Recklessness

Declan was ready to strangle his best friend, but doing so in his place of business would likely  not go over very well. Of that, he was quite sure. No matter how tempted he was to do it, nothing good would come from doing so. Besides, he would be without his best friend, and that would just put him in an even worse position as far as he was concerned. Declan needed to keep an eye on Henry all the more now that the younger man was watching Declan right back.

Dom had been gone too long. And now that he had seen her at the club, he wasn't quite himself. If the customers had noticed, though, nobody had said anything.

At any rate, Henry was sitting at the bar, again, and Declan was not successful when it came to ignoring him. Lucky for him, though, there was a Quidditch match on, and it happened to be Henry's team of choice, so it was quiet enough between goals. When the door opened, Declan looked up from his inventory chart and was pleased to see a familiar face. Offering a smile, he nodded in her direction and leaned on the counter as she approached.

Esme walked into the Leaky Cauldron and looked up seeing Declan. She smiled back at him as she approached the counter. It was her day off since she had hired a manager who knew fashion and how to handle things.

"Hey Declan." She said sitting on a stool feeling like sighing as she finally got away from her apartment. Her neighbor was the loudest person she had ever lived next to. "How are you today?" She asked as she tried to figure out what she wanted to drink. She wanted something strong to drink but she didn't know if it was a good idea.

Declan wiped off a spot on the bar in front of where Esme sat, just in case, before setting down a coaster as he replied. "As usual, I've been busy. Which isn't a bad thing, I suppose," he admitted.

Looking over at Henry, though, he added: "The only problem is that I've got a rather nosy customer over there in my best mate."

Henry looked up and gave a faux salute and a wink before turning to watch the game again. He let out a distraught grumble when a bludger knocked into his favorite player. Declan shook his head at him, but turned back to Esme with the best smile he could muster. It didn't properly reach his eyes, but it was close enough.

"What can I get you then?" He asked, waving a hand towards the options behind him.

Esme smiled when he said that he had been busy. "Well I hope it hasn't been too rough for you." She said thinking of her own which had been a disaster.

She saw him look over at someone then laughed softly. "I'm sure that's what best mates are for. Being nosy about a great many things." She said grinning.

She nodded at the man and couldn't help but laugh when he gave a grumble when the bludger hit a player. She gave him a small smile and could tell that his own smile didn't quite touch his eyes. "Look at the bright side Declan the day will be over soon." She said honestly.

"Well what do you have that's strong?" She asked deciding that she honestly really needed a drink. Her shop was doing well but she felt like she was stuck in a rut. She felt like she needed something exciting to do that would spice up her boring life. She wanted nothing more than to find something exciting and maybe for once not feel like something was missing.

Henry wasn't always nosy, for reference. But his best mate in the world, and the person he looked to the most for direction and help and example - he wasn't doing so well. Declan hadn't been himself since seeing Dom at the club a while prior, and now Henry had trouble letting the man out of his sight unless he knew Dec had some plan or other. So when the woman said she hoped his day had not been too dreadful, he listened a bit harder.

"It wasn't nearly as bad as it could've been," Declan said, making Henry feel a bit better. Sure, it wasn't exactly a perfect way of saying it, and it didn't mean that Declan had actually had a good day. But it was something, and Henry would take it.

Henry heard her laugh, and he could admit that he was glad to see that he had made her smile, but he continued to act like he was fully invested in the match. Her question took him by surprise, though. For some reason, he hadn't pegged her as the drinking sort in that sense. "Goldschläger," Henry suggested without looking over at first. When he did turn, however, he added: "Forty percent alcohol. Plus it tastes like cinnamon. If you mix it with a bit of soda it tastes like Christmas in a cup."

"Henry's favorite for the holidays," Declan announced, a smirk curving his lips. "It's a bit of a girly drink as far as most people are concerned, but-"

"But," Henry interjected, narrowing his eyes at his friend, "it's bloody delicious." Directing his focus solely on the woman to his right, he offered his most charming grin. "I'll buy us a couple if you like."

He didn't have to look up to know that Declan had a surprised but fairly curious expression on his face. Henry wasn't necessarily one to hold back, but he never tried to chat up any of Declan's friends. Not until now, at least. What was it about this girl? Henry wasn't sure. Perhaps he was just bored and found her interesting enough. It hardly mattered now, though, because once he began, there was rarely anything that could convince the Gryffindor graduate to stop himself.

"Well that's good. I'm glad that it wasn't as bad as it could've been." Esme said with a small smile. She thought about her own day but she wasn't going to talk about it. It made her mad just thinking about it but she wanted him to be happy with his own day.

She looked over at Declan's Mate who had suggested something. "Hm I haven't heard of it." She said as she listened at his description of the alcohol. "Sounds really good actually. Forty percent alcohol, cinnamon." She looked over at Declan. "May I have that with a bit of soda in it please?" She asked Declan with a smile. She wanted to know what it tasted like because it sounded really yummy to her.

She giggled at Declan's description of the drink. "Well if it's tastes like Christmas in a cup I don't think it should matter if some think it's girly. Especially if it really good and strong." She said adjusting slightly on the chair smoothing out her long skirt. She took off her coat because she just realized that she still had it on, she was wearing her favorite floral lace top.

She laughed more at Henry's words. "Well I'm willing to try it." She said then looked at him when he looked at her completely. "I'd like that. Oh I'm Esmeralda, you can just call me Esme." She said holding out her hand to him.

She had looked back over to Declan but she could feel Henry's eyes on her. She wondered why he would be staring at her but for now she would wait for him to speak. She didn't know what to talk about with him, she was the most boring person in the world in her opinion.