Freezing our asses off because....?

Khaat was taking a short cut back from another errand in Knockturn and Diagon Alley. She had shrunk her packages and dropped them into her large leather messenger bag. Brian did not expect her for hours yet. Well, maybe not tonight at all. She had expected to work all night, and was on her way back to St. Mungos.

She was chilled tonight, and she had chosen black leather gloves and her long black cloak with its full hood. It touched the ground and hid the achingly tall black stilletto boots she had gone back to wearing. She still used the black walking stick with the large amethyst in the top. Beneath the cloak, she wore a long black sweater dress with a black leather belt.

She had immersed herself back into her work lately, but the crunch of the snow under her feet and the bitterly cold night air hitting her face was something she barely noticed. She noticed the sound more than the cold. She saw a figure against the settling darkness, and, where she would have made a move to perhaps even make an initial grasp on her wand, she let it pass.

Then she realized who it was. Matt. She was glad he had taken some time off after Emmy's death. He had enough on his plate without anything more. As far as she knew, Matt had yet to meet Arabella, and she had no intention of even bringing that subject up to him. Arabella's timing sucked. The last thing he needed was another child in his life. Even if that child was a new, young adult. Matt needed adult companionship now. Arabella didn't fill that bill, much as she had appeared to be a nice young woman.

She didn't speak until she got within hearing distance and then said to Matt quietly, "What are you doing out here, Matt?"

"If you're going to kick stones, you can't lose the stone," she told him. "Makes it hard to continue the game. And when Brian and I were kids, the game wasn't over until we'd kicked the stone into a hole of some sort. Sometimes we kicked the same stone around for weeks." She pointed her finger at the stone he'd been kicking and motioned it to slide back across the ground to lay in front of his shoe. "Try again," she said. "I won't even take any points from you for that." She paused for a moment before she spoke again.

"Matt," she said, "why don't you bring the kids and come stay with Brian and Angus and me for awhile? It would give you some space away from some of the intense memories, and would give you some help with the kids as well. The estate is huge. The main house has ten bedrooms--seven of them are empty, and the grounds cover more acres than I can keep track of. Its one of the most peaceful places I've ever known. If you don't want to stay in the house with us, there's a 4 bedroom guest house that is completely unused. You can use it as long as you want. Personally, I'd feel better if you were closer. You should be with family right now--you should be with us."

The estate would be a good change for him. It had endless acres of woods, meadows, and a stables with horses. It had layers of protective enchantments, and no one could even find it unless Khaat or Brian gave them a portkey to it. To the best of her knowledge, Matt hadn't ever been there, but maybe now was the right time. Maybe now, getting away and letting them all help with the kids was just what Matt needed. It wasn't like it was going to cramp them or anything. The log style mansion was enormous. It dwarfed her parent's farm, which was just minutes away.

She really wanted Matt to be closer. She didn't like how alone he was, how secluded he had become. She realized he was fully entitled, but she really didn't want him to be alone. She didnt' want his grief to deepen. She knew he knew he needed to work through it and not to become victim to it. She knew first hand what it was like for grief to take one hostage. She had been there--more than once. She just didnt talk about hers anymore. And she didn't want to see what she had been through happen to Matt.

"Come home, Matt," she said softly. "You're family. I do understand the hell you're in. I really do. I just don't want you to be there alone."

"Matt," Khaat said. "I can't answer what's happened with Soph. The ministry heard some rumors that perhaps she was being held again against her will, but we haven't been able to confirm or deny that. But you know as well as I do that she knows she has a job at St. Mungos. You know she knows how to find Brian, my father, me, my mother, all of us. If she finds the house is closed, she'll know to come to us to find you. Soph is smart. And she would never decide to not ever see you again. That just won't ever happen. She loves you. If she finds the house closed, she'll come hunting us. I know the world seems completely upside down right now, but I do know that when she comes back, she'll come looking for the people that she loves. She also knows that we'd know where you are.

"And you're right. You could use some help with the kids. But they need to be surrounded with family right now too. They need us, just like you do. Come on. Its cold out here. Let's go warm up. You in the mood for a firewhiskey? I'll buy. Besides, it'll keep me from going back to that stack of year-end financial reports that are on my desk."

Actually, Matt looked like he needed a stiff glass of firewhiskey, and Khaat, well, she hadn't found many men that she couldn't outdrink. It just didn't seem to affect her much. She was betting they'd end up with Matt rip roaring drunk and her being the designated spellcaster. Otherwise, he was going to end up sending himself sideways through the floo network or something.

She looped her arm around his. "Come on. You'd be amazed at how very smooth some of that top shelf firewhiskey can be," she smiled. "Shoot, I might even have to teach you how to enjoy a really great cigar."

"You're on," Khaat smiled. "And we'll be fine with the kids. So, let's go to the Leaky. They have a few bottles of some pretty nice top shelf firewhiskey that they don't break into very often. My father introduced me to some of their better stuff not long ago. I like it a lot better. It has a smoother taste and sort of a smoky aftertaste to it. "

"And I'm not going to even listen to that 'im-just-staying-a-few-weeks crap. You're family. You stay as long as you want. Besides you really do need to get to know your goddaughter. Abbey and Dakata are crawling, eating finger foods, and starting to talk. Dakota likes to chase one of the cats behind the sofa every chance she gets. Abbey, well, she's the quieter of the two. Abbey is a cuddler. Dakota is pure energy.

She walked down to the Leaky with Matt and went inside. The bartender greeted her and asked if she wanted her usual. "Not tonight, Tom," Khaat smiled. "I've had enough coffee for now. How about you break out a bottle of your top shelf stuff and a couple of glasses?"

"Your father's choice?" he asked.

"Please."

"I'll be right back." Tom excused himself and went downstairs to the cellar and returned with a bottle of fine, aged firewhiskey, dusting off the bottle. He uncorked it and smelled it and smiled. "That's the stuff, alright," he said. "I didn't know you drank this, Khaat."

"Usually only at home," she smiled, laying down several sickles on the bar. He handed her the bottles and the glasses. "Shall we find a table?" Khaat asked Matt.