[mp] [TGH] You're Impossible to Find [Memphis]

Mallory Harrison was been working all week. It was exhausting. She never thought being an auror and still working for the Weasley's would be so much work, but she knew it was the only way she would succeed and not be broke or worried about money. Mallory was striving to be the best person she could be. It did not help that Chael and her would work opposites even though they worked in the same place. It was fine though, she would always leave him dinner and would take care of the cat. Tonight was her night off. She needed to get out of apartment and do something though. She sent an owl to Memphis a couple days ago asking him to go to the local pub The Goblin Hole. She told him the time and what table. She was not sure if he would show up, but it would be nice to hang out with a friend. He was the closest thing to a best friend that she had. He did ask a lot about her ability but it never bothered her. It was nice talking to people about it, rather than people thinking she was a freak.

Dressing pretty simple, mostly in pinks and business attire, she decided she looked well enough to go. Mallory should just wear blue jeans, but she most of those were dirty thanks to work. Thinking of the place and throwing some powder in her fireplace she floo-ed to the destination. She was covered in soot. Great, while wearing white. She sighed and went to the bathroom to clean herself up a little bit.  She still had soot in her hair and on her sweater, but she knew she couldn't get rid of it. She was not very good at apperating lately. She kept ending up somewhere else. She put the floo network in her house hoping it would help... it just made her dirty.

Mallory went to a table on the side and ordered a fire-whiskey and a pint of beer... just in case he showed up. She took the shot first, then poured herself a glass. The thoughts of Memphis flooded her mind... which was weird, but she was waiting for him. The thought of him made her happy though. She needed a good friend around.

It seemed like things were finally starting to go really well for Memphis. After the war had been a rough time for him, like it had been for a lot of people, he had sort of lost his way. He wasn't sure how he fit into the world anymore. He hadn't chosen a side during the war which he regretted. For a long time he couldn't figure out what side he would of chosen anyway. Although he was far from a dark wizard he had been in love with Farren, which made things messy and complicated. In a way he was happy he had the excuse of being an elemental to hide behind, even if she never believed it. She saw it has him being a coward and in a way he saw her point. In the aftermath of the war Memphis had burned any bridges he still had left connecting himself to Farren. He hurt her and it was all over. Ten years of his life spent chasing down that witch had been wasted and Memphis wasn't sure where to go after that. He drifted for a while, moving from place to place, and in time it hurt less to come back to London. He could walk down the stoned streets without constantly being reminded of the Slytherin from his past. Part of it was because he was finally moving on, finally getting right with who he was and what he wanted, but most of it was because of Phridae. She was truly the girl he had been searching for. She understood him in ways no one else ever would, they were connected, and it made Memphis more happy than he could ever remember being.

It had been a week since he had revealed to Dae what he truly was, how they were the same even though they didn't share an element. Memphis felt like a teenager again the way he thought about her almost all the time. Found himself wondering what she was doing, how he could make her happy, and what she might like. When he received a letter from Mallory to meet in London he was thrilled, he could tell her all about the newest love of his life. Memphis loved easily, it often got him hurt, but that was just his way. Mallory was another that he loved but it was a different kind of love. She was a true friend and he didn't have many of those left after the war and losing Farren. On the day that they were supposed to meet Memphis left late as usual but only by a short time. He didn't apparate because he physically couldn't anymore but he had his own ways of getting places. Knowing the deserted areas of London came in handy for the Elemental as the wind carried him across countries and to a back alley just a block or two from the pub. He was dressed casually, as usual, fitted jeans that were distressed just a little and a white shirt with a light gray zip up hoodie over top. Memphis had mastered the art of looking good but not looking like he had spent an hour on it. The elemental was a bit vain when it came to looks but he didn't want to seem like one of those guys that cared more about how he looked than anything else.

After a brisk walk in the surprisingly nice weather he had reached the hole in the wall of a bar and entered slowly. More times than he could count the tall man had smacked his head on the ceiling of the joint. It wasn't entirely built for Goblin's but the ceiling was a bit lower than most places. After he pushed through the second set of doors the familiar smell of grease and beer assaulted his senses and he peered across the room to find his friend. She was sitting at the table she mentioned in the letter and he quickly crossed the room toward her, throwing up two fingers toward the waitress to single another round of drinks as he took a seat. "Hey there." He said with a bright smile, happy to see her. After checking that the empty glass on the table was a clean one and not just something left behind from an earlier customer Memphis poured a bit of beer from the pitcher into it. He didn't drink often and he rarely got smashed but he enjoyed alcohol from time to time. It was much more fun when he was happy so he decided he would indulge today. Taking a swish of the cool liquid it tasted better than he remembered the beer here tasting and so he took another sip. "You look great." He said between sips and smiles, suddenly fixating on the way she was dressed. He wasn't oblivious, he'd noticed her exceptional good looks many times before, but today it was more than that.

"Thanks for inviting me here, I didn't realize how much I missed you until just now." He took another sip of the beer and realized that some how he had drank the entire glass already. It was damn good stuff. Eyeing the pint he thought about pouring himself another but the waitress had trotted over to their table and plopped down two shots of Firewhiskey. The waitress was less than careful, spilling a bit of the liquor on the table as she did, but Memphis really didn't seem to mind. That didn't seem important anymore. "To us?" He said, holding up the glass that seemed quite small in his large hands and waiting for her to return the toast.

When Mallory seen Memphis her hair flashed a bright aqua color. Maybe she could control this a little more. She probably would freak out some patrons or just have them ask questions. It was nice to see her best friend though. "Hello! Sorry- I started before you got here." She smirked at her already half way gone drink.  He mentioned her looking great- she smiled once more. "Well- training is getting hard so I am putting on a show." Mallory closed her eyes and focused and on her chin was a bruise and a scratch under her eye. The bruise on her chin was already turning a greenish color but the scratch under the eye was purple and new. "I look like I've been in a fight club." She shook her face quickly and the bruises vanished. "Its easier to do this than makeup... does take a lot of my energy though." She smiled and noticed how gorgeous he always is. Why did he have to be so bloody pretty all the time? "You look amazing, as always."

The waitress brought over fire-whiskey. She lifted the shot up and nodded for the To us and pushed it back. It burnt so bad going down. Mallory coughed slightly, then chuckled. As she reached for her beer she took a couple giant gulps trying to get the fire feeling away. Did people actually like that? Maybe she should stick with vodka. As she looked at Memphis, she spoke. "How have you been? I missed you too." He was one of the people she could be herself around. That was so hard to find. He was just a great friend. She really needed more like him but they were hard to find. "Anything exciting happening in your life?"

Mallory put her whole focus on him, taking sips off of her beer. She was almost gone with her beer already. She was starting to feel it a little, but she was not going to let him know she was lightweight. She would probably be teased. Mallory really couldn't take her focus off of Memphis. She would try to put her mind on Chael and what he was doing- works as always, but it would go back to Memphis. Oh well- maybe it was because they have not seen each other in so long.

Even from the first time he met Mallory he knew there was something special, something different about her and he had been right. She had been born with a rare gift just like he had and though their true natures were very different it was still comforting to know he wasn't the only weird one in the bar. When she revealed the bruised chin and cut under her eye Memphis grimaced a little. He was both impressed and worried by the injuries she had sustained during training, it was only training, he could only imagine what the real thing was going to be like for her. Just because he who must not be named had fallen didn't mean the rest of the Dark Wizards had gone out and gotten real jobs and become contributing members of society. There were still going to be bad guys to chase, dark spells to deflect, and scars that never quite healed. Still though, it was impressive that she was going through Auror training. Plenty of wizards were against Dark magic and plenty worked for the Ministry in effort to stop it but only a select special few were Aurors. They were the wizarding elite, and he was proud to be her friend. "Woah.." He said in reaction to the bruises as they suddenly vanished and then smiled deeply. "You don't need make up anyway." He said politely, fully believing that she was naturally this flawless without the use of any cosmetics. Besides she was a Metamorphamagus he couldn't imagine why she would bother with beauty products.

"That was impressive." He stated as he took another drink from his beer, smiling behind the glass as she replied saying that he looked great as always. Memphis was a vain man, there was no use in denying it. He spent quite a bit of time in front of the mirror but not because he thought he was the all powerful wizard of Wales but because he took great pride in his looks. He never left the house without making sure he looked just right, he had to put on his face for the world as it were, and he always wanted to make a good impression. Already half finished with his second glass of beer Memphis was greatful when the shots arrived. One of the down falls to not drinking very often meant he had no clue how to drink properly. Like most things he did them quickly, without too much thought, and then regretted them later as he went over where he went wrong again and again in his head. Drinking way to fast meant he would be on the floor before he knew he was even drunk but that didn't stop him, not tonight anyway, it all just tasted to good. Toasting with her he threw back the firewhiskey and it burned going down, his throat tingling as the warm feel spread through him. He gritted his teeth a little after as the taste of the whiskey really hit him and then took another drink of his beer.

The warm tingly feeling was starting to spread through his body and Memphis was totally okay with that. He felt happy, light, and free and those were all good things to the elemental. "I've been really really good." He told her honestly, his thoughts rushing to Phridae as he smiled brighter than he had all night. He was usually a cheerful smiling kind of guy but when he thought about the Ice Elemental a different kind of smile crossed his lips. It was the kind of smile a child has on Christmas morning, full of hope and joy and everything good in the world. "Well I might of told you about a woman I've been seeing? Phridae Summers?" He wasn't sure if he had mentioned her before. They had gone on their first date months ago but it wasn't until very recently that they became a real thing. "She is amazing, truly. We are alike in so many ways and she makes me laugh." As he thought about Phridae and the memories they had made together already something strange happened. Slowly all of the things he remembered loving about Dae began to relate themselves to Mallory. Suddenly she was the one on his mind, she was the one he wanted to hold hands with, the one he wanted to tell secrets to... the one he wanted to kiss.

His head fell to the side slightly as he looked across Mallory's features again, unsure about why he was suddenly feeling this way. It was a strange scenario.... to be sitting in front of your best friend talking about your girlfriend and suddenly realizing you have feelings for them both. Before five minutes ago Mallory was one of his closest friends, he fully grasped that she was an attractive female but they had never gone down that road before and it hadn't seemed like they were headed in that direction either. His eyes grew wider as he remained silent long enough for it to become awkward and then he downed the rest of his glass. Alcohol, he needed more alcohol. "I, um... Two more!" He started speaking to her but before he could even get a sentence out he turned his face sharply away from hers and threw his arm up once more, summoning the waitress and hoping she would be prompt about it. He was being weird now and he was sure she would see it, they knew each other well enough for her to know that stuttering, stammering, and nervous were not things Memphis usually was. He was a very fluid person, moving from one topic to another with grace and charisma and he certainly didn't freeze up in front of pretty girls. He played with the empty shot glass in front of him, rolling it around on the table as his leg bounced nervously underneath.

This was getting weird.

"Well, I defiantly need makeup to hide these from Chael. If he knew I had black eye he would probably go in there and hex whosoever was around." As much as they really do not hang out much she knew Chael was probably the best thing in life. He was supportive to a point and always loved her. He probably hated the rest of the world, but that really did not matter. Mallory maybe always flirted with people but Chael was the person she would sleep with in the end of the night. Well- tonight he was at work... but that was different. He was her man and its scary they have been a couple since their sixth year at Hogwarts. Watching as he downed the shot, she smirked. He was drinking fast. Maybe Mallory should finish her drinks a little faster. Usually it took her forever to finish drinks but the shots were pretty easy after you get the first one day. Her beer was empty now and she was really starting to feel it.

He was smiling brighter as he mentioned a girl. He was seeing someone. She could not be even happier for him. "She sounds amazing. I am so happy for you!" It felt so corny saying that, but she was really happy. Memphis was a great guy and deserved a great girl. "You need to set up a day we all hang out. Chael is usually working- but I am always willing to meet someone new." If she was like him then it would be easy to get along. He then got very quiet. "Well- I mean... if you don't think its a good idea..." She looked down at her shot glass that was still full and decided to down it. It burnt again. She really was not a fan of fire-whiskey. She just hoped that she was really being a supportive friend. That is what she wanted to be. The best friend someone could be. He was a great person and deserved that. She looked at him and instantly changed her mind. Why did he need a best friend? He probably needed more than that... Mallory pushed it away. She had Chael. He was hers... even though he did work all the time and never spent time with her. Memphis spent time with her and always was there. Memphis was beyond attractive.

He ordered two more shots. He tried to say something, but nothing came out. Why was he so nervous? It was making Mallory nervous. She looked down and bit her lip and her hair turned pink. "I will be friends with whoever you want me to friends with. I'll do anything for you, but I think you know that." She smiled softly at him. Oh- god... how pathetic did she sound now? Her hair turned an even brighter pink color. She noticed it in the reflection off the glass of the beer. She put her hands up touching her hair and taking a deep breath. The bad thing about being a metamorphmagni when your emotions change you change also. She looked  back up at Memphis and smiled but couldn't say anything. She had the need for more beer. She look at the pint that was still about quarter filled and poured some in her glass chugging it down. It was not very girly but she needed something to get  Memphis out of her mind. He was just stuck in there. She had a little crush on him when they first met, but that turned into a friendship- now this felt more. Mallory was embarrassed.

Mallory was not going to talk until he talked. She did not want to dig herself into a bigger hole. Plus if she said anything more she might just blurt out how hot was was right at that moment.

The way she spoke about Chael going into her work and hexing who ever was around made Memphis feel a bit tense. She spoke of Chael like he was the one who protected her and that made him feel unusually jealous. He couldn't figure out why he felt that way but he couldn't help but feel it. He felt like he should be the one who went in and protected her. She brought him up again, saying they should all go out together sometime and Memphis didn't want to hear any of it. He wasn't normally like this. He didn't even really know Chael but suddenly he knew he didn't like him. He knew he wanted to wiggle Mallory away from him. Why was he thinking such horrible things? Memphis wasn't a fighter, the only times he'd ever been in a physical altercation had been when someone else was punching him, which seemed to happen quite often, but he never threw back. He was usually better at controlling his emotions, especially strong ones like what he was suddenly feeling for Mallory. He had to be better otherwise things started getting blown off shelves and that was never a good thing. Memphis took a deep breath and closed his eyes for a moment. He wasn't the jealous type, the over bearing type, he was none of these things he was suddenly feeling. Her words about doing anything for him made him feel a little better. Like a little bit of weight was lifted off of his shoulders.

He glanced awkwardly around the room and sighed a little. The waitress came and delivered their drinks and Memphis quickly swallowed his down. Before the tiny goblin woman could leave he spoke to her, "Just keep em' coming." He said and then looked back at Mallory, determined to not let this situation get anymore out of control. He chewed on his bottom lip for a second, just staring at her, and then leaned forward with his forearms on the table. "Maybe we just leave Dae and Chael out of it?" He smirked a little. He had been trying so hard. He had been so faithful to Dae but things were about to go very wrong for the elemental, or very right. He winked at her, hoping she would catch his meaning and then reached across the table to grab her hand. He rubbed his thumb on her smooth skin, still smiling and he felt that strange tingling under his skin again. It was nice, warm and fuzzy, it reminded him of the first time he had a crush on a girl. Waiting to catch her in the halls, finding any excuse to talk to her, the awkwardness of their first kiss. The nostalgia of it all made him smile at Mallory even more as he started to associate her with all of the good things about being in love. Dae was still in his mind but the mix of alcohol and the beautiful woman in front of him was starting to make things hazy.

"You have the most beautiful eyes. Their so blue, its amazing. Almost like little constellations or ice crystals..." When he said the word ice a feeling came rushing toward him. It was a gut wrenching feeling of guilt and his own eyes grew wide, realizing he was still stroking her hand in his. He jerked back away from her suddenly and frowned deeply. How could he say that, how could he do that, what the hell was wrong with him. "Mallory I... I don't know what is happening." He sounded defeated as he leaned back in his chair and slumped down a little. "One second I'm in love with Phridae.... and the next you're all I can think about." He had never admitted out loud that he was in love with Dae, it was a big stepping stone for him, but he moved past it quickly. "Is this some kind of Metamorphamagus magic?" He asked, suddenly wondering if all of what he was feeling was a lie. He knew some kinds of magic could influence a wizards emotions and feelings. He'd been slipped a love potion before but he didn't really remember much of those two nights. "Are you doing this?" It was unlike Memphis to accuse her of foul play. In his right mind he might of been able to set aside everything going on and get down to a logical conclusion about why this was happening but he was far from his right mind. He knew what he was feeling was real, he felt it so strongly it had to be real, right? But he also knew that ten minutes ago he didn't feel any of this. The only reasoning he could find was that she had done something to him. She had charmed him or hexed him or something.... but why.

Leave Chael and Dae out of it? She raised an eyebrow at him. That was really weird for him to say. Memphis winked at her. Maybe she did say something wrong to him about Dae. See- she should have just shut her mouth while she was at it. Then he reached his hand out to hers across the table. As his thumb rubbed her hand she completely forgot about Chael. It was weird how right it felt when he was touching her hand. Like they were supposed to be together, not Chael and her. They did have their differences and Memphis and Mallory just flowed so much better. It was weird. Mallory thought of the idea of Memphis before this, but it was pushed away with their friendship. Was he feeling the same way? What was going on? She was just happy anyways and her body showed it. Her hair turned back to her regular blonde color but her eyes turned a brighter blue. That was the only bad thing about being a metamorphmagi, people know what you were feeling because your body changed to work with it.

As he mentioned how beautiful her eyes were, she just got lost in his. Suddenly, he jerked his hand away from hers and frowned. Mallory softly moved her hand down to her lap. Maybe she screwed something up again? She always had that habit. He then spoke up about not knowing what was happening. He was in love with Dae. What was Mallory doing? She could not mess up someone else's relationship - what about Chael? She took a quick shot and Chael left her mind once again. Metamorphmagi magic? Then he ended up asking if she was doing this? Mallory quickly put the shot glass onto the table, making a loud slam.

"Just so your smarty pants knows, Metamorphmagi's can barley cast a charm, also everything I made in potion's smelled like farts.... so yeah not me." She glared at him. How dare he? That was just making her want to drink more and go home. This was just stupid that he was blaming her.  How did she not know her was making her feel like this? Memphis could not leave her mind, not even with another shot. It made just made the thought of those two together burn into her mind more. "How do I not know that you did not do this? Blaming me and all...." She glared... then another thought went into her mind. "You know, why even bother you can blame me if you want.... I should have got over the idea of a guy like you with me. It was just pathetic thinking it. You are probably the most amazing friend and guy I met. You liking me, yeah there's something wrong with that." Mallory stopped talking staring at a shot glass, the waitress brought over more and Mallory took another drink. Maybe she should stop? She was getting sad drunk now. She was definitely drunk... half her words were slurring.

"Think what you want Memphis, but I am not a charmer." She looked up at him, shrugging. "I think I should leave..."

The way she answered what he accused her of made him feel really sorry for have saying it out loud. He didn't want to upset her, he wanted to make her happy. It seemed like it was the only thing he wanted all of a sudden. He could see himself buying her gifts and giving her kisses and the thoughts just kept drowning him. He couldn't stop himself. He stared at her blankly as she explained how it couldn't of possibly be her fault and he was totally on her side. She wouldn't do something like this, she was too perfect for that. He wanted to tell her just how perfect he thought she was but before he could she continued and blamed him for the turn of events. He found himself growing sad. It felt like he was being broken up with and it was enough to make him desperately want another drink. They had been off to such a good start, wait no, they weren't starting anything. Memphis visibly shook his head, trying to physically shake this foreign thoughts from his mind but he just couldn't help but stare at her beautiful face.

He hung onto her every word like it was Gospel and placed his elbows on the table as he did. She wasn't breaking up with him because of what he said. She thought it was something she did, that she wasn't good enough, and all he wanted to do was stop her from talking. He could see himself pushing the table out of the way and closing his mouth over hers but he held himself back. This wasn't right. Think about Dae, Think about Dae, he told himself repeatedly as the Ice Elemental's face flickered into his minds eye. He had to concentrate on that, that was solid, she was his girlfriend... but Mallory was so pretty. "Your wrong, you are too good for me." He corrected her quickly as he finished his drink, just in time too because the waitress dropped off the next drink. "And that is sad because... well because..." He said, as she told him she wasn't a charmer and that he could think what he wanted. She told him he should probably go but his mouth wasn't listening because the words slipped out anyway.

"It's sad because I am in love with you Mallory Harrison." His eyes opened wide as the realization of what he had just confessed basically smacked him in the face. He didn't love her, not in a romantic way. He shot out from the table, knocking over the chair as he took a step back. He looked around nervously and rubbed his now sweaty hands on his pant legs anxiously. He took the drink that had just been dropped off at the table and flushed it down violently before letting the shot glass fall to the floor unceremoniously. "I have to go." He said abruptly, words slurring with his current intoxicated level. This was why he was never drinking again. Memphis rarely did, but when he did, things usually got out of control. This was at a whole new level but he was certain it was best for all involved parties for him to leave. He would only make things worse if he stayed. He bumped into a few elves on his way out of the crazy little establishment, blurting out apologies that were probably too slurred to understand, before he burst out the door and onto Diagon Alley. This was the worst. He had probably just ruined one of the few good friendships he had going for him. He was never drinking again. Never. Ever. Again.

[[out]]