[MP - Burning Beard] ALL the beer [Joanna]

As much as Delaney would have loved to take a little time off and go to Bavaria to check out the Wizarding Oktoberfest, business at The Burning Beard was booming. Making last minute plans to travel to Germany was out of the question for the blonde witch, at least for this year. It was a cool, breezy Saturday evening, and most of the dinner patrons at the bar had already departed. She was tidying up behind the bar, putting all of the freshly washed glasses away in their rightful place. Everything ran so much smoother when things were put away properly.

Delaney's mood was frustrated, to say the least. One of her bartenders failed to show up for their evening shift so she was forced to take his place behind the bar during the dinner rush. Delaney was used to mixing drinks and serving beer with a smile, but in the back of her mind she was contemplating all of the excuses he would give the next time he showed up to work. None would ever make up for calling in sick on a Saturday, especially during The Burning Beard's version of Oktoberfest. Delaney had decided only a few weeks prior that because she wasn't taking time off to head to the real Oktoberfest, she would throw something together at the bar to make up for it. She had worked long evenings in preparation for the event which was taking place Friday through Sunday. She handpicked all of her favourite German-inspired beers for the occasion and had those kegs specifically tapped to ten of the bar taps. She instructed her serving and bartending staff to show up in traditional German attire, the women in dirndl dresses and the men in lederhosen shorts.

Her corset was digging into her rib cage, but she wasn't complaining.

As the evening wore on, Delaney's patience was waning. One of her servers hadn't correctly remembered a customer’s specific order of no mushrooms, which required Delaney to intervene, offering that his next beer be on the house (thankfully he was a beer lover and this issue was solved easily). Not one, not two, but three glasses were broken during washing up by the kitchen staff. She had warned them about the level of water required in the large plastic washing basin before: if there wasn't enough water, the glasses clinked together too much while charming the washing up and could break. All in all, it had been a long day for the blonde witch, and she was ready to be able to lock the door and enjoy a glass of beer alone.

Just then, the door to the pub swung open and Delaney peeked up while continuing to wipe down the already spotless wooden bartop. A smile broke out on her face as @Joanna Hennings made her way through the door and across the room. She glanced around before speaking, keeping her voice lower than usual when Joanna approached the bar. "Thank goodness you're here, what a night," Delaney began neatly folding up the cloth in her hand and setting it down on the lowered counter in front of her. There were only about three other customers left in the bar. She leaned closer to Joanna. "Fifteen minutes and I can have a beer with you," Delaney whispered with a short laugh before raising her voice back to normal levels. "Do you want to try one of my new recipes? The Heller-Trum Pilsner has been a hit all weekend," she said proudly.

She’d only been here yesterday. In fact, she was still suffering the consequences of the previous night. Joanna had gone to the Burning Beard after work on Friday to celebrate the only Oktoberfest she was going to get to in the foreseeable future. She had drank, laughed, chatted, had a deep discussion in the bathroom and then had met a rather attractive man (or maybe passably attractive, she was many drinks in at that point) and had gone home with him for an enjoyable night. When Joanna had awakened that morning, she had declined sharing a meal with Adam? Or was it Angus? Adrian? She was sure it started with an ‘A’... and apparated back to Audlem where she had pottered around for the rest of the day.

Apart from managing to drag herself off the couch to make batches of soup for the rest of the week, Joanna had had a thoroughly unproductive day. For once her dad had even done better than her... succeeding in getting some gardening done before the cold descended properly and made the exercise too unpleasant to attempt.  She had felt awful in her laziness but just could not bring herself to be motivated enough to move. A lethargy had taken over her after a long working week and a bad hangover and lying paralysed on the sofa seemed like the way to go. Even the soft hum of the Wizarding Wireless in the corner was too much at points. She almost wanted to bury herself in the cushions and never emerge.

It wasn’t as if Joanna regretted her actions from the previous night. She was an independent woman who was perfectly free to express herself in whatever way she wanted. And despite the longing for something serious and committed, her subconscious was apparently doing everything in its power to avoid both those things. Stupid emotions. Making her feel unwanted feelings about how at 28 she should be more settled and less prone to one night stands. For Merlin’s sake, wasn’t she meant to be trying something with Graeme right now? Yes, so obviously her brain had jumped straight on the bail, bail, bail approach where she ran away from the situation. Eurgh, romantic entanglements were just so... complicated, but surely if she had spent less time working over the last ten years then she would find it easier to navigate. No one else seemed to have the same problems that she did.

They were the thoughts that had eventually pulled her into getting dressed - apparently pyjamas were not appropriate in public attire - and apparating to London, specifically near the Ministry. She wasn’t heading back in order to drink more, but rather to catch up with Delaney, her former flatmate and still closest friend. Del had been rushed off her feet the previous night so Joanna had barely said more than hi to her, but it was late enough that the bar should be winding down for the night. Joanna often appeared at that hour, ready to help her friend lock up and then sitting for hours to catch up on life. Delaney had a confidence that Joanna wished to have, but could only ever manage to fake. What would her life be like without many voices questioning her every thought and decision?

The Burning Beard only had a few patrons left and Joanna made her way over to greet Delaney with a smile. The poor dear looked completely overworked, Joanna hoped that had meant that the mini-Oktoberfest had been a success. It had certainly appeared that way the previous night. Like the entire magical community of London was there. Well, the ones that weren’t already in Germany. “Hey Del!” She said pointedly, to make sure Delaney realised that she had launched straight into conversation without so much as a hello. “How are you? I’m great, oh and you’re well too. Fantastic!” This was all uttered good naturedly, Joanna being the last person that could complain about forgetting social pleasantries. At work she was very prone to cutting right to the chase without blinking.

Joanna accepted the beer graciously and sipped it slowly as she allowed Delaney to get back to her duties. Her thoughts were surprisingly blank as she got lost in staring at the foam on top of the brew, everything else disappearing around her. She could vaguely hear some chatter and clinking before the creak of a door opening and closing but paid it no mind. It wasn’t until Delaney reappeared infront of her that Joanna paid attention to her surroundings. Everyone else had gone and the two of them were now the only ones left. “It’s good beer,” Joanna started, in lieu of anything else to say. She stared at her friend, “sit down. You look shattered!”

Joanna continued expecting Delaney to comply with her orders. “I’m so proud of you,” she told her, “this has been a huge success. It was mobbed in here last night!” And she was proud. Her friend had come so far from a mere bartender. They both had gone far in their careers. It was just the rest of their lives that were a lot more open...

Delaney chuckled softly at Joanna's quick line of pleasantries that Del was lucky to not have to participate in. The blonde witch always replied to any question of how she was with 'I'm well and you?', even though there were enough unwell thoughts running through her head at any given moment. But she knew he friend Joanna was the same way, and that was yet another reason why the two girls got on so well. No time for idle chatter, let's get right to the point. It made things so much easier. Delaney always appreciated the friendship she had with Joanna. They'd met in their sixth year at Hogwarts in a Transfiguration lesson and had kept in contact ever since. The pair could go long amounts of time without speaking, but were always able to pick back up right where they left off as soon as they reconnected.

Delaney was quick to pour Joanna a beer and set it on the bar top in front of her friend before hurrying around the bar to settle up with the remaining customers. She had announced last call ten minutes prior, and most of the patrons had waved off a final drink, all except for one. The old man in the corner always drug out his final beer, and Del made her way towards him with a raised brow. "You knocked that one back pretty quick huh?" she said with a smile, telling him the final amount owing on his tab. Luckily, he pulled out a few extra coins from his pocked and told Del to keep the change. "Thank you, do enjoy the rest of your evening." Del picked up his empty glass off the table and took it into the back room, setting it on the counter where it would be washed the following morning. Or maybe even later that evening, if Delaney felt a massive urge to be productive. She'd sent her dishwashers home hours ago, and her kitchen staff followed shortly after.

She watched his retreating back as the man finally left the bar and hurried over to the door to perform her daily charm that would lock the door such that the 'Alohomora' charm used to gain entrance into the pub would no longer work until they re-opened again the following day at eleven o'clock. She made her way back towards the bar where Joanna was sitting quietly. Delaney winked at her friend's praise of the special beer she'd brewed just for Oktoberfest. She'd had to replace the keg four times since the event started, and only had a single keg left in the back room. Without a word, she hurried into the back room and found what she was looking for immediately: the tapped keg of Heller-Trum Pilsner. The blonde grasped each side of the barrel with her hands and shook it, lifting one edge up to get a better idea of how much was left inside. About half. That meant for final day of the event on Sunday there was only a keg and a half of that particular beer left. She made a mental note to remind the serving staff not to up-sell it, especially if some of the returning customers had tried and liked it over the past two days. Surely those patrons would be able to finish off the lot without additional glasses being offered.

"You're telling me," Del let out a massive sign, reappearing behind the bar a few moments later. She reached up to a tap to pour herself her favourite brew, a tall glass of Burnt Bread IPA. Joanna was right. The event had been a complete success. Of course there were a million and one things the blonde witch would have done differently if given another chance to plan the event over again... But she tried not to think about that right now. Thankfully, there was only one more day of wearing this horribly uncomfortable Halloween-type German beer girl costume. At that thought, the blonde set her full beer on top of the bar at the spot next to Joanna's and reached awkwardly around her back to grasp one of the loose ends of the bow holding her corset together, and pulled. The bow released but the pressure did not. She pulled her wand out of the front pocket of her apron and cast a loosening charm behind her back at the ribbon which slowly wiggled backwards through the loops. "That feels better," Del laughed, reaching her arms above her head and doing an awkward little jig in front of Joanna that proved she had her range of movement back. And she could breathe. She then removed her apron and folded it neatly before setting it on top of the bar.

Delaney stepped out from behind the bar and took the seat next to Joanna, finally heeding Joanna's request that she sit down. "That's right, you were in here last night!" Del exclaimed, pausing to take a sip of her beer, draining one quarter of the massive stein in a single gulp. It tasted like the relief that closing up for the night always tasted like, but even better somehow because she had someone to enjoy it with. "Where did you disappear to, though? One moment I saw you head into the bathroom, then about an hour later I thought I saw you over there-" Del pointed to the far end of the bar where the rowdiest crowd were hanging out last night. "-and then you were gone?" she finished with a shrug. "Did work finally catch up with you and you had to turn in early? You've been run off your feet for ages." Delaney knew how hard Joanna worked at the Ministry. She was in a quite higher-up position in the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, and for good reason. Del didn't know anyone else (well, except maybe herself) that put that many hours into their work, and showed that much dedication. Oh, and had zero time for idiots. Obviously that was why the two got on so well.

"Any good gossip from the Ministry that's worth me hearing about? I've been dealing with the most obnoxious drunks for two straight days, so how can I believe anything that comes out of their mouths," Delaney finished with a laugh.

Joanna laughed along with Delaney as she loosened her costume. It certainly did not look comfortable and Joanna was pleased that there was no conceivable situation where she would be forced into one of those things. If she had needed it seeing Delaney in it would have given her a new found job satisfaction. As it was, Joanna was already happy in her job so the sight just filled her with relief. She had definitely chosen the right career path.

If she had been a blusher, then she would have reddened on Delaney’s next words. As it was, she merely directed her gaze downwards to the glass in front of her, before shooting back upwards with a mock glare. “Hey! Not everything I do is worked related!” A smug smile shot across her face, “certainly not everyone I do….” Joanna trailed off, letting the innuendo sink in before she elaborated. “I’m pretty sure he was hot,” she explained. “I’m also pretty sure I could run into him and not have a clue who he was…” With a wicked laugh, she winked at her friend. “Had fun though! Thanks for providing a location to hook up!”

It was normal to talk to Delaney like this. There was no boundaries to their friendship, they’d both experienced their late teens and early twenties together, and had stumbled through the pit falls of one night stands and drunken escapades together. Joanna doubted that she would ever admit to stuff like this with anyone else, even her cousin Emma. After all, she didn’t want to put any ideas in Emma’s mind. Joanna was her older cousin after all, she was meant to protect her.

“It was definitely worth the stress relief!” Joanna continued. “You’ll need a good stress relief after this week is over, surely? Is there anything going on?” She personally doubted it, but had to ask. Delaney seemed to be perpetually single, same as her. And given her actions of last night, maybe it was best that this Graeme-thing was seemingly suspended between meetings. Not that she felt any shame of what she had done. She was an independent, strong woman who was in charge of her own life. She could do what she liked.

Wrinkling her nose at Delaney’s question, Joanna took a drink before replying. “You know I don’t pay attention to work gossip Del! Too much drama. It’s like, I don’t care if you slept with so-and-so, just get on with your work and stop complaining!” Joanna really did not have time for the relationship quibbles that seemed to pop up all over the workplace. That’s what happened when you had so many people working together, but to bring your personal life into the workplace was just unprofessional. “And to be honest, I expect most of the gossip will be brought back from Germany. I can only imagine what lots of drunk wizards and witches got up to in a foreign country.” She took another drink to fortify herself, “I can only hope nothing illegal!” She didn’t have enough staff to start arresting them.

It didn't take Delaney very long to pick up on the innuendo that Joanna was handing out. "Too bad you don't remember what he looked like, I could have given you my opinion as chances are I've seen him before and will see him again in here. On second thought, maybe it is better for both of us that you forget who he is and what he looks like," she finished with a laugh, taking a long sip of beer. There were no topics that were off-limits for the pair of twenty-eight year olds. Joanna always told it like it is, and Del really appreciated that. "I bet you feel like a thousand galleons today, don't you?" Delaney joked, knowing that if Joanna was drunk enough to forget her evening partner, she likely spent the entire day suffering for it.

"Tomorrow is the last day of our Oktoberfest, and I'm thankful I didn't commit to it for any longer than the weekend because I don't think I could wear this outfit any longer. I may actually set it on fire after my shift tomorrow," she laughed, though she secretly wasn't joking. The Burning Beard's Oktoberfest had been such a success, Joanna was right. But Joanna was also right in that it had taken its toll on Delaney, and she still had a full day to go. She promised herself that after this weekend was over she was going to go out, probably on Monday or Tuesday night, for one or five glasses of firewhiskey and a good time. "Nothing at all has changed with me," she said with a shrug, in relation to her relationship status. It was always the same... Delaney didn't have time to fool around with men for longer than a night. And why would she want to? They always turned into needy, attention-seeking, green-eyed monsters. They so weren't worth it.

Delaney nodded as Joanna spoke. "I agree one hundred percent. I don't know how many times I've wanted to tell them, 'you're at work, you're on my payroll and I don't pay you to talk about your social lives', but of course there's no way to say that out loud that sounds nice," she paused for a moment, laughing. "You're probably right about the stories I'm sure will come from the real Oktoberfest," Del admitted, hoping that the version put on by the Burning Beard was enough to rival the festivities, or at least enough to be brought up in conversations as a comparison. As long as her customers were talking about her bar, she was happy. It meant they'd enjoyed it enough to talk about it, and therefore keep coming back. Or so she hoped.

"I hope tomorrow flies by," Delaney said with a sigh, lifting her glass up to her lips and draining the rest of it in a single gulp. "Do you have any plans for tomorrow? You shouldn't have to go in on a Sunday, right? I'm hoping all of my staff show up tomorrow for their shifts so that I can sneak off to the back room to check on some brews. I've been trying to do that for the past few days but one of my bartenders owled in sick this morning. I was not impressed." Delaney couldn't understand the work ethic of some people. Want a job? Show up at work. If you're sick, let me decide and I will send you home if I think you're too sick to be here. Del wasn't an easy person to work for.

Her eyes widened at Delaney’s suggestion. Joanna certainly did not want that to happen. “No thanks! Please no!” She pleaded over Delaney’s words. “Thank Merlin!” As Delaney gave her aquittance. “He was hot. But it’d definitely be best for everything if it’s one and done and never to meet again!” She certainly held no romantic fantasies about her one night stand, and would probably never look at the encounter as anything more than satisfying an itch.

“Eurgh,” Joanna groaned to her friend’s question. “Remember when we could drink and then still function the next day?” She asked nostalgically. Back in the good old days when they were just out of Hogwarts, both working hard and living together. Nowadays everything was different. And she definitely experienced hangovers now. “I spent most of the day on the sofa feeling sorry for myself,” Joanna admitted sheepishly. “Managed to make some soup at some point but basically just moped around.” Clearly 28 was the age that drinking finally caught up with her.

Her day long hangover still didn’t stop her from taking a large drink of alcohol. Somethings she would never learn. And hair of the dog and all that. It was all good, she told herself internally. She was entitled to let loose every so often.

Laughing along with Delaney, although Joanna was pretty sure it hadn’t been entirely a joke, she added, “Invite me to the burning ceremony if you do! Comfort over style! I’ll even give a suitable eulogy.” She reached her hand out to rest sympathetically on top of her friends. “I know, I know,” before Delaney could protest, “I’m in no position to say things like this, but, you are looking after yourself, aren’t you?” Joanna asked cautiously. “I know how important work is but apparently there’s this thing called a work-life balance that some people swear by. Sounds pretty novel if you ask me though!”

Joanna withdrew her hand and shrugged. “I certainly couldn’t do what you do! Serving drunk people sounds like my worst nightmare. Serving me is probably bad enough!” She paused, “I’d be too tempted to keep telling everyone to keep the noise down and behave.” And probably scare them all into moving on and drinking elsewhere. People person Joanna was not.

“Meh,” she shrugged, aware that her weekend plans sounded a bit tragic. “Honestly, I may head in for a few hours and just keep on top of things. We’re on light staff all weekend so it wouldn’t hurt to just have an extra pair of eyes.” Joanna definitely did not need to go in but she had yet to develop the trust that others could do their job without her supervision. She was trying, it was just hard.

“Crud! Sorry you were left in the lurch like that! Do you think they were nursing a hangover?” Joanna asked suspiciously. “Although, I hate it when people are actually sick and come in and they blinking infect everyone else in the office! Do they think they’re impressing me? No! All they’re doing is making my life harder!” Joanna also was not an easy person to work for.