Clementine Delacour-Laurent

"Just because I claim to handle things well doesn't mean I don't end up in situations. Ending up in situations is totally my thing," Tucker insisted with a little huff. That was not far off after all. He was undeniably prone to finding himself in some of the most random circumstances just because of how much he seemed to go with the flow and agree to things. "And there it is again," he pointed at her with a laugh, especially after seeing the knowing smile. "Of course you wouldn't remember. You never seem to remember," Tucker chuckled. "Make sure to get that checked next time you see your doc."

Clementine tilted her head, a mischievous glint in her eyes. "Ah, so you think I forget things, hm?" she said, her smile gentle yet teasing. "Maybe it’s not forgetting, mon petit. Perhaps I simply choose to ignore certain things... for the sake of my peace of mind." She paused, pretending to think for a moment, her eyes dancing with humor. "Though, maybe I should add you to my list of things to forget. It could be just what I need to keep my sanity." She gave him a pointed look. "You are... how do you say... a test of endurance, non?"

"Fair," he chuckled lightly. When she began to sigh and roll her eyes however, it only caused his laughter to increase in volume. "What are you talking about? I handle everything well," he then scoffed, clearly poking fun at the response. "Come on now, you're one to talk. You find ways to deflect if I praise you for what you might deem as too long of a time."

“Oh, hardly,” Clementine said with a soft huff, the subtle rise and fall of her French intonation lending her disbelief an extra edge. Her sharp gaze settled on him; intelligent, unblinking, as if dissecting him with a single look. “I believe it was you who talked yourself into several... how shall we say... questionable situations when we first met,” she said, her voice calm laced with dry amusement. She tilted her head ever so slightly, lips curving into a knowing smile. “And as for this long history of praising me... eh bien, I am not so sure I remember such a thing,” she added, feigning innocence with a touch of theatrical flair, though the spark in her eyes betrayed her playfulness.

"I suppose it is. Do you think bartender is one of them?" he asked with a playful quirk of his brow. "You're awfully complimentary of me today, aren't you?" he couldn't resist teasing. Especially since it came to a point where it felt like it was a little too generous and he didn't see himself as anything special. Especially not to that degree. "I didn't realize just how highly you regarded me," Tucker added with a soft chuckle.

"Why not?" Clementine answered with a smile though it was soon replaced by an exasperated roll of her eyes and a sigh when Tucker teased her for how much she had been complimenting him. "Perhaps I thought you were capable of handling them better now. Clearly that is not the case." The brunette gave him a gentle shove for ruining it and sipped on the champagne he'd given her.

"It's a shame being good at people isn't really a job," Tucker snorted, although he found the sentiment of what she'd said incredibly sweet. "But I guess I do have a knack for it," he nodded. While he'd always liked people, it had eventually become a way to get by for him so perhaps it was why he'd gotten so good at it so quickly. His family wasn't his biggest fan but at least he was good at winning over the hearts of everybody else. "People can be pretty great. And I always learn something knew at my job."

"I think it is. Though that is hidden behind different titles, no?" Clementine responded simply, knowing they dressed a lot of things up with fancy names. "People can be a lot of things. Some are better than others." Unfortunately, not all were as great as that. "I have a good one in front of me so that is one thing that makes me lucky."

"I guess you make a good point there," he acknowledged. There were some jobs out there that he could never imagine doing that he was sure those people were actually passionate about. That could go both ways after all. "Do I really?" a twinge of surprise flashed in his eyes at the thought of that. He'd heard her speak of wand making many times before and it almost made him think he could do it. "Does that mean this is secretly my calling or something? And I never even really knew it?"

The surprise caused a smile to form on Clementine's lips. "Ah well I can't say for certain if the bar specifically is your calling, only you can decide that, but I would say it is more the people. You have a way with them, Tucker. I think that not many people do have such an ability as you." Maybe being in the bar was what made it shine but either way, Clementine couldn't imagine seeing Tucker having a job that didn't interact with others. He was sociable and seemed to know what to say to people.

"You almost make it sound like a chore," Tucker snorted in reply. "It's something I love about my job, it comes naturally to me," he shrugged, not finding it necessarily remarkable like she seemed to. "But I'm glad it's something that is well-received by others. It's important to me that people feel good when they come by– not that they're just getting their drink and leaving."

"I suppose for some people it would be." Not everyone had the passion for it in the way that Tucker appeared to. But then, she got the feeling that under all the bravado, he actually didn't really see himself as particularly impressive when it came to things like this. "It doesn't feel like just a job to you. You speak about it like I speak about wand-making."

"I suppose that may be true." Though she felt like he didn't necessarily feel the same way about it as she did. "I really appreciate that you've been giving me all this support with it though. Trusting me with it." Because he knew not everyone would be so kind.

"Rude," he scoffed playfully. "And yeah that makes sense. It depends on how a person 'wears' it for lack of a better term," he nodded. "We've had people from all over the world come through the bar. I'd heard it before but I definitely looked it up to be sure I was thinking of the right word," Tucker explained when she said that she was impressed that he'd learned any words at all. "I try to pick up what I can from everyone who comes in. Just little bits here and there."

"I prefer honest." Clementine shot back with a little laugh a moment later, unable to help herself. "I understand though." Even though she sometimes struggled with the meaning behind some of the terms and sayings, she felt like she was slowly beginning to really understand Tucker in particular. "That you listen and remember that kind of thing says something about you. I think most would just allow it to simply pass them by."

"Now that's where you've got it all wrong. The honor would be all mine," Charlie corrected when the woman said it would be an honor for her to be one of the first to own one of her original wands. "I can't wait for the day– it'll be wonderful to get to celebrate you and your acomplishments."

"Neither can I. I am saving up for it and working every hour I can to make sure I am competent." She already knew she could do it but she wanted to learn everything she could so she could realise it sooner rather than later. "I think it will start out small but I intend to become big."

"I know I can always count on you. To say I'm grateful would be a massive understatement," Dominique replied with a soft and earnest expression. "I don't take our closeness for granted."

"You do not need to tell me that." It wasn't something that Clementine needed to be told, because Dominique deserved that much from her anyway and she always showed her in other ways. "Neither do I. It is perhaps the thing I am most grateful for when I think about my move from France. It allowed me to be closer to you." They had always really gotten along but the depth of their bond had really shown since she'd come here.

Clementine seemed to accept that for what it was. She knew how it sounded of course but for her, it was more like an artist getting inspiration. That's how she explained it. "Try it out? Would it work for me given every wand calls to a certain person or certain type of person after all."

"I suppose you're right. I don't know why. Like... sure it's exciting to a degree but are we all really that excited about a new date on the calendar?" her tone appearing rather unimpressed. "You won't catch me complaining about that– let's see if there's someplace we can celebrate that's more comfortable for the both of us."

Clementine couldn't help but laugh softly at the others tone and expression. It was quite clear what Dominique really thought about it all and Clementine did love that about her. "That sounds good to me. I love catching up with people but a bit of time doing our own thing is not something to be sniffed at either."

"At the risk of coming off as conceited, I don't typically need help with that," Tucker commented with a low chuckle when she'd asked if he was trying to get people to go for him. "Is that something you go for?" he then tested playfully given the lighthearted tone of their conversation. "I suppose you can take the man out of the bar and all that..." Tucker waved off with a chuckle when she'd said he was always well prepared. "You think so? I've got to work on my pronunciation if we start getting more advanced."

"At the risk of it?" Clementine answered with a raised eyebrow before laughing softly. "And normally I would say no. I suppose it's far more dependent on the person that's attempting it though." Came the honest response, though Clementine really hoped that the slight heat it brought to her cheeks wasn't visible. It wasn't as though he'd meant it like that anyway. "I'm just impressed you learned any words at all. I've never said it to you before, I don't think."

"Definitely," Alec replied with a nod. "Also, I don't think I can say this enough, but thank you. I'm honestly probably horrible at this, and it's the least favorite part of my day, but you have definitely helped me deal with it a lot."

"Everyone has to start somewhere. You'll be an expert at it in no time I'm sure. And if not, I'm happy to teach and help until you have got the hang of it." Clementine genuinely didn't mind helping people, especially when they were friends who she rated as highly as she did Alec. "Besides, you've done nice things for me before too."

"Yeah, we have this holiday show here every year, but also December is just not the greatest month for me," Alec explained.

"Oh, well I am sorry to hear that." Clementine didn't pry into the reason, if Alec wanted to elaborate, she was sure that he would do so in his own time. "Hopefully I can make it at least a little more bearable by getting your paperwork in order. It will be one less thing for you to worry about, no?"

"Making connections and all is nice for one," he shrugged when Clementine asked him if he was happy. "Getting to know people and hearing their stories is the highlight of my evenings. A lot of the customers that come in here just need someone to hear them out and it's been really cool to see just how much that can actually do for a person. When I can help someone, even if it's just by lending an ear, that makes me happy, yeah," Tucker nodded.

"Then it sounds to me as though you are very rich in your work and that is perhaps the most important aspect of a job." Clementine could see the way Tucker lit up with enthusiasm as he talked and she'd never suggest he change what he did when it clearly made him so happy. "It seems as though people are lucky to have you too."