Like a Rolling Stone (Cas)

[Casimir Elias Karkaroff]

She really wasn’t going to give him anything. Cas shouldn’t have supposed any differently – after all, no Aurors had come to burst down the door and arrest Emmanuelle for illegal activity. That did speak to her ability to avoid trouble, even if she most certainly was guilty of something. Then again, weren’t they all? It didn’t negate the fact that Cas didn’t like trying to cultivate new contacts. It was a long process, fraught with risk if you picked a weak link in the chain, and it required taking on a degree of personal risk that he wasn’t quite ready for. No, Cas preferred to rely on his old contacts from school or his early career days – but he had to admit that the field was thinning. He belonged to a small community, and more and more seemed to be leaving with every generation.

He supposed he should view Emmanuelle as an enemy, all things considered. His affiliation with the Order would have demanded it, but that didn’t exist anymore. At any rate, Cas was a businessman – not an idealist. He cared about the future much more than he did about the past, these days. “Of course,” Cas replied reservedly at her casual way of deflecting attention by hiding behind the store and its longstanding reputation. I don’t know what you’ve heard, but I don’t own this place. It was a noncommittal statement that meant she didn’t have to deny anything, or even ask what exactly he’d heard. No, he wasn’t going to learn anything new today – and he certainly hadn’t come to buy.

In fact, Cas hadn’t been sure at all why he’d come…but a new opportunity suddenly seemed much more clear than it had moments earlier. Cas turned away from the shelf again to study Emmanuelle with a hard, contemplative look in his eyes. He wasn’t the type to trust easily, or much at all really. But drastic times called for drastic action, and Cas couldn’t deny that he’d lost several valuable contacts in this new sweep of the Ministry’s – and due to the passage of time. That too. Emmanuelle was mysterious, and didn’t betray information about herself easily, and had managed to avoid detection by the authorities. That was enough for him, for now. “I don’t see anything of interest today,” he said dismissively, moving towards the door. He paused by Emmanuelle and took a moment to withdraw a business card and hand it to her. “But if you’re looking for a change of scenery, Borgin and Burke’s is hiring. It’s a unique opportunity to handle artifacts that would never pass through a place like this. Think it over.”

emmanuelle antoinette picquery

[emmanuelle antoinette picquery]

May 20, 2026

There was something about Casimir Karkaroff that Emmanuelle couldn't put a finger on. His mannerisms and the way in which he spoke were very much that "European pure-blood" sort of thing. Something else about him stuck out. He had a certain… insistence in his tone, as though trying to get her to read between the lines. Emmanuelle didn't know if he talked like that to everyone or just her, but it was interesting. She knew better than to open up to a stranger, though. Anything to do with the Purifiers was something that she would Obliviate herself before sharing.

Despite telling her that he didn't see anything of interest and seeming as though about to leave, Karkaroff suddenly pulled out a business card and said that Borgin and Burkes was hiring. "It's a unique opportunity to handle artifacts that would never pass through a place like this," he added as a sales pitch. "Think it over."

Emmanuelle paused as Karkaroff finished speaking. Was he trying to poach her from her job for his own store? It certainly sounded like it. Bemused in every sense of the word, she took the card from him and nodded her head stiffly. She'd think it over.

Casimir Elias Karkaroff

[Casimir Elias Karkaroff]

Cas was, by no means, a hasty man. But he was only human, and even he was prone to spontaneous decisions every now and then. Several examples sprang to mind, but he brushed them away with an expert control that showed his years of study and control. Now wasn’t the time to ponder past decisions or even idly wonder if he was more like Damian than he cared to admit (that was a can of worms that would require several years of psychoanalysis to unpack). Instead, he felt his attention sharpen until it was entirely focused on the moment. Because he knew when he’d entered a negotiation, and this was one. He didn’t like to lose.

Emmanuelle took the card silently, and nothing but a tight nod reflected that she’d heard him. That was for the best – Cas would have been suspicious if she’d accepted right away. And an immediate rejection would have meant his initial assessment of her had been wrong. He knew his motives for the offer were more selfish than the simple proposition of hiring a talented worker for his store. She’d certainly be a valuable asset and he could already see the advantages of having another artifacts expert nearby for acquisition and assessment. But even a cold-hearted Karkaroff could see that he wanted someone like him for the store. Someone with a passion for magical history, someone that understood the nuance of living between worlds.

So he was being selfish, but that was his nature. He returned the nod with a smooth and restrained gesture of his own, then wordlessly adjusted his business attire and walked towards the exit. There was risk here, no doubt about that. But Cas supposed he was more of a gambler than he would care to admit, and he was willing to roll the dice. He considered that on the return journey to Knockturn Alley.

emmanuelle antoinette picquery
[End post Cas!]

[emmanuelle antoinette picquery]

May 20, 2026

Emmanuelle didn't think that there was any more for Karkaroff to say to her after that, though he struck her as someone who wouldn't hesitate to have the last word if given the opportunity. After she nodded to him, however, he said nothing more, only nodding in his head. From that alone, they had established that they were in mutual agreement with one another, which was about as much as either of them could say where they were.

She watched as Karkaroff left the Gaelic Knot, glancing back down at his business card once he was out the door. Not wanting to make it obvious that she was doing business other than what she was meant to be doing at work—even if it wasn't business for Elaine anymore—and slipped the business card into her shoe under the guise of adjusting it.

Casimir Elias Karkaroff
Fin!