The Three Broomsticks reopening had been some of the best news Michael had heard in years. He'd spent his boyhood in that pub, sneaking the occasional pint from Madam Rosmerta with a flash of his charming smile, and doing his homework in the corner when he'd needed that comfortable, crowded atmosphere that the library-like common room of Ravenclaw House didn't often provide.

It was the second night that week that Michael had decided he needed a little after-work pick-me-up. He knew this wasn't a habit he wanted to get into, but it was easy to blame the pint in front of him--and the three before that--on his glee that the Three Broomsticks had returned. The room was beginning to look a bit fuzzy around the edges, and he could hear the blood pounding in his temples and ears, but it was a small price to pay for the relaxation the drinks rewarded him with. The wooden glow of the hazy pub gave off a delicious ambiance, and Michael sat comfortably at the bar, nursing his pint with ease.

"Butterbeer, please," Su requested when the bartender turned to take her order. Glancing off to the side, she nearly laughed out loud when she saw the man sitting at the counter. She smiled. "Mr. Corner, enjoying a drink after a very stressful day of work?"

Michael looked over a bit too quickly; for a moment the room remained still, and then it, too, swung in the direction of his head. It was a dizzying effect, and for a moment Michael didn't register who had spoken. Then he realized--it was Su. In the dim light of the pub, together with the glow his drinking had given his general surroundings, she looked quite lovely. The little light there was shone off her black hair in an attractive way, and the extra shadows made the bit of decolletage she was displaying seem even sexier and slightly more mysterious. Had he been closer, Michael might have been tempted to stare right down her blouse. As it was, however, he managed to collect himself--somewhat.

"Fuck me," he said, with a defeated smile, not exactly under his breath. "Today is really quite a day, isn't it?"

He raised his glass in Su's direction with an ironic smile that was just the tiniest bit nasty around the edges. "I am indeed, Ms. Li. And yourself? Here to drink away your sorrows as well?"

She raised her eyebrows. "Excuse me? Fuck you? Such bad language, Mr. Corner," she said with feigned reprimand in her voice. She paused, drinking him in. The dim light of the bar cast attractive shadows over his already handsome features. The way his eyes didn't focus properly told her that he was drunk, but for some reason that didn't make him seem less attractive. Perhaps the fact he could loosen up easily made him more attractive to her; it was a skill she never quite got the hang of. "I am also. I mean, I am also getting a drink after a rough day."

"Drinking away your sorrows, then, as I said," Michael replied. He glanced around the pub; it was a quiet night, and Michael was always loathe to cause disturbances. He debated for a moment on whether to slide over a few stools to sit next to her, and finally decided something along the lines of what the hell and got up and moved. He was proud of himself for not staggering in the slightest, and he sat down with a triumphant smile.

"So. You've been avoiding me," said Michael reproachfully, pointing an accusatory finger in her face and resisting the temptation to smooth over her perfectly arched eyebrows. He wondered if they were as soft as her hair seemed to be, or if they were scruffy like Cho's had been. They didn't look scruffy.

Su smiled at him softly. She was impressed that he could walk straight under the condition he was in. He must a pro at drinking then, she thought to herself, not repulsed by the idea itself. "Well, you have been avoiding me also. I just guess it was only fair for me to avoid you as well." What kind of illogical logic is that? she wondered to herself, wishing she had merely agreed with him and moved on. "Why have you been avoiding me then?"

"'S'all your fault," Michael muttered, frowning. "Coming on to me in your office like that. What did you expect?" He met her dark eyes with an intense blue stare; he held her gaze for a long moment, before taking another large swallow of his pint and then wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.

"Ah, so you were avoiding me because you can't handle a woman coming on to you? Such a shame and here I thought... Oh never mind what I thought. It was obviously wrong." She brought her mug up to hide her smile, knowing her eyes were flirtatious. "Would it make you more comfortable, Mr. Corner, if I do not... come on to you during office hours then?"

"And here you thought what?" Michael demanded, glaring at her over his pint. Unlike most, Michael did not lose his inhibitions and grow silly with the consumption of alcohol; rather, it had a tendency to enhance his nasty side--a side Su was not well-acquainted with, despite the fact that most of the world put up with it on a daily basis. "That I can resist you looking at me like that? Merlin, Su, do you have any idea how gorgeous you are?"

It was out before he could help it, albeit delivered in a nasty, angry tone of voice that did very little to convey how transfixed he was by the infinite darkness of her eyes, or the tiny smile on her supple lips. In for a penny...Michael figured, and he took a deep breath before continuing.

"And while I'm at it, yeah, it'd fucking make me more comfortable if you didn't come on to me during office hours, because then maybe I wouldn't be plagued with dreams of shagging you on the filing cabinets!"

There. He'd said it. Michael took a drunkard's delight in having all internal thoughts out in the open, and helped himself to his drink, happily draining the glass and signaling to the barkeep that he wanted another, all in the same few seconds.

Su glared at him, but felt amused by his admission. "Fine. I will not come on to you during office hours..." She turned to the bartender. "A gin and tonic, please." The glass was slid to her and she took a long drink. "You know, Mr. Corner, this isn't during office hours..." The words were out of her mouth before she could stop herself. She pressed her lips tightly together, turning away from him purposely so she couldn't see his response to her blatant suggestion.

Her words sent Michael reeling. He didn't even take a sip of his fresh drink, but stared at her openly. She was avoiding his gaze, but that was all right. For a moment, with her hair falling in front of her face like that, she looked much younger--the way she had when they used to come to this pub together, as schoolmates and friends back at Hogwarts.

But things had changed. Michael scooted his stool closer, and reached out to place a finger beneath Su's chin, tilting her face up towards his. He was so close than when he spoke, she could smell the beer on his breath.

"If you're going to be making proposals that like, you'd better go back to calling me Michael," he whispered, his eyes fixed intently on hers.

She smiled at him. His blue eyes held her brown ones in an intense gaze. She knew they were both thinking the same thing. Pulling back slightly, she grabbed her drink and downed it, hoping the alcohol would go to work immediately, or perhaps just trying to give her an excuse to act impulsively. Slamming her glass down, she reached over and grabbed the front of his shirt, pulling him close. "Do you want to kiss me now, Michael?" she whispered, smelling the beer on his warm breath in her face.

"More than anything," he replied instantly, eyes widening at the sudden close contact and the tantalizing way her lips moved as she spoke, just inches from his. Without a second thought, he leaned forward and let them meet. He didn't know if it was the drink or just the sheer intensity of the moment, but he could have sworn he felt magical current coursing through his veins as he kissed her. His hands traveled to her waist, and then he let himself reach hesitantly for the oh-so-tempting hair, which, he discovered, was as soft and smooth as he'd imagined.

Su closed her eyes, wanting the moment to last. She knew she shouldn't doing this; he was her boss after all, but she didn't care. She reached up and ran her fingers through his hair, enjoying the soft texture. His mouth was hot and persistent. When she pulled away, pressing her lips together as her face flushed from both kissing and the embarrassment she had no idea what to say. All she knew was she wanted to kiss him again. Without thinking, she pressed her mouth to his again, letting his slant over hers again and again as she wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him close. Finally, reluctantly, she pulled away and just stared into his intense blue eyes.

Michael stared back, his hands still gripping her hips, fingers digging in as though he never wanted to let go. His words betrayed his body, though, as he whispered, "This is a bad idea, yeah? We work together. I'm piss-drunk." He looked her up and down very slowly, and dipped his head to brush a lingering kiss against her lips. "Besides, it's all just lust anyway, and alcohol. Doesn't mean anything, and we don't want to make a mistake we'll regret."

He was proud of himself for thinking this lucidly while drunk, but at the same time, an inner voice was screaming out against his words; this showed quite clearly in the way he reached up to run his knuckles gently across Su's cheek, and smiled softly at her, blue eyes glowing with the haze of lust and alcohol mixed with confused tenderness.

She pulled away from him. "Are you saying you only kissed me because you were drunk?" Her voice shook. Self-loathing welled up inside her. You will not cry, she told herself the moment she felt the tears in her eyes. She stood up before he could respond. "If that's the only reason then you're right. It should end now. In fact, let's forget it ever happened. A drunken mistake, Mr. Corner. That is all it was..." Her voice trailed off. She couldn't look at him now; she felt repulsed by her own behavior, her own self-illusion. She took a deep breath, trying to steady herself so she could leave with dignity in tact. "I suppose I'll see you at the office tomorrow. Good night, Mr. Corner." She stopped and turned around. "Did you -- did you only kiss me because of the alcohol?"

Michael had already leaped off the stool and followed her. He was acutely aware of every pair of eyes in the pub fixed on their melodramatic scene, but he knew he couldn't let himself care. He reached out to grab her wrist, and tugged her closer. "I'm not saying that," he retorted fiercely. "I mean--I am--but I'm not." He swallowed; his tongue felt thick, and his pulse was racing. "I've wanted to kiss you--I've wanted to more than kiss you--ever since you taunted me in your office. Actually, probably, for years." He ran his thumb across her lips, and bit his own lower lip contritely. "But to be honest--all you're feeling right now is lust. You've had something to drink, and we've been at odds, and...are you still going to want me in the morning? I'm giving you a chance to think twice. Not to make the mistake of sleeping with your boss if it's not what you really want." He stared at his feet, embarrassed by his soliloquy, but unable to stop now. "Besides, even if you do really want to--we don't want anything--whatever this is--to happen like this. Drunk, in a pub. Or in the office, for that matter. I can--I can do better than that. Really."

Su jerked her wrist from his hand. "You know, Mr. Corner, you are right." She smiled at him forcefully. "There is nothing left to say. Besides," she lowered her voice to a whisper, "we don't want other people to know do we now? We don't want anyone to know of your mistake. I mean, our. Right, our." She started to walk away, only wanting to go home and crawl into bed with alcohol, to actually feel the alcohol would have been enough for her. She was sober, and he damn well knew she was. He might have been piss-drunk, but she wasn't -- she knew exactly what she was doing, what she wanted. Him. She swung around, feeling sorry for herself as well as angry at herself. "We can forget this, Mr. Corner. Act like it never happened, because Merlin knows, nothing did happen. Two adults -- two colleagues -- hell, two old friends merely sharing a drink." She smiled again, this time sarcastically.

"Fuck!" Michael shouted, and he chased her out of the pub to the path outside. The lights of Hogsmeade danced merrily around him, and he could really feel the alcohol now, loosening his tongue and sharpening his temper.

"That is not what I was trying to say!" he snapped. "I just don't want to take you home from the Three Broomsticks and shag you and not remember it in the morning! I want to do this the right way, dammit! And I don't care if the whole town knows, all right? That is not what this is about!" He glared at her, folding his arms and stumbling slightly. The world around him seemed to be spinning madly out of control.

Su felt bad for him; he looked dizzy and disorientated, yet he had followed her into the bright lights of Hogsmeade. She sighed, frowning. "Just forget it, Mr. Corner." She turned away, intending to go home, but on second thought, turned back around and walked to him. Softly, to what seemed to be his surprise, she kissed him. "Call me when you're sober," she whispered against his mouth before she turned away again.

He reached out in vain to grab her sleeve or arm, but she evaded his grasp, and kept on walking. The taste of her mouth lingered on his lips, and he watched her go with longing. It was entirely unfair that the night had concluded in this way; his attempts to do the right thing had only made everything worse, and Michael felt foolish and immature.

She Disapparated after a few steps more, and her sudden disappearance set off a fresh wave of dizziness in Michael's head. He blinked rapidly, and then turned around and vomited, the evening's drinks splattering across the path. With a groan, he clutched his stomach and then looked up at the starry night sky, grimacing.

Another night to end in disaster. What else was new?