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Knockturn Alley was certainly a shady place, somewhere you wouldn’t normally see the likes of Andrea Brennan around, but today was a relatively special occasion. And not in the good sort of way. Her clock was tied tightly around her shoulders to keep out the chill, considering she was wearing a rather flimsy cocktail dress underneath with a wand sheath hidden right underneath the hem of the dress itself. Madam Malkin from Diagon Alley was always understanding of Aurors who came into her shop, only charging a minimal additional fee for having to sew in wand sheaths for a majority of the garments they bought. So even though Andie Brennan was dressed like a high-class pureblooded girl, she still was taking all the necessary precautions to ensure that any mistake she made wasn’t a deadly one.

The reason she was in Knockturn Alley, dressed in a cocktail robe-like dress meant to impress the pureblood males she was sure to encounter this evening, was ironically purely for work. Andie was here for one reason and one reason only: to see if she could make any headway on this Francis Morel case that her department had been dealt. As Brennan was one of the junior Aurors, she was being left to do a lot of the grunt work, and besides security detail on Hogwarts, this was Andrea’s first big assignment. She wasn’t exactly working on it alone, but the other Aurors assigned to this case didn’t seem to hellbent on finding the illegal black market dealer and hitman. You could call this a glory binge, but Andrea was just an ambitious young woman. She hadn’t been in Slytherin for no reason at all.

She made her way to one of the higher end pubs in Knockturn Alley, as much of a “high-end” pub you could get in the dingy place. As Andie prepared to go in through the door, she rehearsed her story one last time to ensure she had it all straight in her head. She was a young pureblood business woman, descended from the Rowle line. Her family had been in Spain for a few generations, and she was bringing her and her family’s black market business back to England. She was searching out a way to contact Morel for a business dealing, but she wasn’t going to be saying why or what she needed to get a hold of. And thus, Andrea’s story was prepared.

The young female Auror slipped into the pub, slipping off her hood and her cloak to hang up near the door. Ignoring the few pairs of lingering eyes (she hadn’t exactly made a grandeur entrance, but her dress was enough to make a head or two turn), Andie slipped up onto a stool at the bar and ordered a shot of firewhiskey. Her plan was definitely not to get drunk, but a little bit of liquid wizarding courage never hurt anybody. The bartender was relatively quick and got her a glass within a few minutes, and without really even thinking about it, the young witch took the shot glass and just whisked all the alcohol back. Hopefully, she’d only be here for an hour or two, and then she’d be able to return home to her loving puppy and everything would be fine and dandy.

Andie slid the glass back across the bar and informed the bartender that, no, she would not be partaking in another shot and flipped a Sickle from her pouch in the side of her dress right into the bartender’s hand. While she much rather would either be at home reading with Stryder curled up at her feet or even out drinking with maybe Tonks or Brooke, there was work to be done. So, turning on her stool, she turned to examine the crowd to see who might be a good piece of prey that might help lead her on to the grand prize, the grand prize being Francis Morel.

RAPHAEL BOLTON | Let the fun times begin! If you need anything changed please let me know!

[Deleted]

In a rather private corner of the pub, things were going heavenly. A small group of good looking girls was laughing at a man's flirty jokes. He was a man not older than thirty in age, wearing an expensive suit that indicated he got money to spare. He was a regular costumer of the pub who often did not mind emptying his wallet for a wild night with high price wine and the 'table-partner' service. No one really knew anything about his life or how he made a living, nothing other than his name: Raphael Bolton. In fact, one could not expect people in Knockturn Alley to care. Most of those who spent their time in the place had their own little dirty secret and mostly preferred to stay out of each other's business. Therefore, not a soul wondered where he got all his galleons. Only the fact he benefited their funds mattered.

Raphael's secret was that he was living a double life. Normally, he claimed himself to be a successful business wizard who was a half-blood with distant muggleborn relatives and sometimes, riskier, a pureblood. Of course his blood status was a lie to survive in this discriminating world. He was in fact a muggleborn to the core. His second identity, used for doing works of the underworld, was Francis Morel. Professional dealer of illegal goods and hit man, he had earned himself quite a reputation. Ever since the incident that changed his life (and race), his business had been blooming. People were just too afraid of dirtying their hands killing somebody that they were willing to pay him piles of galleons to get the job done. Some may call him a 'dog of the elite' for all he cared. He valued his properties more than how people think of him. Yet, it was spending money he enjoy doing the most. He loved the look on people's faces when he threw the golden coins on their table, which made him feel in power. Who would not love feeling like they control others' life?

One of the girls refilled his glass for him then raised her own. "Have another with me, Raphy!" She said with a flirty chuckle.

"Anything for m' lady." Raphael lifted his drink and pulled her closer with his other hand. The man then gulped down all that was in his glass.

"Am I not your lady?" The other woman sulked.

"Oh no, no, how can I forget you, my sweet?" He chuckled, putting the empty drink down, and pulled her into his arm also then kissed her cheek. She pushed his face away from her playfully, giggling.

Just then, a young lady entered. Her look was not that special but he could still consider her appearance as a pleasant for the eyes. What caused him to pay attention was the way she dressed. It gave him the impression the girl was probably well-off. He watched as she ordered her drink and wondered if she was alone. There was no sign of her waiting for anyone. The girl was possibly just enjoying by herself. That alone raised his interest. A dangerous downfall of Raphael was his flirtatious nature. Whenever he saw a decent looking lady, it was hard to control the urge to try and win her over. If he was the ruler of the world, he would round up all the beauties into his own castle. Oh, nothing could be greater than being surrounded by pretty ladies. At least that was how he defined good life.

Despite the sulky complains of the two women with him, he tipped them, telling them to leave, and that he would make it up for them another time. Once he was alone, he fixed his clothes and hair then signaled a waiter over. Giving the waiter some galleons, he asked the guy to bring the girl in the nice dress a drink and told her who offered it. With that done, Raphael refilled his glass and waited to see if it would work.

Sorry, I made you wait, pretty. My writer has been quite busy and stuffs. Tell her if anything is wrong. Almost forgot, this post for lady Andrea is 673 words long. I personally don't think that was the best way to impress a lady, but Vivi has no better idea. So... There ya go. But I'm taking over the next post. Hear that, Vivi? Leave the work to the professional!

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Why do we scream at each other

This is what it sounds like

When doves cry

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On any other night, Andrea probably would have been flattered that there was a man somewhere in the pub who fancied her pretty enough to buy her a drink. But here, in this place, in Knockturn Alley? The idea wasn’t exactly flattering as much as it was disturbing, seeing as Andie didn’t want to be attracting the wrong kind of attention. But then again, she was an Auror. She could take care of herself, and she wasn’t half-bad of a witch to begin with in the first place. So she wasn’t intimidated, per se, because it took quite a lot for any man to have that sort of effect on her, but she was… put off, perhaps.

Which was precisely her reaction when a waiter managed to bring her a drink, and informed her of its origins. Politely taking the glass from the tray, Andrew purposefully glanced over in the direction the waiter had gestured, her eyes meeting a relatively handsome dark-haired young man. She gazed at him for but a moment before gently swirling the liquid inside the glass and taking a sip, testing the drink before deciding that whatever the young man had bought her, it was certainly the good stuff. And, well, she had been raised a well-mannered young lady. If someone had spent this much money on a drink for her, the only proper thing was to make a point to thank them… even if said person was probably a greasy and slippery figure who made it a point to score pretty things like herself.

But, as Andrea continued to look him over from afar, sipping the drink he’d bought for her, she came to a decision. He looked rich, and relatively powerful. If anything, he probably had some information about Morel, and this night probably wouldn’t end in a complete bust. So, with that very decision made, she took another dainty sip of her drink and sauntered her way over to him, sauntering being really the only way she was able to walk in these heels without blowing her cover and perhaps uncovering the wand that safely sat underneath the hem of her dress.

Without a formal invitation, Andie slid into a seat across from this mysterious benefactor (making it a distinct point that she was sitting across from him, as she was no idiot and was about to practically slide right onto his lap, she certainly wasn’t that kind of girl), setting her glass gently down on the table before folding her hands before her and propping her elbows up on the table as she looked at this male at length. He was attractive, she had to admit, but he wasn’t really her type. In fact, none of the guys here were truly her type, but Andrea needed to play the part, and if she was going to get the information she needed, she had to play the part well.

So with a false mischievous glint in her eyes, she deemed it worth it to say, ”So, do you make it a habit of buying girls’ drinks to get their attention?” Andie was doing her best to sound coy. While she definitely wasn’t aiming on taking this guy home with her (in fact the very idea of taking any guy home from this pub made her sick to her stomach), Andie at least had to somewhat act that way. She just had to play it smart. ”Because you know, there’s certainly other ways to catch a young lady’s eye than rich and expensive alcohol. Though… you look like the kind of man who would already be aware of that.” She smile slyly. After all, Andrea had been a former Slytherin - she too knew how to somewhat get her way.

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RAPHAEL | 626 | If you need more to work with, lemme know!

Varon

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Raphael leaned back on his comfortable seat, elbow of the hand holding his wine glass rested on the chair’s arm, as he observed the waiter bringing his little present to the girl. She then turned to look at him, to which he smiled charmingly at her, slightly raising his cup to greet her gaze in respond.

She was, without a doubt, considering what to do with him. He could see it from the way she kept eying at him through the glass of her cup. She, perhaps, was curious about his identity and status just as much as he was about hers. If she was actually a daughter of a noble home, he would be more eager to steal her heart. A gold-digger never let a good chance go to waste. If she was not, he would just have a good time toying with her. So far, he could only guess through her appearance. She also appeared to be rather wise, not falling for a stranger immediately like many others he encountered. Still, there was not much to be deducted from at this point. He preferred it a little mysterious anyway.

Her departure from her chair focused all his attention. He sniggered in mind, seeing she had decided to come over. His charming smirk rarely failed him, he assumed. Meanwhile, his inner self reminded him not to get too carried away. The chance she was one of those sent by the Ministry to investigate something was still there. It was hard to tell who was really who in this dark corner of London. Like last year when his partner in crime his caught red-handed by an old man who appeared too skinny to even walk sitting across the street. Lucky for him, he had nothing to do with it and got away scratch free. Later on, he learned the old man was, surprisingly, a female Auror in disguise. Now he would not want that to happen to him, would he? He knew he had better not mention any ‘irrelevant information’ in front of this lady he knew so little about.

Now that she was much closer, he was glad he made the right choice. That he would not be wasting his time attempting to flee from a butter-face, which fortunately never happened before. Raphael gave a chuckle as she asked him whether it was his habit of offering girls drinks. It had. He admitted to himself that he was quite the Mr. Generous when it came to socializing with ladies. “A little old-fashioned,” He propped a cheek on his right fist, watching her mischievously. His left hand swirling the wine glass, making ice-cubes collide with the solid glass resulting a clinking melody. “But I got yours, didn’t I?”

His back left the chair as he leaned forward to set his drink down after he had taken another sip. ”I’m surprised,” He said, keeping his lady-killer smirk. “that such a pretty lady would come here alone. I hope you don’t mind a little company?” He leaned back, also folded his hands, resting both elbows on the chair’s arms. He recognized in her words and manner smartness. She was definitely not the type of brainless play-girl wannabe he often came across. This girl was not going to be an easy prey. And that was what made it so exciting to the werewolf.

Made you wait again, hun. This time only 560 words but Vivi hopes she nailed it. She really need to learn more about writing this kind of scenario. I blame her lack of romantic experience.

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Andie was more than aware that every single movement she made at this point mattered. Every little twitch, expression, and move had to be calculated carefully, all while observing the man before her. She didn’t know who he was, and it was also a possibility that indulging him would get her absolutely nowhere in the case - she wasn’t here to flirt, as fun as it was. She was here on business. A business that, should it take a wrong turn, could end up pretty dangerous for her as a whole in a place like this. And she had absolutely no intention of landing herself in St. Mungo’s. Definitely not. So, she made the distinct decision that caution was best, but there was no denying that the dangerous aspect of this encounter thrilled her.

As she walked over and slid into her seat, Andrea wasn’t an idiot, she knew what she looked like. A pretty girl in an expensive dress. It would be easy to mistake her for a pureblooded young woman, because a majority of the women here were indeed just that. Daughters and wives of powerful families, with distinct lineage that made them recognizable and looked up to. It was this look that Andie had tried to emulate, and if she’d captured the attention and interest of one of the wealthier-looking men in the pub, then she had to be doing something right.

His response to her question made her snort quietly, a small smirk-like smile coming to adorn her face. ”I have to admit, you’ve got me there,” she said, though it was clear from her tone that she was not implying in any way, shape, or form that he truly had gotten her. Andrea knew how to play hard-to-get. In fact, she knew this flirting game all a little too well - not only from her days as a Slytherin in Hogwarts but also from the years she had spent outside of it in the real world, having slept with a few men herself. It wasn’t all that hard playing coy. It was the act of pretending like she would ever actually consider the attentions of a man who clearly was on the opposite end of her societal chain.

But there was no denying that the young man before her was handsome. His smirk was even somewhat attractive, but it was of no effort at all to remind herself who she was potentially dealing with, so Andrea was rather proud that she was able to resist with ease. Just as he put his drink down, Andie picked hers back up, taking a small sip of the heady, expensive alcohol before she allowed herself to answer his questions.

Smiling slyly, she looked down at her glass. ”Mm, well, some pretty ladies are quite capable of going places on their own, as I’m sure you’re aware. Particularly the single ones.” Her eyes twinkled with a slight brand of mischievous amusement, as she just let that tidbit drop. Making sure he knew she was available (even if she had no intention of letting him make that status change) was probably at least a decent step towards potentially weeding out the information that she wanted. ”And I wouldn’t, but for the fact that I tend to only allow myself the company of those I know the names of. A lass like me might be able to handle myself, but one could never be too careful in a time like this, with Ministry bats pressing down on us at every turn.” It was a risky ploy, she knew, trying to down-talk the Ministry and including herself amongst this population, because it could either have the effect she wanted, or the exact opposite one.

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RAPHAEL | 622 | Sorry for the wait, m'dear!

Varon