Revolution Radio

[Jude Wright]

The Augurey Beak Café was - well, it was never precisely crowded to begin with: being a little out-of-the-way, it didn't have the natural footfall of The Leaky Cauldron; and neither old folk tales about the augurey's deathly call nor the beak still hanging on the wall did much to encourage new patrons to it - never too full in the afternoons, even on the weekends. This suited Jude well, because it meant he could nestle at one of his usual tables and spread out some work to do without too much background noise, could pass the time until his friends came by for their usual meeting with a plate of jam tarts as sustenance. Jude didn't make a habit of wasting his time thinking about food, much, didn't tend to care what he ate... but the ABC's jam tarts. Well. Worth it all, to say the least.

He was just biting into his second when the café's front door jingled open. Jude looked up to see the first of his friends entering. It was Simeon. "Graves," he called out, raising a hand in greeting. He expected Simeon would have come to the same conclusion a few seconds later if he'd scanned the café himself, but Jude jerked his head slightly in a gesture to beckon him over anyway.

He chewed through another bit of jammy pastry and set the tart down in time to offer Graves a brief smile of greeting. Simeon was - well, he was interesting. On the surface, there was an air about Simeon of the faintly ridiculous: he seemed imperturbably dreamy (in a less poetic and more peppy way than Eaton) and almost irritatingly hopeful (and that was coming from Jude, who didn't take his namesake of the patron saint of lost causes lightly). That said, Jude liked him a lot, and unashamedly. In fact, he was one of the group more easily recognisable to him: Simeon had come from a family and a life not unlike his own, and he appreciated that Simeon had committed himself to this group of misfit friends, and that he cared so much.    

"How are you?" He asked easily. It wasn't always that they spent time or talked by themselves, though, so the opportunity that had just presented itself might be the perfect chance to check in, to see what Simeon's thoughts were, personally. The fervour of the elections was sweeping them all up pretty well; it wouldn't do for opinions to be lost in it.  

@'Simeon Graves'
@'Annabelle Scrimgeour'

  

[Simeon Graves]

Simeon's life was a fairly simple one compared to the one he'd had before he'd been disowned, but it also required more work. Nevertheless, he didn't have to worry about his grandparents judging his every move and criticizing the people he chose to associate with. While his reputation and wealth had suffered, he considered himself much happier — and far more liberated — than he'd been while living a life of wealth and luxury.

"Wright," he greeted in return, a tired smile spread across his lips. His shoulders heaved as he breathed, his exhaustion making his chest feel especially tight. Perhaps it wasn't the best time to be having a drink, but he couldn't help but crave that addicting burning sensation in the back of his throat.

"I've been well," he responded. "I never thought simply casting charms all day could exhaust a person, but ... well ... it can," he added with light chuckle, taking a seat in the chair across from Jude. "I don't think I broke anything today, though—" Or anyone, he thought, "—which means today was a success!"

  

[Jude Wright]

Simeon did look rather tired, Jude realised, even before he got an answer to his question. Not unhealthily so (not worn out like Kieran got at certain times of the month, paled and scruffy and his eyes dark-circled), just like he'd had a busy day.

Jude stretched back in his chair, giving Simeon a moment to breathe. He huffed a bit of a laugh at the first of his friend's revelations; no, one wouldn't think it, he supposed, but it did make sense. One or two charms was one thing, but the focus it must take to be casting and refining them constantly, the energy it would sap over the course of a day - it sounded fair.

His laugh surfaced a little more at the second - and perhaps more impressive - statement. Not that it would be a feat for just anyone, but Simeon... Simeon was a special case. He could be terribly clever sometimes, Jude would admit that (if pressed, of course), but he also seemed the sort of person who deserved applause for making it through a day intact. (He was nearly as bad as [Bossuet].)

"Well, you have my sincerest congratulations on that," Jude said, his tongue only slightly in his cheek. Silently, he offered Simeon what was left of the plate of jam tarts. His friend's answer had managed to waylay Jude's train of thought already; instead, Jude said, rather curiously, "what have you been working on, lately, then?"

  

[Simeon Graves]

Simeon gave Jude a friendly smile despite knowing his congratulations were likely teasing rather than sincere. Despite the fact that he was clever, 'witty' or 'sharp-tongued' were two words that failed to properly describe the former Ravenclaw. He leaned more towards Hufflepuff than Slytherin, and his cleverness tended to be aimed more towards solving problems than roasting other people with comebacks.

"There's been a rise in orders for specially-charmed locks. I have a hunch that people are more conscious of their secrets since the drama about the Minister was revealed," he explained. "That and snitches. They're the most popular item, especially during quidditch season."

  

[Jude Wright]

He had been on the verge of a smile; hearing his friends talk about things they were passionate about, whether in politics or in their work, always made him feel that way. But, instead, the line of Jude's mouth tautened, both at the mention of the Minister and the unspoken reference to werewolves that lay within it.

Conscious of their secrets. He wondered whether Kieran had... told anyone else, since Jude had put it together. (Probably not, considering how that had gone: he blamed his own reaction for acting a deterrent to telling the rest of the group. And now, with the general reaction to Topaz Urquart... secrecy seemed more sensible than ever.)

The mention of special locks made him wonder. Kieran had chains, of course - but now that they knew Simeon, though, and he worked in so useful a field, perhaps there was something else that Jude could find to help.

He nodded along at Simeon's talk of snitches. "Understandable." Since he had little enough to say on quidditch, Jude returned to the locks, his questioning as casual as it came, but interested, always interested. "What kind of charms can you put on locks?" What sort of petty, sordid secrets did most people have, anyway?