October 11
7:00 PM

After a long day of harassing her coworkers, counseling students, and writing quick notes about each case, Maiko was excited to have dinner with an old friend. She couldn't remember the last time she had seen Cillian, but her memories of him were fond. She was sure that they both had changed, and she felt like she wouldn’t be completely out of touch. They sent the occasional letter back and forth, updating each other on their lives. After Hogwarts, Cillian and Mai had lead totally different lives after Hogwarts, both dealing with their own challenges in different ways.

Maiko sat down at a table and looked around; The Three Broomsticks was much more homey and cozy than Signature. She didn’t feel nearly as overwhelmed, and she could count on this place for good drinks, good food, and good company. It was a casual atmosphere, and she loved it. She didn’t always get alcoholic drinks, preferring to stay sober as much as she possibly could. She wondered how Cillian looked now, as compared to when he graduated. She knew she had changed--her hair was longer, and her body was stronger,  more fleshed out, and womanly. Perhaps Cillian had grown taller and had a magnificent beard.

Somehow, she seriously doubted that-- but the mental image was giggleworthy anyway.

Cillian entered his home away from home with a tentative smile. He nodded to the barmaids motioning that he was actually going to one of the tables instead of cozying up to the bar like he normally did. Though he hadn't been frequenting the homey Hogsmeade haunt as much as he used to the staff still knew him and treated him well. Cillian had always been fond of the fact that the little wizarding pub was stumbling distance from his flat over The Inner Eye (the divinations shop he had recently inherited) and had only been going to the Leaky Cauldron more because it was so close to work and so far away from Penelope.

Cillian was nervous and excited all at the same time. He couldn't remember if he had actually seen Maiko since they graduated but the two had kept in touch over the years. Cillian would complain about the stupid people that used divination for their own selfish reasons and Maiko would tell him about her annoyances at St Mungos or the muggle university she had attended. More recently he had confided in her about the consistency of his latest visions - the mummy attack at the British museum and the werewolf attacks in March - though he had left out his attachment to Penny. It wasn't that he was interested in Maiko, it was more about being ashamed of his involvement with Penny. She had been the dream girl in Hogwarts, one of those popular unobtainable girls but now she seemed tired and wasted and only seemed to be with him because he was 'safe'.

Cillian straightened the front of his black t shirt, under his robin shell blazer. He wore a new pair of jeans and a pair of runners. His hair was grown out and stuck out at the tips and a full beard had grown in. The dark circles under his hazel eyes had lightened only slightly, still being plagued by sleepless vision filled nights. Overall the tiny Irish man didn't look much different than he had when they had graduated.

He stopped by her table and gave her a genuine grin, "Well look at ye all grown up!" His Irish accent as thick as it had always been.

Mai let out an excited squeal and jumped up to give Cillian a bear hug. She hadn’t seen him in so long, and he was still as short and unintimidating as ever! “And you look the same!” She exclaimed, “Going for the ‘omeless look, eh? It suits you.” The counselor ruffled up his hair playfully before releasing him from the hug. She couldn’t stop smiling, it had been so long and he looked, well... he looked better than she expected, knowing his problems with sleeping. His accent had made her giggle, since it had been so awfully long since Mai had heard his voice. She wished that he had been able
to stay and teach another year so that they could have worked at Hogwarts together.

But, like her, he did not have what one would call positive views regarding divination. She wouldn’t have even taken that job in the first place. Mai couldn’t have possibly expected him to work there as long as he did. Maiko sat down at the table once more and motioned for him to do the same, a habit she had picked up from her counseling experience. Many of the people that she saw would not feel comfortable sitting down unless they were invited to.

“Looks like you’re a busy man, selling some divination merde, working with prophecies.” She let out an impressed whistle. “So busy, I’m surprised that you ‘ad the time to eat dinner with an old friend.” He owned a shop and had a pretty prestigious job. “Maybe we should do this occasionally. Once a month or so, at least during the school year.” Mai spoke quickly, and the faster she spoke, the thicker her French accent got. Anybody trying to eavesdrop on their conversation would probably have a hell of a time understanding anything they said.

Cillian blushed when Mai hugged him though it was his usual reaction to such physical contact even with a friend he held dear. He let out a deep throated chuckle when she ruffled his hair, "Ye know me luv, I look good no matta wha' I do." He took a seat across from her and waved to one of his regular barmaids. She nodded and went fast to work bringing his usual order.

Cillian sat back and sighed just looking at Maiko. It had been a long time since he had felt so comfortable. Being around Penny was always stressful, work was boring and repetitive though it didn't actually hate it, dealing with customers at the store was better left to his staff and even having seen Sidney after so long had been a horrible trip considering the prophecy he had to tell his old friend about. But Maiko, there was nothing stressful, boring, or horrible about her and it made Cillian happy, a feeling he hadn't enjoyed in a long time.

"Aye well, I only own thee shop I don' actually runnit. Leave tha' ta thee betta suited." He smiled and nodded as the barmaid brought him a pint of his favourite brew, "I'd not be sayin' no ta that one luv, shame we haven' been doin' this more offen as it is." He gave her a softer smile, "Ye know I'd always 'ave time fer ye." It wasn't a come on or even meant to be considered romantic in any way shape or form it was simply the truth. Cillian hadn't had many friends after his coma but Maiko had been one of them and he held that very dear.

"So, counselor, thee lil blighters been cryin ta ye about their datin' dramas?"

She smiled fondly at Cillian-- he was always so pleasant to be around, but there was something a little off, though she couldn’t quite put her finger on it. Perhaps he was beginning to wear down due to the multiple stressors  Judging by the way that the barmaids responded to him, he must have been a regular. It seemed that The Three Broomsticks was a place for him to destress at the end of the day, a place where he could forget about his problems, or at least numb them for a little while. The substance use was concerning, but it wasn’t Mai’s place to take away his number one hobby and coping mechanism.

“Owning the shop is almost as bad!” She raised her eyebrows and grinned playfully, “But at least you’re getting a steady income from the customers who actually use divination.” Mai wondered what his customers would think if they knew that the owner did not have the most favorable opinion regarding this softer branch of magic. Would it hurt business, or would they think that his stuff was extra-good because he might have held things to a higher standard? Mai supposed it varied from customer to customer, and it was useless to try to throw a blanket over that group and assume they’d all react the same way.

She nodded, happy that he agreed that they should meet more often-- and she was going to make sure to clear up some time in her schedule every month to have another one of these nice lunches with Cillian. When the barmaid was up, Mai ordered whatever-it-was-that-was-on-the-special, and some butterbeer. She didn’t feel like getting drunk, but she wanted to have something that gave her a warm, comforting feeling in her stomach.

Mai didn’t take Cillian’s words as flirtation or anything like that-- he knew that she was currently dating Darian. Maiko took it more as a sign that he was comfortable with her, and that he still felt close to her even though they couldn’t meet up frequently. She felt the same way-- Cillian was someone that she could happily be friends with, and be close with, even if they could only communicate via owl at times.

At his next question, she raised her eyebrows and made no attempt to hide a laugh. “Well, I ‘aven’t actually ‘eard much about dating drama.” Mai replied, “But some of these students ‘ave so much going on. A lot of them don’t really like the idea of a counselor. Some of them accept it pretty well.” She twisted one of her curls around her index finger, “Do you ever miss teaching? If you didn’t teach divination, would you ‘ave liked your job more?”

Cillian had to laugh when she talked about his shop. It had never been his idea to own it. He had spent a little bit of time after Hogwarts travelling but eventually settled down in Hogsmeade. He had rented the flat above The Inner Eye, the man who owned it was nice and had never had children of his own. Having no family himself CIllian had formed a bond with the man and once it was known that he was a Seer Cillian had started working for him. For years he gave private lessons on divination and told fortunes to those that offered up enough galleons. It hadn't been a fulfilling life but it had been enough at the time. After his teaching career tanked and Cillian found his calling within the department of Mysteries he got an owl stating that the old man had passed away and had left everything to Cillian. It hadn't been his idea but that was how he had come to own the shop, however he didn't think it was the most pleasant of topics to bring up during a meal.

He took a swig of his beer and chuckled along with Mai, "Well if ye 'aven't 'eard anythin' yet ye will soon." He had only spent eight months back at the castle but it had been enough to see the chaos of hormones that was the student body.

Cillian took another swig of his beer and let himself think about it, "I miss thee stud'nts. They were fun, stubborn lil blight'rs but fun. I thin' it woulda been betta teahin' sumthin' otha than Divination, though can't thin' o' anythin' I'd bin good enuff ta teach. In thee end, afta thee museum an' all those weres, I still woulda gone ta thee Ministry. I cin actually make a difference there, ye know?"

He ran a hand down his face thinking about his most recent visions. This newest epidemic that was going to put every magical being in danger. What happens when the magic doesn't work right anymore? How many will die this time? He knew the pain of it must show on his face but he couldn't help it. The lack of sleep and companionship had him run down and ragged. Even Penny wasn't much help in that department. She was more concerned about getting her beauty sleep than finding out why he tossed and turned all night or woke up in a cold sweat or even the few nights he had woken up screaming.

The waitress brought her the food and butterbeer and she accepted it graciously and with polite thanks. Almost immediately she took a small sip of her drink and was pleased to feel the warmth sinking down to her stomach and resting there. It was a comforting feeling, and very appropriate for the October weather. “I must be one of the lucky ones. Maybe I ‘aven’t ‘eard anything because I’m the counselor.” She shook her head. It was amazing the lengths that some people went to, merely to avoid her. It was starting to get a bit annoying and insulting, but it was to be expected.

“I’m glad that you are where you feel like you need to be.” She said mildly, though she made no attempt to hide the concern that was beginning to creep over her face. He was tired, more tired than she had originally thought. He was tired in a way that went down to the core of his very being—this was the sort of exhaustion that was an unhealthy result of constant stress. She had seen it in many people, including herself. It was one of the most draining feelings a human could experience. Being worn down made people feel weak, though they often denied it.

“What’s wrong, Cillian?” She asked softly, speaking in such a low voice that it would be difficult for others to overhear. She leaned forward and put her hand on top of his in almost a motherly way. “Are you ‘aving visions again?” Maiko had trained herself to avoid visions—though it didn’t always stop them. There were some that were simply unavoidable. With the level of constant stress that her friend was under, no one could expect him to control it.

That, and having visions was part of his job, wasn’t it?

“What ‘ave you been seeing?” She looked at him straight in the eyes, silently promising that she wouldn’t mention it to a soul.

Cillian gave the best smile he could muster considering the subject. He spun his hand so that it held her own. His other ran through his already dishevelled hair. He wondered how much he should tell her. It wasn't like any of it was classified and he hadn't really told anyone else about them. He had simply recorded them, filed them away in the long dark halls of his work and tried to ignore the dreams that were beginning to haunt him on a nightly basis.

"Ye rememba Sidney? I've bin havin thees visions bout him an plenty othas but it's thee firs time in years I've recognized summone. There's this lab an sum kinda acciden', then people losin' their magics, magics goin' wild, los o' people are gonna git hurt an' I don' even know where ta start in helpin' 'em."

He took a long pull of his beer and wiped at his shadowed eyes, "Tha's not all. Wish it were though." He took a long steadying breath, "There's bin thee were's agin." A darker shadow seemed to have come over his hazel eyes, "Ye rememba thee attacks in March, I sarw 'em 'appen but this is summat, I dunno even know. They're in pain, it's like there's summone out there is plannin' ta hurt 'em, maybe killem but there's muggle involved too and I keep seein' this place. I jus wish I knew what it all means."

She squeezed his hand in a manner that was meant to be comforting and leaned forward to listen. “I remember Sidney.” She said in acknowledgement. They had never been close, but being in the same house and about a year apart in age made their interactions inevitable. They had been friends, though they had not contacted each other much since graduation. Last she heard, he had gotten some sort of job at the Ministry, fixing enchantments that had gone wrong. Magical maintenance, it was called. She wondered vaguely if he enjoyed his work, but forced herself to focus on Cillian and his vision instead of allowing her mind to wander.

Sidney getting sick? Some kind of magical illness, of course. The people at St. Mungos were quite skilled, and no matter what the illness was, she assumed it would be dealt with as efficiently and effectively as possible. She wasn’t concerned, though she wondered what had started the outbreak to make Cillian’s visions so repetitive and consistent. This was obviously something that had a high chance of occurring, if it hadn’t already.

Then, he mentioned werewolves.

Her lips tightened, her eyes went serious.

Anything involving werewolves was not to be taken lightly, especially after what had happened not too long ago. This was serious. “The illness-- whatever it is-- the only thing you can possibly do is warn the ‘ealers, if you would like, I could send an owl to them. I still ‘ave some contacts. If you would like to talk to them instead, I could give you a few names.” Mai bit her bottom lip and looked down at the table for a brief moment before glancing up at Cillian once more.

“The werewolves shouldn't be taken lightly. If people are getting ‘urt, or if you think people are getting ‘urt, then it might be best to contact aurors.” She hesitated, “But so far, it doesn’t seem like you ‘ave gained much from the visions except stress. I urge you--” She looked at Cillian in the eye very directly, “I urge you not to worry about things you cannot control. It won’t do anything to ‘elp, though it will do everything to suffocate you. I am not telling you to ignore the visions, but if you get worn down, you decrease any ability you ‘ave to ‘elp in any way you can.”

She sighed, “I know as seers, we can feel responsible for preventing certain events from ‘appening, but we only ‘ave so much control. There are other people involved, some whose wills are unshakable. You do not know who is involved, nor do you know anything about the locations or the time. You cannot do anything except record the visions and recount them to those who can, and will, listen. Your only responsibility is to yourself, to make sure that you keep your body and your mind ready to accept any other visions in a ‘ealthy manner, and deal with them accordingly.” Mai squeezed his hand once more.  "Do not ignore your visions, but try not to allow them to dictate 'what you think you should feel."