Evolution of Self - Open

[Harmony Lupin]

For the past few months, Harmony Lupin had found herself spending a lot more time at pubs. Whenever she had a free moment to herself she was never sitting at home or doing some meaningless shopping around the busy streets of London; She was always at a bar. To be honest she couldn't really recall when this habit started or why exactly she started it, but nothing was more soothing to her at the moment then the burning sensation she acquired every time she downed another shot of Fire whiskey. The calm numb feeling that swept over her tiny figure after having so many shots was always welcome, Harmony's body mostly aching now between the moons and extra work she had been doing at the ministry. If another person was to watch Harmony they would call her new favorite past time an addiction; she was a regular at several different bars now a days, and she had no shame in that fact.

It wasn't that Harmony was depressed. On the contrary it was the exact opposite. If anything she was a bit lonely, but above all else the stress from work was really starting to get to her lately. Being an unspeakable was demanding of course, but when she decided to change career paths things just got ten times worse. Harmony was always one for change though, and it made her wonder if she would ever be able to keep one line of work that she didn't feel the need to leave after a few years of work. She thought a lot about her future every time she found herself sitting alone at the bar, a book in front of her as she read up on the topic she was thinking of making her profession ; Dragonologist. Harmony always worked better alone, and unlike Jackie teaching was never her forte. She could barely stand a crowd, let alone a classroom full of adolescents day after day. She was not patient enough for that, and she knew it. However the topic of Dragons always fascinated her, and she could research it and do her work alone. Not to mention the danger and adrenaline rush from day to day work would always keep her on her toes - and interested. It was the perfect fit for her.

Looking to the brown liquid in front of her, Harmony downed her shot quickly, placing the glass back down on the table. Tapping the glass with her index finger the tender nodded, fetching the bottle for a refill.

[Eric-Pas†rano]

A little too much had been happening in his life over the last couple of years. He had traveled across Europe trying to find a way to break himself from the curse of his blood. His feet had grown tired, his hair long and untidy, the stubble on his face thick with disregard for a clean shave. However, he was just happy to be back to London again. His feet had grown much too tired to continue travelling, he needed a place to sit and a strong drink of mead.

When he stepped inside the Leaky very few paid attention to him. His travelling coat was long, brown, tattered, and a bit on the musty side. Each step he took was soft, the soles on his boots being almost worn out. He sat down in a corner of the bar where the server would come to him with a ruffled up face almost expecting there to be no money on this traveler. Instead, as the server went to say something he dropped a pouch of gold on the counter and just said, "Soup Leaky House and the strongest drink you have to offer."

The sever didn't bat an eyelash as they turned on their heels and marched right in the other direction. The traveler reached inside his coat and pulled out a small pocket watch opening it and looking at the time as if he had somewhere to be. He replaced it back in his pocket as the mug of Whiskey came sliding magically across the bar into his hand. One drink later, and he was wide awake. He scanned the pub ever so quickly face to face before his eyes set onto just one.

It had been a long time since he had saw her, in fact, the last time they were in a pub like this one. He was in much better shape not looking like a hobo and she had looked sickly then. At the time he was a teacher for Hogwarts, the only place that was familiar to him, the only place that felt like home to him. He recalled having a fight with Straw on that same day before he resigned and left for the East.

His bowl of soup plopped down in front of him and he turned away from looking at her and grabbed his spoon. Every bone in his body was aching, every muscle wanted him to get up and say something to her, but like the last two times he had disappeared, he didn't want to interfere in her life and possibly hurt her further. He slurped that soup, and dammit, it was good.

[Harmony Lupin]

Shot after shot that Harmony had consumed she was starting to no longer feel the wonderful burning sensation she had ben so desperate to achieve. She was starting to feel a bit light headed, knowing that after one more drink she would have to call it quits for the evening. Looking down to her book about Dragons Harmony sighed a bit, flipping the page carelessly as one hand wrapped around her final shot for the evening, procrastinating on taking it. She really didn't want to finish off her drinking; being done would only mean she'd had to return to her tiny apartment and stare at the walls until she got tired [which was a rare occurrence these days[. Unlike Jackie who just looked sickly and ridiculously thin, Harmony was of average weight these days [at lest for her]. She looked pretty healthy aside from the exhausted expression on her facial features. Sleep never came easy for her, Harmony have to resort to taking sleeping potions every few nights just to catch a bit of sleep. But natural sleep? Pfft. Harmony wasn't even sure what that was anymore.

Eventually she shut her book, tilting her head back as she downed her last shot of the evening. Placing the cup back down on the counter a bit more enthusiastically then she should have. She shook her head a bit after the fact, looking to the tender as she dropped some galleons on the counter for him. She offered a weak smile to him, the tender returning the kind gesture with a small hand wave. Though they didn't talk much they were on good terms; He knew what Harmony drank and she never caused problems when she was there. It was a good relationship. Slipping out of her chair Harmony stumbled a bit, catching herself on the counter. "Woah," she muttered, shutting her eyes for a minute as she calmed her spinning head and attempted to rid herself of that light headed feeling. The tender laughed at her, Harmony shooting him a look. "Oh hush," she murmured, laughing herself before she stood up straight and started to make her way to the door.

However, as she was preparing to make her leave she spotted someone. He looked as though he hadn't showered in weeks - or had a decent set of clothes - but something about him was familiar. Being the curious person she was, Harmony approached slowly, being careful not to fall as she swayed slightly with each step. Once she was within touching distance of the man she let out a small gasp. "Eric?" she asked in disbelief, putting herself in front of him. His attention was focused on his soup and not to her, Harmony literally grabbing his face with her hand and turning it to hers, their eyes meeting. "...It is you," she murmured in disbelief, letting her hand drop of her side as she turned her back to him, literally falling into the seat at his table across from him. "What are you doing here?" she asked with a tilt of her head, placing her book down on the table in front of her. "I honestly thought you were dead," she said barely above a whisper, crossing her arms over her chest and refusing to look in his direction. This was definitely not what she was expecting, and in all honesty it was a complete buzz kill.

[Eric-Pas†rano]

He watched her slightly from the corner of his eye stumble and nearly fall he said quietly to himself, "Oh lord." But then he went back to his soup until she spotted him saying his name out loud. He took a long drink from the whiskey in his cup as she stumbled her way over and literally almost completely in front of him. Eric set the empty cup down on the counter and tapped ordering another.

Those ruby eyes stared at her through his shoulder length untidy black hair as she spat queries at him in a curious way. It had been a long time since he heard her voice, he almost had forgotten what it sounded like. She smelled of alcohol though, or was that him? He couldn't tell now. He held a finger up to her mouth stopping her from talking for a second and as his drink landed on the table he downed it.

"I am not dead. I hope I do not disappoint, I rather like living, something about it makes me feel, alive," he said setting the cup down and removing his finger from her lips giving the thumbs up for another one, it was going to be a long night. Eric pushed aside the soup and readied himself, "I've walked so long, that I wished to come home. My body hurts, I smell like the wilderness, and I look homeless. I just want to settle down now and not worry about the world anymore."

Another glass of whiskey slid down the bar.

[Harmony Lupin]

When tomorrow came around, Harmony was positive she would regret the condition she was in when she first saw Eric after god knows how long. She was borderline drunk and was positive she would say things she would regret. The only positive side was that she would have no filter on what she said or how she said it. Harmony was a bit different then when Eric last saw her; She was a bit more reserved and much more independent. When he placed his finger to her lips Harmony's cheeks flushed a bit at his touch, remaining silent as he talked.

She smirked a bit at his comments, laughing under her breath. She missed his humor. "I'm not disappointed," she mused, a small smile playing on her features as she ordered herself a water. "On the contrary I'm glad to see you are still feeling alive," she smirked a bit, resting her eblow on the table and resting her chin on her hand. Listening to what he said next Harmony's expression hardened a bit, her water arriving right when he finished speaking. "Well, I have a hard time believing you'll be staying for long," her green eyes locked to his rubies for a moment before she looked to her water, taking a large gulp. The werewolf licked her lips after, letting out a refreshing sigh and placing her cup down. "Do you even still have a flat? Or a place to go?" she questioned, looking at his long hair and messy appearance. She let out a girlish giggle, covering her mouth with her hand. "You're right. You do look homeless .." she couldn't refrain from laughing, shaking her head a bit as golden locks fell in front of her face. "I'm sorry. It's just .." she giggled again. "I'm nervous. And had a bit too much whiskey," waving her hand about in front of her face she calmed herself. "I think I still have some of your old clothes - You know, the ones I've stolen over the years?" she started with a smile. "If you need them."

[Eric-Pas†rano]

Eric caught the glass and began downing it, he knew all too well that if he was going to make it through this night, he would need to be light on his toes. It was nice to catch up with one of his most cherished friends, the closest friend he had. Over the past few years he had thought of sending an owl her way, but always came up short with words to write. He missed the old days.

"I have nothing left in me to travel, so I'm here to stay. I've done my deeds and come to terms with my life. I think nows a good time as any to... relax?" He scratched his chin lightly running his hand over the stubble wishing he had come back on better looking terms than he looked now, a bath would of been nice, well that was half the reason he came here. He had plans on getting food, getting drunk, getting a shower, getting shaved, maybe not all in that order depending on how drunk he was to get. "No, I sold everything I had to line my pocket and head out into the world. Only thing I have is the cloths on my back, my grandfathers old pocket watch, and a heart full of piss and vigor. But you've no reason to apologize, I do look rather homeless."

He smiled ever so slightly, "I'm not entirely sure my old cloths will really fit anymore. Might be too tight or too short now, but thank you for the offer, as creepy as it was." It wasn't.

[Harmony Lupin]

Harmony was unsure if it was her current intoxicated state that was happy to see Eric, or if she was in general glad to see him. Whatever the reason was she was glad to see him unharmed, but she had a very hard time believing anything he had to say that had to do with him staying around. Didn't he have a similar story last time? Relaxing back in her seat she listened to what he had to say, fingers placing with a long strand of blond hair that rested over her shoulders. "Mm hmm," was all she offered in return to his statement, green eyes drifting back up to him.

She frowned slightly at his words, not really liking to see anyone she once knew in a state of perpetual failure. Everything he said only confirmed her worries that he was in need of a place to stay. You can't just let him stay out on the streets. You are not that heartless, Harms she told herself in thought sighing as she continued to twirl a piece of hair around her fingers. She smiled weakly. She still cared for him, but how much she did was unknown. "Well, luckily for you I happen to have a nice flat not far from here. Even with a spare bedroom," she mused, leaning forward on the table. "You are - you're welcome to stay with me until you get back on your feet," she suggest sheepishly, eyes averting to the table as if she was embarrassed to ask. but she knew it was the right decision.

Furrowing her brow Harmony shot Eric a look. "That is not creepy!" she protested immediately. "We dated for how many years? I was bound to have some of your clothes .." her voice drifted off. Maybe still having them was a bit creepy. "They were comfortable," she murmured as an explanation, smiling slightly as she laughed under her breath.

[Eric-Pas†rano]

Eric smiled at her, he was only joking of course but it was refreshing to return to London and run straight into a good memory pronto, because this soup tasted as bad as had a couple years back when he showed up from his 'adventures' into the winter wastelands. No reason to really complain, it still tasted better than dried deer meat that he had to hunt and skin and..... Man it was good to be back in luxury.

"If you're offering, then of course I'd accept for a night or two just to rest for a while. But if I'm going to be a pain in the butt, just say so, I wouldn't want to burden you with my 'hoboness'," he said tapping the counter and the very empty glass before him filled, he knocked it back quickly still not feeling any of the effects of the alcohol, his cursed blood would take a while to allow him to get drunk, and when he did he'd probably start singing random drunken songs, whistle to himself, and be cheerful like he usually was. That or violently stumble into things then yell at them with every profanity he knew.

"I was joking by the way. I have two things left in my vault. One, a sweater I never got to return, and two, a picture. The sweater is yours, I figured it'd of been rude to travel with it, the picture is from my last year at Hogwarts, it's me and you. I can't recall who took the picture, mighta been Jackie or Shadow."

The truth was, he missed her, even if they wouldn't pick up where they left off, she was still his best friend. And it was nice to remake friends he had lost because he decided to go on a personal mission across Europe for selfish reasons. The first time he disappeared it was bad, he returned to a shouting match with a guy he had only passed in the hallways, the second time he returned, maybe he could fix the stuff he broken and redeem his friendship status with people. In truth, it was lonely being the loner.

[Harmony Lupin]

Harmony had a strange feeling she might be here with Eric for a while, their conversation getting a bit more light hearted then her pessimistic view on his new life choices. Looking around, Harmony caught the eye of the tender, she offering him a sweet smile before ordering another shot of whiskey. The tender merely rolled his eyes at her, knowing that she had more then her fair share. None the less he poured her usual drink and brought it to her. "Thank you kindly," she murmured in his direction, the tender nodding in appreciation before heading back off to his spot behind the bar. Harmony's two different color eyes floated to the dark liquid, she licking her lips while listening to what Eric said.

"At this rate I might but your hair myself," she murmured more to herself then Eric. "It won't be a bother, I don't spend much time at my flat in all honesty, so chances are you won't be seeing much of me," she added, eyes finally floating from her shot of whiskey to Eric. She offered a weak smile at her words. She didn't want him to think she would be purposes avoiding him; no no, that wasn't the case. She just became a bit of a workaholic in these recent years that Eric had been gone and she wasn't going to let anyone stop her from devoting her entire being to her research, just like she had been doing the past few years. Not to mention she just changed career paths after years int he ministry as an unspeakable; She needed to get a name for herself in the field of dragonology.

Curiosity starting to take over her, Harmony arched her eyebrow at mention of what was in his vault. "Oh really?" she asked in the middle of his explanation, listening to what he had. Her stomach sank at the mention of a sweater, Harmony wondering if it belonged to her or someone else. Not that she was jealous, but it perk her interest on what he had been doing all these years. Harmony hadn't been with another while he was gone, and just when something was starting up for her - naming Shadow or Straw - something always came up, or he returned. She dropped everything for him, she was curious if he would have done the same, or if he had meet another. She sighed when he mentioned the sweater was hers, which brought a completely different thought process into play. Even more so when he mentioned the picture. Harmony literally grunted under her breath at the thought, knowing she had a ton of pictures of the two of them lying around her flat in old photo albums. "I want that sweater back," was the first thing she said with a sly smirk, looking down to her shot.

It was about time she took it, and upon hearing what was left in his vault, both items pertaining to her Harmony could use the numbing burn at the moment. Grumbling at the thought Harmony took the shot quickly, tilting her head back to the liquid went down easier. She placed the glass back down on the table a bit harder then she should have, the Mihael graduate looking to the tender and ordering another before glancing back to Eric.

"Of all things to keep you keep a sweater and a picture. Don't get me wrong, now that you mention it I remember that sweater and I'm glad to be getting it back, but your priorities are misaligned," she commented with a wave of her hand before resting her chin in her palm. She smiled, scanning him up and down. "Hmm. I might have to take you clothes shopping too if all you have to wear is my sweater and your old clothes. Lucky you to run into me," she teased a bit not minding the gesture. Harmony was a very generous person anyway, and would in truth would probably give Eric her last scent if he needed it.

__________

OOC; Changed her eye color yeees. >;] Also, expect an owl coming your way!

[Eric-Pas†rano]

He tapped the counter. Drinking the full glass of booze like it was a shot was getting him no where, "Stronger with more kick." He'd regret the kick later, but a glass slid down the table and stopped perfectly in his palm, he lifted it up to the bartender and downed it. Basically, the entire drink tasted like pure alcohol with nothing else in it. The kicker came when he instantly got heart burn and it was spicy, now that was a drink he could be proud of. He was listening to Harmony this entire time, but only when he finished his drink did he stare back into her eyes.

"I thank you on a level of understanding that the greatest mind wouldn't comprehend. It'll give me a couple days to get a new wand, get some nice cloths, and get back on my feet for a job," he said in reply to the first thing she said to him. He was glad he ran into her, even if he wished it was on better terms, like him not looking like he just walked out of the dark ally in the middle of the slums. However, no one was perfect, and he sure as hell knew he could bust his behind in the next to days to get back on his feet and return the favor to her one day. That or he'll sleep all day, and the next day he'll wake up hung over belching fire again.

Eric smiled at her, "Of course you can have your sweater back." When he disappeared the first time after a very rapid leave from Hogwarts and London he never really thought to return the sweater. When he ventured into the tundra the first time and faced his fears without fearing death itself, he was never sure if he'd see her again. Then he returned after about a year and checked his vault finding the sweater, the picture, and a locket he decided he'd try and find her. Of course, he did find her and only briefly stayed before leaving again, before he left he laid on the floor of his empty flat sleeping and holding the sweater close not knowing what would happen to him this time.

And when he left the second time he replaced the sweater and took the locket knowing that if he would be lost she would know by the will he left behind to return her sweater and for her to have the picture to remember him by. Silly man. "You don't have to buy me cloths, sweets. I have enough money to get a couple outfits. That is, if I stop drinking now," Eric said with a smirk on his face. He drummed his fingers on the table thinking about what job he could go apply for with his credentials. He was an avid duelist, physically(while he didn't look like it now) he was very fit and muscular, his time in Russia he learned several arts of hand to hand fighting, Sambo, Krav Maga, etc. And then it hit him, "I think I'll sign up to be trained as an Auror."