if she'd been covered with glitter

[maleficum]

Comments

[maxxx]

( He's distracted completely, trying to hear the story and everything underneath the story that his efforts end completely (1). He plays it off like he stops, like he'd better listen then set Hallewell up for success. He understands the unreliable narrator. )

He's still alive.

( Makes sense. Hallewell's ace is a former member of the inner circle. Who better to take them down than someone that almost did and knows them better than the historians who died before him. He assumes like all loose ends, any real recordings are in the fire along with their true intentions.

His efforts begin anew, magic manifesting as he does both again (10), Hallewell's story mingling and winding around his magic. )

[tearhiseyesout]

["Kind of. They cursed him. He could live a full human life if he wanted. But in order to do that and die permanently, he has to make it to old age and die of natural causes."

Hallewell gives a small shrug in return.

"Every forty years or so, they make a habit of hunting him down, prolonging his suffering by killing him and starting the cycle all over again. In the 1880s, he started getting angry. Realized that if he wants to reach the end of the proverbial rainbow, he has to take them out before they take him out. My leverage is that I know where to find him."

As he said, mutually assured destruction.]

[maxxx]

( His efforts prove distracting - the story engrosses him as the embers of energy fizzle and the lights flicker. So, he tables it for now, setting his jaw. )

You're sending me after a witch they kill for sport. Why hasn't he made his move?

( Or has he tried? It feels like he's being pointed in his direction like a missile, but it also feels like that something volatile awaits him. Is this a boon? Real leverage? Or is this a grenade being handed to him? )

[tearhiseyesout]

["Well, he has to grow up each time. And he doesn't always remember everything right away. But this version - he's pretty primed. If you get to him first, you might be able to do a lot of damage before they kill him again."

He's not going to promise success - that's on the heirs to achieve, for better or worse. But Rusty? Oh, Rusty can certainly kick down a few doors.

"And you'll have to get him to trust you. You're still a Malroux, even if you're planning on bucking tradition."]

[maxxx]

Tradition lost its' meaning soon as I learned my parents are ancient and not my parents.

( He can be very persuasive. He waits for a second to resume his binding - (13) as he begins anew. )

[tearhiseyesout]

[And Hallewell will lean back and wait until he's finished. He's a patient man, and he'll wait until a bargain's fulfilled before he'll hold up his end. So he waits, his head tipping curiously to the side as he watches him work his proverbial magic.]

[maxxx]

( It takes a little time, he's not ancient-adept (14) but the spell seals, binding him, his sister, and Hallewell. He opens his eyes, fingers running along the ring's surface before plucking it out of the box and presenting it in his palm. )

[tearhiseyesout]

[Hallewell lets him hang there for a moment, before leaning forward and writing an address on a slip of paper. He then holds it up to him, equidistant so that Max can take it when Hallewell takes the ring.]

His name is Russell DeBrande. These days, he mostly goes by Rusty.

[maxxx]

( They exchange, Max reading the address for himself. )

Any pointers on earning his trust?

[tearhiseyesout]

["These days? Hard to say. But Rusty has always been discerning when it comes to the truth. This isn't going to be about persuasion and charm so much as the facts."

And, well, Rusty is a little crazy. He might be happy to just have help.]

[maxxx]

Great. I deal in fact.

( And charm. But he can't help the charm. It's imbued, literally. Charisma was baked in.

He studies him for a minute. )

We're linked now. You. Me. Jaq.

( So don't fucking try anything. )

[tearhiseyesout]

["I realize." He slips the ring on his finger, indicating that he's accepted his end of the bargain. "Now I guess you better damn well succeed."]

[maxxx]

Say the word and you're you again. But, I'm guessing you'll play that close to the vest until someone comes out on top.

( He's not teaching the class on magic Hallewell invented.

He smiles, cocky. )

You wouldn't have bargained if you thought we wouldn't.

( Maybe he would've. But, it doesn't matter, bravado wins out. )

[tearhiseyesout]

[He shrugs. "Or maybe I just like the chaos? Guess you'll have to keep me alive long enough to find out."]

[maxxx]

Not calling that into question.

( As far as Max is concerned, Hallewell and his followers thrive on chaos.

Max unfolds the address in hand, seeing if it's close by or drivable, before getting up from his chair. )

[an_honestword]

["Best of luck, kid. You're going to need it."

It's not close exactly, but it is driveable if you're willing to take the day to get there. Rusty DeBrande has set himself up in a little coffee shop not far off from Hershey Park in Hershey, Pennsylvania.

He has a sweet tooth, what can he say?

While Hallewell did give Max the full name of the person he's looking for (Russell DeBrande), Rusty is wearing a name tag that reads "DAVE" in big blocky letters. He's standing behind the counter - he usually takes the counter during the slow shifts as it saves him having to have an employee on hand - fixing the customer ahead of him a medium Americano to go with their bear claw.

It's a little late for espresso, but who is Rusty to judge the caffeine intake of people who don't matter?]

Have a good one, Carl.

[He takes a breath, before turning to the next person in line.]

What can I get you?

[maxxx]

( Max does not deal in luck. Nobody in their family does.

Because he has the time and his sister's blessing, he takes off. He doesn't let her in on what he's found yet, not knowing who awaits him. Russell DeBrande is old enough to be former Inner Circle, left to his own ending until he isn't. Max is expecting the twinkle of revenge in his eye, whomever he happens to be.

He gives the coffee shop an odd look as he double checks the address. He's overdressed for getting coffee outside of a tourist trap, but something about Max helps him belong anywhere.

He removes his sunglasses once inside, waiting in line as he eyeballs the menu above. He should order something from - Dave. What can he get? )

Black coffee. ( He's hungry, too, he realizes, as his stomach grumbles. His eyes fall to the display case. ) One of those small sandwiches.

( Please, his eyes say. He uses the next minute to search around him, see if anybody looks like they may have escaped the Inner Circle, or anything that might point him in the right direction. But, he doesn't know what he's looking for (6) )

[an_honestword]

Size for the coffee?

[Rusty, on the other hand, knows a Malraux when he sees one (15). But he keeps his face schooled in calm (20), not wanting to get too in over his head until he knows what brought him here.

He doesn't seem to know what he has, which makes him think that this could just be coincidence. If this was a Malraux who had already gone through their ascension, things might have gotten a lot messier.]

[maxxx]

( Has he eaten today at all? )

Is large a size here or do you take more after Starbucks?

( He reads the sign in case he missed any special vocabulary. )

You don't have to supersize it.

[an_honestword]

We prefer to keep it simple.

[So "large" is definitely a thing. He grabs one of the cups off the stacks and picks up one of the pots to start pouring.]

So what brings you into town?

[Just super causal, no reason for asking. Making small talk with the customers is a good way to build business.]

[maxxx]

( Max tries his best to sense this stranger's motive (2) but Rusty is built to withstand anything as feeble as a Malraux wanting to know what he's up to and why.

He drops a folded twenty into the tip jar while he waits. )

Working off a friend's tip. Said I couldn't miss it. Something's here I had to see for myself.

[an_honestword]

Chocolate World? Because I do agree it's worth taking at least once. And probably the best smelling tour you'll ever take too.

[Who doesn't want to spend their afternoon inhaling chocolate fumes? Not people Rusty wants to know, clearly.

He places the coffee cup down in front of him with a lid and goes to get him the sandwich.]

[maxxx]

He buried that lead

( And Max's sweet tooth is relegated to dessert with dinner, but that comes with the formality he grew up with. )

but, if it smells anything like it smells in here, I'll source a ticket.

( Or, buy it for that matter. He waits as "DAVE" grabs a sandwich for him. )

Anyone live around here? Like - attached apartment above? Duplex out back? Is it just you - Dave?

[an_honestword]

[Rusty shrugs as he places the sandwich down in front of him.]

Just me right now. But no, I'm not sure if anyone lives around here. Boss might rent out the upstairs, but he never told me.

[He says, like he's not the boss (4). The lie does come off pretty confidently, but his eyes are darting around the room behind him, counting the couple of regulars that are lingering behind him, wondering how much collateral damage he might have to worry about.]

[maxxx]

( He sees through something (14), but doesn't know what he's looking for, only who. Something tells him this guy lives upstairs. Something also tells him this guy is the boss. )

Most people do. In my experience, anywhere a guy can get a few extra bucks here and there.