It could have been worse. He could be sitting outside a cafe in rain and hail and snow, or it could have been a vampire. But it was his choice, and he had specifically decided - of his own will - to try something rather than sit at home with Rustle in his lap and stare at the fire. Since it was part of the effort, he did dress a little more neatly than he would have normally.

Many things could have been worse. Arcturus took a deep breath and let it out slowly while he considered his options. He was not brought up nor was he trained to make assumptions or jump to conclusions about anyone in this room. Maybe he might even gain a new friend, even if it was this oddly dressed fellow who'd just sat down across from him. Arcturus cast away his first impression of the man. That kind of thing would be a real obstacle in this sort of situation.

"Hi, Arcturus Hollingbury," he said, reaching a hand over the table to shake with a not-well-obscured nervous half-smile. "If that's too much of a mouthful, Arc will do. And you are...?"

The barkeeps’ unwritten pamphlet of manners obliged Freddie to form a bond with the other Wizarding bars, and so there he found himself on a date. It was supposed to be speedy but there was hardly a speedy thing about it. It took ages to get the whole thing sorted out, and the whole technique seemed flawed and confusing to ol’ Fred, but somehow he found himself paired off. Freddie had been hoping to be matched with the leggy blonde of indeterminate gender across the room, but this was Rufus’ turf and Freddie would play by his rules.

"Hi, Arcturus Hollingbury… If that's too much of a mouthful, Arc will do. And you are...?"

Freddie was of course dressed to the nines, with a furry jacket in a shade no existing creature on Earth possessed and a pair of unusual pants. Freddie tipped his hat at the companion he’d been matched with. “Oh, I can handle a mouthful,” Freddie responded salaciously. He shook the hand that had been offered to him with a quick, probably wrong grip.

“Frederick Dodger, call me Freddie,” Fred introduced himself, his Cockney accent thick as ever. “What’re ya into, mate?” If the assigning of dates wasn’t the speedy part, maybe this was: getting right down to the nitty-gritty, real questions. “Ever killed a man? Years in Azzie?”

In making every attempt to not stare, Arcturus was actually somewhat grateful that the man wasn't staring at the white and black hair. He knew people couldn't help it despite the wild (and this man seemed to belong that wild part of the world!), wonderful world of wizards, but the fact that Frederick here wasn't actually doing it naturally was something he appreciated.

Nevertheless, that didn't make up for the questions that followed. Arc was at a loss. Short of the Head Healer, he hadn't met someone that direct, even in casual company. He had expected...something else. Something? What had he expected?

Certainly not this. But that sprung the realisation, then, that expectations were not a thing to be held here. Nor would they be of any use. The best bet was just to be himself.

Which was what he was afraid of. If he was any judge, whatever he counted himself to be, was a person who wasn't anything special. Just a boring person.

Was this something that he should be thinking of right now? Taken a seat, met the match, now come the regrets? The least he could do now was answer. Honestly. No expectations. No strings.

"Lightly killed a few. I didn't stop to check." Arcturus shrugged, as something in his head bid his dignity farewell out the nearest window. "Nowadays I chop salamander tails. I don't think they make you do time for that." He gestured in the direction of the bar. "Sorry, I have to ask - do you come here often? This is my first time here, I'm not sure what they've got on offer. If we're going to be here, might as well share a good drink hm?"

Freddie sipped at his drink while Arcturus skimmed over the grizzly details of his life as a killer. It was a simple concoction of tequila and orange juice, a ‘tequila sunrise’  some might say -- it’s what the bartender had attempted to call it when Freddie had ordered his breakfast smoothie. Freddie rose with the moon.

“So it’s salamander tail you’re after, is it?” Freddie grinned, rather pleased with his freaky speed date. The man before him had an intriguing look, and by the sound of it rather an eccentric life. That was just the sort Frederick Dodger could find himself spending the evening with, although he wasn’t sure about the logistics of mating with a salamander. He swirled his breakfast smoothie as if it were a fine wine. “You’ve come to the wrong place, mate. This lot don’t seem to keen on inter-species relations.”He scanned the room skeptically. Freddie wasn’t sure about what an auror would do about Arc’s scandalous pastime, but then again Freddie had never really concerned himself with what an auror would think. Fred gave Arcturus a knowing look, one he hoped made it clear that Fred was alright with the bizarre fetish.

"Sorry, I have to ask - do you come here often? This is my first time here, I'm not sure what they've got on offer. If we're going to be here, might as well share a good drink hm?"

Well, if the man was spending his time trying to get off with an amphibian, it was no surprise he hadn’t been to one of the most popular Wizarding pubs. “I got me own place, Artful Dodger,” Freddie responded, shaking his shaggy head of hair to clear up his vision. “Just here keepin’ up appearances.” Freddie brushed some invisible dust off his furry shoulder. “Don’t want anyone think I’m after salamander tail, now.” He smirked lewdly.

Well, this night was going in an interesting fashion. Arc had half a thought of correcting him, but then decided it could be seen as denial. Besides, at this point in the night, if this was how the conversation was going to go, he had the notion that he wanted to see it keep going.

Just for fun.

"That's their loss," Arcturus replied with a careless wave of a hand in the direction of the rest of the room. "Salamanders a whole new world, let me tell you. All right then, I'll probably just try a drink. Couldn't hurt." What would he give for a pint of mead right about now so he could deal with this.

He leaned back in his chair. "So what are you after, then? I've shared mine, what's on your list? Bucket list, maybe? You seem like the kind of person who knows what he likes. What if you were a cat? Would your interests change?"

"So what are you after, then? I've shared mine, what's on your list? Bucket list, maybe? You seem like the kind of person who knows what he likes. What if you were a cat? Would your interests change?"

“Never thought about boffing a salamander, I’ll tell you that much,” Freddie answered promptly. He smirked to show he knew the man before him was most likely not into beastiality. Hopefully. Animals were friends, not lovers.

He considered Arc’s question deeply, deciding that he was going to answer genuinely for once. Fred was not one to plan ahead -- he had never given much thought to a bucket list, although there were certainly things he wanted to do before he went off to the Big Pub in the Sky.

“Would like to vacation on a star,” Freddie said with slitted eyes, imagining himself on a glowing orb. He would get a fantastic tan, something he could never truly boast. Maybe his goal was actually to attain the perfect tan. “But, that’s a touch unrealistic. I’ll settle for Mars.” He drank a bit of his breakfast smoothie, smacking his lips to savor the flavor of tequila. “Always been interested in Astrology.” He may have meant astronomy, but probably not.

“If I were a cat….” This was a challenging query. Thankfully Freddie’s imagination stretched that far. He had several cats slumming it in his business/home. “Finally catch that laser point, most like.” It was an enchantment that drove the felines to a hilarious frustration -- a small red dot, darting around the room, made of uncatchable light.

“Never thought about boffing a salamander, I’ll tell you that much." If Arc had a drink he figured was worth giving Freddie a toast, he would've done that, but he was on water right now (to ensure that he was at least sober and not showing his worst side). He caught the smirk too, and grinned. That was fun.

"Venus too hot for you?" Arc smiled. "It's as close to a star as you get. Mars is behind us, so you'd probably get it worse than you do here. 'I went to Mars and it's all red, I turned red too.' Now, being on a star, that sounds more dramatic. Go for it, man, the best you can." He gave Freddie a wink. "Now, this laser thing...what's that? Haven't really caught up on the latest cat tricks, but I've only got one and he's a lazy arse interested in cheese and rats."

He had to give it to this fellow, sky wasn't exactly the limit - literally - for him. Arc couldn't say the same for himself. "Sounds like a muggle thing, laser. Would it have anything to do with a linoleum floor, by any chance?" Sometimes he'd sat in Muggle cafés to get away from the usual wizarding hangouts. Eavesdropping and people-watching were his favourite pastimes then.