August 22nd, 1890 - Morocco vs. Britain
@'Fallon Abernathy'

And he knows she's out there somewhere chasing hurricanes
Putting miles between them every day she's gone.

I WILL FINISH THIS CHALLENGE.

Though Jess had been fully prepared (requested the day off ahead of time and everything!) to attend the final match of the World Cup, he'd never imagined that he would win tickets to the ministry box! It was much nicer than the seats he would have been able to afford on his own and this way he got to drag Gabe along with him. A married man, the eldest Hatchitt needed to get out and have a little fun. Thankfully his wife agreed and so off the pair went.

There was food and drink to be had which was an added perk, leaving Jess nursing an ale as he watched the carnage unfold before him. Gabe was chatting with someone else, no doubt checking his watch every fifteen minutes to see if he could leave, but Jess was keeping him for as long as possible.

There were a fair few people here, most he didn't know, which surprised him. Then again, he didn't exactly get to socialize outside of his department and rarely did they need help on the job. Only when things turned positively criminal or involved foreign dignitaries did they need to call in backup. Fortunately today he was entirely off the clock and able to sit and watch the match which was a couple hours in and already pretty brutal.

"Ooof," He sympathized with the latest bludger hit a little too easily. "I don't miss that about playing." Jess whistled quietly, though probably not quietly enough, over the rim of his stein.

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Fallon hadn't expected to win tickets to today's game. In fact, up until a day ago she hadn't expected to be in attendance at all, for she was expected to work the weekend. However, as soon as her name was announced as the winner Fallon had pleaded with a work friend to cover for her. She hadn't watched a game from this high up since leaving school, and it was a delight.

Merry was ... somewhere. Truthfully, Fallon had ceased paying attention to her friend as soon as the action began. With all the broken kneecaps happening, she couldn't tear her eyes from the field. Merlin, she wished she had been able to play competitively. It looked like such a thrill.

Her cup of ale remained relatively untouched as she moved from her seat in the second row to one further upfront. "You played?" She asked, her tone obviously reflecting her distraction. "What position?"

  

Many of the co-workers in the box were too busy socializing to really be paying much attention to the game itself, but Jess could hardly blame them, they never got to actually have a conversation that wasn't about work very often. He was doing a little of both, watching the and chatting.

The response to his rhetorical comment was a surprise and Jess had to chuckle as the lass who'd spoken didn't even seem to be paying attention to anything but that match itself. "Oh, not professionally, just at school. Did a little keepin'." It felt like another lifetime ago at this point.

"You seem quite enthralled." He mused over the top of his glass, surveying the redhead as she kept her eyes on the game. 

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The Moroccan beater shattered Pettigrew's kneecap, causing Fallon to hiss in sympathy. That wasn't an injury she would wish upon someone, though at least it allowed him to stay in the game properly. A dislocated shoulder would be a far worse injury to manage in such a fast paced game.

"Keeping is a fun position," she mused. It wasn't her favorite — Fallon vastly preferred chasing above all else — but it wasn't as mindless as seeking. if she had the choice, she would remove the snitch from the game in its entirety. The seekers were always so far removed from the game and often a distraction from the action. She would admit watching for a glint of gold wasn't exactly easy, but it still wasn't as interesting as watching the beaters smack balls across the field.

She tore her attention from the game at his comment to look over at him. And Merlin, what was it with her and having random conversations with attractive strangers lately? Fallon had made it nearly twenty-five years without so much as a crush on another person (or at least none she'd admit to), and suddenly everywhere she looked stood attractive men. It wasn't fair. "It's been years since I last saw a match," Fallon offered with a shrug. She took a drink to steady her sudden nerves, more thankful than other for her excellent poker face. Could his eyes be any more blue?

  

"Seems like the safer option today," Though Jess knew that could change at any moment really. Beaters and bludgers were ruthless things to deal with. He'd almost played beater himself, but hadn't thought himself to be suited to the position. He liked the the end of the field where he could keep an eye on everything that was happening, instead of being thrust into the mid-field action all of the time.

"Ahh, this is quite violent, even compared to professional matches." Jess had been to his fair share of national league matches over the years, having mates from school that played an the like, but honestly this was another level entirely.

Jess took a quick minute to survey his conversation partner when she finally looked his way. He didn't linger long, using his ale as a distraction, but he liked what he saw, that was for sure. "What is it you do at the ministry?" He questioned, pretty sure he'd recognize such a pretty face if he worked closely with her previously.

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"Don't jinx it," she jokingly warned. Zavala was doing well so far, had allowed a few goals past, but all in all wasn't terrible. Fallon would be remiss if the British team didn't bring the win home this year.

The game was incredibly violent. Longbottom's kneecap was shattered not long after Pettigrew's. Merlin, these Moroccans were here to win. She would have to make a joke about it to JP in her next letter. "Hopefully our beaters get their heads in the game."


Fallon looked from him back towards the field, if only to shield her obvious attraction. Had she come into some strange awakening? Or had attractive men suddenly just appeared out of the mist? "I'm an auror, and you?"

  

Jesse grimaced a little, though was mostly teasing at the mention of jinxing anything. That was the last thing the team needed today. "MacFusty seems to be doing well, best of the bunch really, I played against him briefly at school. But I think Longbottom's been wracked by the injury." Not to mention he'd retired and tried to hop back into the sport. Certainly it wasn't that easy and he hadn't had a good match in the first round either.

He watched the match himself for a moment, trying to keep track of the bludgers was an ingrained habit from his years on the school team, but even this was too fast-paced for him to truly keep up. "Accidental Magical Reversal Squad," He answered without thinking much of it. He was far more intrigued by the fact that she was an auror. "You must know my brother then, he's an auror too, Gabe Hatchitt." Jess jabbed a thumb over his shoulder in his brother's general direction.

Why anyone chose that as a career was beyond him, but Jess couldn't do it. He'd seem Gabe go through a lot of shit over his time in the department, had been the one to soothe his sister-in-laws fears too many times. It wasn't something he could have seriously considered for a career, even if it had been glorified when he was in school.

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The Oaf was doing well, and had already followed through on his promise to hit a Moroccan for her. Fallon had worried their late night letters might have affected his play, but she was relieved to know that wasn't the case. She followed him on the field for a minute, cursing the universe once more for throwing so many men at her. "I agree. Bixby isn't doing too badly, either." Anything to not reveal her liking of the British beater.

Fallon turned and noticed Gabe for the first time that afternoon. She hadn't known he'd be here. "Very well, actually." They worked together a handful of times. He wasn't as terrible as some of their colleagues were. He definitely wasn't as terrible as the asshole who kept burying her in paperwork.

"Fallon Abernathy," she introduced herself with a smile.

  

"Mmm, the chasing squad does seem to have it covered." They were outscoring the Moroccans by quite a bit. If only the beaters could keep up everything would be fine. Jess watched the match for a moment between lulls in the conversation.

"Yeah he's a good guy. Can't complain." And now Jesse was going to pester his brother with some nonchalant questions about Miss Abernathy later. "Jesse Hatchitt." He reciprocated, casually moving from his spot against the wall to take a seat near hers. Not too close, but close enough to be of interest. Because he was certainly interested.

"Curious to know how the auror office caught your fancy." He knew why Gabe had gone in, but he always wondered what the pull was for other people. "I think y'all are crazy, so I'm genuinely intrigued, but don't share if you don't want to." He leaned back in the seat with one ankle crossing the opposite knee, beer perched in hand, the epitome of laid back at the moment.

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Now that she realized he was a sibling of Gabe Hatchitt's the resemblance was obvious. The two brothers had a long list of siblings, some of which were in school while Fallon was there. She didn't know any of them personally before now, not that it really would've led to an introduction anyway.

Fallon kept her eyes on the game as he maneuvered closer to her. Merlin, help her. Where was Merry? "Pleasure to meet you, Mr. Hatchitt." She was going to have to pick Malou's brain later about the Hatchitt family and what, if anything, her friend knew.

"Oh, I don't mind," she answered easily. The question was one she had to answer repeatedly during her training. "My parents were - ah, not the greatest sort." Cheats, drunks, and lowly people. "I wanted to make a difference, somehow. Be someone of worth. I almost joined your department, actually, but decided to reach for the dream instead."

  

"Oh, the pleasure is all mine, Miss Abernathy." He assured her after a sip of his beer.

Pleased that she indulged him in her reasons behind becoming an auror. It wasn't entirely unlike Gabe's reasons, though their parents had nothing to do with hit. Gabe had a strong sense of justice and followed through with it. "Seems to be a recurring theme in that department." Jesse didn't have a thought on it one way or the other, but he couldn't do it himself. The Squad kept him plenty busy, without the criminals. Most of the time.

"I'm always busy, that's for sure. Never a dull moment." Kids and their accidental magic was both unpredictable and amusing. It was almost always innocently hilarious like, like the ducklings, most recently. "And likely not in danger at some point." The cauldron mess int the Alley was the last dangerous call he'd dealt with.

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She didn't dare think about how flirtatious his return greeting was. It was enough to figure out what the bloody hell the Oaf meant by acquiantanceship (because what the fuck was an acquaintanceship?!) without pondering whether or not Mr. Hatchitt was genuinely interested in her.

"We all have a bit of a savior complex, it's true." Some were stronger than others, but nevertheless it existed. In fact, Fallon often wondered if Merry's lack of the same complex was why she flunked out of the program. No aurors she knew were as comfortable with dark magic as her old friend, after all. "It makes for an interesting life, though. So I don't complain much." Just about the massive amounts of paperwork she was given.

Fallon took a sip of her beer as she realized she had stopped paying attention to the game completely. Her eyes quickly scanned the field for the Oaf before returning back to Mr. Hatchitt. "The danger is concerning, I'll admit, and it can sometimes be a bit much. But, I don't know...the relief of playing a hand in saving someone? It makes it all worth it." The train incident was the most obvious of those feelings. That poor muggle woman would've been tortured had they not saved her. "Does your office handle all incidents of accidental magic? Or do the parents take care of the more minor incidences?"

  

Nodding along with her reasoning, Jess could easily see the allure for those who wound up succeeding in the field. Gabe seemed to do quite well with it, though also knew his brother was haunted by a lot of demons in his past he'd rather not talk about too. Like any profession, it had its ups and downs, they just seemed highly exaggerated. "Sounds like something Gabe would say. Jess agreed.

"We handle almost everything. Some parents can handle the mishap, but most of the time it's a puzzle to figure out what even happened and to unwind the magic from there is not always an easy feat. Any first incident of accidental magic is recorded on its own, so that's not really the concern. It's making sure there aren't any lasting damages or that no muggles saw it." Figuring out the cause and solution to the magic was really what drew him in. He'd always been good at transfiguration and charms, so being able to use them on a daily basis was fantastic.

"When it's not children, that's when it really becomes a wild ride." Those cases were few and far between, but almost always interesting.

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She nodded. Gabe and she were both aurors, it made sense that they'd have similar philosophies on their profession.

This time, she chuckled. Fallon never had much patience for intricate puzzles. With the auror department there was the investigation process, but that was often more cut and dry than figuring out how a toddler made the room spin. "Sounds fun," she replied. "And let me guess, you were a Ravenclaw in school then?" Only a Ravenclaw could care so much for a puzzle.

"Adults have bursts of accidental magic?" Fallon asked, perhaps a bit naively. She couldn't imagine having so little control over her abilities now to allow something like her temper to create a burst.

  

"That obvious hmm?" Her assumption was spot on after all. " Also seriously good at transfiguration, which is not all that easy." He'd worked hard at it because it hadn't don't naturally to him in the beginning. The more he worked at it, the more he liked it and the three more satisfaction he got from it.

"Not in the typical sense we associate with children. Most of the adult cases are a situation where they were trying to do something else and failed miserably, causing something unintended to happen. Lots of enchantments gone wrong, or transfiguration attempts going awry. Can't tell you how many botched animagus attempts I've fixed." Most of the time it was pretty funny, but sometimes deadly serious.

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"That obvious," she lightheartedly confirmed. It was funny to think how society still measured themselves by their houses in school. Fallon didn't used to believe they held this much value, but it was a great general descriptor of a person's character.

"Oh, not at all." Transfiguration was among the harder skills to learn. Fallon was decent at it herself (had to be if she wanted to become an auror) but she was no master. Charms was more of her forte. "Transfiguration was one of the classes I had to actually pay attention in." Most hands on magical applications came naturally to her, at least when they were being tested. The more theoretical classes were her downfall.

His explanation made sense. Truthfully, she felt rather remiss for not knowing more about his department having greatly considered heading there herself. "Must be some fun stories there," Fallon commented. "No two days are ever the same."