Delaney was pouring a firewhiskey for one of her servers whilst still keeping an eye (and ear) towards the idle conversation between another of her servers and a customer. The blonde witch had decided to come into work on her day off to follow up on a complaint she'd received from one of The Burning Beard's regular patrons regarding her most senior server, Scarlett. Del filled the smoking mug and set it onto the waiting tray on the bar, nodding at her employee but not removing her eyes from the interaction happening across the bar. Delaney saw the man smile at Scarlett as the two enjoyed a joke. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary whatsoever.
She shook her head, trying to remember exactly what the wizard had said when he complained to Delaney about Scarlett a few days earlier.
Scarlett didn't seem happy when she brought him his drink. She didn't talk to him the way she usually did. She didn't continually ask if he wanted another drink when his glass was empty. In general, Delaney would have done nothing with complaints such as this. Everyone was allowed to have a bad day every once in awhile, including her best server. But what was strange was when Delaney had questioned Scarlett about it- Scarlett had denied the negative communication. She said that she communicated with him as she usually did, cordially and with a smile, and had
definitely offered him another drink when his glass was empty. But something about Scarlett's body language when they had discussed this said otherwise. It made Delaney question her employee's honesty, which was something she hated to admit.
As Delaney stood there behind the bar, watching the innocent interaction between Scarlett and a different customer, an unwelcome thought popped into her head. She waited as Scarlett made her way back over to the bar to order another round of drinks. Making sure they wouldn't be overheard, Delaney touched the girls arm and pulled her to the side. "The other day, when I asked you what happened with Mr. Orange Tie and you told me everything was fine... Did he try to make a move on you?" Delaney could see the flush in Scarlett's cheeks as soon as the words were out of her mouth. "That
little-" she started, her fists clenched at her side. Scarlett made the move to say something but Del didn't allow it. "Forget it-
please try not to worry about him. None of this is your fault and I understand why you didn't say anything." Delaney tried to smile in a warm way but was struggling. She waved her hand to dismiss Scarlett back to her duties.
Delaney wandered into the kitchen, leaning on the counter as she tried to regroup her thoughts. How could she have ever doubted Scarlett? It actually make Del a little bit sick to think she questioned her most senior employee's loyalty. She was mentally running over a few different scenarios of possible future interactions between herself and Mr. Orange Tie when she was interrupted by her bartender, requesting help. Even though it was Delaney's day off, she never said no to helping her staff when she was asked. And she was only ever asked if it was a real necessity. Delaney reappeared behind the bar and was momentarily stopped in her tracks. Hadn't she only been in the kitchen for a few minutes? Somehow it looked like the entire street outside had piled into the small bar room.
On a...
Tuesday?She grabbed her apron from the hook behind the bar and threw it over her
blue jeans, hoping that her customers wouldn't question her work attire, which was far from her usual little black dress and pumps. Delaney approached a table where two men in their early to mid-thirties had just sat down, recognizing one of them immediately as a Ministry Official that Delaney considered a regular, though she didn't know the man by name. It was only as she approached the table that she realized she knew the other man as well, Harlan Bellamy. It was common knowledge that Harlan and Del's good friend
@Honey Bea Flume had been seeing each other off and on for at least the past year. Were they still? Delaney tried to rack her brain to remember whether or not Honey mentioned anything the last time they'd connected but she was drawing a blank. Del's thoughts rested on the Daily Prophet article that was released about Honey and had to resist the urge to roll her eyes. The article was written from such a ridiculous angle it was actually laughable.
As Delaney approached the table, she smoothed her apron down with both hands and plastered a smile on her face. "Good evening gentlemen, can I offer you both something to drink?" Del asked, always the professional.
@Harlan Bellamy 
