Today though, I made my own wards of protection, and they weren't at all how I always imagined them. I ritually splashed a third of a liter of ammonia on the part of the roof nearest that where the raccoons climb over. I sprinkled a dusting of blood-red cayenne pepper powder over my flower beds and on the most vulnerable portions of the railing. And then I left the equipment just inside the door to the deck so that I can renew my wards again in the near future, when they've worn thin.
In a different way, C. maintains wards around our property too. He maintains the firewall which keeps our machines and our data secure from outside influence, a process which involves ongoing maintenance and the rare bit of tweaking. His ward doesn't need to be renewed, but it does require maintenance.
There were no sparkles or pentagrams, but my home is now a safer place.
