Dec. 28: Theatre - The Asphyx: Roddy?

[Kyra Thatcher]

There were never enough layers to properly block a winter wind, and as Kyra bustled down the sidewalk towards the theatre she'd agreed to meet up with friends at, she was wishing she'd taken her mum's advice and worn a scarf and some long underwear under her jeans. That wouldn't have been as cute, though - and she'd warm up soon...Fabian's good for that, she thought with a smirk. The evening had gotten dark fast, and she walked quickly, hurrying so to not be late. The usual holiday group - Phoebe and herself, the Bones', and the Prewett twins - were set to go and see The Asphyx, which she really could not be more excited for. It was a hilarious group to get together, and the movie seemed wicked. Her roommate had gone to see it (Would it've killed you to ask me to go with you, Marie?) and had come back scared out of her wits, meaning that it was going to, with any luck, be right up Kyra's alley. Parapsychology, accidental murder, and guinea pigs were all involved - she'd had Marie stop then, intrigued enough to suggest it when Roderick had called with the idea to see a film. They'd worked out the time, he'd promised to spread the message, and here she was with an excuse to leave the family tour of Lizzie's downtown apartment early (after being away at university, this holiday was feeling a little too full of family time) to meet the rest.

But when she was swept into the lobby by the wind and her own urgency, Kyra only saw Roderick from the group she was supposed to meet. Fluffing her windswept hair and hoping her cheeks were a pretty pink from the great outdoors and not a ruddy mess, she quickly headed over to him.

"Is everyone else getting us seats? Am I really that late?"

[Roderick Bones]

This was it. He had finally managed to ask Kyra out on a date. Well, sort of. He'd invited her to come see a movie with the group, as was normal holiday tradition. But what he didn't actually do was invite anybody else. He'd made up some lame excuse about how he had plans with a friend to get out of family activities. Now he just had to hope that he didn't run into his brother with Phoebe, or the Prewett twins anywhere. Especially Fabian, because that would completely ruin his chances with Kyra. They'd had some sort of weird on/off relationship going on for a few years now. But it was clear that Fabian wasn't about to commit. Which is why Roderick would be the perfect match for Kyra.

And while yes, she was a few years older and already in University, that didn't mean that he wasn't just as mature and grown up. He had already decided on a career path, and it was only two more years left in school. Then he would be becoming a doctor, or at least the magical equivalent of it.And he would write her back - something Fabian had failed to do after the first time he had gone on a date with Kyra, But Roderick saw how his brother treated Phoebe, and how his father treated their mother. (Not to say that Fabian's mother wasn't well treated, Fabian just obviously wasn't paying attention). He would treat Kyra like a queen, and she'd fall for him.

Simple as that.

He fidgeted nervously as he waited for Kyra, tickets in hand, he smiled as he saw her approach. She looked as pretty as ever, and he had to remind himself how to speak after she asked him a question. "Actually, everyone bailed on us. Fabian and Gideon had a family thing, and Edgar and Phoebe wanted some alone time." The lie was a practiced one, and hopefully it was convincing enough that Kyra wouldn't decided she didn't want to stick around. He'd picked a movie he was sure she would like, hopefully that would be enough for her to stay. "I went ahead and grabbed us tickets though. Did you want to get some popcorn or something?"

[Kyra Thatcher]

So it's just the two of us? While she loved Roddy like a third little brother, Kyra had been looking forward to getting everyone together tonight. And like most of the time, she didn't hide what she was feeling: disappointment. Yes, those who had graduated could see each other whenever, but traditions were important. And now - although she hoped the movie would be as gripping as she thought - she didn't even have the option to fool around with Fabian during the dull moments. "And Amelia felt like ditching us?" The brow-raise she gave him was well familiar to the kid, seeing as it was the one she used on Edgar quite often. Phoebe's boyfriend was a bit much sometimes most of the time. But she hadn't had to use it on Roderick before - he and his sister were the sensible ones! "That doesn't seem like her."

Suspicious but not about to abandon the kid alone downtown, Kyra waited for his answer before heading towards concessions. "I've had a hankering for Smarties all day, what can I get you?" It was only fair that she picked up the snack tab since he'd gotten the tickets and...found a way into London. As they joined the queue, she unzipped her jacket, pocketed her gloves, and inquired, "How'd you get here, anyway? Don't tell me you drove - I didn't teach you and Phoebe would've told me if she did, and if it was Edgar I'll be driving you back, it'd be a miracle if you took his driving advice and made it home in the dark." Ed and the Prewetts, for all their fancy boarding school education, hadn't even learned how to drive by the end of school. Thus, this past summer she and her best friend had made it a personal mission to get the blokes into functional adulthood. To make a long story short - Ed couldn't be trusted behind the wheel, they'd had so many near-misses that Kyra felt divine intervention had in fact intervened for their benefit, and only her stubbornness had kept her from giving up on the three of them. But was Roddy even of legal driving age yet?

[Roderick Bones]

He should have thought about this more. Kyra looked disappointed when he told her that the rest of their usual group wouldn't be coming. Was he really that terrible to hang out with? He could be just a suave as Fabian, if that is what she was worried about. But he needed to keep his cool, so he simply shifted his weight and attempted to look just as disappointed as she did. Because realistically, he should be upset that no one else was coming. Not secretly delighted that his plan to ask her out had worked. Unfortunately, she brought up Amelia and his heart sunk. He hadn't thought to include her in his original list of people, and the brow raise Kyra was giving him said enough. He needed a lie - and quick. "She's worried about not having her homework done in time," he answered, giving a shrug. "Said she'd much rather work on it than see this movie." That was believable, right? She was a studious type of person, and he wasn't sure if this movie was up her alley.

He followed her towards the concession stand, fumbling with the muggle money in his pocket. He was thankful his mother was muggle born - it made it much easier to learn how to function like a muggle would. He couldn't imagine some of those snarky purebloods he went to school with trying to buy a ticket at a muggle movie theater. "Smarties sound great, actually. But I can pay for it, Mum gave me extra money since pretty much everyone bailed on me." Hopefully that lie was believable as the rest of them he had been telling. He fidgeted with the coins, waiting as patiently as he could in the line. But her next question - why did she have to ask so many - had him fumbling for another excuse. "Oh no, I can't drive. Dad had to come into town to pick up some files he left at work so he dropped me off. Figured I would call them later to come and get me." This was far too difficult, they simply needed to get into the movie theater so she would have to stop talking.

[Kyra Thatcher]

Asking about Amelia seemed to throw the middle Bones off what game he had - which was surprising, why wouldn't she inquire about Amelia when the whole gang had been set to get together, and she was the only one who he hadn't given an excuse for? Curious, how everyone all of a sudden has other plans... Kyra waited, not truly satisfied, until Roddy was finished fumbling for an acceptable answer. While the movie wasn't totally Amelia's genre, Kyra still didn't totally buy the girl ditching them to do schoolwork. "Must be some damn exciting homework," she said with a look, dropping that point for now. But as she went into the concessions line with the boy, and he insisted on paying, and was again bumbling with an explanation, this time bringing in poor Greg into it, she could 1) feel his frustration with her questioning and 2) feel herself becoming ever-more suspicious.

Roderick had known her for years, he knew she wasn't one to settle for an easy answer. Her natural inclination towards suspicion, coupled with an unhealthy love of mystery novels as a child, had had her blossom into this creature of habit. She thrived on life's curiosities, and a kid she considered a little brother trying so hard to make it seem as though he wasn't lying to her? That was definitely a new curiosity...which might be easily solved. Roddy, sweet boy, had been harboring a crush on her for ages. It was easy enough to see, and she'd teased him about it incessantly - although her teasing could have been misconstrued for flirting, if he hadn't understood...or if Ed had said she wasn't faking...

All of their friends being busy wasn't something she would accept. Phoebe, at the very least, would've given her a ring. So had Roderick thought to wrangle her in to some sort of...date?

Let's see how much this'll freak you out then, sly boy you think you are.

"Well, however you really got here, I can't have you paying for everything," Kyra said, playfully nudging herself ahead of him in the line, "or you're going to start thinking this is a date." She maintained her lead until they got to the front, and both amused with and frustrated by the boy, got the candy for them. Why Roderick thought this was a good idea - if she was right about things - was beyond her. Tricking her into spending one-on-one time with him? He could've just asked her to get together, and she would have! Oh no, trying to fool her? He was in for it. Plans brewing, Kyra took his arm to steer him towards the theatre. "Come on then, it's starting soon, we've got to get seats together!"

[Roderick Bones]

As he fumbled for an excuse, he was pretty sure that Kyra wasn't buying a word of it. Her words only confirmed her suspicions, but she dropped it after that. It wasn't that unlike Amelia to want to do homework, and magic homework was actually pretty exciting. And while his idea wasn't going exactly as planned, she hadn't left.

It seemed she wasn't going to budge on paying for snacks, and he laughed awkwardly at her words. She totally knows. He would never live this down if it went badly. And so he let her pay, hoping that she would be more accepting of this scenario if he just let her get her way. But he was trying to be a gentleman! She was throwing his groove off with her questions.

She was quickly steering them into the theater, and he followed willingly as she picked out seats for them. Seats that were unfortunately not very secluded, but once the lights were out maybe it wouldn't be so bad. "How has your holiday been so far? Dreading going back to uh what's it called? Primary school?"

[Kyra Thatcher]

Embarrassment: check.

    It's a start.

As the blonde steered her much younger "date" into the theatre, Kyra started forming a nebulous game plan of her own. If Roderick Bones thought he wanted a date with her, should she give it to him? Make him realize he was not ready for that? Or should she call him out now, put him in his place for trying to trick her?...He was like family, he should know better than to try this! Hell, he should know better than to try and fool her! Still undecided on her angle, Kyra eased them past actual couples on actual dates and settled them into decently middle seats.

She took off her jacket and set it on the empty seat next to them, part of her regretting the choice of wearing a tight sweater - in her defense, she'd planned on fooling around with an age appropriate bloke tonight. Nothing to do about it now, though, Kyra opened up the Smarties and was munching as contentedly as possible when Roddy...asked something that, to her knowledge, an above-grade-level student shouldn't ask.

"Are you trying to be funny? I need to teach you how to tell a joke - I'm at university, y'know, the place I hardly had the marks to qualify for? That you could probably get into already, even though you're underage?" If memory served, the teenager wanted to be some kind of doctor...he's just pulling your leg. Regardless, she gave him a look of you're kidding me before helping herself to more candy. "Holiday's been fine, I guess. Good to have some space from my roommate, but that's been replaced to being back in a full house," she went on, grimacing a bit. While she wasn't a big fan of living with a bunch of girls, at least they didn't check up on her; she had the freedom to go out, meet new people, get sloppy and wake up in new places with new people. But at home? Her well-meaning parents kept her inside, and her little brothers had nearly broken her favorite Christmas gift - not a new guitar, but a better one than the cracked bit of wood she'd learned to play on. "Howabout you, nice to be home? Have you seen Ed and Phoebe's place yet?" An idea striking her, Kyra worked to hide a smirk. If the boy hadn't been to his older brother's apartment - which had ruined all of her living plans for the year, by the by - then perhaps...he'll never let you live this down. With any luck Phoebe would be there as witness as well, maybe some of their other friends...

[Roderick Bones]

It was getting increasingly hard to tell if this was working, or if Kyra had caught onto his little plan. She wasn’t talking as she lead them to her seats, so all he could do was think. Maybe he hadn’t covered all of his bases, but how could he have expected her to bring up Amelia? Just because she was family didn’t mean that she would have come even if he’d asked, especially for this particular movie. The plot seemed absolutely ridiculous, given what he knew about the magic world. But it was the kind of thing Kyra was going to love.

He forced himself to keep his eyes forward when Kyra removed her jacket, knowing that he’d be caught if he just stared at her. But she was so pretty, and so out of his league. She was also so much older than him, and she hadn’t had much luck when it came to having something serious with Fabian. But he wasn’t an idiot like the twin, he was more than willing to settle down and tell her about magic after school.

His question earned him a look, and he tried to force a grin like yes, he had just been joking. It wasn’t like he was Edgar, his brother needed to remember this kind of thing. Maybe if tonight goes well you will need to remember things like this. Like not mixing up University and Primary school. Although it was harsh, the way she said underage.

”I was just giving you a hard time,” he said as he held out the smarties to her, feeling himself relax as the conversation seemed to flow easier now that she wasn’t asking him a bunch of questions. Just one, and he sighed as he shook his head, “You would think that I would have since they lived there so long now but no, I haven’t been yet.”

[Kyra Thatcher]

Just giving me a hard time? Likewise, Roddy.

Kyra smiled genially, helping herself to more candies as Roderick admitted that he hadn't been to his brother's apartment yet. Game. Set... After the movie, despite the cold, she'd insist they go on a nice little walk. Miraculously, they'd wind up at "her sister's" building. But when she couldn't find her keys and knocked at the door, and Edgar opened it up...that'll teach him to try and pull the wool over my eyes. If the boy had been honest, had asked her out without all of this subterfuge, Kyra would've found a way to let him down gently. Now, however, Roderick was going to learn through experience. You don't lie to family, baby. And don't misunderstand - we are family, but not that kind of family. Being here on a faux date with the middle Bones was as strange as being out with a cousin, or one of her brothers, with the same presumption on his end. In only a few hours, though, all would be remedied...

"Well, you really must make it there sometime, it's absolutely divine," she assured him. "Ed's worked some magic with sprucing it up, I'll admit. Used to be a shabby little place, but I guess he did learn a practical skill or two at that school of yours, when ours are cutting woodshop and the like. Oh!" Kyra let out a gasp of excitement as the lights dimmed, turning a true grin towards the kid. "Are you ready for this?" she asked in a whisper, scooting around in her seat a bit to get more comfortable and winding up shoulder-to-shoulder with him. "We could sneak into another one if it's too scary for you, still have a few minutes."

[Roderick Bones]

He really should have thought this through more, but he hadn’t. If he had planned it, perhaps he would have been more prepared for all of the questions she had asked. Instead, he’d gone over to the Greengrasse's with a lame excuse about needing to use their floo to get to London, and they’d let him, and he’d thought he could pull this off. Settled in the theater now, cursing himself for not staying accurate on his knowledge of the muggle education system, Roderick was starting to panic a bit.Keep it cool, Roderick. Just keep it cool. Luckily she was asking him easier questions now, and he didn’t have to come up with lies. Phoebe and Edgar had spent the holidays in Barking last year, and somehow he’d just never gone to visit over the summer. It wasn’t like he didn’t want to see it, he was sure the flat was grand, but they came to Barking often enough to visit he hadn’t found the time. “Hey, we learn some cool stuff at our school,” he said with a laugh, amused at her choice of wording. Oh, how Roderick wondered if Edgar did do any real magic around the place, when Phoebe wasn’t around to see it. The lights were dimming, and he settled into his seat, rolling his eyes as Kyra teased him, “C’mon, it’s not too scary for me.”

The movie was good, and it wasn’t too scary at all for him. He found the whole thing interesting, when he was paying attention. He was very aware of his hands, and how he was fidgeting with them the whole time thinking about Kyra next to him. Was she enjoying the movie? Had she caught on to the fact he’d not invited everyone else? She didn’t seem to be angry with him, which made him feel like he was in the clear. The movie was over before he could talk himself into trying to put his arm around her shoulders, and as the lights brightened up in the theater he realized this was where his plan, what little there was of it, ended. He hadn’t thought about what to do after the movie, and he was sure Kyra would ditch him if he didn’t come up with something. “Well that was good, I liked it,” he said as he stood up, joining the group of people slowly mingling out of the theater, “Wasn’t too scary for you, was it?”

[Kyra Thatcher]

"Just scary enough," Kyra replied with a grin, standing and shrugging back into her winter gear. The boy had controlled himself - belatedly, seeing as his whole get her alone at the theatre plan could hardly be counted as an exercise of self-control - and hadn't made a move, even during the scared-enough-to-jump bits of the movie. Thankfully. He was a good kid, pretty much all of the time, after all. But this wasn't going to happen again. She checked her watch as they got into the queue to leave, nudging him in the side with her elbow. "It's pretty early, want to walk around a bit? This isn't too far from my sister's flat, it's a cute area."

Without too much convincing, they were shortly on their way to Phoebe and Ed's.

But without as much winter gear as had been advised by her mother, the walk was overlong, even as she distracted herself with pointing out the features and asking more about his holiday. Amelia really bailed because of schoolwork? When they weren't due at school for a few days yet? Was this one of those years of mega-exams for her? She didn't remember that being so early for Ed and the twins - shouldn't that be Roddy's year? Was the boy sure she hadn't just run over to Annette's?

Finally, the narrow little townhouse her friends were renting out of came into view, and she knocked heartily on the bright blue door. "Don't worry, like I said, I know the neighborhood. We'll duck in and warm up, yeah?" But it wasn't a friend-of-hers-and-stranger-to-Roderick who opened the door, or even her sister. No - a bemused Edgar Bones filled the doorway.

"Scootch, Eddie, it's freezing, let me in - and I have something of yours. Since you wanted alone time tonight." She stepped aside so the brothers could get reacquainted, and sidestepped her way into the flat, hands rubbing together to spark feeling back into them. "Pheebs! You in? Put something on, your mini brother-in-law's here!"

[Edgar Bones]

"See, now, if we had a dog, it would've warned us that someone was at the door." Ed grinned over his shoulder as he ambled to the front of the flat, although he slipped his wand from his pocket as he rounded a corner from Pheebs, smile fading fast. They weren't expecting anybody to drop in, and while the wards around the place would've triggered an alert if someone with a Mark came close, the lad hadn't made it through over a year of Auror training relatively unscathed by showing up unprepared.

It was probably nothing, though.

Mad-Eye's got you in his footsteps already?

At the front, he looked through the peephole - and while one of the lights out front kept going in and out, and the woman outside wasn't still for a moment, Ed had to laugh. "It's Kyra - did you have plans?" he called out to his girlfriend, pocketing his wand and undoing the locks. As soon as the door was open wide enough for her to squeeze in, Phoebe's best friend was doing just that, and leaving him as flummoxed as she did when going on about some mad muggle theory that, even all these years in, he wasn't sure if he should know about - as someone just like her, of course - or not. Sure, he'd always take alone time with Phoebe - with her heavy course load and his training schedule, and the extra hours they each put in to study and practice, they were lucky to both be home tonight. Not helping the we-should-get-a-dog-already argument. But he didn't remember telling the blonde anything of the sort. What she had of his, though, was more interesting than her assumptions.

"About time you came to visit. You coming in?" he asked, brows raised at Roderick after Kyra breezed by, as he held the door open further. What he was doing here, with Kyra... How'd he even get to the city? And what are the chances he just so happened to run into her? There's no way, he didn't... Roddy was booksmart, and good with people, and good - he wasn't foolish enough to try and do something about his one-sided crush on the neighbor girl. Was he? Without talking to me first? Granted, Ed had also gone after the girl next door, so he was chuffed, in a way, that his brother was following his footsteps. But surely it would've been a better call to ask out Annette than spring something on Kyra, if the Bones boys had to keep their romantic interests originating in Barking. "C'mon in already, you're letting the heat out. Do I want to know what this is all about?"

[Phoebe Bones]

Laughing as she watched him head to the door, Phoebe took another sip of her wine as she highlighted a section in her book. The first year of university was going well, and while they were technically on winter holiday, that didn’t mean she was going to get behind in her next classes. Life had never been better for them. Edgar was in the Academy to become a police officer, and she was busy working on her bachelors. And they were together every day now, something that Phoebe was still getting used to. There had been ups and downs with their new living arrangements, from bickering with Kyra over her decision to live with Eddie instead of her, to teaching Edgar how to do laundry properly. But Phoebe truthfully loved every second of it, because this was what they’d always been looking forward to. Their future, together. And sure maybe they weren’t engaged and it was driving her parents mad, but she was happy.

“Kiki’s here?” she said, setting the wine glass down as she climbed to her feet. Kyra was quick to come inside, and Phoebe greeted her with a grin and a hug. “You’re just in time to help me list the numerous reasons that we shouldn’t have a dog. Ed’s currently ahead by one point, but I’m sure we can come up with a list.” Roderick was shortly appearing around the corner, with a look of shame that had her interest piqued. What exactly was Roderick doing out with Kyra? Her friend would have called if she had planned on coming by tonight, and so Phoebe was confused as to why her friend was her with Roddy. “You look like you’ve been caught with your hand in the cookie jar,” she teased him, giving him a hug before she stepped back. “Okay, one of you spill. What’s going on?”

[Roderick Bones]

While his plan wasn’t going well, at least the movie had been good and Kyra had enjoyed it. He hadn’t made a move during the movie, partially out of fear and partially out of distractedness as he enjoyed the film. But surely he could muster up something now, especially see as Kyra was talking about walking around together. Extending their time together, which had to be a good sign, right? “Yeah, sounds nice,” he said as they followed the others out of the theater. Roderick hadn’t spent a large amount of time in London, up until recently having no reason really to. But now Edgar and Phoebe lived here, and Kyra, and it meant he should get to know the area. So he followed along to Kyra’s chatter, grinning as he took in the sights. Soon enough he’d be on his own, looking at places to rent, and hopefully find the love of his life like Edgar had already done.

A townhouse came into view and Kyra took them up the steps, and Roderick had to wonder why she was knocking if it was her sister’s place. Didn’t she have a key? Before he could question it, the door was opening, and Roderick had to bite his tongue at the person on the other side of the door. Edgar - his brother - which meant that Kyra had taken them to his brother’s new place. Not how he wanted his first visit to go by any means, especially given the lies he had weaved to make this night happen. Kyra was scooting inside the second the door was open, and his brother was giving him a look. “Uh yeah, yeah I’m coming in,” he said with a sigh as he walked through the open door, hanging his coat up by the door. “Kyra and I, well we, we saw a movie,” he mumbled, following his brother further into the house where Phoebe was soon wrapping him in a hug. “We uh, well we caught a movie. Without anyone else,” he admitted, smart enough to realize that Kyra had probably caught onto him ages ago if she brought him here. “So, you’re getting a dog?”

[Kyra Thatcher]

This was not her kindest moment, and as the blood rushed from Roddy's face, Kyra felt more than a twinge of guilt in her freezing limbs. She could have gotten her message across in another way. Telling him off at the theatre would have been less embarrassing for the lad, than everything coming to a head in front of his brother and Phoebe. But the blonde didn't take kindly to being lied to by someone she trusted, and the truth of this night would have been known to everyone soon anyway...

You'll laugh about this soon enough, kid.

At least the lie meant she could see her best friend tonight, and she hugged Phoebe tight before taking off her coat, laying it over the back of the couch filled with coursework and pens. Wine glasses on the mismatched end tables. Bickering about dogs. The couple wouldn't have blown them off for a quiet night in like this, she was certain. "Shedding, middle-of-the-night trips outside, barking, encroaching on your already limited alone time - shall I go on?" Kyra teased, eyeing the brothers as they came in; one deservedly shamefaced, the other trying desperately not to laugh. She raised her brows to the mastermind of the evening, making herself comfortable on a mostly-free couch cushion.

"No, no, they're not getting a dog, not yet," she rattled quickly, marking the open space in a textbook and snapping it shut, looking up to the boy in challenge. Going to give anything more, Roddy? "But we did catch a movie. Was the oddest thing, really. Rod knows the story better than I do." Kyra smiled. "Somehow, at the last minute, everyone else he invited wasn't able to make it. Including the two of you. Makes sense - this is quite the date night, hmm?"