Another kind of fear (Jake/Marilyn)

The time was coming, he knew it. Felipe would not be able to hide his presence from his granddaughter for much longer. She was far too vigilant and to be honest, he had the feeling she was beginning to become suspicious. He just didn't know what to say.

But this was beginning to take too long. He couldn't stay hidden in London forever. For much longer, in fact.

So that was a deciding factor in his decision to face her. He walked towards her apartment feeling a nervousness he hadn't felt since the abduction. For all he knew she would hex him into oblivion- no. A soft inner voice reminded him, this was Mari. His granddaughter.
It was all a misunderstanding.

And he would show her that.
Today, today he would show her that. He was almost angry at himself for having waited so long, he was her grandfather and she surely needed him. After everything she'd been through, what she must've thought- The urge to see her, speak to her and hold her grew as his resolve became stronger than iron.

Head high and face in a slight frown of concentration he stood before her building. No doubt protected by charms, but somehow he'd find a way to- his thoughts were interrupted as the door swung open to reveal his granddaughters...boyfriend. At least, he thought, with the nights he seems to spend he'd better be her boyfriend.

"Newbury." He began gruffly, "I need to speak to Maritza- Mari." the words came out, tinted with the same lilt Marilyn carried in her own speech. Now in front of the chance to see her he realised he had no idea what to say other than that simple truth.

Having Jake around more and more often had Marilyn's general disposition taking a turn for the brighter. It had become somewhat routine that he'd come back home to her after work most days, though they hadn't really talked about it. She wasn't even sure when exactly it had become more often, but it simply had. And the witch was glad.

It was just...comfortable, to have him where. And exhilerating in those precious moments when she'd turn around and see him laying next to her, watching her in the mornings, the moments when her heart skipped a beat right before he'd kiss her good morning (he was always up before she was).

That being said she wasn't without her means to keep him in bed longer than he'd originally intended. Something the witch had succeeded in that 'morning' until she surrendered her grip on him long enough for him to get up and kiss her one last time before telling her he was going to pop off to get food for breakfast.

Ugh, getting up was vastly overrated. But she figured she could set the table whilst he was out. So she grabbed his shirt and pulled it on, buttoning the buttons as she walked to the bathroom to wash up a bit and pull on some shorts, oblivious to what was happening below.

--------

"I'm sorry, but I don't know anyone by that name, sir."
"Now don't give me that shit, boy, tell her I'm here, Felipe Ramirez," He stepped closer to him, his own hands balled to fists, voice low and growling, "If you don't tell my granddaughter I'm here I'll hex you to next week."

Gruffly Felipé nodded and crossed his arms as he waited for the boy to tell her about his arrival, nerves forgotten during the brief exchange.

The radio on Marilyn danced around to herself as she turned to get the glass bowl to put the fruit in. The first thing she registered was the use of her full name that had her turning around, bowl in hand to face him with concern.

"There's a man downstairs, claiming to be your grandfather. He said his name is... Felipe Ramirez-" *crash* the bowl fell from her hands and smashed into a thousand pieces as the entire witch froze, registering nothing more.

Her external may have been unresponsive her her mind was racing. Her grandfather- if it was really him- was there? How'd he find her? How did he know where to look? Why was he there? What could he possibly want, he'd left- that horrible, horrible night, just gone. Everything had fallen apart and it had been her fault- no. No it hadn't been her fault. She'd promised Jamie she wouldn't think that anymore.

Did she want to see him? Of course, shot straight into her head, of course she wanted to see him. But only if he wasn't mad. Only if he didn't blame her. But for that she had no guarantee.

What if it wasn't him? An imposter, a widow, a dark wizard? Just posing as him?
Minutes passed and it wasn't even apparent if she was even breathing is how still she was.
Suddenly Mari felt warmth near her and she looked up sharply to see Jake's worried eyes, "Let him in." she replied, tone neutral as she summoned her wand from the table to her hand.

Kissing him back softly the aspiring auror nodded and held her wand tightly as he left, holding his hand in her free one until he was too far away, eyes locked until the last moment. Then she shifted, holding herself on the counter subtly to make sure she was steady when whoever it was walked into her flat.
----

Felipe raised an eyebrow when the boy came outand requested his wand. He needn't have said that it wasn't Marilyns request, he knew she wouldn't ask that of the metal charmer. But he complied with a low, "Be careful with it, boy." as he moved past him without looking, now focused solely on the fact that he was so close to seeing her again, properly.

Slowly, so slowly it felt, he approached a door that he gingerly pushed open to reveal his tense granddaughter, standing proud as she always had when she was nervous or anxious, nose up the slightest bit, lower lip stiffer than usual.

"Maritza..." he breathed as he saw her posture loosen slightly, but she kept her wand up.
---

At the sight of the member of her family she nearly stopped breathing,fighting the urge to relax and run to him. Jagger stood beside her, teeth bared and hackles raised, ready to protect Mari at all costs. The witch didn't let down her guard; she wasn't who she'd been before and had a duty to fulfill. She had to be sure...

"¿Qué te dije cuando me dijiste una vez fuimos todas las estrellas?" She asked, muscles tense as she waited for the answer that came immediatly,
"Abuelo, creo que todavía soy uno de ellos." his voice shook with emotion as he reached out his arms to her, "Maritza, mi nieta, venir en mis brazos."

Her face crumpled as she rushed forward into his embrace and he held her close, almost as if he wasn't sure this was real. And Mari felt similarily. She couldn't believe this was happening. That he was there, holding her, that he still seemed to see her as his family.

This was reaffirmed by his murmured apologies and warm words of affection as he stroked her hair and she buried her face in the crook of his neck, breathing in the familiar smell she hadn't experienced in so long. Even Jagger, who had now somewhat relaxed his stance, trotted up to where Jake was, almost standing guard, just in case, but all in all he seemed to accept Marilyn's signals that there was no threat and licked Jakes wand hand to make sure he understood as well.

Slowly coming back to the real world she pulled back slightly, looking up at Jake with a million emotions reflected in her features. Gratitude, anxiety, affection, grief... Finally regaining her voice she straightened, her hand still on her grandfathers shoulder, shifting her gaze back to the man beside her.

"I thought you'd left, that night..." The old man sighed, "It was a mistake. Your m- she was being impossible- " he glanced at Jake, unsure of whether or not Mari had told him what had happened, so he kept that part vague, "We fought and I left, but just to calm down! Maritza, I never wanted to leave you." he pressed a kiss to her hand and held it tightly, "I needed to tell you that you weren't to blame, but...I couldn't find you."

"I didn't want to be found." she admitted quietly, trying to process what he'd now told her. Then she turned to Jake, letting go of her grandfather just to walk over to him, glancing back at Felipe as if afraid he was going to disappear,
"Jake," she murmured, holding his hands, "I promise to explain everything to you later, I swear, but could you go get food and when you return we can eat and I will explain. Trust me." she pressed a tender kiss to his cheek and looked up at him as she spoke.

When she was alone with Felipe again they sat down on the couch and began to talk. He told her how he'd found her and how he had disowned his daughter for her inhuman behavior and Marilyn didn't know how to feel about it. Honestly she generally shut down where her ex-mothers were concerned and this wasn't much different, Mari simply tried to move on to the next topic point instead. Which was how much they had missed each other.

The young woman summarised her time after leaving together, telling him of Jake, Jagger and her training and he told her he couldn't have been prouder. And that her grandmother would tell her the same if she were here. And that she was so, so loved.
Despite the emotional turmoil, the witch didn't shed a tear, it was like she just was not yet ready to cry.

By the time Jake arrived, which was quite a bit later than normal to get groceries, Marilyn was just hanging up the floo with her grandparents the Caldwells who had generously offered Felipe a place to stay.
"Jake!" The witch had smiled, rushing up to take the food out of his hands, "I suppose now you can give him his wand back and officially meet my grandfather. Abuelo, this is my boyfriend, Jake Newbury." Mari set the groceries on the table and bit her lip, giving her grandfather a subtle look to be nice.

Felipe nodded at his granddaughters boyfriend, still skeptical of the ex-athlete, but mainly because he was dating his granddaughter. "Newbury." he extended his hand, voice gruff as ever.

"He's going to stay with my other grandparents, heading over there now, so we can...talk." she finished, uncertain if Jake was alright with the concept of talking to her about this, if meeting her grandfather had been too much, if she was too complicated- Whoa there, Marilyn, slow down, she mentally pulled the breaks and simply attempted to remain some kind of calm. Jagger pressed his nose into her open palm that hung at her side and licked her fingers to soothe her and she took a deep breath.

Her grandfather held her close for a long hug and kissed her cheek whispering that he'd see her soon before he disappeared in the green flames.
Taking a deep breath the young witch turned to face the man behind her.
"I...don't know where to start...."

Most fears washed away as he pulled her into the familiar embrace and kissed with emotions she couldn't all place, but what she certainly sensed was relief from him. Reassured by his gestures she closed her eyes and melted into the kiss, responding in kind and letting him just hold her and her feel the comfort of the embrace.

Eyes still closed she listened to his words, her forehead on his chest, then letting him lead her to the kitchen where she sat at the counter beside where he stood, beginning with preparations.

Grabbing a napkin absentmindedly she picked at it as she began, just to have something to do with her hands.

"The start. Well. Okay." she took a deep breath, eyes fixed on the table, "When I...was kidnapped, my family began to fall apart. Well, I say family, they were my family then. Jamie disappeared for a year long drinking spree. My english grandparents tore the wizarding world apart trying to find me and Felipé stayed with- with my mothers." The witch took another shaky breath, forcing her voice to be even.

"I was adopted by two witches; Faith and Mona. When I was taken Mona became...unresponsive. I don't know details, all I know is that the whole time she basically didn't get out of bed and Mum- Faith, was losing it and the twins were completely devastated. A few months before I escaped the local offices declared me dead and they'd started to accept that I was never coming back. But I did." The napkin was now mere shreds in shivering fingers and she was staring to intently at the wood of the counter it looked like it had caused her personal offence.

"They weren't- prepared," Marilyn stated carefully, "For the...difference. For...me." she looked like she was far away in her memories, gaze glazed over sightly, "I remember when I was in the hospital Mo- Mona said she wished I was still dead." The witch's voice had gone gravely quiet and soft, almost as if she was telling him a secret, which in a way, she was.

Shaking her head slightly to bring herself back she carried on, tone almost overly flippant, a defense mechanism,

"Long story short everything fell apart, the twins blamed me, Mona acted like I didn't exist and after a bit Faith did, too. She was disowned for it. Grandma Gwen blasted her from the tapestry. Mona was disowned, too, but I didn't know that until now. I recieved the offer of compensation and protection from the ministry, protection Gwen and Grandpa Evan knew of and they were signed to silence. Felipe and Mona fought and he left, until now I hadn't known that the fight was her being disowned. He left to cool off and I thought he blamed me as well so I accepted the ministry offer and left. A few days later I met you."

Swallowing the witch closed her eyes and took a deep breath, exhaling slowly through her nose as she automatically tried to bury the memory again, not sure if she wanted to see his reaction.

"I'm so sorry..."

Holding his hand tightly the witch pressed her lips together in a tight line, struggling slightly to keep her composure as she listened and felt his tender gestures of reassurance. It felt like a weight falling from her shoulders, to know he was truly there for her and it struck her suddenly how intimate they had become, she'd known how much he meant to her and she wasn't utterly oblivious but it seemed she had underestimated his level of affection for her.

"It never came up and I wouldn't have told you if you'd asked. I don't think about it. Bottling my emotions has worked so far." she shrugged, sobering up right after, "I'm sorry. I tend to...understate things. Makes them easier to ignore." Mari admitted, wrapping her arms around his neck and finally looking him in the eyes.

"I'm sorry, it's not that I didn't trust you, quite the contrary. I trust you...so much." the witch whispered, "And you mean so much to me, I just- I didn't want to make things heavy or difficult, I didn't know how you'd react, if you- if you would be willing to take on my...very strange life, like this." She stumbled around the words, unable to put it directly.

"And I will never see them again, I'm sure they've made sure of that. I am officially, once again, parentless." Quickly adding on, "But that's okay. I mean, it's not Okay, but I'm-okay. I have Jamie, my grandparents, all of them now. I have you..."

Marilyn whispered, leaning in to give him a long kiss, trying to convey how grateful she was to have him, lips warm against each other and the familiar taste of mint on her tongue as her hands moved to gently cup his face, her tenderness speaking what she couldn't put into words.

At his urgent whispers she met his gaze, surprised by his words and tone and she nodded quietly. "Even if you can't tell me, please don't bottle them up... write them down?" Oh bollocks, she thought. Again Marilyn's attention was diverted to the thought she most often bottled up. She could't say no to Jake Newbury.

"Please don't think I'll run away, not for something that wasn't your fault. Not for anything."
Again the witch stared in shock. As horrible as it may sound, it had truly never occurred her that Jake could feel anywhere near as much for her as she did for him- not because she thought he lacked the capacity. But because she didn't think she was...enough.

The realisation was horrifying and it was reflected in her expression openly as her eyes remained wide. All she could do was nod and melt into the kiss that came, protesting softly when he pulled away but letting him because she was hungry, amongst many other emotions.

"When will your grandfather be over again?"
Coming more out of the realization-induced reverie Marilyn blinked before answering, "Ehm- Whenever we invite him, I didn't want to make plans without talking to you first. He's staying at my grandparents place."

"It's your flat, Mari."

The reminder sparked a small laugh from the woman, "True, and I know. It's just that you're here so often it just didn't really occur to me not to talk to you about it." she shrugged, moving to help by getting glasses and drinks, "I would really like it if you were there." she added before deciding to later go over her day planner to see what dates would work.

"Jamie's parents are your other grandparents, right?"

"Yes, Gwen and Evan. Gwen is actually from Massachusetts, but she moved to England when she was sixteen. And Evan is simply English. They live in the Cotswolds." The young woman opened the fridge, "What do you want to drink?" she asked, pulling out water for herself as she awaited his answer before bringing him his drink and sitting diagonally to him at the table. Before they tucked in or could even pick up their cutlery the witch leaned over to give him another long, sweet kiss.

"Thank you. For everything." she replied to the slightly questioning look she recieved after pulling back from the kiss. Smiling Marilyn took a sip from her water and calmly looked at the man beside her for a moment before starting to eat, thinking to herself that he was certainly more than she'd expected and that she couldn't be happier about it.