One whiskey can save a life (Jericho)

Sarah didn't usually sit in the bar after work. Not since she had a family to come home to. But today she needed some time alone. She pulled out her phone and again saw all the unread messages, some of them months old. She sighed. She missed her friends dearly, but she didn't belong with them anymore. She was a traitor now and nothing could change that. Over last few months, she even stopped wanting to change. She had Armen and Misha. Her husband maybe wasn't what she imagined, but he cared for her. And loved her. At least now she actually believed it. Wanted to believe it.

Jericho made his way to The Leaky Cauldron in need of a small drink, his cane ticking lightly as he walked with it. He wasn't thrilled about being sent away from the Ministry for his 'health', but he guessed that if he was to be sent away, might as well go to the Auror Academy. At least there he could help the next generation of Aurors become the best that they could be. Be that as it may, he still wasn't happy about it. He was healthy enough, and being away from work wasn't going to change anything...

Slipping inside, he nodded to the barman and when asked if he'd have his usual double of Fire Whiskey, Jericho, of course, nodded. Walking up to take his normal stool at the bar, he happened upon a familiar blonde. With a smile, he took the seat next to her. "Sarah, Sarah, Sarah.... Didn't think I'd find you here. How are you?" he said happily. He hadn't seen her in ages, but it wasn't a total surprise as they worked in different departments and he had been MIA for over 7 months.

Sarah quickly hid her phone back in her pocket as she looked up to Jericho and put on sweet smile. She was always a good actress, but with Armen, she became even better. She had to. "Jericho! Back from the dead, I see!" she greeted him. "I am fine. Husband and I are really busy with work lately and Misha is growing up so fast. My only problem right now is that I miss them both. But war is war. You know..." she let the sentence dissapear in the air as she took a sip of her drink. "What about you? I never knew what happened, just that you were in deep trouble. How is the recovery going?" she asked afterwards.

Jericho smiled brightly and chuckled at the greeting Sarah gave him. "Back from the dead... I guess all that time in that long nap could count as dead. Glad to hear your family is doing well," he greeted back. her comment about the war made him set his teeth for only a moment. This war.... Half the reason he didn't want to be too far from the Ministry. The reason they had just inducted three more into The Order. They were too young, those three. Not even out of Hogwarts yet. With a small shrug he nodded to the barman as he set his drink down. "War is war... No way around it when it hits..." he said taking a small sip of the liquor. Her question about what happened caused him to pause. Setting his glass down, a seriousness came over his features. He couldn't tell her exactly what happened, since there was no telling who was on what side anymore, but she could tell her some. "I was in a duel.... Long story short, my opponent was stronger," Jericho said looking at her, "Landed me in a coma for seven months, and, as far as I know, got away Scott free... But, recovery is complete, or as complete as it's going to be, according to the Healers." His smile returned slightly as he leaned his cane against his leg. "Just a precaution..." he said with a wink.

Sarah chuckled bitterly. "Isn't it always like that? I hate the fact you can hardly know who is on your side and who is not anymore," she commented on his story. There was nothing else to reply. "I wish for it to be over alredy. Being a mother in the middle of the war, trust me, nothing could be worse. When you are hurt or dead, it sucks. But if you have a child, it is thousand times worse than that," she added. She was constantly worried about Misha and about Armen as well. Not as much as she used to, because her husband was strong and had a very high position, but still, she was worried.

Jericho nodded in understanding. He didn't have direct family to worry about, but his friends were like family. Hell, they were his family, and some of them had families.... Just as Sarah had fears about what this war would do to her and her family, he worried the same for those in his. "How is that little girl of yours, Sarah? Growing like crazy?" he said with a smile, trying to lighten the mood.

"Yeah, she is amazing. She learns very quickly and so far she is happy child. I guess growing up at Hogwarts has it's perks. Specialy now. You can always come to see her if you have a way to Hogwarts," she said with smile and honesty, she didn't really mean. Last thing she needed was Jericho in her house. Not that there was too much to see, but one could never be careful enough. On the other hand, it seemed only natural to invite old friend to come over and Sarah knew it. If they were to keep their identity secret, they had to act that way. And Sarah couldn't afford to come out as a death eater. Nor could Armen. At least not until the war was over and won.

Jericho smiled and sipped his drink as Sarah told him about her daughter. He remembered when she had told him about that when he had gone to her to have his memories of the attack at the Ministry removed for further study and to easy is mind. "Perhaps, if I'm in the area sometime, I will see if I can stop by for a short visit," he said kindly to her offer. He wasn't sure if he would be able to do such a thing... Between his work as an Auror for the Ministry and The Order, he was hard pressed to have much free time to do more than eat, sleep, and work. But, he liked it that way, you could say. "And, your husband? How is he?" Jericho asked. He never got to meet the man, but as long as he treated Sarah well and their daughter, then he could be happy. Sarah was smart, so he didn't worry about her selection in men. It wasn't his place to.

"Armen?" Sarah asked, a bit surprised by his question. But in the end, she maybe shouldn't have been. After all, none of her friends knew Armen. He was some sort of mysterious stranger she married. And she didn't talk about him that much. She had no reason to. "He is fine. He became amazing dad, when Misha was born. I am so glad for that, because if he didn't, I would have to leave my job and everything would be much harder for us. You know, money and stuff," she said first thing that appeared in her mind. There wasn't really much to tell about her husband unless she wanted to give away dangerous information. And that was exactly something she definitely didn't want to do.

Jericho took a drink as he listened to her talk about Armen. He was happy to hear that he took on fatherhood well and his being a good dad allowed her to keep working, which made Jericho happy. "Honestly, I'm glad for that. The Ministry would miss you if you had to leave. You're good at what you do, Sarah," her said with a smile. What he told her was the truth. She did do a good job. After all, she had to be good at it to become the head of her department. "Pretty sure you are one of the very few who I'm alright with handling my memories," Jericho added with a wink. He hadn't had many memories removed by the Unspeakable department, but whenever he did, he always sought out Sarah. He trusted her...