Upon arrival she heard Mason moaning in pain. The children were starting to wake, she carried them directly to the room designed for them and put them on the bed. ”William you keep Jane in here.” Without waiting for them to respond she left the room, locking it behind her. ”Colloportus.”

She darted through the house, checking each room as she went past. ”Mason, Mason…Leo?!” The woman was panicked, but tried to remain calm. She found the man she loved on the floor. Cora said not a word but went right to work. She opened her wristlet and retrieved a vial; she allowed the contents to drip over the splinched areas. ”Leo, its ok. I can make this better.” ….hopefully.

Cora saw the splinch wasn’t his only problem. She brandished her wand and at each wound she repeated, ”Episkey”. It was the only spell she knew for healing. The splinch seemed to be doing better, ”Leo, you’re alive!?” She leaned over him and brushed his hair from his forehead.

Mason could hear Medea's frantic voice calling his name throughout the house, but he couldn't gather enough energy to call out to her. Luckily, she found him just in time. He was rather amazed how quickly she was able to calm herself and get to work on his wounds. When she dropped a liquid on his splinch, Mason winced and made a painful noise. It stung, but he knew it would heal him. He was just impatient.

He believed her, too. When she said she could make this better, he knew she could. Because she was amazing, and incredibly smart. His life was practically in her hands and he was okay with that. Mason could feel things healing slightly with the charm, but he also knew those would take a couple days to heal completely.

Looking up, he could see Medea's face over his and felt her brush his hair away from his head. He smiled as much as his body would let him. Yes, he was alive. But barely. He nodded slowly, but he was still delusional from the lack of water and intense heat. "Please." He said in a coarse whisper. "Water."

His injuries were bad. What in Merlin's pants had happen to him?! More important maybe was where had he been? Obviously it was not a pleasant place. She did all she could for his injuries for now; as she looked into his eyes she waited for him to say her name. Instead he asked for water, Medea was somehow miffed at the fact that he didn't say hi to her. Medea always had been selfish; she wanted him to acknowledge her.

Whatever.

"Of course." The woman, instead of using magic, got up and manually got him a glass of water. Returning to his side moment later she put her hand behind his head and lifted it slightly as she placed the cup to his lips. "Here you go."

When Medea returned with a glass of water, Mason eagerly drank it up. It felt so good on his dry tongue and throat. He probably shouldn't have drunk so much so fast, but at this point, he didn't really care. Mason closed his eyes and sighed, resting against Medea. "I'm so sorry." He whispered, attempting to sit up.

When he managed to sit up all the way, and looked into Medea's eyes. He suddenly wrapped his arms around her and hugged her as tightly as his strength would let him, which wasn't as much as he would have liked. He buried his face in her hair and squeezed his eyes shut. "I love you, Medea. I am so sorry. I missed you." He repeated those words, even though he was still delusional. He had so much to explain about where he had been, although he didn't even know.

He was just, ugh... His head was spinning.

”Slow down Mason.” If he didn’t take the water slower he’d surely choke. ’I’m sorry.’ Of course, he should be. Leaving her to care for two children without as much as a note. Just disappeared one day. It was obviously something bad happen, but who’s to say he didn’t bring it on himself? She was judging him and his actions without knowing the whole story, Medea was hurt and felt abandon.

”No you don’t, lie back down!” She tried to force the issue but it was no use. Next thing she knew she was in his arms and he was expressing his love. Her insecurities, loneliness, fears and deep love for him overcame her and she found it difficult not to dissolve into his arms. Instead she swallowed hard and kept her head.

”I love and missed you too. But you need to lie down.” She ended the embrace and guided him back to a lying position. ”How about we get you off the floor?” She couldn’t carry him, and he most certainly couldn’t walk so she stood and prepared to levitate him to the couch.

Mason ignored all health matters and warnings from Medea; he just wanted to hold her. He had been gone for Merlin knows how long, completely without her and wasn't able to send owls or anything. He needed to be with her, no matter his health condition.

So he was rather disappointed when she lay him back on the floor. Was she not happy to see him? Alive? He supposed it made sense though; he had disappeared one day and didn't return. No note, nothing. But he at leased hoped she would have been a little more excited to have him back. Watching Medea stand and brandish her wand, Mason shrugged ever so slightly in his weakened state and waited for her to take him away.

"Go ahead." He said hoarsely, closing his eyes, sadness and longing setting in. He just wanted to hold her.

And he was still incredibly thirsty.

She wasn’t sure if he was annoyed, or just in pain. The air between them seemed uncomfortable and slightly tense. She was elated he was home, but still quite angry about the disappearance. Once he lay back down Medea swished and flicked, Mason rose from the floor and landed softly on the couch.

”I’ll get you more water, just stay here.” The dark haired woman placed her hand on his forehead and then moved it to his cheek. Lingering for a moment she studied his face, she had really missed his face. Medea leaned forward, kissed his head and then took off towards the kitchen. Upon reaching the room she felt like she was able to let herself go a bit. Leaning on the counter she placed her face in her hands and sobbed uncontrollably.

After a couple minutes Medea tried to compose herself; sniffling and wiping away tears she got a glass of water with a straw and made her way back to him. Her eyes were still red when she knelt beside him. ”Here you go.” She put the straw at his lips for him to take a drink.

When Mason was safely on the couch, he lay still and closed his eyes. It was more comfortable than the floor by far, but he was still injured. He winced, feeling cuts, scrapes and bruises. Not to mention his intense sunburn. He nodded carefully when Medea said he would get more water and felt her kiss his head. He wanted to smile, but it wouldn't work.

When she returned, he felt a straw at his lips. He sat up just slightly to make drinking easier and he eagerly drank the water, feeling the cool liquid run down his dry throat. When he drained the cup, he managed to open his eyes. When he saw Medea's red eyes. She had been crying, that much was obvious. Some strength of his was returning, so he cupped her face with one of his hands.

"Cora." He whispered hoarsely. "Please, don't. Don't cry" He said as he felt a lump of his own forming in his throat. "There's so much.. I have to explain." He said, wincing again. It hurt to talk, but he needed to. He needed to tell her what happened. Why he had been gone for so long. He needed to tell her that he loved her and that there was nothing she needed to worry about.

”Cora…”

It made more hot tears fall from her eyes. Cora slightly shook her head, ”No, Leo. No we’ll talk later.” The woman looked up and into his eyes. ”You’re in a right state, you need rest.” The woman softly placed her hand on top of his, ”What’s important is you’re here, safe.” The tears now were streaming from her eyes. Her emotions ranged from elation to rage.

Cora took his hand off her face and rested it on his stomach. ”You need rest badly.” She opened her wristlet and retrieved a small vial that contained a purple liquid. ”When I got your patronus I gathered a number of useful potions.” She held the vial up to the light, ”This is a dreamless sleep potion.” Medea was a very accomplished potioneer; it was a skill that in her opinion was handier than spells and charms.

She handed him the vial, ”Drink it all. It’ll help you sleep and it helps you heal faster.”

Please, don't cry. Mason begged Medea silently. He didn't want her to cry. He wanted her to smile and let him know that she was okay. But, that would probably take time now. Mason gently wiped a stream of tears off of her cheek and frowned sympathetically. He knew that if he tried to talk, she would just shut him up, so he just looked away and rested his hand back on the couch.

He nodded his head. Rest. He needed rest. But how could he sleep, knowing that Medea wasn't happy? He could see it in her eyes, in her actions... A dreamless sleep potion? That sounded wonderful actually. Because he knew she wouldn't let him explain tonight; it would have to wait. He accepted the vial of purple liquid and swallowed it in a couple gulps. It tasted like... lavender syrup. Which wasn't entirely delicious.

Handing Cora the empty vial, he took another look at her as his eyes began to droop. He just.. needed to say something before.. he fell asleep. "Cora..." He said drowsily. The giant dose of potion kicked in quickly and he was having trouble forming his lips to speak. "I... Lovyuhhmm..." And with that, he fell asleep, his lips slightly parted.

---END SCENE---

Months had past and the dark haired woman was having difficulty dealing with what life had dealt her. Medea kicked the glass back emptying it; she smacked her lips enjoying the burn. It was 6:30 pm and she had already put the children to bed, they were loud and annoying. Lately she had gone through a great deal of Dreamless Sleep Potion, although she didn’t tell Mason that’s why they were sleeping so well. Frankly, she didn’t care what Mason thought. Medea was always the one taking off work to care for the little mongrels; she was the one making them dinner; she was the one making all the sacrifices.

The dark haired woman had not planned on this situation. First off she didn’t plan on having children, secondly even if she were to have children they would be hers – not these children with all kinds of baggage. No mother, father died. No one in their family wanted them, and to Medea it was obvious why. These children were so needy, whiney, dependant and downright childish.

Swishing her wand she summoned another bottle, a second swish uncorked the bottle and it poured its liquid into her glass. Her mind swam with resentment for Mason. Medea felt alone, isolated, stifled, depressed, resentment, and frankly she was bloody mad. She emptied another glass and hoped Mason would be home soon. She was looking to pick a fight.

Another long day at work was finally over. It seemed longer than usual though, considering he had to deal with everyone in Maintenance's mental issues. Mason truly believed that everyone in his department had social issues. And many other issues besides that. He was just looking forward to a nice, relaxed evening with Medea. Cuddling in front of the giant fireplace seemed nice. Romantic. A romantic evening seemed very needed since they had spent the past several months taking care of children that weren't theirs. And honestly, Mason didn't see himself as a good father.

With a loud POP! Mason appeared inside the doorway of his home. Hanging his coat on the coat rack besides the door, he rubbed the back of his neck and noticed... It was rather quiet in the house. He checked his watch. 6:30. The kids were normally running around the house or screaming or crying or something at this time. Maybe Medea had taken them to her house?

Perplexed, Mason walked around the corner to the kitchen and saw Medea facing the other direction, an empty glass in her hand, and empty firewhiskey bottle on the counter with another opened one beside her. He stared at her for a second before cautiously walking over to her. "Medea." He said expectantly. Picking up the bottle, he looked how much she had drained out of it. "What are you thinking? Where are the kids?" He demanded lightly and grabbed the cork and shoved it back in the neck of the bottle. This must have been hers; Mason had rid of all his alcohol in the house since the kids arrived.

She heard him arrive and didn’t give a damn. As he rounded the corner and questioned her, her glare of death was now aimed at him. ”What am I thinking?” Was he stupid or something? ”This is a glass, that is a bottle and I am thinking about having another glassful.” Medea went to grab the bottle, but he had already snatched it up.

”The question is what are you thinking?” She ignored the question about the kids, who gave a bloody damn about them. ”What are you thinking taking that from me?” The fury bubbled with in her belly, her rage was uncorkable.

She stood and came near to him, ”So you were too busy to take off work yet again and care for the children I see. It’s always me isn’t it?” Medea turned from him and toward the sink, she had to put some distance between them otherwise she might get violent. ”What was your reason for not being available this time? Had to unclog Lord Borr's toilet?” She sneered, yes that was most certainly a dig at his job – his placement, which in her opinion at this moment was well beneath her.

Luckily, Mason had grabbed the bottle just in time because he noticed Medea reach for it again. The look on his face was confusion with disbelief. Was she serious? How could she be doing this? "I thought we had an agreement on this. No alcohol in the house as long as the kids are here." And yet here she was, drunk and stil drinking. Fabulous.

What was he thinking? "I'm thinkin' that you're done drinking. You've had more than enough." He said more angrily than he would have liked. He walked over the rubbish bin and dropped the bottle in. He really didn't want to get angry at her, but it was becoming increasingly difficult now.

When Medea came close to him, Mason could smell the alcohol on her breath and could tell that she was quite intoxicated. Wait, she was blaming him for working all the time? For not taking care of the children? Mason's jaw dropped as Medea walked over to the sink. "We decided this at the beginning, Medea!" He said, louder than he thought. "You willingly gave up some of your work time to take care of the kids. It was your idea." So maybe it was always her.

Had to unclog Lord Borr's toilet?

Mason clenched his jaw and tried not to roll his eyes. Good thing she wasn't looking at him. Mason knew that Medea had pretty high power in the Ministry and Mason... Well being a Maintenance worker was at the bottom of the food chain. Mason knew that. And one thing he hated more than the blokes that he worked with was being insulted because of his low rank in the Ministry of Magic. Closing his eyes, Mason tried to recompose himself. He sighed and slowly walked up to Medea. He kept having to remind himself that she wasn't exactly herself right then. He cautiously stood behind her and placed his hands on her arms. "Why don't you sit down by the fireplace? I'll make some dinner and we can... talk." He said rather rigidly.

”No, we did not have an agreement.” She would never agree to such poppy-cock. Oh no, no one has ever or will ever tell her when she’s done with anything. ”Excuse me?! You are not my keeper Mason! I will do as I please!” As she spoke her arms were flailing around to emphasize her anger. Her voice would go hoarse soon if she didn’t stop screaming.

”NO! Again you only half listen! I said I could take SOME time off work. I thought we’d half it. You have taken little responsibility with these children. I have done EVERYTHING!” Yes, this felt great. She was finally getting out every awful feeling and thought that she had been harboring for months. Medea had gone cold, it’s like her emotions for Mason had literally been switched off. She felt no warmth or love for him; all she felt currently was resentment and isolation.

No she wouldn’t be taking his invitation to sit, eat and talk. ”Mason, you are an awful at this ‘father-role’. You’re never here and you don’t seem to care about them!” Not that she was overly fond of them, but they weren’t discussing her currently. Her face was sterner than ever, ”This is not working. This is not what I want for my life. IT’S ME OR THEM!” Her voice cracked at the end, not for emotional reasons but because her voice was going out.

Her eyes bore into him, ”Do you understand? Get rid of them if you want to keep me.” Medea with a stony expression waited for the man’s answer.

Mason took a big step back as Medea flailed her arms about in anger and frustration. His eyes widened at the sight. This was not going as well as he had hoped. In fact, it was going quite horribly. True, Mason wasn't her keeper and he technically couldn't tell her what to do. But this was HIS house, these kids were HIS responsibility. "This is my house, Medea!" He told her, repeating his thoughts. "And if you want to have a grand ol' time and get wasted, you can do it elsewhere." That's right, he was taking a stand for himself, his house, and his kids.

Everything? She had not done everything! He had stayed home several times, sure Medea had stayed home much more, but... This didn't make any sense. Had she always felt like this? At the beginning, when they first got the news, they knew things would be difficult. But Medea had never been so... hostile about this. Or angry, really. "Where is this coming from? Why so sudden?" He asked a tad angrily. Medea was cold now. Something had changed.

When Medea insulted him, Mason sighed angrily and turned around. He walked over to the counter, faced away from her and placed his hands on the cold marble. His head was sunken down and his eyes were closed tight. It was her next works that really stung and sent his mind in a whirlwind. This is not working. This is not what I want for my life. Mason jumped a little when she practically screamed the next words at her.

Turning to face her, she saw her eyes boring into his own. The look on his face was a mixture of pain, anger, confusion, sadness... and more confusion. "I thought we were in this together." He said quietly, looking at her with hurt eyes. He couldn't "get rid of" the kids. They were his responsibility, ever since James died. They were his best friend's kids. He couldn't do that to them.

As pathetic as it seemed, tears filled Mason's eyes. "I can't."

She didn’t respond to anything he said, there was nothing worth responding too. She had already made up her mind; Medea would be leaving either way. ”We were in this together, until you decided to not come around and basically abandon me. This started when you disappeared. And then since you’ve been back you have been distant, and honestly you don’t seem to want to be around.” In all honestly most of this was in her head, but you couldn’t convince her of that.

Even though she had already decided to leave his words stung, ”you can’t.” She repeated in barely a whisper. It cut through like a knife, it mattered not that she was prepared to walk out on him but that he was so easily and readily able to dismiss her. Knowing that made her next few moves easier.

”Well, it’s good to know where I stand.” She gathered her coat and proceeded toward the door, ”I will not be second; I won’t be forgotten or shut away. “

Medea hurried out the door making sure to slam it on the way out.

~~~~~~~~~~~~End Scene~~~~~~~~~~~~

This was absolutely ridiculous.

Mason was so distracted and upset, he didn't even apparate into his house like he had planned. He ended up down the street a little bit. Luckily no one was around. Storming into his house, he slammed the door shut and threw his coat on the couch. He even ignored his dog who was excited to see him. And that was saying something. Mason loved his dog.

He also loved Medea Ward once. Twice, really. But according to her ten minutes ago, they never loved at all. They had run into each other while Mason was dusting some portraits in the Ministry. And Medea was completely different! Mason always knew she had too much pride to refer to Mason as her boyfriend at work, but this was different. It was like she didn't even know who Mason was.

Grabbing out a bottle of Firewhiskey, Mason popped the cap off and took a nice swig and slumped on a barstool in his kitchen. Turning the bottle slowly in his fingers, Mason shook his head. Medea was getting married. Tomorrow. And it wasn't to him. Mason took another big swallow. If alcohol was the only way to the numb the pain, then that was his only option.

It was like Medea had been put under the imperius curse. And that had crossed Mason's mind briefly. But would that Nye bloke be really desperate enough to do that? It couldn't be a love potion; they weren't strong enough.

Mason stared off in space for a moment. The imperius curse. Looking back, Medea really seemed like she was telling the truth. Or at least the truth was hidden from her. Masked behind the curse. It was the only explanation.

Medea Ward could be a cold person, but the woman he knew wasn't like that. She loved him, and that's what gave him hope.

Scooting off his barstool, Mason grabbed his wand and apparated to Medea's house. He had to stop this.

Thread re-opened upon creators request

New Scene
After flirting hanging out and becoming friends with Rose, Mason invited her to come over to his house after he learned that she couldn't cook. Lesson one begins tonight!

Guests:
Rosemarie Wallace (Lady of Light)

Well, everything was all set and ready for them to start cooking. Mason had been prepping for this night for a few days. Mentally, physically, and ... grocerically. That was a new word. In other words, he got all the groceries for making spaghetti.

He was actually somewhat nervous for this evening. It was the first time in a long time that he was being.. social. And it was with Rose. And he liked Rose. A lot. She was pretty, she was funny, she was so nice... And Mason just wanted this to be perfect. And of course, he wanted them to have fun while he helped her learn how to cook.

Since it was almost time for her to be at his house, Mason leaned against his kitchen counter and waited for her to arrive. Hopefully she would be able to find it okay...

It was a saturday and like they had agreed upon, Rose drove to Mason's house for their cooking session. Yes, she drove. She hated to apparate. It made her feel dizzy and nauseous so she tried to avoid it most of the time. Like, today. Her parents didn't need the car anyway.

Rose was glad that she left early though. After being stuck in traffic for over an hour, she finally reached her destination. After parking her car outside, she got out and stared at his house for a minute. Wow. It looked cute. Yeah, really cute. Just like it's owner..um. Riiiight.

She started to walk but as soon as she took a step, she nearly fell. Woah. She could never get used to wearing skirts. Never. She took a deep breath and started to walk again, somehow managing to reach the front door. She tugged at her skirt before she rang the doorbell. Gosh, she was so nervous!

Looking at the clock, Mason took a deep breath. She should be at his house any minute. And the longer he waited, the more nervous he got. Luckily, he didn't have to wait much longer.

He heard the faint sound of... tires? Did Rose drive? Mason walked to the front door to see a car pull up to his house. Wow. That was... kind of cool. He didn't know why, it just was. As he peeked out the window, he saw her get out the car and stare at the house. Mason quickly moved away from the window and hid behind the door. He didn't want her to think he was.. desperately waiting for her. Or something. Heh. Keep your cool, Everard.

Chewing the inside of his lip, he impatiently waited. After the doorbell rang, he waited a second before opening the door. Again, he didn't want her to think he was desperately waiting. Merlin, she wasn't even inside yet and he was already making a fool of himself.

After a moment, Mason opened the door. Seeing Rose on his doorstep made him grin. "Hey," he said, still smiling. "You look beautiful." That escaped his mouth before he could stop himself, but he didn't really mind. It was the truth. And he suddenly felt way under-dressed. Mason looked down at his casual jeans and frowned a little. "Err, sorry. I should've.. dressed nicer." He mumbled.

And she probably wanted to come inside or something, so Mason moved out of the doorway and ushered her in to his big house. "Come on in, make yourself at home." Like, set her purse down and take her shoes off. Because those things were incredibly tall and looked painful.

Rose was tugging at her stupid skirt again, thinking that she made a huge mistake listening to her mother. Honestly, what was wrong with a pair of jeans and a shirt? A lot, according to her mother. She continued fidgeting with her skirt when she heard the door open..so she stopped. Better not embarrass herself in front of him.

"Hey." Rose said, with a smile. Beautiful? Really? The smile on her face widened to a grin. "Thanks. You look really nice too." He did. She bit her lip from smiling again and her face turned slightly red. Gosh, she was blushing again. Really, Rose? You just got here! Under-dressed? No. Not at all. She just shook her head, the smile still on her face. "You look great." And, her legs were starting to hurt. She wasn't used to wearing heels. Again, it was her mother's fault. Apparently, Rose didn't know what to wear on a date. Sigh.

"Thank you." Rose entered the house and before she could stop herself, she gave him a light kiss on his cheek. Oh, crap. "Erm..and thanks for inviting me..." Huh? Rose bit her lip.

You shouldn't have done that, Rose. Kiss on the cheek. It wasn't like..like what? She had no idea. Taking a deep breath, she followed Mason into his house. "You have a lovely home, Mason." It looked really beautiful.

Mason smiled more when she said he looked really nice. He was glad she thought so, even though he felt so casual compared to her. But she looked... really good. And she was blushing already, Mason noticed. He couldn't help but smile more. Eeek. She was so pretty. "Thanks," he said with a small shrug. But he didn't look as good as her. "You can take your shoes off if you want." Since she probably didn't want to stand in them all evening while they worked in the kitchen. Maybe.

Before he knew what was going on, Rose was suddenly quite close to him and- Oh. A kiss on the cheek. Before she could pull to far away and before he could stop himself, Mason returned the gesture on Rose's cheek with a smile. "You're welcome. I'm really glad you could come. And... you can come over any time, really." And he meant that. It got kind of lonely sometimes. And he liked Rose's company.

"Ah, thanks. It's not much..." Mason closed the door and stood next to Rose, looking around a bit. It was home, though.

Mason took a deep breath and clapped his hands together. "So. You ready to get your hands dirty?"

Rose smiled up at him, although her feet were hurting really bad. She still understand why her mother was so enthusiastic about this..date or meeting or whatever. She didn't know..but her mother seemed more concerned about her looking good that she was. "Am I over-dressed?" Rose asked, anxiously. "I'm sorry." She didn't know what she was apologizing for actually.. "..I mean, I'm not this dressy usually but.." Stop talking, Rose! She bit her lip from saying anything more stupid. She looked down at her outfit again and couldn't help but cringe. Erm, anyway. "You're welcome." She could take off her shoes? Thank God. She slipped off her shoes near the doorway. What a relief! She joined him again and.. "Oh. I look terribly short next to you now." She couldn't help but pout.

She smiled when he returned her kiss on the cheek. So, maybe...what she did..well, it was okay. She could come over anytime? Aw. "Well, I think I'm going to take you up on that. You house really looks wonderful." It was big and lovely. Kind of reminded her of her childhood home. Not much? "Are you kidding?" She looked up at him, surprised. "I would absolutely love to have a house like this."

"I think I am." Rose said, the excitement clearly showing on her face. She started to walk when..wait. She suddenly turned towards him again. "Where is noodles?" Yep. She wanted to see his dog.