Not Alone (Erik)

[natalia]

Nat groaned as her parents bubbled in Italian-English in the front seats of the car, speaking of nothing but their excitement to surprise their precious son. The entire thing left a bitter taste in Nat's mouth, and an angry grimace creasing her face. Suddenly, the car halted as her father barely bothered to turn around.

"Dai, we don't have all day!" He said in irritation. Nat gritted her teeth hoisting her backpack of books and her brother's old wand up, before quickly leaving the car. The tires practically squealed as they made way for the train station.

She sighed, glancing around the neighborhood, where little children played and laughed, adults conversed. There was nothing magical about this place. She had wasted her trip to London to come set foot among people who were merely mirror images of her parents.

"Oh, your brother spoke of this man. He must be wonderful," Nat mimicked bitterly before stepping up to the flat. She knocked, before suddenly her stomach knotted.

Her parents, completely aware of her anxiety issues, had abandoned her upon a stranger's door step. Nat felt her knees begin to shake, in no condition to greet someone who would pass a judgment within seven seconds....

She began to step back, before the door opened.

[erikoliver]

Erik had been sleeping on his couch in front of the television, lounging in a pair of red cotton pajama pants and a black tshirt. At the knocking, he jolted away, leg swinging out and knocking over his guitar. His hand shot out, catching it by it's neck, wide awake for a split second when it came to saving his beloved acoustic. Standing gently, the tired feelings back again. Rubbing his eyes, he shuffled to the door as fast as he could. Reaching out, he opened the door with one hand, the other going up to run a hand through his hair. His eyes grew wide as a small girl stood in his doorway. "Uhm..." he started, straightening up, not sure what she was doing here all by herself. She couldn't have been more than ten or eleven years old. He opened his mouth to say something, but couldn't come with anything.

"Are... Are you alone? Where are your parents, do you need to call them or something?" Erik asked curiously, concern filling his tone. Erik ushered the girl inside quickly, closing the door. "I'm sorry for the mess," he said sheepishly, hand awkwardly rubbing the back of his neck. The two-bedroom flat was a mess, with sheet music scattered on the floor, and his various instruments lying about in odd places. He pointed towards the kitchen. "The telephone's in there, and... Uhm... Do you need anything to, uh, eat? Or drink?" he asked curiously. His eyes found his wand on the counter and he quickly snatched it up, hiding it in his waistband.

[natalia]

Nat gaped in both awe and horror at the disheveled man, rivaled only in appearance by the mess of the flat. Her throat closed as he pulled her in as she couldn't find words, already feeling hyperventilation push in.

"...the phone's in there..." She had barely been paying attention as the realization sunk in. Her parents had told him nothing. Nor had Giovanni. She grimaced, hugging her backpack with magic books protectively to her chest. She suddenly realized this man must have been nothing more than a mortal, as her parents were.

"My parents said I needed a babysitter...Giovanni sent me here," she could barely hear herself. Deep down, she was impressed with the ability to choke out the words as she felt her arms tighten around the bag, the man jumpy and hiding things which Nat presumed were not acceptable for her young eyes.

"Should I...leave?" She asked quietly, stepping back, sheet music crunching beneath her feet as she walked.

[erikoliver]

Erik looked down at the girl in shock, his mouth agape slightly. "Giovanni?" he asked curiously, eyebrows raised. He couldn't remember ever meeting or knowing anyone named Giovanni, and that was a name he thought he would have remembered. It was fairly unique. Erik bit his lip slightly, debating on what to do. At her mention of leaving, he shook his head. "Absolutely not. You can stay here, I'll watch you, since you say your parents will be back at somepoint. I don't remember any Giovanni, but I don't want you going wandering about the city. Not smart," he replied. "Go ahead and set your stuff down on the couch."

Erik excused himself politely, heading towards his room. He got halfway around the corner before he stepped backwards, smiling sheepishly back at the young girl. "By the way, my name's Erik." He then turned and headed into his room, pulling his shirt up and off as he walked. He shook out his hair in the mirror propped up on his dresser, running a hand through it in an attempt to tame it. Rummaging through his drawers, he found a bright blue v-neck tshirt and threw it onto the bed. He grabbed a pair of faded skinny jeans off of the floor, laying them on the bed. He stripped out of his pajama pants quickly, slipping the jeans on.

Erik buttoned up the jeans, reaching for the shirt. Slipping it over his head, he paused abruptly. He quickly finished, a scary thought crossing his mind. He couldn't remember if he took his wand out of his waistband before he took off his pajama pants. Getting down on his hands and knees, he frantically rummaged through the pile of clothes on his floor. "Shit, shit, shit..." he hissed, his motions becoming more frantic. He didn't want the girl to find it if it had indeed fallen out of his waistband. Erik wasn't good at lying, especially about magic, and wouldn't be able to come up with a convincing enough lie if she asked.

[natalia]

Nat listened to him rumble on, hugging her pack closer and closer as it became clear her parents had somehow misunderstood their precious son. Oh, is this rich, Nat felt a sick sense of satisfaction. The ever wonderful Giovanni had messed up. She tuned back into his worried ramble of safety and whatnot, what most adults always spoke of when they saw a young child. However, most children weren't gifted with magical abilities, as Nat was slowly discovering.

When he requested she leave her stuff, she instantly snapped back, holding her pack in an iron grip. He vanished as something fell from his large pajama pants. Nat waited until the door closed, before she quickly scrambled through the sheet music, curiosity ever growing. Setting her pack down, she barely glanced at the interesting melody, before tossing it aside and continuing her search.

Her hand came across what she least expected, the feel familiar to her. Her throat closed tight as she pulled a long, slim wand from the sheets, heart beating loudly. She glanced up at where Erik had vanished, before taking the wand. How had this mortal gotten it?

She shook her head, turning the wand in her hands, contemplating what to do. It fit the feel of her hand so much more than that old splintered wood her brother had given her...

[erikoliver]

Erik determined that it wasn't in the room, which meant it had fallen out of his waistband either in the living room or in the hallway. With his luck, it would have probably already been found by the girl. His heart was pounding as his mind worked to try and come up with a convincing lie. Erik opened the bedroom door and peered out, looking down the hallway. As he had suspected, it was in the living room. Swallowing hard, he slipped out of his bedroom and hurried down the hallway. Exhaling deeply, he ran his hand through his hair as he exited into the living room.

What his eyes set on made his heart stop. The girl was holding the wand in her hands, running her fingers down the length down the smooth wood, a look of pure terror on her face. Erik turned deathly pale and his hands dropped to his sides. "I can explain..." he started, voice wavering. He was normally a brave soul, one who knew what to do, but when it came to potentially revealing magic to a Muggle. This was risky, dangerous stuff. His lips parted in an "O" as his mind tried to come up with a lie. "Uhm... Uh..." he stammered awkwardly, turning a deep shade of red.

[natalia]

Nat looked up to see Erik, holding the wand tighter as she stood. This man was no longer just a foreign mortal. He had been a thief. How could a mortal have come across the wand? How could he have overpowered the owner?

This must have gone against every law she had read about. Standing she stepped back. He had paled considerably, his mouth threatening to drag along the floor. She watched him, unsure of how to react.

"Do you even know what this is?" She asked, suddenly realizing that when this man had overpowered a wizard, a bookworm with no real training stood no chance. She grasped the wand tighter in her fingers, before her eyes fell on the backpack which lay by his feet.

[erikoliver]

The girl suddenly looked incredibly fierce and defensive, which was confusing. As she called him out, he cocked his head slightly to one side. Her eyes nervously darted to her own bag, and his eyebrows raised. "Yes, I know what it is," he replied slowly, trying to remain calm and refrain from leaping the short distance and snatching his wand out of the small girl's hands. "It's mine, give it back," he continued, trying to keep a level-head, but the panic in his voice was completely undeniable. "Please," he added forcefully, holding out his own hand. Erik took a small step forward, closer to the girl and closer to the bag at his feet.

[natalia]

Nat bit her lip, stepping so her back was against the wall. He was getting upset, as was she. She knew there was no chance if he chose to take this to the next level. Her eyes darted frantically between him and her bag, him and her bag.

Her heart sank as she realized it was give him this wand, or give him her wand. She glanced once again upon her bag. Her books. Her precious books. It took hours of cleaning and gardening to earn those books. She sighed in resignation.

"No," the blatant answer shocked herself as she inched towards the door, watching him, and watching her bag pitifully.

[erikoliver]

Erik was frantic now. Why was this Muggle girl being so damn persistant?! "Please," he repeated, his voice raising ever so slightly. He stepped forward, his foot hitting her bag. It was oddly heavy, for being such a small bag for such a small girl. When he noticed her inching towards the door, he lost it, lunging forward desperately. His toe caught on the strap of her bag, and he fell to the ground with a thud, yelling in pain. Turning, he hurriedly tried to untangle his foot, but noticed the books that had fallen out of the bag, one being increasingly familiar. "Hogwarts, A History, he whispered. Putting two and two together, he rummaged through her bag, hand closing on a wand. He pulled it out and pointed it at her. It was unfamiliar, but he'd make it work. "Stop!" Erik shouted. "I'm a wizard, I'll prove it," he said quietly.

[natalia]

Nat felt her eyes threaten to pop from her skull as the wand was drawn on her. She quickly tried to think of every spell she had read about. However, actually applying the mental and logical concept to reality was quite...different. Especially in a moment like this.

"A wizard wouldn't be so foolish as to let his wand drop as he did," Nat reasoned, more for her own sake than his. She swallowed, matching his stance, wielding the wand. "Nor would he blatantly announce it to a mortal, nor would he turn a wand on a little girl!" Nat knew there was no threat in a little girl, yet to have entered school, holding a wand foreign to her. She suddenly flushed red, feeling very stupid.

[erikoliver]

Erik couldn't help but roll his eyes, slightly annoyed by the girl's tone. However, fire grew in his eyes and a small smile played about his lips. "The only reason I dropped it was because my waistband wasn't tight enough. Trying to hide such things when startled isn't exactly an easy thing to do. I'm pulling a wand on a witch, I'm no idiot, and a young witch at that. And I'm not going to curse or jinx you, I'm not cruel. I'm not going to harm someone like me, or harm anyone for that matter. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'll be taking my wand back." And, with that, he raised the old wand in his hand. "Expelliarmus," he said clearly, and his wand flew out of the girl's hand and back into his.

Slipping his wand into his back pocket, Erik stepped forward and held the girl's wand out to her. "Now, I'm sorry it had to come to this. I thought you were a Muggle, and I couldn't have you finding out about magic if you were. Since you're not, we're in the clear," he replied. His cocky, charming smile lit up his face, and he smirked down at the girl. "I like your spunk, kid. Keep that attitude up and you'll breeze through Hogwarts happy, healthy, and safe."

[natalia]

Nat had no idea what had come over herself. She stared in awe at her hand which tinged slightly from the foreign spell. Despite the embarrassment, she felt complete amazement and slight joy at seeing it action. As if all of her hopes had been confirmed.

Suddenly, she was herself again, as she realized, she might never reach that level. With her luck, she will not have inherited her brother's beautiful talent. She slid her wand into her pocket.

"I doubt I'll make it anywhere," she murmured to herself. She bent down, stuffing her books into her bags. She glanced up for a moment.

"Sorry," was the only word she could find to say. "I'm Nat."

[erikoliver]

Erik frowned, standing back slightly to give her room. "Now, now, don't say that. You knew enough to handle the situation just now beautifully. You were brave enough to stand up to a man twice your size and three times your strength. You'll go far, trust me," he replied softly, offering her a kind smile. He paced over to his coffee table, placing his wand on it, not needing it in his back pocket at the moment. Striding forward, his hands trailed along the accordian sitting atop his piano, smiling gently to himself.

When he heard Nat introduce herself, something she said earlier clicked in his head. "Giovanni," he whispered to himself, thinking carefully. He spun around and grinned at Nat. "I do know your brother. Not sure why he'd ever mention me though, we hate each other. Was always bashing on some kid named Nat... which was you," he said, snapping and grinning, piecing everything together. "That guy was a royal asshole... pardon the language," he added, flushing slightly. He wasn't used to dealing with kids, and his mouth was fairly foul.

[natalia]

Nat gazed at the multiple instruments filling the room with awe. What creature could play so many? Of course, music had never been her forte, but the books she had read on music made the theories behind it seem far too complicated for her young mind.

Her head spun around to face him as he spoke kindly. Encouragingly. These were things she rarely heard from the mouth of an adult. She flushed a deeper red, incapable of finding words that applied to the situation.

A laugh burst past her lips in a manner not quite like her own as the perfect description of her brother left Erik's mouth. She smiled.

"It's fine. With a brother like him, I hear it all the time, in two languages," she rolled her eyes. "This explains why he chose to dump me here, despite the fact I'm far too old for a babysitter," she added quickly, sitting on the sofa. The entire concept of babysitting only agitated her more, as her parents doubted how adult she really was. No, because Giovanni insisted that she was too young.

"How many instruments do you play?" She asked suddenly, ever intrigued. This man must have intelligence beyond her own to master such an art. Even the very basic concept of a music scale was developed from advanced mathematical reasoning...she blinked, realizing she was allowing herself to slip into one of those states of mind, where the world seemed to vanish and all that existed were her thoughts.