He was leaving her alone now, it was relieving having him go, she was amazed that she had managed to trip him up so badly with the one lie, even if it was a more awkward one at that, she slowly started to relax herself in the bed once more, doing her best to not smell him as she did so, although atleast the sewer smell on him was nowhere near as bad as some of the boys of Hogwarts.

"Y-yeah...I'll owl sometime about it. Thank you." She felt horrible, he was being so kind and sincere, yet here she was, it felt wrong but there was not much else she could do now, she just hoped she hadn't put his life in danger like her parents...

With the coin slotted in there was a sound of clanking and clunking, before the door opened inwards to reveal a small shower with a sliding door, cutting it off from the other half of the room for the towels, drying and dressing, with various racks and towels to do so in. The shower floor itself seemed to have a sticky substance on the floor of it to help people from falling over as the bus drove about.

“Cool!” Ambrose replied as brightly as one could in the wee hours of the morning after a long night of stalking bluecaps. “See ya.”

He disappeared into the phone-booth sized compartment at the top of the spiral stairs, deeply inhaling the bubbly, soapy smell as he stepped inside.

Some time later, the beast apprentice stepped back out into the lurching bus body, jacket over his arm. Pink bubbles and steam billowed out over his head and there was a gurgling of water and pipes. Ambrose smelled of cherries, or certainly fruity. The scent clung to his clothes too. He’d been busy showering when the garments had jumped into midair by unseen hands to be brushed, steamed as best as possible in the slender space. He’d have to find some more coins to tip Sam with, that experience alone had been more than worth the ticket!

Ambrose leaned back in to replace one of the towels from round his neck into an expectant enchanted washing basket. The wicker lid was open like a mouth, hopping across the tiles towards Ambrose’s outstretched arm to receive it.

With a lurch, the bus sent Ambrose stumbling backwards. Somewhere on the deck below Sam’s voice was calling another passenger to their stop. The door slammed shut to the tiny bathroom. Ambrose caught hold of one of the poles and looked round to see if he had disturbed Lucinda, but she was gone, or had climbed under the blankets of her bed, it was now too dark up there to tell for sure. He hoped she’d gone to sleep, everything tended to be better after a good sleep.

He shouldered his jacket again and headed down the spiral stairs, catching sight of a hunched-over witch alighting from the bus with two cats at her heels and a wheeled shopping trolley.

Ambrose waited on the stairs, a few steps up, to keep out of the way so Sam could do their job and see the other passenger off. He peered through the windows into the dark. It looked like they were in a dark valley somewhere. It reminded Ambrose of the valleys around one of the Welsh dragon reserves he’d visited. There was one street light further up the street, visible through the windscreen. The image looked smeared across the glass through heavy drizzle.

“Thanks mate,” Ambrose addressed Sam once conductor was back on the triple-decker. “I owe you one - really. That was unreal!” He descended the last steps. “Should charge a ticket for that.” 

Sam looked up as Ambrose returned, holding their hand out to take the token before the bus lurched again, the smell was immediately better, not that it was...bad in the first place but it was certainly nicer to not have the smell staying around anymore. Sam could imagine also that it was relieving for the man to be able to wash after such a grimy night, even if they didn't feel it from acclimating to the feeling after several hours, it must of felt relieving.

"Its not problem, we can't have you in a bad state for official business can we? And if they don't believe you were down there for hours, you can have them come to me." Not that Sam wanted anyone to come to them about the situation, they wouldn't be able to deal with the situation that well, but it was still an offer to stand up for Ambrose nonetheless, with the wish it never happened.

Sam grabbed the previously made Hot Chocolate for Ambrose and offered it once more, still warm and without a drop spilt by some miracle given the whole concept of the bus veering all over the place.

"Your Blue Caps are still all held secure, one tried to escape, they're slippery things. But I stopped it." They smiled with some pride at being able to use their skills with magical creatures, it was fun to use it again even if briefly.

"I think you're only a couple of stops away now."

“Thanks mate!” Ambrose was genuine in his appreciation. “Yeah, slippery - took me a while to get them out of the sewer.” Ambrose agreed, checking on the net. It wasn’t an ideal location to keep them for a length of time, but needs must. They would be safe at the Ministry once he got them there and booked in.

Happy they were definitely still secure, despite the rocking bus, Ambrose added sheepishly: “another reason why I owe you one for the shower, err, see.” It wasn’t the most fragrant place to lurk around for the weekend.

He perched on the edge of the bed as it swayed and looped his arm around one of the poles. He knocked back some more of the hot chocolate and thumbed upwards. “Bumped into someone I went to school with on the way up.” His tongue chased a smudge of hot chocolate at the corner of his mouth. “Lucy Temple. I bet you bump into people from school all the time working on here.”

A Lucy Temple? It didn't quite ring a bell, Sam thought they knew the person he was referring to, but it didn't strike them as someone from school, but Sam wasn't too sociable at school regardless so they wouldn't likely recognize most regardless.

Sam shook their head softly at Ambrose, softly crossing their arms as they leaned back into the wall of the bus to keep themselves stable against the rocking of the madness that the bus usually exhibited as it continued to drive recklessly towards the next stop, a soft sigh left their lips as they looked down towards the ground a little so they could avoid looking directly at Ambrose's face.

"No, sorry, I think I know who you mean, but I never met her in school...I didn't meet many in school in general to be honest though." They sighed, slowly rubbing their head. "Its the girl upstairs right? The one who's been crying?" Their voice got quieter as they  speak. "She's been...crying the entire night more or less, I've given her the top floor so she can have more privacy, more or less."

It wasn't like there really was a way to have privacy in a public bus.

“It’s the girl upstairs, right? The one who’s been crying… I’ve given her the top floor so she can have more privacy, more or less.”

“Yeah,” Ambrose confirmed, “and… yeah.” His gaze drifted upwards, thinking of the interaction he’d had with Lucinda. Maybe he ought to go back up, and try and speak to her. Cheer her up. He didn’t smell so bad now, after all.

But the bus was turning, and Ambrose could see familiar London sights streaking past the many windows of the triple-decker bus. The Ministry was approaching. Ambrose and his creature charges would soon be on their way into the office and then to home and a proper bed! One which didn’t need to be bolted down and the occupant strapped in.

“Look out for her,” Ambrose asked, not really knowing the right thing to say as the bus screamed to a halt outside a familiar staff entrance disguised as a public toilet. “I better get flushed and settle these guys in.” He set aside the hot chocolate and seized his wand to unbind the net from the luggage rack.

“And Sam, I owe you mate,” Ambrose reached out a hand to clasp, “creature loose on the bus, or need a pint, look me up.” He grinned, acting all grown up. Ambrose shouldered the net, swung off the bus and raised a hand in the early dawn to Sam in farewell.