ccogsworth

[ccogsworth]

Dear god, he thought, just how scared had he made this poor boy? Michael never had to defend himself against his job, or himself as a person, but here he was, nearly scared straight before Claude like he’d done something wrong. Perhaps it was a sign to loosen up a bit—not all the way, never; that would be against the standards he’d set for himself and the restaurant way back when Adam had given him this position. And he certainly didn’t want to be seen as a friend to his subordinates. But, he supposed, there could be a time and place for things becoming a bit more personal than he had previously allowed.

“Your siblings are dating?” Claude echoed, leaning forward in his seat. He’d never meant to set up such a close crossover amongst his employees, but it was a good thing it didn’t seem to bother Michael too much. In fact, it was almost perfect, if he did have interest in the other boy. “How peculiar—did you just figure this out today? Your sister … she has a boyfriend, yes? A quite tall one? I feel like I remember them coming in here one time to dine.” A lovely girl, from what he could remember, and her boyfriend awestruck at the level of cuisine the restaurant served. “Unless, of course, they’re no longer together, then, my apologies.”

It was strange, hearing Claude call himself a gossip and apologizing to Michael instead of the other way around. Of all the possibly hobbies he could have guessed for his boss to have, indulging in some silly workplace secrets and rumors certainly wasn’t one of them. He would have thought the man to be more of a bird watcher or something along those lines, finding gossip and potential scandals to be below him. But maybe he just didn’t know the older man as well as he thought he did - at least not on any sort of personal level. Perhaps what Michael and the rest of the employees saw wasn’t all there was to the man.

“No, no, you’re fine. I just… I really love this job and take it seriously, I just didn’t want to give you any impression otherwise,” he promises, slowly starting to relax a bit as it becomes clear he’s not actually in any trouble here. “I think you should hire Berlioz again, for the guests and the sake of just having him around. We ended up having a lot more in common than I would have thought - and I mean beyond just the fact that our siblings are dating. Which is still kind of weird, seeing John with an actual girlfriend. One he’s telling us about now, at least.” It was more personal information than he’d ever let slip to his boss, but nothing incriminating by any means - simply the type of stuff he’d talk about with any friend or even acquaintance he knew.

[ccogsworth]

Perhaps the kid took him too seriously, or Claude had done something to make him afraid to loosen up a bit at his job. For how long Michael had been here, he'd proven himself as someone reliable enough that he was hardly worried about ignoring his tables or making one of his fellow employees uncomfortable. Perhaps it was a sign Claude needed to loosen up a bit, whether explicitly or subtly communicating it was perfectly acceptable to have a more personal relationship, if Michael wanted one.

"No, no, my apologies, I didn't mean to make you think you'd done anything wrong. I didn't think you crossed a line." For how anxious the younger boy seemed, he feared every crack at a personal detail might need a disclaimer from now on. "He didn't say you had, either, for the record, I just, uh ... forgive me, I suppose I let my inner gossip get the better of me. I hope I didn't cross a line myself." As someone with a position in power, he should've known not to press without permission on things so personal. "Not that anyone else was gossiping about it, by the way, not at all. I simply took notice, but not in a noticing bad way, more so in a people-watching, to myself way, if that makes any sense at all."

Watching as his boss counted out the bills and slid them over his way, it took all of Michael’s self control to not immediately look at how much he had made tonight. While technically there wouldn’t have been anything wrong with being curious about how well he’d been tipped, it felt rude to do so right in front of Claude - especially when they were in the middle of a conversation. So instead he simply slid the cash into his pocket and made a mental note to count it out himself as soon as he made it to the break room. “That’d be awesome. I think he’ll like that,” he repeats the words from earlier, not wanting to say much more and seem too eager to see the pianist again.

Though apparently his interest in the other boy had been more obvious than he had thought. “Oh, uhh… Yeah, I, uhm, I guess so,” he agrees with a nod, the warmth of a light blush filling his neck and face. For all he’s always sort of had small gut feelings that Claude himself was perhaps somewhere similar on the kinsey scale as himself, Michael had never had anything solid that could confirm or deny that possibility. Their relationship, while friendlier than some people were with their bosses, had always been fairly strictly professional - their personal lives never blending into any of their conversations in any real way. This was all new and he couldn’t quite tell if he was potentially going to be in trouble for it or not - despite the older man’s insistence that he not worry about the amount of time he’d spent at the piano that night. “I promise I wasn’t flirting with him, though. It was all professional, really. We just met in the break room before the shift started and he seemed really cool and yeah, like you said, good looking - but I never crossed a line. Or at least, I didn’t mean to. If he said I did, I’m really sorry.”

[ccogsworth]

Though Michael hadn’t explicitly come out to Claude, he had an inkling from a long time ago that the younger boy was also gay. Perhaps it was a strange sort of sixth sense that he had, or just the amount of himself he’d seen in Michael, but there were certain instances that all but proved him right: tonight being one of them. The amount of time he’d spent near the piano hadn’t gone unnoticed, and it hadn’t terribly affected his tips or gotten him any complaints, so Claude could hardly complain himself. He might’ve just found himself his permanent new pianist, thanks to his small desire to play matchmaker in his own subtle way.

Claude counted out his share of tips and slid a stack of bills toward the boy, one of his first of the waiters’ cut. It had been hard to say no to someone who had genuinely wanted to take initiative to improve on his position at the restaurant. “Good. I can keep him on rotation, then: I thought he was quite good, too. I suppose he has to be to have the resume he does.” He shook his head at Michael, shaking off any concern. “Don’t worry about it. I hope I’m not, uh, overstepping here, or making any assumptions, but he is quite talented, and good looking, for your age,” Claude commented, raising a careful brow.

Like most nights, Michael found himself being one of the last of the servers to head over to their manager for their final tips of the evening. Though this time instead of it being because he had actually taken the time and effort to properly do his side work instead of rushing through it to get home like everyone else, it was thanks to the extra time he’d spent talking with Berlioz. It wasn’t something that he had expected anyone to pick up on or notice, but apparently that hadn’t been the case. The question of whether his tables liked the music was expected, but Claude taking note and mentioning the fact that he’d spent so much extra time with the pianist certainly was not.

“They loved it,” he answered honestly, nodding his head as he slid into a stool next to the older man. “And I’m sure he’d like that. He mentioned earlier that his regular job is in rehearsal right now so he has more free nights than normal. I think he’d be great around the holidays.” It was a true sentiment, one that he meant even without his bias of wanting to see the other boy again. It’s only once he realizes that maybe it had been unprofessional the amount of time he had lingered near the piano once the rush had ended that Michael wishes he hadn’t said anything at all. “I hope it was okay that I was talking to him. I promise none of my tables were like neglected because of it.”

[ccogsworth]

Jonathan Bailey | Radio Times | May 2024 | 📷 Yoshitaka Kono

[ccogsworth]

~time skip to when berli is working at the restaurant playing his little tunes~

Claude had had an inkling that Michael might have been sexually inclined in the same way he was, but in the years the two had been working together, he hadn't really found the opportunity for confirmation on that suspicion. It had never come up in conversation naturally, and he didn't have the kind of relationship with the boy to simply go up to him and ask outright whether he was gay. But, once things had slowed down in the restaurant and he noticed Michael hanging around a certain piano player, he had the inkling that perhaps his intuition had been correct.

"Come, get your tips," he beckoned him at the end of the night, waving Michael over to the barstool where he sat and counted cash. It had been a decent night for the servers, given the addition of the live music that had added to the ambiance of a Saturday evening. "Did your tables enjoy the music?" he asked, prodding lightly at the subject. "It seemed you two hit it off--I thought he did a wonderful job, perhaps I'll have to ask him back."

Saying he liked theatre was a bit of a stretch, not that Michael disliked it by any means - but really he had only joined the club because his parents had pushed him to be more involved on campus. And drama seemed like the easiest of organizations to participate in - building sets and running lines was far more enjoyable than joining any business or science group. And all of the fraternities had been ruled out immediately, despite his father’s hope that at least one of his kids would join greek life. “Yeah, I guess you could say I enjoy it. The shows are always pretty cool and it’s fun to help bring them to life, but I’m not like a theater kid or anything,” he answers, realizing only a second after it’s left his mouth that maybe he shouldn’t have said it with such judgment, in case Claude himself used to be one of those theater nerds. “Not that it’s bad, you know, loving theatre. I just don’t have as wide of a knowledge as most of the others in the club.”

It was a relief, being told he wouldn’t need any new references, considering Michael hadn’t been entirely sure who he would ask other than the man sitting across the desk from him. “Okay, yeah. Is an hour early enough or would you like me here before then? I can work whatever,” he offered, already prepared to skip any and all classes he had that day in favor of this. The restaurant was where he really wanted to be right now anyway, missing a lecture or two seemed worth it if it meant he had a chance of moving up the ladder even slightly. “The holidays are going to be great, I’m sure. Especially with the borders open, maybe that means even more people will want to come visit the island.” Or at least that was the hope he had, for the sake of business booming even better than it had last holiday season.

[ccogsworth]

Wicked (2024) dir. Jon M Chu

[ccogsworth]

Jonathan Bailey Gets Emotional Over Surprise Gift At ‘Wicked’ Premiere | Access Hollywood

[ccogsworth]

"Of course it means something," Claude countered, pulling out a pen to jot down the updated information the boy had given him. "You like the theatre? See, that's something I didn't know about you that I just learned from an update to your resume." Though he was more of a symphony man himself, that didn't mean that Claude didn't appreciate the theatre, or see the value it had in younger people who needed an outlet to express themselves. He hadn't gotten to hear an awful amount about of Michael's personal hobbies or interests in the past few years, but at least this was something he could bring up to try and make conversation every now and again.

Claude appreciated the commitment to formality, though it seemed entirely unnecessary for an employee who he'd come to know quite well over time. Though he didn't want to give him an unfair advantage, Claude considered himself probably the best and most recent reference Michael could've possibly given him, so it's with a wave of his hand that he dismissed the concern. "No need--that's only for new employees. As long as you're available, early would be fantastic. Because of the holiday, we're supposed to be fully booked. Walk-ins for no-shows only. I think it's been months since we've been that busy."

At the easy encouragement that he was offered, Michael breathed a bit easier, his smile growing as he nodded his head and was ready to make a promise to bring in his resume on his next shift - but the finger held up to indicate one moment stopped him before he had a chance to say anything. It’s not a surprise when the older man has a copy of his old application and resume tucked away for such easy access, Claude always seeming like a very organized manager and just a person in general. “No, sir,” he agrees with a nod. “Just my classes. And technically I’m in the university’s drama club, but I really only just help with the sets sometimes or help the real actors run their lines. It probably doesn’t really count for much or mean anything, though.” How that would show himself as a worthy candidate for a serving position, he wasn’t sure - but it was something that he had officially added to his resume, and he wanted his boss to have the most up to date information possible right now.

Nodding his head again, trying not to seem too overly eager, Michael quickly agreed. “Of course. I work on Thursday and I don’t mind coming in early, so that I won’t have to be pulled from the floor during my official shift,” he offered, not mentioning that it would mean having to cut one of his classes for that day if he came any earlier. That seemed like a fair enough trade off. And in truth, well, he was always looking for a reason to skip out on any of his classes. “I can do that. And bring in new references, if you need those. I bet you still have my old ones on file, but I could find others if that’s required.”

[ccogsworth]

It was endearing, how nervous the younger boy seemed to be to ask about the position he was vying for, when Michael was the most qualified candidate Claude could think of for the role. He'd been working at the restaurant for years now, had never had any major slip-ups; including this morning, if he hadn't caught Michael a bit flustered for another reason entirely. Claude could see no reason not to give him the job, especially if he'd gotten the courage to ask himself, and, if money was the primary reason he'd been seeking more hours, this would certainly help.

"You should," he encouraged, "I'd be happy to review an application." Now that he thought of it, Claude had actually kept practically every employee's resume on file; he likely had Michael's somewhere in his filing cabinet. He held up a finger, turning to his drawer, where he pulled out a large manila folder with a label on the front. "You've had no changes to your resume since you applied here, have you? Well, except that you're in college now. I think that's about the extent of a formal application--we'll just have to hold some sort of informal interview, whenever you're in for your next shift. I'm assuming you wouldn't want to do that now," he remarked, both on Michael's current state, and the lack of time to prepare. "But, it's really nothing to be nervous about, just a few situational questions I like to ask that you've likely already seen happen around here."

Despite being quite literally just told that he wasn’t in trouble, Michael couldn’t help the way his heart picked up a bit in nerves as his boss motioned for him to follow into the office. It was just too similar to being called into his father’s office every time he’d done something wrong or disappointed his parents, his go to response was simply to worry. Thankfully though, Claude hadn’t changed his mind within the span of mere minutes and had instead handed him a water and instructed him to sit, which he eagerly did, opening the bottle to start taking a few small sips in a row - just like Wendy had always told him to do whenever he felt a bit nauseous, so as not to overwhelm the stomach with too much at once.

It was still strange sometimes, how much it seemed the man across the desk from him seemed to care for him. They weren’t related by any means and he had in fact, thought Calude actually hated him when he first started working here but now it was clear that was no longer the case. For some reason the older man had taken the Darling boy under his wing, and though it made little sense to Michael himself, he was eternally grateful for it. That care was part of what made his job the safe space that it was - one of the few places where he felt like he truly knew what he was doing and felt confident in all of his actions. Or at least, normally he felt that way. Right now however he was far from feeling even close to confident in what he was about to request. “Oh that’s uhh, kinda the reason, yeah. I mean, my courseload is light but it was mostly about the money, yeah,” he admits with a sheepish smile before his eyes dropped down to his hands, which he couldn’t help but ring together as he worked up the courage to say what he needed to. With a deep breath, he forced himself to look back up at the man, knowing he needed to act at least somewhat like he was as ready for this as he wanted to be. “I was actually thinking of applying for a server position, if there were any openings or if that might be something you needed or thought I might be ready for…”

[ccogsworth]

At the very least, he now had another direction in which to point his search: not on someone who could help him, exactly, but on the person who had placed the curse to begin with. It would be difficult to find the enchantress who had been disrespected by Adam all those years ago, but Claude was hardly in a position to give up hope now. If anything, being pointed toward another source was the exact kind of help he'd been hoping for. "I can do that. I mean, I hope I'm able to--if I can ask Adam if he remembers anything about the woman who had done it, all those years ago. But, to be fair, she did set the curse because he was being rude to her, so, he may not be the best of help," he reasoned aloud. It made Claude want to kick his friend practically daily, knowing that the reason they were in this position was because he had been an asshole. Eda's demeanor shifted to a much more serious one, and though he heard exactly what she was saying, Claude simply couldn't afford to think like that. "No," he replied simply, shaking his head, "this has to work. I cannot live the rest of my life like this, and neither can my friends. I will do anything, everything, to fix this. And, I know what you're going to say: it doesn't matter how much I want it to happen. But, until we've searched every possible avenue, tried every solution, I have to at least try."

At the mention of the full moon being the trigger for the curse, Eda’s head tilts to the side ever so much and she lets out a soft hum as she considers what that would mean for altering her elixir to help this Adam fellow. It was certainly different than her own curse, which was impacted by her stress levels primarily, but she figured with a bit of influence from werewolf magic - she should be able to get some kind of remedy easily enough. Her mind was busy running through all the potential options she could try testing when Claude speaks up again, pulling her focus back to the task at hand. “Of course it would help,” she answers with a bit of a snicker, not meaning to be rude but feeling like that should have been kind of obvious. “Finding the person who cast the spell means they could tell you what they did - what magics they used, how wide their cast was, whether they combined spells or built a really, really complicated one all of their own accord. Hell, they may even be able to completely revoke it.” It’s only when she realizes just how desperate this man seems to be that Eda realizes she needs to make the potential severity of this all a bit clearer for them all. Sighing softly, she sets her glass down onto the desk and leans forward in her chair, a small frown forming on her lips as she prepares to potentially ruin his day. “Claude, I gotta warn ya though… There’s a chance even finding the witch who did this might not change anything. Curses… are complicated. And some are for life, no matter how much the caster may regret it or try to take it back.”

[ccogsworth]

It was with a nudge of his head that Claude silently instructed the younger boy to follow him to his office, where perhaps he might've felt better after taking a seat for a moment. "Come, sit," he offered, slipping behind his desk to take a bottle of water from the small fridge underneath. Someone had just come back from their break, and it was a quieter weeknight, leaving Claude unbothered by Michael's absence at the main host stand. He passed him the water bottle, while Claude still had half a cup of tea from before he'd sought out Michael waiting on his desk. It certainly wasn't as good now as it had been a few minutes ago, when it'd reached the perfect temperature, but it would do, for now.

In front of Claude sat his calendar, riddled with eraser shavings as he'd worked on putting together the fall schedule with the restaurant and its employee's hours shifting. "You're sure?" he asked to confirm, knowing just how many hours the boy had picked up over the summer to fill his schedule. The last thing Claude wanted, though, was for him to fall behind in school for the sake of working more. "You know, if this is because you'd like to keep the same kind of paycheck as the summer, there are other ways besides overworking yourself." That was the primary reason why he'd seen employees ask to keep their summer schedules, at least. "If that's what this is about, though, I don't mean to pry. Unless, of course, you really are simply taking fewer courses this semester--then, feel free to ignore that statement."

Michael could practically feel how red his face was getting as soon as Claude let out a laugh and then went on to explain how he wasn’t in trouble at all. So his whole little speech and almost admission to being a hungover wreck hadn’t been necessary at all, if he had just waited and let his boss speak first, he would have saved himself a whole world of embarrassment. But oh well, there was no going back now and it’s not as if he wasn’t used to this feeling by now. It just very rarely happened at work anymore, especially not around the man he had started to really look up to and respect. “Right, oh uhm, yeah. A water break probably would be smart,” he admits with a nod, again not clarifying on why he was in the need of extra hydration today.

“My schedule?” he questions, frowning for a moment as he tries to piece together why being in school again would matter. But then he remembers that every other start of semester, he’s put in a request for fewer shifts and less hours, to accommodate for his classes and workload. It made sense that Claude had probably been expecting the same thing to happen this go around. “Oh, yeah, I am. But I’m only taking a few courses this semester, so I don’t think it’s going to get too rough. I was hoping to still keep the same schedule I’ve been working over the summer. If that’s okay.” Really Michael just wanted to make as much money as he could right now, that felt like the safest thing to do in case he might need a safety net of funds if he did end up dropping out like he so desperately wants to. Which meant working as often as he could, and if his grades slipped a bit because of it, well, he couldn’t really be bothered to care.

[ccogsworth]

One of the restaurant's most recent hires had been working there for years, which was simply a reflection, Claude liked to think, of how much people liked being an employee. It was something he took great pride in, even if it was simply because most of the staff had family who had previously worked there, or they were simply longtime employees of the Betes who never left. He'd expected Michael to leave once he'd gotten to college, but he'd stuck around the past few years, a rather dependable young man despite what Claude held as stereotype for people his age. He'd taken it upon himself to look after him, seeing quite a lot of a version of himself in the younger boy.

It was exactly this reflection of his former self that made Claude think something was off with him during this particular shift. It wasn't that the quality of his work was suffering, but Michael simply looked pale, like he might pass out if he stood at the host stand for too long. As he pulled him aside, though, he couldn't even fit in a word of asking if he was okay before the boy went on apologizing. "What?" he blurted, confused. It took a moment, but the pieces fell together into what Claude could only suspect had been a rather wild Friday evening prior. He nodded his head in understanding, letting out a rather unprofessional laugh as he pictured his employee engaging in such activity. "I thought you looked like you could use a glass of water, or something, is all. I wanted to make sure you were okay--I hadn't the slightest clue your performance might be affected. That, and I wanted to ask about your schedule, as you're back in school this semester, correct?" Claude asked, recalling the full-time hours he'd once taken on while he was taking a break from school.

closed starter for @ccogsworth location: batb restauraunt - idr the french name

Drinking as much as he did the night before, knowing that he had a shift the next day probably wasn’t the smartest thing Michael’s ever done. But in his defense, he didn’t have to clock in until the afternoon, which he had thought would be more than enough time to sober up and be feeling good enough to do an easy dinner hosting shift. However, he hadn’t accounted for just how bad his hangover would be after everything he drank at his brother’s welcome home party. And while he did make it to the restaurant on time, clocked in with no problem, it was clear that he wasn’t necessarily at his best after only just an hour into the shift. His responses to guests were a bit hesitant and he was taking longer figuring out where to sit people and working the reservation system. None of which actually being a bad thing, it was just quite obvious that he wasn’t at the same level he normally worked at. This type of behavior hadn’t been shown since his first few weeks at the job, back before he’d built his confidence in doing his job.

So it’s not necessarily surprising that he’s being pulled aside by his manager, but that still doesn’t stop the way that Michael’s heart was racing as he followed behind the older man. “I’m uhh, I’m sorry,” he blurts out before Claude can even say anything or accuse him of doing a horrendous job. “I know I’m not on my game tonight, and I don’t really have an excuse for that. Well, I do, but it’s not a good one, so I’m not going to bother you with it. I understand if you need to write me up, but just - please don’t fire me. I promise, this’ll never happen again. Ever.” It all comes out in a rush, his one praying hope that he wasn’t about to lose the only thing he knew he liked doing with his life.

[ccogsworth]

"Fine, then, I'll tell them," Claude easily agreed. If that was what it took to get Adam to his side of giving the Order everything they had, then, it had to be done. There was not a worry in his mind whether the information would be used against them--they already knew everything about Adam they could possibly find out, and the rest of them weren't inherently magical themselves. The worst that could happen, in Claude's view, was that their curses simply got worse--even then, he wasn't sure if that was possible. "I don't think a single one of them doesn't want to have our lives back to normal, though."

As much as he hated to admit it, Adam was right: no one could physically be around him during the full moon without risk of getting seriously hurt. There had to be some way to keep himself, or someone else, unseen by neither Adam nor the hunters if they were to hide out; he just had to figure out how. "I don't know--maybe we ask Arthur if there's something that can sedate you, and you can stay indoors. That, or someone will have to be on hideout and hope you don't find them." Neither plan was fully foolproof, but it was better than nothing. At the very least, Claude would feel better if he had eyes on his friend while he was in his most vulnerable state. "Maybe ... perhaps we attach a camera to you, or something of the sort. So, if you're in trouble, someone can be on standby. I just can't have you going out there while knowing you're practically on their hit list, Adam."

Trusting others, even those that he held in the highest of regards and kept close to his heart, had never been Adam’s strong suit. A fact that Claude knew oh so well, which was why it felt like a slap to the face having him insist they need to just blindly agree and hand over all of their cards to the order without any hesitation. “And when that backfires? When they use what you tell them against us - how will you explain that to the others?” he shoots off the questions that had kept him from giving away any of their information in the first place. “You must at least ensure they are okay with what you’re about to do. Their secrets are not ours to give away.” Perhaps he was overthinking things and none of their friends would really care all that much, but Adam simply refused to take that chance. Not after everything he’d already done to them.

It was a nice thought, an almost sweet offer that showed how much Claude cared, but it was implausible. Sending anyone out into the forest on the nights of the full moon was far too dangerous. No one in their lives was even close to strong enough to handle the nightmares he saw within those woods every month. They would only be putting their own lives at risk - from the others that lurked amongst the trees and from Adam himself. “And what am I supposed to do then, Claude? The forest is the only place I am away from innocent people. I have nowhere else to go,” he argues, letting out a frustrated sigh and he drops back down into his chair and buries his head into his hands for a moment. He shouldn’t have said anything about the hunters - it was his problem to deal with and now that he’d gone and opened his mouth, there would be no stopping his friend from worrying. “You know that’s not an option. I won’t put anyone else’s lives at risk out there.”

[ccogsworth]

"Well, we didn't get very far--it was just a first meeting. But, I think there's a chance, maybe, that she might be able to help." Claude didn't want to get his hopes too high, but this was the closest he'd felt to having any answers in a long time. All of the questions she had for him were valid ones, especially as he hadn't told her the meeting was even coming, but Claude was far too busy basking in the potential for results that he hadn't even stopped to consider whether he should be putting all his faith into the woman the Order had appointed. "I think she studies them, breaks them, probably sets them on people, hopefully not on myself," he joked, feeling lighthearted. "I believe she's a witch, which, I know to be careful, but she can't be one out to hurt us, if she was appointed by Arthur and the Order to help us. The how part, I'm not entirely sure." Claude wasn't even sure he wanted to know how Eda was going to go about absolving them of their curse--he would rather not be involved in the details of magic he would have nothing to do with. "Either way, it's all very exciting, I think. I know how desperately everyone affected wants to be rid of this, though, as much as I'd like to celebrate, I'm trying not to get my hopes up too high, as nothing's happened yet, but I'm so glad you're here. Adam would be telling me I sound ridiculous."

The instructions to close the door, with the obvious excitement in Claude’s tone as he said it was answer enough to the questions she hadn’t been able to ask aloud. He knew exactly who the owl lady was and she would bet her entire life savings right now that they had been discussing the curse. It was selfish, the fact that Zara didn’t want to find any type of cure or countercurse to help them, but she had to preserve her own safety and well being. Lifting the spell that affected them all would put her right back into forced obedience with Mr. Bete and there wasn’t anything she wasn’t willing to do to keep that from happening. Closing the door as she was told, her smile remains ever the same as she moves further into the room and sits down in the chair the older woman had just occupied.

“Break the curse?” she parrots back the words, as if she’s surprised to hear such a thing and hadn’t already pieced that together. While she’s never been the best actress in the world, over the years she’s had enough practice lying about her magic and family to keep up a simple act like this. “The Order? An expert? Claude, you’re losing me. I don’t understand - who, who was she and how will she be able to help you all? What does she study curses or spells or something? Surely, she can’t be some kind of witch herself, right? Would you really trust someone like that?” It felt right to appear at least somewhat skeptical, after all Zara herself wasn’t supposed to be impacted by this curse as far as her friends were aware - so surely she would know the least about their plans for undoing it. And she’s given none of them, other than Adam’s father, any reason to believe she knows anything about magic at all.

[ccogsworth]

Claude's jaw agape, he scoffed at the comparison he and Adam had wordlessly sworn they'd never make. For how much worse Adam's curse was, he wanted to make the point that the only reason any of them were cursed because of him, but Claude held his tongue. Spitting back at his friend would only make things worse, despite the temptation. Still, what bothered him more was the feeling that Adam wasn't trying as hard as Claude knew he could to cooperate with the Order. "Then, I'm going to go ahead and tell the Order everything we know. If you really want this fixed as much as you say you do, you'll allow it. If we're supposed to trust them, then that's what we have to do, wholeheartedly," Claude insisted.

"Nothing?" he echoed, raising from his seat to begin to pace at the back of Adam's office. Things were growing more dangerous by the moment--if Adam continued on much longer like this, he was going to get himself killed. Claude let out an exasperated sigh, beginning to spiral as he could picture where they might be this time next month. "It's not nothing, are you--you can't be serious. And, before you say it, I know already: you have it handled, you're taking care of it. But, you can't go out there alone next month when all of this is going on. It's too dangerous," Claude practically demanded, despite having not a clue how to enforce it. The last place he personally wanted to be was next to Adam in his beast mode during a full moon, but the logistics could wait for later. "We'll just have to figure something out, so you're not out there, alone."

“You can’t live your life like this?” he spits back, standing up from his seat in a rush of anger. Not once has Adam ever wanted to compare his own curse to that of his friends, knowing perfectly well that they all caused great struggle amongst the group and that it was all his fault. He was the one to blame for their suffering over all these years, and he was acutely aware of that fact. However, right now, as Claude stands there and tries to act as if he isn’t doing enough - that he doesn’t want to undo the curse that haunted them all, something inside of him snapped. “I am a monster. I turned into a beast. The love of my life doesn’t remember anything about our relationship. I do nothing but hurt every person that comes into my life. If you think that I of all people do not want this curse lifted, you are highly mistaken. Living with fucked up clocks and a misconstrued sense of time seems quite simple in comparison to being a monster.”

Running a hand over his face he turns to stare at the wall behind his desk, his back facing his friend as he tried to calm himself down. Already he regretted the words that had come out of his mouth - both about their curses and the hunters. He should have known Claude would never take the news of his being hunted easily. It was why he’d never told any of his friends until now. He had known they’d make a bigger deal out of it than it really was - or at least, they wouldn’t be able to face the reality that there is nothing any of them can do to change the situation he was in. All there was to do was accept it and get through each month, each time he turned back into that monster and pray he avoided any encounters. “It’s nothing,” he dismisses the whole notion, waving his hand as he finally turns back to face the other man. “I’m dealing with it. I haven’t seen one in a few months.” At least not that he remembers, his time as the beast always being a blur.

[ccogsworth]

It was at least comforting to know that she might be able to do something, but it almost felt a bit unfair that the only one she could think she could cure was Adam. Though Claude tried not to think of it this way, and he certainly never mentioned it, he was the reason they'd gotten into this mess in the first place. "It's the full moon--that's what makes him turn. On the night before, the night of the full moon, and the night after: that's when it happens for him," Claude explained. If this was who the ?Order had recommended look into their curse, he trusted their judgement, but surely there was someone out there who would know what to do, if not Eda. That kind of thinking was the only way Claude could seem to cope with the grim diagnosis. "Well, would it help if we tried to find the source of the curse itself? Would finding whoever cursed us be of any sort of help in fixing it?" Not that Claude had a single clue who that could be, but perhaps one of his friends, namely Adam, would know more about the woman from years ago. "I don't mean to be dramatic, but I will do anything to help, sincerely. I understand Adam can be reluctant to give any information, but I will do whatever I can to cooperate."

Her smirk turned into a bit more of a genuine smile, though a bit surprised, as he responds so normally to her mention of apple blood. Normally humans, or honestly anyone from this dimension even if they’re magical, all got at least some level of flustered or confused at her mention of the drink from the boiling isles. It was why Eda always brought it up - not because she ever expected anyone to have any, but she simply liked making others squirm. But then again, considering he mentioned talking to a bartender he likely simply thought it was some kind of cocktail or mixed drink. Which was less fun, but she supposed they weren’t here for jokes and tricks anyway. Taking the offered whiskey, Eda downed a good portion of it before nodding her head and taking in the new information. “Well like I said, the beast I know what to do. I can’t cure him completely, but I can make it more manageable. How often does he change? Is it triggered by anything specifically?” she asks, her mind already running on just what she’ll need to do to modify her current elixir recipe for her own curse to fit for this situation instead. “As for the rest of you… I’m not entirely sure. I could work on remedies as well, but I’ve never dealt with anything like this before. It sounds simple, all of your conditions, but the fact that it’s from just one curse and not multiple complicates things greatly.” It wasn’t what he likely wanted to hear, but it was unfortunately the truth of the matter.

[ccogsworth]

For the first time in years, Claude felt a sense of hope that he hadn't allowed himself to feel in a long time. Every bit of his research until now had hit a dead end, but after Eda had left his office, it felt like he was actually getting somewhere. Though she hadn't had all the answers now, she promised that she'd be getting back to him, and that was about as much of an answer as he'd ever had. With a cautious grin on his face, Claude savored the rest of his glass of whiskey, allowing himself a moment of gratitude and reflection before going back out into the restaurant.

The knock on his door was an unexpected, but not unwelcomed one. In fact, he was glad that Zara would be the first one who he'd tell about his meeting with Eda. She would allow him to feel optimistic in a way that Adam would likely later squash, and, for a moment, he simply wanted to savor the hope Eda had given him. "No, no, but come in, close the door," he instructed, sitting up in anticipation. "This woman stopped by, looking to discuss possible ways to break the curse," Claude whispered excitedly. "I think we're actually getting somewhere. Adam had contacted the Order, and they sent her, an expert of some sorts. It was just an initial meeting, just to get the details down, but I think she may be the one to finally get us some answers."

closed starter for @ccogsworth location: claude's office

Passing by Claude’s office, she originally had no intention of actually stopping to speak with him, but there was a flash of white through the door window that caught her eye and had her freezing in her step. She couldn’t make it obvious that she was looking, but that wouldn’t be a problem because all she needed was one more glance to see that it was indeed who she thought draped across one of those chairs. Forcing herself to continue walking, Zara returned to her desk outside of Adam’s office as a million thoughts and questions raced through her head. The biggest one was the easiest to answer - why was Claude talking with the owl lady? About the curse, of course, there was no other reason for him or anyone in their friend group to need anything from the elusive self-proclaimed wild witch. But how had he found her? How long had they been in contact with each other? How much did they know? Those were the questions that continued to swirl round her mind as she waited, trying not to be too obvious in the way she watched his door.

When it finally opened though, she kept her eyes locked tight on her laptop screen, typing away as if busy at work and refusing to risk making eye contact with the woman. For all Zara knew who she was, she could only hope that the owl lady didn’t recognize her as well. She wasn’t as prominent of a figure in the magical community, not the way that the other woman was, and everyone knew Eda tried her best to stay out of the politics of the witch world anyway… so it wasn’t very likely that she would have known Zara even if they had directly spoken to each other, but she couldn’t take the small chance of being exposed right in front of her friends. It wasn’t until the blonde was out the door and a few minutes had passed that Zara stood from her desk and made her way to stand in the doorframe of Claude’s office. “I didn’t have you down for a meeting today,” she points out, tilting her head to the side ever so slightly and watching the man closely as she asks her next question. “Is everything alright? I don’t think I recognized that woman from being around here before. Is she a new vendor or partnership we’re looking to reach out with?”