Expecting a Visitor

[Tristan Drage]

Tristan had resolved to sit on the lone sofa situated in the living room as he waited for his visitor. His side of the duplex was pretty barren, having minimal amounts of furniture that he had managed to scrounge for low amounts of money. He was quite glad to have scourgify on his side, as it would have been a real pain to clean his new things manually. While not having many things he was attempting to adjust to this way of life, not having yet found a job. He knew that Julie must consider him an oddity for not having a television, although he never particularly cared for the things. Having heard somewhere that too much tv would turn a kid's brain too much he was still contemplating the matter, wanting to raise Erik as healthy as possible.

His two and a half year old son had finally crashed for a nap, after demanding a quick flight on his tiny toy broomstick. Tristan had been careful to quarter him off from the rest of the house this time, preventing any accidents. Content, he had placed the kid down and a bit relieved to have a few moments of silence. Erik was a bundle of energy, and Morgase had made parenting look incredibly easy. He didn't know how she had been so skilled at keeping him in line.

Now, his eyes were scanning a book that he had picked up in the same store he had picked up the sofa, its pages beaten up on the sides. The text was still readable, however, so he couldn't complain.

He was trying to push Josh's visit out of his mind; the man had remained his best friend through his years at Hogwarts and into most of adulthood, but as of now he did not know how things were going to stand. Tristan didn't know how Josh was going to respond to his ubrupt departure from the group that they were in. He imagined not too incredibly well. Whether or not Josh knew already through Valcan or other sources, Tristan was going to be in for a lot of explaining. What in the world was he going to say? He had to put his foot down. Although it hurt him considerably if it came down to it he would choose his son over any of his best friends. Despite the fact that he did not want to reveal his location to the rest of the Death Eaters he was comfortable with Josh knowing and thus, had let him know the address. If the knowledge of his location would become a problem in the future he would move again, as much as he would hate it. He hadn't even written Estrella about his move and his decision, although it made him feel a lick of guilt. She was better off not knowing.

Waiting soon became laborious. He was becoming tired with attempting to figure out how Josh was going to react; he wouldn't know until it happened. It all boiled down to whether he already knew about any of his actions. It didn't help that the book he was reading was incredibly boring; the plot did not interest him in the slightest. Before he knew it his lids were beginning to droop. His head lolling over onto his shoulder, he had soon dozed off.

 

[Joshua Hanson]

After a bit of research, Josh found a spot to apparate near to where his friend was living. It was a bit away from him, so he called from his cell phone to get a cab from the empty warehouse to the address he was sent by owl. He was still puzzled as to why on Earth this is where Tristan was hiding out, and why he would have picked a muggle neighborhood. This was truly outside of his normal comfort zone. Josh was always the one to blend into the muggle world with ease.

Pulling up in front of the address, he was surprised at the normalcy of the house. Josh paid the driver, and quickly got out, walking up the front walk to the door. He rang the bell and waited a bit impatiently, not sure what to expect inside.

 

[Tristan Drage]

Tristan grunted as he was torn out of slumber. He was immediately fumbling for his wand, his movements uncoordinated and clumsy. What the bloody hell is that noise? It took him a few moments to realize that it was just the doorbell, and that Josh must be here. He had not been in the muggle world for entirely too long and he was still attempting to become comfortable with it. Swinging his trunklike legs off of the couch he moved to the door. While he was not a fat man the floors still creaked under his weight.

He inhaled deeply as he stood in front of the door, momentarily pausing. Tristan wanted to stall this conversation for as long as possible. He still considered Josh to be one of his best friends. While he didn't want to, however, he still had to do it. He could only hope avidly that the man would react well. If not and Josh narked his location to Julian or anyone else, Tristan would have to relocate with Erik, and quickly.

Hoping avidly that his eye didn't look too bad, resolving to himself that it indeed did, he shrugged off his immediate insecurities and opened the door. "Josh," he stated, nodding his head in greeting. His friend of thirty years was standing there, appearing quite confused. Well, that didn't surprise Tristan. While Josh had been comfortable with the muggle world Tristan was still awkward with it, much preferring the security of magical folk. Desperate times drew to desperate measures however. It was quite obvious who had excelled in Muggle Studies.

"Come in," the man inside the house intoned deeply, his throat catching a bit as he waved his friend inside.

 

[Joshua Hanson]

Josh looked at his friend, still looking a bit out of place in the house that he was letting him into. "Hey," he spoke as he walked into the house. He looked around at the sparseness of the living room, noticing that Tristan had really not settled in too much to the place. There were boxes in the corners, and a decent enough looking couch and chair in the living room. He assumed the rest of the house was just as sparse.

Once Tristan had joined him in the living room, he turned and spoke. "So what is all this about? You are the last person that I would expect to see living in the muggle world. What are you running from, my friend?"

 

[Tristan Drage]

Tristan noticed Josh's observance of the place, feeling an embarrassment that should not have settled into him. He followed his long time friend into the living room, attempting to piece together how he was going to divulge what he wanted to say to Josh. His budding interest in the Dark Arts had dragged in the other man as well. If not for the influence of his friend Josh might not be the man he was now. The man could very well hold that against him and have every right to, although he hoped avidly that things would not be too harsh. However, he knew that hope was not a thing to depend on, and in any case, he would rather face the fact of harshness if it resulted in conforming to this new life. He had to make sacrifices for Erik, and indirectly Estrella. He had not made those sacrifices when he was younger, when it mattered the most, and he was taking the blow for it now.

His right eye twitched a bit; it tended to do that every so often, he thought it may have to do with the injury it had suffered. Bringing his hand to it, he sighed wearily. "I can't do this anymore, Josh," he stated deeply, his tone cracked and strained. He felt as if his throat had constricted together- what was he supposed to say? How was he going to word it? "Morgase is dead." His last statement was one of stark finality, although that of course what he was intending to talk about.

 

[Joshua Hanson]

Josh watched his friend as he spoke. He could see the emotions that were threatening to boil over. What happened to make him be like this? "Morgase? Really? What happened?" He moved to sit in the armchair next to the sofa. He settled in, and was ready to find out what was so important.

 

[Tristan Drage]

Tristan cursed his inability to control his emotions more efficiently, as reflected in his friend's concerned tone. He took a seat in the chair adjacent to the sofa and looked back to Josh. Words were not a thing that his lips were willing to comply with at the moment. A hard knot clustered in his throat as he cast his gaze to the carpeting, attempting to formulate what to say without appearing slow. His gaze was troubled, lacking any excess moisture. Tears had been left behind in the other hemisphere. In the moments he was not able to push thoughts of the more depressing elements of pass occurrences he was left with dry eyed despair. He sighed heavily as he finally decided on something, not able to bring himself to sit up straight.

"This happened a few months back, near the end of the summer," he said softly. Indeed, Josh would remember Morgase, she had been a year behind them in Ravenclaw house and had been Sammael's wife at that. "She was staying with her brother, to hide from, us." He looked up, pretty sure that from the statement us Josh would mean the group that they were in. "And she had Erik with her. Somehow, Sam found out where she was staying."

He put his head in his hand for a moment, unnerved by the silence that resulted afterwards. He knew that Josh would want him to get to the real point. "Sam strolled through the door and killed her with the Curse, and tried to do the same to Erik. Thankfully Morgase's brother managed to arrive at the opportune time. He finished off Sam and gave Erik back to me." His voice was grave- while Erik was his son Sammael had been his little brother in a sense, and having him gone was yet indeed another pang to add to the collective hurt of the situation. Not to mention, Sam's death would be another loss for the Death Eaters. He hoped that Montague could manage to keep out of their reach.

He hated to be so blunt with his words, and felt that he was not doing the hugeness of the situation at hand any justice. However, he did not want to prattle on forever and drag Josh to the point, rather than get him to it. Once Tristan had at least a bit more of the load off his chest he knew that he would at least feel a bit better. "Far was not happy with me when I returned home. He perceived Sam's death to be my fault." He brought a finger to his milky eye as he mentioned his father, feeling that it did not need too much explanation. "I have left the Herrogard, and I hope for good."

His Adam's apple bobbed as he contemplated divulging what he really had been wanting to divulge, finally putting it past his lips. "I owe my kids something. That is why I have decided to leave." His forearm was exposed, revealing the Dark Mark. He held it up to show Josh. "To leave this."

 

[Joshua Hanson]

Josh leaned back in his chair, taking in all that he was told. "Wow. I feel so out of touch. I had not heard of any of this. I am so sorry for your losses. I know you were not overly close to Sam, but he was always the annoying little brother. Damn. And Morgase. How is Erik through all of this? And you? Are you doing okay?" He decided to ignore the fact that his friend decided to make a drastic change for the moment. He needed to be a friend first. Then he would be able to deal with the other issue once he was able to focus. The people who had died were not close to him, but were a part of his life and he needed to take a moment to adjust to the reality of them not being there any longer.

 

[Tristan Drage]

Tristan nodded his head as Josh appeared taken aback by the deaths. "I know- it was rather sudden. I didn't have time to say goodbye to either of them." He was angry at Sammael, yes. However, he could not help feeling sadness for him at the same time. No matter what deeds he had done he was still considered his little brother. The Avada Kedavra curse was quick, yes- almost too quick. He was just glad that neither had died too painfully.

Sighing a bit, he stated, "Erik is not as lively as he used to be. But then again, he is coming out of the terrible twos." He gave Josh a weak smile as he added, "I don't think he really understands that she is gone." His throat knotting up, he was incredibly amazed that Josh had not said anything about his departure. "Me? Okay?" He shook his head. "I don't know. But I am managing, if you could call it that." He could not blame Josh, he probably sounded like his mind was not all in one place after moving into an entirely different hemisphere and breaking away from a group that you just didn't break away from.

 

[Joshua Hanson]

"Managing is a good word for it. I am sorry man. If I can do anything, you know how to get a hold of me." Josh looked over to the window to the back yard. "This is a rather nice place. I guess it is an adjustment to muggle life for you." He was not sure how to address the other news his friend had shared. "So, you are leaving?" he asked, twisting his arm up to where his mark was. "Wow. How are you going to manage that? Does anyone know you are here?" He sat forward, concerned now for their safety.

 

[Tristan Drage]

Tristan shook his head. "I am glad that I can keep that in mind, although I don't think much else can be done." He gave Josh a weak smile. "An adjustment indeed. I don't even know how to use a bloody fellytone." He was quite positive that he was saying the name of the muggle contraption right, quite flabbergasted that one could carry a conversation with another miles, even countries away. "Erik is adjusting too, although much better than me. He even has a neighbor to play with." He was not looking forward to the day when Erik would express any magical ability; that was the one risk he found with the muggle world. He couldn't let anybody know what he really was.

His Adam's apple knotted tightly in his throat, he nodded at his long time friend, pleased that he was reacting relatively well to the news. His one blue eye focused on Josh, as he replied softly, "Yes, I am leaving. I think if I owe her anything-" he was referencing Morgase of course, "It's to raise Erik without any affiliation at all." He blinked a bit as Josh asked him how he was going to manage the situation. "Frankly- I am not sure yet. And no one knows where I am- except yourself of course. I can't even tell my kid." He was a bit saddened to have to push his daughter out of his life but he was quite assured that it was for the greater good. "I don't want to run into anyone else. That's why I've moved here. Middle of nowhere, nice town- and I guess losing my eye was partially a good thing." He smirked. He was glad to be partially camoflauged by his new impediment, the uglyness of it all bringing with it some security.

 

[Joshua Hanson]

Josh couldn't help himself and began to chuckle a bit when Tristan spoke of the telephone. "Man, you are damn lucky that I am your friend. You need help. I remember how your semester in Muggle Studies went. Wasn't that your only Dreadful grade?" He looked at Tristan, and spoke genuinely. "I wonder how different our lives would be if we hadn't chosen this path. I may have raised my son from birth, you might have Estrella around now. I won't leave, I do enjoy it as much as you used to, but I am willing to help you adjust to the muggle world if you wish. Besides, this playmate of Erik's doesn't happen to have a hot mom that I may be interested in now does he?" Josh winked, and then looked at Tristan and stood up. "Let's get you started. You need help in more ways than one." Punching his friend in the shoulder, he tried to spin it to be a lighter feeling in the room. "First of all, it is telephone, not fellytone. And we need to get you one of them. Quickly. Otherwise you will not be able to get a job, since I am sure that Valcan is not going to fund this living situation."

 

[Tristan Drage]

Tristan flushed a bit, embarrassed but altogether relieved that Josh was taking this situation so lightly. "Damn, I never expected you to react so well. I thought you were going to be angry with me." And he had fully expected it too- he had dragged Josh down with him on the path that they spoke of. Their lives would be so much different if he hadn't been an idiot as a teenager.

He chuckled. Tristan was quite glad that he conversation had lightened up so much. He did not want to focus on Morgase anymore than he needed to. "Muggle studies? Oh yeah. If I hadn't needed it to be an Auror I so would have chucked that class from the beginning." Professor Burbage had been a good teacher but the subject hadn't clicked with him in the slightest. "Dreadful? I was lucky to scrape my exams with an A- and I think overall I got a P in that class. May have even been Troll, I can't remember." He nodded, agreeing with Josh fully. "Yes- these days I wish I hadn't gotten into it at all. But the fact is that I did, and I couldn't be as involved in my kid's life as I wanted to. Even now, I can't tell her where I am." A bit of regret filled in his eyes for a moment but it soon dissipated as he looked back to his friend, cracking a small grin. "How is Blake doing, anyway?" He had never had the chance to meet Josh's son.

"Tel-luh-fone, okay. Not fellytone," he murmured to himself, quite fortunate to have Josh on his side. "Fund my living situation? I am sure that he has erased me out of any wills already." He smirked at this, adding, "And yes, Erik's playmate does have a mom. And she is quite attractive, I may say."

 

[Joshua Hanson]

Josh looked at Tristan. "Well, to be honest, I am angry with you. But being angry doesn't change the past, so what is done is done. I made my choices and I am the only one responsible for my life." He walked over to the window, looking out into the back yard. "Blake is doing well now. He still has not spoken with Cloe and last I heard, he and Lily were still together." He turned to look at his friend again. "You want to hear a good one? Lily is a Potter. I found out over the summer her last name is Potter. From what I have gathered, she is not direct relation to the putz we dealt with, but is some sort of relation." He shook his head, "Poor girl, being related that family. Almost as bad as being a Death Eater's kid." He smirked at Tristan, hoping to get a smile out of his best friend.

 

[Tristan Drage]

Tristan nodded, knowing that if he had been in Josh's boots he would probably have been less forgiving. He had better start counting his blessings, although he had never really believed in that sort of thing. He would have been happy just for the man not to turn him in. He was glad that when the rest of the world seemed to fail him he could still count on his best friend, the one he had been able to trust nearing 30 years ago, back to when they first met on the train. "It is good that he is doing well," Tristan intoned, unable to surpress cracking a small grin at his friend, "A Potter? I thought they were all killed off, besides that fathead's family." He snorted. "Did you know they have books in the muggle world about that kid? Biggest load of dungbombs I've ever heard of."

He raised an eyebrow, laughing out loud at his friend. "Nah, they couldn't get that bad!" he joked back. He was quite glad the situation had lightened up- and he could always use a bit of good irony, as long as it wasn't hurting him.

 

[Joshua Hanson]

Josh stared at Tristan. "There are books on the idiot? Are you kidding me? Damn." He looked around the place. "You know, this is a pretty decent place. You need to get some stuff up in here, but it is a good start. Now, do you have a car yet?" He was not sure where the entrance to the garage was, and if there was anything out in there. "And what do you know about this hot mommy in the neighborhood? She single?" Josh made a lewd face at Tristan, his thoughts played out on his face in a way that Tristan would understand.

 

[Tristan Drage]

Tristan frowned. "I'm afraid so. It makes me want to puke- as if the fathead couldn't have any more glory. From what I know he was some kind of cult superhero in the muggle world." He shrugged. "I wonder if anyone else we know well is mentioned in there?" He laughed. "A car? No." He had driven one illegally, well, it was a van, when he was back in Britain for a short period of time. "I am supposing that I will have to get one of those too, huh? I almost should pull out a list."

He gave Josh a knowing smirk. "Well- she's single, widowed I believe. Has a four year old daughter, and I would put her in her late thirties, early forties. Like us old bachelors." Laughing, he asked, "Can't get much out of the women in California can you?" He of course was just messing with his friend. He personally really had no aspirations to go after any women, especially not now.

 

[Joshua Hanson]

Josh laughed at his friend. "Yeah, I think we will need to get you a list going of what you need to pass as a muggle. Otherwise, you will fall flat on your face quickly and have to move again." He moved to find a piece of paper on the counter. "Got anything to write with and write on? Paper? Parchment? Anything?"

As Tristan teased him about the women in California, Josh just rolled his eyes. "You wish you could have the life I do out there. But she sounds more like your type than mine with the kid and all. Might just be what you need to heal, you know?" He winked, insinuating much more than healing to his friend

 

[Tristan Drage]

Tristan nodded at Josh, feeling for the first time in a long time, ecstatic. Here, Josh was doing the exact opposite of what he had expected him to. He felt that he owed him big time, quite fortunate that he had such a good friend. With a flourish of his wand, he opened a box that was stacked against the wall, levitating a roll of parchment out of it. He frowned as he realized that he did not have a quill, moving over and fumbling in the box. Figuring that a pen would work, he tossed it to Josh, fully expecting him to catch it and placing the hovering parchment on the seat next to him. "There you go," he intoned deeply. "You know, I really appreciate this."

Feeling quite childish he protruded his tongue out at Josh, knowing that he couldn't agree more. But the fact was, Tristan had a kid now, and he responsibilities. "Heal?" he stated, laughing, knowing exactly what Josh was insinuating. "I don't know if I'd move that fast."

 

[Joshua Hanson]

Josh caught the pen, then took a piece of parchment that was landed on the nearest seat. Sitting back down, he started to make a list. "Okay. You need a phone, a car, a job, and stuff in the house to start with. And we are going to need to teach you to cook the basics. You want to be able to keep Erik from starving there buddy." Josh smirked at his friend, knowing that he was clueless on making anything other than babies and trouble. "Now, do you have ID and a Social Security card already or do you need to get the hook up on that?" Josh asked curiously. He was not sure where they needed to start to get Tristan set for muggle life. "Oh, and I think it might be good for you to move a bit faster, you know? Get back in the saddle."

 

[Tristan Drage]

Tristan frowned a bit as Josh rattled off a list of things- indeed, he would surely be taking a crash course in muggle life. He'd think he'd know more considering that his daughter was a half blood. "Phone, car, job," he muttered under his breath, attempting to ingrain these things in his mind. "ID? Social Security Card?" he asked in utter confusion, having not the nearest idea what these two things were. "Come again?"

He'd been feeding Erik, but probably not with the best things- prepackaged dinners just did not seem the most nutritional to him. Not to mention he was having issues counting out muggle money. Pulling out a 50 dollar bill and holding it up for Josh to see, he pointed at the head of Theodore Roosevelt. "Who is that? And why is he on this piece of paper?" Tristan was absolutely clueless about pretty much all muggle history, let alone American history.

"Faster- yes," he mumbled, hoping that he would be able to keep up with all of this.

 

[Joshua Hanson]

Josh chuckled out loud. "Ok. Let's start at the beginning. A social security card is something you will need for a job and any form of identification. You need a birth certificate too. I have a guy that can get you hooked up. No worries. Gonna make a few calls right quick, and we will get you under way." He thought for a second, getting out his cell phone, and then realized his friend may be using his real name. "So what are you calling yourself these days?"

 

[Tristan Drage]

Tristan gave Josh a mischevious smirk, quite glad that his friend had so many connections. "Have American hookups?" he laughed. "All of this stuff is above my head." He supposed that he would be taking a crash course in the muggle society, more specifically American society. "What am I calling myself?" He grinned. "Ethan Mallard. I still am a bit dazed when Julie- that's the neighbor lady- calls me that." A name was one of the things he was still having a hard time adjusting to- and it didn't help that his cheeky son would spout out 'Trissy poo' from time to time, courtesy of the friend that was helping him out now.

His one blue eye narrowed at the cell phone, wondering how it worked. A few pushes of a button and he could talk to someone miles away? The sheer idea dazed him. He had a feeling that he would never be able to keep up with muggle technology.

 

[Joshua Hanson]

"Ethan Mallard? What are you a duck?" Josh said in a joking manner. "And you never told me you were on a first name basis with the neighbor already. You are much further along than I thought you were with the hot mommy. Hang on." Josh put his hand up, and then spoke quietly into the phone.

A few short minutes later, he shut his phone. "I will be apparating out of here once I get a call back. I have made a few contacts with other Death Eaters in the region. We have a pretty good system worked out for procuring documents that are needed. Never thought to ask, does Erik need them or are you still using Erik Drage for him?" Josh was making notes on the parchment while he was talking, getting ready to head out quickly and retrieve the papers needed for Tristan to start over.

 

[Tristan Drage]

"Quack," Tristan stated sarcastally, rolling his eyes at Josh good naturedly. He watched as his friend operated the fellytone- no, telephone - and he talked into it. The sheer idea of it still amazed him. While it had been slow going it seemed that the muggles had finally figured out ways to compensate not having magic, in some aspects being more advanced than the magical population, which was rather small in proportion to the muggle one. He raised an eyebrow as Josh shut his phone. "There are other Death Eaters in the region? What kind of numbers are there over here?"

He frowned a bit. "I suppose that registering him as Erik Mallard wouldn't hurt- I don't even know how long I'll be staying here with him." He hoped at least until Erik was a bit older. "I'm still trying to decide where I should send him to school." He didn't like to think about it, as that was years off, and he would be pushing fifty by then.