i always feel like somebody's watching me [deirdre]

It was pouring outside and Danny had his jacket hiked up over his head as he scrambled in the last few steps to the little pub down the street from the Ministry. He was picking up another lunch order to go for him and Jere, where they had each ordered two entrees and would still probably be hungry afterward. No wonder they were always scraping by for rent. Between their measly pay and their penchant for spending most of their money on food, it was little wonder why their vaults at Gringotts were more empty than full.

Still, this place had the best pork roast sandwiches in town and Danny's mouth was practically watering with just the smell.

He stood off to the side as he waited for his order to be ready, glancing around as he tapped his shoe to the beat of the wrock music playing faintly in the background. Dressed in his Ministry uniform, he fit right in with the rest of the working stiffs littered around the restaurant, except there was a woman with wavy light red hair that caught his eye. He peered around as she looked like she was studiously reviewing the menu that was standing up on the table.

He gave her a smile as he recognized her. "Deirdre! Hey," he said in greeting as he leaned again her table, recognizing her as a friend of Jeremy's mostly. "It's been a long time, how have you been?"

@Deirdre Coltrane

Why was it always raining when she came to London? Statistically it rained more in Edinburgh than in London but it seemed to Deirdre that whenever she visited the English capital she ended up in a downpour. It was really strange.

Fortunately she had made it straight to the wizarding area of London and had used her wand to protect herself from getting soaked. Deirdre had no problem with rain per se; what she disliked, however, was when her hair got wet as it turned all curly and frizzy afterwards.

She was on a mission for the detective agency today, wearing her most inconspicuous dark green robes and trying her best not to attract any attention to herself. She had quickly learned that the best way to successfully observate another person was to be basically invisible.

Having followed her target, a Ministry worker in his thirties, into a pub, Deirdre pretended to study the menu as she tried to figure out if it made sense for her to place an order herself or if the man wouldn’t stay long enough. The man took a seat and ordered food. That was good. He’d stay for a while. Maybe he’d even meet the woman he was supposedly having an affair with here.

Deirdre startled as she heard her name. She spun around to face Danny Willbond. Her expression remained neutral although the young witch would have liked to curse him here and now for blowing up her cover. “Danny,” she said coolly, “you’ve startled me.”

Maybe it wasn’t that bad to have someone to talk to. She might look even less suspicious if she was engaging in a conversation. She briefly glanced at the man who was now already being served his drink. Yes, she could totally afford to spend some time talking to Danny now.

“A very long time indeed,” she agreed, offering a hint of a rare smile. “I’ve been good. How have you been? You’re working for the Ministry now?!” While Deirdre tried her best to keep her voice neutral, it was probably still evident that she was a little surprised. Danny and his friend Jeremy had never struck her as very serious wizards. That Danny was now working for the Ministry seemed almost funny to her.

"Sorry 'bout that," Danny replied with a smile that was just a tad sheepish. He hadn't meant to creep up on her, but she was just sitting her by herself. If he were in her shoes, he figured she'd want the company. But she seemed a little cool so the first thought he had was that maybe he had gotten her name wrong. Did he-- he squinted as if that would help his memory, but he relaxed when she gave him a little smile and didn't correct him. Dodged a jinx there.

"Same, same, no complaints. Hey, how'd you know-- oh," he started to say before he belatedly realized he was wearing his uniform with the big MoM blazoned on the front. Oops. He gave him a blithe shrug. "Pays the bills, you know how it is," he gave in way of explanation. Was he going to go into the nitty gritty of what it was like to be a glorified owl delivering people's mail? No thanks, but it was nice that she asked.

He glanced around and then down at her menu. "Are you meeting someone for lunch? Business meeting? What are you up to these days?" he asked, not really remembering diddly squat about her after they graduated. Nothing personal, of course, but Danny had a hard enough time trying to remember the right details about Jere's current "real" girlfriend let alone girls he had hung out with in school.

“It’s okay,” Deirdre said but her expression remained neutral. She didn’t waste smiles on people very often. Sometimes it might seem as though she only had a limited amount of smiles to offer per month as she was so economical using them.

While she tried to keep her expression impassive her eyebrows shot upwards a little when Danny began to ask how she had figured out that he was working for the Ministry. He realised his mistake though, stopping mid sentence. She nodded slightly. He had a job that paid the bills. Did he earn a lot? She somehow doubted it.

“What are you doing at the Ministry?” She enquired curiously. She could not imagine that he had a position with responsibility but maybe he’d prove her wrong. Maybe he had more ambition than she gave him credit for.

“No, I’m not meeting anyone,” Deirdre said, glancing for an instant in the direction of the man she was observing. “I’m working at Viscaria Apothecary in Edinburgh,” she said, deliberately not mentioning her second job as a private investigator. She couldn’t risk that her target overheard them speaking about it and it really was none of Danny’s business anyway. “I also make potions privately,” she said, smirking a little. “Party potions and the likes.”

"Oh, I'm in Maintenance, you know, very important stuff," he joked with a smile. It was his usual reply to the 'what do you do' question which was mostly the truth, just not too many details about what exactly he did in the department (glorified owl) and not too much details on what he didn't do (the actual Maintenance tasks). It usually worked. Danny could turn almost anything into a joke.

He did not as she said she wasn't meeting anyone, good for her. Independent woman and all. Danny knew he could never sit alone by himself for a whole meal. It'd feel weird, lonely even. He admired people who were able to do that. And oh yes, she'd always been into Potions, he remembered. Or at least thought that had been her. Who knew, but he nodded again. "Edinburgh's nice." He was about to comment on if she'd been up to a Magpies game yet, the stadium being nearby, but her next comment made his eyes light up, a smirk forming.

"Now you're talking my language. Party potions like what? Details, details," he said patting the table with a smile, sliding into a seat across from her. Jere kept them well stocked in the weed department, but ever since he had gotten trashed one night and accidentally and inadvertently spilled the beans that Carter, his previous party potioneer, was dating two girls at once, who were at the same party (Merlin only knew how Carter had been handling that), he had been looking for a new person. Carter refused to sell to him anymore for some reason.

“I see,” Deirdre said, not smiling back at Danny as he joked about his Ministry job. She could tell that his job in Maintenance was likely the kind of job that most people who had a choice didn’t want to do. She hadn’t expected him to be able to impress her anyway.

“It’s my hometown,” Deirdre heard herself say and wondered why she offered Danny this information. It was the kind of small talk people made, of course, but the Slytherin graduate didn’t usually tell people such small things about herself that might keep a conversation going and help them to feel more comfortable talking to her.

She could tell at once that the mention of party potions was well received. Of course it was. Deirdre remembered Danny and Jeremy quite well from school and she knew that these boys were just the kind of people who liked parties and, respectively, party potions.

“Oh, various kinds,” Deirdre said, now smirking a little herself. “Some get rid of all inhibitions people might have, some get you high as a kite, some let you dance like a pro, some make you want to make out with people…” She shrugged innocently. “You name it, you get it.”

"Oh right," he said with a nod as she named Edinburgh her hometown. The accent seemed about right, made sense. "Does that make you a Magpies fan then?" he asked, curious, some part of his brain always thinking about quidditch and the semi-illegal fantasy league betting pool they had going round the office.

"Sold," Danny joked immediately with a broad smile, his eyes excited. What were the odds he would run into a new connect for party potions on his lunch break? He was one lucky bloke. "I'll take one of each," he added, his smile growing, half serious, half not. "Especially the last one," he added with a wink. Who didn't love a good snog?

"How can I purchase the goods from you?" he asked, halfway through the sentence lowering his voice with a little waggle of his brows, as if it just then occurred to him that he should be a little more covert in his dealings and not right out here where everyone was gathered round, waiting for their lunch orders. Speaking of, he glanced at the counter, eyeing the workers behind it, wondering when his lunch was going to be ready. He was hungry. 

"No," Deirdre stated flatly. She was not a Magpies fan and not a Quidditch fan in general. She had no intention to offer more on the topic. To Deirdre the sport was just entirely irrelevant and she didn't see a point in it. The whole idea of the game did not appeal to her. She had barely watched any house matches while she was still at Hogwarts and had never ever watched any professional Quidditch games.

It was fascinating to see Danny's reaction to the party potions. Deirdre tried to keep her expression neutral but the corners of her lips twitched a little. It was hard not to smile. Naturally the young potioneer was excited to have run into a potential new customer, one that didn't seem too picky anyway. She had encountered witches and wizards interested in her potions before and some of them had demanded to get a sample before they had expressed any wish to take one.

"Yeah, I thought you'd like the last one," she said calmly, looking directly into his eyes. She tried to sound indifferent but there was a little chuckle in her voice as she said this.

Deirdre tilted her head a little as he asked her how he could purchase the potions. She was tempted to ask him to visit her in Edinburgh but figured she should be accomodating. "Well, you can tell me how much you need and we can arrange another meeting one of these days," she offered. "Or you visit me in Edinburgh where I could let you try some samples of several of the concoctions I make..." It was a bit of an invitation, maybe even a bit of a dare.

"Alright, no worries," Danny said easily as her reply seemed a little less enthusiastic than he was expecting. The Magpies were actually doing pretty good this year, especially at climbing the standings toward the end of the season, but Danny would always be a true blue Puddlemere United fan forever.

He gave her a nod and a small smile, unsure of what she was thinking because she seemed so calm and almost.. serious? But she was the one who had brought up the party potions so Danny wasn't going to say no. "Who doesn't love a good snog?" he said in reply with a shameless grin.

Danny's eyes widened a bit at her offer, surprised. "You want me to be your test subject for new party potions?" he asked and then gave a pause. Mostly for the melodrama though because one second later he was grinning again and nodding. "Sign me up, I'll test out whichever ones you need. Snogging included," he added with a laugh, amused at his own joke. 

Danny didn’t seem too bothered by Deirdre’s lack of enthusiasm for Quidditch and the girl was glad that he didn’t keep talking about this pointless sport. In her opinion it was just a waste of time to watch it and even more to talk about it.

“Yes, that’s what I thought. There are definitely customers for that,” Deirdre stated flatly, implying that the fact that she made the potion didn’t mean that she would use it herself. During the past summer Deirdre had brewed potions to sell on the street. It had been a nice way to earn some money before her apprenticeship started. Now she just kept it as a little side business because a) extra money was always nice and b) it was fun to make party potions. (More fun to come up with things that allowed others to make a fool of themselves than to take them herself.)

“Well, if you’re brave enough…” Deirdre teased, one of her rare smiles spreading across her face. She had been about to dare Danny but that wasn’t even needed. He was a typical Gryffindor boy who was more than willing to do things that sensible people would shy away from.

“Good,” Deirdre said, her mischievous smile now reaching her eyes. That had been easy. “Just let me know when you want to come. Any evening would be alright if you tell me a few days in advance.” She was tempted to ask him to bring friends to expand her range of customers but bit her tongue - for now. There was absolutely no need to rush things.

Then again, Deirdre’s gaze wandered to the man she was observing and a sigh of relief escaped her when she saw that he was only halfway through his meal by now. It would do no good to lose track of him and disappoint her employer.

"And I know a lot of them," he said with a smile as he looked at her across the table, thinking of many of his friends who might like to try to the snogging party potion too. She didn't seem too enthusiastic about the idea though so Danny wondered if she didn't sample her own product. How did she possibly exercise that much self-control? It was a good thing Danny was shite at potions himself and that he barely scraped by on his Ministry paycheck to keep his 'hobbies' to a minimum.

Danny's stomach grumbled and he glanced back at the counter, still looking for his food, but her teasing challenge made him swing his head back to her, his eyes widened a bit. Well, if you’re brave enough. "Oh ho ho, you think I'm not brave enough?" he asked, rightfully rising to the challenge just as any proud Gryffindor would. "Clearly I'll have to show you. I'm in," Danny added, his smile wide, his hazel eyes bright with interest.

There was a spark in her eyes now too and it made him want to ditch work immediately to go back to her shop right now. Then again, he would use just about anything to ditch work. Packages weren't that important. They could always be delivered tomorrow. "Later this week? Friday? No, wait, I scored Griffins tickets this weekend. They're in the nosebleeds, but still. Maybe next week?"

He leaned over to scratch his leg, hiking up his robes a bit as he got a glance at his golden snitch with mustaches socks (because why not) as he saw her gaze track over his shoulder. He glanced back and then back at her, curiosity in his gaze. "Do you know that guy or something?"

“I’m glad to hear that,” Deirdre said, her voice pleasant now but still there was barely a hint of a smile traceable on her face. She was, however, really glad that Danny knew potential customers. She wanted to live a good life with more money than she could earn as an apprentice and through her side job as a private investigator. Deirdre wanted to live comfortably and be able to afford everything she needed or wanted.

Now, finally, Deirdre couldn’t help but smile. Gryffindors were so funnily predictable. She liked to tease them, play them, but she also really liked them. “Yes, clearly you do have to show me.”

Then he spoke of Quidditch again and Deirdre’s smile faded slowly. He really arranged his life around Quidditch games? Somehow she pitied him for being a slave to a sport he didn’t even actively play as far as she knew.

“Next week is fine with me,” she said anyway. “Just let me know which evening would work for you.”

Danny had picked up on her watching the Ministry worker and Deirdre was glad that she was good at keeping her expression neutral. However, her eyes might have momentarily widened a little. “Oh no,” she said, “I don’t know him, not personally anyway. I think he’s the boyfriend of an acquaintance, though,” she lied easily.

He gave her a nod and a tentative smile even though her voice sounded cool. Danny had never been good at reading girls and he wasn't sure what to make of the expression or the vibe he was getting. Did she.. not want more customers for her snogging potion..? She was the one that brought it up.. He gave a little shrug. Women were, as usual, beyond his comprehension.

Her challenge, at least, was easy enough to sort out. The answer was an easy yes. He gave her a grin and a wink. "Oh, show you I will. Easily done." Danny was nothing if not someone who always rose to a challenge. That and a double dog dare. Both were very effective ways of motivating him. His boss Reg had once even 'challenged' him that he couldn't get all the packages delivered to the right offices befoer 3pm and Danny had proven him wrong for a full week before he had caught on that Reg was just trying to get him to do his job quicker with less distractions. It hadn't lasted long after that.

"Can I owl you?" he asked as he heard the bell ding over the counter and his name being called. His stomach grumbled hopefully. "That's me," he told her dumbly as nodded toward the counter and stood, the chair scraping back against the floor. "But next week sometime for sure," he told her as he pushed the chair back in and glanced at the guy again. His lips quirked up but he nodded. "Sure, sure," he agreed with a nod, wondering if she had a thing for older gents but then walked back a step or two towards the counter and his beckoning lunch. "It was good running into you. Next week, yeah?" he asked, both as a confirmation and a mental reminder to himself to owl her. Then again, it was a snogging potion so it's not like he would easily forget that..

“Well, I hope you will,” Deirdre said, feigning a doubtful tone. “Not that you chicken out of it, after all.” Maybe she was going a little too far teasing the Gryffindor graduate but Deirdre actually quite enjoyed herself even if her expression didn’t convey this message.

“Yes, of course,” the young potioneer agreed. Naturally Danny could owl her and she hoped that he would really do that, too. For one she was looking forward to making some extra money but she was also excited because of the fun she expected this to be.

Deirdre felt that Danny did not quite believe her lie. It didn’t really matter as long as he didn’t give away the truth, though, and that he couldn’t know. Everything was okay. He seemed to be hungry and on his way to excuse himself. Deirdre nodded in confirmation again as he already stepped away.

“Likewise,” she belatedly said. “Looking forward to it,” she then added with a slight hint of a smile.

Her target had just paid his bill and was about to leave. She waved at Danny and then, mere seconds after the guy, left the restaurant.

[out]

"Chicken out?" Danny repeated with a big smile, his brows going up. "Those are fightin' words," he joked before he shook his head as he felt around his pockets for his wallet and hoped he hadn't forgotten it. Again. "Don't worry, that won't happen," he assured her. Danny wasn't even concerned about writing this down. He definitely wasn't going to forget to owl Deirdre. The second he got his lunch, he was headed back to work to find Jere and tell him all about it.

Finally, he found his wallet and he pulled it out, checking that he had money (he did, whew) and walked back a few steps closer to the counter. "Great, next weekend then. It was good seeing you," he gave her a wide smile and a short wave and then turned with hungry eyes toward the guy behind the counter. "Thanks mate," he said as he grabbed his lunch and gave his money, glancing once over his shoulder to watch as Deirdre left.

He couldn't wait for next weekend.

/end