Jersey really, cannot help herself when it comes to finding a delectable looking source of entertainment for an afternoon, evening, morning or whatever time of day it might be. Serving drinks at the festival had been Maddox’s idea and the employees at the Hog’s Head had taken turns running shifts so everyone could enjoy the festival. “Mhm...who is that charming young man you just served?” Jersey siddled up to the counter where her friend is currently taken orders and working their booth. She should help him. It’s what a good partner would do. Instead, she’s obviously busy enjoying the eye candy sitting only a hair’s length away from her. “You don’t mind, do you, love?” She pats Maddox on the cheek, leans over the counter to peck the same cheek before sauntering off with a drink of her own.

“Don’t worry, darlin’,” Jersey seats herself comfortably across from him at the small table he occupies. “Whoever you’re looking for is perfectly safe here. There’s Ministry presence and law enforcement crawling all over the place to keep everyone safe.” She doesn’t know if he’s worried or not but she figures that’s a decent opening line since he does look a little concerned. She offers her hand. “Jersey.”

Tagged: Ari'inui Avaiki,
Notes: aug 2020

Ari'inui looked up in surprise at the voice. "Am I that obvious?" He asked with a sheepish laugh, scratching the back of his head. "It's my first Hogsmeade festival. Good to know things are looked after." Now he didn't need to worry about the kids. Not that he'd been super worried, but her words were reassuring nonetheless. He just tended to overthink a bit when others were in his care. He could be a touch overprotective. Taking the offered hand, he gave it a firm shake, offering her a boyish grin. "Lovely to meet you, Jersey. I'm Ari'inui."

Taking a sip of his drink, he eyed her curiously. "You seem to know the ins and outs of the festival pretty well. Are you a local?" He'd be surprised if she was; Hogsmeade wasn't exactly big, and from his understanding, most traveled in specifically for the festival. Still, she seemed pleasant to talk, and the man was enjoying her presence in the tiny interaction they'd had so far, so he may as well try learn a bit about her. Maybe she was just someone that attended the festival every year.

tagged: Jersey Rhodes

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Jersey lets out a compelling laugh and nods. “But only to people who make it a point to watch others. You’re secret is safe from the populace.” After all, Jersey had a career in knowing who to approach for her other services, who she had to swindle for the right amount of coin to feed herself that evening. She had learned to study people. Not many people had a need to watch those around them as a means of survival. Most people are a lot more fortunate than the young woman had once been before she figured out how to earn coins with what she had. And all she had had had been her body.

“A recent local. Bought The Hog’s Head back in February with my best mate and we’ve been running it since.” A lot more successfully than the old goat they had bought it off of. He’d been running it right into the grim and didn’t seem to know how to clean up said grim. Now it’s a pretty popular place for the right crowd of people. Old bats in the early evening and the party goers in the later evening. “What I do know, is the local gossip. Comes with owning a bar and dealing with mouthy drunks.” She offered him a delectable grin.

Tagged: Ari'inui Avaiki,
Notes:

She made it a point to watch others? He wondered if she was just naturally observant, or if life had shaped her to be that way. However, Jersey was charming and Ari'inui found himself laughing alongside her. "As long as you don't go spilling my secret." He jested in turn.

At her revelation that she was the owner, he glanced back at the stall they had set up in slight surprise. "Impressive. Perhaps I'll have to come visit the actual venue once the festival is over." He needed to get out more and explore anyway. Couldn't stay holed up in his apartment forever. With it being summer break for the younger Avaikis, Ari'inui had been busy accompanying them, but he knew that once they were gone it would be all too easy for him to slip back into bad habits. There was a reason he'd moved away from home. A fresh start. New healing. "Local gossip, huh?" Now that brought a curious smile onto his face. Normally, the man wasn't a big gossip, but he was new to the area, and doubted Jersey would reveal anything too incriminating about others. Right? Plus, it was a good way to get to know the lay of the land. "So tell me then. Anyone around here I should be avoiding?" He asked, eyes crinkled in amusement. He wondered what other local knowledge she might have for him.

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Je “Oh. For the right price, anything is possible!” Jersey teases him. Unfortunately, it’s not even a lie. She would spill a secret for the right price. They say money can buy anything but happiness and Jersey does like money.

“I highly recommend it if you’re up for a night of letting your hair down.” And in saying that, she flicks a strand of his dark hair out of his face with a playful smile. “It’s the best kind of fun an adult can ask for, better than those stiffy pureblood places where you have to sit and stare at each other.” She made an effort to mock them staring by widening her eyes and focusing her attention completely on his face before laughing and breaking her own concentration.

She nods and points to a dark haired man heading towards the Hog’s Head booth (Maddox Llewelyn ). “See him. Obsessed with cats. I would wager he’d marry his cat if he could.” She does not even try to keep her voice down as she says this because the man in question is her best friend and business partner.

Tagged: Ari'inui Avaiki ,
Notes:

The man chuckled at her cheeky response. "So what's the price of your silence?" He wasn't really being serious; merely presuming her to be bantering. Even if she was being serious, it's not like he actually really had any big dark secrets to hide; Ari'inui was a pretty open book.

Well, Ari'inui wouldn't say no to a night of letting his hair down. "Well now who can resist that?" He laughed at her depiction of pureblood events, even more so at her imitation. He was well familiar with such events, and thought that her impression wasn't that far off. He schooled his features into mock seriousness as he played along. "Hey now, we can't dismiss the fun of staring awkwardly at strangers. What better way to get to know someone?" He followed his words with a sage nod, as if he'd just imparted some insightful piece of wisdom.

Following her point, he grinned. Considering the fact that it was a worker at the bar she owned, he figured they must be mates. "Ah yes. Absolutely someone that looks like I should avoid." He chuckled, before turning a playful grin on her. "And should I be avoiding you too? No secret animal marriages you'd like to disclose?" 

tagged: Jersey Rhodes

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Jersey grins. “High.” It’s all she’s going to say unless he’s capable of giving her other things. She’s not sure of his situation but he’s a fine looking man and Jersey would not mind rolling around in the grass with him. Not at all. It’s her specialty, after all, and men high dollars to do just that with her before she moved to the UK. It’s how she and Maddox were able to get a lot of funds for their business.

“I do like to watch them squirm. I’ve found it exceptionally enjoyable to stare at the older ladies and lick my lips seductively in their direction. They run so fast.” Jersey laughs. She’s not even kidding. She was once brought along to make a man’s future mother-in-law very uncomfortable in hopes of calling off the engagement. She got a bonus for that one.

“But should you find yourself stuck in conversation with him, just pull on his ear and he’ll smarten up.” Jersey grins and waves at Maddox before blowing him a kiss. She turns back to Ari’inui at his question. “Only if you’re afraid of the unexpected.”

Tagged: Ari'inui Avaiki ,
Notes:

Honestly, Jersey was a hoot, and he burst out laughing at the image of her seductively eyeing up the stuck up older pureblood ladies that frequented such events. The idea had him wiping a tear from his eye, before finally responding. "Well it's a shame they're not more open minded. I'm sure they certainly missed out." Were the words born of amusement or flirtation? Probably the former, although something about Jersey's confidence told him he wasn't wrong. She was very pretty as well, which certainly helped.

"Spoken from experience, I'm assuming?" How many times had she tugged on the bloke's ears? Her playful blown kiss towards him had the Tahitian's eyes crinkling good naturedly as he watched the exchange. "And what if I enjoy it?" He was certainly curious now about her story. "Were you raised here?" She'd said earlier that she was a recent local, so obviously not raised here, but that was all he knew, really.

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Is the way to a man’s heart through his stomach or a sense of humour? Jersey forgets the old saying and if it’s the humour she is killing it right now. If it’s the stomach then she’s doomed to life a life of loneliness with her cat and Maddox as her constant companions. She never learned to cook on an impressive level. Living on the streets and making ends meet with her best assets didn’t leave a girl much room for learning the basics of housewifery. Either way, heart or stomach, Jersey is making herself memorable to the man sitting across from her currently.

“Oh. They are. I bet I can do things to them their husbands never dreamed of because it takes time out of their card games or business dealings.” She knows all about those pureblood men. They are different then the ones of her generation.

She laughs. Her turn to be amused. “Plenty of years tugging on his ear to make him smarten up,” she admits. “We’ve been best friends for a long time.” He’s flirting back easily and she enjoys this banter. Sometimes the men she encounters are not nearly so easy to read. He’s a bit of an open book. “Then keep talking. I was raised in the Philippines. Afraid I’m a long way from home with no desire to return.”

Tagged: Ari'inui Avaiki ,
Notes:

Jersey was an incredibly straight up person, and Ari'inui found her quick witted humour and cheeky honestly incredibly refreshing. In that moment, he decided he'd definitely have to pay visits to the hog's Head, if for nothing more than the good company. Besides, if a woman like her was running things, it was guaranteed to be a good vibe. He snorted at her comment, having no doubt about the truthfulness of her words. "Ah but of course. Well then it would be their loss."

His expression softened somewhat hearing her speak about Maddox. Ari'i hoped to form relationships like that in the UK, friendships and such that would last a lifetime. "So are you the one that keeps him out of trouble then?" If she was always tugging on his ear. Somehow, Jersey gave the impression that she was the one causing chaos, but it seemed like the fun sort. "In the Philippines? Closer to my neck of the wood. I'm from Tahiti, so not too far off." Indeed, although the Philippines were technically a part of Asia, they were much closer to Tahiti than the UK. Same general region on the map. He wondered if he should press about why she wouldn't want to return, but that may be too personal a question for a first meeting, so instead he settled for, "Yeah, go visit Tahiti instead. I'll give you all the insider knowledge." His eyes crinkled good naturedly. "I've heard the party life in the Philippines is great though. You seem like someone who'd know. Is that the case here?" Perhaps she'd use it as an opportunity to advertise more the Hog's Head, he didn't mind.

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Ok. Now that was the smirk of someone who attracted trouble like a magnet. Yet something about Jersey's grin was infectious, his own smile widening slightly even as he leaned back, feeling decidedly relaxed in the woman's presence. Jersey was great with people. She seemed to have a way about her that put others at ease, he certainly felt so. "I'll cheers to that." Clinking his glass against her own, the man took a swig, considering her words. "Sounds like you've had an adventurous life." Moving around, combined with the apparent scaring of pureblooded ladies at high society functions made Jersey a very interesting person indeed.

"Well then, it looks like British wizarding society owes the both of you a favour." As a fan of a good time, although he was much more a home body than he used to be, Ari'inui could acknowledge that much. He could also acknowledge the truth in her words regarding the muggle party scene, an apparently universal sentiment. In Tahiti, as small as an island as it was, it hadn't been super uncommon for wizards to frequent muggle clubs. France was actually separated, like here, but the man had missed the mixed night life of back home. "You seem like you know better than most. I won't argue with you on that front." He chuckled.

tagged: Jersey Rhodes

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