Maiko was awfully fond of all the Eleors she had met-- in fact, she had somewhat adopted them as family, though she'd never quite say that out loud. Akiva in particular had always been there for her when she needed her most, and Mai hoped that she had been able to be a similar figure in her friend's life. Adon had been introduced to her most recently, and Mai found that she also enjoyed being around him-- he was dedicated to his family, that much was evident.

Tucked under her arm was a housewarming gift for Adon, as he had recently moved into his new place. The night before, she had gathered pictures of Gabriel and put them together in an album for him to look through. She was a particularly sentimental person, and hoped that he would appreciate the gesture. Along with the album, she brought some homemade hummus. Akiva had indicated that Adon would enjoy that. Mai supposed Akiva was right-- Adon seemed like the type of guy who enjoyed food but would rather not overindulge.

She knocked on his door-- and when he answered she greeted him with a giant grin that just overshadowed her weariness. "Hello there!" Mai exclaimed, "I brought you some things."

Adon lay lounging on the sofa--which still had that pleasant, new leather smell--and surveyed the whole of his flat from this vantage. Overhead, the floating candles flickered pleasantly.  The large Gothic rose window filtered in a nice, bright light that brightened the dark and brick and wood-paneled space. 

With Hanukkah in just three days, Adon was sure there would be at least one or two events at his flat--which would, by natural order, come under close scrutiny of his mother.  And after Hanukkah: the return to work.  Adon was not much looking forward to a regular schedule after nearly 3 months' freedom.  Most of the time had been spent coddling Gabriel--and Dreogan, as a matter of fact--and, when possible, Akiva, though his mother had more devious ways to accomplish this, usually without Akiva's being any wiser about the services being rendered to her.  Any notice came much too late to reject or protest Hestia's help. Adon was not so subtle.  His help had consisted of taking Gabriel off the young couples' hands, or... taking Dree off the young family's hands--or rather, getting Dree out of the house.

Today was a rare day off from the Katz-Eleor household, and it was entirely devoted to getting his own house in order. The front room was, for the most part, presentable now.  With Adon's leave of absence fast coming to an end, Adon hoped to have everything in order.  The boxes from the move had been put away--save a few boxes holding random bits and pieces that still did not have a home--and the furniture had been procured.  Adon had spent the larger part of the morning getting the candles overhead to hover at the proper height.  Though they would not have hot wax dripping from them, it wouldn't do to have them skimming guests' heads every time they came to visit.

It was over an hour after lunch.  Who would be calling at such an un-G-dly hour?  Adon tugged his sock off--for symmetry--and pulled a hoodie hanging the coatrack before moving towards the door. 

He'd not quite finished pulling it on by the time he turned the knob; Adon felt a light breeze on his stomach before he tugged the hoodie down.  He blinked a couple of times.  "Maiko..." he said, processing.

"Oh, yes--come in!" He added with more enthusiasm, as he gave her a brief hug and one-cheek kiss before  ushering her inside. Adon used his foot to flick the door closed. He and Maiko'd planned this... he was pretty certain.  "Things are always welcome. What kinds of things?"  he could smell it already. "Food things? Into the kitchen, then," he said, rounding the corner in a clear indication to follow.

Time to launch the questions--to hide any indication that he might not have been expecting her.  "You're back, now, then?  When does Hogwarts let you and the kiddos loose for the holidays?"

When Adon opened the door, she was greeted with a hug that she returned enthusiastically. The cheek kiss she did not return, partially because by the time she processed it had happened, just a few too many seconds had passed and he was significantly taller than her. Let's face it, she didn't want to put in the effort to peck his cheek.

Mai was honestly, quite impressed with Adon's taste in interior decorating. It was much more organized and put together than her own and he had just moved in. What a complete, wonderful jackass with rock-hard abs.

She allowed him to lead her into the kitchen, "Where can I put this--" Mai glanced at the container of hummus, "Blended garbanzo bean concoction that just so happens to taste good on most things?" She knew better than to say the word out loud. Her strange, lilting accent would bastardize the word on her tongue. There was no way she was going to terrorize his ears with that. Kiv had warned her sufficiently after giving her a recipe.

"I also have a photo album for you. To make this place feel more like a home."

"You're back, now, then?  When does Hogwarts let you and the kiddos loose for the holidays?"

The witch nodded in affirmation, "I'm back. I'll be released on December 18th, but I'm going to be around campus too. I can't simply desert the students. I'm a head of house, anyway."  One of the rings on her fingers was enchanted to turn hot and glow when she was summoned to the castle-- it allowed her to actually be able to sleep at home instead of at the school.

"I'm going to be making my rounds with gifts soon. These don't count."

Note: Language

She was impressed. Adon could tell and he grinned more broadly for it.  "It's not done, of course," he dismissed as they settled into the dark nook of a kitchen.  He wished he could have picked a better floor plan.  By the time Adon had reached for two wine glasses, Maiko had pulled out her own offerings, describing one as a"blended garbanzo bean concoction that just so happens to taste good on most things..."

"The fuck?" he asked, blinking at her in bewilderment. He set the glasses down.  "Ah... I mean, should we eat it?" He leaned over to look at it, instantly catching the scent of what was--

"Oh! Hummus![1]" Adon said, looking back at her, still at a loss. "You might have said. Yes," he said now moving to a cabinet and rifling through for some pita chips. He pulled a bag out, then a bowl, dropping them inside.  "We will eat it now."  So pronouncing, Adon broke open the container and served a dollop atop the chip.  "Mm, hmmm," Adon said as he chewed, assessing the flavor of the blended garbanzo bean concoction.  "Mhm," he finally concluded, swallowing. "That is really quite good! Did you make it?"

Perhaps he should not have sounded so surprised.  He waved away her offer of further gifts with a dismissive, "bah!" before tilting his head to look at the photo album thoughtfully.  "No gifts needed, Maikito. You make me look bad." His attention was on the album now and he opened the first page. A picture of Akiva, head bowed over Gabriel, her hair falling atop his head so he looked for all the world like a long-locked, infant Samson.  Gabriel giggled silently, looking up at his mother.  Adon laughed quietly through his nose, turning the next page.  It was now he who was holding Gabriel, silhouetted against a window.  He could remember the exact day.  It was five days after they had had Dreogan back.  He hadn't known anyone had caught that moment.  Fingers brushing over the photo, Adon suddenly felt the need to clear his throat.  His eyes stung.  Taking in a deep breath through his nose, he looked up at his unexpected houseguest, clearly touched.  "Thank you," he said with a shy smile.  He never knew what to do with these emotions. The ones that made you feel sort of like your insides were made of cashmere sweaters or purring kittens. 

Well, enough of that.

"Wine?" he asked, moving back to the glasses. "We can take them back into the front room..."

1.	Despite much confusion on the matter, the word is pronounced correctly as "hoo-moose." Do not let anyone else tell you otherwise. They are mistaken.

She grinned at his confusion. But would it really have been simpler to sit through a rant about the proper pronunciation of [i[hummus[/i]? She was certain that it would have ended in some sort of speech therapy, and Maiko was not about that life.  "Yes, I made it." She replied, "It's one of Akiva's recipes." The two swapped recipes on a regular basis. Sometimes it got to the point where Mai didn't know who originally supplied some recipes.

"Gifts are freely given." Mai insisted, "I enjoy giving them." She really did, when she could afford them. She liked the nickname he had given her-- Maikito. It was way better than Koko or some of the other nicknames that people had given her.

His adorable reaction to the photo album pleased her-- good. He was the sentimental type, and she hoped that it would... Be meaningful. Adon loved his family, that much was clear. He was protective, arguably overprotective. He was the giant mama bear of the Eleor family. Though, Mai suspected that Kiv had a bit of a mama bear streak as well.

"You're welcome." She said, giving her friend  a warm hug. 

He offered wine, and Mai nodded. "I would love some wine." She replied.

Yes, wine! Adon's face instantly brightened.  Any attempt at sobriety had been blown to hell about the time that Hanukkah--and 2 months' personal time off--had rolled around.  "White? Red? That's okay," he said, holding two bottles by the neck like two trophied ducks from a hunt.  "One of each."  He halted in his step.

Maybe that was excessive. 

"M0-scat-o," he drawled after some  consideration, leaving the other bottle behind in the kitchen and grabbing the two glasses by the stem.  "Bring the hummus?" he called as he edged around the coffee table to settle on the couch.  By the time Maiko had entered, Adon had uncorked and poured two glasses.

"So," he said, gesturing to the glass and spot next to him, "last time I saw you you were in hospital."  He gave a broader smile, almost congratulatory.  "You look well, now.  Miss the healers? Sent any fan mail their way?"

Maiko had been, ahem, rather vocal about her opinion on how both law enforcement and the healers had handled the Fawkes Day explosion.  He was willing, for now, to steer clear of anything regarding Level 2.  But... well, railing on healers wasn't exactly the worst pastime in the world.

One of each color of wine? She shook her head-- a silent, steady no. Mai was mildly disappointed when he settled on a moscato.  While the Italian wine was well on the sweeter side of the spectrum, it usually went down easily. People who did not like wine, or were new to tasting wine often liked it.

Maiko picked up the bag of crisps and the hummus before joining Adon on the couch. She placed the food at the center of the coffee table and graciously accepted a glass. She took a sip and gave her friend an approving nod. Mai wasn't particularly picky when it came to wine, but this moscato was crisp, peachy, and a bit citrusy. She suspected that it would go well with spicier foods, if she was to pair it with anything.

"You look well, now.  Miss the healers? Sent any fan mail their way?"

She let out a dry laugh. "I never miss St. Mungos." Mai replied, "My healer was-- not... Ideal. He tried, but frankly his best was not good enough." She shrugged, "I've dealt with plenty of wonderful healers, but the person I generally go to was busy dealing with more urgent cases and running her floor." Jules was a competent healer, with a good bedside manner. Mai was comfortable with her, or as comfortable as one could be when sick or injured. 

"When I was admitted, the healer actually did some sort of-- limb locking, freezing spell on me. Without asking. Without telling me to stay still." Mai was not comfortable with any situation where she did not feel in control of her body or what was happening to it. A perfectly normal, human thing, she told herself.  "He apologized later, but it didn't make me trust him. I couldn't tell if the apology was genuine or if he was simply trying to....Make me be nicer."

The witch took another sip of her wine. "I am feeling as healthy as I ever am, now. Are you okay? How are you? Have you met any exciting new neighbors?"

 

Adon's expression flickered with sympathy.  Healers were never pleasant--but it was good to talk about, sometimes.  "Hospitals are miserable places," he said heavily before taking a sip.  "Trust me. I know."  He had had some indication--the way Kiv had talked about it--that Maiko had a longstanding illness; Adon didn't pry, and he didn't quite know what that was like, but he'd ended up over his head enough times to need the services of hospitals and their staff on numerous occasions.

It was in hospitals that you faced not only your mortality, but also the very real, very frightening realization of what you were up against--and that that thing you were up against was currently winning.  If you were lucky, you were winning by the end of your hospital stay, but paying in one way or another for that victory.  Simply, he said, "It is never a good place to be.  I've had to face the majority of my unpleasant realizations in hospitals.  They make you think defeated thoughts."  His voice was distant.

Adon frowned.  He didn't particularly like her answer--that she was good "as she ever was"--or the way she moved so quickly beyond it--but he also was realistic enough to know that, at times, this was the best that Maiko--or anyone battling a long-standing, chronic anything could do.  She very clearly wanted to move past the recollection of the healer, of her stay at Mungo's.

"Well," Adon diffused, "I do not know how to tell you this, Maikito... Making you be nicer, well, we all secretly fear your wrath. Why do you think I intend to plaster you with wine this afternoon, hm?" he said, topping her glass off unbidden with a wink. "Bet he gave you pain potions instead..."  Another smirk.

Then the trifecta of questions.  He supposed it was only fair, but he did not feel they had sufficiently covered her to warrant the return to him so quickly.  He'd fire another volley her way soon enough.  "The neighbors--not really yet, no.  I knew a couple of them before.  One was a former co-worker... another I met at lunch once..." he shrugged.  "There will be time for that."  Mostly, his time had gone towards his family.  He hadn't seen enough of them; bothering with anyone else seemed irrelevant at the moment. 

He ought to just say so.  "Been spending every moment I can get with the family, really.  I'm on an extended leave," he shrugged. "Until either something terrible happens again or Hanukkah ends."  Whichever happened first.  "Hopefully after Hanukkah," he added, raising his eyebrows and taking another sip.  "I am thinking of serving as the Gardens' own Father Christmas, though.  Did I ever tell you that that was how I met Jonas?"

Look at him.  Talking about them like they were an old couple.  "Worked for me once. I figure I could make more friends that way.  Christian-folk like jolly home invaders, right?"

She nodded somberly as he spoke. He understood as much as he could, and she appreciated that he worded it in a way that didn't imply that he understood exactly how she felt. No. He knew how invasive and... Dark it felt, to be in a hospital. They made you think defeated thoughts, yes. Mai understood that all too well. She didn't do well to be alone, and appreciated the visitors that she had gotten, and the patience of her friends when she snapped at them or was generally grouchy. They were wonderful, and Mai didn't know what she did to deserve them, but she was glad she had them in her life.

Mai's smile was crooked with sentimentality, and she bumped Adon's arm with her shoulder with affection.

He topped off her wine and she let out a laugh. "I'm a lightweight, Adon. I'm giving you fair warning now, you may have to take my wand from me." She teased, though apparation and drinking did not go well together.

She understood that he spent time with family. Of course he did! With Dree gone for so long, well... There was nothing like a good old fashioned kidnapping to make you appreciate the time you had with your loved ones. The old Dreogan Eleor was gone, or changed. This new Dree would take some getting to know, even though many of the core parts that made him who he was remained. But he was different. Trauma changed people, forced them to grow in a way that they never should have had to.

Adon's mention of dressing up as Father Christmas was a welcome distraction. She tilted her head slowly to look at him, eyes wide. She let out a noise that was somewhere between a laugh and an exclamation.  "Well, I'm glad it led to friendship for you. Most people aren't so fortunate. Here's some advice..." Maiko took a sip of her wine and cleared her throat.

"Try not to be too convincing!" She insisted. "I once dated a metamorphmagus. You might know him! Gareth Lundquist. He's an auror. Auburn hair, freckles? Looks like an angry ferret." She paused,  waiting to see if Adon would recognize him before she continued. "He dressed as Father Christmas to surprise Kohaku four or five years ago."  Mai shook her head at the memory." Kohaku screamed and kicked him in the crotch, I hexed him. Cursed him?" Her eyebrows furrowed together as she tried to remember the details.

"Either way, Gareth didn't look entirely like a person afterwards. He broke up with me after that, via howler. Kohaku was pleased, he wasn't fond of him. " She gave Adon a weak smile. "I forgot what the point of my story was, I'm sorry. I'm sure it's relevant somehow."

"Well, I'm not saying he didn't try to get a restraining order on me first--and threaten to throw me in the Thames..." he conceded to her concerns.  "But eventually..." Eventually Adon always won them around.

"Hm, maybe--" Adon paused to consider.  Gareth Lundquist. Mayb--no, no... He shook his head.  "But I've never been good at names.  I only know the two gingers in my office, but I've always had a soft spot for ferrets.  Sounds like you've got impeccable taste, Koko,"  he said, casting her a sly, sidelong glance as he tried out the new name. 

"But back to this taking your wand. This sounds bizarrely hostage-like. Not where I saw this afternoon going, Maiko."  He shook his head.  "I'll make sure you get home safely," he added gently.  "Apparation shouldn't stop us from having a good time, now, should it? Besides, you've only got a couple more days until you are dealing with teenagers."  He placed the glass back onto the coffee table for a moment of extreme candor: "How do you keep from murdering them?" he asked, angling his body to look at her more directly.

She nearly laughed, and shook her head. Someone getting a restraining order against Adon. Well, if he decided to dress up as Father Christmas and terrorize the neighbors, she hoped that they actually recognized him. He was fairly new to the complex and hadn't really had time to be neighborly. "I hope no one hexes you." Maiko said cheerily. As she finished her glass of wine, her cheeks were taking on just a bit of rosiness. "CC Donovan would love it, if you want to start with her." 

"Sounds like you've got impeccable taste, Koko."

Her body shuddered involuntarily. She hated that nickname, with a fiery passion. It was horrible. It was... Infantilizing. It was not pleasing to the ear. Her eyes narrowed at him. Koko. Koko?! KOKO?!

He kept going, assuring that he'd get her home safely. Yes, she did deserve to have a good time to relax before going back to Hogwarts. She loved her job, and she missed the kids. However, Mai would never say that her job was a relaxing or easy one.

"Well, Dodo," Mai began,  "I don't really..." She shrugged, "I don't get angry at them. Frustrated, yes. But that doesn't help them at all. I'm used to explosive emotions, I'm used to people who bottle things up and hide. I don't always know how to handle it, but I try. And when I can help someone, it makes the shitty days worth it." She paused, "I couldn't imagine doing what you do. Aurors... Definitely don't have it easy."

Adon gave a wide-eyed, opened-mouth smile, an expression of mocking--and undoubtedly amused--shock on his face at the name.  Dodo was undoubtedly worse than Koko.  He didn't even get to calling her Kokomo yet.  Dodo--an extinct, idiotic bird? Really.

"Hey," he countered. "Easy there. Unless you want me to match and call you dumdum."  But it didn't sound like she was as dumdum as he was thinking, working with kids.  It sounded like she liked working with them. Weird. "Don't get me wrong," he backpedaled.  "I usually keep the homocidal tendencies in check with the children--but the mob mentality that kicks in with hormonal thinking..." They started moving in packs just prior to puberty.  He wouldn't wish that on anyone.

"Well, I mean," Adon shrugged at her compliment, deciding to diffuse it rather than acknowledge, "at least in my job, I get to punch people out if they really are awful."  Not that he'd have any experience in that... in fact, Adon had a bizarre record of keeping hitwizards from further violence...

Not that that had helped his own case in Israel.  The back of his head still hurt every time he thought about it.

"Reassuring to know we're in the right lines of work," he summed up, rubbing the back of his neck self-consciously.  "Though I'd love it if the press might take into account some of the difficulties..."  He cringed slightly--Maiko's statements over the wireless hadn't exactly made that easier on him.  In fact, he'd mostly stopped listening to that idiotic, yellow-journalism, laundry-airing show after that.  "And it's kind of you to say," he added, finally.  "Not many people understand that."

She cackled at his reaction to Dodo. Dumdum  It was better than she had expected it to be. Mai didn't even want to imagine what his revenge nickname would be. Not much could be worse than Koko. She was even more amused by the fact that he tried to backpetal even though she had taken no offense to the fact that he may have homicidal tendencies towards teenagers. Didn't most people?

Ignan Storm came to mind.  She imagined him hanging students from the rafters and she couldn't help but let out another laugh at the mental image, as horrible as it was.

"Reassuring to know we're in the right lines of work"

She nodded in agreement, and waited for him to continue. The press had been hard on the aurors, that much was certain. Mai respected what they did-- capturing dark wizards was not an easy task. She had her criticisms about them-- but most of all she was critical and suspicious of the ministry as a whole. There was too much going on for her to simply, ignore it.

"Do you really get to punch out people if they are really awful?" Mai finally asked curiously, "Because there's a couple former coworkers I've had that I wouldn't mind punching out." Though usually her policy was that she ended up not caring about them enough to hate them, which was almost worse.  "Or transfiguring them into a duck. Apparently, that's my go-to." She remembered the day she had done that to a bookstore owner who insisted on pestering her after she'd asked him to stop.[1]

That was a beautiful day.

1.	Another Day, Another Title

"Do you really get to punch out people if they are really awful?"

Adon waved the thought away.  "Nah, that is hitwizard work.  Mostly I have to hold the hitwizards back from those tendencies. Once a hitwizard hurled a mattress at a runner--a person of interest in a case.  Effective, but it didn't exactly do much for gaining his cooperation after the fact..."  Probably like how magiking Maiko hadn't exactly helped the relationship with her healer.

His eyebrow crooked at the mention of coworkers.  "It depends..." he said, cautiously. He dearly hoped she meant Aileen Reid.  She'd have to beat Jonas Trevelyan to the punch, probably, though.   "Are you trying to arrange a hit, or are you wanting training to do your own dirty work?"

Another pause.  "I don't think duck transfiguration is nearly as effective as punching. Though, you know, Krav Maga is all about using your natural instincts to your advantage to disable your opponent as quickly as possible so," he shrugged, "if that works for you..."