User: slygreengrass Date: 2010-02-25 18:24 (UTC) Subject: (no subject)

Daphne and Mandy had eerily similar reactions. Both women placed a hand rather firmly on their husbands' arms. "Perhaps because duelling is potentially dangerous and seen as rather uncivilized," Mandy said.

"Quite right," said Daphne. "I might also add that it's completely unneccessary." She looked at Theodore, a glint in her eye admitting that maybe she didn't have the complete control over the situation she hoped. It was only a glint, though. For the most part, she still seemed completely confident.

User: whitepeacock Date: 2010-02-25 20:53 (UTC) Subject: (no subject)

Draco laughed, and try as he might to make it sound human, it was cold as ever. "I'm not suggesting that anyone duel right here, now am I," he said rather condescendingly.

"I'm quite sure Potter here is gripping his wand firmly at this very moment," Draco went on coolly, "And, he can't really be blamed for his spirit, now can he. Of course, he's so accustomed to being attacked, unprovoked." Draco said this last word like a curse; something he didn't believe to be true at all.

"For my part, and as Harry well knows, were I to suddenly attack in polite company, I would hardly use simple duelling methods. You never were much for Occlumency, were you, Harry?"

Draco laughed again, and he looked around as if everyone really ought to get the joke and laugh with him. He had a point - a strange point - but nonetheless, Draco was extremely gifted at Legilimency, as Aunt Bella had made quite certain.

User: bronze_raven Date: 2010-02-26 01:48 (UTC) Subject: (no subject)

Mandy sighed and spoke rather coldly for her normally chipper self, "Harry is doing no such thing Draco. I can account for both of his hands and neither is gripping a wand. Now, we all understand that you've been through some rough times recently and that you never got on with Harry in school, but as you haven't seen him in years, I'd prefer you not make gross assumptions about him. Thank you." With that, she took a sip of her drink. It was rather rude of her to have that little outburst but Draco was being quite rude himself.

User: whitepeacock Date: 2010-02-26 03:21 (UTC) Subject: (no subject)

Draco smiled again, this time apologetically. "Forgive my manners, both of you." He gave a forced, stifled cough, as if to inflect how distasteful that particular apology was.

"Congratulations are in order, Harry," he started, "on your personal success. Although I'm not partial to Aurors. Or the Ministry in general, for that matter..." Draco seemed to wander for a moment. "Harry, you of all people must feel particularly strongly about the wrongful conviction and imprisonment of innocent wizards by the Ministry, damning them to torture at the hands of the Dementors in Azkaban." He said this with a grave expression, one that gave Draco a grown-up and even mature air; an air of understanding.

User: potterbynature Date: 2010-02-26 03:58 (UTC) Subject: (no subject)

Harry despised this pompous ass. He made it perfectly clear to Mandy that he wasn't particularly fond of her friends, but he nevertheless tried his best to be polite to them. He simply couldn't deal with Draco, though. Daphne and Theodore might have no evil proclivities, but Draco was nigh irredeemable. And Harry certainly didn't feel that it was his responsibility to attempt the impossible.

"No, Draco, I don't believe that innocents should be imprisoned or tortured. But I don't know anything about your particular case, so I wouldn't venture a guess as to whether or not you deserved what you got. Of course, we live in a time of war, and sometimes officials make mistakes while acting to protect the public. It's the unfortunate price one pays when one belongs to a terrorist organization, be that by choice or otherwise."

Harry stood and continued, not giving anyone the chance to respond, "Theodore, it was good to see you again. Daphne, thank you for inviting me. Sweetheart, I'll be down the street; take your time."

Before leaving, he added, "I'm sorry that I cannot stay longer, Draco, and listen to your complaints: I'm sure you recall that I've never been a big fan of the Ministry. Unfortunately, money doesn't pull the same sway there anymore. I do suppose you'll have to act, if you want to see change."

Harry walked out of the restaurant. He hadn't intended to leave early, but Draco was simply insufferable. He consoled himself with the thought that he'd gotten in a few good punches. But what he most hoped to get out of the conversation was pressuring Draco into doing something stupid in retaliation to the Ministry... with the hope, of course, that he'd get caught.

User: bronze_raven Date: 2010-02-26 21:43 (UTC) Subject: (no subject)

Mandy watched this all unfold, speechless. She didn't disagree with most of what came out of Harry's mouth, and Draco was being needlessly nasty. Once he'd left, she stood up as well. "I'll be collecting my boyfriend now. Daphne, Theodore, I certainly hope we can get together again under better circumstances. Draco, best of luck in your potential case against the Ministry. I do hope they at least issue an apology for your mistreatment. Goodbye," she said, smiling and Theodore and Daphne before heading out and after Harry.

"Harry!" she called, jogging to catch up. "I'm so sorry. I really didn't know he'd come, and he was being a complete git."

Daphne looked at Draco coolly but said nothing, instead turning to Theodore. "So unfortunate that you had to see that, Theodore, but I hope it distracted your thoughts from the chaos at Commodities." She was quite worried that somebody important heard that exchange. It would be disastrous for their image.

User: whitepeacock Date: 2010-02-26 22:54 (UTC) Subject: (no subject)

"He's an idiot," Draco said, half to himself. He was beginning to feel a bit drunk and even more generally hateful than usual. Turning to his wife, Draco gave her a cold look in return.

"I do hope next time you intend to meet with such riffraff you don't bother inviting me." He wasn't trying to be mean to Daphne per se, but the entire situation was all a bit much for him.

User: slygreengrass Date: 2010-02-26 23:26 (UTC) Subject: (no subject)

"Honestly, Draco, sometimes I think you don't actually want to win your case against the Ministry. Now, do be quiet as we're still in public and I'd like not to make the Prophet as the couple that offended one of the most famous wizards in the world. We're trying to convice the general public that you're innocent and misunderstood, remember? We both have to put effort into that" she said trying not to sound snippy. Merlin, sometimes she didn't know why she hadn't settled down with someone more maliable.

User: potterbynature Date: 2010-02-27 00:13 (UTC) Subject: (no subject)

When harry heard Mandy's voice he stopped and let her catch up. He had expected her to stay longer. He turned to her and said, in a slightly exasperated but not accusing tone, "Look, I'm sorry, I tried. Theodore and Daphne were being very nice, and I appreciate them trying to make me feel welcome in your circle. I'm sorry if I embarrassed you in front of them, but I can't handle that... that... prat."

He looked at her with a defeated look. He felt like he really put in some effort and made no headway.

User: bronze_raven Date: 2010-02-27 00:34 (UTC) Subject: (no subject)

"I know you tried, and you did very well until that pretentious, self-pitying, grudge-clasping git came in. Draco was always a jerk and now he's a drunk with entitlement issues. I don't for a second have any intention of letting him into your presence again. Just, please don't write Daphne off. I'm," Mandy lowered her voice, "I'm not sure she knew what she was getting into. Back in the castle, he didn't seem so.. so- like his father." She took his hand. "So, do you want to get some take-out and a bottle of wine?"

User: nott_involved Date: 2010-02-27 01:04 (UTC) Subject: (no subject)

Harry smiled. He liked that she was standing up for him and not Draco. "Yeah, that sounds great. Chinese?"

Back at the restaurant, the waitress returned with the food that Daphne had ordered. Without Harry and Mandy, it was far too much for the three of them. "Yes, Daphne, I must say that this has been more amusing than the chaos at the office."

User: slygreengrass Date: 2010-02-27 01:11 (UTC) Subject: (no subject)

And with that, Mandy and Harry were off to a far less stressful evening.

Daphne laughed a bit, "Please, Theodore, eat as much as you like. Nothing like dinner with your show." She took a bit off of the plate nearest her.It was really quite good. On another day, she'd have to come back and fully enjoy it. "The chef is quite talented, don't you think?"

User: whitepeacock Date: 2010-02-27 05:02 (UTC) Subject: (no subject)

Draco was still drinking, and noticed the food rather late. Even so, he was hungry; he was still in the process of completely recovering from his time in prison, which required eating rather richly. It bothered him that Theo was still there, as Draco was feeling a bit of shame toward Daphne at the moment.

He sighed, eating well, but not feeling great about himself at the moment. He hoped Daphne would say something to make him feel a bit less ill at ease.

User: slygreengrass Date: 2010-02-28 22:14 (UTC) Subject: (no subject)

Daphne glanced at Draco and managed a half-smile but said nothing. He had embarrassed her and thrown away a golden opportunity to help himself. Instead, she pushed some more appetizer his way and turned to Theodore. "Are you really looking into a new warehouse? Buying preexisting or constructing?" she asked, sounding financially interested.

User: whitepeacock Date: 2010-03-01 16:10 (UTC) Subject: (no subject)

Draco stopped eating for a moment. He looked at Daphne a bit plaintively.

"I'd like to go home," he said. "I don't care if you want to chat with Theo, but..." he couldn't find the words. He wanted to apologize, but retreating into his den was the closest thing he could come up with.

User: slygreengrass Date: 2010-03-02 20:57 (UTC) Subject: (no subject)

"Then go home, Dear," Daphne said, patting his hand lightly. "Triny is making a triple chocolate torte with pumpkin sauce. I think you ought to have some," she continued before giving another weak smile and sipping from her drink. She made it a point not to fight with Draco, and sending him home was an excellent way to avoid doing so.

User: whitepeacock Date: 2010-03-03 04:33 (UTC) Subject: (no subject)

Draco went home, and found Triny busying herself with the chocolate torte. Although he would rather have his wife as company, Draco made due with eating rather copious amounts of the dessert alone. It was lonely, but chocolate did help; Daphne was right about that.

User: nott_involved Date: 2010-03-03 15:33 (UTC) Subject: (no subject)

Theodore gave Draco the warmest goodbye that he could muster at the moment. He also thought Draco was being a bit of a prat, but he thought that Daphne had been too hopeful, also. Draco had harbored nothing but ill will toward Harry since they were eleven. It wouldn't just disappear because they'd gotten a little older.

In response to her question, Theodore said, "I'm not sure about the warehouse. I'll need to have some people run numbers. It's possible."

User: slygreengrass Date: 2010-03-04 15:46 (UTC) Subject: (no subject)

Daphne had no intention of running home after Draco and was quite glad to see the Theodore didn't seem to think she should. "So, is it generally more efficacious to buy out a company that already has a warehouse or to construct? I know precious little about all of this stuff, but it seems quite interesting," she said as she nibbled from a new tray.

User: nott_involved Date: 2010-03-04 15:55 (UTC) Subject: (no subject)

Theodore helped himself to more of the food. It seemed that Daphne and he would be eating all of this themselves.

"Well, that's all a matter of location, really. In London, it's almost always easier to buy out extant facilities, which sometimes means buying whole companies. It's just really expensive to build and remodel here in the city with all of the necessary Muggle precautions and whatnot. Out in Bath, it's probably cheaper to build. I'm just not sure if a Bath warehouse could sustain itself for very long. That area typically operates out of the Cardiff warehouses."

User: slygreengrass Date: 2010-03-07 00:34 (UTC) Subject: (no subject)

Daphne nodded, drinking a bit more while she thought. "But, as Mandy was saying, the area was really growing. Is there anything to be gained in possibly having a smaller-scale operation there? Less a warehouse and more of a boutique, catering to the tourists and nouveau riche?"

User: nott_involved Date: 2010-03-07 00:50 (UTC) Subject: (no subject)

Theodore thought about it while continuing to eat. "I suppose that might be profitable. We normally go big or don't go at all, but a small operation might encourage the start up of several independent shops. The competition isn't necessarily exciting, but it might stimulate the real estate market even more. And the more people that move to Bath, the more profitable our operations there would become."

He smiled at the reasoning. He was proud of the idea. "I think I've let you and Mandy talk me into it. We'll give it a try."

User: slygreengrass Date: 2010-03-10 23:55 (UTC) Subject: (no subject)

"Brilliant," Daphne said. "I may just have to do some shopping in Bath... Theodore, I'd like to thank you for continuing the friendship between yourself and Draco despite, well, everything. He may not show it, but it means a great deal to him. Without you and I, he'd be alone," she continued frankly.

User: nott_involved Date: 2010-03-11 00:44 (UTC) Subject: (no subject)

Theodore sighed and sat back in his chair.

"Draco and I have been friends for so long that I cannot remember not being friends. And before you, I think I may be the only person who would ever have considered himself a friend of Draco Malfoy. I've never put up with his bullshit. And I think he respects me for that."

Theodore paused for a moment, contemplating his relationship with Draco. "Our parents fed us a lot of crap growing up. Some of their detractors may have called it brainwashing. And he certainly got the worst of it. It sounds awful, but I suppose I'm lucky that my parents died when they did. I learned the consequences of their fight sooner rather than later. Hopefully, Draco will learn from his pain. 'Til then, I suppose we can only wait and be supportive, and try to keep him out of trouble."

Theodore finished another glass of gin and shook off the seriousness. "So, you've never told me what you think of Mandy dating the Boy-Who-Lived?"

User: slygreengrass Date: 2010-03-11 01:00 (UTC) Subject: (no subject)

Daphne nodded along with what Theodore had said, frowning slightly. He was quite right about it all, and she certainly hoped her husband would learn something from his misery. Something that would keep him out of trouble.

The change of subject was quite welcome, and Daphne laughed despite herself. "I find it fantastically absurd. She told me, not long ago, that it started back in the castle. After Granger had passed. Mandy bought into the branwashing as well, more than either of us. She hides it well in mixed company, and these days, she's either in denial or trying to change. So, being near him while Granger was alive was never appealing.

"The fact that I heard nothing of it until more than a year after it began is telling. She hid it from her pureblood circle... I suppose she thought we'd all shun her with him being a halfblood- and the face of all that fights against our idealogical upbringing. I don't know what he's playing at, though. He has to know her thoughts on blood purity and her family's financial backing of the Cause. She can't have hidden it this long. What do you make of it?" she finished, taking a long sip from her drink. This was quite a good cocktail.