all in good fun

She had gone out with a cute Ravenclaw boy who was a year older than her. He had been very sweet, and it had been a lovely first date and a lovely first kiss. Now there was nothing about her life that was lovely. There were no traces of that girl anymore, her father had shattered her so many times that she lost count and now, she just felt utterly broken. Not that Ludo - or anyone - had to know that. "Like I said, I was feeling nostalgic" she said dismissively. The red head looked at him and tilted her head to the side. "And what is that, darling?" She asked curiously.

The witch was peculiar in a way Ludo had yet to find the right word for, she was smart and flirtatious, but she was also dangerous and inscrutable. She caught his attention long ago and ever since, he'd been drawn back to her. He knew better, of course he did, but the wizard played by his own book and he liked nothing better than playing the odds.

Evelyn rolled her eyes, scoffing. "Some things never change..." he was still as annoying as he was back in school. She glanced at him and scrunched up her nose. She had seen style both in the wizarding world and in the wonderful muggle world. Evelyn had seen men in the disco clubs, dancing under the mirror balls absolutely rocking their outfits. "Debatable" she said simply. "Not at all, just put two dangerous men in Azkaban" she mused proudly.

His attention remained on her as she spoke, listening to her every word, even if it was only to find an opportunity to slip in one of his clever remarks. And Merlin, she did leave him ample chance. "That's huge, Evie, kind of stuff that makes it to the front page of the Daily Prophet," Ludo pointed out, brows raised with surprise. "Most people would care to fix their hair, at the very least, you know that right?"

"As if I ever say no to a couple of drinks and handsome company." Gilderoy said, dimpling at Ludo. The man was the sort of attractive that made Gilderoy jealous: effortless. It was what he worked for every day. "I am done for the day, but you could've gone to the Prophet building, sometimes I'm actually at my desk. Sometimes."

"You got that," Ludo said with a wink of his eye, nodding along as he started walking away from the atrium so they could floo away from the Ministry. "Ah, is that so? I'll be taking that as an invitation to stop by and fetch you for drinks more often then, Gil, my boy."

Amycus liked Ludo. He particularly liked what Ludo could do for him, but in the pureblood circles he'd grown up with, that wasn't unusual, it was the core foundation of most friendships. So it was a pleasant surprise to find Ludo sat across from him when he stole a seat.

The wizard's gaze scanned a few of the faces scattered around the room, none all too interesting to draw him away from the current company, so instead Ludo gestured for the barmaid to come over. "I'll have another glass of that exquisite brandy you've been pouring, and my friend here does need a drink," he told the barmaid, clapping a hand on Amycus' shoulder, encouraging him to order something for himself.

He could spot a tense fellow just about anywhere, he'd learned to read people from their reactions on the pitch, and the wizard in front of him seemed to be one step from being royally pissed off. Ludo's own concern dropped a notch when the other man issued his words, a chuckle going past his lips with ease. "Ah, should've mentioned that before. If money's the problem, then it is no problem at all." He explained, a proud grin on his lips as he relaxed. "Did any of it break?"

Lucian dragged his forearm across his forehead as his team pulled away from the huddle, wiping his sweat from his forehead. It had been a rather strenuous practice, preparing for a big match this weekend, and he was glad for it to be done. He propped his broomstick onto his shoulder, walking towards the changing rooms when he heard someone shout out. "Have you been sitting there watching the whole time?" Lucian laughed, walking towards his friend. He greeted him with a fist bump, far too sweaty to force the man to hug him.

Ludo matched the fist bump, as though it were some secret previously agreed upon greeting between the two. He offered his cheekiest grin at the question and nodded his head once. "Well, do hear me out, I know for other people it's just a practice," he began, his features turning serious for a moment as he tried his best to keep his tone down. "But it is not such thing for a lover of this sport, and my friend," the wizard paused, leaned closer, as if about to share a carefully kept secret, "I am a lover of this sport. And it's always great to watch you, you've certainly improved." He offered the compliment, the smile slipping through the facade of seriousness he hadn't been able to hold for long. "How are you feeling for the next match?"

it was the surface level interest that drew the two together in the first place. two unfortunate people sewn together and rita couldn't have left the restaurant any sooner. the only reason she stayed, she told herself, was because she rarely had a night to spare and the martini had been good enough to sit through a miserable date. but it seemed he still had enough nerve to talk as if this was her problem, her cross to bear. "you cannot actually think that. i think about myself just enough, if that's too high for you, maybe make yourself taller." rita could leave in spite of the conversation, the minutes she would never get back. somehow though, she was tied down to this argument. "an apology-? interesting enough-?" she said, her mouth dropping in surprise. she couldn't believe what she heard. there wasn't anyone like her, something she was incredibly happy about. "if you had stopped talking for one second or asked a damn good question, you would think i'm the best person you've ever met. you know enough about quidditch leagues to not realize i'm outside of yours, you insufferable idiot."

Ludo stared at her for a second after she finished, caught somewhere between irritation and reluctant amusement. Most people eventually bent around him one way or another, but Rita only seemed to get sharper the longer she looked at him. It should’ve made him lose interest. Instead, it kept pulling him in against his better judgment.

Alecto looked at him. "Not anymore, but when I was at school... I had my first date on that booth, actually" she commented, pointing at a secluded booth nearby the fireplace. Being with Ludo was like a game, a cat and mouse game, one that Alecto enjoyed playing. His question about the fries brought out a bigger smile from her. "Not anymore" she responded, her eyes glowing and fixed on his. He had a pretty smile, but that was not relevant. "I suppose all good things reach their natural end" she hummed softly.

His gaze followed the way her finger pointed, trying to picture a younger version of the witch on her first date and wondering if she'd been shy back then or if she'd always been feisty. His eyes returned to her quickly enough, drawn to her words and prompting one corner of his lip to turn upwards in reaction. "Yet here you are," the wizard pointed out, his posture remained nonchalant, glass in hand still adding some distance between them. His tone was heavy in turn, charged with intent. "Something good might still come out from your presence at this place," he finally offered, letting his words linger in the space between them.

Evelyn rolled her eyes, though she did run an unconscious hand over her hair. "You are still as annoying as ever" she murmured bitterly as she tried to fix her hair. "Nothing, I ran a lot today" she said dismissively. And she had been on the recieving end of some hexes, nothing she couldn't handle, but still. "It's called working, are you familiar with that?"

"Still as handsome as ever," he corrected her smoothly, running a hand through his own dark waves of hair, "and perfectly styled as well." Ludo kept his gaze on her, searching for the unmistakable clues that he was indeed pissing her off with his every word. "Ah, right, you work. My condolences," the wizard offered with a click of his tongue, brows creasing together. "Struggling with yours, darling?"

It hadn't been a great day for her. So many deadlines, she felt so uninspired, the Dark Lord was not giving her anything fun to do. Alecto felt stuck and restless. She tried taking walks but they didn't work. She tried shopping, but everything was horrible and hideous or just incredibly tacky. She hadn't been thinking too much before she apparated at the outskirts of Hogsmeade. A shadow of a nostalgic smile spread across her lips as she entered the village.

The wizard raised a curious brow as he stared at the witch in front of him, her smile puzzling him the slightest bit. "Really? I wouldn't have pictured you as a regular," he offered with a low chuckle, taking a slow step closer, leaning his back against the wall in the back. He listened to her with quiet intent, aware of how dangerous this waltzing dynamic between them could turn any moment, still somehow unable to walk away. "Are they not making these fries anymore?" He wondered, his smile suddenly matching hers.

Evelyn's day had not been going super great, to be honest. She had been assigned to a guresome case, then she chased an asshole over Knockturn Alley and got some bruises along the way. She was finally about to head home when she heard it. That annoying voice who had followed her since her Hogwarts years.

The wizard had always pushed Evelyn's buttons while at school, enjoying her reaction a bit too much, therefore carrying it out even long after they left Hogwarts' hallways. "Do I have to want something to talk to you, Eve?" He repeated her words, a crooked smirk pulling at his lips. "Can't I just be checking up on an old classmate?" Ludo asked, letting his smile grow more casual. "Especially when she looks so... what the bloody hell happened to you?" he added, noticing that his comment about her hair had been more turth than joke.

Ludo chuckled on the low, raising his palms to show it had not been his intention to bump against him. "It's all too crowded, sorry man," he told him with a clap of his hand on the wizard's shoulder. "Doubt that will be a problem unless you're carrying anything dangerous," the brunette teased, hoping to ease the tension.