Home At Last

Six months. It had been six long months since he had been home. Six very tiresome and exhilarating months of hard work, determination, sweat, blood, and tears had gone into the entire operation. From dusk to dawn Russ had been on the prowl, stalking and silently searching. By day he was the average tourist or sight-seeing, but by night, he was a cold-hearted killer. Sure he had hunted down some wizards and witches in his young career as an auror, but it was for the good of magickind everywhere. It wasn't his choice to beat the living shit out of people, he hadn't liked it at first when he was still a rookie in training, but there's something about being thrust into the worst situations on your own for your first assignment that does something to a good spirit. You snap. The work of an auror was something that most people couldn't handle, and Russel only advanced so quickly through his training because of his work and research with his late potions professor and mentor, Andre Castel. With such a strong background in potions, himself highly classified as above master now, and with a young brain teeming with information most did not even know of, Russel was thrust into the hungry jaws of the auror lifestyle and quickly ascended to the top. Graduating his training courses with top marks never happened to the boy before, but now, the man was changed.

How changed? Well, to put it simply, even to his family, he was dead. Long after he graduated and left BBA, Russel had severed social ties with his family, but once joining the auror program with the Ministry, he approached his parents for one final time. It wasn't nearly the type of goodbye moment most would have depicted it to be. Merely, it looked as if he had stopped by to pick up a few extra items, and leave. No tears, no worries, no regrets. As the grown man stepped off the front porch of his parents' home and disappeared with a pop the Baudins realized that from that day on, they never would hear from their son again. Once he disappeared from their sight, he disappeared from existence. Although he had felt a slight touch of remorse, Russel knew that it was better off this way. Who knows, maybe someday he could go back once his career had ended, that is if he wasn't killed in the line of duty before then, and contact his parents again, but the chances were slim. Losing both of their children was a hard enough reality to the Baudins, and having their son dance in and out of their lives wouldn't do them any justice. He was as good as dead.

Sighing as he ran a hand through the long, tangled mess of raven black hair tat sweeped across his eye sight, Russel picked up a handful of the sizable stack of mail from the counter of the small kitchen nook. The house elf in charge of his apartment while he was gone, which was quite frequently, had taken the liberty to sort his mail. As he passed over the thin stack of personal letters, he paused for a moment, a feeling inside of him, almost instinct, telling him to just dump it out. However, a keen curiosity pushed at him to go through the letters, just for a few moments of relaxation and good tidings from whomever wrote to him. Normally, nobody would write to him, the life of an auror was hard on a social life, but that never stopped Andre from dropping a line once in awhile. Merlin, how long had it been since he had last saw him, two years, three? Setting the note from his old comrade aside, Russ glanced back at the stack. An interesting scroll caught his eye, and without any notion of hesitation, Russel ripped it open. A small gasp escaped his lips as his eyes fell prey to the breath-taking photo of two young people, obviously in love, sharing a passionate kiss. A simple card fell to the floor, and upon picking it up, Russ was surprised to see that it was an engagement announcement of his former school mates, and good friends, Maria Doloresta and Jacob Daniels.

Deciding that it was time to take a break from his hectic work life, he had asked for a month's period of rest, and needing to recollaborate with old friends, although he really shouldn't have, only more people to hurt eventually, Russ sprang for the door once more. Whistling for Rhonwen, his pet white gyrfalcon, his sole companion for the majority of the span of three years now, Russ headed out of his apartment, hoping to catch up on old memories.