Those were the days. (Arthur)

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Anya enjoyed The Fountain of Fair Fortune.  It was a nice pub on Horizon Alley, and Horizon Alley was a nice part of Diagon Alley in turn.  At first, before she even tried a drink in this particular pub and back in the days when she would only visit either the Leakey Cauldron, Three Broomsticks, or Hog's Head, she wasn't sure if she'd like them.  That was one's first thought about trying out a new place, though, and it didn't help that the drinks had odd names.  Well, actually, most people would be more curious about a new pub that pessimistic.  And didn't most things in the wizardry world have really odd names? Anya was usually a really optimistic person, but for some reason she had felt some misgivings about the Fountain.  Why, though? There was nothing wrong with it in appearance or decoration, cleanliness, or the service.  It was still an unspoken mystery to her, up until this day.

The good thing was that she didn't have to dwell upon that, because the moment she tried Dragon Scales, she absolutely loved it! Now, she just shook her former pessimistic thoughts about the pub off.  How foolish of her to have judged it so soon before even trying a drink.  Again, she really didn't know why she had done so in the first place.  Granted, Dragon Scales was probably the only drink she enjoyed here, but still, it wasn't a bad place.

On this weekend, she decided to stop by for a drink.  It was almost night time.  The sun was setting on the outside, but she wasn't ready to go back to her apartment yet.  Anya was in the mood to enjoy the alley for a moment before retiring.  Her session training the sixth years at Hogwarts to apparate was still going on, and while it wasn't that hard--the kids did quite well--it added a new strain to her.  She was not used to teaching, and she had to push herself to communicate with the kids in a way that was appropriate and professional, and would help them understand what she was trying to teach them at the same time.  She was glad to say that she was good at that, because she liked people in general and teens were no exception, but it was still a new experience for her.

She was sitting at the bar with her glass of Dragon Scales.  She was looking friendly and cheerful, as usual.  When you were a nice Hufflepuff like her, you seemed to give off that vibe.  The part Irish part Russian woman was content to mind her own business, but she wasn't opposed to meeting new people, either.  Smiling, Anya took a sip of her drink.         

Tag: @lawl

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He had to clear his mind. Arthur left his office, which was situated on the 5th level of the ministry and currently cramped with stacks of documents with a tired sigh. He rubbed the corners of his eyes with his thumb and index finger. His office was small, cramped and generally not something you'd expect to be an office of someone who works on an international level. Regardless of that, Arthur was just an office worker for all intents purposes, many years in politics and law hadn't achieved him any sort of high position or huge office, even his salary was rather modest. As he closed his door he couldn't help but feel a bit guilty of leaving. He had worked for 13 hours straight now, but he still felt as if he was slacking off whenever he had to go home. Why? Because it felt like he wasn't really accomplishing anything, things seemed to be monotonous, boring and pointless.

He spent the last six months putting together a piece of legislature that he hoped, would help them provide further assistance to displayed magical creatures in Bulgaria and southern Europe. Despite all of his effort, his legislature was quickly brushed aside by the confederacy upon the death of Shacklebolt. His sudden murder sent shockwaves throughout the entire world, governments were more distrustful of each other than ever and every discussion in the confederacy seemed to revolve around this new unidentified threat that nobody knew anything about. Well, that wasn't entire true, Arthur knew a lot as did the International Aurors, but those weren't pieces of information that were readily disclosed to anyone.

All of it just stressed him out. Though he had never been close friends with, nor held any huge love for Shacklebolt, it was still a weird feeling having someone just get killed like that. It brought back those images of a rundown Hogwarts surrounded by death eaters and coldness of it all just made him feel alone and vulnerable. Because of that, he didn't really feel like going back to an empty flat or even reading a book, it was in times like these, that people sought the company of others, even if just to stand around in a group of people, to feel some sort of camaraderie. But where to go? He hadn't visited Knockturn or Horizon in a while now and the adventurous feeling in him demanded that he do so.

Almost immediately he regretted the decision. The wizarding world, that had seemed to small in contrast to that of muggles, was seemingly always overcrowded. Though it felt nice to be around people, but at the same time, he wished the quantity could diminish, if just a bit, to provide more breathing room on the streets. The hustle and bustle of Horizon always looked inviting. Young people out on the streets, mothers walking their children, couples on dates and generally people who seemed happy to be alive. Which day was it again? Arthur tried to remember as he rubbed his tired face with his palm. Was it Friday or was it a Saturday? maybe Sunday? Damn. Working non-stop makes a person lose track of all time and relativity. It being Friday, would explain all the drunk, happy, young people having fun.

He walked around the streets for a while, glancing at display windows, listening to street musicians and generally taking in the sights. Everyone seemed so happy and full of life.I need a strong drink He thought, in retrospect. He hadn't visited the fountain of fair fortune in a while and it was the first place, in the vicinity, that popped into his mind when he thought he should stop for a drink. He continued his slow stroll, gently brushing past a few people, his shoes tapping against the cobblestone road made their way, with them inside them towards the pub. It had been a while since he had last been there, so it took him a minute to remember its exact location, but once he did, he did not hesitate to pick his speed up and walk inside.

Was that there last time? He asked himself, looking at various decorations that hung on the wall as one entered the pub. Arthur himself wasn't really picky about his pubs. A pub was a pub to him, he usually just drank firewhisky and it was hard to find a pub that didn't serve that particular drink. As he entered, he began to slide his jacket down from his shoulders and an inch or so down, the jacket disappeared into thin air, without Arthur so much as even looking at it. The established was jam packed with wizards and witches, but still, it wasn't so full that one didn't have anywhere where to sit. Arthur approached the bar and the bartender nodded at him before he could even come 6 feet of it.

"Can I get a double firewhisky, please?" He asked calmly, placing his hands on the bar.

The bartender didn't hesitate, a bottle appeared out of thin air in the man's hand, as did a large whisky glass that promptly got filled with whiskey. As the bartender did so, Arthur couldn't help but turn his attention to a beautiful young woman sitting next to the bar, just a stool away from him. As his fingers wrapped around the cold glass, it slid slightly to the left, as Arthur leaned in towards the young woman, his hand gesturing towards the stool next to her's. He spoke softly and with a smile

"Excuse me, miss, do you mind if I sit here?"

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Anya was in the middle of sipping her glass when she sensed someone standing beside her.  The Hufflepuff alumnus stole a quick glance from the corner of her eye to see who it was.  She saw that it was a man in his thirty's, and he looked polite, what with his smile and the gentle way he spoke.  He was also gesturing at the stool beside hers and asking if she minded if he sat there.

She put her glass down on the counter, swallowed her drink, and quickly smiled at him.  "No! By all means, go ahead!" she said to him earnestly.  Anya wouldn't mind some friendly company at all.  She liked meeting new people and making new friends.  What else was a jolly Hufflepuff like? And this man definitely looked like a decent gentleman.  Normally, Anya was usually nice to mean people, but any person in their right mind liked nice people more.       

Tag: @lawl
Notes: Sorry for the shortness!

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He smiled at the young woman as he received her approval to sit. His hand continued to slide the glass of firewhisky along the bar until he sat down on the stool and stopped the glass in front of himself. He threw the glass back, taking a quick gulp if it's contents, emptying almost all of it, before setting it back on the bar and gesturing to the barkeep to fill it up again. He released a heavy sigh. The barkeep didn't move a finger, but a bottle appeared from under the bar and tipped itself over the glass, filling it once again with alcohol. Arthur felt a warm sensation spread through his mouth and chest, a burning in the back of his mouth and his head belt a slight twinge from inside his skull that gave way to slight numbness. For a moment, he was a silent. His head slouched over his glass, his eyes staring into the amber like liquid inside of it, as if he was in deep thought. What was he doing here? He didn't know anymore, what's the point of anything anymore? His mind turned to life and then to politics and from there it turned to despair. He quickly snapped out of it however.

His eyes moved ever so slightly to his left where the beautiful woman sat. She was younger than him, nevertheless there seemed to be a rather mature feeling about her. He wanted to chat with someone. He liked talking to people, he liked getting to know them, but he was never good at breaking the ice so to speak. He wanted to look into her mind and strike up something from there, but decided against it. Aside from not wanting to meddle in her privacy, he felt like reading people's minds ruined the fun of getting to know them.

"So, do you come here often? He asked with a smile. It was a boring question, but for now, he couldn't think of much else to ask. "I'm Arthur, by the way."

((don't worry about it, lol))