Introducing... The Leonardo DiCaprios!

[Justin Biermann]

"Wow, don't hold back, tell me how you really feel," Justin laughed. He had plowed through his first few drinks pretty quickly, and was starting to feel his cares melting away. "Heh. Some people would say that constantly putting yourself in situations where people want to kill you is the stupid choice, you know." He furrowed his eyebrows and dug his hand through his hair for a few seconds. "I'm truly sorry for wasting your time. You taught me so much and... I loved training, you know. But I think I just like getting praised for being smart, which isn't a great reason to keep going. This past month? I found out that I don't exactly handle failure well. And then I was thinking, I know you guys have to make split-second, morally grey decisions and I'm just not that guy. I mean... do you seriously think I could hurt someone if I had to? Use Avada Kedavra? I still feel guilty for cheating on a spelling test when I was seven." Justin spilled about three different reasons, not even sure what had made him so suddenly uncertain about his future. It was a strange feeling for him.

"Aww, are you calling us friends?" Justin grinned teasingly before taking the menu back -- he always told people what to order anyway, he didn't know why he bothered with the pretense of a menu. "I think you'd like 'The Grace' -- you don't know Grace, do you? She's over there behind the bar," he pointed, "Alright, crash course in Biermann's social life! I do, in fact, have one. The guitarist up there is my mate Noah, we played Quidditch together, used to have a crush on him..." Okay, so that revelation meant Justin was probably just a little bit drunk. "Uh, that's Grace's girlfriend Sam. The angry-looking blonde bloke is Bradley. We have the kind of relationship where I consider him a friend, but I also find his suffering highly enjoyable? Then Nate... Nathan's not here. We got back together under the pretense that an 'open relationship' would solve our problems. Which, I've found, means he sleeps with other people and I get to spend my time at work, basically. Aaaaand I don't even have that anymore, so."

[Samantha Robbins]

"Wait, how were you planning on pissing in his beer?" Sam asked Greg, confused (because clearly that was the salient point to take away from the conversation). She jumped up to hug Noah again before looking between the other three guys. "Everyone ready?" Sam checked before shoving Greg out of the way and taking the microphone.

"LISTEN UP EVERYONE!" she shouted, pausing as people turned their heads. "You're in for a special treat tonight! Straight out of a garage in Leeds, three of my closest friends and a guy I've learned to to tolerate..." Sam earned an elbow in the ribs from Greg for this. At least he was self-aware? "Please welcome... THE LEODENSIAN COLLECTIVE!!!"

[Sarah Watson]

“I’ve never really been one to mince my words… you might have noticed?” Sarah suggested dryly, looking away from him with a sniff as her gaze instead wandered over the other patrons of O’Connor’s. “It’s not just for people with a constant death-wish, though we do tend to attract people of that nature… some of us would quite like to live a long life, thank you very much. Funnily enough some people get into the Auror biz because they have this sunny, wide-eyed optimistic approach to their career in which they want to be proactive, part of ‘helping the cause’ and fighting for the good of society. Ring any bells?” she asked pointedly, looking back at him seriously then as she finished this sentence. “Look, do you seriously think I’m here to bitch at your for ‘wasting my time’? That’s not it, that’s not it at all Biermann,” the blonde shook her head insistently, slightly affronted that he’d think this was the sole reason she was there.

“It never gets any easier,” she muttered quietly, looking away from him and down at the knots in the table instead as she continued, “The making morally grey decisions thing. You just pretend it does, you just pretend it doesn’t bother you that you just hexed someone. You pretend that it’s cool and that you’re fine with using the exact same curses as ‘the enemy’ does because the difference is you’re using them on the side of good, for the good of mankind or whatever, you’re using them to take down the people who aren’t innocent, who hurt innocent people,” she said, her tone suggesting this was pretty much just false rhetoric fed around the Auror training programme every single year.

Sarah snorted softly, as if amused by the prospect of being friends with him, “I wouldn’t go that far,” she quickly shot back but there was something in the fleeting smile then that suggested that, actually, she didn’t find that such an awful idea. She just wasn’t really sure if Justin even liked her at all – she did tend to come across as a bit harsh, a bit tough love, a bit closed off and none of these qualities exactly screamed friendship material. “Grace Cohen, yeah?” she checked, craning her neck to look at the woman he gestured to, “So what’s it like then… ‘The Grace’… or is this more of a ‘you have to taste it for yourself with no preconceptions’ kind of deal?” She rested her chin in her hand and leaned this arm on the table as Justin gave her a quick rundown of his social life, “Huh. Noah’s not too shabby looking really, younger you had decent taste. Oh and that kind of relationship is the best kind, it’s why I enjoy hanging out with MacKinnon so much,” she replied with a laugh, a laugh which faded quickly as he mentioned getting back together with Nate/Nathan. “Open relationship, huh? So hang on… you didn’t know beforehand that ‘open relationship’ is just code for ‘I want to shag other people freely but also don’t mind you occupying my bed on a semi-regular basis’?” she asked, probably a bit tactlessly considering this was a relationship she was talking about and the fact Justin was even mentioning it to her was probably a sign that he at least liked her a little bit… surely?

[Justin Biermann]

"Really? I heard they knock that optimism right out of you," Justin shot back, smiling very slightly to let her know he wasn't serious. He then inclined his head downward. "Sorry. I didn't think you were. It's just, guilt is my default emotion. I'm pretty sure it's a Catholic thing."

"Huh, I think I've heard that speech before," he commented dryly. "I want to make the world a better place. I do. More than anything. Intellectually, the 'greater good' argument makes total sense to me. I wish I could reconcile my beliefs with the career, but I don't think it's going to happen. I can study my brains out, but it's not going to stop me from hesitating out in the field." He frowned. "I've never quit anything before. Do you think I'm... I don't know, putting my intelligence to waste? Am I just a weak-willed quitter now? Don't answer that."

"There must be another way to put my particular abilities to good use, right? I hear I'm quite good at self-righteousness and moral superiority," he laughed in a self-deprecating sort of way. He didn't mean to vomit all of his thoughts on Sarah, but who else was he supposed to talk to? Who else would understand?

He spun the menu on the table. "Strong, no-nonsense, a little spicy. It felt right." Justin put his chin on his hand and just kept nodding, attempting to look completely sober. "And present me doesn't have good taste?!" He lifted his hands, feigning offense. "Yeah, uh, that's why I enjoyed hanging out with MacKinnon as well. Uh huh. Totally the reason." Justin coughed and darted his eyes furtively.

"I'm familiar with the concept! Apparently this is how young people do things now, no labels, no boundaries... crap, it really did sound more convincing when Noah suggested it. Nathan! Not Noah. Oh, fuck me," he muttered while pressing his palm against his forehead. He looked up suddenly as the band started playing. "If I am drunk, do not let me dance, okay? No one needs to see that." Justin wasn't sure he entirely trusted Sarah to keep that promise, but it was worth a shot.

[Sarah Watson]

“Oh they do, it’s just people start off all starry-eyed and then quickly have their bubbles burst, it’s part of the training to be honest,” Sarah sniffed dryly, shaking her head, “Stop feeling bad about feeling guilty!” she groaned in disbelief, “You don’t need to feel any Catholic guilt, I don’t feel slighted, I just feel like I need to at least try to persuade you to come back because you’re damn good at being an Auror, you’re a lot quicker and smarter than half of the people in the department. And don’t tell them I said that or there will be no hearing the end of it for me.”

“Look, I know the feeling, I really do. I hesitated once and it cost me and after that I didn’t hesitate ever again. To be honest, I’m glad you’re getting out now because having you have to go through losing a… a colleague because of your momentary moral dilemma would be shit for you, I’m not sure you’d cope with it,” Sarah admitted and then added with a dismissive wave of her hand, “No offence intended.”

Then, nodding reasonably, she agreed with him, “Yeah that sounds about right for her… and for a drink that I’d like.” Absentmindedly tracing the knot of the wood table with her left hand as he spoke she looked up when he sounded mildly offended, smiling to herself as she realised he was just joking, “Present you has alright taste, you’re a Tom Hardy guy, I respect that. And of course that’s why you enjoy hanging out with MacKinnon, I hear you, I completely hear you,” she winked subtly with a mischievous glint in her eyes then. She’d miss being able to embarrass Justin in front of Derek – it was always cute how flustered and defensive the boy had become whilst MacKinnon remained utterly baffled to it all.

“Mmm hmm,” Sarah mumbled, clearly utterly unconvinced that Justin was actually familiar (let alone comfortable) with the concept of an open relationship. Then, smiling knowingly as he accidentally said Noah instead of Nathan she asked, “Freudian slip and a half, no?” She rested her chin in her palm and looked at him in amusement, “You are undoubtedly drunk Biermann… and you’re oddly endearing when you’re like this so I’ll be nice and not let you dance as you wish. That is unless you ask this Noah to dance, then I might let you go ahead and do it, just for shits and giggles.”

[Edith Myers]

"Ally, Im here...where are you? This isnt the best idea!" Edie spoke loudly into her phone, Ally reassuring her that she'd be there shortly, Edie not feeling too convinced when she heard Ryan's voice in the background.

Looking around the venue as the band began to play, Edie felt a horrible pang in her chest, she'd been a band wife and she swore that she'd stay away from musicians when her marriage to Luke broke down. Feeling terribly out of place & just all kinds of awkward, Edie walked to the bar and tapped her nails nervously as she waited to be noticed by the bartender.

(ooc. Just chucking Edie in here, maybe an interest for one of the band boys. Her (now ex) husband is in a band that got big, maybe one of the boys could be a fan? Whatevs!)

[Casey Ammon]

Casey watched Doug fumble with his menu as he seemed to stumble over his words and chatter on nervously. “Leonardo, well it sounds exciting,” she joked in return before she turned to the band and saw the familiar face of Greg. ‘Shit, Greg! No,’ her eyes widened. Greg could only belong to one band, and that band included… yep, it was him, standing right beside Greg was the impressively disheveled haired boy she had been besotted with ever since she met him.

It was then that she leaned over and kissed Doug. Maybe it was out of jealousy, to get back at Noah, or maybe it was because she actually really liked Doug and wanted him to stop being so damn anxious. Maybe it was all of the above she wasn’t quite certain but it wasn’t an altogether bad kiss either. Casey looked at Doug as she returned to her position, “So…” she began unsure of what she should say, “What do you want to drink?” she asked burying her face in the drinks menu for a moment.

[Douglas Pearson]

"Maybe the name's meant to ironic?" Doug suggested, looking over at the band. "Who's Greg?"

He didn't have very long to consider this puzzle, however, as he suddenly found Casey's lips pressed against his own. Doug was shocked for a second, but quickly relaxed, placing his hand lightly against her face. It wasn't a bad way to shut him up for a second. After they pulled apart, Doug settled back against his chair, scratched above his ear and chuckled nervously. "So that uh... that gets that out of the way. Heh. Oh. Uh. Hang on." He bent down to pick up the drinks menu he had dropped earlier.

"The 'Phoenix Fire' looks interesting," Doug noted, pointing to an illustration on the paper. "Know what you want? Want me to get this round from the bar?" He was mainly looking to get up and work off some of the excess nervous energy he'd just acquired. He then noticed his friend Sarah having what looked to be an intense conversation with little Jonny Quest and shot her a 'discrete' thumbs-up.

[Noah Coulson]

Despite everything, Noah couldn’t help but laugh at Sam’s introduction, especially given Greg’s elbow-in-the-ribs response to it, and it was for this reason that as they launched into their first song – Fell in Love with A Girl a la The White Stripes – he was grinning despite his nerves and despite the fact his ex was in the same room on a date with some guy. He noted Justin sat across from a young blonde woman and shot the other boy a quizzical eyebrow as their gazes met as his fingers moved over the guitar, picking out the chords that were ingrained by repetition by this point. All in all, he felt he was doing rather well at playing it cool and carrying on like he didn’t care – that is, apart from the fact that his gaze happened to accidentally end up where Casey and Doug were sitting, right at the moment where she went in to kiss him.

Accidentally slipping on a note he quickly pulled it back but sensed Harrison’s anxious gaze boring into the back of his head as he’d clearly noticed where Noah’s gaze had ended up. As the song came to an end and the band all quickly prepared to start the next he glanced back at his friend on drums and just mouthed to him clearly ‘kill me now, mate’ before quickly taking a swig of lager from the bottle and then starting up the next song. He could pretend to Greg and Elliot that he wasn’t bothered in the slightest but Harry knew him too well, well enough to know that in no world imaginable would he be unbothered by Casey kissing someone else. He didn’t have the right to be bothered by it – he was the one who broke things off with her – but anyone who’d seen the photos of her still in his room could tell that he was still somewhat stuck on her.

((ooc: So I couldn’t really add much but I thought I’d throw in the bit about Harrison, hope it’s cool Cara? I also thought that’d give him something to sort of do a little bit? We can skip forward songs/the whole gig if you like too, I just really wanted to post something since I’m in the mood to write as Noah.))

[Harrison Grant]

There were only two girls Harrison Grant had ever liked. One was Billie Fry, and the other was Edith Myers. Of course Edith had never really noticed him despite being in the same year. She had always been hopelessly in love with her now ex-husband. He spotted Edie immediately amongst the crowd and was surprised to find her there. He smiled to himself before he was distracted at the sight of Casey kissing Doug. He had noticed Noah’s gaze wandering over in that direction.

His brown eyes gazed worriedly at the back of Noah’s head until he turned round. Harry chuckled and gave Noah a nod before they started another song.

((ooc: Hope what I said about Edie and Billie was okay?))

[Justin Biermann]

"Noah is straight," Justin informed Sarah with an urgent seriousness that didn't quite jibe with his slightly wobbly, inebriated frame. "I don't think he woke up this morning and thought oh, what a nice day, I think I'll play a gig and then grind up on my good pal Justin!" He made eye contact with Noah at this moment and for a split second felt convinced that the guy somehow knew they were talking about him. He glanced away and quickly buried his face in his glass.

"Uh. Is there a reason that guy just kissed someone and gave you a thumbs-up?" he asked while pointing at Doug, slightly bemused. He then slammed his hand on the table, apropos of nothing. "You know what? I'm going to find someone else. Someone smart, who looks like a damn Tom'ardy. And I'm going to find a second job and I'm going to be satisfied with it no matter what it is, and I'll just go easy on myself for once, you know? Now, to the bar!" To be fair, that was all easier said than done, and easiest to say when he was pretty damn drunk.

[Greg Viswanathan]

(ooc: Doing a little skip-ahead so the band guys can hang out with everyone, cool?!)

"I said it once before but it bears repeating now!" Greg threw his whole body into his performance, jumping around the stage and shouting lyrics down the mic with an energy about a hundred times that of his lethargic lounging just a few minutes ago. To say Greg was unaware of whatever was going on with Noah and Casey would be an understatement. Frankly, he was so wrapped up in the moment, the entire pub could collapse around them and he wouldn't have minded.

As their last song wound down, Greg threw his hands up in the air. "Good night Hogsmeeeeaaaade!" he yelled into the mic before triumphantly jumping off the stage. He slung his arms around each of the other guys in turn, before heading to the bar to replenish his water supply. He leaned on the bar next to Edie and looked over to catch her eye. "Hey. What's your name? Oh, I'm the guy who was just singing," he laughed. It was a dumb joke, sure, but he was woozy from the performance high and sort of banking on the whole 'girls love a frontman' thing to carry him through the rest of the night.

[Billie Fry]

Billie pushed her way right up to the front during the band's gig, un-self-consciously dancing with everyone in sight between jumping around and trying to pull people she recognized up from their comfortable seats. She'd had a stressful week, and just wanted to let loose and have a good time. And maybe she also had a thing for musicians. Fine. She still had a strong objection to the term 'groupie'.

As the group split apart, Billie raised her arm and waved to Harrison. As she approached him, she punched him in the arm lightly. "Grant! Why didn't you tell me you guys were actually good? And you have a name now?!"

[Sarah Watson]

Sarah merely raised an eyebrow, “Is he now?” she asked, teasing him just a little because it amused her greatly, looking over at the band (well, Noah) before commenting in an innocent tone, “You sad about that fact? He might, you never know, weirder things have probably happened… you dropping out of training, for instance.”

She noticed Doug kissing his date and grinned to herself, also shooting back a thumbs-up as he headed to the bar. “Hmm? Oh that’s Doug, he was Tom’s mate, I was helping him with his date plans, he really likes that girl… Casey I think she’s called? Yeah, I advised him on his plans for tonight, alright binned his plans for tonight really, and picked the shirt. I did good, it seems,” she commented with a casual, faux-humble shrug.

Jumping somewhat in surprise as Justin slammed his hand down on the table suddenly her eyes widened, “You for real? Hell yeah, put it there Biermann!” she enthused, almost aggressively enthusiastic, and held up her hand for a high-five from him. “How about I get this round in? To celebrate your self-actualization and your realisation that you bloody well deserve better.” The blonde didn’t wait for his answer and instead hurried away to the bar, leaning against it and casually inclining her head in acknowledgement to Doug, “I uh… saw your move back there… good on you, Pearson.”

[Douglas Pearson]

Doug stood at the bar, bobbing and weaving in an attempt to get noticed. "Oh, come on," he mumbled very quietly to himself as a group who'd clearly arrived five minutes after him got served first. "Watson!" he then shouted enthusiastically, waving to Sarah. "She kissed me. All I had to do was sit there! This new shirt must be working some magic right now, I tell you what. I'm seriously reconsidering my wardrobe of jumpers and tank tops," he babbled, blissfully ignorant of the jealousy-infused melodrama unfolding around him.

"Dear God, everyone in this bar is twelve. Look at those guys on stage! I'm getting so old, Sarah. Do you ever feel old? What's up with your buddy Drunky Quest over there, by the way? Are you corrupting our nation's youth?" He tapped his fingers in the bar, having just initiated and gotten over a quarter-life crisis in the span of about a minute.