Desperate for Company -Alan Moser-and anyone else

[Haley Gordon]

Haley arrived at the Leaky Cauldron, her temporary living resident until she could get herself a flat. It had been a long day, and she carried some baggage from a small shopping trip. Recently, she had been to her new office in the Ministry. She couldn't believe that she had landed the job she wanted. Haley grinned to herself and looked around.

It was prime eating time in the Cauldron, with many people mosying around eating a variety of food items. A couple of goblins were sitting in the corner, debating about wizard power or something like that. In another corner was a small wizard family, trying to force a one year old to each the food that had been prepared for her. This gave the witch a small smile, and, in an impromptu decision, she took her seat and an unused table.

After the encounter with the Morgans, Haley was more than tired out. Raising her hands up, she let her black hair fall, closing her amethyst eyes for a few brief moments. Her first day had not quite gone according to plan--it was to be expected, she supposed, her first day on the job. The man that claimed himself to be an all-mighty professor was just asking for a curse. Haley barely witheld the desire to turn him into a bug and squash him herself. However, the daughter and the wife came to the rescue, and smoothed the guy over.

"Honestly, just because you are on the outs of a secret does not mean you need to be hostile about it!" Haley retorted at the memory, shrugging off her cloak. She had changed her outfit after the meeting, with the amiable promise that she would definitely be keeping in touch with Remy. Who else would show her the ropes before the new term started? Certainly not her close-minded father. Haley looked down at her outfit, a simple pair of light blue jeans and a Ravenclaw t-shirt.

A waiter came by, and Haley smiled at him graciously, before ordering some steak and vegetables. She turned her gaze around the Cauldron, packages aside, looking to see if there was anyone who would be willing to talk to her. She desperately wanted adult company, of which she had very few.

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[Alan Moser]

'Man I'm starving', Alan thought to himself as he trudged, through the rain soaked alley. "Ah there it is," he said to himself, as he spied the entrance to the Leakey Cauldron. As he opened the door he saw that the place was packed as per the norm. He removed his cloak to reveal his old jersey from his days as the captain of the Ravenclaw quidditch team.

Alan took a bit and looked around but didn't see any empty tables. He continued to look around the room and spotted a young lady wearing a Ravenclaw t-shirt. 'It's worth a try,' he thought as he walked over to the table.

"Do you mind if I sit with you," he said to the rather petite woman sitting at the table.

[Haley Gordon]

Looking up, Haley spotted someone whom she might have known during her Trios days. That, however, might not have been likely given her multitude of absenses until finally finished her education at Beauxbatons. Besides, Haley had been in many different classes because of her recurring illnesses. In any case, here was someone who could provide her with the company she desired and she wasn't going to let that chance slip away.

"Of course, go right ahead. Ravenclaw as well, I see?" Haley asked, getting another menu for the man to browse through. Looking around the Cauldron, it was easy to see that the poor man had no other option but to choose a spot somewhere. At the entrance, she could see some people in the very same situation, including a hag who had no one to sit with her. Turning her eyes towards the man, she gave him a nice smile and extended a hand.

"My name is Haley Gordon, its a pleasure to meet you sir. Nice to see someone from our well-reputed house, isn't it? I'm glad you chose to sit here, really. I hate being myself however my school life did not yield many friends. Neither, apparently, did my months-long stay in France," Haley introduced, leaning back as the waiter came by to collect the man's order.

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[Alan Moser]

"Je m'appelle Alan Moser," he said shaking the young womans hand. Looking through the menu he saw some old favorites, and some random things that only a goblin would order. "Thanks for letting me letting, me sit here, that hag over in the corner kinda scares me."

"Ah yes I was in Ravenclaw as well," he said, "it is quite nice to run into those with the same values as those of our cut of the cloth."

"Are you still a student at Trios?" he asked as he pointed his order to the waiter, not being sure as how to pronounce it.

[Haley Gordon]

At his words, Haley couldn't help but smile.

"Bien, bien! Always nice to know a little bit of another language, isn't it? And I am sure that hag in the corner has a very nice set of qualities!" Haley laughed, looking at Alan a little bit more closely. In all honesty, she could be certain that they had never previously met. However, she could never be sure of that. Soon, their food came, or at least her own, and Haley started to dig into her steak, grabbing the A1 and dousing her meat with it.

"Eh, no, I actually didn't graduate from Trios. I came down with a serious medical illness that had me transfered to France. The doctors advised I stay in the area so I finished my schooling at Beauxbatons. Now, I work in the Ministry of Magic as a Muggle Relations Official," Haley informed, taking a bite out of some asparagus. "I love my job, it's amazing when I get the chance to introduce muggleborns to our world. Though my first assignment went less than fantastic. Where is it that you work?"

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[Alan Moser]

"Ah, yes, knowing other languages is a great thing," he said as he watched for his food to arrive, "but since they are our neighbors to the south one really should know how to interact with them, especially those lovely ladies that go to Beauxbatons, my how they had us in a right bonker state when they visited our school."

Alan perked up a little has his mystery meal arrived at the table, he knew that it didn't look to appetizing, but as he learned from a young age some of the best tasting foods didn't necessarily look like they were at all worth eating.

"As far as work goes I work in the sub-basement at the ministry if you know what I'm talking about," he said.

[Haley Gordon]

"You're an uspeakable?" Haley asked, deeply intrigued. Always had she wondered what that department held in its deep dark secret walls. It had almost led her to a desire to join the department but her heart found its desires elsewhere with muggles. Though one part of her job greatly outshone the rest of her duties, the one that had caused her to get the position in the first place.

"Ah yes, some of the girls at Beauxbatons are nice. Not all of them though. Some of them can be very snooty and extremely distrusting and disdainful to English folk. I didn't exactly recieve the best welcome when I skipped through their halls. They weren't too happy when I stole the Valedictorian spot, either," she murmured, looking at her meal and greatly enjoying it.

"So, out of curiosity, what brings you to the Leaky Cauldron. Is your food up to par with your expectations?" Haley asked, taking another bite at vegetables before checking on the hag. She had finally found a free table and was knawing at a piece of some raw meat. Shivering, she took her gaze away.

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[Alan Moser]

"Oh yes," he said at continued to eat from the plate in front of him, "the only thing I have found that disagreed with me is that food that the goblins find quite delicious."

"As far as coming to the Leaky Cauldron, it was an easy choice, it was raining, and a I was hungry," he said to Haley, "how about yourself Ms. Gordon?"

[Haley Gordon]

She made a sideways glance at the goblins, hoping that they had not heart about this snippet of information. Goblins were known, so they said, for their somewhat hostile demeanors. She hated going to Gringotts merely because of them. Slowly, Haley finished her dinner and wanted desperately for some dessert. And some butterbeer.

"Odd place to choose the Leaky Cauldron for food. I'm here because this is where I live temporarily, until I can afford to get myself a flat," Haley replied, failing to inform him or even remember the thousands of galleons that she had inherited from her family. She refused to use the money and had only delved into it to give half of it to her brother Joel.

"You probably live in a flat--what is are they like?"

[Alan Moser]

"The Leaky Cauldron," he said, "is as a matter of fact one of the most overlooked restaurants in the wizarding world, as is the Hogs Head in Hogsmeade."

"Yeah living in a flat is nice it sure beats living in a room at the Cauldron for sure," he said, "would you like a butterbeer?"

[Haley Gordon]

Needless to say, Haley was more than impressed at Alan's undying loyalty to the pub that served as the entry way into Diagon Alley. Her mind immediately flicked to Remy Morgan, and wondering how the girl would take the pub slash motel. Obviously, her snippity professor father would not approve. In any case, Haley did agree that the place had a charm--it was ancient, an establishment, and offered meals for a wide variety of creatures.

"The Leaky Cauldron is not a bad place to say. It is, perhaps, the best place in London to board. You can meet a bunch of interesting people here. For instance, the other day I had the fortune to meet a rather addled Spanish wizard who was going to visit his niece. When we started talking, he told me a bunch about the differences between England and Spain. It is always fascinating how different the wizarding community is when you switch cultures. There are, for instance, three wizarding schools in Spain, each with a different focus," Haley remarked. Lazily, she watched the waiter take away her plate, smiling a thanks as she did. However, when Alan offered her a drink she found it to be a little bit unexpected.

"Um, sure, I would love one. Always my favorite drink. So, what is it like to work in the Department of Mysteries?"

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[Alan Moser]

"Two Butterbeers please," Alan asked the waiter as he cleared their plates from the table. Haley's comment about the Spanish Wizard, made Alan think about the many of the places that his work had afforded him the opportunity to visit.

"Well working for the Department has it's ups and downs," he was careful of what he said as he looked around the room, "but this really isn't the place to talk about my work. How about yourself what do you do?"

[Haley Gordon]

Haley gladly accepted the butterbeer when it came, taking a light sip. The familiar, warm feeling that you get when someone drinks butterbeer was a great pick-me-up from having to give Alan information she had already divulged to him.

"I work as a Muggle Relations Official within the Ministry of Magic. I have yet to remember what department that is in, it might be security or something along that sort. I merely just go based on the floor number. Thank you, by the way, for the drink. This should cover its cost," Haley said, pushing a couple of sickles and knuts towards him on the table.

"My job has me do a lot of things. My favorite is revealing to muggleborns that they are wizards and witches--belonging to an exlusive and secret community of magic and wonder."

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[Alan Moser]

"Don't worry 'bout it," Alan said sipping at his own drink and pushing the coins back towards Haley, "Sounds exciting, If I'm dealing with muggles at work something has gone pretty wrong in our world. Which as of late seems all too often. It must be nice giving people good news, eh?"

Alan looked around the room wondering what the night would hold for him, things seemed crazy to him as of late, and life is always full of surprises.

[Haley Gordon]

"Oh, it can be. I love to bring good news when the recipients wish to recieve it. My first job was today, a new Hogwarts first year who is the daughter of some very old fashioned parents. The father was the worst--he refused to believe that magic exist even though a tray of crumpets was floating unaided by his head! It might be a problem and I guess I can understand. I mean, from the youngest age a muggle is taught that no such thing as magic exists and here we come, bursting their bubble," Haley replied, slowly finishing her butterbeer.

"Hopefully not too often. It was still a lot worse when Voldemort was lurking around the dark corners and alleyways of the world. You should know that--but you were more likely in school or probably just being born at that time."

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[Alan Moser]

"Yeah I'm definitely glad that I was born a into this marvelous world," it's kinda crazy how some people can be completely oblivious of those things that are right under their noses."

"I started school a little after the great war they had just finished rebuilding the school," he remembered being young and all the craziness that had gone on, his parent's had been killed during the great battle and it was a subject that he didn't much like talking about.

"So how about yourself?" he asked the young lady,"just who is Haley Gordon?"

[Haley Gordon]

"You can't tell me that is how you would want it to be. For everyone to know who we were. For people to commit crimes in our name, or demand that we do thousands of things for them. Muggles would get scared, they would get frightened. They would get angry we have no helped with their world's problems. In their own right, they have come a long way but they cannot possibly mix with us. It's on a need to know basis," Haley replied, leaning back in her chair and looking towards the cieling. Alan's next question poised a bit of a shadow that crossed her face.

A thousand memories passed her mind. The murder of her best friend, being mentally tortured at Hogwarts, being locked up in her house, her parent's murder, dating Cole, then Holden, being sick, going to Beauxbatons. It all gave her a headache, to which she cured by ordering another butterbeer with the change that was still on the table.

"Haley Gordon is the daughter of two very loyal, very nasty, and very heartless death eaters who thankfully fail to walk the Earth anymore," she answered simply, drinking more of the warming liquid.

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[Alan Moser]

"I completely agree with not letting everyone know that we exist," he hoped that he hadn't offended the young woman.

He was surprised to hear what came out of the young woman's mouth when he poised his question. He understood by the tone in Haley's voice that it was a subject to be dropped, and not brought up except by her.

Alan looked around the room seeing that it had started to fill with more rain soaked wizards and witches who had popped in to escape the rain.

"You know," he said, "I'm kinda surprised that I haven't seen you around the ministry."

[Haley Gordon]

The witch's brow furrowed slightly. He had taken her words in an entirely different direction. Vetoed. Off limits. Do not question it further. That was definitely not how Haley had intended the information to be portrayed. No, it was a simple thing, a matter of fact. As she sat there, she looked in his eyes for a few moments, studying his face and his expressions before she resigned herself lightly.

"You know, it was just a fact of my life. There are plenty of children who do not take after their parents. I happened to be a success story for the light side of things--if you could call me that, in a way. Not to say I've never done bad things, but obviously I'm no neo-Death Eater ready to kill muggles and fight for the purity of the Wizarding Race," Haley informed pointedly, swirling the liquid in the bottle before she finally rested it on the table.

"I'm not--I just got the job a few days ago. I barely have my own office much less a slew of people recognizing me in the street. I hardly know anyone that works in the Ministry. Truth be told, I have never even met someone in my very own department. I go in, I sit down, I work, I do what things I have to do, and I come back here."

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