the great escape [cas]

[DAMIAN ANDREAS KARKAROFF]

Early February 2027

When Cas had run off to become a Curse Breaker all those years ago, Damian had been the first to support his decision. While Cas had been so stoic and unyielding for most of Damian's youth, he couldn't deny he was rather jealous of Cas's freedom. Yet he knew that when Cas had left the Karkaroff family in Aleks' charge, it would be a turning point for them. The moment Damian graduated, he knew that like his brother, he wouldn't be able to stay still for long. He'd joined the Hungarian newspaper, travelling the world and collecting stories. Even now that he was much older and barely wiser, Damian never shied away from the chance to escape.

Though Cas had settled in Britain, taking over ownership of Borgin and Burke's, Damian knew the flame of adventure still licked at his insides. It was only solidified by the fact that Cas had purchased a magical RV and Damian had only now convinced him to take his little brother travelling. Perhaps they had different ideologies for life in general, and also what they wanted out of a destination - but after all, Cas and Damian were still brothers.

It was early February by the time Cas had made all the arrangements to leave Borgin and Burkes for a week so Damian could accompany him travelling. Damian had - naturally - suggested South East Asia, where he preferred young and dumb foreigners and beach parties in the light of the full moon. They had gone back and forth on destinations for some time before settling on something they could both benefit from - Eilat. It was on the coast of the Red Sea - perfect for water activities such as diving and boat parties, which Damian preferred. But it was a stone's throw away from Petra, an ancient city that also housed a little known Wizarding village. That had piqued Cas' interest, and Damian had to admit he was keen to see what a middle eastern magical camp would look like. Or how wizards and witches were treated there anyhow.

"Cas, are you twiddling with the engine again? You know that you can use magic for that," said Damian with an air of superiority as he apparated to Cas' RV. "I'm excited," he admitted in a hushed voice after a moment, his dark eyes shining with the shared secret between them.

Casimir Elias Karkaroff

[Casimir Elias Karkaroff]

Early February 2027

Every Karkaroff was born with a calculating streak, the ability to play their part in the endless pureblood masquerade and never miss a step. Damian was no different, in that sense. He had his flaws, of course – he’d never learned what a sense of responsibility was, or that his actions came with consequences for another member of the family to clean up. He was flighty, rebellious, couldn’t seem to stay away from the fire even as he knew that it would burn him again and again – yeah, Cas could continue the list for ages and sometimes at a touchy family dinner he would give him the lecture again just to keep his youngest brother in check. But Damian was also calculating, precise, and knew how to spin the situation to his advantage. That was why Cas could speak with absolute certainty that Damian had chosen this date on purpose for their trip. Close to Cas’s birthday, and therefore full of potential for ‘old man’ jokes.

Predictable, and yet Damian could still surprise his siblings. It was a difficult combination to handle, especially for him. He was the head of the family, after all, and that meant it was his responsibility to keep his younger siblings (more or less) in check. Ana had it easier with Damian – she could just whip out her wand and remind her brothers that she was an expert dueler. Cas had always been more subtle, but Damian didn’t respond to that. Still, even as Cas pinched the bridge of his nose to ward off the inevitable headache that followed when Damian began to strut his way with a satisfied smirk on his face…he had to admit he was excited at the prospect of escaping London for a while. He and Damian had one thing in common – they couldn’t stand to be anchored anywhere. Cas only knew how to hide it better, and shove that instinct deep inside when family business demanded a more predictable lifestyle from him.

And he was excited to see the Middle East again. Once upon a time, he’d spent the majority of his year exploring the ancient cities and broken tombs of Israel, Jordan, Iraq, and every other far-flung place that promised rich magical history and a treasure trove of powerful artifacts. But Borgin and Burke’s demanded his full attention, and he rarely traveled for business anymore – much less for the excitement and danger that cursebreaking guaranteed. Ana had only scoffed at Cas’s decision to enchant an RV for traveling (“and when exactly would you find the time?”) but Damian had gotten that glint in his eyes that promised trouble. They’d argued for a while on where to go (of course) but once Cas had begun to hint at his stories from Petra and the secret magical community that lived there? He’d gotten Damian hooked. He knew his brother, after all.

So he only rolled his eyes now at Damian’s haughty observation and resisted the urge to throw his brother into the RV by the scruff of his neck (but sadly, they weren’t children anymore and Cas could practice more restraint now). He ignored Damian’s whispered confession and waved his wand so the door popped open. “Get in the RV and don’t touch the dashboard.” He waited until Damian had turned his back before he let his expression betray the whirlwind of excitement he felt at the prospect of showing his brother some of his world -- an instinct he'd resisted in the past. “Yeah, me too,” he murmured in a low tone before following Damian in. Cas had already taken the RV for a few practice runs to familiarize himself with the complications of magical transportation, and he slapped Damian’s hand away from the enchanted compass before taking a seat at the wheel. “Seatbelt,” he warned in a familiar condescending tone, “This thing moves fast and I’m not paying to regrow all your teeth again.”

DAMIAN ANDREAS KARKAROFF

[DAMIAN ANDREAS KARKAROFF]

Though each Karkaroff aimed to differentiate themselves, they all had certain talents that worked well together. They were all calculating and thoughtful. And they knew the others like the backs of their hands. Coming from their background, you couldn't get away with not being a tight knit family. Especially after everything the Karkaroffs had been through. So when Cas and Damian went back and forth over where to travel, Cas knew that Damian would be tempted by a highly secretive magical enclave. Just like Damian knew Cas couldn't resist the seductive promise of adventure.

Damian commented offhandedly that Cas was busy twiddling with the engine, which he knew full well he wasn't Damian wasn't very well versed in cars - why bother when you could apparate or fly? - but all the same, the RV enchanted him as much as it had Cas. And the additional magic Cas had placed on it... well, Damian wasn't complaining. He flopped into a a chair and held out a slender finger over the dashboard. "This dashboard?" asked Damian innocently, pressing the pad of his finger onto the glass before retracting it as if he'd been sparked. With a frown, he glared at Cas. "Did you do that on purpose," asked Damian, before admitting that he was excited. Damian was tempted by the enchanted compass to his right but Cas slapped his hand away again and Damian crossed his arms in a huff.

"Merlin, you going to be so reckless we have to be that worried about safety? This is a magic RV" said Damian, but nonetheless snapped the belt in place. "They're very nice teeth, thanks again," said Damian, grinning madly at Cas. "Hey, if you curse my bum off, can I get a juicier one?" asked Damian after a moment of thought. "On second thought, this one does nicely. Don't go below the belt. But okay, I'm ready," said Damian, clutching onto the sides of his seat in mock terror. "I swear if you drive this thing under 120km per hour, I'm going to take the piss daily."

Casimir Elias Karkaroff

[Casimir Elias Karkaroff]

This is what happens when you don’t set boundaries, Cas thought with a grumble as Damian sported a perfect expression of innocence even as his hand hovered over the dashboard. Of course, that criticism was more for their mother, because Cas was nothing if not strict and even slightly overbearing. But no, Mama Karkaroff fawned over her youngest son and had always turned a blind eye to his antics. Discipline was always reserved for Ana, who needed to be a prim and delicate lady (he couldn’t even think that with a straight face) and for Cas (who had never really listened anyway). And it was all fun and games until Damian inevitably broke something. Cas kept a neutral expression as his brother discovered the anti-Damian protections Cas had placed on the RV – he’d gotten the idea from seeing shock collars on dogs – although a snort still escaped him as Damian turned to glare at him.

“I did warn you,” Cas reminded him in a sage tone, a smirk of satisfaction on his face as he fiddled with some of the dials. Cursebreaking had taught him loads of important things – living out of a backpack, how to outrun a manticore – but most importantly, he’d learned quite a few curses that were just as effective on his nosy brother than breaking the protections on ancient artifacts. Since he hadn’t started driving yet, Cas turned to shoot Damian an incredulous look at the word ‘juicy’ as if his brother had just turned into a hag. “Merlin’s sake, where do you learn these things,” Cas muttered, not deigning to respond to any other part of those comments. Damian wasn’t that much younger, but sometimes it felt like they were part of two completely different worlds. But as long as he didn’t use that sort of language at home…

He rolled his eyes at the theatrics and felt the engine rumble to life. Cas started the RV at a slow roll down the paved road, and he glanced out the window to see a few ducks waddle past and easily outpace their slow crawl. He suppressed a smile at the sight. “Rule one of the RV,” Cas paused then continued once he didn’t hear an interruption, “Whatever you do to the RV, I do to you. So don’t scratch the paint job.” He flicked a few more dials, engaged the invisibility booster, and felt the RV begin to float – still at a painfully slow pace that must be driving Damian mad. Good, his brother could learn a little patience. “And rule number two,” Cas raised his voice to be heard over the roar of the engine, “If you scream, I’m telling Mother and Ana at our next family dinner. And every one after that too.” With that, he slammed his foot on the accelerator and felt the dragon fire booster come to life, slamming him into the back of the seat with the pressure of the flames and turning the trees below them into a blur. Cas felt himself begin to laugh – a wild kind of laugh he hadn’t heard from himself since his cursebreaker days. He had known the dragon fire was coming, but for his in-the-dark brother he felt compelled to add at a shout, “Take the piss is an expression, by the way, don’t take it literally. These are nice seats.”

DAMIAN ANDREAS KARKAROFF

[DAMIAN ANDREAS KARKAROFF]

Damian narrowed his eyes at his brother but after his accusation, he said no more. He sat back rather glumly for a long moment before his interest was piqued again. Cas was so easy for him to rile, and it brought him great pleasure to do just that. Though underneath both their skins, there was a fraternal connection that couldn't be denied. Only tested. By Damian. And so when he shot Cas a comment about getting him a juicier bum if he cursed it off, Damian threw back his head and howled with laughter. He thought he may have teased the ghost of a smile out of his stern older brother, but Cas quickly turned away and started the engine.

"Yes sir" Damian shot back, saluting Cas mockingly. However, his manner vanished, replaced with curiosity as Cas clicked on all the bells and whistles. "What does that button do?" asked Damian, pointing to the invisibility booster and careful not to touch it. Now that they were actually moving - at an unbearably slow pace mind - Damian didn't want to cause an accident. He did rather value his own life. "What's the speed limit here, twenty?" he grumbled more to himself than anything.

Damian made a face. "I don't scream. I shout. I'm very macho," he replied petulantly. "Merlin's testicles, Cas!" Damian exclaimed as Cas slammed his foot on the booster and they shot forward at breakneck speed, Damian's neck snapping back against the headrest. He massaged the tender muscles once he became adjusted to the speed, knowing Cas had done it on purpose. "Shockingly, a little warning can prevent whiplash," he grumbled.

Despite the terror that had briefly been instilled in him, Damian found himself grinning wildly. Cas let out a shout of laughter and Damian felt as if the seriousness of the eldest Karkaroff had been left behind on the ground. "I'm not a vagrant, I wouldn't actually piss on the seats. Though it's good to ask... is there a toilet on here. I think I might have shat myself with that jerky start," said Damian, shooting Cas a mischievous look. "Only joking. Eyes on the road, eyes on the road. Or er... clouds? What would you say in this situation?"

Casimir Elias Karkaroff

[Casimir Elias Karkaroff]

The most annoying aspect of Damian’s personality was knowing that he did it on purpose. Ana grumbled about some of the family responsibilities, but Cas knew that he could count on her to play her part when they were in public. And in private – well, he didn’t really care what his sister got herself into as long as she knew to avoid a scandal. But Damian? Every toe he stepped out of line, every misplaced comment and shit-eating grin, Cas knew it was all a show for whoever was watching. And he knew that Damian was looking to see how far he could push before Cas responded with force. Still, it was just the way brothers were and Cas found his own little ways to take revenge. Sometimes that meant looking the other way when he saw Ana sliding her wand out of its holster, other times it meant giving Damian unpleasant tasks to do that he couldn’t get out of.

This time at least, it meant Cas could have a little fun at his brother’s expense. His wild laugh escaped him and dissipated into the wind as they shot forward with a lurch. Cas had tried just about every form of magical travel that existed – and while some could be a bumpy ride, none of it compared to the RV and the first time he’d taken it for a spin. It took some getting used to, but it was still a damn sight nicer than some of the conditions he’d been exposed to as a cursebreaker. “Didn’t realize you wanted to be babied,” Cas commented with a satisfied smirk as Damian grumbled about the lack of warning. He looked petulant as he rubbed his neck, but that just added to the eldest Karkaroff’s sense of victory as he eased up on the gas pedal and let the RV drift through the thin air.

“That’s the invisibility booster. Not quite the right word for it though, since it only cloaks the RV in a Disillusionment Charm,” Cas finally responded after a few moments, going back to Damian’s earliest question. As tempting as it was to ignore 90% of what came out of his brother’s mouth, Cas couldn’t help the need to mentor. Call it a reflex, or a weakness, from all the years he’d spent with Rhys and the other junior cursebreakers of the time. It might’ve turned into a nice bonding moment if he’d allowed it, but that was a sort of intimacy Cas tried to avoid with Damian – and Alek too. He just couldn’t be a good pseudo-parent if he bonded with his younger siblings, no matter how tempting it might be. He rolled his eyes at Damian’s impertinent comments. “No Damian, there’s no washroom. You’ll just have to wait until Jordan,” Cas said, words dripping in sarcasm as he adjusted the rearview mirror and reluctantly returned his eyes to the ‘road.’ Despite all of Ana’s jokes, it was a more luxurious RV than you’d find in the Muggle world. Bigger on the inside, of course, which was good because Cas might end up murdering his brother if they stayed in too close quarters for long. He gestured somewhere vaguely behind him and resisted the urge to inform Damian not to put his feet up on the dashboard. Because nothing would incentivize Damian to try more than being told not to.

DAMIAN ANDREAS KARKAROFF

[DAMIAN ANDREAS KARKAROFF]

Damian smirked. "I'm nothing if not a needy little brother," said Damian. Some days, he felt like his sole purpose was to irritate Cas. It was a full time job after all, and someone needed to do it. Ana and Cas had a sort of understanding, and Aleksander was just annoying in general, so the role fell to Damian. His heart had slowly returned to its usual pace as Damian grew accustomed to the speed, ultimately slowing down as Cas eased up the pressure on the pedal and they drifted through the thin clouds. Damian managed to cobble together a question, more so that he could focus on not being sick all over the dash, but also out of genuine curiosity.

"And we can still see ourselves why?" asked Damian, his gaze darting from the button to Cas. "I thought the magic of the disillusionment charm worked to cover all aspects - but it's intriguing that you've managed to contain it just to the RV and still keep us from discovery by muggles," said Damian thoughtfully. He made a jibe about the bumpy start, and Cas' sarcastic response had Damian rolling his eyes. "Er... fuck off," said Damian, flipping his brother off as he unbuckled the belt across his lap and sauntered back into the RV to find the loo himself.

After relieving himself, Damian returned to his seat beside Cas and reclined the chair all the way back. "This leather is nice. Did it come with this thing? Somehow I can't imagine a muggle owning an RV as nice as this one. What fixings did you give it?" asked Damian, rubbing a finger along the buttery leather of the seat. "Also how long is this drive? Please tell me you can magically cover long distances in short periods of time because I am very keen to get to Jordan and do some exploring," said Damian, closing his eyes against the burning sun.

Casimir Elias Karkaroff

[Casimir Elias Karkaroff]

Cas didn’t deign to respond to Damian’s satisfied little jab, and instead just rolled his eyes. He knew Damian wanted a response, preferably a peeved one, and most of the time Cas was able to resist. Still, brothers knew how to push each other’s buttons and it would sometimes end in a scuffle when they’d been younger. Outside, of course, where their mother couldn’t see. They hadn’t wrestled in a long time, but it still seemed important to Cas for Damian to know he could drag his little brother out by the scruff of his neck if needed. In theory. Cas had done it for Rhys enough times to avoid a bar fight or two, but he’d never taken such an involved role with Damian. He was sure it wouldn’t work, anyway.

Damian was still fixated on the button, but at least he was asking good questions. “Usually,” Cas agreed, “But it’s not useful to me if I can’t see myself. So I added a few features to the engine, and installed the cloakers on the roof. You saw the little bulbs on top?” It wasn’t the result of a spell, in a sense, because Cas’s wandwork wasn’t particularly strong compared to the average (pureblood) wizard. But he’d gotten quite adept with enchanting objects after working at Borgin and Burke’s for so long, and especially after his long stint holed up with the magic dampener while he worked to unlock its secrets. In the case of the RV, the modified Disillusionment Charm he'd managed had been the result of tinkering with the magic of his Dial Back – an artifact that could repel magic within a certain range. So Cas had set to work to change the parameters of the spell, cloaking the outside of the RV but leaving the inside magic-free. In theory, if they kept a window open, the Muggles would be able to see inside - but from the outside they were invisible. Cas, as a collector, valued one-of-a-kind things. His RV had absolutely become that after all the extra work he'd put in on it.

But it didn’t surprise Cas that his reputation didn’t extend that far. He had an obsession with artifacts, everybody knew that, but he kept his personal involvement with the actual enchanting private. People didn’t need to know his business, or how he spent his limited free time. He shot some side-eye at Damian as he continued to wonder out-loud about how much work Cas must’ve put into the RV. He was tempted to give a sarcastic answer but he’d already wasted that chip on the water closet. So Damian wouldn’t fall for it twice. Instead, Cas gave a heavy sigh and tapped his fingers on the steering wheel. “Why so many questions? Fixing to nick the van in Jordan?” he demanded, a little suspicious of Damian’s endless curiosity. It couldn’t be innocent, because absolutely nothing his brother did was innocent. The same went for Ana, really, but at least she didn’t play games about it.

DAMIAN ANDREAS KARKAROFF

[DAMIAN ANDREAS KARKAROFF]

Damian deflated at Cas' lack of response. Not even a sarcastic laugh! What was even the point? With a silent harrumph, Damian managed to sulk for a grand total of ten minutes before getting distracted by something else. "Oh yeah, right, seen that," said Damian with a nod, though he hadn't spared the bulbs on the roof a second glance. Damian drummed his fingers on the dashboard to a tune in his own head as they zoomed through the sky, and a comfortable sort of silence settled between the brothers if only for a short while.

"As if. I would crash the thing. I prefer apparition. Gets me to the right place in mostly one piece," said Damian, cracking an eye to glance over at Cas with a smirk. "I just like to know things," he added with a shrug. He settled back into his seat, closing his eyes once more and tapping his foot to the quiet music that emanated from the enchanted radio.

Some time later - Damian got bored and lost track, which came as a surprise to absolutely no one - the RV tipped towards the ground and the pair landed smoothly along a dusty stretch of secluded desert. "Secluded desert. Never thought that adjective would qualify that subject," said Damian, more to himself than to Cas. He leapt to his feet, stretching languidly. "Right. Sun cream. And what else? You're the cursebreaker expert," said Damian, turning to Cas. "Sunglasses?" he tilted his head, shifting his gaze out the windows of the RV. With a characteristic impatience, Damian popped the doors of the RV open and stepped out into the blazing mid-winter sun. "Blimey, it's hot," he muttered. He hadn't faced much of this sort of heat in ages. "Reminds me of Vietnam." He frowned. "Less wet."

After a moment of poking around the immediate area, Damian returned his attention to Cas. "Are all your destinations this dusty?" he asked, genuinely curious. Couldn't ancient, powerful artefacts be found in swamps? Or forests?

Casimir Elias Karkaroff

[Casimir Elias Karkaroff]

It unnerved Cas sometimes to see the similarities between the brothers. It was easiest on his mental and physical health to think of Damian as some strange being that their mother had brought home one day – to be raised alongside them, but not truly of them. It kept him sane when he received the call that Damian had made another mess and needed the eldest Karkaroff to come and clean it up, and it kept him composed whenever he wanted to shout at Damian to use his head as more than a battering ram. But they were more similar than Cas would ever want to acknowledge, and sometimes it showed in a small mannerism or turn of phrase. I just like to know things. It unnerved Cas how much he could relate to that. Didn’t he build his whole reputation on knowing things? Didn’t he run his business by discovering and exploiting secrets?

The thought unsettled him so he didn’t respond, only gripped the steering wheel tightly and stared at the thin wisps of cloud around them. After some time in comfortable silence, Cas began to ease the RV down under the clouds and over vast stretches of uninhabited desert. Sometimes there was a train of camels barely visible in the distance, and just once they flew over a small collection of colored tents. “Wizards in the Middle East are more secretive about their magic,” he mentioned offhandedly as he glanced in the rearview mirror. “They rarely mix with each other, let alone Muggle communities, and their territories are rather badly marked. Borders, ownership, shared heritages…it doesn’t mean the same thing here.”

He supposed he meant it as a warning, even if this was just a leisure trip. Cas had still gotten into enough trouble doing business in the area – and that was knowing all the rules and the customs and the local trigger points. But he rolled his eyes as Damian took the first opportunity to leave the parked RV and study the sand dunes. “Forget sun cream and wear the gutrah,” Cas said, tossing the white headdress at Damian that he’d stowed in the back early on as he slipped his own on with the easy movements of having done it a million times. He made a small noise of disgust at Damian’s musings of Vietnam and moved to study the towering cliffs of red stone that marked the end of the desert dunes and the start of the dried-up valleys that had once been powerful rivers.

“The best artifacts are found in this kind of environment,” Cas said dryly, “they stay in better condition away from the humidity.” He’d seen temples here in much better condition (and despite being much older) than their counterparts on any other continent. It almost made up for the constant wars and unbearable heat. “As I was saying, wizards here like to hide their magic – especially from other tribes. So you’ve got to know how to find the entrance.” Cas ran a hand idly over the red stone and pulled his wand out while he spoke. “In Lebanon,” he said in a low and contemplative voice, “I’ve seen doorways hidden in the cedar forests. But in Iraq they always build on the ruins of older empires. And in Jordan…” Cas found the runes he was looking for. “The past is silent unless written in stone.” He watched in satisfaction as the archway began to hollow itself out. “Right. We’re leaving the RV here. Sela isn’t built for it.”

DAMIAN ANDREAS KARKAROFF

[DAMIAN ANDREAS KARKAROFF]

Interacting with his eldest brother usually took Damian a lot of thought. Usually more than he was willing to part with. But there was something about the excitement of seeing a new place, of discovering age old secrets that had been hidden from the Western Wizarding world only in that hardly any of them cared to look. But Damian's conversation with Cas at this point was almost playful. As if some of his own energy had loosened his ever-stoic brother to a normal level again. "Like Goblins," prompted Damian, and he expected to draw an eye roll out of Cas.

As soon as they were parked, Damian leaped from the vehicle, brimming with unbridled delight. The sun beat down upon his fair skin, and he cursed under his breath before commenting how they ought to lather up on sunscreen. Predictably, Cas had a better plan, and Damian stuffed the hat onto his head without further commentary. However, he did find a tube of sun cream and donned it, just in case.

Damian was unfamiliar with desert surroundings, preferring at least a few inches of rain fall per year. The oppressive heat reminded him of Vietnam, though it was much drier here. Each breath felt like it was singeing the lining of his lungs, and he frowned even more deeply. "That makes sense," said Damian to Cas, though he wasn't really listening. He was still taking in the wide expanse of red stone walls that towered over the pair of them. "Do they not trade?" asked Damian, doubtfully. "Seems pretty prehistoric to cut yourself off from anyone," he added with a nonchalant shrug.

Damian crossed his arms as Cas ran his fingers over the stone, almost lovingly. He was about to comment how he could leave Cas to it if he really wanted privacy, when a specific set of words worked their magic. There was no other way to put it as the previously solid wall crumbled away into an archway that looked as though it had been standing for centuries. And it probably had. Damian gaped at the new hole, mentally tucking away the last thing Cas had said - yes, he had actually been listening that time - and stepped through the archway first.

Whatever Damian had expected from the settlement, it was not this. On the outside, it looked like rows and rows of canvas tents, and they were greeted by the rich smell of baking spices, the sound of merchants bargaining with the other locals, and a distinctive magical aura. This was a place untouched by non-magic folk, and had remained understandably hidden. Damian wondered how quickly it would have been sold out for attraction purposes - and decided that after all, he was rather lucky to have Cas as a brother. Damian said nothing of the sort though, and stepped aside for Cas to lead the way further into Sela.

Casimir Elias Karkaroff

[Casimir Elias Karkaroff]

Damian, in his ever-simplistic way, managed to boil down the attitudes and customs of Middle East wizards into two words that he delivered in such a matter-of-fact way that Cas couldn’t help but roll his eyes. He supposed this is what he got for allowing his youngest brother to follow a career in journalism – writing for the public meant his stories needed to be geared towards the lowest common denominator. So no wonder he leaned on metaphors to make his point. “No,” Cas said tiredly. He wondered if this was another teachable moment, but he was already worn out from slapping Damian’s hand away from the console multiple times and just decided to let his brother win this one and compare wizards to goblins.

Cas adjusted his headdress so he would have better protection from the sun and straightened his clothes. It wasn’t so strange to see the combination of a t-shirt with the gutrah – most magical folk did these days in an attempt to mix traditions with modern life. Damian lingered somewhere behind him and Cas half-listened to his brother’s movements while he examined the red stone. “Of course they trade, but it’s done very carefully. There are treaties and permits, agreed-on times and places, and you have to be the right sort of person to earn the ability to move among different tribes.” It was an intricate network with a lot of moving parts and as a foreigner it was important to have your papers in order. The different groups distrusted each other, but one thing they could all agree on was that foreigners were extra suspicious. Especially the British and the French – they’d left a bad taste across the Middle East.

As the stone parted, Cas made to walk through automatically but blinked as Damian charged ahead. “Do you have any impulse control?” he sighed to himself as he followed his brother through the archway, pointing his key fob behind him at the RV and hearing a light chirp as it locked itself. Slipping the keys into his pocket, Cas let his eyes adjust to the dim light until they stepped into sunlight again. Nothing had changed from his last visit to Sela – the buildings carved into and out of brilliant red stone, the stalls that filled the open-air markets with strange combinations of aromas, the absolute chaos in the streets as wizards and magic carpets and camels pushed through and around each other to move ahead. Walking through a Middle Eastern street wasn’t like walking the roads of European cities because there was nothing linear here —you weaved and dodged and knocked shoulders if you weren’t fast enough. It was the sort of chaos that Cas had been desperately missing in his life. He grabbed Damian by the back of his shirt so they wouldn’t separate and pushed ahead, ducking into one of the smaller side markets so they could walk side-by-side. “This market’s popular for transfiguration magic,” he explained as he nodded at a stall selling a variety of non-wand magic conduits. There were a pair of wizards arguing loudly in Arabic over prices while one brandished his snake-adorned staff at the other. Cas moved on without stopping – his particular tastes usually led him to other parts of the city first.

DAMIAN ANDREAS KARKAROFF

[DAMIAN ANDREAS KARKAROFF]

Damian chuckled, as Cas' reaction was as expected. "Merlin, you are so easy to rile up," said Damian, clapping his brother on his shoulder as he pushed his way out of the vehicle. Damian examined the walls with interest, but saw nothing different from any of the other big red stones about. But Cas was the ex-curse breaker, and he did love his little bits of magic, so Damian would allow him the courtesy of showing Damian exactly what made this rock different from the others.

The city hidden within the stone of Petra had remained cut off from the modern world for centuries, millenia even. Damian had trouble understanding that sort of thing. He asked Cas if they ever traded, what with their need to keep secrets so close to their chests. Cas explained to Damian that they did so very carefully, with boring treaties and the like. His tone was that of someone explaining how two and two made four, and that his patience was waning. In a manner very unlike himself, Damian shut up until Cas had managed to open the portal to the ancient settlement.

Damian hadn't expected the thick power of magic to settle around him on his very first steps. He hadn't expected the smell of toasting spices and the zing of energy that hung in the very air around them. Damian glanced at Cas, his eyes wide as his brother took in the scene before them. "I actually do not have any impulse control. It's what makes me such a great writer. I do as I feel, then I can come back to it later and edit it," Damian said after a long moment. Cas grabbed him by the back of his shirt, even though Damian hadn't taken another step forward. But he had been thinking about it. "Kurva, are you a mind reader as well as an occlumens?" Damian swore as he crossed his arms reluctantly over his chest. "I promise not to stray too far. I just wanted to look at that stall," said Damian, pointing at the one in question. The scent of baked goods was strong as Damian pointed out some that he recognised. "Is that baklava? And oh, look at those dough balls," said Damian, his eyes lighting up as he looked from the supply to the vendor who was grinning at the pair of them.

Casimir Elias Karkaroff

[Casimir Elias Karkaroff]

It was a particularly busy day in Sela, which immediately put Cas on high-alert because they were supposedly here in the off-season. But then again, Cas wasn’t tuned into cursebreaker networks in the same way he’d been once. You had to be familiar with special events, like auctions or high-level meetings, because there always seemed to be representation from Gringotts there. The bank seemed to be involved in everything, and a lot of cursebreakers had individual interests too. A side business they liked to maintain, even if it wasn’t particularly ethical and straddled the line. So it wasn’t out of the realm of possibility that Cas had simply missed the news and they’d wandered into something that had gotten lots of attention from magical merchants. But he frowned at the sight of the crowds while Damian drunk the whole scene in.

“Shouldn’t the editing process be your built-in impulse control?” Cas grumbled in response to Damian’s casual explanation, although he wasn’t sure his brother had heard him. He was eyeing a section of stalls, and Cas couldn’t decide if that was because of the baklava or the knock-off magic carpet stall. Because he certainly wasn’t going to let Damian walk away with a cheap carpet that would crash after the first joyride. Especially with the way that Damian tended to drive. So he rolled his eyes at Damian’s incredulous question and let his brother wonder in silence if and when Cas had picked up Legilimency. He let go and stood solidly for another moment, glancing around at the general chaos of the open market before he followed Damian off to one side.

They did look good, but it wasn’t the usual sort of goods that Cas spent his time with when he came to visit. Cas shrugged and nodded at the vendor, who immediately began to wrap something up while Cas continued to look around. He didn’t pay any particular attention to whatever Damian had started pointing at, since his eyes had finally picked out their next destination out of the crowd. “We’re going there next. An old contact of mine,” Cas said, pointing out the dimly lit cave on the other side of the square. He wanted to ask more about the overcrowded feel of the city, and anyway – he never found himself in the Middle East anymore and he was sure an interesting artifact or two had become mysteriously misplaced in that time.

DAMIAN ANDREAS KARKAROFF

[DAMIAN ANDREAS KARKAROFF]

Damian narrowed his eyes. "No. Because I'm not necessarily the only editor," he amended after a moment. Damian was tempted by a set of stalls with sweet smelling pastries, but Cas grasped him by the collar of his robes and planted him by his side. Damian threw Cas a glare, but didn't step away. "I only wanted some baklava," he muttered, more to himself than anything. "Anyways, you think too narrowly of me. My mind doesn't work in a linear fashion like yours. I look at everything at once, rather than following a set path. It may take me all over the place, in a nonsensical way, but I'll always end up alright in the end." With that, Damian did manage to stray from Cas for a moment to purchase a few pastries for them.

It was only a short while later that Cas pointed out their next destination, and Damian followed duly. "That does not look exciting," said Damian with a frown, squinting at the cave in the middle distance. "What do they sell?" he added in an undertone, though he should have known that he wouldn't get anything out of Cas no matter what. "I'll follow you." Reluctantly, Damian pressed through the crowd beside his brother, only getting sidetracked twice by alluring perfumes and the promise of a state of the art magic carpet. Cas dragged him onwards, though Damian looked longingly over his shoulder.

At last, they approached the cave off to the side of the main square. Damian turned to Cas with an arched brow. "So?" he prompted, awaiting answers to questions he didn't even know yet.

Casimir Elias Karkaroff