Weasley's Waffle Shack

The Knight Bus stopped, but Roxi and her chair continued to slide forward. She felt her arm shoot over and grab on to Byron's arm, and she stuck out her legs to keep them from being crushed. She connected with another chair and then her chair spun in circles, spurning Roxi to raise her arms in the air and squeal, "WEEEEE!" Her chair spun into Byron's and stopped it.

She stood, spinning slightly, before chirping, "Okay! Let's go!" She pulled Byron from his chair and skipped off the bus, leaving extra coins on top of the ones she had paid when she had arrived. She scampered down the steps and then up the path to her house, opening the door and flying in without knocking. It was late evening by now and dinner was done. It was okay, waffles made a good dinner too.

"MUM! DAD! I'M HOME!" she yelled, walking over to the fridge and pulling out two colas. "BYRON'S HERE TOO! HE'S SPENDING THE-" she turned to see her mother behind her. "NIGHT! Hi, Mum."

"Roxi, no need to yell. How was Hogsmea-"

"Fun, Mum! Went to the Shrieking Shack-" he had chewed tons of gum to rid her mouth of the smell of alcohol as well as sprayed herself with perfume to mask the cigarettes "and then ran into Byron at the Three Broomsticks. We got kicked out again, Mum!" she boasted.

Angelina sighed as George and his son Fred stepped into the room. "Byron's staying?" George said, before pulling him into a headlock. "Awesome! He's making breakfast."

"George!" Angelina warned.

"He already said he's make waffles! And pies! Though that's dinner," Roxi said. She looked at her friend. "What're you making for breakfast?"

George released him and Roxi held out the cola for him. "Welcome home, mate!"

Earlier, Roxanne and Byron were at the Three Broomsticks. The boy was incredibly amused when his friend had pulled out an imaginary friend to match his imaginary girlfriends. He had went into bellows of laughter, accompanied by the sound of thumpings on the table, done by his pounding fists. As if that was not enough to elicit a stern stare from the barman, Roxi had added her own bit of ruckus, no doubt from her excitement, and Byron found both of them thrown out, but on the way to catch the Knight Bus.

How things can take a turn in just one evening! Byron had expected a night of brooding over his secret, but at least for now, he had forgotten about it, and was on his way for yet another mini adventure with his friend. Sure, they were simply heading to the Weasleys', but it was always the journey that was the adventure whenever you put Roxanne Weasley into the equation. For a boy who adored speed, especially from flying, Byron adored the Knight Bus. A second after the bus was sighted, it had pulled up in one swift move in front of them, just missing their noses by an inch.

Byron ran up the bus, after Roxi did, and rushed for a seat, as if he wanted to fly even more through the bus as it sped off wildly through the streets. Sure enough, the boy had his arms clutched to the chair, but his weight and the force of the bus' speed flung him to a far end of the bus, slamming him against its inside wall. It was his back. And of course, it hurt. Once again, he had rushed for something without thinking. But that was not going to put a damper on his spirits. He was always told to suck it up and move along, told none other than by Ludo Bagman himself. Byron released the chair and stood, holding nothing, as if he wanted to balance himself at the centre of the bus despite its movements. He felt a tap on his shoulder and turned to the conductor, where he got his ticket. Then, once again, Byron returned to his balancing play, and he found himself forced to roll over and slam into another wall again. Laughing, he got himself up with some difficulty, and walked to where Roxi had settled herself on. The boy held her chair after he sat on his as both of their chairs shifted constantly throughout the ride.

And then the bus came to a stop. Roxi was sent about on her chair before colliding into Byron's, after he tried to steady himself so that she would be safe when she stopped. Before he knew it, the boy was pulled off his chair, and found himself in the Weasley house. He merely grinned as Roxi made an announcement to every nook and cranny of the house, that they had just entered. Byron spotted Angelina as soon as he had walked in, but he let Roxi scream away anyway, since it was all so very amusing to him. He did, however, give her a sheepish smile a and a slight wave of the hand. Absentmindedly, he reached up to ruffle his own hair as he waited when Angelina spoke to Roxi. Before he could walk over to Angelina for a hug, Byron heard footsteps, and he turned his eyes to the direction that they were coming from. "Hey Mr Weasley. Fred." The boy began to greet, a little overwhelmed from the greeting he was getting from the Weasleys. He had always felt very at home here, but he remembered his manners, because his mum had said to do so. Daddy never really minded himself with the manners. But still, George Weasley was his friend, so perhaps he could take some liberties.

Byron grinned through the headlock that George was giving to him, waving at Fred because the younger boy was staring at him. "Well," Byron started when Roxi directed her question at him. "Honestly? I'm only good at sausage and eggs. I could try waffles, you know, but I can't say how they'll turn out to be like." He would have just gone ahead to cook waffles if it was only for Roxi. Now that he was asked to cook breakfast for the entire house, he really did not want to serve up mediocre, or even bad, food. "It depends on how brave you are. Legend has it, that whoever eats my waffles, never lived to see the next dayyyyy." Byron grinned despite telling that in what he thought to be his best eery tone of voice. As soon as he was done saying that, Byron reached for the cola that Roxi offered him and brought it to his mouth. After a fun in the Knight Bus, he was thirsty indeed, and he was glad that his best friend knew without really knowing.

George had released his grip on Byron, and the younger boy went over to rough up Fred's hair before taking another swig of his cola.

Angelina seemed horrified by her family. As Byron said that Roxi might not live if she risked his waffles, she clutched her heart. "Bad.. waffles.." she gasped, before sinking to the ground, rolling around on the ground. Immediately George and Fred began to swoon, George sinking back into a chair and slumping over the table while Fred leaned against the wall, panting.

Angelina said, "Get up! All three of you, you lot of fools!" George and Fred sat up and Roxi began to push herself in a circle on the ground. Angelina tried to ignore her and twirled around to face Byron. "Byron, dear, don't you worry about making dinner. There's some leftover sandwiches in the fridge, so you guys can have- ROXANNE AVERY WEASLEY GET OFF THE FLOOR THIS INSTANT!"

Roxi lept up and ran over to her Mum, kissing her on the cheek, already as tall as her. "Yes, Mum. I live to serve and please you!" She whisked over to the fridge and reached inside to grab the platter of sandwiches, balancing her pop in the crook of her elbow as she announced, "We're going up to my room! To pig out and have girl talk! Like ohmygawd!"

She grabbed Byron's hand and ran upstairs, singing at the top of her lungs, "CASUE BABY YOU'RE A FIIIIIIIREWORK!"

She reached her room and pushed Byron inside, before slamming the door behind them. She dropped the platter in the middle of her messy room. books and clothes and random impulse buys everywhere. "BON APETITE!" she announced, dropping in front of it, croll legged. She grabbed a sandwich and swigged some of the pop.

Byron could not stop the bouts of laughter. Trust the Weasleys to put up such a show for him. He watched the scene of destruction that he had triggered from the warning of his waffles, and could not help but lean against the nearest wall for support from his laughter. He adored the madness in this house. At home, the madness was one-sided. Ludo Bagman and his son would have to stop tearing the walls of the house down at the sight of Aimee. Angelina reminded Byron of his own mother, although Ludo was a lot more wary of his wife, who had been the head of the house ever since day one of their marriage. It was as if Ludo owed her family for bailing him out of his debts, and in return, he had to make her master for the rest of their lives. Aimee was a lot more strict around the house than Angelina, so Ludo and his son could only go berserk when they find themselves alone at home. And that was rare.

Byron wanted to join Roxanne on her floor-rolling adventure. The problem was, he was not a Weasley, and Angelina would be shocked to find that this boy partakes in her daughter's nonsense. It certainly was not a good idea to shatter Angelina's idealisms about him, so Byron plastered his back to the wall and looked on in laughter. Soon enough, at Angelina's bellows, Roxanne stood up and swiftly got their rations, before dragging him upstairs. Not wanting to seem impolite, Byron directed a shout to the kitchen. "I promise eggs and bacon breakfast tomorrow mornin--ooahhhh!" Byron slammed hard against the door frame of the girl's room before he felt a force pushing him in. A door slammed soon after, and Byron rubbed against his chest, which was the victim of injury from the impact at the door frame.

"Oww ... Rox. You're a man-handler. You'll scare the boys away!" Then, realising that he had whined that out, Byron stopped patting his chest. He decided to bear the remnants of the pain with a false front of ruggedness as he threw himself to the bedroom floor. Just to annoy Roxanne for his amusement, Byron made a grab for the pop that she had taken first, although he had let her take a swig of it before he did so. "Got it!" Sure, he cheated when she was not aware that he would resort to a cheap trick like that, but he merely smirked and brought the bottle to his lips for a big gulp.

As they ran upstairs, Byron shouted back to her family that he would make eggs and bacon and she squealed over him, "AND WAFFLES!" She had gotten in a waffle sort of mood and now she would not be satidfied until she had waffles. She could negotiate to wait for the morning for them though. She could keep her mind from going crazy until then.

She slammed Byron into the door a little harder than she meant to, which was something that happened often since she was a little erratic. "Whoops," she stated, shrugging, before continuing to plow into her room, pushing him inside. She sat and let out a contented sigh, reaching for one of the little sandwiches- they were finger sandwiches really, with corned beef. Yum.

At his words, she rolled her eyes. "Wuss," she muttered. He said she'd scare off the boys and she smirked, putting her hands on her hips. "Not the ones that can handle me!" She giggled and then he snatched the soda from her. She stared at him, blinking, before launching herself over the platter to tackle him. "GIMME BACK MY SODA!"

Byron smirked and hopped onto his feet. Sure, Roxi's room was not a quad or a hallway, but he could make do with the limited space. Perhaps the boy had forgotten that, should Angelina decide to check on them, his image as a perfect best friend could falter. But he did not think about that. Byron made sure that he was grasping the bottle in his sturdy hands before stepping away from his friend.

"What? What did you say?" He grinned and took another gulp from the bottle. As soon as that gulp was done, Byron swayed the bottle from side to side. "Say Byron Bagman, everyone wants a bag of this man, first." Byron laughed, eyeing Roxi, ensuring that she would not make a grab for the bottle. He always had good reflexes. It was important for a Quidditch player. Still, it was not as if his reflexes were invincible. They had their days too.

"So ... what's this about girl talk, Rox. Anything you want to share ... stories to make my night? The better your story, the better the breakfast tomorrow, eh?"

Roxi snatched at the air, the air that had been previously occupied by Byron's torso, but was now simply that- air. She had been hoping to take him by surprise, snatch the soda, send him tumbling, and miraculously manage to preserve every drop of the precious pop.. So maybe it was a good thing that Byron had jumped to his feet at the last second.

She pushed herself up so that she was sitting cross legged at Byron's feet, her head tipped all the way back, her copperish hair hanging straight down as she stared up determinedly at her friend, crossing her arms and saying, "Hmph!" She blew air upwards, causing her bangs to fan out in the air and she watched him taunt her with the soda.

She began to pout, sticking out her bottom lip, refusing to give in to his terms. She allowed her eyes to grow incredibly large, her lips to tremble, eyebrows to curve as though he had physically hurt her with his actions. "How can I think about telling stories after you betrayed me so terribly?"

Byron was glad at his speed. Even if the speed in his brains lacked a little, at least his body made up for it. Still, the boy was not stupid. He was merely a slower learner, and had depended on Roxi all these years at school, to catch up, not to mention beneficial friendships with Ravenclaws. Byron did not, however, treat those friendships as purporting to that. He could never. His conscience comes down pretty hard on him. He made friends because he genuinely liked them. And he tried to live life well. It was not the wild kind of well. Rather, he lived with and for and from his principles. That is why his dirty secret had began to eat him up. Perhaps Byron was unlike his best friend. He could not really let go and live life, at least not like her. Sure, he accompanied her in her antics, but sometimes he did them so he could look out for her.

The boy watched as Roxi snatched at him but failed to even glide her nail across his torso. Grinning, he shook his arse from side to side, as if taunting her for failing to do so. He chuckled when Roxi blew at her bangs. She may have been trying to look angry, but Byron found it comical instead. It definitely had to do with being accustomed to her from so many years of friendship. And then she had to put up that pity face. Byron knew she was faking it, knowing how well she could express herself just by facial expressions. Still, his conscience started to do its job as soon as it saw that face. Byron stopped laughing and allowed a moment of hesitation to fill the air. Slowly, he lowered the bottle of pop, near enough for Roxi to grab it back.

In an impulse, he lowered himself and leaned to kiss the girl's left cheek. Byron had meant for it to be swift and friendly, but perhaps he stayed there a little longer than he should. It was strange. Her skin felt a baby's. Very unlike the women at ... Byron frowned. How did that thought get into his head? It seemed like there was no getting rid of those thoughts in his head, and yet he knew he was going to continue to visit them. It was a sort of escapism for him, perhaps it was the same for Ludo Bagman too.

When Byron realized that he had plastered his lips at the girl's cheek a little too long, he pulled back immediately, finding his head hitting the ground and his legs in the air. He tried to grin from how silly that would look, and managed a mild one. While lying on the floor of the girl's room, Byron reached for a sandwich and placed it on his chest. Then he reached for another one and stuffed it into his mouth. The boy began to chew on that bite and looked at the ceiling. What did he just do?

Roxi rarely ever got irritated, because when she was irritated it was usually because someone was playing along in such a way that frustrated her, but at least they were playing along. Roxi could not be serious enough to be content with someone simply giving in to her will or her whims. Life was a game and it was meant to be played.

So the fact that Byron was presenting a challenge 'irritated' her in a way that really entertained her more than anything. Her pout would do the trick though, she knew it. Byron could act like a brat just as well as she could, but he was much too nice to feel like he was taking something away from her. He simply could not be mean to people, and especially not to his friends.

And especially to her.

She saw his resolve weaken and slowly but surely, he lowered the bottle of pop, whether he did so purposely she did not know, but she snatched at it and felt a hand fasten around the pop. She glanced up to see if Byron would release the bottle and saw him leaning towards her. She blinekd and felt his lips touch her cheek, a gesture she had done often to him. But the seconds stretched on and when he finally keeled over, legs in the air, grabbing at sandwiches, Roxi scrunched her eyebrows together.

"Well. That was new," she stated, speaking exactly what she was thinking, a small giggle coming out of her mouth. Roxi could not take things seriously and her mind was refusing to let her think too much in depth about what had just transpired between two best friends.

As soon as Roxi spoke her words of observation, although they were merely said on a spur, Byron felt the bite of sandwich in him turn to stones instead. It became incredibly hard to chew when he was feeling incredibly awkward. It was puzzling, why he had lingered at the girl's cheek. Usually, even, she was the one with the affections. Byron was more accustomed to showing affections in non-physical ways. This time, though, he did it, and he lingered too long at it. He was definitely confused, and he definitely began to blame his recent lifestyle for it. Perhaps he had become so unclean that he had to behave like this around girls. He wished it did not have to be this way. Roxi was his best friend. Byron chomped hard on the remains of sandwich in his mouth, determined to turn the 'stones' into just food for him again.

"Hmmm?" He offered weakly in response, looking at the food instead of at his friend, hoping that the odd moment would pass. "So ... I got a job at the Leaky Cauldron. You're looking at its new bartender!" Byron grinned, glad to have thought of something to direct the attention of the room to. "My dad won't be seeing so much of me then. Wicked." Silently, Byron grinned at the reasons in his head. Still, it would have sounded odd. Byron and Ludo Bagman were a pair since day one. For the boy to suddenly sound like he did not want to spend time with his father was definitely something new. Byron was hoping that a job would make him occupy his time with less guilt-wrenching activities, although a part of him had sold itself to guilty pleasures, and it was not as if he held a firm 'no' towards them now. He could not handle the idea that someone, somewhere, would find that out, sometime. Secrets never stayed secrets for long.

"What're the rest of your summer plans, Rox?" Byron asked, before he reached out for another sandwich.