Tonight is On The House :: Hogwarts Staff

Sept 1st
11:45 pm
Hogsmeade

Night one in the books was a complete failure. Low attendance numbers, the kitchen's magic snafu and the near mutiny of the students was not a great way to start the 1920’s school term. That being said, it could have been worse.

No death, no dismemberment…

When Maddox mentioned heading to Hogsmeade for a drink and some food, Gideon knew just the spot. He hadn’t planned on outing the speakeasy built into his family's clothing shop, but the few members of the staff that were coming, he felt like he could trust. He always trusted his gut.

Legally speaking, the speakeasy was completely above board. It was the betting ring that might get them into a spot of trouble. THAT part of the business would stay under lock and key.

Walking with the staff to the gate, waving his wand to unlock the wards just at that point in the perimeter, exiting and then rearming the wards, was a fairly straight forward process. “Blackwood & Son’s if you don’t mind.” He didn't explain himself, or why they were headed to a clothing shop and not a tavern. With a POP he apparated to just outside the store’s front door. At this late hour, the clothing business was closed, but there were other parts of the family business that stayed open far past traditional Last Call.

Wand in hand, a series of well placed taps and the door opened. Once inside, he silently lead them to the backroom of the shop, the staff crowding in, making the space smaller than comfortable. With a quick look at the assembled crowd, Gideon placed his hand on the door to the broom closet. With a quick 1, 2, 3 taps, he gave them a quiet smirk and simply said, “Welcome to Blackwood & Son’s.”

When the door opened, a waft of cigar smoke poured out, bringing with it the quiet chatter and music of a swanky jazz club. Leading the way down the stairs, Gideon motioned towards the bar. There were a few people sitting in booths, but it was a rather quiet night, which suited him just fine. Nodding towards the bartender, telling him silently that he had this bunch, Gideon went behind the bar standing before the staff. “What’ll it be? Once we have drinks, we can go sit in the lounge. I’ll have the chef bring out food shortly.”

Maddox had no questions.

He didn't wonder about the location the new deputy had chosen. He didn't wonder about the clothing store front, the many taps of the man's wand, or the bar that was revealed with its suffocating scent of cigar smoke permeating the concealed space. In his travels, there were a few things the creature professor had learned. The simplest? Everyone had a past. No one popped up on the earth the way he met them, no one materialised the moment he walked into a frame. Gideon was no exception. Before Hogwarts, the man had obviously had another life--perhaps one he still lived--and while Maddox could do without the assault on his nostrils, he was fine to enjoy what remained of the night.

The feast had been...something.

Grumpy children, sandwiches, flustered elves, and fruit. It wasn't the combination he'd been expecting when he'd forced himself to turn from the path of his private quarters to actually attend the feast after fetching the first years. Maddox had anticipated an uneventful feast, some mash being thrown here or there, sleepy students worn from their day's travel, and a snarky exchange with his best friend.

No time like the present, he supposed.

"It suits you," he quipped once Gideon had taken up position behind the bar. "If we never get the magic sorted at Hogwarts, I don't suppose you'll be among those of us struggling to transition elsewhere."

He supposed he wouldn't either, and nor would Julia. Both had had their exits planned and things lined up before the chairman decided he needed to invest in damage control. "Schletters Fine Whisky, my good man." Fitting, given their location. "What're my dinner options looking like? The apples haven't done what I'd hoped they would."

Gideon Blackwood was an interesting sort, wasn't he?

A bit of an enigma at first, in the days leading up to the term start, Julia had observed him, trying to get a basic feel of who he was. He appeared - to her - quiet, serious. A bit brooding even. Appointed by the Minister himself, as all Deputy Headmasters needed to be. So...he was in, in some sort of way. In enough to have powerful people at his backing.

It was strange she had never heard his name beforehand.

The place he ushered them to, certainly. Though she'd never shopped at the franchise. Most of her clothing were High Street or custom-made through various London contacts. Julia wasn't a high-maintenance woman, or at least she didn't like to think she was, but she did have her preferences.

The smell of cigar smoke wasn't nearly as offensive to her as it may have been to others. Her father and brothers all partook of the habit, as did her uncle and cousins. It was one of those things that made men feel...expensive, she figured. Not quite fancy, but in demand, or sophisticated.

All she saw was the way her father had choked to death on his lung cancer.

She took a seat at one of the stools, smoothing her dress over her legs, as she quietly observed their surroundings. Interesting. Gideon Blackwood had a secret (or not-so-secret now) speakeasy in the back of his clothing store. How quaint.

How dangerous of him to reveal.

“What’ll it be? Once we have drinks, we can go sit in the lounge. I’ll have the chef bring out food shortly.”

"French 75, if you can," she said lightly, a small smile playing on her lips as her eyes studied Gideon quietly. Did the Minister know about all this? Was he...in cahoots somehow? It would be a very interesting little operation to uncover.

"What're my dinner options looking like? The apples haven't done what I'd hoped they would."

Finally, Julia turned her attention to her friend as she drummed her fingers along the bar. Maddox was the sort who didn't trouble himself with questions that he didn't really care to find the answers to. He was the more amenable type. If Gideon had an illegal bar in his clothing store, then who was he to question it rather than order a drink?

She patted his hand lightly. He could always be counted on to draw her back out of her musings.

Taking his jacket off, tossing it in a spot by the register, Gideon unbuttoned the top button of his shirt and started rolling up his sleeves, tattoo on full display. "It suits you," Maddox mentioned "If we never get the magic sorted at Hogwarts, I don't suppose you'll be among those of us struggling to transition elsewhere." Gideon smirked and shrugged his shoulders. He wasn’t wrong.

He didn’t say anything, no need to fill the silence, waiting for them to give their orders. "Schletters Fine Whisky, my good man. What're my dinner options looking like? The apples haven't done what I'd hoped they would." With a nod and a quirk to his lips, Gideon expertly started making the drink. While grabbing the glass, reaching for the bottle and retrieving the specially made whisky stones from the chiller, Gideon also produced a menu for both Maddox and Julia to look over. Standard bar fare, with an elevated ingredient list including savory pies, hot sandwiches, fish and chips, bangers and mash, sunday roast, salads and more.

The whisky stones had been a great find, keeping the liquid cold while not melting or watering the liquor. The chiller, below the bar, magicked to keep them nice and cold.

Eyes falling on the fairer of the two guests, waiting for her order, she surprised him with a French 75. Not one of their normal requests, but a good choice nonetheless. With a nod, he went to work grabbing the chilled champagne flute then the ingredients one after the other. In a cocktail shaker he added the gin, fresh squeezed lemon juice, simple syrup and ice. Shaking until the liquid was the perfect temperature, he strained the cocktail over the flute. Topping the drink off with chilled champagne, and garnishing with a lemon twist, he presented it to Julia. Now that his guests were taken care of, he grabbed himself a highball glass, whisky stones and a fresh bottle of Schletters Fine Whisky.

With the glass and bottle in hand, he motioned to the pair to follow him. Through a curtained door just behind the bar. The Lounge was a small quiet area, lit by lumos orbs that gave off a warm glow. Pouring out three fingers of the fine whisky, Gideon put the bottle on the table so that Maddox could refill at his own pace. Taking a seat in one of the large leather armchairs he took a drink, letting the liquid burn a fiery trail down his throat. He sighed loudly as the tension began to release from his shoulders, cracking his neck left and right.

As the waiter came in, Gideon nodded at Peter and rattled off a few things. “I’ll have the bangers and mash and bring out the stuffed mushrooms, cheese board and scotch eggs to start. It’s been a long fucking night. Make sure to keep the lady’s drink full if you will.”

Eyeing the two in front of him, he knew he was at a disadvantage. They obviously knew each other… well. “I’ll be honest, I wasn’t sure what to expect tonight, but it sure as fuck wasn’t sandwiches.”

"It’s been a long fucking night."

The very thesis of the first night back at Hogwarts. They'd all already been there for the last week or so, settling in and getting their classrooms in order. In that time, they'd had a plethora of magical failures and misfires to contend with, alerting them to all the little gifts their dear friend Nick had left behind. Things he'd been able to ignore just a term before because they'd been of the big man's own design were now his problem.

The feast, while not in his jurisdiction, had managed to take swipes at his night. His stomach rumbled quietly, his insides gnawing at themselves while they waited for a real meal--one Gideon had so graciously offered to provide.

Maddox took one of the offered menus, looking over at Julia, who patted his hand. His free hand reached out to take hold of it, nudging his menu so they could share. "Don't suppose you'd carry me if I ate myself into a coma?" Loathed as he was to ever encourage the woman in her beliefs of ownership, it wouldn't cost him a thing to allow her to carry his limp, black form back to the castle and plop him in his room. "Katie and Evander might like to share some shepherd's pie for breakfast. We should take some back for them."

The way things were going, there was a near certainty it would be more sandwiches for breakfast, and while his son would eat damn near anything, a treat would still be nice.

He looked to the server, his mind made up. "Fish and chips for me, two servings of shepherd's pie--to go. You can bring it out later."

Simple charms would keep it fresh.

“I’ll be honest, I wasn’t sure what to expect tonight, but it sure as fuck wasn’t sandwiches.”

"Cheers to that," Maddox said, lifting his glass for a moment. He looked around the lounge they'd been led into, taking in the ambience the man had likely carefully curated. Walking by the shop from time to time, this wasn't the image of what he thought was contained within.

"I must say, I'm hurt. You never told me I needed to borrow something from Julia's closet to get real service."

Only 'the lady's' glass would be kept full?

Egregious.