What Took You So Long?

[Alex Corvus]

The sun rose through the slight february frost, bathing the skin of many in France in warmth and light. It was nearing midday and where others were out working or enjoying an early lunch, a ruffled man with jet black hair turned over in his sleep, tangled amongst the thin white sheets. He was not awoken by the sound of the alarm clock, but the sight of it which had been captured by his sleepy eyes: Fourteen minutes past eleven, and counting. The pub was supposed to be open at eleven, ready to serve basic food to the customers. The man, who was still just as much a young lad, leapt from his bed and ran for the door- at least, he would have, had he not been stuck in the sheets. This minor issue caused him to fall out of bed, his legs fastened together by the material, and smack down hard upon the ground. He needed to hurry or he would lose any chance of making money.

Life as a muggle was harder than he had expected.

Alex Corvus stumbled behind the bar: He had brushed his teeth, combed his hair (though it remained stubbornly wild), wolfed down a thin piece of poorly buttered toast, had a quick drink of water, opened the bar door, fastened on a dark green apron which hung down from his waist, and opened the front door. He was ready for business, though he did wish that more help was available- Alex, for all but a few weeks of the year, had to run the pub alone. Though, the upside of this was that he had decorated and refurbished. The place had a similar appearance to a rustic english pub. Oh, his wife did approve of the design, and that was an added bonus.

What could possibly bother this seemingly upbeat young man? Love. See, it was not love itself which bothered him, but the fact that he had not seen his wife since september of 2026; she attended a wizarding school, and was in her sixth year. She was also six months pregnant. The problem occurred in that Alex was slowly growing lonely, having been ordered by his wife to cut their life off from the wizarding world. Of course there was plenty of muggle conversation going, but it had been years since Alex had been forced to stick around muggles for so long. His love for Quidditch, was tearing at his insides- the popular muggle sport of 'football' was nowhere near as interesting.

Alex sighed and began to doodle on the pad for orders. The doodle became a word. The word birthed another. A sentence appeared and Alex stared down at it. He had simply written two words, his cry for support- Help wanted.

 

[Cecily Vickers]

It had been a bugger of a weekend at the school. No matter what anyone else said, putting a group of females together in one large conglomeration to try and discuss planning for a huge social event was bound to end up with something horrific. Feelings were hurt, hair was pulled, and in the end Cecily had ended up with three girls in the infirmary after several misfired spells had hit their target. She simply didn't make enough money to have to deal with the drama that working at that school. Teenagers seemed to have become horrid little creatures and she honestly couldn't remember a time when she'd been in school that she or any of her friends had ever behaved so obnoxiously.

Thankfully the headmistress for the school had hired another nurse right before the holidays had arrived so this left Cecily free for the day seeing as all was quiet on the infirmary front now that she'd discharged everyone. After going over a few things with the newer nurse the brunette got dressed and quickly took leave from the castle. She simply needed some time out of the confines of the school to clear her head and enjoy the beautiful February weather.

As it neared lunch time Cecily felt her stomach rumble on and she groaned loudly. "I suppose I better be putting something in you then, eh?" She walked on a bit further before finding a small pub that seemed to be open, though when she walked in she noticed that there wasn't another living soul in the joint other than a man who looked to be around her age. "So is business just slow today or is your cooking that horrible here," she asked only semi-jokingly, wondering whether or not this would a good idea to eat here if there was such a lack of customers.

 

[Alex Corvus]

Out of Character:

Sorry it has taken me so long to post - lots of real life complications.

Alex nearly jumped out of his skin as he witnessed the first customer of the day. Immediately, he was alert and ready to serve. "The food is fine," Alex said, not really sure how others felt about his cooking, "it's the staff that are the problem." He rolled his eyes to himself; he was the only member of staff and his knack for waking up late, was beginning to become a problem. He just wished that Liberty could stay with him at the pub for longer, not just for the sake of serving customers and reducing his workload, but also for company.

Alex was keen to keep this woman satisfied with the service, and he was already gesturing to the various menus. "Feel free to take as much time as you need.." He assumed this woman was a muggle, not even pausing to consider otherwise. It was depressing to think that all he had was muggle company, the evening punters who drank wine and talked about dull sport. Honestly, what was so interesting about a game in which flying and intentional violence were not involved?

"First drink is on the house." Alex decided to add with a charming smile. Was it obvious that he was lonely and desperate for someone to talk to that wasn't a muggle? He treated himself to a small glass of wine which he took only a small sip of every now and then. "I'm Alex Corvus, by the way." He hoped he wasn't being too intrusive, talking so fast and saying so much. In a matter of seconds, he had personalised the conversation.

 

[Cecily Vickers]

When assured that the food was okay to consume, Cecily removed her overcoat and took a seat. "Maybe you just need a little extra help with the place. Trust me, a few extra hands around makes life loads easier and even frees you up for a little bit of time off now and again," the brunette replied, hoping she wasn't coming off as obnoxious, just merely speaking from experience was all. It had been a tremendous help having another nurse to help out at the infirmary at the school and Cecily quite enjoyed the time off that she was now able to have.

Cecily looked over the menu, not really sure what it was she was craving, but knew that if she didn't eat something soon then her stomach would probably start to eat itself. "What would you recommend? Anything in particular that's just super delicious?"

When the man stated that the first drink was on the house, Cecily semi-blurted out, "Firewhiskey in the biggest glass you can find!" After a second she realized what she had said and looked up from her menu knowing that she was more than likely getting an odd look and she really didn't feel like having to explain what firewhiskey was to this person she assumed to be a muggle. Oh for the bloody name of Merlin...think before you speak woman. With a half smile she said, "Cecily. Cecily Vickers. Pleasure to meet you Alex." The brunette returned her gaze back to the menu trying to think of why his last name sounded so familiar.

Out of Character:

Tis okay...happens to us all