all in good fun

His grin returned, easy as ever. “Still… if you really do know about this imaginary underground bar, I promise not to ask any more enlightening questions until I’ve had another drink.”

It rained and rained and rained.

It never seemed to stop raining in London. Antonin ducked beneath the awning of a nearby shop to straighten his robes and pull up his hood with an irritated flick of the wrist. With the customary curse under his breath, he stepped out from the shop window and powered forward, splashing past several other inviting doorways before he finally made his way over to the ‘The Ink Pot’. He was nearly in the entrance when he jostled against another man who seemed to have the exact same idea he did.

“Apologies.” Antonin stepped back, taking the door handle and holding it open, only to be shocked by the sight before him. The young man with shining blond hair looked so remarkably familiar and it took a moment before Antonin’s mind made the connection. The Quidditch player from the Daily Prophet. He let out a soft, “Oh” at the realization before casting his eyes away for the sake of propriety.

Who: open

Fenrir was contentedly perusing the shelves on a sunny morning, enjoying the smell of old books and dust. He was there to expand their herbology, ritual, and medicine collection for Healer Selwyn. Morgana knows how soon they might need him with the Minister missing and no clue if the Dark Lord had orchestrated it or not.

He had quickly pulled what he could from the small section and was in the fiction section of the store. Fenrir debated the merits of spending the budget on this frivolous thing.

After having paid for the instructional books only, Fenrir left the dusty store for the sunny street, pausing to allow his eyes to adjust when a voice hailed him.

anyone walking around diagon alley could feel the tension and as sunset neared, it only intensified that unsettling feeling. beck didn't have too many days away from the hospital and he maximized his personal time whenever he could which also meant updating his personal stock. after the scare with evelyn, he couldn't afford to be out of anything again. he didn't know when someone else would end up at his door, death eater related or not. he browsed the aisles of the apothecary shop and as he reached for one of the vials, a commotion from behind him stopped his attention. beck nearly jumped into action when he saw someone threaten the shopkeeper and steal some herbs before apparating away. he only rushed forward when he saw that the commotion pushed someone to the ground and some vials were uncorked. "don't move," beck said as he knelt down beside them. "it's not that bad, i promise." beck motioned to someone standing nearby. "can you please get me some calming cream?"

rita had been in this industry for too long to recognize when people were tense and she had never seen it like this. of course, she predicted that it would happen and it really kicked her in the gut to report on hard news when she'd rather write about what she did best. rita was in the middle of an interview at the cafe when the bartender called last call. her head snapped in every direction, not used to the business closing when the sun was still bright outside. "oh, you're not serious," she complained to no one in particular with the rest of the crowd who made to stand. "i can't believe this. they think this is going to solve anything and-yeah, i'm not doing this." she was agnostic about most things unless it came to an inconvenience to her and her career. "where do we even go now for a drink? someone's place? that's a worse health hazard."

After Narcissa had walked in and took in the same expression many people had on their faces, she knew that she hadn't been the only one to receive such a strange letter. Her gaze stopped when she saw Ludo standing among the crowd as well. Aaah, at least the company was pleasant still.

The woman made her way over to the man. From his expression she wasn't certain if he had received a letter as well, but Narcissa wasn't the one to stop herself from asking.

"Ludo, good to see you finally. Although when I said earlier to Alecto that this party needed some spicing up, this was not what I expected to happen. Did you receive a letter as well?"

At her question, his smile lingered for a second too long before he let out a short laugh. “I did, unfortunately. Whoever is behind this little game seems convinced they know us all terribly well.” He swirled the contents of his glass, his gaze briefly flicking toward the guests scattered around the room. “Though judging by the atmosphere, I’d say some people received much nastier surprises than I did.”

His eyes returned to her, curiosity sharpening beneath the easy charm. “You too, then?” He wondered as the corner of his mouth quirked upward. “Tell me, should I be concerned that half the room appears ready to commit murder, or should I simply be offended that someone thought anonymous correspondence was an acceptable substitute for proper entertainment?”

lucius couldn't help himself but feel amused as people ran out of the rooms or looked up at people with contempt. whoever sent the letters out at least knew how to fun and brighten up a dull party. lucius walked over to the closest person who just opened their own letter. "if it makes you feel better, everyone else is upset," lucius said in an attempt to console someone. "but not me because it wasn't true at all. i think people are only hurt when there's some truth in it."

His smile remained in place, easy and familiar, but there was something measuring in his gaze now. “I don’t know, Lucius. Sometimes people are annoyed because someone decided to stick their nose where it doesn’t belong. Not every reaction is a confession.” He took a sip of his drink before glancing around at the scattered pockets of unease spreading through the gala. “Tell me, what did yours say? Since you’re apparently the only person here with nothing to hide.”

Any gala that had a bar or a section for drinks and refreshments of any kind was one Emmeline Vance could get behind. Primarily cause it was something to do when one seemed intend on trying to avoid mingling until a familiar face came along, but also because drinks of any kind usually made whatever small talk came her way a lot easier. Her hand reached out for one of the drinks from the trays floating about when from the corner of her eye she spotted that familiar face; something worth turning around for.

His gaze wandered briefly across the room before settling back on her, amusement lingering. "What have I missed?" he asked, lifting his glass slightly. "You've been here longer than I have. Any scandals, catastrophes, or particularly dreadful conversations I should know about?"