The Return of HRG

[familyman-hrg.livejournal.com]

Shortly after Thanksgiving, Noah had quietly left the Hogwarts grounds in order to do some traveling. He'd let Sandra and Claire know that he would be out, and left Claude a note. It wasn't that he was obsessed with the Company exactly--he just wanted to put out some feelers on where things stood since New York, and he didn't want to risk anyone else if he didn't have to. He was sure they'd understand.

And so, two months and two continents later, he arrived back at Hogwarts, in need of a hot shower and decent food.


Sandra,

If you see this before you see me, I'm back.


Claire-bear,

I'm back. I'll give you your real Christmas present when I see you, but I was hoping you'd like this as well.


Claude,

You, me, a twelve-pack of beer, and the Hogwarts roof at eleven tonight. Are you in or out?

Noah
P.S.- Merry belated Christmas.

Comments

[ms-miracle-grow.livejournal.com]

Dad,

Glad you made it back safe! Oh, man, I can't wait to see you. I've learned how to turn things colors with freaking magic (and I almost never set stuff on fire anymore). And Uncle Claude taught me how to punch!

(And I take it we're not talking about the real reason you were gone, right? Even though you know I'm totally ready to, like, know stuff like that?)

And I love the bear. Thanks.

I'll talk to you later? Father-daughter time?

Love you,

Claire

[invisibleclaude.livejournal.com]

Yeah, like he was going to bother writing back. Where was the fun in that? Claude just showed up (maybe half an hour early; Noah'd been gone a long time and he'd been worried), new hat clamped firmly on his head, sprawled out on the corner of the roof and staring up at the stars.

He'd started his own bottle of beer while he waited. Not at all fretting over what kind of stupid trouble Noah'd gotten himself into, wandering about like a great idiot all by himself. It was like nothing Claude'd ever taught him had stuck in that enormous head of his. You had a partner for a reason. And that reason was when you ran off and did idiotic things there was someone to pull your ass out of the sodding fire.

But hey. He was Noah freaking Bennet, wasn't he? Bit above and beyond that, too good for the mortal masses.

Sodding prat.

Tossing his beer cap off into the darkness, Claude took another long swallow and squinted at the moon. Cold tonight. Full moon. And he was on top of a bleeding magic castle waiting for Noah.

Fucking perfect.

[familyman-hrg.livejournal.com]

((I'd have tagged to Claire first, but just wanted to see if it was okay if he knocked on her door and talked to her instead of sending a note back first. Also I'm trying to figure out what he would have gotten her for Christmas >> Also apologies for any misspellings or weird turns of phrase--I drank too much wine with dinner.))

Noah was there at ten to eleven, fully expecting Claude to be there ten minutes late and chiding him for being early. It was an amusing (and not unpleasant) surprise to see Claude there first.

"I didn't expect to see you here just yet." He plopped down, warm in his jacket, and held out the twelve pack of Shiner Bock. (http://www.shiner.com/beers/beers-bock.html) "I see you brought your own, but there's more here if you want it." Noah had grown accustomed to Shiner Bock during his years in Texas. It wasn't bad as the local stuff went, anyway.