Tristan started awake, realizing that he had nodded off as he had slept on the couch. Groaning, he stretched, sitting up. He was just getting used to the job description of being a parent, which was much more work than he had initially thought it would be. It was a rewarding job, nonetheless, even though it tired him out immensely. Remembering that Julie had some visitors over he decided he would call before heading over there. While he had been with her for a while and she had found out that he was of magical blood and had come to accept it, there were a lot of things he still hadn't told her. His real name, his previous occupation, what had really happened to his eye- all things that he was keeping secret and weighing down on him day by day. She also knew of only one of his children, and she didn't know that he had had another child with her first cousin. Hoping to forever stay under the guise of Ethan Mallard, he felt incredibly guilty for lying to her. His relationship with Morgase had taught him some things he would never give back.
While he was nearing 43 years old he felt that he was falling in love all over again, like an amorous teenager. He was starting to be able to leave Morgase behind and love again. He may have been in many affairs, but he could tell this one was genuine. He knew that things were so wrong- Julie being the second cousin of his daughter, for Merlin's sake- but it was too good of a thing to just cast to the winds. No, he felt something for Julie, and no matter what happened he couldn't deny that.
With a sigh he rubbed at his eyes, blinking as he attempted to get accustomed to the light. At first, it had been difficult to function seeing out of one eye but by now he was pretty used to it. He glanced over to the back door, raising an eyebrow as he noticed that it was open just a bit. Putting two and two together he rose quickly, rushing out the door and into the backyard. He could bet one hundred to one that Erik was over at Julie's playing with her daughter, Eliza, but his worry remained the same. He had almost forgotten how protective he was when he came to his kids- with Estrella he had been less so, although Erik gave him more to worry about. His son was, needless to say, adventurous and prone to accidents. He couldn't bear the thought of anything horrible happening to his son.
Stretching his large arms, well, as much as he could anyways, he swaggered onto the grass, taking note of all those that were outside. He found Erik soon enough, swinging with Eliza. "Erik, come here," he intoned firmly, approaching his son with a look of disappointment striking his features. At six foot ten he towered above the group, his good eye scanning the lot of them. He didn't want to frighten away Julie's visitors although sometime he just couldn't help it, with his large girth and funky eye.
A large knot caught in his throat as he recognized one of the girls behind the swings. He did not recognize the other- but how could he not recognize his own daughter? Hoping feverishly that she would not put two and two together, although who was he kidding? She wasn't dumb- he stood there, trying not to make eye contact. What was she doing here? She was supposed to be tucked away at the Herrogard. He hated his father and he wished almost every day that he had been able to see his kid grow up- but this, this wasn't supposed to happen. Looking to Julie, he hoped that she wouldn't recognize the nervous tension that racked every bone in his body.
