Visit at the Three Broomsticks

Xander lifted his arms in surrender and smirked at Kya. "I will, I promise," he called at her back. He then laughed and leaned forward again.

"My sister..." she told Catalina. "She's a bit like my mother in that sense."

Xander laughed and scratched the back of his neck. "I look that old, do I?" he joked easily, smiling at Catalina to let her know he wasn't really offended. "I don't mind, don't worry about it. I work at the Ministry as an Auror. I just finished training a few weeks ago, actually," he answered her question.

Xander didn't miss the excitement on Catalina's face when he mentioned he was an Auror. He couldn't help but be amused at how close she'd come to him, and he gave her a dazzling smile. "Don't apologize, there's no one to impress here," he told her with a slight chuckle. "My siblings are insufferable and they don't apologize to anyone, so it's perfectly fine," he added, thinking of all the petty arguments the three siblings had had while growing up.

"Being an Auror is..." he trailed off, thinking of how to describe his job. "First of all, there's training, and it's hard. And long," he added after thinking it through. "Since I just finished I haven't actually seen the battlefield... my boss has to deem me good enough first. I have to prove myself to her," he said a little bitterly. "The Ministry needs skilled duellists that can stand against the Death Eaters, after all. They can't let just any aficionado join the battle."

He sighed with some resignation and rested his chin on his hand. "And then there's the meetings and all the paperwork. Planning is the most important part in my opinion," he said. "When you fight, it's about speed, quick thinking and instincts, but if you don't have a plan backing you up it's all toast, if you know what I mean."

"It's a dangerous job," he continued, shifting positions into a more comfortable one. "What, with Death Eaters hunting you all the time and all the infiltration in the Ministry, but who's safe lately anyway," he added darkly, glancing around at the people in the pub.

When he realized that he could be making Catalina uncomfortable with his line of thought, he took a deep breath and smiled slightly, though it didn't quite reach his eyes. "Forgive me," he told her. "I didn't mean for the conversation to take such a dark turn. But you know... dark times," he added with a small shrug as an explanation. "And I'm twenty-one, by the way," he told her, remembering she had asked. "I'm guessing I'll be seeing you around the Auror academy in a couple of years?"

He managed to smile a little more to reassure her and waited for her answer. She really was a nice girl, and she looked like she had the potential to join the Aurors one day.

Kya stood at the bar, watching Catalina and her brother talk. They seemed to have kicked off with the right foot, so to speak. She sipped at her own butterbeer and then realized they must be waiting for their drinks. She managed to balance all three butterbeers in her arms and went back to her table.

"I hope I'm not interrupting," she said, setting the drinks on the table one by one. She smiled at the pair and sat back down. "What were you talking about while I was gone?"