Your love's affecting our reality... (Jozalea)

Subject: Your love's affecting our reality... (Jozalea) Mon May 27, 2019 8:25 pm

Summer had come back around much quicker than Josh would have imagined. Of course, time moved in exactly the same manner it always did, nothing about how fast the clock turned changed in reality, but it was the anticipation of his Azalea's return that made it feel like time had sped up just to allow him to take the witch back in his arms once more. It shouldn't have been surprising, the same feeling came each week without fail as Friday faded from being and his Azalea returned to Wales where she belong.

But it still caught the blonde off guard.

Hogwarts' term had finished, though, which brought his Azalea back to Wales for the foreseeable future. Until September, there would be precious little that could take his Azalea away from him for extended periods of time, and even those things that might try to ensnare the witch's attention, Josh would find a way of removing from their path.

His Azalea's return had been celebrated thoroughly in the first couple of days of her return. The large dinner that had been served the first night she'd returned had been just the starter to the celebrations. From dinner, they'd retired to their rooms and hadn't been seen until the early afternoon of the next day. Ethan had been waiting for them to tour the gardens for the rest of the afternoon, a picnic hamper arriving for them as they sat watching their son playing with the fresh batch of toys he'd just received to further encourage the development curve he was working through. Ethan had remained amused for long enough for both adults to enjoy themselves and eat through a good portion of the food, before he'd opted to come and lay between the lounging adults. Ethan had drifted off peacefully in a mid afternoon slumber against his Azalea, and Josh had watched the witch watching their son until the son had gone down across the estate.

Much of the following week had been spent in the same manner, catching up on everything they had missed out upon from his Azalea's job keeping her away from Murray Manor. Their son's development had been high on the agenda, too, with Josh insisting Azalea be a part of the learning process of Ethan's. But throughout this, his Azalea had seemed distracted.

It hadn't really dawned on Josh that there might be things his Azalea needed to do outside their little family, but he'd noticed a week in to the summer holidays when he'd found his Azalea had left that morning before breakfast. It was unlike the witch to not eat with Ethan and him, so after finishing his own breakfast, Josh had left the table without another word, the staff falling in to place around him to deal with Ethan's breakfast and the rest of the boy's morning.

His Azalea had left for the grounds earlier that morning with Darr, the staff had explained, and Josh waited through breakfast to see if it was a simple morning stroll that would see her returned to help Ethan through breakfast, or something more. The fact his Azalea had not returned pointed Josh to the latter, and it didn't settle well with him.

It took very little time for Josh to find the duo, having placed a subtle magical tracker on the wolf, Josh had apparated a short distance away to ensure he did not spook the witch. His Azalea was perusing the greenhouses he'd gifted her when he arrived, a distracted look upon her features.

"You missed breakfast this morning." Josh stated, not in the manner of food, he'd been assured the witch had eaten, but in respect of the normal activities of their family unit. Another time, he might have sounded annoyed at the lack of cooperation from the witch. Had she been another person. But Josh couldn't be annoyed with his Azalea.

Moving to the witch, Josh's arms carefully wrapped themselves around his Azalea, drawing her back flush to his body as they looked over the plants together.

"Something's bothering you." The man continued, a statement even though he couldn't be sure about that much. It was the most logical of reasons, though. "Tell me what it is, I can fix it."

The words were spoken with sincerity, how could they not be? Josh would move heaven and earth for his Azalea, and whatever was worrying her, he would take care of it, so she didn't have to be preoccupied by it any longer.

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The summer of 2026 denoted Azalea's full year of working at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. And while the witch more than enjoyed what she did and was grateful for the time it allowed her to spend if not with her daughter than at least around her, the brunette also knew that her time at the school would come to an end if she did not fulfill the initial requirements outlined by Headmaster Andrei Kessler at her appointment. The pressure to work on her thesis was mounting and inspiration had yet to strike. It also didn't help of course that she had limited time to work on personal projects while at school. Her university was still trying to help Azalea play catch up but the witch was certain she was on the same level as her colleagues right now. Catching up on ten years worth of magical advancement was no joke and the monthly tests she had been taking proved that. But thanks to the large supply of resources in the Murray library, the Hogwarts library as well as the magic of the internet, she was fairly sure she was caught up.

Of course, the urgency of trying to outline and present an idea for her research had only been impressed at the end of the school term as Azalea had stood organizing the students taking the train back to King's Cross. Headmaster Kessler had dropped in and subtly mentioned he looked forwards to seeing her findings at the start of September which had made her guiltily realize she had nothing. Azalea had resolved to start on the project as soon as she arrived at Murray Manor that evening, only to find out that Josh was additionally imbued with the power to manipulate time.

A week had gone by in blissful serenity as they celebrated her return to the large house that was slowly becoming more home than Furz Croft. In fact, Azalea reflected one morning as she dismissed the nanny and opted to feed Ethan his breakfast herself, she hand't been back to Furz Croft for more than a night or two in over a year.

And she was pretty sure neither had dad. While Azalea never kept track of ehr father in the traditional sense, every time she spoke to Clara, she was only told he was in the US, probably utilizing Harrington Home to do unspeakable things. The psychic on the other hand had finally taken a shine to the rainy English countryside and stayed sometimes for months, other times escaping to America with Kit Azalea presumed. With Mimosa spending so little time in the US, Clara had admitted there was really no reason for her to stick around there. The confessor had left Azalea wondering if she too had been the source of such sadness when she was travelling everywhere during her teenage years.

But all that had once again been forgotten when Josh walked into the room, a very telling look in his eyes. The meals, the picnics, the walks, the private moments hidden from the world, watching Ethan progress, all of it had been enough to think about, keeping the more unpleasant thoughts of looming deadlines at bay. The amount of natural sleep the brunette was getting showed in her eyes and in her demeanor. most days, Azalea divided ehr time equally between Josh and Ethan, especially since Ethan had begun to speak now. The first time he'd addressed her as "Mama", Azalea had to fight the tears hard but now it was an ordinary occurrence. The nannies were trying to correct his vocabulary to "mother" but Azalea secretly preferred the former.

If it wasn't for Mimosa, the witch thought as she lay in bed that night, Josh already asleep with one arm still wrapped comfortingly around her, she would probably leave Hogwarts to dedicate all her time to the little boy who thought of her as his only mother. Every week during the school term that she saw him, he seem to change a little more. One week he had learned the word "want", another week he could raise his hand and beckon people. It killed her a little to miss all the small milestones but she had two children so completely away from each other, and keeping up with every second of both of their development was neigh impossible.

Azalea had been so wrapped up in everything that the though of her research had slipped from her mind almost completely, that was until she had woken up with a start one morning a week into ehr stay. What had caused such an abrupt awakening, the witch wasn't sure off bu moving across to the divided that separated their room from Ethan's, Azalea found the baby's cot empty. One of the nannies had probably taken him for his morning bath. Looking across to Josh who still remained asleep, the witch made a quick decision. She could be back in time for breakfast. And a walk devoid of Josh shaped distractions might even provide for some inspiration.

Ten minutes later, she was changed into a pair of jeans (she had had to dig a little to find it in the closet which now almost exclusively consisted of dresses and heels) and a dark green turtleneck to ward off the morning chill. Calling Darr was easy as the wolf reacted more to her presence than a whistle of any kind. unnecessarily whispering to the wolf that they had to be quiet, Azalea and the beast set out towards the Greenhouse.

The rows of plants were maintained impeccably in the glass structure even tough it wasn't Azalea who had done so. Josh's love of gardening showed in the way everything was kept just so. Flowers, herbs, equipment, everything organized by category and design, it was all great to look at but nothing in it was inspiring. The brief idea Azalea had been toying with about combination potions unfurled its tentacles in her mind only to look at the pristine greenhouse and retreat into hibernation once more.

"You missed breakfast this morning."

The witch blinked, not having realized she was no longer alone. Of course Darr hadn't made a sound, why would he at Josh's entrance? Though Azalea could almost swear the blond was quieter than his wolf at times.

"I did?" she questioned, looking up at the sky and the very prominently risen sun. The guilt latched on to her cone more at having missed Ethan in the morning but not for long. As Josh moved closer to her, proving no harm done, the witch found herself feeling lighter. He always made her feel that way, as if the world was secondary when it came to just them.

Perceptive as usual, he noted that something was bothering her, adding that he could fix it which made Azalea shake her head in amusement. "I came out here looking for inspiration," she admitted, gesturing to the greenhouse at large. "I promised Professor Kessler I would come up with a decent research proposal by September. And I have not even started on it."

Turning around to face him, still embraced closely by the wizard, Azalea flashed a teasing smile his way. "So how do you intend to fix that, Mr. Murray?"

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Your love's affecting our reality... (Jozalea) Rsz_gr10

Your love's affecting our reality... (Jozalea) Rsz_az10

Your love's affecting our reality... (Jozalea) Rsz_li10

The amusement on the witch's lips, followed by the shake of her head made Josh simply wait for her reply, unmoved by the notion she did not believe him to be capable of actually making anything change for the witch. But Josh knew he could do exactly that, and in time, so would his Azalea.

The explanation came, though, of what was bothering his Azalea, the gentle reminder of the project she'd been given about a year ago when she'd accepted the job at Hogwarts. Joshua had always assumed that to be something of a term applied to the contract simply to appease the board that operated the school rather than something that truly needed to be adhered to, but his Azalea had taken it seriously. Simply waving the matter away would not be something his Azalea would likely agree to in this moment.

As the witch turned in his arms, Josh's lips turned in to the small, pleasant smile that appeared more often than not when the witch was around. Only a hint of a smile, nothing more, but only an expression his Azalea could bring from him.

"So how do you intend to fix that, Mr. Murray?"

"How would you like it fixed, A-Azalea?" The man returned, his eyebrow raising a fraction before going back in to it's usual position. "But I have ideas.

"You could play on the Headmaster's memory, and hope he would forget." The blonde offered as his first solution, and though the amusement might not shine brightly from the male, it was clear enough that he did not mean this option to be one they would actually follow.

"Or, you could ask the Headmaster for an extension, citing that creativity cannot be forced, and though you do not yet have your own research idea in flow, you're working on trying to find a field that suits you." Josh continued, this time the offer of a solution much more serious in nature.

"You could seek your inspiration by hiding away in the greenhouse for the summer, and leave Ethan and I to spend our time without your company, which would be detrimental to all of us..." The third option came, but both of them knew that this was never going to happen, his Azalea was much too fond of their son to hide away for the entire summer. But to be sure that the witch would not consider this option for even a moment, the blonde brought his lips down to meet hers, firm as usual as they took what was rightfully his, pressing the witch back against the bench and trapping her easily between himself and the wooden frame, but never with force enough to hurt the witch.

"Or," the man finally spoke as he pulled away, quite sure the previous three suggestions would be quite forgotten by now. "I could help you with the research. I have a number of plans, already detailed for the Murray business which link both of your Masters. You can submit one of them to the Headmaster so that you meet his deadline, and if you like any of them, you can pursue them, if you don't, just pick one, and when you finally get the spark you need... you can just change course." Josh explained with ease, not seeing any problem with the idea.

Of course, the fact he'd had his people doing such things since he found out about Azalea's conditional offer to teach was completely another matter, but the witch in his arms did not need to know that. She would never need to know that.

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She really shouldn't have tried to catch him at his word. Of course he had several methods to fix things. Azalea knew he would never simply make up things, Joshua Murray was honest to a fault so if he said he could fix it, he probably could. It was also good to know he never used this ability of his to show off.

His first suggestion did not hold much merit with the witch who was more focused on the slight rise of a golden eyebrow than the words forming on his lips.Had the motion really occurred or had it been her imagination. His expressions were always so fleeting, so subtle that sometimes she had to convince herself they had really been there. Like the hint of a smile gracing his facial features right now.

"Hmm, I don't think He's the forgetful type," she murmurer as Josh drew her closer, outlining a second option that also was partly in jest. Getting an extension would be ideal if it wasn't for the fact that she would feel terrible about it. Knowing she had failed would make Azalea feel worse than before.

The idea of staying away from Josh and Ethan was vehemently rejected in the shake of the brunette's head, only for her objections to be stunned into silence as josh's mouth engulfed hers, sending the familiar electrifying current up an down her spine. The witch barely felt the bench press into ehr back as he pushed her into the wooden structure, kissing her as hungrily as if he had been deprived for much longer than he had been.

All thoughts abruptly vanished from her mind, the worry over her looming deadline scurrying somewhere into the shadows as her body took over, responding to his. It felt amazing to know beyond any doubt that option three was just as unacceptable to him as it was to Azalea.

All too soon though, his lips were no longer on hers, forcing her to try and rethink what they had been talking about even as her mind screamed at the unfairness of the situation. But Josh was right, she had to focus, even if he was the biggest distraction to ehr concentration. His next option helped to remind her what they were talking about. Right, her studies, deadline, Hogwarts.She had to complete a research proposal in less than three months.

Trying not to pout at the loss of contact, Azalea steered the conversation back into safer waters. "I've actually been studying some of your and your father's works," she confessed, now back in the zone an serious once more. She had started combing through the Murray libraries a few months ago in hopes of inspiration but studying with Ethan by her side was neigh impossible because all she wanted to do was hold him and play with him. The witch imagined some of the more uppity nannies judging her for making silly faces at the young heir but she still couldn't stop herself. Ethan's laughter was worth everything

"There was something your Dad was working on, an idea of combination potions. And you went through his notes and refined them for your own thesis submission. I found the copy and it was..." It was downright impressive actually, if not a little harsh on the late Lord Murray. His son had very academically and subtly torn his father's work to shreds and denoted it as the trash it was.

At the time, it had been a published paper that Joshua had heavily criticized and then submitted. But then again, potion making was not what it had been twenty years ago. And the idea still had merit after taking in Josh's personalized suggestions for improvement.

"Combination potions, getting one potion to do the work of three or more. It seemed quite impossible a few decades ago but now it's being practiced on a small scale with some reports of marginal success. I wonder.. if there is a way to create something standard that would act as a binding agent for the effects of multiple concoctions."

Of course, it was also possible that the minimal testing done in the area was wrongly reported, and that the idea of a universal combination potion was as ludicrous as it had been when Layton Murray had first proposed it. It was best to ask an expert in the field. 'What do you think?"

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The mention of his father was one that Joshua never really appreciated. Even his Azalea who could usually get away with murder before the male speaking of his father was not something that settled well with the ex-Slytherin in that moment, but he didn't rebuke her statement, instead remaining silent throughout the explanation of his father's exploration in to combination potions.

The concept was not new, not by a long shot, but it was not as well explored as many other potioneers would likely have hoped. With the ideology stuck firmly with the Murrays under numerous legal documents that could not hope to be undone, the research had been left to Joshua and the small team of potioneers in his employ.

Of course, Josh's time had been significantly divided up until now, more focused on other more (personally) lucrative antics.

Namely finding the witch before him.

"My father's paper was heavily criticised when it was published." Josh pointed out, and gently correcting the terminology used by his Azalea in the same process. The man then grew quiet, absorbing the information that had been offered, and weighing it up for a moment. The notion of a single potion being used to bridge the gap between potions so they could be used in conjunction with one another was interesting. It would throw up a lot of research, and there would be a lot of discussion around just where to start, but the idea had many more merits than his father's own work had.

After a few moments, though, Joshua gave a small nod. "I think that you have a very good idea to present to a board for your research topic. You have the base materials from our libraries to reference from where needed, and I think you may actually be on to a very good idea..."

A thoughtful look touched the man's features for a moment, before he nodded once more.

"You'll have the Murray team behind you, and all the resources you will need. Don't worry about the University not being able to provide enough funding or resources." Josh finalised, glad he could help take the weight off of the witch's shoulders.

"Was there anything else bothering you?" The question was asked despite Josh being quite sure it would only be the witch's research issue. After all, he'd given her everything else she could possibly need. "Or shall we work on the re-potting you've been procrastinating?" Josh asked, motioning to the plants to their left that most certainly needed moving to larger containers, in case they exploded from the pots they'd outgrown.

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Azalea did not miss the subtle hardening of his features when his father's name was brought up, nor did she let slide the slight correction in terminology. What she had suspected from seeing Josh's notes on his father's work as an act of contempt was slowly turning into something more real. the witch was peripherally aware of his strained relationship with his parents, having run into the Lady Murray only once and only having had of his father's death in more than clipped tones. unable to understand how someone as genuinely kind, helpful and affectionate as Joshua Murray couldn't get along with his parents, the brunette was forced to conclude it was their fault.

Perhaps that was why he kept Ethan away from his mother's cold presence. Azalea had never seen it fit to ask.

Personal feelings aside, he blonde was easily able to assess ehr suggestion professionally, adding that she had all the assistance she needed. Azalea wasn't entirely sure what kind of resources she would require that an entire university wouldn't be able to provide but she nodded anyway. It was always safe to have a back up plan.

"I guess I'll start working on the proposal then," she finally conceded, reassured that her idea was at least not laughable. "We'll have to wait to see if the university even approves it and thinks its a venture worth pursing, but that's for later. I'm more concerned about presenting something to the school board so they don't think I'm a flake." At the moment, she was perhaps the only staffer who had minimal academic experience and exposure, and the thought had never rested easy with the witch.

"Was there anything else bothering you? Or shall we work on the re-potting you've been procrastinating?"

At the question, a small smile found itself blossoming on her lips. "Actually before we do that, I think I need your help with fixing something else." Moving a tittle closer to him, the witch chose her next words carefully.

"I seem to have missed almost the whole morning with two of my most favorite people in the world. Can you think of a way to fix that, Mr. Murray?" Boldly reaching over and taking is hand, the witch guided him towards the greenhouse exit, leading them both back into the main house with a meaningful sparkle in her eyes.

Darr did not follow her this time, knowing quite well when he was not needed.

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» An escape from reality (open)
» When Reality Hits Hard (One-Shot)
» Never Too Much (Jozalea)
» A Whole New World (Jozalea)
» Nothings Gonna Stop Us Now (Jozalea)