Dive Bar On The East Side
Wednesday, November 5th, approx. 5pm
“It’s been a day , and I’m already sick of this. I really need this drink.”
Sirius’ voice is the first Remus hears when he enters the bar, named the Hog’s Head for what Remus assumes is the large pig head outside the door. It doesn’t match the rest of the charming downtown area, but what small town doesn’t have that one business that’s known for being a bit unlike the rest?
The Hog’s Head is about a half mile away from the main part of shops though, and a street off of Main Street, so it really is out of the way for most to walk by it. If it would be anywhere, it would be where it is, out of the way of most police cars and many law-abiding citizens.
As he enters, Remus quickly searches the bar, looking for the table he knows contains Sirius and by extent James. They wave him over. It doesn’t seem like anyone else has arrived yet, so he slides next to Sirius, taking great care not to crash into him as he usually would with friends.
“Remus!” James greets. “Glad you could make it.”
Sirius turns, giving him a warm smile. The small bell on the door jingles, and James looks up, waving more people over.
Two women enter, one with vibrant red hair and bright green eyes and the other with a mass of curly brown hair wrapped in a red, christmas themed bandana that’s kind of crooked. Both of them wear fairly nice, warm looking coats and sleek, business casual outfits. Remus has no doubt this is Mary and Lily.
“Lily,” the redhead introduces herself, sticking out her hand. “You must be Remus. This is Mary, my fiance.”
Remus doesn’t bat an eye, and shakes both hands welcomingly.
“Do you mind if I throw these over you, Sirius?” Mary asks, pulling off Lily’s coat and then her own. “I don’t trust the coat-checking here. Last time I left my coat with Aberforth, I lost €50 in my pocket.”
“Right, I’m sure it’s because of Aberforth and not the fact this place is filled with pickpockets,” Sirius rolls his eyes, but shoves the coats next to him. Mary and Lily both pull up a chair to the edge of the booth. The restaurant is fairly empty, so their voices are already low when talking about the possible illegal happenings that may or may not take place at the Hog’s Head. Their little group, despite all being business owners, is trusted to keep those possible things a secret in exchange for all the underage drinking they may or may not have been allowed to get away with as teenagers.
“Is Marlene here yet?” Mary asks, looking around for the other guest who was supposed to join them.
“Nope. You know Marlene. We told her to meet us here at 4:45, so she’ll probably be here in about 5 minutes.”
Remus arrived exactly at 5. Should he have? It was preferential to getting there late, as Marlene clearly was, and having to introduce himself to everybody all at once, he supposed.
It takes another 3 minutes for the burst of blonde hair and energy to burst through the doors, the bell that would normally just jingle actually ringing as she throws open the doors.
“Marlene is in the house !” The burst, clearly Marlene, yells to the nearly empty bar. The only other patrons are an old man, and a woman shrouded in a large cloak in a booth by a corner. Again, this is a Wednesday night.
Even without her loud announcement, Remus would’ve been able to guess this was Marlene. Despite the cold weather that had Mary and Lily bundled up, Marlene is wearing short, grey jean shorts and a ripped tank top. By ripped, Remus means that the sleeves have been choppily cut off from the main part of the grungy band tee it must’ve once been. It is now a grungy band tank top.
Marlene’s hair, naturally blonde, has streaks of dirty blonde and brown going through it all the way to her shoulder blades, where the wolf cut her hair is in stops. She has on more jewellery than Remus can count, most of it black or silver, and chunky Doc Martens.
Remus looks at his own shoes, knockoffs of a different kind of Doc Martens. He isn’t exactly in business attire either, wearing just a normal brown jumper with a jacket thrown over and a pair of jeans that he got on clearance and are already too short, and now even shorter with the mandatory cuffing of the end.
Sirius is dressed more similarly to Marlene, and James to him, Sirius being in a ripped tank (do these people have no regard for the weather?) and ripped black jeans, and James wearing a casual, Christmas-themed shirt and normal jeans. Remus vaguely wonders how many Christmas clothes James owns, because if he had to guess, he’d guess at least two dozen. One for every day of December until Christmas Eve.
“Marlene!” Mary and Lily rush over, ushering her in. Marlene pulls up a chair, facing it backwards and sitting on it so her head rests on the back of the chair, facing the group.
“Who’s the new guy?” She asks, looking at Remus.
“Remus Lupin. Lawyer for Potterly Trees,” Remus introduces, holding out his hand for her to shake. “And you’re Marlene?”
“How’d you know?” Marlene laughs, as she interprets his handshake as an opportunity to dab him up, moving her hand in a complicated movement. She shrugs when Remus doesn’t get it. “We’ll just have to practise more, I guess!”
“Er - ok, then,” Remus hesitantly agrees.
“So, what’s the deal with the lawyer, Sirius ?” Marlene asks, shooting a half joking, accusing glare at Sirius. He throws his hands up in the air, and adopts an offended expression.
“It’s insulting, frankly, that you’d assume I’m getting arrested.”
“I never said arrested, idiot, although now I do think that’s an option. I just meant you’re the one who’s sitting next to him and making ga-ga eyes, so you’d probably know the most about him, that’s all.”
Remus notices Sirius’ neck go a bit red, and he can feel his own blood rush to his cheeks. It isn’t even Sirius’ fault, really, that Remus is here.
“Shut up, McKinnon. We’ll find you a girl one of these days to make fun of you for,” Sirius rolls his eyes. Marlene just winks at Remus, obviously signalling her eyes to Sirius.
“Remus is here because we might end up selling the farm,” James says, coughing loudly to get Marlene’s attention. She turns towards him, shocked, a drastic mood change from the previous joking tone.
“Sell?! Why would you sell?” Marlene asks, shocked.
“I mean, we’ve been barely getting by for a while now…but ignore that part! It isn’t even definitive,” James defends. Marlene shakes her head.
“Nope - that sounds pretty definitive. And you just can’t sell. This is Potterly Trees we’re talking about! How could you sell? And to who?”
“Well…” James answers, sheepishly. “We may have made a deal with Starry Night that if we don’t raise €350,000 by December 24th at midnight.”
“ Starry Night? ” Marlene says ghastly, shaking her head in disbelief.
“Told you we’re valuable to the community,” Sirius leans over and whispers to Remus.
“I’ll give you that,” Remus nods back, still watching the exchange between James and Marlene.
“They offered! Don’t blame me - I don’t want to sell. I’m going to raise the money, mark my words,” James vows to her. Marlene gives him a ‘yeah, right,’ look.
“It is possible,” Remus cuts in, in defence of James, who gives him a thankful look.
“Lucky us! Raising €350,000 in 2 months…less, even,” Marlene says, a bit stunned, her eyes unfocusing a bit and her head leaning into her hand as she thinks about it. “Surely not the whole €350,000, at least?”
“It’s more about €70,000, give or take,” Remus says. “Sales count towards profit.” Marlene sighs deeply, accidentally (or maybe she does it on purpose) blowing a defeated raspberry as she does.
“So Potterly Trees might actually be sold, to Starry Night, of all places, by Christmas morning?” Marlene asks defeatedly. The table nods.
“What a shitty meeting,” she says, which Mary and Lily are about to object to, before the door jingles open again and a fairly large group, much like their own, comes in.
“Did I hear Starry Night mentioned?”
Remus knows now, without a doubt, the man speaking is Regulus Black. He has Sirius’ curly black hair (although admittedly better kept), his bone structure, and the look of similarity siblings can never seem to shake. Plus, Remus saw him at the meeting, even if he didn’t do much or introduce himself.
Dorcas follows him, along with the two bodyguards who were present at the meeting, and another pair that Remus doesn’t recognize. The already dimming cheerful atmosphere has just been absolutely demolished by the surprising presence of Regulus showing up.
“Regulus? What are you doing here?” James asks, genuinely surprised. Everyone in both groups has an odd look of confusion. When Regulus realises what group he has just spoken to, he has a moment of regret flash across his face before quickly covering it with a knowing look.
“This is the Hog’s Head. What are you doing here?” Regulus shoots back.
“I asked first.”
“Yes, but I don’t actually care,” Regulus responds, making James scoff. Remus can sense there is something he wants to say under his breath that he doesn’t - it makes Remus wonder what kind of history there is between the two, and Regulus and Sirius.
“Well, we’re not telling you why we’re here,” James says immaturely. Regulus shrugs.
“The less conversation the better, in my opinion,” Regulus cooly spits, and sits down at a dingy table in the corner. The bad lighting and fading light outside makes it hard for Remus to see where exactly he is, but James grumbles under his breath about it.
“Showing up everywhere, he is,” James says.
“That’s Regulus’ specialty, I’m telling you,” Sirius chimes in.
“Well, this atmosphere is kind of ruined,” James sighs. Remus shrugs.
“It could be worse. And I want my food,” he brings up. James licks his lips absentmindedly.
“Good point, Remus. Marlene, we ordered you chicken tenders, because of…obvious reasons.”
“You know me so well,” Marlene says.
“That we do,” Lily agrees, sighing and resting her hand on her head. Marlene’s eyes bulge at the sight of the small, but noticeable, ring on her ring finger.
“Lily June Evans, tell me you’re joking!”
Lily looks confused for a second, before noticing her hand and cursing silently at herself.
“Dammit. I wanted it to be more of a surprise announcement. But…yes. We’re getting married!” Lily gushes out quickly.
Marlene positively squeals, looking between Lily and Mary quickly.
“I need to know everything. The details of the wedding, the time, the place, who asked who, everything.”
Soon enough, despite the disruption of the other group, the food comes and they have a merry old time, talking about anything and everything at dinner.
“So, what now?” Marlene asks, when the bill has been split and paid and the mood is dying down.
“I mean…this is still England. We could always go to a pub and get absolutely wasted. I don’t know if the Hog’s Head is the best place for that, though,” Sirius suggests, looking out the windows and down the dark street. The night comes faster here than in London, Remus observes, because of course it does. There’s maybe 10 streetlights, and no sounds of people simply existing, loudly, as they always do. Night hardly ever comes in London, but in Godric’s Hollow, it seems natural.
“Oh,” Mary says softly, noticing it first. “It’s snowing.”
Remus takes a closer look, and sure enough, it is. Of course it is.
“It’s beautiful,” He observes, mesmerised just a bit by the soft falling of the white flakes against the twilight outside.
“Agreed,” James says. “We should play in it.”
“James, I love you, but this outfit is not for making snow angels,” Sirius objects quickly, drawing a nod of agreement from Marlene and a chorus of laughter from everyone else who dressed appropriately.
“These outfits are good for the pub though…” Marlene reminds them, so they head out into the snow.
Remus lets a few snowflakes fall on his tongue, looking towards the cloudy sky. There’s a certain kind of feeling that you only get on certain nights in Fall, when the air is chilly enough to see your breath and make you bundle up, the kind of weather that makes you want to write a song about how perfect it is. The weather that, as soon as you know it’s there, you say oh , and realise what life is about. And you try to hold onto that feeling for as many weeks as you can- but it can’t last, not with Spring coming, and it waits until next November to make itself known again.
The snow falling reminds Remus of that feeling, even if what he feels now is a different kind of feeling. He hasn’t ever had a group of friends before, always preferring to be a loner with maybe one or two close friends. Experiencing November with a group of people will be vastly different than what he’s used to, which he can already tell. The music that normally plays in his head, the slow, soft indie sounds that accompany nights like these, is replaced by the unintelligible music from the Hog’s Head and various pubs around it. This snow, the way it parts over his eyes and the small glow to it, is so familiar and so startling at the same it’s hard to make much sense of it.
“Remus mate, you coming?” James asks suddenly, snapping Remus out of his mood. He nods hurriedly, catching up with the group. Most of them are pulling their coats further in, walking quickly towards whatever pub they’ve decided on. Remus hopes it’s a warm one, for Sirius’ sake, at least.
They arrive after a brisk (the speed and the temperature) walk to a pub that looks more inviting than the previous. It has a small dance area in the middle, gleaming oak floors, and an incandescent glow all around that contrasts perfectly to the snowy evening and the Hog’s Head dark and dim lighting and moody aura. Inside, it is filled with people laughing merrily, talking with their friends, and dancing.
“The Three Broomsticks!” James announces, for Remus’ benefit.
“Much more cheerful,” Remus says.
“That would be Rosmerta’s - the owners - fault. She loves Christmas almost as much as I do.”
They enter, creaking open an old wooden door, to find a very merry and well decorated pub.
Marlene nods approvingly. “This is going to be perfect to get drunk in.”
“Slow your roll, McKinnon,” Sirius says. “You still have a job.”
Marlene had mentioned bartending at some other pub, in addition to her normal labour at Potterly Trees, earlier in conversation, but she shrugs it off.
“Unimportant, and a very unrelated fact. So do you, I’ll remind you, but we will be entering the holiday themed shots competition.”
“Holiday themed shots competition?” Remus interrupts, curious about what the hell that is.
“Holiday themed shots competition,” Marlene grins. “Rosmerta has one every night for the first week of November, the official start of the holiday season.”
“What does that entail, exactly?” Remus inquires further. It’s his lawyer training speaking up, wanting to know more before entering some strange competition.
“Well, you name shots that are holiday themed. Whoever has the best name gets some free shots. You can enter with groups five or more, so that she’s not giving away tons of free shots.”
“Couldn’t you just ask former winners what they said?”
“Remus!” Marlene says, shocked. “I didn’t pin you as a cheater! Besides, Rosmerta always knows. Trust me. I tried it once…I had to pay for everybody’s shots that round. Not very fun.”
“I’m doing it,” Sirius says, and looks to Remus curiously. “You in?”
Hesitantly, Remus confirms that yes, he’ll join. He just promises himself not to drink.
“Great! Now we just have to see about the others,” Marlene hurries over to where Mary, Lily, and James are talking, leaving Remus and Sirius alone.
“You don’t have to if you don’t want to,” Sirius says. “I promise Marlene’ll get over it and find some strangers or something.”
“What? You worried I’ll be better at naming things than you?”
“Not at all! I’m the champion of this. I just meant with your dad and all, I’d get it if you didn’t want to play a drinking game. This is a lot less relaxed than the Hog’s Head was,” Sirius says, and it pulls on Remus’ heartstrings.
“I’ll be ok. I promise. It’s not like I can’t drink- I’d just rather not, most of the time. It doesn’t agree well with me. I don’t have to taste a drink to know names, though, trust me.”
Sirius smiles at him. “Good then. If you win, can I have your shots?”
Remus laughs and agrees, just in time for Marlene to come back over.
“I hate them all.”
“Did they not agree?” Sirius says, flabbergasted, and gives a ‘wtf, man’ look in the general direction of James.
“Nope. Apparently Mary and Lily aren’t about to get hungover before a work day, and James doesn’t want to spend the money or get hungover,” Marlene grunts. “Which is fair, but incredibly annoying. I hope once you guys raise enough money, we can use it to go out more.”
“I think they’re going to use it on expanding and fixing the farm, but sure, let’s use the money to get shots,” Sirius says sarcastically. Marlene socks him in the arm, with force that can’t honestly be described as light, even if it is friendly.
“Remus? You’re still in, right?” Marlene double checks, Sirius giving him a curious glance as well.
“Duh,” Remus says without qualm. Marlene grins, and goes to sock him as well, but he moves out of the way just in time.
“I knew you were fun. C’mon- we have to go find people!”
Marlene begins to search the bar, the door opening wide as more people flood in, and Remus’ stomach drops just a bit as he sees a familiar face.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Sirius mutters, standing up to confront Regulus, before Marlene appears at their side again.
“I found people!”
And Marlene, sweet (enough), not at all ill-intentioned Marlene, has found patrons to join them in their little competition.
“Dorcas,” Remus greets confusedly, looking at his legal opponent that is standing next to Marlene, really highlighting how tall and imposing she is, heels or not.
“Remus,” Dorcas greets civilly. The two guys with her Remus vaguely recognises as other people at the meeting, and the girl from the pair Remus didn’t recognize from earlier joins them, trailing along after slowly. Regulus himself follows them, then upon seeing Sirius and Remus, does a full 180 on his heel, turning back around to the boy from the pair, who looks a bit confused and lost in general.
“You two know each other?” Marlene asks, clearly confused at the cool attitudes between them, looking back and forth at their faces trying to discern something about the history. While she does so, Dorcas waves at James, who waves back, causing the blonde one out of the two guys Marlene has brought to wave back as well. The brunette one pulls his hand down, causing a small row Remus can’t hear.
“We’re work acquaintances, you could say,” Dorcas explains slowly.
“She’s the main lawyer on Starry Night’s case,” Remus adds, because while he doesn’t have anything against Dorcas personally, he does have a lot against Starry Night.
“Oh…” Marlene says, elongating the vowel as she does. “That sounds complicated.”
Remus shrugs. “It could be, but I’m willing to put aside our case differences and just play if Dorcas is.”
Dorcas nods. “I am.”
“I’m fine with it too, as long as he doesn’t join,” Sirius says rudely, and Remus figures it isn’t hard to guess who he’s referring to.
“I can’t promise anything,” Dorcas says, “so don’t blame me if he does is all I’m going to say.”
Sirius huffs, but follows Marlene over to where she greets Rosmerta, who has no need to ask for ID or age. She’s known them since it wasn’t even legal for them to be at the counter, and quickly gathers the shots.
“There’s going to be 4 rounds, so four shots of alcohol, all with varying levels of possible alcohol content. You all good with that?”
The group nods, and as Rosmerta prepares the first shot, she describes it.
“This is pretty basic- eggnog and vodka, but with a few hints of my signature aspects.”
The shots are passed around, resulting in everyone downing them quickly, and Rosmerta pauses for a moment to get names.
Most of them are pretty terrible, but the winner, the brunette bodyguard apparently named Barty, wins with “Santa’s coming in this glass.”
Remus tries not to laugh too hard at it as the next one is passed around, Remus passing his to Sirius again.
“Now, this is a more complicated flavour,” Rosmerta explains, as everyone waits patiently. “It’s stronger, with hints of gingerbread and warmth that really comes from fireplaces and such. The alcohol, which I know you’re all here for anyways, is just some old rum.”
The drink is clear, and Remus can’t tell if it has a red tint or if it’s just the dim lighting of the bar. He passes it to Sirius again, and surprisingly, wins the round with “When the Gingerbread man doesn’t rum as fast as he can.”
“Good one,” Sirius leans over and informs him, starting to show signs of tipsiness. Rosmerta marks something down on a paper pad, which is probably the tab.
“This one is more experimental. It’s supposed to be something like a cranberry vodka, but more cranberry and fruity.”
She passes it around, and Remus passes his to Sirius again, thinking of something good to say. Sirius is crowned the winner of this round, with “Crushed Under a Reindeer,” a reference to the dark red colour of the drink and supposedly thicker than average texture.
The last shot, Rosmerta explains, is the strongest. Remus very carefully slides his to Marlene instead.
“Cheers, man!” She thanks him.
“This one is a mix of peppermint and chocolate. Think of it like an alcoholic Starbucks seasonal beverage,” Rosmerta says. “Enjoy!”
This one actually makes Remus a bit curious, as he rather likes chocolate flavoured things and chocolate in general a great deal. But he keeps his reserve. It truly just isn’t necessary for him.
He wins again with “The Depressed Girl Scout Cookie,” an inspiring label. The victory comes with drunken, or soon to be drunken cheers, from the other participants. Rosmerta thanks him for the names.
After about 30 more minutes at The Three Broomsticks, Remus realises very quickly that, despite his boasting he was not, Sirius is a lightweight. Or maybe it was the 7 shots- that’s a very plausible cause for how drunk he is.
“Sirius?” Remus asks, as Sirius stumbles around in a circle for a full three minutes, apparently trying to find his feet.
“Where are they, Remus? Remus, the little piggies have gone to the market, I’m telling you,” Sirius insists, as Remus breaks his routine and drags him over to James. Sirius makes some interesting conversation on the way;
“I think I was right when I said you were the moon. I mean, have you seen it tonight?”
“It’s cloudy out, and it has been, what are you talking about?”
Sirius looks confused for a second, before realising his mistake.
“Right! It was last night that it was so pretty. It had this kind of brown glow to it, much like you in that plaid brown jacket of yours, and your sweater and your hair,” Sirius explains, looking around for something.
“What are you looking for?”
“The jacket, of course.”
“Right, of course,” Remus nods placidly, looking more for James.
“I still don’t believe you beat me in the holiday shots competition,” Sirius huffs. Remus rolls his eyes.
“I can. My names were awesome.”
That’s about when they find James, who agrees easily to take Sirius home. “It’s getting a bit late for me, anyways,” he says.
Remus starts to agree, already making plans in his head about how he’s going to get back to London, before James has a lightbulb go off above his head. Literally and figuratively, as a broken, old chandelier lights up as the same time an idea crosses his mind.
“What if you just stay at my house? Or Sirius’?” James suggests, off-handedly, like it’s nothing for him.
“I couldn’t possibly. You still live with Effie and Fleamont, right?”
James nods.
“They’re my clients. It’d be unprofessional.”
“And here you’d almost convinced me you were chill, Remus, but I get that,” James says, starting to help Sirius on his way out.
“What if you stayed at Sirius’?” James proposes instead. “I’d be there too, and that way you don’t have to keep going to and from London everyday. He doesn’t use it much anyways.”
Remus hesitates. Is he getting too far into this? Should he take a step back, in the sake of professionalism?
But this is harmless. It’s just a friend helping another one out.
Remus agrees, and off they go.
___________
“Pandora, I promised to go out for drinks for a reason. I have a stressful job!” Dorcas says to Pandora, who is on the brink of accepting the invitation previously discussed for dinner & drinks.
“Right. I’m sure that’s why,” Pandora says, her voice a bit off through the call.
“We want to meet Xenophilip, or whatever his name is, too. He seems cute,” Dorcas adds, a playful tone in her voice.
“ Xenophilius, ” Pandora corrects. “I knew it. You’re all in love with me, and want to scare this man off in hopes you’ll steal my heart instead. I never knew you’d stoop so low, Dorcas.”
Dorcas sighs heavily and dramatically. “How’d you find out? I was so careful.”
“The roses every week at my door and notes professing your love for me didn’t help, for starters,” Pandora laughs. “But I’ll come. It could be fun, and I think Xeno needs more friends. I’ve never seen him talk to anyone.”
“Maybe he’s just good at his job and stays off his phone,” Dorcas suggests lightly, laughing at the expected eye roll from Pandora on the other side that she can just hear .
“It’s like you want us not to show up.”
“I take it back! You’re amazing, and lovely, and should join us.”
“You’re too persuasive.”
“Who’s in love now?”
Pandora sighs on the other end of the line, a bit joyfully.
“He’s really wonderful, you know?”
“Pandora…that was a complete joke, you are not in love with this man.”
“He’s very funny, he actually cares about the plants, and admit it, he’s kind of cute in an endearing way.”
Dorcas shakes her head in a disappointed manner. “Here I thought if we were both single we’d be married by 30. Hard to feel so abandoned for a guy you aren’t even dating.”
“Actually…” Pandora squeals a bit on the other side of the phone. “He asked me two days ago, after you guys came in. Obviously, I said yes. We were going to announce it at the dinner, but this seems more natural.”
“So you were going to come to dinner anyway?”
“Shut up and congratulate me.”
“Congratulations, you jest. Are you two lovebirds good with the Hog’s Head, then?”
Pandora agrees. “It won’t be a very romantic first date, but I’ll live, maybe.”
“Will you?”
“The hopeless romantic in me will die and I’ll be left to rot in a loveless grave, actually.”
“That’s amazing. We’ll see you at, say, 5:30 or so?”
“See you then!”
Dorcas then hangs up, excited for the plans later that day. Her job is still stressful, as it involves brokering what some may consider illegal deals and such, even if that is easy for her.
Still, a night of drinks and fun with friends? Who wouldn’t enjoy that?
Dorcas arrived first, taking notice of the nearly deserted, tiny parking lot. There were maybe two cars, and not much light came from inside. It was also chilly out, her breath making little clouds in the air and causing her to pull her coat tighter around her. If it was a different restaurant, Dorcas would’ve gone in alone and gotten a table for their party of 6, but at the Hog’s Head it wasn’t necessary. The customers also scared her a bit, although s he couldn’t see their faces at that moment. It wasn’t like Dorcas hadn’t ever been in shady places, but this one was more unfamiliar than most. She just hoped Barty and Evan would know it better. If anyone was the one to go to for criminal activity, it was them.
A sleek car pulls up, and Regulus gets out, followed quickly by Barty and Evan.
“Are Pandora and the guy here yet?” Evan asks, looking around. Dorcas shakes her head.
“Of course he’s late,” Evan says, shaking his head. Dorcas already feels a bit bad for the guy, but she can see him a bit in the distance, holding hands with Pandora and jogging towards them.
“They’re here,” she observes, and the group swivels in the direction of the newcomers.
Xenophilius walks up first, a bit out of breath, huffing out small white clouds from the cold and the run.
“Sorry. Train broke down,” he explains, in between breaths.
Pandora’s pale skin is flushed, and she’s smiling. Dorcas doesn’t doubt it for a minute that she’s in love.
“We’re here now, though, and we’re starving ,” Pandora says hurriedly, pushing through the group to the door.
Without taking a second glance, Pandora enters, the rest of the group following her. A nearby table is discussing something that catches Dorcas’, and Regulus’, attention;
“So Potterly Trees might actually be sold, to Starry Night , of all places, by Christmas morning?”
A girl at a nearby table asks, clearly completely aghast at the idea, and for a second she wonders how word was able to spread so quickly before she takes notice of the other table members- namely, James Potter, Sirius Black, and Remus Lupin. People who work at, or for, Potterly Trees.
Regulus apparently doesn’t realise this, given his response of, “Did I hear Starry Night mentioned?”
He could’ve saved it by saying he was a Van Gogh fan, or that maybe he didn’t recognise the group, but instead, Regulus simply walks away quickly and completely avoids the other group. Dorcas wants to smack him, but resists, luckily for her job.
They sit in the far back, at a table out of the main part of the restaurant with lights. Dorcas can barely see Pandora next to her, but doesn’t object to their seating location. It makes it hard for her to see the other group, making it easier to focus on her own friends. She can’t say the same for Regulus, across from her and with a full view, but Dorcas doesn’t think he minds the view as much as he lets on.
They move on from the incident quickly, guided mostly by Evan ruthlessly interrogating Pandora’s new boyfriend, who holds his own quite well.
“Where do you work?”
“You’ve met me at my job…”
“What do you do for money?”
“I sell plants, man. Again, you’ve seen me at my job.”
“Any drugs?”
The man looks around the small restaurant quickly, which makes Evan laugh.
“Just kidding. We honestly couldn’t care, as long as you’re safe and all.”
“I don’t do them,” the boyfriend clarifies, but Dorcas senses it might be a little late for that.
“Right. What do you do recreationally, then?”
“I mean, I like to write, I guess.”
“Really?” Evan asks suspiciously, because it’s so worrying and odd that a guy might like to write once in a while.
“Evan, leave the man alone. I’d know if he was bad,” Pandora sighs annoyedly, as the food arrives.
“I’m your older brother. This is my job.”
“I’m the older twin, so no, you’re not. And if you want to play that game…” Pandora turns to Barty, ready to start interrogating him in the exact same way as if she doesn’t already know everything about him, before Evan kicks her under the table.
“I’m good! Xylophone over here passed the test,” Evan says quickly.
“ Xenophilius, ” Pandora corrects.
“Right, right, yeah,” Evan shrugs.
The conversation subdues for a moment, before Barty, next to Regulus, decides it’s too quiet and maybe he should annoy Regulus.
“So, pretty embarrassing with James would you say, right?” Barty asks, knocking his best friend with his elbow. Dorcas sighs.
“I don’t know what you mean. I didn’t even talk to him,” Regulus responds, as dignified as possible. To his credit, from at least what Dorcas can see in the terrible lighting, he hasn’t turned red yet.
“Sure you do,” Barty insists. “It’s fine, we get it, you don’t want to be too mean to him.”
“Of course not, I’m never mean,” Regulus deadpans, making the entire table burst into laughter, even Xenophilius. “It wasn’t even James who I was talking to! It was his blonde friend, Marlene or something, for your information, and if it was I’d have no reason other than unprofessionalism.”
At this point, Dorcas wants to tell Barty to back off a bit. Regulus is stubborn, and he’ll never realise what he needs to if he has other people telling him how he feels.
“Right, for sure. You’d hate to be unprofessional with him,” Barty agrees, turning back to his soup. Regulus clenches his face, but doesn’t respond, wisely.
“This is no fun,” Barty complains, after a full 10 minutes of small talk. “We should get drunk.”
“That’s the solution to all your problems, isn’t it?” Dorcas says in response. Barty nods, not denying it.
“What can I say? I’m a man who can appreciate a good drink.”
“I’ll have to disagree,” Xenophilius says, a bit like a mouse. “I don’t really drink. It doesn’t agree with me well.”
So, after a few more minutes of varied disconnected conversation, they leave for the nearest pub. The Hog’s Head was enjoyable, but the fun really starts when you’re really drunk, or so Barty says. Dorcas knows that half the reason they wanted to go out for drinks anyways is to see how Xenophilius acted drunk, so it’s a bit disappointing, but Dorcas doesn’t mind too much.
Pandora suggests a quaint tavern called the Three Broomsticks, to which everyone agrees to, though they would’ve agreed to really anywhere with drinks.
Inside, the contrast to the dark atmosphere of the Hog’s Head is immediately evident, and erases all issues Dorcas may have had with getting drunk. Who cares about hangovers when the music is fun, and there’s an entire christmas tree in the corner, overridden with little paper ornaments customers can buy and decorate themselves?
“We are going to get absolutely wasted, ” Evan laughs, slugging Barty on the arm, who nods in total agreement.
“Dorcas?” He asks. “You in?”
Dorcas was going to answer yes, anyways, but is interrupted by a slightly short blonde.
“Were you guys talking about getting wasted?” She asks, smirking mischievously. She looks slightly familiar, but Dorcas can’t put her finger on it.
“In what world would we not?” Barty says, answering for the group.
“I’ve got the perfect thing, then,” the blonde says. “Holiday themed shots competition.”
She’s in a punk, mostly black and silver outfit that Dorcas can guess has seen better days, or maybe it just came like that. It’s certainly working for her, Dorcas can admit.
“What the hell is that?” Barty asks, sceptically.
“Holiday themed shots. You name them. Choose the best name, the shot is free, ” the blonde grins. Dorcas doesn’t need the money, but her competitive nature is immediately sold.
As the blonde walks to a different group, presumably to tell them the news, Dorcas beckons Regulus over.
“So, I know you have work tomorrow, but…”
“I’m in,” Regulus says, with barely any fight.
“Really? Even with how you get drunk?”
The reminder makes Regulus hesitate, because he usually ends up making a bit of a foot of himself when he gets too many drinks in him. Nevertheless, he presses on, and follows Dorcas as she follows the blonde.
They stop in their tracks, all four of them, at the same time. Regulus turns on his heel, right back to a lost-looking Xenophilius Dorcas feels a bit bad for, as soon as he sees the group the blonde’s a part of.
Now Dorcas knows why she looked familiar- she was part of that table at the Hog’s Head. Oh. That complicates things- a lot.
“Dorcas,” Remus says politely, although a bit confused.
“Remus,” Dorcas returns cordially.
“You two know each other?” The blonde asks, looking between both people, analysing them.
“We’re work acquaintances, you could say,” Dorcas explains, slower than she normally does because it’s still odd to run into your rival at a bar, right before a competition made to get you drunk.
“She’s the main lawyer on Starry Night’s case,” Remus adds pettily. Thanks, Remus. It’s not hard to guess they already know each other.
“Oh…” Marlene says, sounding as if she’s sounding out the word for the first time. “That sounds complicated.”
Remus shrugs. “It could be, but I’m willing to put aside our case differences and just play if Dorcas is.”
Dorcas nods, even if she’s still a bit on edge after the tone he used when explaining the company differences. “I am.”
“I’m fine with it too, as long as he doesn’t join,” Sirius rudely adds. Dorcas spares a quick glance to where Regulus is standing against the wall with Xenophilius, talking to him about something Dorcas can’t tell. She hopes he can’t hear them, unlikely as it is, but Regulus always had a habit of hearing things he shouldn’t want to. However, he seems ok, so Dorcas just glares quickly at Sirius to suffice.
The shots pass in a bit of a blur, and to her surprise, she doesn’t win a single one. Remus wins two, which is a bit annoying, but she ignores it to show her support towards Barty for his…sensual name choice.
Still, it’s fun, and it get’s her drunk enough which is all she can really ask for.
The thing about being a child genius is you don’t get a big chance to be a child. Sure, she’s had alcohol at parties before, but not copious amounts or very many. She graduated law school before she could even legally drink, which she’d normally be proud of, if it wasn’t a bit sad to realise.
So these nights with her friends are understandably special to her; they give her a chance to experience that feeling of secondary school rebellion that she missed out on. She doesn’t mind that she missed them that much, but it’s never fun to know so many people have something you don’t, like a core memory or experience.
One crucial part of these parties seemed to be the people and the drama of what happened there. Who kissed who, who hooked up, who broke up, who broke up and then hooked up, rumours Dorcas only ever heard but never witnessed. They seemed to be everywhere.
Honestly, Dorcas can see the same happening all around her now- the guy over there was just calling his girlfriend, and is now kissing another girl. The girl over there just made out with her friend, then laughed about it. All moments they may or may not remember, ever.
“You haven’t looked away from him all night, you know,” Dorcas tells Regulus, who’s currently looking in the general direction of James and Sirius. The buzz hasn’t quite hit yet, but Dorcas is still feeling…ready for something.
“You only know that because you haven’t, either,” Regulus responds, not even trying to deny the accusation. He seems defeated, almost. “You and that blonde girl seem to have hit it off really well.”
Ah. Smooth conversation change, because Dorcas is ready to talk about that.
“Marlene?”
“Glad you’re already on a first name basis.”
“She told it during the game, which you should’ve joined.”
“I don’t need to get drunk. I’m perfectly happy right now.”
“Really? There’s nothing that could make you happier? Nobody who could?”
Regulus glares at Dorcas. “If you start talking about Marlene instead will you drop this?”
“Maybe.”
“Talk, then.”
Dorcas gets the hint, and jumps right in.
“She’s hilarious ,” Dorcas starts, and then the compliments just keep pouring out. “Have you seen her? Well that wouldn’t make much of a difference, but she’s just breathtaking, you know? Muscular women are lethal, and she’s sleeveless in November. As I said before, she’s hilarious, and I don’t even care that I don’t know anything else about her, or that she’s part of Potterly Trees.”
“She might care that you’re part of Starry Night.”
“Well, that’s her problem, then,” Dorcas decides.
“You should find out if it is,” Regulus suggests, still looking in the direction that their entire group seems to be laughing in. They all just seem to fit in this environment, surrounded by warm glow and laughing with their friends. Dorcas wonders if Regulus can sense that, too. He’s dressed in all black, his hair styled, his eyes cold and he’s somehow managed to find somewhere not completely lit up. He doesn’t seem like he belongs here, or anywhere happy, and she wonders if it’s bothering him.
“You sure?”
“What do you have to lose? I can talk with Xenophilius some more. He’s not too bad.”
Reluctantly, but not too reluctantly, Dorcas leaves to go talk with Marlene.
When she approaches, it appears that Marlene is already somewhat drunk, and Dorcas can feel herself fading a bit, too. It’s the shots catching up with her, and whatever else Marlene had.
“Dorcas!” Marlene greets enthusiastically, waving her over when she sees her. Surprisingly, the other group members (excluding Sirius) don’t seem too bothered by her presence. James she already knows is nice, and Remus seems to be fair. The two women with them Dorcas has never met, but look kind, and don’t glare at her or anything.
Sirius does. Dorcas doesn’t blame him, but she doesn’t let it bother her, either.
“Hey, Marlene,” Dorcas greets back. “Want to get a drink?”
Dorcas has always been upfront when asking potential partners things. Despite her missed experiences, when it comes to flirting knowledge, Dorcas has never been behind. Some may say she’s even usually ahead when it comes to it, because it almost always works. Charm . That’s what they call it, and that’s what Dorcas has never had a shortage of.
“Sure!”
Marlene orders something that looks… very alcoholic, and Dorcas orders a mocktail because she really doesn’t want to be hungover tomorrow morning.
“So, you live around here?” Marlene asks, giving Dorcas a look that makes her intentions very clear.
“Maybe. I could let you know over text another night, if I could have your number?”
“Smooth, Dorcas smooth,” Marlene says, and writes it down on a spare napkin with a pen Dorcas hands her.
Dorcas smiles at her, and Marlene drains the shot.
“Another night, then?” She asks. Dorcas nods.
“A date first would be cool.”
Marlene agrees, checking her phone for the text from Dorcas, before they both head back to their respective friends.
“Congratulations, Dorcas,” Regulus says monotonously, not giving away if he actually means it or not. Dorcas likes to think he does.
“Thanks,” she replies. “Are you going to stay for much longer?”
“Are you ?”
Dorcas shrugs. “Probably not. I think Barty and Evan are, though.”
Regulus thinks it over. “I think I’ll leave. This has been fun, and also extremely boring, even if Xenophilius is nice. I just have to do one thing first.”
Dorcas lets Barty, Evan, and Pandora know that they’ll be leaving, before meeting up with Regulus again at the door, who has their coats.
“Ah. Had to get the coats?” Dorcas asks, as Regulys hands one of them to her.
“Among other things,” Regulus shrugs. “I paid their tab,” he adds, a bit more quietly, as they step into the night air and head into the direction of where a cab is supposed to pick them up.
“Barty and Evans?”
“And Pandora’s, yours, and almost everyone who played that stupid competition game.”
“Right- thank you,” Dorcas says, as she had completely forgotten it. Her card is in one of the pockets of the coat. “Whose tab didn’t you pay, then?”
“Hm?” Regulus looks up at her, a bit distractedly.
“The tab. You said almost everyone.”
“Right. I paid the lawyer’s and the lumberjack’s tabs, too.”
“Not Sirius’?”
It’s risky business to question Regulus like this, but Dorcas is a bit tipsy, and also curious.
“Nope. If he doesn’t want me playing, he doesn’t want me paying, either.”
Dorcas wonders if she’s ever heard Regulus say anything that encompasses his personality so well before. The thought makes her laugh.