One Last Drink || Open ||

[ANDORRA LILY COHEN]

Andorra has spent the day in her office. She'd spent a lot of time churning out advice for her loyal readers. Some might even go so far as to say fans. It wasn't that Dorra didn't enjoy her work, she did, absolutely loved it in fact, it was just that sometimes her office got the better of her, she felt cramped and crushed, she was far too much of a free spirit to always work in a confined space so here she was at the Leaky Cauldron with a butterbeer in front of her and an empty plate. Lunch had been spectacular as always since Hannah Longbottom had taken over. Hufflepuff's really knew how to cook and had good recipes.

Finishing off the last of her butterbeer, Dorra couldn't decide if she should have another or head back to the office to pick up a few letters to take to the park or even better, home. Though home wasn't that far away really, she lived in Diagon Alley, a little further down past the shops in a funny little house that was all crooked and full of character. It was in a row of many crooked houses that all looked adorable in Dorra's opinion.

Getting up and walking up to the bar, Dorra decided on one more drink. The warmy goodness was a beautiful feeling that just spread throughout her body. The weather wasn't the greatest so going to the park was kind of out of the question really and the office wasn't somewhere she wanted to return to for too long so here and then home was her best option, aside from picking up a few extra letters, this was going to be her day.

"One butterbeer please!" She said cheerily with a large smile to the barman. She stood up against the bar, drumming her fingers playfully to a tune in her head. Tapping her feet and humming a little Dorra waited for her drink to be served to her so she could return to her ... Oh. Dorra had looked back at her table, it had been cleared, cleaned and taken up by a young couple. Oh well! There were plenty of barstools so she sat herself on the one to her left and waited for her drink as she counted out the coins and left them on the bar in front of her.

[greyback]

Snow was drifting down from the sky and littering the streets of Diagon Alley with its natural white hue. It was a chilly day, but since she was wearing a heavy black hoodie and baggy jeans, Alandra Greyback could hardly feel the cold chill that was blowing with the breeze. That, and she had werewolf blood coursing through her veins. Her body temperature was a tad warmer than normal witches and wizards.

As she walked, Alandra mentally cursed. Her siblings wanted nothing to do with her plot to take down their father, Fenrir Greyback. They either wanted to go about their own lives or join up with Wilhelmina. She could understand the former, but felt betrayed by the latter. How could any of them support Wilhelmina? Not only was she a complete bitch, she supported their father one hundred percent.

Alandra had once told herself if her siblings didn't join her, she'd hunt down Fenrir and kill him all by herself, but she had underestimated the abandonment she'd feel when the majority of her siblings rejected her proposal. Now there was only one thing she wanted to do.

Take herself out of the picture. While she loved her mother, she was a burden to her and she knew it. It would be better for her in the long run if she wasn't around. With each step down the street, Alandra convinced herself of this. It had to be done.

The full moon would be tonight. All she had to do was remain in Diagon Alley until the time came. When it did, she'd transform and kill all in her path. The Aurors would have no choice but to put her down.

With a depressed sigh, Alandra absentmindedly pushed her way into The Leaky Cauldron and found herself a seat at one of the empty tables. Not even the pub's friendly, outgoing atmosphere could pull her out of her thoughts.

Twelve hours to go.

[ANDORRA LILY COHEN]

Andorra spotted a couple of tables open up about the room but she was quite happy where she was. She just spun about on her bar stool a little to look out at the rest of the bar over her shoulder without having to strain her neck. It was nearly a full house and Andorra had a feeling it had something to do with the cold weather outside. Still it was pleasant inside and there was a friendly atmosphere that Dorra enjoyed.

Her drink had already arrived and Dorra had paid, she took a sip just as another soul entered the pub. Andorra was instinctively drawn to the girl that took a seat at a table, just looking lost, in a world of her own thoughts, Andorra felt a sense of abandonment wash over her, sending chills down her spine. This girl was upset, it was obvious just by looking at her but Andorra could tell it was more than just a bad or upsetting day, to her it felt family related.

Picking up her drink she carefully made her way over to the girl sat at the table. She cleared her throat softly and smiled in a soft way, she didn't want to look threatening or dangerous and of course she didn't want to look cheery, the girl would turn her away at first glance, Andorra had to be precise with how she looked and couldn't go imposing on the girls emotions all willy nilly, chatting was the politest way to go about getting to really knowing someone, though being a seer also helped.

"Hi, I'm sorry to bother you but would you mind if I joined you?" she asked, the girl didn't look to great and Andorra had always just wanted to help people and this girl was clearly in need of a good chat, a way to get some things off her chest and Andorra didn't mind being that person she could chat to, she always felt it an honour when people asked her for advice or her own personal opinion.

[greyback]

Alandra didn't see Andorra approaching. Her eyes were elsewhere, staring blankly into one of the pubs' walls. Every breath she took hurt as if her emotions had bled into her lungs and were now suffocating her. Alandra was a fighter, but with the abandonment of her siblings, the fight had been kicked out of her. What if she had been wrong? What if siding with Wilhelmina and Fenrir had been the right thing to do?

She gritted her teeth. No, she had been right. Siding with either of them would've went against everything she had believed in. Even backed against a corner, she'd never allow herself to be like them. Murder and deception just wasn't in her nature. Tonight would be the only exception to murder. That would be the only way they'd be forced to put her down, out of her misery.

Suddenly, a woman's voice reached across the table to her. At first, it sounded muffled to her ears, but after a few seconds, she was able to decipher the words. Alandra turned her head to look at the woman, who by her estimates, was a decade older than her. She offered a light smile.

"Sorry, I don't date older chicks," she replied. "But the company would be nice." Thinking of herself as an alpha of sorts, she didn't allow herself to date women older than her for the sole reason it made her feel inferior to them and insecure and that was to be avoided at all costs.

[ANDORRA LILY COHEN]

A soft smile spread over Andorra's face. "Well it seems I'm in luck then as company is what I have come to offer you." Andorra hadn't been sure if the girl was being funny or genuine but that wasn't why Dorra was there, she was there to help out someone who seems a little lost beside the emotions coming from the girl were coming from deep down, far beyond anything she was talking about at the moment.

Dorra pulled out the chair opposite Alandra and sat down, setting her butterbeer on the table between them. "Thank you, I was getting a little lonely. I'm Dorra, Dorra Cohen." She said, hoping the girl would open up to her a little, give her a name and they could go from there, maybe Dorra could just chat to her, she didn't have to talk about what was troubling her and she didn't have to open up if she didn't want to because really all Andorra needed to do for now was open up a connection, cheer the girl up a bit and maybe in a couple days time they'd meet again. Dorra believed in fate, that she was lead and drawn to certain people for reasons beyond anyones comprehension but there was always ways she could help them.

Dorra had gifts and she wanted to help out those she came across, there was always someone in need of help even if they didn't speak up, that was the benefit of being a seer, you could see and feel beyond the information people gave you, you got a glimpse behind the curtain and into the past, present and future.

[greyback]

Under the hood of her hoodie, she quirked an eyebrow. Was this woman hitting on her? Alandra thought she had made it quite clear that she didn't date older women. On any other given day, she'd bluntly clarify the statement, but since today would be her last day alive, she'd let it slide just this once. Besides, she was a bit flattered, however much that would do for her now.

It was then the woman sat down and introduced herself as Dorra Cohen, saying that she was feeling a little lonely. Alandra rolled her eyes under the safety of her hood. How desperate was she for a date with yours truly? Very desperate it would seem.

During first greetings with a stranger, giving your name was standard procedure, but with a surname like hers, revealing her full name to people she didn't know wasn't recommended. Being related to the infamous Fenrir Greyback had its fair share of cons, which was the reason she had made it a goal to make the surname Greyback a strong, honorable title, rather than a feared, malevolent one. But the plan had involved her siblings and they had turned their back on her. The goal seemed far from achievable now.

She averted her eyes from Dorra, looking toward a nearby wall, a hint of shame in her words. "Alandra," she sighed softly. It took her a few seconds to build up her resolve before she could look at the woman again. "Just a werewolf with a lost cause."

Regularly, she was careful about using the word 'werewolf' openly amongst strangers, but it didn't matter today. She'd be dead by midnight anyway.

[ANDORRA LILY COHEN]

Andorra never had concern about introducing herself with her full name, she was well known within most of the wizarding world thanks to her advice column in the Daily Prophet and in return for offering her own name, the girl gave her name, Alandra. Though that was not all that was provided. The girl was a werewolf and one that seemed quite unhappy, a dangerous combination but that made Dorra certain that Alandra was the one she was here for today, the one she was supposed to help.

"Sounds like you've got a lot on your plate." She said, her mind trying to think of when the next full moon was due. Dorra was a great believer in the stars and astrology and the moon and its cycles were equally fascinating and meaningful. Some people believed it hogwash but the moon really did have an effect on people. The only crime that never rose during a full moon was murder, but stealing, assault and other such crimes all went up, you couldn't say the moon had nothing to do with that.

"If you ever need to vent, I'm a good listener." She said softly, her mind still trying to remember the next full moon, she had the gnawing feeling that it was soon, possibly tomorrow, if that was the case then perhaps she needed to help Alandra out soon, not leave it to a potential next meeting because for all Dorra knew right now, Alandra could be planning revenge on someone at the time of the next full moon in which case it wasn't just Alandra Dorra had to save.

[greyback]

"You could say that," Alandra replied, referring to the woman's comment about her having a lot on her plate. "When you've got siblings that won't listen to a thing you say, life can be a complete bitch. I only want what's best for our family and they can't see that."

With an aggravated sigh, the werewolf shoved her hands into her hoodie pockets and looked toward the wall again. Why was she telling this to a complete stranger, it's not like she could help her in any way. She wasn't a werewolf, and even if she was, her age was a problem. As an alpha, she wouldn't allow people older than her to be in her pack, mostly so she'd feel secure in her dominance over others.

Then again, there was no pack to speak of. She had reached out to her siblings only to be rejected. With no family on her side, what was the point of going forward with her original plan? She didn't have the numbers behind her to take on Fenrir and no moral support from those she loved. That's why she had decided to kill herself that day. The abandonment was too much. Just thinking of it made her heart ache.

"I am the eldest of eleven," she continued, shifting her gaze back to the woman, her silver eyes filled with anger and betrayal. "I know what I'm talking about, but they think I'm crazy! When they're no longer of use to our father, he'll discard them like trash. So much for family, huh?"

Alandra heaved another sigh. She probably shouldn't have said a word about it, but the whole ordeal made her furious beyond relief.

[ANDORRA LILY COHEN]

Andorra listened to Alandra talking, it seemed to Andorra that Alandra was really quite depressed and was in need of more help than what Dorra could offer, Dorra wasn't a psychiatrist and that was what Alandra seemed to need but Dorra wouldn't voice her opinion, especially not like that, Alandra seemed like a sensitive soul, weighed down by her disappointing views of her families choices, Dorra felt for the girl, it was hard letting people you loved and were concerned about go about making their own mistakes but it was what you had to do, you could only live your life, you couldn't control others.

"It sounds like you care a lot about your siblings." She said, "How old are you, Alandra because to me you look young and with eleven siblings, all younger than you, I can't imagine how hard it would be for them to be forced to chose between a sibling and a parent." Dorra hoped that from her comment that Alandra would put herself in her siblings shoes, being loyal to a parent but being asked to dismiss the parent because they're older sibling was rebelling, of course it could be taken the wrong way and Andorra had no idea just who they were talking about but just felt that family should stick together unless there were signs of abuse and from what Alandra had been talking about there was no sign that their father was violent towards them.

Dorra also couldn't help but feel that Alandra sounded quite full of herself, despite her sense of abandonment she seemed to feel like she had the answers to the questions no one was asking, Alandra was offering her opinions and expecting her siblings to fall in line with her without any sort of evidence. Like Alandra had said, she knew what she was talking about, Alandra just seemed to want her siblings to listen, she seemed to like control and wasn't in the game of giving her siblings a lot of freedom or respecting their choices. Dorra wondered if Alandra was still a teenager.

[greyback]

"I do," Alandra agreed with a nod, "I do care for them. A lot." And that's where it got complicated. She didn't want to abandon her siblings to their father and let him control them. It would've been better and safer for them if they had let her hold the reigns and make the decisions. From there, she could've steered them away from Fenrir and to a much more pleasant life.

Her age. It always came down to her age, like just because she wasn't ten years older, she didn't know how to take care of her family. Alandra could feel the hairs on the back of her neck rise as her temper started to flare up. She gritted her teeth, holding back the flames of her anger.

"I'm twenty," she reluctantly admitted, then shook her head, knowing where she was going with the conversation. The woman didn't know the half of it. Maybe if she knew what father Alandra and her siblings had in common, she'd understand more of what she was talking about. Always a risk, but she didn't care anymore.

"But when your father is Fenrir Greyback," she added, leaning forward and looking the woman in the eyes. "Choosing the parent isn't exactly the wisest choice a child can make."

Hopefully this time, she had driven her point home. She had had her motives judged by her sister Wilhelmina enough times that she was tired of explaining herself to others. Her goals were genuine and that should've been enough.

[ANDORRA LILY COHEN]

Andorra had to admite it, when your father was Fenrir Greyback it probably wasn't a good idea to follow in his foot steps. There were a lot of rumours circulating about Fenrir, his women and his children. Some women had been willing for hims, others not so much and as a result he hd multiple children, mostly to different women. Dorra did not approve of the beast and believed he should have been behind bars. Azkaban was they only place for a man like that.

Andorra felt like reaching out to the girl and letting her know that things would be all right but that would be a lie, Andorra couldn't know that for sure, not right now, she'd seen nothing about this girl and had no idea why she was here to help her just yet but Andorra wouldn't give up, this girl wasn't a lost cause, no person was, not truly but some were beyond redemption due to their own stubbornness and she'd hate for this girl to do something to damage herself or her siblings lives.

"Don't you think that would be all the more reason for them to chose their father?" she asked? "There have been rumours about Fenrir Greyback, for years, some of them ring true, some do not but imagine if you would being a teenager, loving your mother, the only person in the world that looked after you through your life and then a sister, asking you to take her side over your father's. Now your father's not done anything worthy of your loyalty but he could hurt you, he could hurt your mother, the one person you care about. You have to ask yourself, Alandra, can you offer your siblings and their mother's true and immediate safety?"

Dorra looked at Alandra, studying her face, wanting to know her answer but at the same time she didn't need any sort of answer. "What I think your siblings might need is for someone to be there for them after Hogwarts, someone willing to help them realise the right path for themselves." After all, you couldn't force people to think the way you did just because you believed you were right because somewhere in the world there was most likely somebody that disagreed with you whole heartedly, you just had to let people make their own decisions in life and be there to support them if you loved them enough and in return they might see your love and think differently.