~12:30pm

Jimmy was trying to balance one too many things as he stepped out of the Three Broomsticks inn. One hand was tightly grasped around the neck of a bottle of pumpkin juice. The other was gripping hold of a sausage and bacon roll and trying to wrestle his small bag of coins back into his worn robe pocket.

His stomach grumbled loudly at the smell of the food. He had not long been awake and the, now rather squashed, sandwich was his first meal of the day.
Last night out had been a good one but a late one with a few too many firewhiskeys and his stomach wasn't the only thing that was complaining. His head was pounding far too much to stay and eat in the inn, which held the usual noisy lunchtime crowd, so he'd taken his small picnic outdoors.

His main purpose in life, at that particular moment in time depended upon taking his ice cold drink and appetizing breakfast come lunch and settling down in the nice, quiet, shaded spot under the tree he had spotted just around the corner. Only then, he decided, would he be in a position to plan the rest of his day....possibly.

He didnt notice that hadn't quite pushed the small leather bag deep enough into his pocket. He didn't the change in weight, or hear the small clink, as it hit the stony ground outside the inn as he walked away, his mind elsewhere. 

 

The week's festivities were over, leaving Mairead with an abundance of free time.  Something, apparently, had held up her host and Mairead was still staying at the castle which was a circumstance that she had little reason to complain about.  After five days in the castle, Mairead's curiosity in the place still hadn't been satiated. 

With one of the staff members as her chaperone, Mairead returned to Hogsmeade for the day.  The older wizard had gone into the inn for a bit of lunch, leaving Mairead to explore the town at her leisure. 

She was only vaguely aware of the young man she passed; there was no reason to pay him any more interest then any of the others she passed.  That was until she heard something drop with a distinct and pronounced chink.  Mairead stopped and turned, her gaze shifting from the abandoned sack on the ground to the man that was continuing to walk off.  Mairead looked around the street before quickly moving towards the bag and picking it up.

Of course, the appropriate thing to do would be to stop the fellow and return the bag of.  But, doing the appropriate thing was usually something that those who saw such bags of money on a regular basis did.  It wasn't really stealing - the money had been abandoned - she was, simply, taking hold of the hand of opportunity. 

Holding the bag gingerly to prevent the coins from rattling too much more, Mairead slipped the bag in her pocket.  She turned to make a hasty retreat down the street in the opposite direction.

It hadnt taken Jimmy long to realise his mistake - even in his slightly more dischevelled state than normal. Money was money. His small bag hadn't contained a great deal but enough to last him over the next few days at the very least, the result of a lucky pickpocketing the day before. More than that, it also held the name of contact he was supposed to meet the day after tommorrow - a contact who wouldn't appreciate just anyone having his name. 

As he moved to lower himself to the floor, he placed the bottle and sandwich on the floor and swept his robes out from underneath him - he missed the weight from the coins immediately. Abandoning his refreshments on the floor he moved to retrace his steps.

He remembered jamming the bag into his pocket at the inn, there was only a short route to retrace but he moved quickly, scanning the ground as he did so. As he cleared the corner, his money was already in the little girls pocket.

He did catch sight of her moving quickly away from him, in a way looked to him a little shifty...... and shifty was something he knew very well, though perhaps not from this angle.   

"Hey stop!" He called towards her...deliberately omitting the word thief at the end of the classic sentence though it rose to the surface. An order that would have been highly embarrassing.

He started to run after her. 

"Wait!" He shouted, rather pointlessly. It wasn't a command that he would have obeyed. He didnt really expect that she would either.

Mairead was, of course, far from a hardened criminal.  But, there'd never been such an abundance of spare money around that the frivolous things children craved could be acquired in a wholly acceptable and legal manner.   She and her friends at home could usually scrounge up enough for what they wanted through some panhandling or playing music in the subways.  But, largely encouraged by her best friend, Tito, Mairead had learned not to pass by an opportunity that presented itself so readily.

She'd only managed a few steps before a voice called after her and she broke into a run, a hand clutching her pocket in an effort to mute the coins.  It was, probably, a pointless effort.  The fellow was yelling after her; he obviously already suspected she had it.  But, that didn't mean she had to admit it to everyone around.  If she'd learned anything from panhandling, she'd learned of the distinct advantages at her disposal. 

She could hear the rhythmic clapping of running feet gaining on her and, immediately knew she didn't have a chance of outrunning him.  Knowing she only had a matter of seconds before this fellow caught up with her, Mairead pulled up and turned towards him, intent on making full use of that only real advantage she had over a grown man, presumably a trained wizard at that.

"Wha - What do you want?"  She called, loudly, making sure her voice would carry over the street.  "Ouch!  Don't touch me!  Please don't hurt me!"  She called again, louder this time, shying back slightly as if she'd expected the fellow to raise a hand towards her. 

Outfit

Dressed in a snug white with thick blue stripes tank top and short jean shorts with a small black purse on her arm, bamboo flipflops on her feet and light makeup on her face, Saffron felt rather nice going into Hogsmeade. She didn’t have to get anything in particular, really, but it was such a lovely day and she didn’t want to waste it away sitting in the castle. It was just too nice a day. And so what if she was cutting a class or two to be here, her reasons were sound…weren’t they?

Saffron shook her head, mentally counting the reasons she deserved to be in Hogsmeade rather than what she was supposed to be doing. She walked down the street quietly, somewhat aloof from the bustle of life about her. The thudding of running broke her train of thought and Saffron looked about herself, searching for anyone who might recognize her. A glimpse of someone who she thought might be a professor sent her heart into a seizure, and hastily glancing over her shoulder, Saffron began to run, squeezing through the crowd.

Not looking where she was going, Saffron crashed into a young girl. “Merlin!” she squeaked, startled, as she fell onto her butt on the cold cement ground. A dark-haired man stood nearby – well, not quite a man she thought, rushed, a boy, really. Certainly not much older than me. I wonder if he’s a seventh year, cutting classes as well? But there was no time to wonder about him. The little girl – that was more urgent, the girl, right, right. “I’m sorry!” her words were practically tripping over themselves in effort to escape her mouth. “Really, I’m sorry. Are- are you okay?”

Saffron shook her own head, trying to clear her thoughts as she hastily climbed to her feet.

Jimmy slid to a stop as the girl rounded on him, trying a avoid bowling into her. 

"Wha - What do you want?" "Ouch!  Don't touch me!  Please don't hurt me!" 

"What! I'm not going to...." He started, his face a wonderful picture of confusion and suprise as her words carried over him to the rest of the street. His expression soon changed from confusion to an acute and rather frustrated understanding of the situation as well he should - he had once used a similiar tack when he had been a child. Dammit, she was a clever little squirt...and her timing and volume had been perfect. He could feel eyes watching him - she had attracted the attention of at least the witch and wizard just behind and to the left of him. Another group were making their way up the street towards them. 

"Oh, you little...." He started, his voice low and growling as acute irritation flickered over his features. There was a small hiss as he drew in a breath sharply. He clenched his teeth, held back whatever had been to follow the start of that sentence, gathered his thoughts and strategically changed his approach.

" I'm not going to hurt you. Why would I want to do that?" He stated far more calmly than he felt, his own voice audible within the surrounding twenty feet. He raised both hands in front of him in a gesture of defeat.

" I'm just hoping you might be able to help me find something that I've lost. " He said, informing the rest of the street more than her.

He drew himself down to her level, staying a little bit back from her, his hands still visable. He watched her appraisingly, some inward struggle evident on his face as he tried to work out what he was willing to surrender to get his posession back. Had she been running of with someone else's purse he would have admired her cheek and creativity but as it was his coins, in a way, in her pocket...or so he suspected, he was less apt to be impressed.

"Fifty sickles if you give it back. " He hissed, loathed to hand over any money to the little tyke but she had him bent backwards over a barrel good and proper.

"Can't say fairer than that...and there's a whole heap of trouble waiting if you keep onto it....trust me. " He whispered, thinking of that contact name stashed safely within its leather.       

He thought he might be about to get somewhere, when seemingly out of nowhere another, older girl, careened into the picture.

The hyperventilation from her brief sprint was, really, only necessary for a few moments but she kept up the heavy breathing as she looked at the young man.  She never understood why but, in the past, the heavy breathing always seemed to accent the wide, fear-filled eyes nicely.  She, supposed, it wasn't that dissimilar from the panicked, facing-certain-death, crouched expression on a rabbit when their dogs had it cornered.  Of course, now was hardly the time for nostalgic introspection. 

But, in what she hoped was a mimic of the cornered rabbit, she stared back at man, watching him grappling with confusion.  She was fully aware that she had succeeded in gaining the attention of onlookers and she suddenly remembered she wasn't in Ireland.  There were, likely, few in the crowd that would peg her as an Irish Traveller as readily as at home.  Free from the hooligan reputation her lot had at home, she, indeed, had the upper hand.

And, when he growled at her, it became apparent he knew that, too.  For a fraction of a second, a slight little grin flickered through the panicked look.  But, just as quickly, the look of fear was back.

"I ... I don't know!"  She stuttered, shaking her head, casting a quick glance around her at the bystanders.  Though no longer calling out, she still kept her voice projected.  "You ... you started chasing me.  Me mum told me ... said I should call for help when ... when strangers did that."

Mairead shook her head tensely, taking a careful step back, hoping to keep just beyond arm's reach.  "I don't know what yer talking about; how would I know about anything ye've lost?  Maybe ye left whatever it was at home."

She froze a moment and arched an eyebrow at his offer, watching him.  Of course, any offer was worth consideration, other than trying to reclaim what he'd, clearly, discarded, she had nothing against the fellow.  Unfortunately, she was now at the disadvantage.  Fifty sickles.  Discreetly, her fingers wrapped around the bulge of the coin bag in her pocket and she gave it a slight and inquisitive hoist, trying to gauge how much was in it. 

In truth, she would have a hard time figuring if it really was fair.  She had little notion of how much fifty sickles was worth.  What had Miles said?  Ten sickles was worth ... five ... no seven ... no eight pints of milk.  So, fifty sickles ... Bloody 'ell.  She had no clue.  Lots of pints of milk sound very exciting.  But, of course, who'd actually buy their own money back with as much or more money than was in the pouch? 

Chewing her lip, Mairead shook her head just as something - or someone - creamed into her back.  "Oww!" she groaned in pain as she bit her lip and staggered, regaining her balance.  Just as the pain made her eyes water, she realized the whole new opportunity that had bowled into her.  "I ... I ... No!"  She declared to the woman, blinking the tears from her eyes.  "I'm not alright.  He's ... he's trying to take me stuff.  He said I'd be in a whole heap of trouble if I didn't give it to him."

"Oh my merlin, I'm so sorry!" Saffron squeaked, looking frankly just terrified out of her mind, as the little girl groaned a particularly painful sounding 'oowww'.  "I ... I ... No!"  the little girl declared, blinking tears from her eyes in such a manner that Saffron's heart went out to her and Saffron felt quite mean for making such a sweet little kid nearly cry. But Saffron's fears of hurting this little angel were vanquished almost instantaneously as the darling went on. "I'm not alright.  He's ... he's trying to take me stuff.  He said I'd be in a whole heap of trouble if I didn't give it to him."

Now, Saffron was no Gryffindor, but one thing she certainly was was gullible. With a shocked look on her face, she turned towards the man and gave him her best glare.

"Merlin, what kind of son of a billywig are you?" she asked, disgust plain on her crinkled nose and curled lip. "Preying on innocent little girls? What, you're so bad with magic you can't even muster up the strength to at least take on someone who's already in Hogwarts?" Saffron quickly popped her own wand out of her purse, twirling it theatrically before pointing it at the man. "Sweetie," she addressed the little angel, "You can't be more than what, eight?"

Things were sliding dramatically from bad to worse for Jimmy. In fact, he was currently wondering whether he should have just stayed in bed and not bothered getting up at all. The younger girl seemed to know that she had the top card and had no problem at all playing it.  The older girl jumped to protect her, as he was sure the smaller girl had expected she would. Her rant made his head throb all the more, he really couldn't be doing with this today, of all days.

"Preying on innocent little girls?

At this he snorted. Innocent indeed. It was taking all of his restraint not to swing her up by the ankles and shake her till his money fell of her pocket. Had they been alone, that is what he probably would have done. Here they had, very inconveniently, a rather growing audience. 

What, you're so bad with magic you can't even muster up the strength to at least take on someone who's already in Hogwarts?"

"Oh, who bloody asked you!" He snapped, losing his patience.

"Put your wand away before you blow your own nose off, waving it about like that. " He continued crossly, bending down to address Mairead.

"I don't want your stuff, I just want mine. Now, I'm sure you were about to hand in that purse you just found to one of the shops so it can get back to its rightful owner, but as that rightful owner is me, why don't we skip all that so we can both get on our way. " He told her in a tightly controlled voice. An idea fluttered into his head and he turned and straightened up to address Saffron.

"You might actually turn out useful after all. " He told her with a wink and a small grin.

"Its a small, black bag, made of leather. Its got one galleon, fifty sickles and about twelve knuts in it and a small coin with Chudley Canons all over it that I picked up for my little brother yesterday, also a stick of gum and a scrap of paper in there somewhere. Have a look together. " He told them, more confidently now, stepping back to give them a little more space with a smug look on his face that said "get out of that one then"

"...you can tell its mine then see and I can go home and get some kip. Problem solved. I'll even throw in a small reward for finding it for me, can't say fairer than that."

The older girl was on her side.  Mairead had this in the bag - or, more specifically, the coins in the bag.  The girl was, in fact, giving the man a nice talking to.  It was all quite hilarious; Mairead would be laughing up a storm whenever she managed to get clear of this. 

But, her face showed nothing of fear and wariness when the older girl spoke to her.  No more then eight?  Did she really look that young?  Sure she was short but she still didn't think she looked that young.  But, that could only work in her favor, right?  Mairead shrugged her shoulders awkwardly, neither denying or confirming the older girl's assumption.  The snort drew her attention back to the stranger. 

In careful over-dramatization, Mairead jumped, grasping for the older girl's hand when the man snapped at her.  "Please, don't make him any more angry," she whispered nervously to the girl. 

He was bending down towards her again.  Mairead drew away from him, pressing in closer to the older girl.  "I don't have anything of yours," Mairead insisted shaking her head.  "I don't know what you are talking about." 

The tides were starting to turn; if the girl did fall for the man's plan, she'd be in trouble.  "How do ye know what me bag looks like?  Have been following me?"  Mairead quickly asked.  The panic on her face was starting to become more real and earnest when she looked from the man to the older girl.  Mairead looked up at the girl, her eyes wide and shook her head.  "Please help me; he's trying to take me money.  I'm supposed to be buying schoolbooks with that money me mum gave to me.  If I loose it, she'll be so mad!"

Saffron was beginning to think they were making a fool of her. She listened to them both - keeping her mouth shut and her ears open (not that she knew how to close them, but still). "I think you're both being silly." she grumbled, and the little hand on her own made her look down with more tender eyes. "Sweetie, why would your mum send you out to get books here? How old are you?"

It didn't quite make sense. What eight-year-old went out buying schoolbooks? In May? Was the little girl lying to her? She peered at the innocent little face. She looked so meek and vulnerable, could this little angel be telling a lie? It was possible enough, Saffron guessed. Even if she looked sweet and small, her words didn't add up.

The man went on; "...you can tell its mine then see and I can go home and get some kip. Problem solved. I'll even throw in a small reward for finding it for me, can't say fairer than that." and Saffron nodded. His words made sense. And she had an idea, although it wasn't much of one.

“How about you empty out your pouch, sweetie – what’s your name, anyway? I’m Saffron. And then we’ll see who it belongs to.” Saffron said gently. She was a sucker for children. She didn’t know any, really, having no young siblings or cousins and never really interacting with the younger years. Maybe she would start talking to first years. This little angel was so adorable! Children a few years older were just as cute, right? “I- I’m not saying I don’t believe you,” she amended, hoping she hadn’t hurt the little girl’s feelings, “But maybe you mixed up your pouch or something. It’s easiest to just check and see.”

Whatever Jimmy thought about being called "silly", he sensibly kept to himself. He just wanted the situation resolved, preferably without ending up in a holding cell.

He could see that the older girl was considering his words, definately a start. When she mentioned the little girl emptying out her purse, he had to hold back again, this time from encouraging the idea too much. Saffron had taken the lead in the right direction and he was happy to let her continue.

"That would solve it alright." He stated briefly with a small nod.

"If you wouldn't mind actin' the intermediary, miss. I'll trust your say so, you look an  honest one. " He told her mildly, throwing a quick glance at Mairead to check she wasn't about to make a run for it.

 

Defensively, Mairead shoved her fists in her pocket, glowering up at the two taller individuals.  This was hardly silly.  Only someone that had ample access to coins of any nature find this silly.  And, it had distinctly become a conflict of wills.  "I'm not being silly!"  Mairead protested, sharing none of the fellows reluctance to speak her mind.   "I'll get in so much trouble if I loose me book money.  And, I'm eleven - I need me books for school, next year."  She hadn't lied previously; she'd simply ... let the girl assume what she wanted to assume.

She continued to watch the fellow warily, her hands shoved into both pockets, but as she talked, her fingers worked their way into the pouch and closed around a few coins, but something thin and papery prickled her hands.  "I don't know how he knows what my pouch looks like," Mairead muttered as her fingers tugged the pouch closed again before she withdrew it from her pocket. 

"There.  It's me bag.  With me book money.  He knew what it looked like cuz he'd seen it before.  If I go home without books or the money, me mum's going to ..." she let her voice trail off.  Hopefully, it came across as being out of the fear of admitting what would happen rather than what it really was: an uncertainty of what a mother in this world would do.

"You're eleven." Saffron repeated in disbelief. She squinted at Mai. "Are you quite sure? You don't look eleven..." her voice trailed off. "Are you sure?" Saffron repeated. "But, er, there isn't...any..book stores around here..." she objected, becoming more and more suspicious of the so-called eleven-year old. "I really don't think..." Saffy's voice trailed off.

"Look, just show me what's inside." she ordered, tightening her grip on the girl's wrist just a tad. "You won't get in trouble, sweetie, he's not going to hurt you."