CLOSER TO HOME [OPEN]

[Harmony Lupin]

Over the course of a few years the Leaky Cauldron had not changed one bit. Despite the fact that Harmony had a hard time remembering the sequence of taps for the bricks, she eventually found herself entrance to the most popular wizarding pub in England, the sound of clanking dishes and the dull murmur of conversation a welcome sound to her ears.

Carrying a large bag on her shoulder, the Mihael graduate struggled to carry it through the small spaces of the pub, muttering a 'excuse me,' and 'pardon me,' every time she managed to accidentally whack an unsuspecting patron, which happened more often than she cared to admit. But finally she found herself at the front desk, a husky looking man with a large white beard greeting her with a low growl. "Uh .. hello," Harmony mused, placing down her bag and reaching into her pocket where she pulled out a small coin purse full of galleons. "Can I rent a room, please?" she asked, the man eyeing her up and down for a moment, Harmony smiling a bit as he moved around in the back of the counter, grabbing a key and taking her galleons for a nights stay.

Having just returned from a long trip abroad Harmony looked rather out of place in this sea of porcelain skin. She was lightly tanned (much to her own dispelasure) after spending a last bit of her time in Egypt before coming back to London where she rightfully belonged. She actually looked like a tourist, despite having grown up here. Unfortunately for her the flat she use to stay in was no longer hers, which meant all of her possessions were gone as well. All she had was what was on her back - while in the process of getting a new flat Harmony had to find a place to stay until then. So she picked up her large bag again, and as she turned to make her way to the stairs she literally collided with another person.

Taking a step back she grimaced. "Sorry," she cooed. "I unfortunately don't have eyes in the back of my head," she smiled weakly.

[Queety White]

"Oh, no it's completely my fault. I wasn't paying attention!" Queety muttered as she stooped down to pick up all the bags she had dropped in the collision. Several children's clothes had fallen out as well as three small broomsticks she had gotten for the triplets. One of them bounced a couple times which some how activated it to hover for a moment before darting across the pub. "Whoops!" Queety pulled out her wand from her back pocket. "Accio broom!" It zoomed right back into her outstretched hand. 

"I am so sorry about that," she continued as she put all the things back in the bags. She figured it was probably better to just apparate home from Diagon Alley but she did not trust herself, not with large bags full of freshly bought merchandise she had picked up after work. The plan was to go back to Muggle London through The Leaky Cauldron and take public transport back home. Now that she saw the broomsticks might have a mind of their own, she wondered if that was a safe idea. Already she was going to look odd carrying around three small broomsticks through downtown London. She was trying hard not to spoil the kids too much. But after the night Kat and Kelly came over and showered them with gifts and spoils, Queety felt like she had to step up her game. After all, the kids often saw her as more the discipinlarian, the bad cop to their parents' and Kelly's good cop. So when she saw the kid's size broomsticks on sale as well as all the cute clothes, she just could not resist. 

Now that she had composed herself, she took another look at the woman she had run into. She looked very familiar but Queety could not place it exactly. She tilted her head to the side because she knew for sure that this was someone she knew, even though the woman looked older, tanner and just a lot different from the way she looked last time the two had met. But when the woman smiled, Queety instantly recognized her. 

"Harmony Lupin!" She squealed. "Is that really you?" 

[Harmony Lupin]

The moment she heard an apology come from what she thought was a stranger Harmony almost immediately recognised it - however, she didn’t get to actually say anything about it. It seemed like Harmony was not the only one in the world who was horrendously clumsy, and while she didn’t get this out of control often when it happened it usually had a terrible domino effect. Point in case the broom which zoomed around the pub at an alarming rate until the witch beside her summoned it to her side. Harmony smirked a little bit (because to be honest it was pretty funny), the Mihael graduate glancing behind her when she heard a grunt come from the man at the front desk.

Queety apologised, Harmony offering a weak smile to the the owner who gave the pair a stink eye for a moment before continuing on with his various chores. Finally turning to look at her Harmony let her own bag fall to the floor before crossing her arms, grinning like a little kid in a candy store as she waited for Queety to finish composing herself and the items she carried. Baby clothes, little kid brooms - was she a mom now? So much time had passed and Harmony felt like she missed so much, but perhaps running (literally) into Queety today was fates way of pushing her back into her old social circle.

Harmony Lupin! Is that really you?!

The 24 year old laughed under her breathe, giving some jazz hands as she struck a slight pose in response. “The one and only,” she answered, placing her hands on her hips. “I would give you a hug but I don’t want to cause another broom incident,” she grimaced slightly at the thought before continuing on. “So who are they for? And goodness how have you been? It’s been ages! You’re not in any rush are you? I’d love to grab a cup of coffee or .. something,” she smiled, rambling on from excitement.

[Queety White]

"I'm in no rush," Queety smiled. She had left the kids at home with Straw for the afternoon and evening so she figured he could take care of them with no problem. Regardless of whether she got there early or late, the place would probably still be in the same state of craziness with those four being left unattended. She might as well delay the inevitable and enjoy some time of freedom and maturity with adult conversation and an old friend. She carefully placed the bags down as to not set off another broom flying accident and then reached forward to embrace her old friend and fellow ex-Mihael.

"We can definitely take some time to catch up. Do you want to just stay here and get something?" she asked. "You look great, Harms. You're gonna have to tell me where you've been and got such a nice tan." While Queety was naturally more blessed with melanin than others, her years living in London, with its regular influx of rainclouds, has lead to her having a paler complexion from when she was younger. She envied the kid when they came back from Australia with darker skin. She should have gone with them the last time.

After they found themselves a seat, Queety explained all the packages. "They're for Straw's kids," she said. "They're getting old enough to be able to fly around a little themselves so I thought it would be fun to get them their own training broomsticks. We're hoping they become great Quidditch players too one day. I know it's nowhere near their birthday or christmas so getting them presents out of nowhere seems weird, but I figured while the weather is still nice, we can start teaching them. And the clothes are for them too, but I promise I got them on sale."

It came time to order and Queety asked for a green tea. After Harmony had made her order, Queety continued. "I've been good though. I'm trying to remember when was the last time I saw you. Gosh it must have been a few years now. Well, I actually quit my job teaching a while ago. I'm now working at Flourish and Blotts and living here in London which has been a welcome change. It's been really nice out here. And what have you been up to recently?"

[Harmony Lupin]

Harmony was never a big hug person - actually she was a huge fan of her own personal space, but there were moments where even she couldn’t help herself. This was one of those moments, returning the kind gesture to Queety when she said she was in no rush to get to wherever she was eventually going. Pulling back she smiled brightly, glancing around the Cauldron. It wasn’t that busy to be honest, and she actually enjoyed the products here - especially the exploding lemonade. “I think here will be just fine, yeah?” she suggested, grabbing her bag and looking around for an empty table. “How about over there?” she suggested, pointing to the table by the window.

Smiling a bit modestly Harmony nodded. “Thanks. I could say the same for you,” she noted, arching her eyebrow a bit. “You look particularly happy with life. I mean you were generally always happy but more so than usual,” she clarified. grinning a little. “I’ll tell you all about the tan when we get to our table,” she assured her, but didn’t actually move for a second. She wasn’t the greatest mulitasker, so walking and talking was a bad idea. But after a moments pause she lead the way, sliding into a seat across from Queety.

“Ahhhh right, I forgot Straw has a litter now,” she said, looking as though a lightbulb just went on over her head. “Hey, you don’t need an excuse to do something nice right?” she asked with a bit of a wink. “Besides the sooner the better. Knowing England weather we might not be able to enjoy the sunshine for more than a day..” she mumbled, looking to the waiter. “Oh I’ll just have some exploding lemonade,” she asked with a weak smile, looking back to Queety.

“Oh wow, you quit?” she asked, tilting her head a little as she rested her elbows on the table, chin in the palms of her hands. “Well I can’t blame you. I left my TA job a while ago too. Was there a specific reason you quit?” she asked, her smile growing when she said she worked at the book store. “I feel like Jackie must be in there almost every single day,” she laughed a little at the thought of her cousin, who she herself hasn’t seen in years. “So aside from work anything else? No boyfriend or anything?” Harmony grinned, giving a suggested smirk as their drinks arrived. 

“Thaaaaaank you,” she said to the waiter, immediately slouching in her seat as she wrapped her fingers around her glass. “I’ve actually been out of country,” she told her fellow Mihael with a casual shrug. “After I left my TA position I struggled to find a job I wanted. I eventually fell into potions which I do now. Love it, it’s awesome,” she grinned. “Soooo I traveled a lot, looking to learn from different magical communities about the art of brewing. I just left Egypt, hence the tan,” Harmony explained, raising her glass to her lips and taking a sip.

OOC NOTES: 4 years later Sorry I made you wait!

[Queety White]

[[ooc: don't worry about it, dear. Glad to be posting with you.]]

The drinks arrived and Queety took a sip of her tea. "Yeah, triplets are 5 years old now. Getting big so fast, it's unbelievable," she said, her eyes sparkling. In the past few years of living with the Buckett Clan, she had seen the kids grow from stumbling, drooling toddlers to young children who were able to hold conversations (albeit about ninja turtles or barbie dolls but still conversations nonetheless) in the blink of an eye. It was amazing to think that they would be starting primary school in autumn. It seemed like just yesterday they were all infants, barely a few days old. Well, it also seemed like just yesterday Queety and Harmony were students at Trio's Hogwarts and now look at them, adults with lives and responsibilities and jobs. 

"As to why I quit, well it's kinda complicated..." she began. "You know Straw and Kat divorced a few years ago, right? Well, I ended up moving in with Straw to help him take care of the babies because they were so young and he was so stressed out with everything. And it just got too hard to be living in London and having to use Floo Powder to get up to Hogwarts every day and take care of classes and then come back and take care of the kids. And I realized it was time for me to leave the old castle anyway. It was time for something different." And boy did something different come along. Making that choice lead to a complete 180 in her life. If someone told her she the kind of life she would have 3 years after she made that decision she would have thought them crazy. But here she was now. 

"No I haven't seen Jackie at the store. It definitely would be her place, especially if she saw what I've done with it. I added a little cafe in the back with couches and a little shop that sells coffee and tea and snacks. Students will come to study and people will come to just read books and relax. It's really quite cute," Queety said, proud of the little addition to Flourish and Blotts that was her own design. She thought about her best friend from school, Jackie Lupin, wondering what that girl could be up to. "Next time you see Jackie, tell her to come by." 

Then Harmony brought up the boyfriend question that Queety knew was coming but still found her self choking on the green tea that she was sipping as the question was asked. It wasn't a secret any more. Kat and Kelly already knew so there was less pressure to keep it secret from everyone else. It just felt weird to repeatedly acknowledge it. Queety carefully put the cup of tea down. "Well, yeah the funny thing about that," she chuckled. "Uh, well... Straw and I have been seeing each other for a little over a year now. Talk about your ironic plot twist, eh?" The irony being that Straw had been dating Harmony back when they were younger and Queety had first developed feelings for him. The rule of don't date your friend's ex definitely didn't apply in this situation with this group of friends. 

"Egypt though! That sounds amazing!" Queety squealed with wide eyes, hoping to get off the subject of her love life. "You must have gotten loads of really cool experience there. I'm guessing they use different ingredients than we do just because the herbologists grow different ingredients. I'm sure you learned a lot. But you're definitely gonna miss the sun, I'm sure. It's nowhere near as sunny here." Harmony's tan was going to fade rather quickly the longer she stayed in Britain. "So are you working here now? Or are you just visiting?" 

[Harmony Lupin]

Five years. Jeez, it seemed like just yesterday they were little babies, and now they were fully functioning little people. It made Harmony feel a little aloof with everything even a little overwhelmed at how much can change over a small course of five years, which she always thought was a small amount of time. Not taking a sip of her drink immediately the young Mihael graduate pursed her lips, curiosity getting the better of her. “So is Straw going to send them to muggle school?” she questioned, thumb rubbing the side of her glass. She knew it was pretty common for magical kids to have no schooling until they actually reach Hogwarts, but getting that extra mingling with muggles probably wasn’t a bad idea.

“Complicated?” she echoed with a small smirk, despite the fact that complicated usually didn’t mean it was a good kind. “I love complicated,” she cooed, finally taking a sip of her exploding lemonade as she listened to Query’s story. Oh yeah, her name was Kat, Harmony thought to herself, a weak smile never leaving her lips as she heard of what Queety did. It was really selfless of her, even if it was meant to be anyway. “It’s strange how things work out,” the werewolf commented. “But that was really big of you, helping Straw out like that. Did Kat just .. leave?” she asked, shaking her head a little. “Never mind, you don’t have to answer that,” she mumbled, realising Straw’s domestic life wasn’t really any of her business. “But still, you look really happy. I’m glad,” she continued, waving her hand about for a moment as conversation continued. 

Ash, so she hasn’t seen her either. Harmony was curious as to what Jackie was up to, but it wasn’t the first time Harmony had disappeared and to be honest she was positive it wouldn’t be the last. She’d run into her eventually. “I really need to stop in,” she smiled, taking another quick sip of her exploding lemonade. “That sounds amazing though, just like my kind of place. Actually while I have you here, do you guys do special orders? There are a few books I need but they aren’t exactly common,” she asked, nodding a bit. “I will definitely. I have to find her first though,” she grinned.

Harmony literally gasped at the mention of her and Straw being together. It was kind of an overdramatic gasp, but one that was kind of fitting for the situation. “Well it’s about time, really,” she teased lightly. “I’m so glad for you guys! I feel like it has been a long time coming honestly,” she added happily, but it wasn’t one of those fake kinds of happy. She was genuinely pleased about the pair getting together, even though she dated Straw for an extremely brief time a few years ago. “So are you adopting he kids? Or do they just call you auntie?” she questioned a little with a tilt of her head, another sip passing by her lips. 

Not one for social cues Harmony was completely taken when she changed the subject. She laughed a bit, shrugging as she thought on her experiences in Egypt and various other places. “I actually went mainly for Alchemy, though yeah you’re right they grow a lot of different stuff there,” she answered. “Some of the best alchemists in the world live in Egypt, and a lot of the tougher potions have a very alchemic process to them so I went to get some basic knowledge,” she explained, inhaling a bit sharply. “I am working in London now again,” Harmony smiled. “I’d like to say I’m here to stay but who knows what will happen….” her sentence trailed off as a small smirk came across her features. “Aside from me coming to see the little ones of course. I’d love to stop by - if you don’t mind,” she asked with an innocent smile. It was kind of rude to invite yourself to someone else’s house but Harmony was hopeful that Queety wouldn’t really mind.