Her Other Home

[arianna]

This wasn't how Arianna had expected to spend her vacation. As Che had been so kind to point out, she wouldn't have to deal with this if she had just continued to stay home over the rest of the summer instead of insisting on visiting the Thorntons. She had promised Drew she would visit, though. A big part of her also wanted to see how well he was doing; something that she couldn't actually see from the short letters he usually sent. Drew might say everything was fine to keep Arianna from worrying, but that didn't mean everything really was fine.

Ah, but back to the problem. The nuisance, one might say. Yes, what exactly was putting the girl in a bad mood now? That was simple to answer once one saw the man and woman standing beside her. The woman, had been smart enough to dress in a simple casual pant suit and could pass off as a muggle. The man, though, seemed oddly attached to his poncho and cowboy hat. Both of which he wore with a pair of tan slacks and a polo shirt. He did have a bit of a Hispanic look to him, though, so Arianna hoped any prying neighbors might mistake him as some lost emigrant from Mexico. Both were aurors and both were getting on Arianna's nerves. The two of them were fine people, really. But when one knew why they were following Arianna around, one could see why she was so upset. They were just babysitters in her eyes and she knew she was far too old to need anyone watching over her. Her parents had insisted, though, and wouldn't have let her visit if she didn't agree to it.

Arianna wasn't sure why the MoM had been so happy to oblige, though. Maybe a show of some sort? To make the populace believe they were doing what they could to keep another rumored potential kidnap victim safe? Or perhaps they were attempting to catch the criminal should he/she try to make a go of it? Or maybe they really did care about her well being. No. Arianna was certain that wasn't it. All she knew was that she couldn't be here without them. She also sensed that others might've been watching besides the two standing with her at the door. Her parents had said something about sending someone from Qui-lin along who could communicate any happenings with them in a much more efficient and quicker fashion than any of the aurors could. She knew they meant well, but that didn't make it any easier on her.

Biting back the urge to tell the aurors, in a very rude manner, that they could leave her now and that she would be quite safe, Arianna stepped to the door and rang the bell, hoping someone would answer quickly. She was tired and frustrated and desperately wanted to shut herself up in a private room and rest.

[Drew Thornton]

"GOT IT!" Drew hollared from upstairs and within seconds his feet were thundering down the staircase. He had spent most of his summer so far at his grandparents' ranch and it had been surprisingly good for him. His grandmother had even commented that she thought that the daily surfing (she also included her high teas, but Drew argued that point) was doing more good than his twice weekly appointments at the hospital.

His mother peeked out from the kitchen just as he jumped over the last foot of banister and hopped to the front door. As soon as he swung it open, he grabbed the girl on the other side, swinging her into a bear hug. "You made it!" he cried out enthusistically.

[arianna]

"Oomf!" Arianna let out as nearly all the air was forced from her lungs. It was nice to see Drew in such a good mood. Their last moments together hadn't been the best. Especially since Arianna had seemed to piss him off during the last feast of the year and had spent the next day worrying that she might do the same again.

"Yeah. I'm here," the girl's voice came out muffled as her head was squashed against Drew's shoulder. She lifted her arms up and around him to return the hug as tightly as she could.

[Drew Thornton]

He swung her around once more before letting her down and for the first time he seemed to notice the other two wizards in the entry way. "Drew Thornton... Thank you for coming. Do you want to come in?" He asked them, motioning to the living room. He knew they were there to protect Arianna, but wasn't quite sure how long they were supposed to stick around. His mother had set up the guest room just in case.

[arianna]

The woman eyed Drew with a critical, if slightly suspicious eye. She clearly took this job seriously and would observe all who came near Arianna, whether the girl trusted them or not. The man, however, seemed to take on to the boy fairly quickly and gave him a great toothy grin. Arianna might've liked him if he hadn't spent most of the trip telling her what she could and couldn't do and how she had to notify him should there be plans for any major trips from the Thornton household.

"Ah, yes, but only for a quickie," the man made to wipe his shoes off before stepping inside, holding his hand out to Drew as though to shake hands. The woman slowly followed inside, eying everything in the room with her suspicious and distrustful eyes. "We must talk to your parents about...everything....rules and precautions.....My name is Haji and this is my....partner, Nadia," he made a quick motion with his head toward the woman then lowered his voice to add with a laughing smile, "She doesn't talk much, so don't bother trying to make any small talk....or big talk, for that matter."

[Drew Thornton]

"We got the debriefing paperwork and the only question we really had was to make sure going to Disneyland and my grandparent's house would be alright," Drew told the man, clapping him on the shoulder as he led the way to the seating area. There was a small twinkle in his eye and while part of him felt this was a bit silly, another part of him totally understood the precautionary measures. He was was dead serious about making sure Ari would be safe.

His mother came out of the kitchen with a pleasant smile and a tray carrying an ice tea service. She placed the tray on the coffee table and with a quick wipe of her hand on her capris, offered her hand to the body guards. "Thank you for coming," she said, echoing her son's words and she motioned for them to take a seat as she poured the tea.

[arianna]

Arianna grinned at the mention of Disneyland and grinned even wider when Haji mentioned that they could make arrangements for such a trip. Even the prospect of having an auror hanging around nearby didn't bother her. A few goes on the Tea Cups and possibly getting a little wet on Splash Mountain would be enough for her to forget she had any body guards around.

As the tea was passed around, Arianna shuffled around to take a seat as far away from the aurors as possible. Haji sat down on the couch and Nadia stood beside him, refusing the tea with a polite wave of her hand.

"New," Haji replied as though it would explain everything about Nadia's manner. He took a small sip of the tea and smiled. "One of these days I will get her to have some fun. For now, we must discuss things as I'm sure you know. We will have at least two aurors watching the house at all hours, plus a few of Miss Arianna's family's own guard."

Haji then went into a detailed explanation of how things would work. There would always be someone watching the house and someone watching Arianna, should she leave it. Any suspicious activity noted by the family should be reported immediately. He also told them what signals they should use to bring the aurors out of their hiding places. They were all things Arianna had heard multiple times during her travel to the Thornton's and it was all just as exciting now as it was the first time she had heard it. So much so she had drifted off and was unaware when the aurors took their leave after thanking Mrs. Thornton for her family's cooperation.

[Drew Thornton]

As Haji started speaking, Mrs. Thornton took a seat near Arianna, putting an arm around her and giving her a warm squeeze. She had a number of things to ask the man, but he spoke so quickly she couldn't get much in. Their own magical government had deemed the whole incident as low in danger, deciding that if the Thornton household were in any real danger, the Deva would have killed Drew when they had the chance (a decision she and Mark had not been very happy to hear).

"The Thornton Compound in Santa Barbara is quite an expanse piece of property and quite secure," she mentioned. "Drew's grandmother was wondering if you and your people would need accomdations when the kids go up there." The elder Mrs. Thornton was not pleased at the prospect, feeling like it was extremely unnecessary considering the land was unplottable, but she was willing to do whatever these people wanted.

Drew wasn't very happy with all of the security either. Sure, he still had his jumpy moments, but he was pretty confident he and Ari could take care of things for the most part, especially now that they knew what was out there. He wasn't stupid enough to think the danger had passed, but the way this guy was talking, it sounded like he wanted the Ravenclaws penned up 24/7 and on leashes or something if they were given the privlidge of going out. He looked over at Ari and gave her a little smirk. No, he wasn't going to do something stupid like ditch these people, but he's still find a way to make sure she had fun.

[arianna]

The Thornton Compound. Yes, Arianna had told the aurors about that and they had been sure to check up on it....as much as one could on uplottable land. The aurors were certain they would not need to be within the grounds at all times, though they would be sure to check up on things when the kids should choose to visit the Compound. As with all unplottable lands, the aurors were certain that if they couldn't get onto the property without knowing how to get there, how could the bad guys? They would, however, need to know the access points and be able to check on anyone who entered the Compound while Arianna was there. Just to be safe, of course. Haji did note, however, that the security Arianna's parents had sent would be another story. They may want to keep an even closer eye on the girl than the aurors felt necessary when on unplottable land. Haji even commented that the "special" security was a bit odd and hard to communicate with, adding a few other words that would have caused Arianna to scowl at him had she been listening and not snoozing against Mrs. Thornton's shoulder.

"Anymore questions?" Haji asked, raising his eyebrows slightly with the question. He was eager to get back to his work and check up on the rest of the aurors and, if he could get the patience to deal with them, talk to those guys from Qui-lin. Where ever the heck that was.

[Drew Thornton]

Drew flashed a smirk at Ari, thinking he could be a smart alec and ask a bunch of stupid questions or just let them go. He decided that going the question route would only make them more nervous about leaving Arianna with them, so he shook his head, looking at his mother to see if she had any more.

"If we have any, I'm sure we'll be able to get a hold of you," Dolores answered, standing up to show the Aurors out.

[arianna]

"Than we will leave Miss Shriver to get settled in," Haji stood and gave a small bow to Drew before heading to the door behind Mrs. Thornton. Without a shoulder to support her, Arianna snapped awake, shaking her head to get the sleepiness out as she waved half-heartedly at the two aurors.

"Thank goodness," she muttered behind a yawn. Arianna then turned to Drew with a small smile and a shrug. "It's mum and dad's doing really. They're really paranoid and I think the ministry's only doing it because they need good relations with Qui-lin. I don't know if they'd really care otherwise."

[Drew Thornton]

"Who cares. They're finally gone," Drew answered with a mischievious grin as he jumped up and grabbed Ari by the wrist, yanking her up as well. "I got us crepe stuff yesterday," he told her excitedly, pulling her towards the kitchen.

[arianna]

"Yeah?" Arianna's eyes lit up. She hadn't realized until Drew mentioned food that she was dreadfully hungry. She'd only brought a small snack along for the trip and whatever the aurors had brought hadn't been very appetizing. It was hard enough to look at the stuff without wanting to throw up. Add in the smell and...well, it was easy to say that Arianna had spent a good deal of time in the bathroom at that little cafe.

"I'm starving," the girl claimed, stepping up the pace to get to the kitchen.

[Drew Thornton]

"You will be cleaning up, won't you?" Drew's mother called after them, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah, mom... sure," Drew answered as if he didn't really mean it. As he led Ari into the kitchen, he dropped her arm and presented the counters with a flourish worthy of Vanna White. He had spent the last hour arranging any and every ingredient he could think of on the counter, ready for whatever masterpieces they decided to create.

[arianna]

Arianna looked over the counter and smiled the biggest smile she'd been able to muster all summer. Drew must've been really excited to have her visit if he had gone to the trouble of getting everything to make crepes. Not just getting them, but also setting them out like this so they wouldn't be digging for ingredients.

"You mean you haven't cooked them yet?" Arianna teased, raising an eyebrow at the boy. She shook her head and went straight to the pile of stuff, grabbing the mixing bowl, eggs and flour. Arianna was far too hungry to wait much longer.