Doc wasn’t sure why he’d let Tilden talk him into a double date with a bird who’d accidentally apparated herself into his mum’s garden (she was probably mental, though seeing how excited his best mate seemed to be over the whole thing he’d kept that to himself), except that he was trying to distract himself from the new low he’d hit last night. He was a mess, and now bloody MacFusty of all people knew that, too. But he was trying his best to stay in good spirits, to focus on his curiosity over this bird he’d heard about a good month ago. Writing a book about muggles, and even if she was mental that was still something Doc could respect. He greeted her with a pleasant smile, though it quickly turned to a look of surprise when she introduced her friend. “McCormack?” Bloody hell – at this rate he was going to run into everyone he’d gone to Hogwarts with. But at least tonight he looked as put together as he ever did these days, and at least McCormack was a housemate – a former teammate, even – he’d liked well enough. And the years since Hogwarts had been good to her, though there was something very weird about being set up with his former housemate without realizing it. Still, she was better than the ugly former Hufflepuff he’d been expecting to be stuck with, so he let a bemused grin settle across his face as he stood up. “Small world, huh? Good to see you again.” He extended a hand to shake before he turned to Daisy and did the same. “I’m Doc, it’s nice to meet ya.” Sitting back down, he explained to her and Tilden, “Meg and I played quidditch together at school.”
Tilden too stood up when the girls got to the table. “Oh a Ravenclaw! Thought I recognized ya. Good to meet you.” He shook Meg’s hand. “Glad to see you made it,” he said turning his attention the Daisy and giving her a wink. Her friend was thankfully not ugly but Tilden felt he had the better of the two. Sitting back down he gave Doc a smile, this wasn’t gonna be too bad. If nothing else Doc and his bird could talk quidditch. Probably good for him to be around someone he semi-knows. “We went ahead and ordered firewhiskeys but if you gals want something else please don’t be shy. You can order it when she brings us round our drinks.”
Daisy looked back and forth between Doc and Meg in bemused surprise for a moment. So that was why he’d looked familiar – Daisy had seen him in quidditch matches. At least he didn’t seem put out by the fact his date was an old housemate, and Daisy just hoped the same could be said for Meg. After greeting him cheerily, Daisy was much too busy turning her attention back to Tilden to worry too much. “I let Meg handle the apparating this time,” she answered him with a grin as she slid into the seat next to him. “Firewhiskey sounds good to me.” She’d missed it, after a year in the muggle world. “So – are you telling me I’m surrounded by a bunch of Ravenclaws, then?” Daisy asked, lifting a brow but mostly just amused; and curious, too, as to what house Tilden had been in.
Meg went from being relieved that Doc had remembered her, had he not that would have been very awkward, to feeling foolish to think he might not. They’d played quidditch together, it wasn’t as if she had sat behind him in Potions for years or something. She smiled brightly at him and giggled softly at Doc’s comment. “Good to see you, too.” Meg shook hands with both blokes before settling down in her chair. At least she knew Doc was interested in quidditch, they’d have something to talk about. And while Doc looked like he could do with a vacation maybe, he’d always been a little intense though, he looked a lot better than Dirk had looked. Not wanting to think about that encounter Meg chimed in along with Daisy about the drinks. “Firewhiskey is perfect, thanks.” She laughed at Daisy’s question. “You are!” And then to explain her amusement, “Normally it’s the other way around and I’m surrounded by Gryffindors. I think this is a first.”
















