In Your Element [TAG: Open]

[PHILLIP ABBOTT]

"Sure thing, sweetheart." Phillip had been chatting up a group of young women, probably a bachelorette party if he had to wager a guess, at his bar. Yes. *His* bar. As in he owned it. Unlike most owners, let alone ones of his Quidditch fame that he was still riding the coattails of, wouldn't be caught dead behind the bar but Phillip loved talking to people. He also loved to drink. Both were easiest when behind the counter which either made his bartenders very happy or very mad. He couldn't say for sure yet. Maybe someday he'd ask them.

"Daddy's on it." He continued grabbing a liquor bottle and twisting the cap off with ease. He stopped, catching his error with some concern on his face. "Meaning me. Your daddy's not here. I mean, he could be sure, I don't know what he looks like. What I'm saying is I'm not your daddy. Not in that way. I'm nobody's daddy in that way. Not that I know of." A pause and then he decided to digress. He made quick work of pouring the brown liquid into a shaker before adding a bubbly liquid from a tap and then adding several fresh crushed ingredients from jars on the counter.

With a loud dramatic poof after he shook the contents in the shaker the drink was complete and he poured the contents into three smaller glasses. "There we are." He slid the three glasses across the counter and gave them a charming smile. "That's real magic." Merlin, he knew he used that line at least once every few days but it never got old (to him) and it wouldn't be old to them hopefully as he didn't think he met them until tonight. Fingers crossed!

His green eyes wandered a little way down the bar. "What can I do for you?" Walking up to them he leaned casually over the counter with a goofy lopsided, smile. "Funny. Nobody ever asks what they can do for me. Owning a bar really sucks. Just kidding. No it doesn't." He shimmied his shoulders a little to the beat of a music tapping his toes never once looking away from the person he was addressing.

TAG: Open. But an adult please! No underage drinking thanks! And if you are... Lie about your age like a cultured person!
NOTES: Test running this gent.
CURRENT MUSIC PLAYING IN THE BAR: Logic - 100 Miles and Running

[Deleted]

Add another young woman to your drinks list. Being small did have its advantages at times as she slipped through gaps others might have difficulty with. It was also the agility of a quidditch player though she'd never made the Slytherin house team. As one of the boys she's ended up keeping the rest of the squad on their toes. Competition was always a good thing. 

Tonight this witch had enough after work. She seriously needed better working hours but that was unlikely to change as there wasn't enough medi-vets around as it was and it was mighty difficult to recruit new ones. So once she reached her suite of rooms in the manor she got out of her suit, showered and got ready for a night out. The little black dress with spaghetti straps would fit the bill and she added a little black leather jacket along with her strappy handbag and little black heels. She'd also told her grandma where she was going as that was always a good idea.

She'd heard from co-workers about this place. So decided it was worth visiting. As soon as she'd walked in she knew it was different from the usual smokey tavern. It also seemed quite busy with a bunch of other girls having some kind of celebration. Suspiria was observant even if it didn't look like she taking anything in. Once you knew where the front door was the next thing you looked for was the bar and lastly the emergency exit. It was this kind of logic that had gotten her through Hogwarts although she was no duelist. The never ending grudges with Gryffindor made a sneaky trip to the kitchens a trickier event that it should be.

What Philip would see was a blonde haired head and shoulders who looked like she was trying to filter out the music so she could understand what he was saying. She smiled a little before she made her reply to the posed questions.

"Some fire whiskey would do for starters. The answer to the second question depends on how well we get on" she cheerfully said raising her voice just enough to be heard but not yelling. A practised skill you picked up in noisy taverns.

[PHILLIP ABBOTT]

"To start?" He raised his brow impressed by the order of a shot out of the gate. It didn't take much to impress him when you were a young woman with pretty hair, pretty eyes, pretty figure, pretty, well, everything. Breathing would have been an accomplishment in his eyes with all of that 'good looking' to go around. "Look who woke up on put on their big girl pants this evening - er..." His eyes looked her appearance up and down, perhaps a hair longer than he should in order to be seen as respectful (which he wasn't in the oggling department). "Big girl dress. Not that you're big. Not big at all. I mean, maybe up here..." He pointed to his chest then, in catching his too blunt error, pointed to his head. "In the ole brain department." Smooth recovery Phil you fucking genius. "Heck of a noggin on ya." Too good. It just wasn't fair to everyone else sometimes.

"Challenge accepted." My, she was a flirty one. A bit too young for even his tastes but nothing illegal with some harmless banter back and forth. There was still plenty of time left in the evening to find a more suitable target for, well, his Philisms... whatever those were. You would know it when you got them.

"One shot of fire whisky coming right up." The bar owner grabbed the bottle of amber liquid pouring a shot into a glass before lighting it on fire with his wand. A whoosh and some light smoke he then slid it over to her. "Be sure to blow on it before you sip." He caught her gaze with a knowing smirk. "It's one of those things that needs blowing." A wink. Another interaction nailed by Phillip Abbott. Returning to his duties he wiped down the bar counter bobbing his head to the music from the jukebox.

[Deleted]

Suspiria canted her head and her smile got a little wider. She remembered games like this from Hogwarts and she made the guys work for the good things. Sometimes they won and sometimes they lost. A person was more likely to get good things if they amused her and Phil was off to a good start.

She blew on the fire whiskey as she was used to. She'd learned all this by drinking with her grandpa as they discussed many things. She was the future of the family after all and plans had to me made while he was able to do so. She was also carrying on their legacy of animal care even if she lost her name to a guy; that was as important to him as having a great grandchild to spoil as his own son had turned his back on what they stood for. All to go to war. Brains hadn't seemed to have come from her parents and neither did free thinking. Grandpa Uther had encouraged this since she could talk.

"How much?" she posed as she enjoyed the music and sampling the fire whiskey. She didn't even flinch as she did so and she felt the beat start to work on her.

"I know I'm little. but good things come in small packages. And a big girl dress is the wrapping" she mused back. A classic line as she added "I'm a magi-vet and they work us hard. So an idea comes to mind. Do you do group bookings?". This just wasn't about her having fun now. It might lead to a team night out fairly soon and normally Yule was the only chance they had to do so.

"Where did you get that record from?" she further posed. The music interested her too as she figured she might like this playlist.

[PHILLIP ABBOTT]

"A galleon." And before she could argue otherwise he leaned casually against the bar pointing at her with a knowing look. "And I'll have you know that's a steal for a drink of that quality. Dunno if you noticed but it took an awful lot of effort to unscrew the top and light it on fire." Except, you know, it didn't... and she knew it too. Even so that was the price. A man had to make a living somehow and even though he should be making his coaching the Harpies professional Quidditch team he found that he enjoyed himself far more at his bar. At the very least he could drink on the job... and it was allowed.

"I don't know about you-" He pulled a cleaning rag off of his shoulder and began to wipe down the bar. "But my favorite gift as a kid came in big packages. Large ones." He gave a half shrug not even bothering to read too much into the double entendre there (he hated reading anyhow). "Not much of one for dresses myself. They don't really show off my biceps with the spotlight that they deserve which is all of it." The bar owner and occasional tender crumpled the rag into a ball tossing it like a muggle basketball into a red square bin filled with water and soap that rested at the back of the bar. Score!

"Ah. Animal vet then. What's the deal with that? Didn't like that when you asked people to open their mouths and say ah they had too many questions?" Once again he leaned against the bar picking up his own beer with a smug smile and playful waggle of the brows he took a sip of the light brown liquid. "Came with the place I think. So did I." When she asked about the record player her practically spoke into his drink.

"I don't do any bookings sweetheart. In case you haven't looked around since you walked in this place is a bar - and a shitty one. I should know-" Her question had him exhaling and he set the glass down on the countertop. "I own it." A fact he was very proud of even if he shouldn't be. "People come in, they get drunk, they vomit, they go out..." He demonstrated using his fingers as 'people'. Pausing he cocked his head slightly. "I mean preferably not in that end order but you get the gist." Reaching out he grabbed her empty glass and a few others dumping them in the water well before pausing and looking over his shoulder at her. He couldn't help it. Curiosity killed the cat and... well... meow.

"Why?"

[Deleted]

Suspiria did know it didn’t take that much effort to make a fire whiskey. If you weren’t setting it on fire ice cubes worked just fine but in this neat natural state she’d made her assessment before taking a deeper drink which finished it. It tasted good and she felt warmer immediately. Winter was starting to lay claim to this part of the world and it wouldn’t be long until you need more than a little black dress to go out in.

She smiled and her free left hand fished round in a pocket for coins. She came up with a handful and paid for her drink.

“I know what you mean. Big packages are also fun” she mused back at him in a light flirty way. She was having fun and it was only fair she gave him some back. She knew just what the boys could pack and men would be better equipped. An observation that might be more relevant later on.

“Actually being an animal vet was a choice. It’s also been a long standing part of my family and I will continue it. I’ve only ever had one animal talk back to me and that was a jarvey I had to trap when a wizarding family reported it. She was successfully relocated".

He certainly didn’t believe in false advertising and jukebox aside there wasn’t much different about this place compared to others of its kind. It had been the first time she’d seen a jukebox in a tavern so that alone would have her coming back here. Who knew what musical treasures where contained in it?

She had done something to catch his interest. That was confirmed by the question he posed to her. “I can honestly say I’ve never seen a jukebox in a tavern before. Thats one reason to come back here in spite of your honest review. I find that refreshing.

Do you do cocktails?”

She’d keep teasing him a bit at a time and see where this led. There would probably be another customer soon and in the meantime he would be able to tell her what she could enjoy next.

[PHILLIP ABBOTT]

He reached out with his large hand, cupping the coins she handed over before turning to face the old timey muggle register behind the bar. The drawer didn't work properly, never had, but Phil was a sucker for muggle items and pop culture. It all amused him and besides... He had to waste his Quidditch earnings somehow!

"Hi-ya!" Pounding the drawer with a karate chop (but with a fist) like he had done a thousand times before it opened with a loud ding and he then proceed to calmly place the coins in their proper place (askew in the drawer) before closing it hard with a nudge from his elbow.

"Family tradition then?" He raised his brow though she couldn't see his face because his back was still facing her. "Most folks just go on a fun vacation or do secret Santa." Phil had a good relationship with his parents and even he didn't know what they did. Maybe he should have asked? Nah.

"Easy there, princess I didn't ask for your life story." He turned back to face her, his arms resting on the bar countertop eyeing her up and down. How old was she? Not old enough that was for dang sure. "Not that it would be particularly long if I did which, again, I didn't." It didn't once cross his mind that she might be offended by his demeanor. It didn't cross his mind with anyone really. That was probably a problem. Oh well!

Did he do cocktails? "Seriously?" He frowned a bit. "It's a bar. So. Probably." What was she getting at here? Did she come to a bar alone? Now that was something Phil did quite a bit but for a young woman to do so... it was just sad for some reason. "Did you want one or do you just want to play a thousand and one questions? I'm winning by the way."

[Deleted]

Suspiria had to admit that this amusing bar owner was right. She had no idea about what he was thinking but by rights she should have a steady boyfriend or girlfriend by now. That was also partly her fault as her work tended to take over. She couldn’t blame her job as she loved it but if she’d just followed the old ways she wouldn’t even be here tonight. She could picture herself having babies at nineteen and then handing them over to a nanny to look after if she hadn’t been so stubborn. Then what if he was cheating on her with he nanny? She shook her head a little and embraced reality. Alternate paths not taken didn’t fit into the here and now. So she chuckled a little and sweetly said “could you please make me a cosmo?”

With her order placed she cheerfully added “the last time I seen a till like that was in a muggle studies text book. NEWT level I believe. Is this something you added along with the jukebox?

It wasn’t even that long ago”

So she’d fessed up in a way. Her life story would barely fill a school essays worth of parchment right now if somebody has been recording her life as it played out. She still had a lot more unless fate cut it short but could she change the path in front of her?

“Please could I have another fire whiskey in the meantime?” she posed. That was quick and easy and as long as she didn’t get blind drunk she could apparate home easily. Just perhaps this bar tender was a bit of therapy. “Even if that’s not the only thing I get to blow out tonight”

She felt she might as well throw his earlier innuendo back at him. It was like asking in a way without having any expectations.

[PHILLIP ABBOTT]

A cosmo? Phil raised his brow then shook his head disappointed. "Ok sex and the city. One second." Behind the bar he grabbed some vodka, some triple sec, and some cranberry juice. Pouring a bit of each into a shaker he scooped some ice into it and added a bit of lime juice before shaking over his left shoulder. Pouring it into a dainty martini glass (which he had to blow on because it had been a while since he had utilized one) he then slid it over to Suspiria on a napkin. "One very stereotypical and not very exciting cosmo. Galleon and five sickles please." He was pretty sure he was just making the pricing up but isn't that what he did for most things that he served here? MADDOX DENTON was the one who remembered the silly trivial things like prices and health department rules. Where was he anyways?

She had just gotten a cosmo and she already wanted another drink. He paused. "Normally I would be all about making extra money, I mean, who doesn't like money, but I'm not about waste. You finish that pink drink there then see how you feel. Then I'll give you another shot." Last thing he needed was vomit the color of bubblegum staining his already yucky and tacky furniture. "Also... nice blow job joke." He not so subtly commended with a sarcastic wink before grabbing his rag and wiping down the bar again.

His hazel eyes scanned the room. No sign of @allen yet. Odd. Maybe a case had gone late? At this rate, with people changing their schedules on him, Phil would have to invest in a working watch.

[Deleted]

Now he looked disappointed. Suspiria briefly wondered what she’d done given she’d played along with his blow job joke. She again went into her jacket pocket and counted out more coins knowing just how wizarding money compared to the muggle pound sterling. So his price sounded about right even if he had just made it up. Sliding the coins over to him completed the transaction; just one drink for now and the second shot would be next up.

Then he looked round as Suspiria observed him. She sipped her cosmo and looked back at him after leaving it down on her part of the bar. She also doubted her vomiting on his furniture would make things worse. The song changed on the juke box at this point and she’d find out just what was on random play.

“Thank you” she mused back adding “its not exiting but it’s helping me to deal with a long day at work. You’ve also kept me amused so far. Does everybody get that?” She’d really needed a dose of alcohol and a way to relax otherwise she’d have just vegetated at home tonight. It was way too easy to do just that. She was working the next day but didn’t care; she’d sleep more deeply once she got home.

Having observed what was going on round her and there probably would be another customer here soon. Then came another question as she sounded curious. “Are you from Canada? I’ve some family over in Yukon”. He sounded a lot like them and she knew at least some of the American accents by now. She sipped her drink again this time more deeply. She did know to be careful round cocktails given they could sneak up on you and you found your legs wouldn’t work,

[PHILLIP ABBOTT]

"What am I here for if not to keep people... amused." He remarked sarcastically, gesturing outwardly at himself. Love, family, kids, a stable life... All of these had eluded him (though truthfully he probably had helped in that department). So what other purpose did he have besides being a big occasionally often times drunk jokester? There were worse things to be he reckoned. Like a tarantula or a spatula.

"Quidditch star, current Quidditch coach, bar owner, amuser. That's me." He once again tossed the cleaning rag into the red bucket filled with soap and water. "Nailed it!" He whooted loudly like a frat boy pumping his arm triumphantly when it went in. 

At her question about where he was from he stopped and turned. "Accent that obvious or was it the politeness?" He smiled. He was anything but polite but the stereotype was fun to take advantage of. "Weird to see one of us out in the wild, huh? Like seeing a dog up on its hind legs doing the cha-cha... Though I would love to see that... As often as possible."

The bar owner went to the other side of the bar taking a few drink orders and refilling a few beers as he went. This was all old hat for him. Another night. Sure he missed playing Quidditch (coaching was clearly not his thing) but there was just something to be said about now always being in a rush all of the time. The simple things. Plus alcohol was great. Speaking of... Time for a drink! He grabbed a glass and filled it with an IPA taking a few gulps.

[Deleted]

As Phil went off to check on his other customers and supply their needs this gave Suspiria a chance to drink her cosmo and think. She’d picked up some information from the time they’d talked and him throwing the rag as if it was a quaffle through a hoop made her smile again. Yet she also felt… inadequate. She had teased him at the start and now she was way behind him. Or was he way beyond her? She hadn’t the experience to deal with this and she frowned.

She had sex before this. A few times in Hogwarts, more after that as she got established in Magical Creatures and some at parties. All with people round her age when both parties were up to it. She’d need to properly think about this once she got home. In the meantime she had a drink to finish as the pink liquid was carefully consumed. You couldn’t rush this the same way she knocked back a fire whiskey.

Also right now she didn’t even know his name. That would have to be fixed once he got back. She could also sense sarcasm and irony at work. This was hard to work out and she dealt with tougher games like this during pureblood events. Everything looked pretty but she had trouble separating the false personas and the real person facing her. They could have been thinking like her for all she knew and didn’t really want to be there.

She hadn’t dealt with many Canadian’s beyond the Carberry family; this was her mothers side of the family tree and while her other Grandparents were in Oxford she didn’t get to visit them as often as she’d like. Yet it was also expected as that was the job her mother was supposed to have done. She’d have to make the time soon as though she disagreed with their views they were family. That mattered more.

[CUE]

<CLOSED>