~ - - the friends that he left back home(SCARLETT)

[rolandmendraka]

Finally, a break from the insane world that had tossed him out and turned it's back on him. A clean-shaven face is what greeted the world today as he had left the Ryder estate not too long ago having been well-rested, wanting to get in some visiting that he deserved. Even as many people knew fully well he could be dead at this moment, and he just kept looking onwards into the distance. It had been a while since he had to travel so far again, but he would do it just to meet with an old friend. Wearing his usual dark brown robes that concealed his attire as his large, dexterous hands soon maneuvered into his pocket. Reaching for his wand as he then brought it out preparing to apparate.

A wind blew back his hair, as he felt his whole body shifting slightly in preparation for what was about to come. His brown eyes stared at nothing in particular as he soon felt himself surrounded in a pure magic glow, or at least that's what it felt like at first. Closing his eyes, imagining his destination, and focusing intently on the door step of course so that it would be easy enough to arrive unharmed. Roland had never apparated without ever being unsure of where he was going. It was only a matter of time as he held on to his wand for dear life and then the world around him swirled into a blur. As he disappeared with a pop, the noise could be heard echoing in the air around him.

The short brown hair atop his head matted down as he soon realized he was now standing in front of the Evan's household. Oh yes, this had been quite the trip, and he was surprised he had even known about where she lived. It was thanks to Alexis though that he knew about it, and was surprised she was still alive just as she would be that he was too. Roland certainly had a long way to go to instill a deep despair to be wrought about them, however, no one knew the full extent of how sorry he was. Alexis had brought him back to reality and he was set to make up for his wrongs.

Killing wizards wasn't his thing, and he never had, even when he had come so close to taking out One Eyed Jack, it had been the bloke who took his own life. Roland definitely didn't want to be given to the Ministry either, but it was amusing that his own friends were the only ones that understood how his mind worked. Once more, he found himself staring longingly at the door of an old friend, and was too scard to knock on it because he didn't want it to be someone who had completely changed from who he once knew. Shifting his robes a little, he was at least comfy today.

Considering the cold weather could be harsh on one's body as he finally succumbed to his desires, and knocked on the door to undo the despair he had caused. Sure, many would mourn his death, but no one knew if he really was dead. Yet, his father had arranged a fake funeral for him, but many had questioned why they couldn't see the body or even take a look at the ashes. It was funny, because Roland had been there to watch his own funeral too. Amused to the bitter end, but no one knew him as he had kept a mask on during the entire ceremony. Instantly apparating away when someone dared mention that he reminded them of someone.

Roland was obviously avoiding detection, and now seventeen years later, seeking forgiveness, he continued knocking rapidly on the door to salvation.

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[scarlett]

Most of the time Scarlett stayed at Hogwarts Castle, where she taught care of magical creatures. But there were times the confines of the castle and the antics of the students got to be too much. Although she could escape the castle to her home she couldn’t escape her responsibility of grading some essays and working out what the next lesson was going to be. Sitting at the desk inher study the lamplight fell over the papers and as she read another poor attempt at a last minute essay she dipped her quill into the ink and marked it as poor. She had rather hoped that her Owl students would take their work more seriously, but she knew only a few would choose to take her class to the NEWT level, most just continued on in the classes that were relevant to the career they were hoping to go in to, and such mostly took the main classes to the NEWT level. The lack of ambition for the care of magical creatures field made her wonder who would take over for her when it was finally time for her to retire, although there were many years left before she would even consider the thought of retiring.

In the fifteen years since she had left Hogwarts for the first time she had always wondered where she would end up. At thirty-two she was settling into teaching students at Hogwarts and although she sometimes missed the exciting days when she worked as a dragon tamer she had chosen to return to Hogwarts to settle down and eventually start a family. So far she was only half-way there. Most of the men she encountered where her students and most could not yet be considered men. She had kept contact with a few of her classmates from Hogwarts but she worked far too much to go on regular dates. Maybe that’s what she needed was to make more time for herself. She wasn’t getting any younger after all. Maybe the women who worked at Hogwarts all needed to get together and have a girls night.

A continous knocking on the door brought Scarlett from her thoughts and grading papers to a curiousity of who it would possibly be. Many of her friends knew she worked at Hogwarts during the year, and often sent owls if they needed to contact her. And if were the headmaster he would have flooed surely. Rising from her desk she grabbed her wand from the drawer and made her way through the house to the front door. Swinging the door open she stopped as she saw the figure before her. The only thing Scarlett could do was stare at the man before her. It was someone she would have thought she would have never saw again. She herself had even attended his funeral but yet there he was on her door step, knocking away. ”Roland? Is that you?” Scarlett wasn’t sure how that would be possible, she hadn’t seen him in person since they had left Hogwarts. She had thought her once good friend to be long gone and dead.

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[rolandmendraka]

Roland wasn't sure what to say when the door opened, but he knew that the possibilities of him being alive were slim to none. Why was it that he had decided to show up out of the blue now and for what reason did he have for abandoning her? Well, it was his own choice really and he had been quite proud to know that most of his friends had been worried about him. Watching her face as she looked up at him, and could almost tell she wasn't trying to stare at him as if she was looking at a ghost. Starting to walk forward a little more to catch a glimpse of her underneath the light until he was able to tell it was actually Scarlett.

Yes, his funeral had been rather convincing back then, but now here he was before her as if he had returned from the grave. Wondering how on Earth he could actually wander up without saying hello for the past fifteen years, but he didn't know how she'd understand his hell. There was too much he had gone through to reveal everything right away to her. Deciding it would be best to speak to her directly instead of just staring at her as if he was reminiscing about their many adventures together. Roland almost had a soft spot for Scarlett, but that really was reserved for Alexis in the long run. Running back to his friends after all this time, and here she wasn't that worried about him it looked like to his face.

Roland's face frowned slightly at the fact she thought he was dead, "Roland? Is that you?", and then decided to be as smart as he could be when answering a silly question. Okay, not smart, more or less explaining a little in very few words, "If by Roland, you mean, the guy who disappeared fifteen years ago, and has returned after faking his own death to keep his friends from following his path?" he asked curiously. A gleaming glint in his eyes as he looked at her, and smirked slightly to himself quite impressed with how she had grown. Not that he was sizing her up, but there were few things in this world he could do to keep himself entertained.

Even so, he had felt the loss of someone to talk to, and now he had fulfilled his duty that he had set out to do since his brother's death. The mysterious disappearances of his family were surely unsettling to him, but no one would ever know the story about how his brother died unless he got his journal entries back. The few that he had personally tore out of his own book to keep for himself reminded him every day of the sanity he possessed. Finally looking at Scarlett again, he spoke to her, "It's been a while, Scarlett, hasn't it? Fifteen years does a lot to a man..especially one bent on vengeance that he sees as justice," he said coolly. Not quite the Roland she knew, but his tone was just like those other times when he was calculating and meant to do something brash. In this case he was about to disappear again if she didn't want him there.

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[scarlett]

If by Roland, you mean, the guy who disappeared fifteen years ago, and has returned after faking his own death to keep his friends from following his path?” It took Scarlett several moments to take in the appearance of the man before her on her doorstep. It wasn’t as if she had a knock on her door everyday that turned out to be a friend she had long ago said goodbye to. Still although he was older than the last time she had seen him, there was no denying that it was Roland. Although she hadn’t see him for years she could still remember his face. It wasn’t often you forgot the faces of those closest to you. If she didn’t know any better she would think that she was dreaming and just to be sure she felt herself pinch her left arm. Yet he was still there and it was then that Scarlett knew this was real and it was no dream. It couldn’t even be a funny joke. ”It really is you!” As much as she didn’t want to believe he had faked his own death she had to believe him. As far as she knew there were no spells or potions that would work this long after one’s supposed death. And she couldn’t picture anyone wanting to do something like that.

It’s been a while, Scarlett, hasn’t it? Fifteen years does a lot to a man..especially one bent on vengeance that he sees as justice,” Now that she thought about it she hadn’t never really questioned how or why he had died. In fact she couldn’t remember the reason that had been given. But now he was there and as much as she didn’t want to believe that he had made her think he was dead for fifteen years he hadn’t given her a choice. The curiosity and Ravenclaw in her demanded answers, and that was something she felt was going to take awhile. ”You’ve certainly changed. Not the same boy I knew from my Hogwarts days. But if you’ve had to fake your death all these years then there was certainly a good reason. No one does something like that for nothing.”

It didn’t seem right to question him right away and at least not offer to let him inside her home. It wasn’t as if he were going to harm her, Roland was seeking her out now and she just couldn’t turn him away without hearing what he had to say. Even if some of it would be hard to believe it would most likely be the truth. She wouldn’t doubt anything he said unless he gave her good reason to. But that was all in good time. ”You’d better come in before someone comes along and see’s you.” Stepping aside she let him have room to get past her into the house. ”You need something to eat? Or drink? I don’t have much, I’m usually at Hogwarts this time of year.” Maybe it had been good for her to come home this night. Otherwise she would have missed a visit from her old friend.

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[rolandmendraka]

Roland was glad she had been the easiest of his friend to talk with, especially after having visited Alexis's place and he hadn't mentioned he had come from there. Scarlett of all people would know he would have been able to visit Alexis first, and here he was a couple of weeks later at her place to apologize for his absence. After all, it had been a rough fifteen years and it would take forever to explain why he had been out all this time. Nothing was easy to explain these day s it seemed without someone getting all defensive or aggressive over his disappearance. No one really understood why he had gone, but there was one simple answer. Roland hadn't wanted anyone to know where he had gone, but it wasn't his fault he had faked his own death.

Obviously no one knew the truth, but he had a lot of explaining to do as mentioned earlier. Atoning for his sins was basically by facing his friends and dealing with their attitudes about why he had disappeared. Sure, Scarlett may have been the same age as him, but he thought she should deserve the reason he had disappeared for so long. "Tell me Scarlett, why do you offer hospitality so easily when you don't know what I've done? I've committed crimes against the Ministry that would be punishable by death if they could even prove it was me that did it. Although I ended up doing good in the end, and realized it. Anyways, that's a story to tell after I get something to eat, anything would be good right now," he said plainly to her.

"Alexis is doing well I see, she's the head of St. Mungo's it seems and has landed herself a great position. Although I know she's beating herself up over the fact I got away from her, but I had to deal with my brother's death on my own...my father had my funeral for me without my consent at all just to disown me...now my mother thinks I'm alive somewhere, and I'm the reason my parents got a divorce because I acted so rashly on my hell-bent revenge...ah sorry, I'm getting carried away it's good to see you again...I guess I do need something to eat after coming back and dealing with Alexis first of all. There's only one other I'm terrified of facing, which would be Taylor Paxton if you know her," he said to her, shuddering at the thought as he made himself comfortable within her home.

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[scarlett]

It was a lot for Scarlett to take in all at once. Sure some might find it strange that she so readily accepted the man before her as Roland and had even offered to let him come inside. But she had recognized the boy she hadn’t seen in fifteen years in the man on her doorstep today. For so many it would have been so easy to turn him away or slam the door in his face, and although the thought had crossed her mind briefly she couldn’t have followed through. Maybe it was the curiosity that got the best of her but no one ever disappeared for fifteen years without letting anyone know where they were. There could be a million reasons for why he had done so and not all of them good. It was her need to know what had taken her friend to those measures that allowed herself to push back the logic that warned her to be careful. It wasn’t as if Roland had shown up to harm her and she didn’t think he would.

”Because you were once my friend and it doesn’t matter what you’ve done because I don’t know the whole story. Who am I to judge whether your right or wrong. You’ve come to me for a reason and it would be rude to not hear you out or offer you something. I haven’t changed much since my years at Hogwarts you know. Come to the kitchen and you can eat, and tell the story when you’ve finished.” It had always been in her nature to be nurturing and Scarlett wasn’t going to stop now. It didn’t matter how long it had been since she had seen him, she didn’t count him any less of a friend. Scarlett led the way to the kitchen and looked through her cabinents for something suitable to give him. It seemed it was going to be canned soup but he had said anything would be good. She usually didn’t stay here often and the feasts at Hogwarts were enough to keep her full. ”Sorry all I’ve got is soup. It’s usually just me so I don’t keep a lot around.” Opening the can she put it on the stove and began to heat it magically, keeping an eye on it as Roland continued to talk.

It wasn’t a surprise to her that he’d already been to see Alexis, she wouldn’t have expected anything else. What mattered was he was there now and she knew that he wasn’t dead. ”I’ve heard that she and her brother are both doing well. But with Alexis being so busy we don’t get a chance to talk often. I’m glad that she’s found a position that she enjoys.”It was a lot to take in and Scarlett could see why it would take him fifteen years to come around to talk to anyone. It was all just so strange to have to deal with. ”Why would your father want to disown you? And you really should visit your mother sometime, she probably misses you a lot. It’s always nice to see you as well but Roland you should have come to your friends for help. We would have helped you with anything you needed. As a matter of fact I do know Taylor, we work together at Hogwarts. There’s a lot of ministry officials around up there now because of the tournament going on.”

The soup on the stove was heated and she emptied it from the pot into a bowl. Sitting it down on the table she took a seat and waited for Roland to do the same. It was always nice to be able to help him, even in a small way like giving him food.

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[rolandmendraka]

Roland was certainly quite glad that Scarlett had at least let him into her home and if he had been uninvited would have left just as easily. It all really didn't make any difference to him. Thinking about how he was going to keep this from anyone how he was visiting Scarlett, but when she said that Taylor worked with her that set off a few alarms. One that meant she would be knowing about him visiting the others, but Alexis had been the main challenge. Getting under her skin was surely just as good as getting with his other friends, but he knew tears had been shed at his lost cause. Shaking his head at that fact, but he decided to explain it in fuller detail.

"My father was going to use my own brother as a slave to gain more money, but he didn't know I had found that out when I had rummaged through papers he had left out in his study. Guaranteed I shouldn't have been there in the first place, but I saw he acted strange around my mother," he paused as he watched her setting up some soup on the stove, but he guessed that his story was far more important than some food he needed in his stomach. After all he had heard it growling at him to eat and soon just focused on picking up a bowl as well, following suit after Scarlett had gotten hers. Finally just sitting down with it and taking a spoon, yet he realized this was a rather simple, yet efficient meal.

Only then did he notice she had probably already eaten, but he really didn't mind that much at all. Now all he had to do was figure out a way to tell her this without her looking down on him. Roland knew he should have involved his friends, but that was the whole issue. Everyone that wanted to get involved would have ruined his plans in fact, and that was no lie either. Not doubting they would throw their lives before him like many had during the time he had been in Hogwarts taking on those that were trying to cause an uproar. Roland had always been there to quell those squabbles.

Now here he was trying to quell his own inner demons and the one that haunted him the most was still when his father had indeed disowned him. "Long story short, I'm just glad my father isn't in my mother's life anymore, she got a divorce, and I have already visited her in fact. Just...she didn't know it was really me, I pretended to be someone else. I let my new identity control my life...this Rolo, the news certainly mentions him a lot," he said to her, smirking softly, and that was the hint he had been that rogue wizard taking out multiple chains of illegal breeders. Considering his father was dealing with an illegal breeder to begin with who worked off of the black market to gain profits of his own.

"My brother was just a casualty in this war, and I happened to avenge his death. I didn't need you or anyone else to get involved, because I didn't want to see any more suffering around me. So instead, I took up a new name, and caused suffering to those that did this to my family. My own brother, and I made sure my father paid his price too, I'm the one who disowned -him- for betraying his own family to give our brother away to a bunch of murderers that would have done anything to get a dragon egg over a HUMAN BEING!" he slammed his fist against the table as his rage shook through him.

It had upset him thoroughly, but he had to regain his composure otherwise he would have flipped out on something else instead as he looked down at the gash on the table he had made. Surely it was made of fine wood if it withstood his fist or he hadn't hit hard enough yet. "Anyways, long story short, I did get the revenge I sought after fifteen years of hiding, mapping out the leader's whole infrastructure, and assassinating him. Of course, I thought I had killed him, but he was being taken to Azkaban last I heard of him...a sad fate, but he deserved that far more than dying. He's going to regret ever harming my brother if he ever escapes, I will know immediately," he said as his hand shook slightly making him spill the soup back into the bowl before he could actually sip it at all.

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