[Hogshead] Tease and Conversation (Blayre; Anyone)

[bear]

“And that, my friends, is how it is done.”

Charlie exclaimed proudly folding a piece of paper in half and placing it smugly in the pocket of his coat. He had succeeded in getting the name of a young brunette and even arranged dinner with her for the next night much to his buddies’ astonishment. He had won the bet once again and his friends were fishing in their pockets for his night’s winnings but the true prize was written on the piece of parchment that now sat securely in his pocket. He’d date Laura until he grew bored with her then move onto the next girl he found attractive.

“I don’t get it, Charlie. How do you do it?” Tony had asked. Typical Anthony, of course he would question it; he often questioned everything about Charlie.

“You know I can’t tell you that, Tony. It must be my charm. Women aren’t attracted to men who wear different colored socks,” he answered kicking Tony’s leg under the table.

“Ow! They looked the same to me at five this morning,” Anthony mumbled back. The rest of the group howled with laughter at their friend.

Charlie shook his head and took a swig of his beer. The night was far from over and he knew the fun was only beginning. He’d go home with some girl of his choice so he wouldn’t have to spend the night alone only to leave her with false promises of a relationship in the morning. He’d let her believe they were together but because of his work, she had to keep it a secret to everyone. Because of this, Charlie was able to have several girlfriends at a time without the others finding out. Charlie liked this very much because the idea of being with one person for the rest of his life wasn’t an option for the man. Besides, at twenty-one, the last thing on his mind was marriage and a family.

“You really think you can get anyone you wanted, Charles?” Brian asked, a mischievous grin reflecting off his features. Another bet was about to come on.

“Anyone in this place? Yeah, sure,” Charlie answered with a chuckle.

Brian began searching for his candidate while the others pointed out random women they either thought were too good for Charlie or too easy. “Her,” he said pointing across the room to the entrance as a bleach blond made her way in.

Charlie chugged the remaining liquid out of the glass and with a little force, he slammed it back on the table. “Done,” he stated, referring to the bet. “Now watch,” he said pushing his chair back from the table and headed for the target.

[Blayre Osbourne]

Blayre had made a rather rude gesture to Nick as she left the club early that night. She had just come in for her shift when Nick had explained to her that he didn’t need her and insisted that she take a night off for once. Working at the club was pretty much all Blayre had since she came back. All of her school friends had moved on and gotten jobs either in the wizarding or muggle world besides Ashton, who found Hogwarts more of a home than anywhere else, much like herself. She knew she’d get a good telling off when she came back in the next day from Nick for her obscene behavior towards him but he’d forgive her either way.

Blayre wandered down the streets of Hogsmeade trying to figure out what to do with herself for the night. If she went back to the club at all, she was sure Nick would kick her out so she was forced to find some other means of entertainment. She walked a ways before the sign of the Hog’s Head was visible. Figuring it’d be much more amusing than sitting in the Three Broomsticks all night, Blayre pushed the wooden door open and headed straight for the bar. She wasn’t much of a drinker unless she was looking for an interesting and fun night only to regret it the morning after and tonight, that was just what she wanted.

When she reached her destination, Blayre ordered seven different shots and a vodka straight up along with a pint of whatever the bartender decided to give to her. Her goal? Not to remember the night which she was certain to accomplish. She wasn’t there long when a tall, well built brunette approached. He positioned himself awkwardly against the bar so his body was turned to her at an odd angle. She tried to figure out just how uncomfortable that had to be. She caught his eyes on her more than once and she raised an eyebrow in his direction.

Swallowing her third shot, she finally turned in his direction, eager to figure out just what he was staring at. Blayre eyed him up, either it was the alcohol taking effect or the guy actually seemed attractive to her. She placed her bets on the alcohol as she downed the fourth shot. She knew it wouldn’t look great to the other customers the way this girl was drinking but it was her body and she’d drink how fast and how much she wanted. They guy caught her staring and sent her a smirk and Blayre rolled her eyes in response. Finally, she spoke.

“Excuse me. Is there something I could help you with?” she asked the man. It probably came out cocky and demanding but he had been standing there, sending glances her way for the past five minutes and it was starting to get on her nerves. She dealt with people staring at her every night at the club and she was getting pretty tired of it, not that she could stop it.

[bear]

Charlie stood at the bar attempting to get a feel on the girl Brian had picked out for him earlier. Just from looks, she seemed like she was here looking for a guy to take her home, but by the way she carried herself and handled herself with the bartender she seemed as if she was trying to play off the ‘hard to get’ stereotype. Charlie had tons of experience in that department and every one of those girls ended up in his bed the same night. He felt this would be the same and almost laughed out loud at how easy he could win the bet tonight. The one thing he didn’t know was that Brian had tried hitting on the very same girl a few nights ago and was sent walking away with a lovely red handprint across his face.

Charlie continued to measure her up, trying to figure the best way to approach her. Should he be the tough, disrespectful guy or the hurt, heartbroken man around this girl? He couldn’t figure out her type. He had never had to be himself around a girl because he was never with one long enough for that to matter. He purely enjoyed the one night encounters and when women found out he was a reporter, they were far too eager to jump into bed with him in hopes to get a story written on their town or family. It was almost pathetic, but Charlie enjoyed the attention far too much to let that bother him.

He caught her gaze a few times and he wasn’t sure what to make of her reactions. First they seemed like she was flattered then the next, she seemed rather frustrated. He didn’t know how to play this girl and her mixed signals. He smirked, hoping to get a good reaction from her; it only seemed to frustrate her more. Finally she turned to him and spoke. It definitely wasn’t the reaction he wanted from a woman and it only made it worse for him. If his friends saw him back out so easily he wouldn’t hear the end of it. The game was on and he was determined to win.

“I’m sorry,” he said, pulling an apologetic face as if he was innocent. “You just seemed familiar, is all. I was trying to place where I had seen you before.” It was a good start and would hopefully open up a conversation with the young blonde. He watched her intently trying to read her facial and body expressions. This girl was definitely a challenge and he was not backing down. He would have to just start with the basics and see where they led him. It wasn’t like he never used his reporter skills to get a girl into his bed before.

“I’m Charlie, Charlie Stone,” He introduced himself with a friendly smile. He would have to do his best to play it off with this one. One mistake would cost him money and his pride. He could make out his friends’ laughter in the background and was trying to imagine how this scene looked to them. “Um, I’m a reporter for the Daily Prophet.”

[Blayre Osbourne]

Blayre stared at him as if he was speaking a foreign language. Was he seriously trying to hit on her? If he was, it was a terrible job. What, no pick up line or lame comment? Blayre looked behind the guys shoulder to see a group of guys staring in their direction, some laughing, some seriously watching the man who named himself as Charlie Stone. A bet? Maybe. Blayre decided she'd play along for a little while. She needed some fun.

She pushed one of her shots towards Charlie. It probably should've been the other way around but what fun was it when it was always the guy buying drinks? Besides, we all know Blayre liked to do things backwards. "Have a shot Charlie, it will help you relax," she waved off the useless information he was providing. "I don't care where you work, Charlie. My only concern is, are you man enough to handle me?" she asked with an amused expression.

"I'm Blayre, that's all you really need to know and I've never seen you around so I doubt you've seen me. And believe me, you'd remember someone like me," she added with a wink. Blayre leaned in close to Charlie to whisper him something, "So, tell me. How much am I worth?" she asked. Seeing Charlie's clueless expression she laughed, "I mean, how much is on the line? I take it you're supposed to leave here with me in order for them to pay up? Well, I have a deal to make you. I get half of whatever you win and I'll leave here with you tonight."

Maybe she wasn't making herself clear enough. Should she lay down the other restrictions it would take for her to leave with him? Eh, he'd figure it out sooner or later that she wasn't going to sleep with him, let alone see him again after this. It wouldn't be the first time she's done this. Then again, half of the time she did end up in the stranger's bed. We would just have to see how drunk she ended up by the end of the night.