it claws the ground both lost and found and fleeting [cas]

[Deleted]

It wasn't very often that Odette found herself in Knockturn Alley, but every now and then her field of work called upon her retrieving something from the alley of Dark Arts. Other days, she just happened to fancy herself a stroll through the street for the hell of it. With a last name like her own, it was always likely she would garner some kind of attention and she only hoped that one day that that attention would bring her biological father to him so she could exact revenge for not only her mother, but her beloved siblings now as well.

Odette never thought she would be the person to grow up and have a big family. Fate, however, had other plans. When she had discovered, roughly over a year and a half or so ago, that she had several half siblings fathered by Fenrir Greyback, she wanted nothing to do with them. Then she got to know them. And well, she soon found herself to be the protective older sister she had sworn she would never be. Suddenly, she was okay with having a family. Actually, she couldn't imagine life without one now. If it weren't for them, she would certainly be more reckless with going around and trying to get her father's attention. But she knew she had to be more careful these days. She had a family she loved, and she couldn't just abandon them.

The day was cloudy, which was a nice change of pace from the last six months she had spent in Egypt. The air only got cooler as she entered the dark Knockturn Alley. She had decided to play it lowkey today. She had a few errands she figured she could run as well as meander about the street to see if she could hear anything on Fenrir's whereabouts. Having not been in the country for so long, she was curious if he had been around or gone as well. The skies then started to look as though they promised a summer rain storm, and Odette thought she might as well slither into a shop now before a downpour began so she entered the nearest shop to her which just so happened to be Borgin and Burke's.

Casimir Elias Karkaroff

[Casimir Elias Karkaroff]

It was a slow day for customers. That was often the case – Borgin and Burke’s was not a high-volume business in the traditional way. Cas made his living on a smaller number of higher-value purchases and by exploring alternate ways of conducting business. Home visits, commissions, combing the markets for a particular type of product…slow didn’t mean idle, and he was often busy enough.

Things could be slow, but it was rare for him to be truly bored. Still, the conditions were right for an idle day…it was raining, which had driven away most of the usual traffic, and none of his shopkeepers had called on him for any assistance in appraisal, mediation, or feedback. He’d been in his office an entire morning, staring blankly at his ledgers, before eventually locking up the books and dismissing the shopkeeper at the front for the day. He’d sat behind the front counter instead, leaning back in his chair with his feet informally propped up, and staring out the window at the drizzle.

Cas missed curse-breaking most of all during empty days like this, which while not extremely common did occasionally occur. He’d never been idle during his years abroad, and the adventure had suited him fine. It’d been easy to dodge his responsibilities for a few years and indulge in his tendency to take risks. It was unfortunate that things had caught up to him after enough time – his family, his ambition, the piece of news that had indicated there were fresher opportunities to be found in England. He didn’t regret his decision to leave, but he couldn’t deny that he missed it.

A familiar figure appeared near the storefront and Cas frowned as he narrowed his eyes to refocus them –it almost appeared as if his thoughts had summoned her. She entered without noticing him and Cas didn’t move as a half-smirk appeared on his face. “What’s a rookie doing in a place like this?” he asked with a hint of humor in his voice, planting his feet on the floor to stand in the fluid, casual movement typically associated with him. It was odd timing for a blast to the past, but maybe fitting – in the last few months, Cas had had enough reminders of his depressing school days. Curse-breaking, on the other hand, had been the most fulfilling time of his life. He could do with a reminder about that.

@odettee

[Deleted]

Odette had wandered into Borgin and Burkes a few times over the years, but she had never really stayed that long. That was the beauty of cursebreaking, in her eyes; it never kept you in the same place for long. The former Ravenclaw had always known exactly what she was looking for in the past when she had come into the shop, and she had always left satisfied. She was never one for small talk with shop keepers, and she rarely haggled just because she didn't care for the banter. She was a very straight to the point kind of gal, and if she couldn't get to her desired end result quickly then she really saw no point in wasting time in small talk.

Whenever she entered a shop, she tended to mind her own until a shop keeper approached her and asked if she needed help. In which case, she would try to look like she really didn't want to be bothered and dismiss them as kindly as she could. Odette 2 years ago wasn't exactly kind, and it had left a lot of shop owners scornful of her. But gaining a family did happen to make her a bit nicer. Or at least a bit more patient. She supposed she could blame her sister Jamie for that. Darn Hufflepuff attitude.

Odette found herself perusing the shelves of all of the odd antiques. Her eyes landed particularly on a necklace with one ruby on the chain. She wondered about it, of course. But she knew better than to touch anything in this shop. As her mind wandered to what the story behind it could possibly be, a voice directed at her caught her attention. Her head instantly snapped in the direction of the voice, both alarmed by the familiarity of it as well as the words. She wore a disgruntled look on her face until she saw exactly who the voice belonged to. "Cas?" She turned her whole body to face her old mentor, almost unbelieving that he stood in front of her now - in Borgin and Burkes of all places! "Rookie, huh? What's that make you then, retiree? An old man?" She shot back with the same humor he had displayed.

Casimir Elias Karkaroff

[Casimir Elias Karkaroff]

Cas had amusedly watched her progression through his store without even a glance to the front counter. He hadn’t been excited about having to take responsibility for the training of a new curse-breaker once upon a time, but it had ultimately been a good match. Odette had been receptive to his advice, and she’d taken their excursions seriously. Perhaps most importantly, she knew when to shut up. Cas had never enjoyed the company of overly chatty coworkers.

Even after years of no contact, their rapport came back quickly and Cas felt himself slipping into the long-unused role of teacher. He rounded the front counter slowly, hands in pockets. “An old man’s curse has as much firepower as anyone else’s,” he countered, “and can cause plenty of damage to the unsuspecting curse-breaker who studies the artifact before the room.” It was an old lesson – the artifacts were what they came for, but assessing the state of the room (and if applicable, the people or bodies) often revealed much more important information. Like information to accurately date the relic and its origins, or more relevantly…hidden traps and curses.

Odette had been studying a necklace, and Cas carefully lifted it with one hand to raise it to eye level. He knew every piece in his shop, although this one had been bought by his predecessor. “This one is safe to touch. For a short period of time, anyway. You can see the ruby is real through its natural imperfections, even without magnification. The gem has been properly mounted, suggesting expert craftsmanship. But it was only recently made, the links are too smooth to have been made without milling.” He held it out to her, the challenge and the humor clearly displayed on his face. “Maybe you can guess its origin? Or have they been spoiling you since I left?”

@odettee

[Deleted]

Odette had never really been one to take trips down memory lane. She kept in contact with everyone she had cared to over the years, and if she ever ran into old school mates she rarely wasted time in pointless "polite" banter. But Cas was certainly different. He had been her mentor when she first began training for cursebreaking and she had the utmost respect for him; even to this day. She thought back fondly on her training days because of him. They were both similar in the fact that she weren't exactly open to sharing or talking about their lives, and while their relationship had always mainly just revolved around work, that was what she had always liked most about it.

Right off the bat, it didn't seem as though Cas had changed too much. Odette smirked as he chided her for not inspecting the room. Had anyone else tried that with her, she certainly would have shot back with some off handed comment, but Cas was probably one of the few people she let joke around with her like that. Even after years of no contact. "You got me there, mentor," she shook her head and put her hands up in defeat. "Guess I've lost my touch without you always there to correct my every move." She folded her arms in front of her and observed the ruby as Cas lifted it carefully and explained a bit about it. It felt, for a moment, like six or so years ago when he had been her mentor. It was funny how things could change, yet stay the same in some aspects.

Cas asked her if she could guess its origins, and made a comment about being spoiled since he had left. She stood up straight and smirked once again, raising an eyebrow at him. "Maybe they have. They let any old riff raff into that program now that you aren't there to chastise all the new recruits," she countered before looking back at the ruby. "Eastern Africa," she tried guess its origin after a moment more of studying it.

Casimir Elias Karkaroff

[Casimir Elias Karkaroff]

Life had a bad habit of getting complicated fast. It was certainly the case for Cas, who played a delicate balancing game every day that threatened trouble if he ever made a wrong move. His words were always carefully weighed and considered before he spoke, and every potential action scrutinized beforehand to ensure he wasn’t revealing anything about himself that he didn’t want made public knowledge.

If there was something to be said about curse-breaking, it required significantly less caution and tact. It had been a trademark of his mentorship, that he always spoke directly and bluntly to Odette to maximize her training experience. He didn’t mind taking credit for how well it had turned out, since even years later she could still be a good sport about his criticism. He also couldn’t deny that he was excited to hear about how much she’d progressed in his absence. Cas couldn’t help but let a laugh escape at Odette’s comments, which struck that perfect balance between snarky and respectful (enough) to her superior, even if that relationship didn’t exist anymore. “That’s the danger of running into your old teacher. He’ll never forget the first time his trainee accidentally trips over an anti-burglar hex or forgets their Sneakoscope at the bar. Which is why I don’t write to mine.”

He returned her smirk with one of his own. “Laying on the flattery a little thick, rookie. I don’t give discounts on jewelry.” She still hadn’t taken the necklace from him (her caution at touching unknown artifacts still seemed intact) so he pressed it carefully into her hand. It was a dormant curse, anyway. “Good guess, but be more specific. I know you recognize the markings.”  Even if she couldn’t read the runes etched onto the back, they’d encountered the same style before in certain tombs. He wondered if she’d remembered that, or if the choice had been random. But he found he wasn’t in such a rush to push the conversation forward – sometimes it was nice to look over ancient artifacts and just enjoy the simple pleasures of life.

@odettee