Magical Me.

benjy let out a heavy sigh, weighing his options.  he could just storm out now, but he’d brought attention to himself, and it wasn’t like gilderoy would ever settle for not having the last word.  or dramatic exit, in this case.  plus, benjy never said no to a free drink.  and hell, if it went as poorly as benjy expected, he could throw the drink in gilderoy’s face.  that thought alone had him agreeing against his better judgment.  “fine.  one drink.”  he crossed his arms, leaning back in his seat.  “you tell me.  what’s my usual drink order, gilderoy?”  benjy arched an eyebrow, challenging his ex-boyfriend.  if the man had remembered anything about anyone other than himself, he would have been shocked.  “get it right and i might just stick around for a second round.”

Gilderoy grinned the smile that won this year's Witch Weekly award - he knew the correct answer, of course. All this time, he hadn't forgotten a wealth of knowledge about Benjy, hoping one day it would come in handy. Would it be nice to win back his ex-boyfriend? Yes. Did he think that was possible? Not really, but it wouldn't stop his unearned confidence from kicking in at just the right moment. "Excuse me, barkeep? Can we have two tequila sunrises, please?" With a satisfied smirk, he lowered himself into the chair across from Benjy. "While we wait, I'd love to know what you've been up to lately." The question may have come as a shock - Gilderoy Lockhart, asking to hear about someone else? - but it was something he had been curious about for a long time. Hearing bits of news about Benjy from others wasn't enough anymore.

“Of course.”, she commented, instantly agreeing with him. “I honestly can’t pick a favourite one out of your books.” Did she really enjoy them so much? Or just the face of the man who wrote them? An idiot could convince people he wrote masterpieces if he were handsome enough. But Gilderoy Lockhart was no idiot. He was way too good-looking to be an idiot, Odette believed. “I’m Odette. Macmillan.”, she clarified, a frown settling around the corners of her mouth. Had he forgotten about her? “We went to Hogwarts together. And were both sorted into Ravenclaw.”

"Ah, of course! I myself agree with you. They're all so splendid, how could I have expected you to pick a favorite? My apologies for putting you in such a position," he lamented with a wink and a smile. Gilderoy himself was the source of his ego, but with each and every fan, that vault of confidence grew. Recognition sparked in his eyes as she revealed her own name. "Odette! Of course! Wow, it's been so long. Sit, sit. Let's catch up. And I'll buy us a round, I insist."

She slouched in her chair.  She knew this was a bad idea – she knew it.  She absolutely knew that going into public with her brother was going to be a test in patience.  Did he actually think that people responded well to being accosted in the middle of a pub while just trying to eat their food? 

“Gilderoy,” she mumbled, using a menu to hide her face.  She made a play at sounding breezy and indifferent, but she knew that it was far from effective.  She used her hand to hide her words from the other man, resorting to her secret weapon for distracting him.  She couldn’t use it too often or he’d catch on, but it had been awhile.  Desperate times. “You’ve got a little,” she subtly pointed to her teeth.  There was nothing in his teeth, but hopefully he’d go check and let this poor man get on with his day. 

"Hm?" Gilderoy always failed to notice his twin. Not to be cruel, not maliciously, but simply in favor of himself. It had always been that way, from the few moments between their births, to their Hogwarts days, to here in this pub. She was uncomfortable from his preening, everyone could tell, and yet he was too consumed by his assault on the poor man to see it. Then, when his attention was finally captured by his better half, he frantically picked up a spoon to use as a mirror. With a furrowed brow, he found nothing, but he would never think her to trick him. No, she was always looking out for him, always caring for him. Gwen was truly a gem - perhaps one day he would share an sliver of the spotlight with her.

"What would I ever do without you? You've saved me yet again." He grinned, wide and genuine. "Come now, this round's on me! This book of mine has been hugely successful, you'll never believe how many copies I've already sold. Guess!"

All Marlene wanted was some peace and fucking quiet (and a lot of booze.) She deserved that after the month she had… but no. The universe had a twisted sense of humor, because just when she made herself comfortable at the bar, she heard Gilderoy fucking Lockhart’s voice booming through the pub, and her eyes could not have possibly rolled back further in her head. She downed the rest of her drink, because she needed it to put up with him, before turning to face him - and the poor unfortunate soul he was harassing. Merlin, she wanted to punch that pretty little face of his. “I swear to Godric, Gildy, shut the fuck up.”

Gilderoy's attention was drawn away from the floundering, middle-aged woman before him - and instead his eyes found the lovely form of none other than Marlene McKinnon. That charming grin appeared on his face, but unlike many of his others, this one was genuine. Her always enjoyed her back in their Hogwarts days - her fire was something he could appreciate without (much) jealously. "Marlene, dear! She jests with me, she teases," he explained to the woman who was struggling to find a quill for the autograph. "It's so incredible to see you. Tell me - how have you been?" The ignorant boy was too self-absorbed to keep up with current events, so her probable answer of widely-known knowledge would likely be his first hearing of it.

open @ merlin rouge

Emma could hear the thudding music through the door. Even if she was on break, Merlin rouge was never quiet, but that was for Victor to deal with. It’s not like it would be much quieter outside and, if she were outside, it would be harder to resist the urge to smoke. It was a habit that she badly need to kick as evidenced by the last time she was on a broom. Even then, she was still itching for one. Getting up from the couch she was relaxing on (which she doubted was clean but those were doubts she was ignoring), she approached a rack of costumes on display, looking through them with mild interest. She wouldn’t wear anything like them but they did look cute on the dancers. She reached up to scratch her tin, head shooting up when she heard the door open. “You need something?”

Gilderoy offered sly winks and charming grins to dancers and patrons alike as he wandered through the club, looking for the door to the dressing rooms. It was a generous thing he was doing here - really, he was charitable by nature. As he finally found himself in a somewhat downtrodden room, facing a lovely girl and a rack of costumes, Gilderoy nodded his head in satisfaction at his findings. "Yes, hello! My name is Gilderoy Lochart - but you knew that already of course," he winked. (One would be surprised to find out that Gilderoy's eyelids did not get tired from his constant winking. In fact, he has always had exceptionally strong eye muscles.) "My dear friend Billius requested that I put on a little show for you all tonight! It'll bring in so much business for you lot, you'll be begging me to come back every night of the week, I'm sure of it. On that note, I believe good Bill left a costume aside for me."

as soon as benjy had seen his ex enter the establishment, he’d put up his copy of the daily prophet to hide behind.  it reminded him of the movies, in how utterly silly it was, but — desperate times called for desperate measures.  and few things were more desperate than an encounter with gilderoy lockhart.  and even still, the simultaneous rage and heartache he felt at the sound of his voice …  it was like it wasn’t several years in the past.  goddammit.  “you’ve got to be fucking joking,”  he finally responded, through gritted teeth.  benjy lowered the paper and stared directly at gilderoy.  “the last thing on this entire planet that i would want is an autograph from you.”

The woman before him was bumbling, so excited to meet the Gilderoy Lockhart that a nearby barkeep looked concerned she might fall over. Gildy's attention was elsewhere. His eyes were locked on those of a person he hadn't seen in some years, eyes he had last seen full of hurt and betrayal. His heart fluttered a bit, surprised at how impossibly more handsome Benjy had become. The moment lasted too long and yet not long enough - Gilderoy finally registered the harsh words aimed at him by the very man he was so enamoured with. Coughing gently, he assumed his normal facade, a grin spreading from ear to ear. "Perhaps I'll just buy you a drink instead!" He stood up, completely ignoring the woman who was now attempting to fan herself, and sauntered over to Benjy's table. "What'll it be? A tea? A whiskey?" How long had Benjy even been in here? Surely he would have noticed...unless, of course, his ex hadn't wanted to be seen.

They had barely been in the pub more than a few seconds when they were greeted The urge to role their eyes at his hubris was too much to resist and so moments later gaze rolled skywards. “I think you have me confused with someone who cares about celebrity, Lockhart.” The words were dry rather than entirely cold, simple annoyance instead of genuine dislike. “I’ll give the autograph a miss but I will take the seat.” They hesitate for a moment, trying to decide whether they really wanted to open themselves up for a deeper conversation. A beat later and they decide to take the plunge. “How have you been?”

"Ah, Dorcas! I nearly didn't recognize you! But you are truly a sight for sore eyes - the people in Hungary just aren't as beautiful as us." Gilderoy shook his head, as if in genuine sympathy for their obvious misfortune. Hungary had been the last stop on his 'extravagant' travels before coming back to England some months ago to promote Magical Me, and promote he did. "I'll sign something for you anyway, just in case you change your mind," he winked. "Oh, me? I'm doing incredibly, wonderfully! As I'm sure you've heard, I'm a best-selling author. You've read all my works - no doubt - of course you have. Do you think they're quite splendid?"

“Gilderoy!”, Odette exclaimed at the sight of him. She remembered him well from Hogwarts, she always thought he was so charming and handsome. The perfect lad in her eyes, though she would never dare to say that in front of her father, to him only purebloods mattered. “I have read all of your books.”, she admitted as she approached him and sat down on the chair. “Do you remember me?” Would be disappointing if he didn’t.

A grin spread across Gilderoy's face at the excited reply. Finally, someone as beautiful as he was to converse with - someone who understood the trails and tribulations of the excellent-looking. "You have, have you? I can't say I'm surprised! They are best-sellers, after all, each one more incredible than the last." Bragging about himself was something he was never shy to do; even if there was nothing worth bragging over, he would find whatever small morsel of his self to show off. "Of course I do! Remind me your name, again, please. Through my wonderful adventures, it seems I can't remember everything." He, in fact, did not remember her - perhaps vaguely? She was pretty enough to stick herself in his memory, but he still couldn't recall her name.

"You there! - Oh, don't be shy, I can tell you're just dying to talk to the Gilderoy Lockhart!" A roguish grin swept across his face as he pulled out the chair adjacent to the one he was perched in; he gestured warmly to it. "No doubt, you're a fan. No, no - I'm not a seer, but I do have a particular affinity for understanding the human mind, and you, dear friend, are aching for an autograph." The words were arrogant, yet somehow charming - admittedly far too loud for the peacefulness of the pub, and although he wasn't yet drunk, he was overly intoxicated by himself.