Black Magic Woman (closed)

[Anastasia van Drakke]

Anastasia had been into plenty of law firms in her day, but never one as small and... tacky as Blue and Gold. Looking with faint disdain at the wall paper and the desk, the blonde glanced at the seats for those waiting.

No, no thank you. There was no chance those were real leather and synthetic would cause some serious static. Almost in defence the heiress smoothed down her hair and brushed her fingers over her tea colored skirt in case some of the cheap polymers clung like parasites.

"Ah, hello?" she called out, crossing her legs and tapping the toe of one of her pumps on the cheap carpet. "Is Mr Weaver here? Mr Bernstein recommend him, I'm Miss van Drakke?"

There was no receptionist, no one asking if she'd care for a latte... she wouldn't but the offer was important. And Ivan was busy training and destroying another punching bag with all his pent up energy.

I'm not used to being kept waiting she very much wanted to say, but held back. "Ah, should I schedule an appointment?"

Anastasia van Drakke having to make an appointment for a tacky little law firm in a tacky little town.... The world had turned upside down, it was the only explanation.

[Cobalt Weaver]

Cobalt was, in fact, in the back room nursing a cup of crappy coffee before he had to go back out to work. When he heard a woman’s voice call from the lobby, he cursed quietly. Apparently Leila had already left for her break. She probably told him, but he had simply forgotten. Dammit.

He pitched the half-empty cup into the trash can and limped out to the front, carefully smoothing the irritation from his sharp features and rearranging them into something akin to polite diffidence. He was surprisingly good at that.

In the middle of his law firm stood a rather pretty, austere looking woman who looked a little miffed. Cobalt noted with one sweep that she was wearing all expensive looking things and stood in the middle of the room as though she was unimpressed with everything. Oh good. Privilege. Sighing slightly, Cobalt strode the rest of the way into the room.

“Apologies for having kept you waiting,” He said smoothly, “My name is Cobalt Weaver, how may I help you?”

And, as per courtesy, he held out his hand for a handshake.

[Danny Silverman]

Danny really, really wanted to show this to Cobalt. Why wouldn’t he? It was amazing! Someone had actually requested a World War II aircraft hangar, complete with little tiny planes in it. And Danny had gotten to build it, all the little pieces at once. It was awesome! Of course, he wasn’t just showing it to Cobalt because he was proud of his work. That was definitely PART of it. But it was mainly because he’d had spare airplanes, and one of them had been the model they’d built when they were ten together—and then the ones they’d played with, when he’d taught Cobalt to use his imagination for once. Nostalgia, right? Danny wanted him to remember the good times. So it wasn’t a surprise when Danny burst into Cobalt’s office, as he had a couple of times before (usually with lots of fattening foods in hand, as he’d decided Cobalt really needed to eat more ice cream to put on weight), not even thinking that it would be a problem because usually Cobalt didn’t have a lot of clients coming in and out.

But he didn’t get a chance to burst out with anything that he wanted to say, because Cobalt was reaching out to shake the hand of a lovely blonde woman who Danny instantly recognized. C’mon, he was from L.A. Everyone there read the tabloids.

“Oh, I’m so sorry!” He gabbled instantly, fumbling for the model he’d perched on his shoulder. “I didn’t mean to interrupt. Um. I’ll just, um, put this down somewhere. I didn’t, I should have…” He stammered to a halt and just stared at Cobalt, looking both embarrassed and pleading. Man, and here he’d thought he’d gotten used to famous people by now.

[Anastasia van Drakke]

In her heels, Anastasia stood at almost 6 feet and so looked down at Cobalt in hidden amusement. He was so short, he looked like a dwarf from one of those fantasy movies her brother had watched in secret. Still, the <hostility/irritation> rolling off him like heat off a stone was enough to make her want to smack him with her handbag.

Still, she smiled her most charming smile and was about to take the offered hand when the door was flung open. Not wanting to miss the opportunity, the heiress shook Cobalt's hand quickly, even as she laughed softly in mild amusement. "I'm Anastasia van Drakke," she said warmly, <like/openness/anticipation/isn'tshesomething> slowly sliding into Cobalt's emotional spectrum. That done, she turned to the newcomer and offered her hand for him to shake as well.

He knew who she was. She loved that. The tension she'd been feeling herself had slid off the moment someone with a plane on their shoulder barged in. "Hello," she said pleasantly, "Are you a friend of Mr Bernstein's as well?" There wasn't much to do, the <awe/admiration> she read off him was common enough with people who knew who she was, but Anastasia did dull down the <nervousness> a tad. It was always hard to talk to people when their jaw was hanging open.

[Cobalt Weaver]

Unlike Danny, Cobalt hadn’t heard of her. He had never paid much mind to tabloid-y news, and was even less impressed by people who were noteworthy solely because they had rich families. So, as far as he was concerned, this woman was simply a tall, pretty woman who was standing when she could be sitting and smiling politely.

“It’s nice to meet you. How can I help you?” He shook her hand firmly, feeling vaguely impressed that, unlike his previous assumptions, she didn’t possess the grating attitude that usually accompanied wealth, and Cobalt felt himself relaxing a little bit. Really, he didn’t have to worry so much. He was always far too suspicious for his own good.

…Wait. What?

Before he could figure out what the hell he just thought, Danny all but burst in like a whirlwind, startling him. Cobalt closed his eyes, affectionately exasperated, “Danny… I’m working.”

The mention of Josh’s name caught Cobalt’s attention. “Oh, you’ve met Josh? Small world.” That probably explained Cobalt’s instant ease with this woman: if Josh liked her, then she must be all right. Slightly unsettled, Cobalt rubbed the back of his head, the start of a headache throbbing quietly at the base of his neck. “I do apologize however, for the interruption,” He shot Danny a raised eyebrow, “We try not to be this chaotic all the time.”

[Danny Silverman]

At first, Danny didn’t move to shake the hand. For one thing, his hands were still full with the model of the hangar and the planes, and for another, he was gaping at her like a fish out of water. Apparently, being gone from L.A. for less than six months had resulted in him losing all immunity to celebrities.

Cobalt’s words brought him back to Earth. Right. Unlike Danny, who had spent all night on the model and so was only awake with the combination of caffeine and sheer jittery excitement, Cobalt worked normal hours. Oops.

“I’m so sorry!” he repeated anxiously, putting the model down on the desk at last. “I really didn’t mean to interrupt. Um. I can—Oh!” He spotted that Anastasia had offered him the hand—at last—and took it, smiling at her as he did so. She wasn’t so bad, was she? Just another human being…only a famous one. He was feeling better already.

“Oh, you mean Josh?” he nodded. “Oh, yes. We go to temple together.” He leaned over to look at Cobalt. “Cobalt, I didn’t know you knew Anastasia Van Drakke!” That was bad to say, wasn’t it? He flushed red and looked back at Anastasia with a sheepish smile.

“Sorry. I'm not usually like this, I swear. Just, um. Most of the time?"

[Anastasia van Drakke]

Tilting her head to one side, Anastasia studied the sudden spike of <confusion> with interest. He was a prickly one, wasn't he? She would have to be very careful not to raise suspicion with a sudden behavioural shift. But he was obviously close to the recent arrival, given the <affection/amusement> that heavily overshadowed any frustration he might have felt.

"He recommended you personally," the blonde confessed, beaming as Danny also confirmed a connection. Excellent, what a lovely little network that man had made. And was helping her make, of course. "Though since I don't know your name, I can't confirm or deny any stories he might have shared about you," this time she turned to Danny.

His outburst made her laugh, and she covered her mouth with one manicured hand. "He does not know me," she assured the human, before glancing back to Mr Weaver. "We just met. I'd hoped you could give me some advice on obtaining American Citizenship for my partner. A wedding would cause too much of a media frenzy." At his blush she chuckled softly and shook her head. "I admit, a part of me missed being recognised," she admitted, still allowing <interest/comfort> to fill the room like perfume. "You're the first in a while!"

[Cobalt Weaver]

Cobalt had rather good people intuition when he allowed himself to get over his almost-pathological suspicion of every stranger he met. But the fact remained that because of this, he tended to keep a fairly close catalogue of everything he was feeling. However, whatever intuition and misanthropist suspicion he possessed didn’t really serve as much of a warning for why he felt a little disconcerted. Impatient with himself, Cobalt shoved it aside. He was trying to work on being a more social and forgiving person, wasn’t he? This new woman seemed like a good place to start.

Cobalt nodded slightly, his eyebrows slightly raised in touched surprise, “Did he? That was kind of him. I hope I can be useful.”

But then he grew confused as Danny gaped at Ms. Van Drakke. He glanced from Danny to the other woman. “Wait, I know what? Who?” Not really realizing that this was probably a little rude, he gave Danny a confused face, “I don’t know…” He glanced over at the tall woman, putting pieces together quickly. “I’m sorry,” Cobalt apologized without really meaning it, because he wasn’t all that sorry he didn’t pay attention to the media beyond what he felt was necessary, “I don’t keep up to date on current news. I’m afraid I don’t quite recognize you.”

But then the woman began talking about law, and Cobalt was starting to feel far more comfortable (almost definitely because now they were talking about something safe and familiar). So he relaxed, and he listened to her problem. “Is he here on a limited visa? Because I can advise you as best I can, and I can also refer you to an immigration office. Either way, I will probably need more information on your partner’s situation.”

[Danny Silverman]

“Oh.” He hadn’t shared that, had he? He blushed again, then pushed up his glasses and told himself that his jitteriness was just due to the caffeine, really. He wasn’t that nervous, was he? He really hoped he wasn’t. “I’m Danny. I’m sorry. I forgot to introduce myself. Danny Silverman! I make…” He gestured to the little model hangar. “Models! But it’s good that you came to Cobalt. He’s very good.”

Not that Danny had ever gone to Cobalt for legal advice, but he was fiercely loyal to his friend and would have sworn that he was a good lawyer even if he was disbarred. He might have felt a little nervous about the lie, but that wouldn’t have stopped him, obviously.

“Well, thank you! Or…sort of? Thank you for not minding.” He smiled at her, liking how down-to-Earth and normal she seemed to be. He gaped again at Cobalt as he said that he didn’t know her, and got out, “But she’s Anastasia van Drakke—Cobalt, sometimes I think you live under a rock—” before he realized that he was making a very bad impression indeed and shutting up. Cobalt was giving legal information, so he retreated to one of the chairs and offered it to the heiress, then backed up some more until he found a stool he could perch on.

There. This was safe. Right? Right. And he really was feeling more relaxed. This was okay! 

[Anastasia van Drakke]

(ooc: ok I SWEAR I had posted here.... sorry for being so late)

With a encouraging smile, the empath held out her hand for Danny to shake. This one was too easy, though the jitter from the caffeine made her toes twitch. "Charmed," she said, and managed to make the line actually seem genuine.

"Ivan fled the Russian military when he was 17," Anastasia answered honestly. It was a risk, a slight one, but Cobalt was small, and no doubt he could be taken care of should he start to let slip this particular secret. "It is not that uncommon, but it does mean we are unable to contact the Russian embassy; he's still on record for being a deserter." The veneer had cracked for a moment, and the American born Russian's expression made it clear what she thought of the motherland, if only for a second. "Both his parents died while he was quite young, so there was no one to speak up for him until now."

<sympathy/anger>, let him share the smouldering anger the heiress felt at the system. If Joshua had been telling the truth, Mr Weaver was not a big fan of meta conscription. She could use that.

"As such, no, he does not have a visa."

This was not exactly a lie. Ivan Zykov did not have a visa. Ivan Avlang however, had a green card and a Ukrainian passport, but that was splitting hairs, really.

This whole little town lived under a rock, but still, that was why they'd moved here. Oh, and the MSAD but that had been a faliure and a half, hadn't it? "My family has our name spashed across the fashion industy," she explained to Cobalt, managing to sound slightly sheepish and proud at the same time. "But, as a lawyer, you might have heard of the court case I was involved in some years ago. God knows it was splashed across enough magazines," a slight roll in her eyes showed just what the heiress thought of this; Mr Weaver did not seem the type to be impressed by talking ones self up.

Those damned chairs again. Glancing down every so quickly to make sure that this one was at least, well, clean, Anastasia folded her long legs and rested her hands on her lap. "So, can you help me, Mr Weaver?"

He would want to. Oh yes.

[Cobalt Weaver]

Cobalt shot Danny a raised eyebrow Look, but didn’t comment anymore because he actually had business to do. Sometimes he’d forgotten that Danny sometimes let his mouth run from him. But Ms. Van Drakke was polite to Danny despite it, which certainly endeared her to Cobalt.

He listened to the heiress’ story about her lover aptly, feeling a shot of sympathetic anger. Because no, Cobalt was certainly not a fan of meta conscription. And in truth, Eva probably didn’t even need to help his anger along with her own abilities. All Cobalt really wanted to do in life was to help people, and the heiress was offering him an opportunity to help someone.

“Okay, that’s fine,” Cobalt nodded, scanning through his thoughts briefly, “Without a visa, he can still try for American citizenship by claiming political asylum. Basically saying he can’t go back to Russia because he feels as though the government will kill or otherwise harm him because of his metahuman status.” This was a bit of a challenge, since he hadn’t had to deal with immigration laws in a while, but it wasn’t foreign to him.

Cobalt’s eyes widened in surprise when Ms. Van Drakke mentioned a court case she had been involved in years ago. There was a moment of shuffling and re-shuffling the dusty memories before he remembered—

Oh, that was her?

“That was your brother?” Cobalt asked, a little shocked. He elaborated for Danny’s sake, “Your brother was killed some years ago. And the police ruled it was an accident, but you put pressure on them for anti-metahuman sentiment. I remember now.”

At this point, her question was no question at all. “Of course,” He nodded.

[Danny Silverman]

Danny noticed the Look and tried to edge away a little, looking sheepish. He didn’t want to upset Cobalt, really he didn’t. He just sometimes got a little excited. And Ms. Van Drakke didn’t seem to mind. She was even shaking his hand, and Danny managed to calm himself down enough so it wasn’t jittering in hers. With that done, he settled back to listen, sitting sideways on the chair with his hands folded on the top, and his chin propped up on them as he watched the two. He even behaved himself. He didn’t interject anything, didn’t stammer out any more awkward statements about Ms. Van Drakke, but just let them talk. Even though when Cobalt elaborated, he wrinkled his nose at him. Of course he knew about that. Just because he wasn’t a lawyer didn’t mean he hadn’t kept track of meta events for his old friend’s sake—and because he kept waiting for his friend’s name to show up somewhere, somehow. But he behaved, kept his mouth shut, and just watched with wide eyes.

Well, until Cobalt said that he’d help the nice American born Russian heiress. It was about that point that poor, sleep-deprived Danny leapt up and punched the air with a “YES!”

And then promptly realized what he had done and sank back down in his chair with a sheepish mumble of, “Sorry.” He was older than five. Really.

[Anastasia van Drakke]

"It's not that easy," Anastasia sighed, ideally running her thump down the side hem of her skirt. "No proof, you see. Technically, since he had no legal gardian, Ivan was never a part of the Russian military."

If it was that easy, she would have done it herself, after all. But the empath did not let her irritation at what she saw as a highly insulting assumption and simply pressed her lips together as if to hold back disappointment. There were so many other reasons why they couldn't just get married; Ivan had a new name, he was, according to his green card, a different man entirely than the terrified child they had picked off the street and kept in a dark cell to shape into a monster.

The topic change did little to elevate her mood, or keep her out of the rage that was swelling in her stomach, so Anastasia let Danny's <excitement> balloon her own low spirits until she felt able to reply. "Yes, Dario van Drakke was my younger brother," she confirmed, her molars clenching together. "And a fairly decent terrakenetic. But," a slight smile at Danny's <annoyance> at his assumed ignorance, "that is something I have long since given up as a lost cause. Ivan, however..."

It painted a fairly tragic portrait; a woman who had suffered great loss, facing another all in the name of anti meta prejudice. She knew Cobalt's answer before he gave it, his <indignation/determination> obvious enough, but she managed to look delighted all the same, laughing at Danny's outburst and shooting him a thankful look. "I am so glad," she said honestly. "We don't have many friends here, I hope we can count both of you in that number."

Her smile was a winning one.

[Cobalt Weaver]

Cobalt’s eyes narrowed in thought. This was a little more complicated than he’d originally thought, this whole situation with this woman and her lover. He wasn’t an immigration lawyer, and although he knew the basics of how things worked, he didn’t know the nuances. Which was irritating, because Cobalt didn’t like admitting to someone that he didn’t know how to help someone. Especially someone who had been through as much as this woman had.

A brief look of annoyance flashed across his face before he smoothed it out. “I can’t give you an answer on the spot,” He said honestly, “Because I’m not an immigration rights lawyer. However, I can either recommend you to one, or if you prefer, I can look into it. It will just take more time.”

His agreement also resulted in an insane shout from Danny. Cobalt jumped and then leveled a glare at his friend. “Christ, Danny.” Cobalt said, slightly shocked and mostly irritated, “Lay off the coffee, will you?”

At Anastasia’s words, Cobalt nodded, a slight smile on his face, “Of course.” He glanced over at Danny before turning back to her, “Well, Danny needs to go on a walk or something to blow off some steam, so I think I’m going to take him to lunch. If you’d like to accompany us, you’re welcome to it. If not, it was a pleasure to meet you.”

[ooc: provisionally wrapped, unless we have more EVIL PLANS]

[Danny Silverman]

Danny subdued slightly at Cobalt’s irritated look, feeling guilty. He knew that he was a little hyped up from all the caffeine and not sleeping, but surely that didn’t count for everything, right? He was still wide awake, up and functioning, and that was due to the miracle of caffeine. It was an amazing thing. Besides, Anastasia didn’t seem to mind. So why should he?

But judging by Cobalt’s expression, he really minded. He sank down in his chair guiltily, blushing, and just nodded his consent. But when Anastasia said that they could be counted as their friends, he brightened and offered the woman a wide smile. “Of course!”

But at Cobalt’s words, he tried to look offended, pushing his glasses up. “Hey! I’m not a dog.” Then he paused to think about it. “But…um…going places might be better, I think. It was nice to meet you, Miss Van Drakke.” And he beamed at her again and went to stand next to Cobalt.