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It had taken a bit of time to work up the courage to walk into the Burning Pot.  Their initial encounter on New Years had ended as well as one could hope, and she had left feeling a bit more at peace with the whole situation.  The peace had lasted until she got home for New Years dinner at her parents' home.  Her mother, as always, had been supportive when she explained why she was late.  Her father, on the other hand, had raised concerns.  There was still a bit of tension, but she was certain when she moved back into her own flat at the end of them month that would ease.

It was difficult being an adult staying with ones parents.  The boundaries were blurred once more.  It wouldn't take long after moving out for her father to accept she was in fact and adult capable of making good decisions. Perhaps then she would also find a bit of acceptance at being left completely in the dark for months by Alex and Claudia.

Finishing up an early shift at St. Mungo's she had made her way to the familiar tavern.  She had been there a few times looking for Alex after Marcus' kidnapping, but her visits had stopped by the time she returned to work at the hospital in December.  Making her way to the bar she settled on one of the stools.  Removing her coat and setting it on the stool next to her she gave Gerald a smile as he came over.

Making a bit of small talk, she ordered a drink and asked for Marcus.  The bartender finished fixing her drink first and confirmed it was near the end of their earlier shift.  Taking a sip of the drink to calm her nerves she waited.  There had been a little contact in last two weeks, but this was a bit of a step forward on her part.  Her instincts told her it would be received well, but that did little to quiet her nerves.

It had been two weeks since Marcus had last spoken to Moira. It was a bittersweet reunion, and likely the last thing Moira had expected to do when she woke up that morning. They had both agreed to take some time and sort out their feelings. Well, Moira had made the decision, and Marcus was going along with it. To him, the dynamic hadn't changed much. If it weren't for her, Marcus wouldn't have had anything to fight for, and may not have made it back in one piece. For Moira, she had been coping with the loss of him and was finally starting to try and move on.

Coming back from the dead can really complicate a relationship.

The apartment he was staying in was one of Alex's. He said not to worry about the rent for now, which gave Marcus the opportunity to save up some money for his future venture. What that would be exactly, Marcus didn't yet know. He had replenished most of his wardrobe, again thanks to Alex, who had the foresight to get most of Marcus' belongings and put them in storage before his flat was sold off. He had some leftovers from the spare clothes, and he decided to hang onto them.

He had just finished his shift at The Burning Pot, and had counted the seconds in anticipation for the meeting later that evening. Literally, counted the seconds. There was nothing else to occupy his time, so he stared at the clock. It was mostly uneventful, with periods of pure neurosis. Had the two weeks been enough for her? What was on her mind? How did her parents react to the news? How about now, what was on her mind now? Teenage girls didn't stress about dating as much as Marcus did in those few hours.

Somehow in that time he managed to shower and dress himself. The apartment wasn't far from The Burning Pot, and he saw Moira sitting at the bar when he walked in. Elaine greeted him as he arrived.

"Well, hello Marcus. Moira is sitting at the bar. She looks amazing, by the way."

Marcus looked confused. "How did you know?"

Elaine looked equally confused. "It's all you've been talking about for the last two weeks."

"...oh."

"Good luck! All of us here are cheering you on."

Marcus just simply smiled as he made his way to the bar. He nodded at Gerald, and the bartender poured Marcus a glass of Coke. Normally he would have ordered a scotch, but drinking hadn't been very appealing since the kidnapping. He put a hand on Moira's shoulder and gave it a slight squeeze, something he used to do when they were together. "Moira, it's really good to hear from you. How have you been?"

After a few moments Gerald nodded in the direction of the door and Moira turned slightly in her seat to see Marcus making his way towards her.  She felt a small flutter of nerves and she couldn't help comparing it to the way she felt when they first started dating.  Perhaps in a way it was similar.  He had been completely out of her life for several months and given the way things ended it seemed natural that they were starting over a bit.

The familiar gesture wasn't lost on her, but she felt a slight blush creep into her cheeks.  It had been some time since a simple touch was able to bring about such a response.  Perhaps it was a good sign.  She knew she still cared for him, but she had questioned what the true nature of her feelings were several times over the last two weeks.  She loved him, but was she still in love with him?  That was something she would only figure out by spending time with Marcus.

"I've been alright," she said.  "Work has had me a little busy, but that's not exactly out of the ordinary."

She took a sip of her drink trying to figure out what exactly to say.  Glancing over at his she noticed that Gerard had poured Marcus a coke.  She found it curious, but at the same time perhaps a bit comforting.  Before his kidnapping his drinking habit had become more frequent and it was one of the things that had often worried her about him.  She didn't comment, just hoped it was a sign that perhaps he had cut back a bit.

"I've just been taking it one day at a time....or trying to," she said.  "I'm sorry it took me this long to get to this point.  I just...I don't know, I'm still trying to convince myself it's not some sort of dream and figure out my reality."  Changing the subject she asked, "And what about you?  I heard you're working here now."

Things have felt a bit like a dream for Marcus as well. No, not dream. A nightmare. He had spent the entirety of his capture with Moira on his mind, knowing that she would still be there when he returned. He came back only to be without a home, a job, and most importantly, the love of his life. He knew she had been thinking about moving on with her life, she all but said it during their last meeting. He didn't know with whom, however.

He listened to her answer, watched as her mouth moved in concert with her words, smelled the sweet scent that she always wore, watched the kindness and sadness leap from her eyes. He took in every part of her, missing it dearly. It felt so ethereal, and it took a moment for Marcus to return to reality.

"Yeah, I'm working here for now until I have enough saved up for what I really want to do. I have most of it already in my savings, but I'm in need of just a little bit more." He saw the question in her eyes before the words actually came out. "I'm going to be a private investigator, here in London. I have everything I need, even an office space picked out."

He took a sip of his Coke, only faintly wishing that it was his favorite scotch. "There's a lot around here that goes unknown and unsolved, whether it's because people are too scared or too complacent. People need someone who will stand up for the hurt and the broken." Marcus took another sip of his drink and chuckled a little under his breath. "I know it's a little corny, but it's what I want to do. I need to get away from the wizarding side of things. I've done everything I wanted to do there... well, almost everything."

He reached his hand out to touch hers, but thought better of it and retracted. The look in his eyes would have been more than enough. He cleared his throat, took a big gulp of his Coke, and attempted to change the subject. "How have the... uh, your fellow Mediwitches and practicioners been at St. Mungo's? Anything interesting I may not know about?"

Apparently the two weeks had brought about a few changes.  There had been many stresses on their relationship that had caused their arguments, the final one being that once Marcus left office he had been a bit lost.  It was natural.  She had been out of work at the time too and trying to get her life back together.  Their relationship had become a bit of a pressure cooker towards the end.  It seemed his plan would be a good fit, and it eased her mind in a way to know that he was working towards building something for himself.

I need to get away from the wizarding side of things. I've done everything I wanted to do there... well, almost everything.

He had started to reach out to reach out for her hand, but had stopped.  Moira felt her heart ache bit as she averted her eyes and took another sip of her drink.  In spite of everything else that had happened, trying to figure out where they stood and where they went from here had to be the most difficult to endure.  At one time there relationship had been relatively easy.  Now it was a complicated mess.

How have the... uh, your fellow Mediwitches and practicioners been at St. Mungo's? Anything interesting I may not know about?

"Well..." she began, pondering what to say and glancing at him, "I transferred floors, so I'm working Spell Damage now and I'm actually enjoying change.  There are more long term patients, so it is nice to be able to get to know the people I'm helping a bit.  I was also able to assist a bit with a charity event for the hospital on News Years Eve."

She paused for a moment taking a sip of her drink once more.  Then she added, "It feels good to finally be back at St. Mungo's and feel like I've reestablished myself.  I think changing floors was probably for the best.  After that whole mess with that boy trying to plant the runespoor eggs...it just never felt completely safe.^link

"When I was doing my training I tended to be pulled towards spell damage," she continued.  "So the transition has been relatively easy...it helps that Jason and everyone on the first floor were extremely understanding."

There was another good reason she had transferred floors...especially given the fact that she had been seeing Jason outside of work before Marcus returned.  Things hadn't been terribly serious given the fact that it had still be a relatively new aspect of her life, but it was still best they Jason was no longer her supervisor.  It had the potential to be rather awkward.

"Over all nothing has really changed though," she said, studying her drink.

Most of the time, it was dreadfully boring talking about someone's day. So-and-so did something funny, paperwork got jumbled, lunch was uneventful... typical fare for a typical day. It was something that Marcus took for granted. He knew that there would be a time where he would take it for granted again, but that would not be today. He took in her eye contact like an addict, constantly wanting more.

It was nice to hear that she felt safe, especially after the runespoor incident. Incident, that was the politician in Marcus speaking. It was a disaster, and would have been worse if it weren't for a timely intervention. He was so focused on her words that he didn't even notice the lack of eye contact when Jason Marren was mentioned. "Overall," she said, studying her drink, "Nothing has really changed though."

"Sounds like plenty has changed, in one way or another. Change is good though." Marcus finished off his Coke and asked for another one. There was silence between them since he finished his drink. He was content in her company, but felt like she was looking for more. "I'm terrible at small talk, you know that." Marcus slid his drink aside and turned so he was completely facing her. "I'm not going to be afraid of saying something that'll scare you off. You're smarter than that..."

Marcus paused, not because he didn't know what he was going to say, but because there was someone on the other side of the Burning Pot eyeing him and Moira. He wouldn't have noticed it, except that he was staring at Moira in the way a predator stares at his prey. It confused Marcus for a moment. Who goes to a family restaurant to pick up women?

It wasn't unusual for Argent to be somewhere out of his comfort zone. Everyone was just so... fresh-faced. Innocent. The Burning Pot was a Muggle hangout, and if he wasn't there for a specific purpose, he doubted he'd ever come to a place like this. He was seated by the hostess, and quickly had a cup of piping hot coffee in his hands. A few minutes passed before the waitress returned.

"Are you ready to order, or do you need more time?"

"Yeah, why don't you get me a big stack of your pancakes. I hear they're the best in town!" Argent put on his best smile, a wolfish grin hiding behind a sheepish disguise.

"Absolutely!" The waitress wrote down the order in her notepad. "If there's anything else you need, my name is Caroline. I'll be happy to help."

"I'll bet you will," Argent said while Caroline walked away with the menu. He watched her every step, and smiled that same grin.

Before long he had his pancakes, and was eating them expediently. "Goddamn, these things really are the best in town." He flagged down Caroline and she approached his table. "Caroline, you tell the chef that these are the best goddamn pancakes in the world. Quote me."

Caroline headed to the kitchen to follow on her newly appointed task, leaving Argent by himself to watch what he really came here for. In the bar area, there was a brunette female of average height and a build that let people know she took care of herself. She had caring eyes, and they were fixated on the man she was with. Tallish, somewhat built but in that off-season sort of way. His eyes seemed to be fixated on everything, until he and Argent met each others gaze.

"Time to make my move," Argent said to no one in particular.

He made his way across from where his booth was to the bar. He stood next to the woman he had spotted, and sneaked a smell of her scent. Strawberries. He flagged down the bartender. "I'll have a whiskey and coke, and she'll have..."

Argent moved into position so she couldn't help but notice him. "My name's Argent. What will you be drinking on this fine afternoon?"

"Sounds like plenty has changed, in one way or another. Change is good though."

"You're right...I suppose the good thing is that I still get to do what I love every day," she replied.  Her career had always just been a natural fit.  She had never even contemplated anything else.  During her sabbatical she had truly felt lost without her shifts at the hospital.  Her job gave her a purpose and that kept her happy when the routine of every day life seemed to become a bit dull.

"I'll have a whiskey and coke, and she'll have...My name's Argent. What will you be drinking on this fine afternoon?"

Moira had just started to raise her glass to her lips again when her attention was drawn to the man who had just approached the bar.  If she hadn't been trying to not show any signs of discomfort when talking about Jason she might have noted the fact that Marcus' attention had been on this man before he even spoke.  Lowering her glass she looked at the man for a brief moment, confused and caught a bit off guard.

To be hit on at a club or in an establishment that was primarily a bar was one thing, but in a restaurant was a bit odd.  Plus she was with someone.  The man next to her was either extremely self assured and a bit egotistical or he was up to something.  Who actually was rude enough to interrupt a private conversation to try to hit on someone?

"Thank you, but I already have a drink," she said, holding up her half filled rum and coke a couple inches off the bar.  She tried to keep her expression neutral, even offering a small half smile, despite the slight annoyance that Marcus had been cut off from saying whatever was on his mind.  If they were lucky the man would take a hint and walk away...but she wasn't holding her breath.  "I don't mean to be rude, but we were having a private conversation."

The woman had become slightly agitated at Argent. She had every right to be, but this amused him enough to come back with something he thought was funny. "Thank you, but I already have a drink," Argent repeated more to himself than to Moira and Marcus, "That is such a long name." Argent let out a large belly laugh, genuinely amused with his own brand of humor. "Tell me, is that a family name, or did you change it from something else?" Argent let out another laugh, with his forced audience not saying a word while Argent let his amusement die down to a small chuckle.

"I'm just playing with you, Ms. Have A Drink." Argent could tell he was getting under their skin. He didn't care so much about a conquest, he was looking forward to making their night feel like a living hell. He knew exactly who they were, to an extent. He knew they were a wizard and a witch in a Muggle hangout. He knew that the man frequented this establishment as a worker. He didn't know why though, but he didn't much care. He just wanted to push the right buttons.

"Here..." Argent put some money down on the bar. "Next drink's on me. I insist."

"I don't mean to be rude, but we were having a private conversation," Moira retorted.

"You don't mean to be rude." Argent repeated. "You don't tell me your name, you ignore my generosity, and you can't even look me in the eyes. I'd say that's pretty damn rude. You, uh, barkeep. Tell her what I'm saying."

Gerald put Argent's drink on the bar, rolled his eyes, and walked away to help another patron.

"You just lost your tip, man."

Argent looked over at Marcus and smiled at him. "Settle down there, cowboy. You've got nothing to worry about." Argent took a drink of his beverage. It wasn't strong enough for his taste, but he was going to keep drinking it anyway. "What I am going to do, is sit right here. I think I like this spot now."

The man was either very confident, or very stupid. Or both. His laugh grated on Marcus. It was arrogant, and the full voice of it told him everything he needed to know about what kind of person he is. Moira turned him down, and now he was being a sore loser about it. Gerald handed Argent his beverage and then glanced at Marcus, asking without words if he had it contained. Marcus gave his non-verbal response. He's going to take care of it.

It was when Argent singled out Marcus that he began to get frustrated. "Settle down cowboy," he said arrogantly. Marcus was calm though, which is far more dangerous. He felt like approaching the man, asking him what made him so damned arrogant, telling him he was out-classed, and showing him exactly what mistakes he has made this afternoon. If he were ten years younger, and if this man could throw down with spells, then he'd be game to say and do what was on his mind.

Except this is a family restaurant, not a dive bar in the middle of nowhere. Children were dining with their parents, and older children were on dates with their boyfriends and girlfriends. This was one man, in a place he clearly doesn't belong, harassing someone that is far out of his league. Marcus asked, already knowing the answer, "Argent, is it?" Marcus stood up and put a reassuring hand on Moira's arm, hoping that she would pick up the hint that Marcus wasn't going to start a fight.

"The lady said, in her oh so subtle way, that she doesn't require the pleasure of your company." It was difficult, but Marcus was able to keep himself in check. "Now, let's not make fools out of ourselves by doing anything interesting in this family establishment. We're going to go sit over there," Marcus pointed to a section on the other side of the bar, "Consider this a warning."

Argent looked at the spot that was pointed out to him, then took a sip of his drink. The guy got aggressive very quickly, meaning he was trying to prove a point. "Alright," Argent said to no one in particular, "I'll tell you what. You go on and sit over there with your lady, I'll sit right here just in case you strike out. With an attitude like the one you have, I'm sure that will happen very soon. Then I'll let the lady know just how serious I am about buying her that drink."

Argent spun around briefly to grab his beverage and take another drink. Then he stood up to face him. Argent was a full head taller, and he made sure it showed. Argent lowered his voice just enough for him to hear. "I don't know who she is, but I know who you are, Marcus Annwyl. I wasn't sure of it until you got all chivalrous on the lady. Which means I know you're packing heat." Argent motioned with his eyes that he knew where it was. "Now I know you don't want to see what I'm packing, and if some of these Muggles happen to die without my boss' approval he is not going to be happy about it."

He downed the rest of his drink and set the glass back on the bar. "So regrettably I must depart, but you'll probably see me again. Argent smiled at Marcus, "Don't you worry about a thing." Argent directed his attention at Moira. "When you're done playing around with this clown, and ready to get down to business, come looking for me." Argent turned around and walked out of the Burning Pot, slapping his hand on the top of the door frame as he exited.

When the man didn't simply take the hint and singled out Marcus she felt a pit form in the base of her stomach.  She had an uneasy feeling about him, and she was starting to doubt this was just some random encounter.  When Marcus stood to confront the man it didn't help her nerves and she turned slightly on the stool to watch the confrontation.  She was very aware of her surroundings, the muggles dining, completely unaware of what they could witness should Argent decide to escalate things.

Argent said something to Marcus in a lowered voice.  She managed to catch a couple words, enough to know that her unease was not completely unfounded.  It was a reminder that there would probably always be someone like this man waiting for an opportune moment to cause more strife in their life.  When he finally walked away she let out the breath she hadn't consciously been holding.  His parting words were to her and she held her tongue.  There were a hundred responses she could have given, but none of them seemed particularly wise at the moment.

As much as she wanted to down the rest of her drink, she folded her hands in her lap.  They were shaking a bit.  Was this the sort of man who could have been involved with Marcus' kidnapping?  How long would it be before someone else tried to ruin their lives?  How long before he made good on his threat and she lost him again?  It took a moment for her to realize that her thoughts had been of them and their lives as if they hadn't spent months apart.

Taking a breath she glanced over at Marcus, "I know I don't have to urge you to be careful.  I know you're capable to handling someone like him...but I don't think I can bear something happening to you right now."

Moira's words punched him in the stomach. It was nice to hear something like that said, but it also helped to confirm something in her. He wasn't exactly sure where she stood on them getting back together. While her words didn't exactly confirm it, it at least gave him an idea of what she was thinking. "Don't worry Moira," Marcus began, "I'm not going to go picking a fight. I won't back away from one once it's started, but I've got no reason to seek him out."

Marcus had been a public figure for a decent chunk of time, and it didn't surprise him that Argent was able to pick him out in a crowd. Something about it didn't seem right though. Why did he choose a Muggle hangout to spend his time? He seemed to have a much lower opinion on them than he did himself, so why here? Unless he was specifically looking for Marcus. Or Moira. The former bothered him, but the latter thought bothered him more. "It's not going to be easy for me to avoid a man like that, but I'm more concerned about you. It pains me to think that he was hired by someone like Marc Donnelly."

Memories of his first encounter with Marc Donnelly were still vivid and bittersweet, because it was the first time he met Moira. "We'll Apperate out of here in the back room when we're ready to go. If Argent is waiting for us, he'll have quite a wait on..." Marcus paused, reading Moira's face. He didn't need Occulmency to see that she was probably thinking the same thing as him. "You think that he had something to do with my abduction, don't you?"

Marc Donnelly was not someone she gave much thought to on a regular basis if she could help it.  She had one encounter with him.  It had been terrifying and confusing all at the same time, and he had tried to stake some sort of claim over her.  He hadn't even been a factor she considered before until Marcus mentioned his name.  Could he have had something to do with all this?  Certainly it didn't take much poking around in the papers over the last year to make her involvement with Marcus quite clear.

"He could...there are any number of people who could be involved," she said, "and probably many I'm not even aware of." 

She didn't expect to be informed of the details regarding Marcus' abduction, but she suddenly had the feeling that question of who had been behind it all was still unanswered.  That, of course, meant the person was still out there and probably trying to come up with their next move.

"I don't want to dwell on all the possibilities and what ifs," she continued.  "It could be Donnelly....it could just as likely be someone else."

She felt like a liability.  She wasn't exactly helpless, but she was a healer by profession and by nature...fighting back when she needed to had never exactly been her strength.  Her attempt at joining the Dueling Club in her fifth year had been a disaster.  In the past she had always managed sticky spots by keeping her wits about her, but could she really place her faith that?

"I'd be lying though if I said I didn't wonder how long it will be before someone tries something again," she admitted.  "But, hiding from the world doesn't exactly do any good.  I took that path and while I was perfectly safe locked away at home..." She stopped with a sigh, looking down at her hands.  She had been safe at home, feeling rather useless and afraid and taking it out on those she cared about, and then Marcus had disappeared. 

Pushing the thought aside, she reached out for his hand, deciding on a change of topic, "Anyway...he's gone now, and I don't want to spend the rest of our time together dwelling on him.  We'll both have to take a bit of care, but I'm not going to let them win and be controlled by worry or fear."

Allowing a small smile she added, "Besides, I have a feeling you were trying to tell me something before we were interrupted."

It was easy to get tied up in all the different ingredients that made this night something it shouldn't have been, but Marcus had never chosen the easy path. He knew that anything worth having is worth working towards. "This experience has taught me that I can't take anything for granted. I have to say the things that are difficult to say, because I can't live life with regrets. I thought this was something I had learned before, but... I guess I forgot it."

Marcus looked into Moira's eyes, keeping her gaze while he spoke. He needed for her to see the honesty in his eyes. She needed to understand that he was not going to pull any punches. He was going to tell her the one thing he had never actually verbalized. He was just waiting for a sign to know that she was ready. Her expression softened, and Marcus knew he was ready. "Moira, I love you. You mean the world to me. I never stopped thinking of you, and I never will stop thinking about you."

"Things won't ever be the same as they were. I want them to be better. I want..." Marcus paused, and looked around the restaurant. "I want us to go back to my apartment. I want you to know everything that happened the last few months." During their reunion, she had been made aware of what was necessary to explain his absence. At the time, he didn't think she could handle the whole truth. Time has passed though, and Marcus needed to give her more credit. She was a strong person, and it was time that Marcus recognized that. "Moira, I want to tell you everything."