only assume was the exact center. Another flash of energy hit the same spot, and the chalk drawings started to glow. One more flash, and a small tear began to open up in the air.

The room shook as several more flashed tore it wider, until the rip was a good three feet long. It sat there, light distorting around it, bits of dust swirling around before sliding inside.

It looked like fractured glass, except for the edges. They were softer, curved, giving it the look of something almost alive.

It was disturbing.

And River stepped towards it.

"Don't worry, Mr. Dresden. I'll be fine."

I took a step forward, reaching out. "River, wait…"

She stepped into the tear and seemed to implode, vanishing.

The rip started to seal around the edges, the dust in the air getting pulled toward it like a black hole.

I took several steps forward, snarling as I picked up Bob.

"Wait, Harry…Harry, you can't seriously be considering…"

"Dammit Bob, just shut up."

I squinted at the thing before stepping forward into it.

I blacked out.