Strawberry Letter 23

Okay, shoot. 

You’re about to get really drunk.

“Er— No, nothing in particular,” Hestia said hesitantly. She looked around for a moment before she positioned herself at the bar. “Could I trouble you for a glass of water, though?”

Not at all. With lemon? Water’s been my go-to lately and the lemon really helps with... I guess it helps to keep it not as boring.

“A competition? That’s interesting.” Kingsley nodded. “I imagine winning would be quite good for business, yes,” he mused. “What do you need me to do? Help you choose?”

Yep, I sure do. I feel like the single one I enter for the competition has no to not only sound good, but, well, y’know-- taste it. What does cherry and dark stout sound like to you?

“I’ll do my best,” Arabella nodded, surprised but pleased to be consulted…

You’re alright with alcohol, right? Before I shove a bunch down your throat.

“Sure. I hope I can be of help. An opinion about what?”

We’re entering our brews in a competition soon, but I need to know which three exactly... Winning our first time entering would bring a buzz I can’t even describe.

“Oh—”

“I don’t know that I could, Janet, I was really only looking for Edgar.”

Sorry to disappoint, but Edgar’s out. 

“Why?”

Beverly’s going to have a baby brother.

“Thanks.” Mundungus settled himself better on the chairs, trying to gather the way which the wind blew so to not bother Janet too much with his smell. Still, he did lay there as comfortably as one could be in a hospital waiting chair. “Was it a spell too? Your sensitive sense of smell, I mean,” he asked, curious.

“No.” She answered simply, just pointing towards the slight bump in her stomach. “I’d say the baby on the way is the reason.”

“Erm, right, of course not, so you would be a… close friend, I suppose? Dawn’s very popular with the Weekly, she’s always been a very good friend to us, not to mention to me personally…” Rita held up a bouquet of hastily conjured Flitterbloom flowers. She expected to be carted off at any second by the security, but it never hurt to try…

“I’ve never heard her mention you, but then again she’s never bad mouthed the overwhelming fans and pestering journalists to me.” Janet continued to not answer any questions, crossing her arms across her chest as she waited for Edgar to show up and whisk her away from Rita Skeeter once and for all.

“Bit of muscle damage.”

Sirius nodded, “Of course you were, for me.” He grinned at her as he moved to sit next to her, when in all seriousness there were hardly any seats left at the moment.  If someone showed up for them he’d move, but for now it was a seat next to a very beautiful woman, “How long have you been her for, these are good seats.”

“We’re nearing an hour now,” She answered after checking her wrist for the time. “What has you at Mungo’s today?”

Kingsley offered Janet a warm, kind smile noticing her reaction. “Did you talk to her?” he asked speaking softly. His smile slowly grew, widening and brightening, even if only a little, when she explained the other reason she was there. “That must be exciting. Do you want to know?”

“I haven’t had the chance to. Her parents were the ones who reached out and let me know where she was, but I haven’t brought myself to go in yet. I haven’t even checked if it were allowed at the moment.” Janet licked her lips. The slight change of subject surprisingly helped as she was reminded she had something to really be looking forward to right now. She nodded, “I have a feeling it’s a boy.”

“How is Bevvie?”

Excited, right now. Want to know why?

Rita sat down with aplomb, fussing a bit with her robes.

“This is near Dawn’s ward, I suppose?” she spoke in a hushed whisper, looking around the place. She would have gone straight to the window sill or the door cracks, only the guards were apparently quite thorough and there was an Impervious Charm on it. Rita’s head still hurt from flying into barriers.

“Are you a very big fan?” She asked the other witch brightly.

There was a list of things Janet never wanted to deal with and there was a list of people she didn’t want to speak to; somehow Rita Skeeter had toppled towards the top of both. “Would you be? Nobody’s allowed in at the moment. Fans especially.”

Mundungus sighed. “What is with people and making comments about me smell?” His question a rhetorical one. “I wash meself. Daily. I don’t sm—” A whiff of the heavy smell that had lingered on his clothes arrived to him. “Oh, Salazar,” he mumbled, his nose twitching. “In me defence, this is the result of a bad spell.” He looked up at Janet. “Is it that strong?”

“It’s not.” Janet couldn’t help but crack a smile when he discovered she wasn’t bluffing for the hell of it. “My sense of smell’s sensitive these days. I doubt anyone else could smell. I’d advise you to stay out of the wind and away from fans, though.”

“You could’ve tried, of course, but the result would’ve been the same. I could say nothing even if I were on the case.” Kingsley cracked a small, sympathetic smile. “Are you here for her?” he asked Janet after a brief hesitation.

“Partly.” Janet nodded, not realizing that her eyes had become misty while listening to him speak. “I have an appointment. We find out the gender today, Edgar and I. He’s on his way with Bev right now.”