Just when you thought things were going to be easy

The air outside was thick with humidity and heat, the sun had went down several hours ago. The air was still thick with the warmth of that day. Yvette was leaving work for the night and needed to go to the store for things she needed for the house. She was glad that she had gotten her check yesterday so that she could get the things she needed.

She was thinking about trying to get another job so that she could start saving up money for other things. She was five blocks from the store when she felt like she was being followed by someone. She looked around like she was deciding which way she needed to go, when she saw three figures walking 30 yards from her. She began walking again but much quicker, that's when she heard their feet running for her. She took off immediately trying to make it to where someone could see her, she saw cars up ahead when she felt a hand on her duffel bag yanking her backwards. She let out a scream that could be heard for three blocks. Two of the men took off at the sound of her scream but the third ripped the duffel from her and took off opposite of his companions.

Yvette collapsed on the ground and began crying in earnest, she was terrified and humiliated. Her duffel held her work clothes as well as her tips that she received that night. Everything else that was important was in the wallet in the front pocket of her jeans. She began doubting that she'd be able to handle it on her own without her parents help. She just proved what her parents kept telling her for the longest time, that she couldn't survive on her own. After spending several minutes on the ground trying to pull herself together she pulled herself up off the ground. Her legs were shaky and she was still terrified as she began taking small steps. She put a shaky hand against the brick of the building next to her trying to stay upright. She had taken five steps when she had to stop and lean against the brick as the tears threatened to begin again. Yvette pressed her back to the brick and took long deep breaths as she looked around trying to make sure that no one else was coming for her again. She locked her legs when they began shaking badly enough that she would collapse again if she wasn't careful.

It had been a long day. Honestly, time had not been very fair to him as of late. The days stretched into eternity but passed with unsettling speed. Every day seemed to be a clone of the one before. He got up early, he went to work, he came home, he did chores, he ate alone, he went to bed. The weekends were not any better, as they all featured the same thing. Saturday was a day of errands, and the night was spent out with Sawyer, Audrey, Bernice, and Valerie if he was unfortunate enough to have to suffer through her presence. He probably would have loved Valerie, gotten along with well, if she hadn't been the main barrier between him and Bernice. After time with them, he would go home and spend Sunday doing home improvement and gardening.

And then it all repeated.

So Saturday night came and he went out with his friends, and when Valerie walked out the too-drunk Bernice, and Sawyer and Audrey left, Teddy waited for a long time. His buzz was gone, long gone, and he felt tired and worn. Apparating home would have shortened his night considerably, but he needed to break out, do something. So he walked, deciding a walk home would definitely beat getting home immediately where all that was waiting for him was bed.

Going home was supposed to be peaceful. Time to think, time to feel. But he didn't want to think or feel. He would thing of failures, he would feel loss. He just wanted to move.

And soon, he had to move.

A distant scream hit his ears - distant, but not distant enough. Teddy spun about, pulling his wand out. The street was empty. He began walking, and he could hear the sounds of scuffling. He began to run and turned a corner, spotting a woman leaned against the wall. He hurried towards her, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Miss? Miss. Can I help you?"

Yvette was looking down one side trying to gather enough strength to walk home. She would go to the store tomorrow when there was light. She was so deep in thought of what happened she jumped when a hand touched her shoulder. She looked at the man who stood near her and asked her questions.

Yvette didn't know what to say to him except, "They took my bag and ran. There's not much left for anyone to do....I didn't even see their faces." Her voice shook and was small when she spoke. Her mind was still back to when they came after her. Her shoulder hurt from where one of them yanked her back by her bag. "I lost my work clothes and my tips from tonight's shift. It's sad when your too scared to defend yourself against a few muggles....Maybe my parents were right." Her words were soft and sounded like she was talking more to herself than him.

She looked over at him and seemed to realize that he was still there. "I'm sorry don't mind me. I'll be fine." She said softly as she looked down and away feeling ashamed. Her legs began shaking again as she tried to push off the wall causing her to collapse against it. "I'll be fine, just a little shaken. I'll be fine, sorry if I interrupted your evening sir." She took a steady breath and pushed off the wall once more. Her legs were wobbly but they held her weight as she looked one way then the other. Her face fell realizing she didn't know where she was at.

((Small godmode, hope you don't mind))

A mugging. Teddy scoffed, considering how poorly people treated each other for the stupidest of reasons. Teddy turned, casting an eye about for the offending parties. He had a fairly long scope of sight and saw no one, so there was no purpose to attempting a chase. He sighed and looked about, catching sight of the address. "Hold on - I'll get this sorted, alright?"

He began looking through his pockets for his mobile, when the woman began to berate herself for not managing to defend herself better against attackers. He looked at her with concern, "No, no, there's nothing you could have done. Stop talking like that, please."

He located the phone just as she tried to walk away. She looked incredibly weak on her feet, so he stepped forward and helped her, guiding her so she was leaning against the wall again. "Just, rest, alright? Hang tight for just one minute, okay?" He gave her a kind smile before lifting the phone to his ear.

"Yes. Hello, yes, I'm outside of, um- The Bugle's Restaurant and Pub. I'm with a young woman who was robbed from. No, not sure. Thank you, Dougie. It was a bag. Yes, my phone will be on. Alright." He hung up and looked at the woman, tucking the phone away. Kind eyes found her face as he gingerly touched her shoulder. "That was cops. Is there anything I can do for you? Someone I can call?"

Yvette nodded at his words as she wrapped her arms around herself for comfort. She didn't know what she was going to do about the money she lost or even her uniform. It wasn't much of one but it consisted of her black apron and her tennis shoes. She wanted the ground to swallow her up for even thinking of walking to the store at this time of night.

When he guided her back against the wall, her hand reached out and touched his as she settled back against the brick. "How can I not? I should have known better than to be out this time of night. Or at least taken a cab to the store instead of walking to the store." She said looking at him as she ran a shaking hand through her hair. She never thought that she would have been a victim of a mugging. Here she was though standing next to a man after having her bag taken.

Yvette listened to him talk to someone on his phone about her getting mugged. "Can you call me a cab so I can get home?" She asked softly but shook her head quickly at her offer of calling someone. "No, I can't call anyone. My parents will simply tell me that they were right and I can't bare to hear that from them again. I think I should just go home and hopefully sleep off this nightmare." Realizing she reveled more than she usually does she gave him a wry smile. "Sorry, I just don't have anyone."

Teddy gave her encouraging shakes of the head as she tried to convince him she should leave. He stayed on the phone throughout, however. The woman was obviously in some sort of shock, as it would be incredibly irrational to leave alone after such a nasty scare. She needed time to calm down, time to unwind from her crisis mode. And perhaps, there was a good chance the authorities needed to speak with her.

He briefly wondered whether or not the woman was magical or not. It was definitely nearby magical neighborhoods, but she was so young that he would not recognize her from Hogwarts. He had to tread lightly, he supposed.

Phone in his pocket, he searched the woman's face with concern. "Why don't I buy you a cup of coffee? You need to relax before you do anything, and I don't want you to be in shock or anything. Then we can go over what happened and touch base with the authorities."

Yvette felt the sting of tears at the back of her eyes but she held them off. She didn't want to start crying in front of this strange man. She looked at him and said with a shaky voice, "Ok. Almost everywhere is closed though because of how late it is." Taking a fortifying breath she looked around. "I don't think I'll ever be able to relax again...I'll have to start making better choices when i comes to my safety. I hope that they find the men before someone else becomes a victim of their thieving ways."

She felt like she could trust the man that stood in front of her. She knew that he wasn't going to cause her harm and that he was just doing what was right. She wrapped her arms around herself again trying to warm her chilled bones.

"I know the leaky's not open anymore, maybe one of the cafe's near it." She said softly more to herself than to him. Looking at him she smiled softly, "Where do you think they have coffee at this hour? Or maybe tea."

He knew she was still in shock and still panicking, as any situation like a mugging was prone to make someone feel. Teddy wished he could assume that she was in capable hands - he was a counselor, after all, and his skills should be useful in this situation if anywhere. Unfortunately, Teddy's confidence in his craft and competency had failed when he had failed to keep his family together.

Still, he couldn't be altogether useless.

He saw that a chill had crept into the woman's bones, so he immediately shrugged off his canvas jacket and draped it over her shoulders, attempting to give her a bracing smile. He had lost a lot of his knack for helping people, but he was still trying.

She said the name of Leaky and he breathed a bit. Okay, so she was magical. Or, at least, muggle turned to magical. Who knew nowadays. He thought of Kip's friend's place and he held out an arm, saying, "I know somewhere safe. Care to apparate with me?"

Yvette looked up when he placed his jacket around her shoulders and gave a small smile in thanks. She gripped the edges of the jacket burrowing deeper into it. She felt the fabric and could smell his scent in the jacket. She began calming down from her fright when he spoke again.

"Ok," She took his arm holding tight to make sure she didn't get left behind. She held onto the jacket with her free hand making sure she wouldn't lose it. "Forgive my manners from earlier, my name is Yvette Tungsten-Wells. What is your name? If I may ask of you sir. You have helped me far more than I would have thought someone would. I am in your debt sir," She said her voice more steady as she stood there next to him. She looked up at him waiting for him to say his name or at least where they were going.

She was calming down, which was good. He knew that she was not going to be of any help to the authorities if she was freaking out, and he rather hoped the thugs that had attacked her could be brought to justice. He would ensure he got some descriptive information out of her about the attackers and then send an owl to the Magical Law Enforcement Patrol, as well as to the muggle authorities. Between the two groups, he was certain something would be unearthed, and justice would be served. She might even get her items back. Which would be great.
 
He smiled. “I’m Teddy Lupin. You’re in no debt of mine. Let’s get you somewhere warm.” He took her arm and they apparated off the Ugly Pigeon.
 
Rory was behind the bar, and Kenna was darting about. “Oy! Teddy! How are you?”
 
Teddy waved, grimacing a bit. He knew them all through Kip, whom he knew through Jack Dyllan – and she was a less than safe acquaintance. Kenna spun around and smiled – she always seemed more aware of him than he liked. “Hiya! How can I help you?”
 

“Two Butterbeers, please,” Teddy said. He turned back to Yvette and led her to a booth that was a bit secluded from everyone else. “Drink – it’ll relax you.”