----> Ardor

[Benjy Fenwick]

It was war, then.

Benjy was probably one of the laziest people in London. He defended that title daily with his constant training. Benjy did one hundred minutes of sleeping during the middle of the day, usually on the broken cushion-springed sofa in the lounge. He ate a healthy diet of solely coffee, toast, chips, butterbeer, and the occasional meat product. When Benjy wasn't allowed to defend his title, which occurred between the hours of five and seven when Molly was home, he was worked like a slave.

If Molly was that determined to clean the whole bloody manor, she didn't need his help. That should have been a past time for her, a hobby perhaps. Whenever he left a mess, Molly should have been giggling and twittering about like a happy little bird. "Benjamin Fenwick!" The worse noise in the world had come crashing down into his ear. The red haired woman spotted him, her rosey cheeks flaming as her petite hands rested on her large hips. One hand clutched a rag as she rasied her finger to point at him angrily, Benjy barely even touching the bottom step from upstairs.

The moment their eyes matched, Benjy made a run for it. He cursed and quickly spun around. His hand rested on the railing of the stairs as Benjy used it for leverage to lift his weight quicker as he tried to dart up the stairs and out of sight. "Benjamin Fenwick, don't you DARE make me come u- BENJAMIN!"

Don't ask how the hell it happened.. but here he was.

Benjy’s head poked inside the room leading into the dust filled storage room. His wand poked through the door’s thin opening as Benjy’s head craned around the oak door. There was no need not to be prepared! Benjy gradually stepped inside the room, weapon drawn, and eyes wide. Molly made this sound like a deadly task, probably giving the reason why she shoved Benjy through the door first. Benjy’s hand lowered down as a small, nervous smirk spread on his lips while his blue eyes looked around the room. He turned in a full circle before stopping, watching for something monstrous to pop out.

This was it? What exactly was going to get him, eh? Pygmy puffs?!

Benjy chuckled lightly, the light chuckle didn’t last long however. The moment that Benjy’s smirk fully grew into it’s maximum length and his chuckle just started to sound, a slamming desk drawer shut him up quick as he spun around. Benjy swore under his breath as he stared at the drawer, his arm raised again baring his wand. He stepped forward and gripped the iron handle, shaped in a arched back snake, and swallowed the excessive saliva in his mouth before licking his lips. He tipped his head back, shaggy dark brown hair falling back against his forehead, and his ocean blue eyes winced as he braced himself for a blow.

The door leading into the room creaked open. Benjy, his wand still pointing at the drawer and opposite hand gripping the handle, craned his neck and looked back over one of his shoulders at the door.

Merlin, like he needed an audience..

[Chloe Merrit]

Chloe was a neat freak. This was pretty common knowledge. She didn't necessarily like to clean. It was just that, whenever she was bored, she cleaned. Lately, Chloe had been bored a lot. So Molly Weasley had enlisted her in helping clean the headquarters. THey hadn't made a whole lot of headway.

Molly had informed Chloe that many other Order members helped with cleaning. So far Chloe hadn't seen any. Molly even claimed that Benjy had helped a bit. At this Chloe had laughed for a few minutes. Benjy was the single laziest person in London, perhaps the world. Benjy didn't get off of his arse for anything, except food, and butterbeer. Sometimes that didn't even happen, she had been sent by her friend on food runs a few times. But, nevertheless, Molly claimed he had been cleaning...so Chloe had to believe her somewhat.

Upon arriving at Grimmauld Place, Chloe immediately had a dusting rag shoved into her hand and she was ushered upstairs. She hadn't even gotten to sit and grab something to eat. With a slightly exasperated sigh, Chloe pulled her brown hair back into a ponytail as to keep it out of her dark eyes. Once Molly pointed Chloe towards the correct room, the older woman smiled and trotted back downstairs.

Chloe opened to find none other than Benjamin Flitwick pointing his wand at a drawer and looking wide-eyed around the room. With a slight chuckle, she leaned against the doorframe. "Expecting a surprise attack Benjy?"

[Benjy Fenwick]

"Expecting a surprise attack Benjy?"

The thought of frying a pygmy puff to death was not all that heroic sounding. In fact, it sounded like a evil child with a magnifying glass on a sunny day leaned over a active ant hill. Chloe made things a bit more relaxed. She stood still in the doorway as Benjy looked back at her over his shoulder. The corner of his mouth spread into a wide smirk. "Now," he whispered quietly as Benjy's blue eyes still remained fixed on her just as his hand still gripped the iron bar. "If I was expecting it, that wouldn't be much for a suprise attack."

Benjy winked and slowly dropped his hand. Oh come on, he worked. You had no idea how much energy he had used in trying to hide from Molly. Benjy had ran from the west wing clear to the east and tried to conform his body into the irregular shape of a odd-shaped cabniet on two occasions. Then, when he was finally captured and branded a POW by Molly, this walking to the desk alone had been work. Merlin if he kept working this hard, he may just pass out from exhaustion.

Chloe leaned aganist the doorway casually while Benjy's eyes still watched her with his boyish grin sliding on his feaures. He folded his arms stubbornly in front of his chest and shifted his weight to one foot. "Did Molly send you as a distraction?" Benjy asked. "That bloody woman.. always trying to test me.. ,"Benjy sighed lightly, shaking his head. His dark brown hair fell forward and laid across the corner of one of his eyes. The thin pink lips of his still holding the firm boyish look of amusement. Benjy's hand raked his fingers back through it, brushing it out of his face for a few moments before it lost it's stucture and laid simply across his forehead.

[Chloe Merrit]

"If I was expecting it, that wouldn't be much for a suprise attack."

Chloe merely shrugged her shoulders and smiled. She didn't have much of a response for her friend. Mostly because he made a very good point, but partly because she didn't have a good retort. Instead she laughed slightly at Benjy's comment before looking around the room. He hadn't made much headway, but he probably had been too busy looking for his attackers.

Between the two friends, it was often battle of the wits. Who could come up with the best remarks or comments before the other ran out of witty retorts. In this recent exchange, it seemed Benjy had won. If they had been keeping score, which Chloe definitely wasn't, he would be up one. But Chloe wasn't keeping score, and she hoped he wasn't either. Then she wouldn't hear the end of it. Chloe chanced a quick peek over the stair banister to be sure Molly wasn't keeping an eye on them. She wasn't, and Chloe was glad. With Benjy, she rarely got work done.

"Did Molly send you as a distraction? That bloody woman.. always trying to test me.. ,"

Chloe's mouth widened in laughter as she shook her head. "No I do believe she expected me to help you. Though I probably will end up doing something evenutally. You know how I feel about messy houses." She smiled and walked over to where he stood.

((sorry such an abrubt ending. I am going out for dinner. I love the title of this btw.))

[Benjy Fenwick]

{{It's perfectly fine. Thanks, I like it too. I'm witty like that too.}}

"No I do believe she expected me to help you."

Well, at least ol' Molly sent the right kind of girl to help him during his time of need. Chloe had that obsessive complusive tendency to clean everything that was nailed to the floor. The girl was living in the wrong, wrong manor. There was barely a room that wasn't infected with some kind of monster, spore, or some type of fungus growing.

"Though I probably will end up doing something evenutally. You know how I feel about messy houses."

Benjy grinned as she stepped forward a bit, his own feet closing the space as well. She was laughing, which was always reassuring. At least she wasn't rolling her eyes or scoffing at him. Benjy had had the cold shoulder enough from strangers he'd met in the Alley, or while sipping some butterbeer. Chloe had never sunk down to that level. She was always willing to smile, always appreciative of his humor.

"Ah, good, less work for me then." Benjy folded his arms once again in front of his chest. "I won't stop you from picking up my slack. Feel free to clean your little heart out, my dear."

Benjy wouldn't argue with that. If she wanted to clean the whole manor, then by all means, it left more time for him to sleep and stuff his face. There were other things that he did, of course, but working was at the bottom of his favorite list.

[Chloe Merrit]

A quick survey of the room confirmed Chloe's worst suspicions; The storage room was by far the messiest in the manor. That was most definitely saying something. Chloe had worked on cleaning every single room in the old house. Usually she didn't even get to start cleaning a room before Chloe was swept off to another, messier, one. Often times Chloe was brought in after a lazier person (cough-Benjy-cough) had been less than successful in their cleaning job. Chloe left her spot next to Benjy to get a better look at the room.

Dusty.

That was the only word to describe the room, the manor, dusty and cluttered. A decade couldn't clean up all the junk and dust that had accumulated. Chloe was absolutely positive.

"Ah, good, less work for me then. I won't stop you from picking up my slack. Feel free to clean your little heart out, my dear."

"Ha, what dimension are you currently living in?" Se asked with a backwards glance at her brunette friend. She walked back towards Benjy with a skip at the end. She waved her rag in his face. "Get to work bud." Chloe smirked before working on the table behind him.

[Benjy Fenwick]

"Get to work bud."

Chloe hopped over to him, waving a ripped rag in front of Benjy's face. Benjy's eyes rolled before his heavy brunette head fell backwards. His hand slid casually over his lips as a loud, exaspurated sigh escaped from his mouth after a light groan. Benjy rubbed his face and finally sat his head back up. Chloe was more then willing to scrub every nook and hole for the lot of them, so why the hell were the rest of the group enlisted? People like, you know, Benjy. Benjy grabbed the rag from her hand, glaring cooly in her direction as she happily passed by him to the desk.

Benjy slowly, dragging his feet the entire way, stalked off towards the large grandfather clock near the door. Benjy glanced back at her as he slowed to a halt in front of the clock. Chloe was leaned over the desk with her arse in the air, scrubbing her little hands raw. His eyebrow raised, his lips soon following suit, from the sight he was getting. Benjy shook his head lightly and chuckled, looking back at the task before him.

The clock was ready for the burn pile. The satin oak had long since been chipped off, there was no longer any gloss covering the wood. It looked ancient; like Benjy's great aunt Dorothy. By the smell he recieved when Benjy carefully popped open the clock's glass door piece, it smelled like his great aunt Dorothy. Had someone left a moldy sandwich in there? And who the bloody hell was crunching down on a sandwich while sitting inside a rusty, broken clock?!

Of course the bastard would leave it there, too. Why not? The louse didn't have to clean it up. Benjy was awarded that honor. Now he was on a hunt for a disgusting sandwich. Benjy sighed, he'd rather be fighting the pygmys..

[Chloe Merrit]

A smirk played across her lips as Chloe watched Benjy 'clean' reluctantly. He was such a baby about some things. Like cleaning, and well, cleaning. Actually, she was the only person, besides MOlly Weasley, that didn't mind the cleaning. But she was most definitely the only one who enjoyed it. Heck she even went through the touble of weeding the entire garden without magic. That, my friends, is dedication to the cause.

Chloe lifted a particularly heavy silver vase off of the desk she was currently cleaning and almost dropped it. "Bloody hell!" she muttered, catching the vase before it smashed on the floor. She set it back down on the desk, rather forcefully before searching through a desk drawer.

Nosy. Well nosy is such a strong word. Chloe preffered to call herself curious, inquisitive even. But nosy? Never. She did, however, dabble in very nosy tendencies. Such as searching through random desk drawers only to find old bills and..ew..love letters from Mr. to Mrs. Black. She didn't bother opening them, that would be rude, not to mention sick. THe Gryffindor Alumnus shut the door before looking back to see if Benjy had made any headway. He had made a little bit on an older-than-old grandfather clock. Disgusting! "Benjy? Is that a sandwhich?" She asked, not even sure she wanted to know the answer.