Shuffling Cards (open)

Cobalt sat down in the chair that he had almost claimed as his own. It was a simple armchair with very little padding left and most of the professors found it to be too uncomfortable. But he liked it more than the over-plush armchairs that covered the room. Not to mention there was a handy table between this chair and the next one along. With a small sigh he removed a packet of ordinary muggle playing cards and began to shuffle them aimlessly as he stared off into space.

Time to think was what he needed. And the only time he'd ever truly relaxed was when either shuffling or playing cards, of course playing cards with someone else was always better.

Sam was mopping the floors outside the staff room. He had already given this floor of the castle a thorough clean yesterday, but he hoped he would meet more members of staff if he stayed around the staff room. He wondered if Hayden would be in there again, but the scent he picked up was of a man he hadnt met before. With the full more drawing closer, his werewolf senses were getting a lot stronger.

He pocked his head around the door to see a man shuffling playing cards.
"Good morro sir." Sam hoped the guy wouldnt mind being disturbed.

He continued with his mopping rather than stopping to look for the moment. "My uncle tried to teach me to play cards, but i was useless and never understood what beat what. The most me and my friend ever did with this was build towers or play snap ha ha."

Sam didnt care if he came across as weird today to people or not after last night.

Cobalt smiled a little in welcome,

"Hey there." he greeted as he continued to shuffle the cards intricately without looking at them, "Name's Cobalt. I'm one of the potions Professors."

He smirked a little as he stopped shuffling to reach into his jacket pocket for a cigarette,

"Well now I'm sure I could teach you at least one game. After all, blackjack isn't hard to grasp." he paused with his lighter up just in front of his cigarette, "Do you mind if I smoke?"

Cobalt...? Was this the guy Briony meant? Sam hadnt picked up very many vibes yet. The vibe from Hades has been immediate.

"Im Sam, the caretaker. Nice to meet you professor. And no no, go ahead. I dont smoke personally, but i dont begrudge people who do." Sam put his mop to one sat and sat in the chair opposite Cobalt. "Yea, i'm sure i can stop for one game."

Sam watched as Cobalt shuffled cards. He was able to pick some things up about him. Mixed messgaes really. "So you're from Ireland and a half-blood like me then?" Idiot! Why didnt he think before he spoke?

Cobalt nodded in recognition as he lit his cigarette and took a deep pull from it with one hand while idly shuffling the deck of cards expertly with his other hand. Without using his second hand once, Cobalt flicked four cards down onto the table,

"Two card each to begin with. Pictures are worth 10, Aces are worth 1 or 11 and numbers are worth what they say they are." he took another pull, "Aim of the game is to get as close to 21 without going over. If you are happy with you two cards you say 'stick'. If not then you say 'twist' and I will give you another card to add to your total. Simple enough right? The closest to 21 wins."

He raised an eyebrow before sniffing slightly,

"And you're a werewolf." he noted dryly with a small smirk, "I can smell you also have a dog. Not a small one either. And you've been hanging around Briony a lot."

Sam held his breath so not to breath in the smoke and picked up his cards.

"Ooooh! I'm sure i've played stick or twist before, but i never ever won ha ha"

It was weird to Sam that this guy wasnt thrown off at all by a stranger knowing stuff about him.

"I am a werewolf indeed. And how can you smell Wolfie on me? I swear i clean these clothes like 3 times before i wear them again." Sam sniffed at his clothes. "You're not a wolf as well are you? Cause that nose of yours isnt half good. My senses get a lot stronger the closer i get to a full moon."

Sam was wary. This guy obviously didnt miss a trick. "Yes i have. I regard myself as an acquaintance of hers. She has suffered a terrible bereavement as of late, which im sure you've heard of, and i want to comfort her. Richard Romain was a friend of yours was he not?"

Cobalt shrugged a little,

"Well we're not playing for money." he reminded Sam as he looked at his own cards, "So it's just some fun."

He smiled a little,

"Your dog's scent is on your skin. You've washed obviously but the dog's scent is still there. I know you're a werewolf because... well to put it bluntly to me there is a vague scent of wet fur." he smirked before shaking his head, "No I'm fully human. I just have an ritually-enhanced nose."

He stiffened slightly. Why did everyone he speak to want to talk about his past with Richard? It was making it very hard to be professional about the kill and not lasp into guilt. Smiling faintly, he nodded,

"Yes I was a friend of Richard... a long time ago he was my best friend and I his." he nodded again, "And I agree, Briony needs help in this, her time of need."

"Good coz im skint ha ha." Sam held up his cards to look at them.
"Wet fur? Oh, sorry, that cant be pleasant for you. I showered this morning but didnt have time to dry off properly. Thats a heck of a nose then. My nose doesnt get that strong until the full moon. I hate it though when all my senses increase because its very disorientating."

"It's heart breaking how crushed she is. Richard is a good man, i wanted to know him better. But i refuse to beleive he's dead; he's incredibly strong, he can bounce back from anything im sure."

Sam could pick up a sense of guilt. He began to feel angry and started to growl again, having to cough to cover it up.
"You call yourself his friend..." Sam thought. He didnt know for sure obalt had killed him, but he picked up the same sense he got from Hades meaning he was definately, definately a suspect that Sam would have to further investigate and keep his eyes on...

Cobalt smiled slightly,

"Well all the werewolves I've met have said that it's hard to get a job to stick." he commented idly, "I don't suppose you're going to have that problem here. There's a lot of shit here that's weirder than werewolves."

He waved it off,

"Don't worry about it." he smirked a little, "All werewolves smell of wet fur, even when they're dry. Makes no sense to me but I don't argue with my nose. As for getting all of your senses super-powered... well I used to know a guy who had super-sensitive hearing. The noises sent him insane, literally, because he didn't know how to turn it off."

Swallowing a little he took another pull on his cigarette to calm his nerves,

"Richard Romain... was not a good man." he replied after awhile, leaning forwards on his elbows as the smoke curled out of the sides of his mouth. He shook his head, "He did some terrible things, some willingly and others not so willingly. But no matter who you are, if you knew what he did you would agree that he wasn't a good man."

Glancing up at Samuel he raised an eyebrow,

"He drowned his two sisters in a lake, with his own hands. Did you know that?" he took another pull and let the smoke out in a long stream, "His father had some really fucked up ideas about becoming a man. He put Richard under the imperius curse and had him drown his beloved sisters. But the curse cut out halfway. And Richard held them under anyway. He told me it was because his brothers would have made it worse. Either way... he killed his two little sisters. And he then killed every member of his family. Killed off a Romanian crime family from top to bottom after he accidentally stumbled into their treasure cave and sent men after him. Richard Romain... was not a good man."

He looked away as he took another pull on his cigarette,

"But he had something that no other killer I have met had... he had a heart and a soul which held goodness inside." he let the smoke out in a shaky breath, "Richard Romain was not a good man. But in the last few months of his life... he did more good than I have in all of mine. He fell in love. He saved the life of an innocent. He adopted an little girl as his own. He taught some children to believe in themselves."

Glancing back up at Samuel he shook his head again,

"Richard Romain was not a good man." he looked away as he stubbed out the cigarette, "But he would have been if given just a little longer."

"Ha, yeah, no kidding." Sam laughed to himself. "I didnt think i'd be able to take it much longer until last night. I wanted to leave after only being here an hour; it was like everybody was insane, that everybody came from a past drenched in blood and torment. My nightmares havnt stopped..."

"Yeah, the hearing can make you go insane. Its like someone ringing a church bell in your head and the tolls keep resounding off your skull. Even an ant scuttling across the ground is unbearable. I have a potion that dulls the senses when i ge tlike that. You have to sleep in water to block everything out."

Sam grew suspicious. "You alright professor Smith... you seem a bit shaky?" Then Cobalt spoke.
Not a good man? Sam had sensed Richard had done some terrible things in his past, but he never knew what they were until now. It was a bit of a shock to him. But Sam had made a connection with Richard (he couldnt control who he made these with) and he was loyal and willing to defend him til the end.

"Everyone's done things in their past they regret...No-ones completely innocent" Sam looked down at the floor and fiddled with the cards in his hands. "Hell...my cousin Kerew has done worse crap than that... he's done shit you wouldnt believe... hell, even me. I put my best friend and my sister in the hospital... i've stood by and watched and done nothing as Kerew has done sick sick things..." Sam shuddered and cleared his throat. He tried to forget his time on the streets with Kerew.

"The Richard i knew was a good man. It didnt matter who he was then. Richard Romain is still a good man compared to some; if given the time, he wouldnt have become a good man he'd have become a great man. Heck, he may have even considered being friends with a lowly mutt like me, who knows. No matter what he's done, he didnt deserve what happened to him. And Briony didnt deserve to go through witnessing it."

Sam harboured a lot of anger towards what happened to Rich. He was scared of what he would do come the full moon; what lengths he would be prepared to go to. He dug nails into his knuckles so hard that they clicked and bled. But he couldnt help but be tense, and if he didnt take his anger out of himself....

Cobalt steadied his hands when he realised that they'd been shaking a little, just as they had been when he'd taken the shots. He swallowed a little before taking another pull from his cigarette,

"I'm fine." he defended bluntly.

He smiled faintly,

"Don't tell me about shit I wouldn't believe... I've been part of the magical criminal underworld for over twenty years. You see a lot of shit that shouldn't even be possible." he shook his head slightly, "And I have done what most people would consider to be within that category. And I regret... nothing. Absolutely nothing."

Cobalt nodded slightly,

"I agree that Briony didn't deserve to see it, that woman has been torn apart by this. But Rich..." he paused for a second, "Rich did some bad stuff in his time, to good people and bad people. I can safely say that I've done worse. But the thing that made Rich a bad person was that he had the potential to be a good man. I never did, so far as I can remember."

Sam rubbed his sore knuckles and looked intensely at Cobalt as he listened. Criminal underworld huh? Hmmm..

"Ha, fair enough, but Kerew tried his best to be creative, trust me. He's not the type of person you wanna acquaint yourself with." Sam paused for a minute and looked down a this knuckles again. "Everyone regrets something... They may have made a stupid decison...got in with the wrong people... screwed over a friend..the list goes on..."

Sam put his cards facing down in the side table and leant back in his chair. "Torn apart is putting how she feels lightly... she puts up a strong front, but my god... I stand by my previous statement though. I dont doubt what you're saying to me about Richard doing bad stuff in the past, but i regard him as a good enough man. Even if he did scare me a fair bit."

Sam looked up at the ceiling. "Sorry, but thats a load of crock. Everyone has the potential to be good or bad and have the free will to choose. Even if their life doesnt give them much choice, its still up to the person who and what they become or what they do with themselves. You still could become a good man."

Sam had managed to pick up another sense, more vivid, less symbolic. "You can try to be a good man to your young apprentice who needs a father figure she can look up to... You can be good to Briony and make sure no-one ever does anytihng wrong by her again. You can be a good man by endeavouring to do the right thing from this moment on. Hell, it's hard. Its bloody hard. Its hard for me most everyday because of all the hate i bottle up, but you give yourself a reason to do it...

Cobalt narrowed his eyes and gritted his teeth,

"I told you already..." he leant forwards to look Samuel dead in the eyes, "I. Regret. Nothing. Regrets are for people who have another choice. I am what I am. I could never have been anything else. Even now, being a Potions Professor, I am what I was before. All that's changed is I get paid to apply a certain part of my job."

He sat back in his chair, shaking his head,

"Take it from someone who knows Samuel, she's a strong woman and she will pull herself together before long." he closed his eyes and sighed a little, "Your loyalty to Richard is unshakable I see."

Cobalt whistled a little, trailing off into a small chuckle,

"You sound like the priest in my local church. Father Donagen didn't think I was a bad person either." he shook his head, "But when your natural talent... hell, your blood... calls for you to kill... you can't be a good man with that Samuel. I learn something when I was seven that changed my life. I was attacked and they attacked with the intent to kill me. I killed them. All six of them, with a pocket knife. That day I realised that I had a gift, a gift for killing. The only problem is that's not an ability that benefits society a whole lot."

At what Samuel said, Cobalt sprung up from his chair, his eyes narrowed and one hand reaching for the silver knife he kept for emergencies,

"What was that?" he demanded coldly, "I never told you I had an apprentice. I haven't told anyone! Because if anyone knows then she's a target!"

He drew his silver knife and crossed the room, pinning Samuel to the chair, the knife hovering just away from his throat,

"You give me one good reason why I shouldn't kill you right now...? For her safety."

"Hmmm... Thats like me saying all i am is a werewolf...but im a man too... The wolf in me calls me to kill, it doenst mean i have to answer the call. Im sorry about your past professor Smith. I guess shit like that can really mess a person up. That doesnt mean you had a gift though, it just meant you were one lucky git. It looks like we'll always be at odds on the subject on morality and free will huh? And when it comes to people i befriend, yes, i am unshakingly loyal until the end, even willing to die for them."

Sam saw Cobalt reach for a pocket knife and lunge forward pinning him to the chair the knife literally millmetres away from his throat. But he decided to adopt 'the Kerew apporach' to threatening situations and try not to even bat an eyelid.

"I wouldnt target a little girl with a heart condition Smith. I know about her becuase shes on your mind. I can sense a connection between you two. My unwanted, unreturnable gift you could say that gets me in a lot of trouble. I actually have deja vu right now." He replied casually. "Im not a threat to anyone, im sure you can tell that. And kill me if you want if thats all you beleive you can do. Briony's asked me many a time if i have a death wish. I probably do."

He shrugged and actually moved closer to the knife so it pressed against his neck.
"So much for a friendly card game with a colleague. Ah well. Its not like ive got much to live for when everyone i love is lost to me or doesnt even like me."

He looked at how the knife shone with a glint in the light.
"I dont mind what you choose to do..." Sam looked back up at Cobalt. Any other werewolf would turn savage as the flight or fight response kicked in, but not Sam. He controlled himself and just sat there staring hard at Cobalt. Not in a threatening, cocky or challenging way, or even pleadingly, just a blank stare of burning indifference.

Cobalt raised an eyebrow,

"Careful about that last statement there Howl..." he shook his head a little, "Some of your old friends might take you up on that offer. As for free will... I believe there is a Will greater than our own. Whether it is some God or just our magic pushing us in the direction we're best suited to... there is a Will above our own."

What was he talking about? A heart condition? Did Charlotte have a heart condition? He grabbed Samuel by the collar of his shirt and moved to the side as he pulled on it, pushing down on the back of his head with his free hand. Samuel's face slammed down onto the table they'd been playing cards on and Cobalt pinned it there with one hand while he held the point of the knife down at Samuel's temple,

"Explain yourself! What heart condition?! What gift?!" he moved the knife, grabbed a bunch of Samuel's hair, and slammed the man's head against the wood again before pressing the flat of the silver knife against Samuel's neck, where it began to glow and burn against his skin, "Explain! NOW!"

Crap it hurt to have his face smacked against a wood table! Twice. Sam could have reacted if he was quick enough, but he chose not to. He could feel blood in his hair on his forehead and his sight was blurred and blackened slightly. Greeeaaaaat... onset of a concussion... Why did he get himself into these situations?

He'd said something stupid again. He'd had to rip his own tongue out before long. Had he said something he shouldnt have? Had he seen something unknown oryet to be about a person again? He hated this. He bloody hated this stupid sense of his.

He tried not to groan or shake. "Arrhh... It looks like i've said something stupid that i shouldnt have... i do that a lot... Err, ow, i cant really explain myself pinned to a table now can i? Cant we be civil about this? Theres no need to yell, i'll tell you for god sake. Jesus! Will you get off man! This is f***in insane!"

Cobalt growled and pushed the man off of the table onto the floor. Reaching down he grabbed the back of Samuel's head by his hair and forced him up onto his knees. He took a gun out of his pocket with the other hand and held it to the back of Samuel's head,

"There. No burning. No knife. But there isn't going to be anything close to civil until you tell me everything you think you know about Charlotte. Not to mention how you know it." he cocked the gun, "Start talking."

Arrg! Why was this guy so damned aggressive and strong?! And how many weapons did he have anyway...?

Sam wasnt in the mood to be treated in such a way. He was only going to tell him if Cobalt treated him like a human being.
"Let go, put the god damn gun away, and let me sit the f**k back down or im not telling you jack s**t mate! Im not getting treated like this by any f***er, i dont care who they are or what weapon they hold to me! This is not how civilised people behave! God damn it, what is your problem man?!" Sam yelled angrily.

Sam knew he was only making the situation worse for himself. He didnt wanna mess with this guy. But he wasnt going to stand for being treated like complete crap anymore. And didnt Cobalt realise that he was just confirming Sam's suspisions about him? That he was involved?

Feeling very frustrated, Cobalt pushed Samuel's head away from the tip of his gun and turned his back on the kneeling werewolf, stepping away from him as he ran his hand through his hair in an effort to calm himself. He ended up tapping the bottom of his gun against his free hand as a kind of nervous twitch. He reached up and wiped the sweat from his brow in a quick, jerky, motion. He stopped moving completely as he became aware of what his body was doing. Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes tightly before letting the breath out, once again as calm as he had ever been. Without turning round to look at Samuel he looked up at the ceiling,

"Samuel Robin James Howlin." he called out clearly, "I want to know what you know of my apprentice. Fuck the rest of it. You could know every dirty secret I have and I wouldn't care. But you know things about my apprentice... you know things about my Soft-Soft. I will have nothing hurt her Samuel. To do that you need to tell me what you know. Will you do that Samuel? Will you willingly help me protect an eleven year old girl from pain?"

Sam wiped the blood from his forehead and spat out the tooth that Cobalt had managed to knock out. He got off his knees to his feet and tried to steady himself; everything was black and he was a bit disorientated. He turned round to see that Cobalt was looking up at the ceiling.
As long as he would be civil now, Sam would tell him what he knew, even though it wasnt a great deal.
Eugh...the full name thing... he felt like he was be patronisingly told off by his father or something...

"I dont know much im afraid becuase i havent met her properly... and dont start smacking me about again becuase thats the truth, i dont know everything about a person, i never can." Sam rubbed his head again. Christ it hurt. "Soft-soft...? Cute nickname... I called a friend of mine diamond eyes, but its not as sweet i suppose."

Sam leant on the arm of one of the armchairs so he wouldnt fall down. He needed to get on with it unless he wanted to seriouis p**s off Cobalt again. He obviously cared deeply about this girl.
"Look... i cant see details...just vague images... a symbol of her heart just looks weak and a bit broken. Its not damaging to her now, but she made need an operation in the future. I dont think you were even supposed to know at all, so you'll just have to let her tell you herself in her own time. Its not something she wants you to worry about. She's not in any pain with it i dont think, and hell, with you training her up, she'll be able to protect herself. Besides, she doesnt need protecting anymore, shes not a baby and shes away from her past now."

Sam guessed that might not be enough, but thats seriously all he was able to tell him.
"You probably dont give a f**k anymore about how i got my 'gift', but if you wanna know, here it is. My mothers family tree has seers. She was a seer, and my uncle was a different type of seer. She could see events like a movie clip, he could just see symbols that implied things. He sealed it in a bottle. In a rage when i was being a cocky little s**t to him, he smashed it over my head without realising and passed it to me."
Sam brushed his hair out the way to show Cobalt the scar on his temple. "I bloody hate it... i hate how it messes with my head, and when i dont know when to keep my mouth shut, others peoples. I wasnt born with it so i cant control what i see or who i can pick things up from. Thanks to the head injury though, it probably wont work for a while. You satisified now Smith? Or do you still want to put a bullit through my head..?"

Cobalt silently contemplated what he'd been told before spinning round and pointing the gun at Samuel,

"I'm satisfied but I still want to fire this thing." he pulled the trigger and a thin jet of water squirted out, splashing against Samuel's cheek. Cobalt gave a ghost of a smile, "Water-gun."

Throwing the realistic toy away he frowned a little,

"I'm going to prepare for the worst even if I have to act surprised when she finally tells me." he glanced at the cards on the table before scowling, "Keep the cards."

Turning on his heel he left, striding away confidently to begin preparing anything that could help his Soft-Soft.

Sam couldnt help but laugh with relief, that was good. "You a crafty ass of a man, i'll give you that Smith"

Cobalt strided away. Sam shook and took deep breaths. He'd been bloody terrified, and the adrenaline had only just hit him.

Sam steadied himself enough to take hold of his mop again and continue cleaning.
'Note to self, do NOT mess with that man again...' Sam thought. 'So much for a friendly card game...'