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Tweak says, "It breaks my heart to say it."

I bite my thumb, sir. (lottiewood) wrote in reduxpitch,
@ 2016-05-08 14:03:00

Entry tags:

!thread, character: charlotte wood, character: gilderoy lockhart, location: diagon alley

WHO: Charlotte Wood & Gilderoy Lockhart
WHAT: Finalizing party plans and menus
WHEN: Sunday 8 May 2002, noon
WHERE: Fancy French bistro in Diagon Alley
RATING: Low
STATUS: Closed//Ongoing

Waking up Sunday morning, Lottie's eyesight was back. It was blurry, and her eyes hurt, but she could at least see, which was good because she had a meeting with Gilderoy Lockhart that afternoon. She checked herself out of the hospital and went home for a shower and a nap in her own bed before she had to meet her client.

She didn't nap for long. Her checklist had checklists, and she couldn't let the temporary loss of her eyesight affect her job. She hadn't even considered owling Pierre and Mr Lockhart to reschedule. That wasn't an option when the party was set for the end of the month, and he was a high profile client who could make or break her career. Before she should have been, Lottie was up and moving around her flat, gathering her samples and folders. She made herself a very strong cup of tea and worked through her notes.

At half past 11, she carefully dressed, selecting an outfit that looked professional and competent while not clashing. She didn't want to upset Mr Lockhart's sensibilities. She arrived at chef Pierre's bistro ten minutes early to confirm that everything was ready for the meeting. She had a table with place setting options. Pierre greeted her with kisses on each cheek. "Your eyes are red, ma petite. Are you all right?"

Lottie smiled. "Small accident at the Quidditch match yesterday. I'm fine, but is it bad?"

"Non. You can claim allergies, I believe."

She smiled again, relieved. "This all looks wonderful, Pierre. My client will, hopefully, be pleased. How is the food?" He tsked and shook his head, smiling like he had a secret. "I know, silly question. It is always amazing." She heard the door and looked over her shoulder. "Ah. Mr Lockhart," she approached him, right hand extended. "Welcome."

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charmoffence
2016-05-23 07:27 pm UTC (link)

Gilderoy didn't actually know what his specific concerns were, but he was hardly going to admit that. This was his event, for his business so of course his word would be law. "No, no," he said, his tone making it sound like he were dismissing a silly idea when in fact Charlotte had merely asked a question. "We must keep all the desserts, and the hor d'ouevres. They are so charming." He beamed at Pierre as he bestowed this particular piece of praise. "Guests will want to mingle, to meet new and interesting people - and me!" Gilderoy did his best to look modest, and utterly failed (the characteristic not being one that came naturally). "And the gardens will look so lovely. The desserts could be served on trays as well. That way, people would only take what they wanted." It might be strange not to have a three course meal properly, but Gilderoy wasn't too concerned about that. As long as everyone had enough to eat, why should it matter if they had more sweet things than savoury?

"Or," Gilderoy looked between his two attentive listeners, warming to his subject as if he were in any way qualified, "we could forego the soup. It was very nice," he added, clearly as an afterthought and with a much less dazzling smile than usual, "but it does fill one up." He reached out, adjusting an errant fork. "Or we could have a smaller portion. I was served a delicious chilled strawberry soup in a little glass at a restaurant in Switzerland." He held his thumb and forefinger out to indicate the size of the glass in question. "That would be very dainty."

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lottiewood
2016-05-25 03:38 am UTC (link)

"We can add a cold soup to the list of hor d'ouevres," Lottie said, looking to Pierre for his nod. She was not a large person, and even that small bit of soup and the samples of the hor d'ouevres hadn't filled her up. She thought he was, perhaps, making things up to save face. "Doing this will shorten the sit down meal."

She wrote a few things down in her notebook. "I think keeping the sit down portion will allow your guests to enter into deeper conversations." She turned a bright smile on Gilderoy. "Just imagine the buzz your new endeavour will receive if a love match is made at your party." She made a mental note to check everything for love potions, not trusting her client for a minute not to slip such things into the food.

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