WHO: Patricia Stimpson & Angelina Johnson WHAT: Girl talk~ WHEN: December 12 WHERE: Patty's!
Patty was pleased Angelina could stop by for a visit. Since her recent brush with potential Dementorâs kiss, she felt less inclined to go out unless she had too. Preferably with a bunch of people. Sometimes she considered proposing a work from home option with the network. She dwelled on that thought a moment longer than was really necessary and snapped her focus back to Ang. âPretty sure Iâm gonna have to find a new roommate,â she sighed looking down over to Henry the cat playing around on the floor. âShe really isnât a cat person, but I saw him and couldnât say no.â Patty shrugged, if she was honest she had never really liked her flat mate much at all anyway. âToo bad he couldnât split the rent with me.â
âHenryâs cuter than your roommate,â Angelina said from the floor, waving a fluffy cat toy in front of Henry. She angled a grin at Patty, but her eyes didnât leave Henry for long. Cat toys plus cat claws equaled cat scratches if you werenât paying attention. âMaybe he could start earning his keep. Heâd make a good cat model, yeah?â She jerked the toy away from Henry at the very last second with a laugh.
âOh way cuter,â Patty agreed as she watched Henry jump for the toy. âHuh,â she thought about what Angelina said. âYou know, I think youâre right. He could be a great cat model. I could make him wizta famous Iâm sure. Get some sponsorships.â Patty sounded kind of enthusiastic by the idea, even if she knew it was probably wishful thinking. If only she could have a cat roommate who could pay her way. âPerhaps Roger could give Henry some modelling tips,â Patty said with a laugh as she joked.
âI donât know if wee Henry here has the muscles for Rogerâs brand of modelling,â Angelina said, echoing Pattyâs laugh. She pretended to do a few biceps curls with the cat toy, Henryâs head bobbing with each rep as he followed its fluffy end. âDo a few of these, Hank, and youâll be Roger in no time!â
âOh yeah, definitely. We can buff him right up.â Patty laughed as she watched Henryâs head bobbing with each rep. âOh, better watch yourself there Ang, you might end up with a kitty attack.â She noticed Henryâs bum wiggling like he was getting ready to pounce.
Out of self-preservation, Angelina nonchalantly lowered her arm and flicked the toy a few more times off to the side, jerking it away just as Henry pounced. When he looked up at her with wide, betrayed eyes, she couldnât help but laugh again, reaching out to scratch behind his ears. âHeâs really cute, though. You made the right choice!â
Patty couldnât help but smile as Angelina played with Henry.âI agree, he is really cute and the right choice. Who cares if the roommate leaves.â She could probably find someone, or a cheaper place. âI mean who could say no to that face.â Patty gestured to Henry.
âSo, how are things with you?â Patty asked feeling she should check in with her friend after all times were crazy.
Things were stressful in myriad of ways and not really something Angelina could talk to poor Patty about. âPercyâs coming to Christmas dinner at the Weasleys,â she said instead of talking about how badly she missed her aunt or how Quidditch felt like it was slipping through her fingers. âSo Fred and I are going to fake break up with each other so no one else can argue.â
Patty raised an eyebrow, âReally he is coming to Christmas!â That seemed a surprise to her even from someone not closely connected with the family. âSo, how would fake break up help? That things are bad enough or something?â Wasnât the war good enough to do that? Like enjoy the time you could spend with your family. Patty didnât say it though she didnât really wanna bring up how bad things were or touch on the fact she knew her parents would be begging her to stay with them when she went back for Christmas.
âItâs a distraction,â Angelina said with a shrug. âAnd fake.â She took a deep breath and let it out in a sigh, glancing over at Patty. âIâm hoping the dinner goes well, though. Itâd be nice to see them all get along.â
Patty nodded her head, âI agree it would be nice.â Not that she had much interaction with the complete Weasley family like Angelina but a riff like that most likely wasnât pleasant. âI bet it will be nice to have a significant other over Christmas, even if you are fake broken up.â Patty smiled, even if things werenât good for the magical world as a whole at least Angelina found a positive and something to be happy about. âI think just nice having positives in time like these you know.â
âBeing really broken up with Fred last Christmas wasâŚâ Angelina trailed off, pulling a face down at the floor. Sheâd stopped scratching behind Henryâs ears so heâd taken up rubbing his face against her hand. Breathing a laugh through her nose, she started petting him again and looked at Patty. âI think good friends is a positive, too. Plus Iâm stealing Henry so thatâll be another positive.â She grinned at her friend.
âWhoa what?â Patty gasped and looked overly dramatic in her shock. âWho said it was okay to steal Henry?â She faintly chuckled because nobody asked when they stole. âNo way, he is all mine for the holidays.â Patty nodded her head. âI got Henry and the quidditch calendar.â Patty joked though tried to be deadpan about it.
âIf you want to leave my month up year round,â Angelina said, an understanding hand pressed to the middle of her chest, âI would understand. Iâm sure the others would, too. I meanâŚâ She gestured demonstratively at herself, the corners of her mouth twitching despite her attempts to look like she was being serious.
âIf anyone is going up all year round it is Roger,â the words came out with a sort of wishful tone before Patty could catch them and keep them in. She looked at Angelina as she backpedalled, âThough you would obviously be a good choice year round.â Yup, smooth recovery she never said anything else.
âI would,â Angelina agreed, as if she hadnât realized what Patty had said. But she had. To coax Henry into playing with her, she prodded him with the toy before wiggling it enticingly off to the side. And then, careful to keep the toy moving away from her flesh, she aimed another grin at Patty. âSoâŚRoger, huh?â
Patty focused on Henry watching him play. She let Angelinaâs question hang there for a moment not really sure how to answer her. âHuh yeah...noâŚwell,â her words punctuated with noises of being unsure. âYeah I guess,â she said a bit sheepish but also relieved that she had said it. So maybe now she wouldnât have to deal with feeling any sort of crush like thing for one of her friends.
Angelina gave one of Pattyâs knees a poke. âOh, you guess.â She set aside the toy and hauled herself off the floor to sit at Pattyâs side. âRogerâs cute! And really nice. And a good Quidditch player, too.â She paused and then laughed. âThough I know thatâs more my criteria than yours.â
Patty gave a half smile, âYeah he is cute and really nice to me.â She nodded her head in agreement. âYeah I like him, but Iâm pretty sure it is one-sided in the beyond friends department.â Patty shrugged her shoulders and looked at Angelina. âAnd youâre criteria isnât bad criteria.â
Patty looked to her knee before looking back at Angelina. âYeah, I guess so.â She gave a nervous laugh. âThough I donât think Iâm gonna go and ask him anything.â
But Angelina was already considering how sheâd casually bring up Patty to Roger to get a sense of his feelings for her. âYou know, youâre cute, too. And really nice.â She bumped her shoulder into Pattyâs. âRoger would be lucky to have a girlfriend like you.â
âThanks,â she smiled a bit bashfully. She nudged her shoulder against Angelina. âAnd Fredâs lucky he has a girlfriend like you, but I think he knows that.â
âHeâd better!â Angelinaâs smile went a little sentimental thinking about Fred and luck. She wiped her hand over her mouth. âHey, what do you think about putting on a film? Do you have snacks? Also, bonus points if the lead actor looks like Roger so I can get all my teasing out of my system!â
âI have snacks and a film. Dunno about the Roger look alike, but Iâll see what I can do.â