one breath too late

"You are?!" Byron yelled a little too excitedly, playing along of course, though some part of him was jumping if it was even possible. He ignored it, that part was stupid, he thought. A couple of people turned to stare at him when he screamed the two words earlier, but Byron grinned at them and shrugged. He would not stop just to please these uptight gits. "You get to sleep on my bed, okay. I'm nice like that. But I get the bigger slices of the pies." Byron teased, knowing Roxi would undoubtedly be more interested in the pies despite his getting too used to it. Every morning, some new scent would greet his nose, and daddy would already be up trailing the scent too. "Well," he began again.

"If I nick those pies ..." Byron shifted, put his elbow on the table and leaned closer to his friend. "What would I get in return? Come on, Rox, there's gotta be an exchange, somehow." Byron's eyes twinkled, and he winked suggestively. It was just a joke, and Byron had teased Roxi like that before because he never thought anything possible between him and the girl, anything romantic or whatsoever. He was sure it would stay that way.

Byron's spine shot upright and he pumped his chest up, wanting to pretend to retaliate when Roxi talked about the universe's punishment. But he stopped when she apologized. "Come on Rox, it's nothing. No biggie. I've taken bludgers before, what is this?" He grinned, showing off a little on his Quidditch experience again. He hoped that Hogwarts was doing fine. He really wanted to go back to school and tryout and train and play Quidditch again. The way the last school term had ended was a flurry of horrendous happenings that he did not want to think about as soon as he got back home. Perhaps, also, when Byron returns to school, he might stop feeling so bad about his new ... lifestyle, since it was not as if he had access to it then anyway. It was all his dad's fault, Byron thought about it once more, squeezing his dog tag in frustration.

The boy sighed. It seems, yet again, that Roxi had caught his blind. "Blimey, Rox. How do you know such things?" He frowned, in slight admiration that his friend could tell he was lying, because he thought he had faked it pretty well. He thought. "It's nothing," he started, wanting to dismiss the problem, but knowing Roxi, he knew she would not rest. He had to come up with something else. "Well ... daddy has a ... drinking problem. So I - well - Imstayingaway." Byron rushed through his last words, thinking it might help his lie. Right. Byron's face became miserable again. At this rate, Roxi was going to find out everything.

Roxi scrunched her nose thoughtfully, thinking over the prospect of living with Byron- she practically did anyway. If he wasn't at her house, she was typically at his. Less pies for a bed.. She considered this for a moment before her expression cleared and she shook her head. "Nu uh. I'll take the big pieces of pie and sleep under your bed. Besides, I bet your bed stinks." She stucked her tongue out at him, closing her eyes. Ah, maturity.

When her eyes opened she began to listen to him and she grinned widely-- the language of flirting was the language that she spoke best, even over English, for her rambling did not make sense to most people. She smirked widely, glad to be speaking about something she had much more expertise on. She tilted her head, her hair swinging to one side. "For pies? Whatever your ickle heart desires, darling." She smirked widely, breaking the illusion with a giggle.

The Byron started to try to act as though he really had not hurt himself off and she gave him a fake sympathetic look, nodding. "Uh huh." She stood up squaring her own shoulders and saying in a gruff voice, "I'm Byron and I'm a man!" She whooped loudly and lowly, pumping her fist in the air, getting a lot of looks. "I'm a man and I need no help from no woman!" She burst into laughter and said, between giggles and snorts, "I'm sorry, Byron. Want me to kiss it and make it better? Not your bruised ego, of course, but your finger."

She sighed, drinking more Butterbeer as the subject took a turn for the serious. Byron seemed pretty upset and as he mused how she could peek into his mind, she grinned. "I'm in your head, Byron," she said creepily. "Creepin' on your thoughts." She smiled sweetly and he continued on and her face turned to actual sympathy, her bottom lip jutting out. "I'm sorry, Byron. If things get bad, you can stay at my house. Mum likes you better than me anyway." She grinned.

"It doesn't!" He replied, a little louder than his average volume. But Byron was grinning so he definitely was not angry. "It smells of Byron Bagman, Quidditch extraordinaire." Then the boy cleared his throat before launching into an act. "Well girls, step up, step up. No, no. Line up. Bagman will see all of you and sign on your shirt for you, yes. If you've a pretty face, Bagman will spot you first!" He imitated that in his most manly voice, before chuckling at the silly performance of his. "Roxanne Weasley, you just don't know a good thing when you see one. I mean, a good someone." Byron flashed what he thought to be a megawatt smile, but which turned out sheepishly as a result. He was having a good time.

And then Roxi returned his weak attempt at flirting, and Byron felt himself back away. His ickle heart had given a squeeze. He coughed hard, as if to do so was to give it a beating. And then his head shot up because Roxi had stood up and began to fool around in return. People were staring at them again, wondering why this table made so much noises. Byron threw a menacing stare at one of the men when one of them seemed to be eyeing Roxi not for her act, but for her legs. He wished he could throw his mug at that old man's face. Only when that man turned away did Byron return his attention to his friend. He grinned. "Maybe you can kiss my arse to make everything feel better?" He chuckled and took another swipe of his butterbeer.

"It's really nothing, okay." But he continued to put pressure on the finger. "Yeah, well. Maybe tonight I can go over?" Byron actually wondered, but found himself speaking his words out loud. Daddy would start wondering why he was missing, and Byron did not feel like explaining himself. "Your house?"

"It smells of Byron Bagman, Quidditch extraordinaire." Roxi gave him a skeptical look. "Which means it will smell like you and Quidditch. Even if the first part isn't bad enough, then you also have the added smells of dirt and grime and sweat." She crunched her nose at the thought. She was kidding of course. Byron was actually one of the few boys who typically always smelt good. He was one to pride himself on his appearance- as was she, though she had a little different style- and it was another thing that made them so compatible as friends. However, it was too much fun to keep insisting that he was a stinker than to admit she had caught a whiff of him as she walked in and had found it lovely.

She laughed at his performance- typically, she was the one putting on the show- and then rolled her eyes at his words. "Whatever," she said in a light tone, having run low on witty comebacks. "That was a lovely performace. I know it was a performance because I've never seen girls lining up to take your autograph." She chuckled. So there was some wit left.

She laughed at his suggestion and she said, "In your dreams, buddy! And if that's what you're dreaming about, you're sick." She smirked. He continued on to ask if he could tay that night and she nodded. "Of course. Mum's releived to hear I have friends, and like I said, she likes you better. Daddy likes you too." She smiled. "It'll be fun. You can make me pie. And waffles." She gasped. "Byron, make me waffles!"

Byron reached a hand up to the top of his head and began to ruffle his hair, as though they were feathers to ruffle, and as if was protesting what Roxi had commented about his smell and his performance. "Now there you're wrong Rox," he began. "Remember how I told you that there was Emma? Then that one time there was Leah, followed by Alee. Oh and before all of them there was Clarity. They liked me." Byron nodded as he rattled fake names off his head. "And when I start playing for the Wimbourne Wasps next time, there'll be more!" 

Byron grinned before he reached for his mug, finishing up the last of his butterbeer. He stared at the lonely drop left in the mug before he drank it up too. Byron wanted to order more buy he had a fixed allowance. His parents were not wealthy, merely good enough to provide comfortably. And mother was the one in charge of his allowance. She had told him she would not give him more until she trusted him with more. Byron reached into his pocket and found a lonely sickle. Ah, well he thought, before crossing his arms and leaning them on the table.

The boy was glad that Roxi had seem keen on him staying over. He would not have wanted to if he had detected any sign of unwillingness because he never liked being a burden. But of course, Roxi never really refused a stayover before. She was too used to it. Seeing that his mug had dried up too, Byron nodded readily.

"If I scald any precious parts of my body, which is all, in fact ... you've to give me yours! Otherwise ... yes, waffles it is!" With that, Byron eyed Roxi, ready to leave if she was leaving too.

Roxi sighed, a long, slow sigh. "Byron, dearest," she stated, her eyes closing as she shook her head. "I've told you this so many times I've lost count. It's not cool to speak of imaginary people! It makes you look sad, so so sad. Isn't that right, Greyson?" she turned to the thin air, blinking and nodding as though listening to an incredibly detailed argument. "Oho!" She took a look of surprise and put her hand to her upper lip, looking back at Byron. "He got you, there!"

Byron agreed to pancakes. Roxi's eyes twinkled and a chesire cat grin unfurled on her face. She drew her fist to her ankles. "Yeeeeeeeeee-ES!" On the end of the word, she flung her fist into the air, her body following with it, kicking her chair backwards as her hair spun around. She raised both fists and bellowed, "WOO HOO! WAFFLES!"

She saw the barman get up, undoubtedly to yell at her and she nodded at him, "I know! We have to skedaddle. Got it!" She ealked over to Byron and grabbed his wrist. "C'mon Byron!" She flung some money on the table for a tip and dragged her friend out with her. "C'mon! Off to the Knight Bus we go!"