Must I really resort to this?

Felix grinned at her honesty and flicked his hair out of his face, wishing for the first time in a long time that his hair was gone, so he could show off his squared jaw, his smooth features, his charming smile on this pretty lady. Instead he was playing a madman who was accepting her generosity. He should have shaved, worn a hood, something.. anything to keep from having things like this happen.

If she ever found out who he actually was.... well he hoped that never happened, but if she did, he hoped she wouldn't put two and two together. The crazy homeless guy and Felix Barker weren't exactly much alike. Felix Barker was a cold criminal who tortured people for fun, having gone on the run a few years back, he was ready to believe no one even remembered his name. However, people remembered more then you'd give them credit for. If he were to yell in public who he was, most likely he'd get a reaction, simply from people who remembered.

And people who didn't remember would soon be informed and they would react as well. "Well I bet your friend Claire doesn't have an ounce on you, when it comes to Beauty." He said with a grin, glancing around the bar again, his eyes taking in the various occupants.

The bartender set out their teas and Elsie thanked him kindly. Still, his eyes lingered on her nervously, anxiously, protectively. Elsie found that the people around her formed naturally protective relationships with her, thinking herself incapable of defending herself. She thought the amount of one-night stands she had and the lack of troubles she had experienced because of them served to prove she had some skill. And she had handled herself pretty well with the whole Nash and Death Eaters situation. Seeing as they had tried to kill her and she was alive and well seemed to serve as a good example of how well she could handle herself.

Unfortunately, she could not advertise this triumph (if a failed murder attempt could be called a triumph) because it would only serve to attract the Death Eater’s British comrades, as well as worry Claire beyond what was necessary. Elsie had come to the United Kingdom to help her friend, not become yet another responsibility, another wrinkle on her young friend’s forehead. Yet, here she was, irresponsibly taking a homeless wizard out to lunch because she thought she needed to be a little bit more charitable. And she wondered why people worried about her? It was becoming more and more apparent.

She smiled at his words. “Yes, but she’s blonde, and men do love their blondes.” She took a drink of her tea and laughed. “No, I know we’re both solid tens. That’s why we stick together.” She winked and their food was delivered. “Thanks, Carl! Speedy as ever.” She gave him a smile but he was still unhappy with the homeless man at his bar. She reviewed her food and deemed it worthy, before looking to her companion. “So… You’re magical. How did you end up in your situation?” Probably a bit rude, but tact was never one of Elsie’s gifts.

Felix rolled his eyes in an exaggerated fashion, grinning at the woman. "Blondes are overrated." He laughed, but he felt his stomach drop to his feet. He couldn't help it, his one true love had been blonde.. beautiful blonde hair, set on an intelligent head, with a beautiful face. His laugh fell off his lips shortly after it had been released and he looked down at the bar, his face betraying his emotion.

He looked up quickly as the food was brought to them, and he could hear his stomach rumbling loudly. His thin, worn and faded clothes keeping no sound back as he stared at it, his mouth watering. He took a sip of the tea, before picking up his sandwich and taking a bite out of it, his haste to eat so evident, he barely chewed before he swallowed it.

After regularly having no food, and when he did have food having to eat it quickly or get chased off without eating anything, he had grown used to speed eating. Throwing whatever he had down his throat and being done with it. He had no use to chew except to help get it down his throat in a way that didn't make him choke. He took only a few bites before swallowing.

His overall action made him look like a starved dog, one that fully expected to get it's food yanked away from it after years of abuse. He had eaten a large chunk of his sandwich before her question was even out of her mouth. After he managed to swallow and took a drink of the tea, he looked at her and sighed.

"Er.. well, Let's just say I ran into some bad people.. I used to be on top of the world, it's obviously pretty rare to see someone who can summon things at will, going hungry in the streets. Let alone without a house, or without money.." He looked at his sandwich sadly, before glancing to her again. "See.. I'm an innocent man, but there are some guys out there who would like the world to think otherwise." He stopped suddenly and took another bite of the sandwich, swallowing it with haste and looking back at her.

"They had my assets seized, my bank accounts suspended... and well... I'm too afraid to try and right the wrong they created. I am not a brave man, I've always been a coward and I don't fight... so when things went downhill, I split. Took the high road and got the hell out of dodge. Went to some other countries, traveled for a while, until I realized I was being followed."

He had thrown himself fully into this make-believe story. A story he had made up and practiced repeatedly in it's telling, a story that wasn't all that off from the truth, but enough off that it made him out to be the victim of some pretty bad people. Pretty bad people who didn't actually exist.

"You see, they managed to put a tracker on my magic... not that I used it often.. but apparating counted, I wasn't safe anymore, I did any spell or magic and they'd come knocking on my door wanting their money.. which of course they already seized all my money, so they would come knocking looking for an excuse to off me."

He sounded sad, he wasn't eating anymore, he simply stared at his sandwich, saying his whole story in monotone, as though it hurt to put emotion behind the words. "So... I'm hiding, what better place to hide though then right under their noses... Just don't go blabbering to anyone now, ya hear?" He said, suddenly turning his gaze on her, before lifting his sandwich to his mouth and taking another large bite, hardly swallowing as he tried to get it shoved down his throat as fast as possible.

"I mean... you wouldn't know the people who are lookin for, they keep themselves secret.. don't like confrontation.. but I worry..."