"Our daughter really needs proper rest and recovery ti right now. Could you perhaps co back another ti to give your lecture?"
Upon hearing these words floating through the partially open doorway, Bryan and Remus, who had been standing quietly in the corridor just outside the ward, imdiately stopped dead in their tracks.
Remus opened his mouth in complete bewildernt and confusion, his eyes widening as he wondered if he had sohow misheard or misunderstood what had just been said. Perhaps, he thought with growing uncertainty, the elderly lady who had just spoken had actually called out the na "Ryan" rather than Bryan.
Remus turned his questioning gaze toward the 'genuine' Bryan who stood beside him in the corridor, his disguised face showing absolutely no particular surprise or shock at hearing his na spoken by a complete stranger.
His expression remained as calm and unruffled as always, displaying that remarkable composure that seed to be his natural state regardless of the circumstances he found himself in.
Only his usually clear and sharp eyes had grown deeper and more pensive, their depths now holding emotions that were completely unreadable and mysterious.
"I'm not giving any kind of lecture to Alia, my dear," ca the restrained response from within the room.
This second voice belonged to a man who also seed old in age tinged with a trace of gentle exasperation that hinted this was a continuation of an ongoing discussion.
The elderly man's voice continued with increasing conviction and concern,
"I may not fully understand what exactly an Auror position represents in your magical world, or what specific dangers and responsibilities it entails, but what I do know is that your personal abilities and skills must be properly matched to your chosen work and professional duties, Alia.
If you're sustaining serious injuries right from the very start of this new job, imdiately upon beginning your career, then it clearly shows that your current abilities simply aren't sufficient or adequately developed yet to handle this type of dangerous work safely."
He paused, and when he continued, his voice carried firm conviction. "Perhaps you need to consider settling down and pursuing sothing safer for a while longer and this advice applies equally to both us as your parents and to these miraculous wizards who seem to attract such dangerous situations wherever they go."
The worry and protective instincts were unmistakable in every word he spoke, revealing the deep love and concern that drove his seemingly harsh assessnt of his daughter's chosen career path.
"Are those voices coming from Alia's parents?" Remus whispered quietly, having finally caught on to the context of what they were overhearing.
He raised his eyebrows in a mixture of surprise and concern as he processed this unexpected developnt. "Do we need to co back at another ti when they're not here?"
Bryan remained completely silent for several monts, his intense gaze shifting down to study the hospital floor with what appeared to be indifferent scrutiny.
The bright lighting of the corridor casted subtle shadows across his facial features, making his expression even more difficult to read than usual. After a mont of internal pondering and consideration, he slowly shook his head.
"Actually, I think we should et Alia's parents, Remus. After all, she was injured and hospitalized because she was accompanying us, wasn't she?"
This assessnt was sowhat unfair and not entirely accurate, since Alia had been following orders from the Departnt of Magical Security to monitor their activities, rather than the two of them actively and deliberately involving a recently graduated young witch in the dangerous events that seed to follow them.
Nevertheless, Remus nodded in agreent.
Regarding Alia personally, Remus found his feelings toward her to be rather complex and sowhat conflicted. He couldn't honestly say he particularly admired her professional skills or her sowhat naive approach to complex situations, after all, she was a MACUSA official.
However, at the very least, he didn't actively dislike this young girl who, despite being still sowhat naive and innocent about the harsher realities of the magical world, showed clear principles and a refreshing sense of earnestness that was rare in governnt officials.
Perhaps out of respect, Bryan voluntarily allowed his magical disguise to dissolve, revealing his true appearance. Observing his decision, Remus also consciously removed his own disguise magic.
Knock, knock, knock—
The sudden knocking on the partially closed door imdiately made the quiet voices inside the hospital ward fall into complete silence.
The elderly couple inside the room, who remained mostly unfamiliar with the customs and social protocols of the magical world didn't imdiately decide whether they should invite the knocker in. Instead, they turned their questioning and sowhat uncertain gazes toward their daughter.
"Perhaps it's the healer making their regular rounds and checking on patients," Alia said uncertainly as she knew this explanation didn't quite fit the timing since the healer had already completed their morning rounds earlier today.
"Or maybe it's colleagues from the Departnt of Magical Security who want to understand the situation better?"
"Then let them in, Alia," Mr. Depp said as he stood up from his position beside his daughter's hospital bed.
He took a mont to smooth out the wrinkles that had ford in his gray wool overcoat during his long bedside watch, carefully adjusted the coat's lapels to present a more dignified appearance, cleared his throat and spoke solemnly.
The sowhat plump Mrs. Depp shifted uncomfortably in her chair, looking rather constrained and out of place in these unfamiliar surroundings.
After all, both she and her husband were in what seed to be a miraculous world that they only half understood, where the people they encountered and the things they witnessed made them feel deeply uneasy and constantly uncertain about appropriate behavior and responses.
Although the world visible through the large hospital window was currently stormy and gloomy, with dark clouds and driving rain creating an almost apocalyptic atmosphere, the interior of the ward remained bright and welcoming.
Like the corridor outside, this hospital room was equipped with its own small kitchen area and comfortable seating arrangents that showed it was designed for long stays and family visits.
Remarkably, there were no conventional electric lights visible anywhere in the room, yet the white walls seed to possess so kind of subtle magical enchantnt that could automatically adjust and emit a soft, milky white glow.
This magical lighting provided perfect lighting to brighten the entire room without being harsh or uncomfortable on the eyes.
An elderly couple were beside Alia's hospital bed. They both appeared to be at least in their sixties.
Despite his old age, the elderly gentleman still maintained an impressively upright posture. Combined with his well-fitted, impeccably proper attire and his ticulously grood, mostly gray chestnut-colored short hair, he continued to exude the unmistakable air and dignity of a traditional English gentleman who had never abandoned his standards of personal presentation.
Alia's mother wasn't particularly tall in stature and reached only to her husband's shoulder when they stood together but she was clearly well-maintained. Her cheeks showed remarkably few wrinkles for soone of her apparent age, and the gentle curve of her eyes seed to hint at her nature as a kindly, compassionate woman.
Both parents focused their cautious, assessing gazes toward Bryan and Remus as the two n entered the ward. Their expressions showed polite restraint and they waited expectantly for their daughter to provide proper introductions for these two visitors.
"Oh, my goodness, Bryan, Remus, it's actually you?" Alia exclaid with surprise when she recognized the two familiar figures entering her hospital room. Her voice carried a mixture of genuine shock and confused pleasure as she processed their unexpected presence.
She truly hadn't anticipated that these two would co visit her during her recovery, because no matter how one analyzed the situation logically, she was soone whom Mr. Graves had sent to monitor and surveil their activities.
By all reasonable expectations, they should have been pleased that she was injured and temporarily hospitalized.
Alia, quickly recovering from her initial surprise and rembering her manners, automatically began to prepare herself to get out of the hospital bed to properly greet her visitors.
Although one of her arms remained wrapped in bandages and her complexion appeared sowhat pale from the effects of inadvertently inhaling the Nundu's toxic gas during their encounter, Alia knew from the healers' assessnts that she wasn't seriously injured and would make a full recovery given proper rest.
However, Bryan imdiately gestured for her to remain where she was.
"Remus and I don't want our visit to disturb your rest and recovery, Alia," Bryan said sincerely, the earlier strangeness that had been in his deanor outside the ward having completely disappeared. His gaze swept over the elderly couple at the foot of the hospital bed, smiled at them politely.
"How are you feeling overall, Alia? Are you experiencing any lingering effects from your encounter?" Remus also asked with concern, his smile warm and genuine.
"The healers here have been absolutely wonderful, and they believe there's nothing seriously wrong with my condition," Alia replied with gratitude evident in her voice. She remained on the hospital bed, and nodded appreciatively at both Bryan and Remus for their thoughtful concern.
"However, my assigned healer still thinks I should remain in the hospital under observation for several more days, because apparently the toxic gas effects from a Nundu can affect different people in different ways depending on their individual magical constitution and resistance. Although the amount I inadvertently inhaled wasn't anywhere near enough to be fatal or cause permanent damage—"
Alia paused in her explanation and looked toward her parents, fully understanding and recognizing the expression of slight bewildernt and confusion they were showing which honestly made her feel sowhat embarrassed at having not properly explained to them.
But she knew she should at least properly introduce Bryan and Remus to her parents first.
"These two gentlen are wizards who have co to Arica from London, Mom and Dad, this is Remus Lupin, and that gentleman over there... well, he actually has the sa first na as you, Dad."
She gestured toward each man as she spoke, ensuring her parents could connect nas with faces.
"My current assignnt involves... well, Bryan and Remus are quite famous and well-respected figures in the international wizarding world. MACUSA believes they deserve proper protection and security during their visit to our country, so the Departnt assigned to this important task."
The lie ca out with considerable difficulty and obvious sha coloring her words, causing her cheeks to flush slightly with embarrassnt at the deception she felt forced to maintain.
Because if she told her parents the complete and honest story that she was actually assigned to monitor and surveil these two n rather than protect them, it would inevitably make Bryan and Remus feel awkward and uncomfortable about the situation.
Even worse, her parents would undoubtedly be confused and bewildered as to why the subjects of governnt surveillance would choose to co visit their surveillant in the hospital.
Mr. Depp exchanged a glance with his wife, and in her eyes, he saw the sa emotion that he was experiencing. So, they really hadn't misheard what they thought they had earlier—this gray-haired young man truly did share his na.
"This truly is quite a remarkable coincidence indeed, Mr. Depp," Bryan said smiling as he extended his hand in a gesture of formal introduction to Brian Depp.
The older gentleman hesitated for just a mont, perhaps processing the strangeness of eting soone with his own na, before reaching out to accept the offered handshake with dignified courtesy.
"You're absolutely right, this is indeed a remarkable and unusual coincidence," Brian Depp agreed as he observed the gray-haired young man standing in front of him with growing curiosity and sothing that might have been recognition.
For reasons he couldn't quite explain or understand, he found himself experiencing a strange sense of familiarity when looking at this young visitor. There was sothing about Bryan's face that seed oddly familiar, though he couldn't figure out why this should be the case.
Mrs. Depp was sharing the sa inexplicable feelings as her husband. She didn't know why she felt such an unexpected sense of connection to this young man who coincidentally shared her husband's first na. Like her husband, she too found Bryan's face sowhat familiar.
"I believe I should offer you both a sincere apology," Bryan said to the elderly couple in front of him.
"It was because of so of my inadequate decisions during last night's crisis that your daughter was hard and subsequently hospitalized."
'Inadequate decisions?'
Mr. and Mrs. Depp looked toward their daughter with questioning eyes, seeking clarification about these words.
The explanation they had originally received from Alia's colleague who had co to notify them of her injury was relatively straightforward: the important person Alia was assigned to protect had been attacked by so kind of magical creature while in the city, and their daughter had been injured while helping to repel this creature.
But now it seed... there were so hidden circumstances.
"You absolutely shouldn't apologize for anything, Mr. Watson!" Alia interjected with rising emotion, her voice carrying passionate conviction as she defended her visitors from any sense of guilt or responsibility.
However, with her parents present and watching her every reaction, she quickly suppressed her natural impulse to speak more freely and continued with careful earnestness.
"If you hadn't been there to successfully hold off that dangerous Nundu and prevent it from reaching populated areas, it's truly difficult to imagine what kind of catastrophic damage it might have caused throughout New York City!
It was my own fault—my skills and experience weren't adequate for such a dangerous situation, and I ended up causing you additional trouble and—"
'Mr... Mr. Watson?'
The mont Alia's parents, Mr. and Mrs. Depp, heard this surna spoken out, they both reacted as if they had been struck by an actual bolt of lightning.
The two beca completely petrified, their bodies freezing in place and their minds falling into a stupefied daze, as if they had been hit by a powerful Stunning Spell.
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