Knocking is easier. (Open to all)

[Pantera Tsua]

Pantera wasn’t surprised, everything had some sort of catch, but then again… it didn’t seem like this opportunity would be ripped from him if he didn’t grasp whatever she was about to feed him. Or at the very least, she didn’t make it sound like that… The dark male watched her carefully as she moved, dipping her fingers under the hem of her top, pulling out her fingers, which were pressed together enough to make him presume she had something held in between them. Her finger brushed across the surface and a symbol was revealed to him, nothing special from the first glance; a customised coin, but he knew that wasn’t it.

She continued talking as she repeated the motion of sliding her thumb across the coins surface another two times before she finished and left Pantera with a pause. Well, it was obviously a charm, it would be more complex then it looked and Pantera wouldn’t be able to narrow down how it was done without being able to examine the coin and not without some inkling toward its purpose. Not that it mattered, that wasn’t what she wanted though, she wanted him to theorize about how the three different symbols connected.

A mental groan etched through his mind, this would take a while, it could be damn near anything. Narrowing it down to a questionable origin was the easiest way to go, though. Judging by the nature of this conversation and the fact she thought he was a suitable apprentice; which was a big clue toward the sorts of things this connection might pertain to. Pantera couldn’t help feeling one of the symbols was familiar though, but he tipped his head and decided against trying the place it.

No doubt it was this mysterious ‘Spider’s’ charm…three symbols, codes? Revealed in a particular order to signify ones connections? No… if people were flashing objects like that round the place then surely he would be able to say more about it. So, in that sense he could assume the coins were few, one for each of the governing trusted? He doubted it, it seemed too obvious, not nearly clever enough for this woman to put much faith in.

”They could be aliases, symbols to prevent conflict between the groups of people being dealt with. If you use one symbol, not only are you easy to find but if you deal between two fighting clans then you’ve insulted them and earn their wrath. With different symbols you could create different imaginary families, crests, signatures…that way you could claim a larger area, claim all sorts of people whilst keeping on their good side… To remain a ghost, a phantom, smoke through ones fingers…”

No… that didn’t quite fit, either; but it was clever and made the most sense to Pantera himself.

They could be anything, a password device… The male had once come across a set-up where the symbol would look different to every person, unless it was held in a certain way. Of course, that hadn’t been on a coin, it had been like a muggle credit card, small and compact. Another one he’d experienced was like the Sorting hat in Hogawarts, an object of entry would bare the appropriate symbol attributed uniquely to that person, it was how they made sure no unwanted sneaks got through into their ranks. Though, it didn’t defend against well-planted spies, unfortunately as that particular group had found out.

To be honest, Pantera was a little distracted by the revelation that this female was involved in something as such… but, he’d already complimented its influence and once was enough. The male was absently enjoying the analysing though and he tipped his head slightly, continuing the mull through more options.

“They could be the symbols for significant places… but then that isn’t especially significant… in this kind of world you aren’t allowed to have a strong connection or preference to any one place; the moment you get predictable, is the moment the Ministry or other rival groups would stick their noses in…”

How irritating.

To not know… but it wasn’t like he didn’t stumble upon this irritation often, he was subjected to it a lot because of his age, but here…in this conversation he wasn’t ultimately sure he was expected to gauge the connection. It didn’t help however that Pantera still couldn’t think who this ‘Spider’ was, whom she could be connected to, why or how. By nature the male hated situations where he knew very little, but…to balance it out, he enjoyed watching, thinking, analysing and decoding every piece.

”It could by any number of things… “The male started, reclining in his seat a little, emitting a low series of jingles as his outfit shifted along with his earrings, other accessories and a somewhat irritated somewhat intrigued glint in his eyes as he took a step back and ushered words he almost never did. “Enlighten me.”

[Cindra Rourke]

“They could be aliases, symbols to prevent conflict between the groups of people being dealt with. If you use one symbol, not only are you easy to find but if you deal between two fighting clans then you’ve insulted them and earn their wrath. With different symbols you could create different imaginary families, crests, signatures…that way you could claim a larger area, claim all sorts of people whilst keeping on their good side… To remain a ghost, a phantom, smoke through ones fingers…”

Cindra knew her features now openly displayed her pleasure in his getting it right… in a manner of speaking. It was the purpose of the codes, the coin, but not the point she was getting at. Yes, her associate’s use of numerous aliases gave him greater power and freedom to conduct his ‘work’, especially between warring families and factions. The coin was an aid, to help her know with which web she was dealing with, whether one had been sacrificed, one gained, and to serve as the seal she needed if the authority he gave her was questioned. It wasn’t often that she employed it, and never had she revealed but one signature to any one person until now.

He continued his theory, unfortunately taking a turn in thinking that was completely off course, but it was no matter. She would enlighten him indeed, in a round about way.

“Are you familiar with spiders?” she began, straightening up to sit on the edge of her chair, her crossed ankle nudging against a table leg as she drew closer to him. “Interesting creatures… one in particular, the Portia spider. Remarkable hunting behavior.

They prey on other spiders, you see. They like to draw their prey in… mimic a struggling victim, display courting signals, sometimes for days on end in order to achieve their goal. They use the weather, the environment against their victims and usually in enemy territory. They learn, they adapt, and wait until they understand the offensive capabilities of their targets before going in for the kill. And what is perhaps most interesting, is that they’ll evade detection… their prey doesn’t see it coming.”

Looking into her hand, she pictured Portia, something few could do precisely due to his disguised nature, and the coin suddenly bore dozens of different coded signatures, all entwined together in a delicate web that spread from one side to the other, including the thick rim, until they were tied together by a single, simple symbol. A capital P with eight small ‘legs’ coming out of the rounded part of the letter, like a small spider.

Turning it in her hand, she paused when she noted a change she had never seen before. A tiny blank space inside the web as if something had been erased but the coin didn’t compensate for the loss. It only took her a second to discern its meaning. Grinning, she gave Portia another point over her. He already knew she had made the offer. Clever indeed. A connection had been made but to what end had yet to be written. In her mind, Cindra laughed when she thought of how Pantera’s involvement would affect this new web, and imagined a chain link filling the spot.

Turning her gaze back to the young man, she slowly placed the coin on the table; Portia’s master symbol hidden against the table surface, and slowly slid it over to Pantera, the bronze scraping against the grain of the aged wood. She nodded for him to pick it up, peruse it, while she continued.

“Each symbol was indeed an alias, a coded signature for the master of its web, just as all of those on there are. I only showed you three the coin knew you to be familiar with, whether you ever saw the signature in use or not. For example, the spiraled one you saw first- does ‘Tribeye’ mean anything to you?”

She waited a moment to gauge his reaction before plowing on.

“Notice that all of those are connected, literally, not by familial ties, or even by which webs deal with which.” With a slight forward tilt of her head she told him to flip it over where the P sat intimidating in the center of the opposite face. “They are in fact all the aliases of one man, one grand master whose tutelage, and possibly empire, you’ve been offered.”

The board was cleared save her king, which sat out in the open ready for him to take. The enormity of the proposal wouldn’t be lost on him, she was sure. It was the highest stakes game she had played so far; perhaps that should have terrified her like a good little raven, but it was quite the opposite. Cindra liked Pantera, not as a student, she hadn’t a basis for that, but as a young wizard in his own right. Someone she could see herself associating with.

“You knew long ago this wasn’t a child’s game and yet you’ve never faltered, and though I’m sure I already know your response, Portia will want it made very clear.”

Because, yes, he already knows, she thought to herself. As if he had much choice not to, here at the end. It was plain that after being made privy to the fact that so many circuits, so many webs, were the domain of a single wizard, Pantera wouldn’t be allowed to leave with that knowledge without first sealing his commitment.

“Are you still willing to accept, Mister Tsua?”

Would he take her king or sacrifice his own?

[Pantera Tsua]

Pantera supposed his first guess had been closest, judging by the smile he’s received after it, but still…there was something about it that didn’t fit, which was why he hadn’t said it definitely. It made the most sense and would be the cleverest out of the other things he’s theorized. The male found he had a small smile on his face as the woman decided to enlighten him as he’d asked.

Spiders? Well, he knew quite a few species out of experience, but they weren’t creatures people often dealt with, for one thing most people had developed an innate fear of them and if you look at it from a business point of view, spiders were tricky, precarious and dangerous. Mostly because of their wide array of evolved skills, cunning tricks and unnatural prowess, they were powerhouses, but unfortunately ones that were often overlooked. A spider could be more dangerous then a dragon, but of course the latter was better known for their brutish strength and power, and your average person mistook that for efficiency.

Portia.
Pantera moved his head slightly when the female ushered that word, it sounded vaguely familiar; perhaps something that had been thrown around a little during a trade? He couldn’t be sure but it nagged at him slightly as he listened to her explanation of the Portia Spider. He watched her return her gaze the coin and watched with mild interest, he noted how she’d sat forward too, clearly overly enthusiastic about this particular spider. The male could see how it was relevant; the Spiders concept was a good way to go about things, course it would have to be an evolved and twisted form, but that didn’t take away from its original genius; just like the concept of the coin and the alias concealed there.

The female looked rather pleased and smiled as she kept her gaze on the coin before she returned her gaze to him, sliding the coin across the table until it was close enough for him to claim. Pantera picked it up, feeling the dulling warmth on its surface as he inspected the array of symbols connected together with thin lines, he took in a couple of the symbols on that side and followed a couple of connecting likes to the coins thin girth and smiled slightly before he turned it over and his attention fell straight onto the large P in the center, which he presumed was the master symbol.
P? Portia… She wouldn’t have mentioned the spiders if it wasn’t relevant, so he had no reason to ignore the information, not that the set-up of the coin and the warped ‘P’ didn’t give it away.

It was clever and it was exactly what Pantera would have done, he mused lightly as the female began to explain bits and pieces. “Tribeye… No, but I’ve seen that symbol before, inscribed on… an archive of sorts.” It hadn’t been one of his best days, that incident, in fact if he remembered correctly that symbol among others had taken half his stock and a couple of items that had been more then troublesome to acquire. The male kept his eyes on the coin, turning it round skilfully between two fingers as he moved his eyes over more symbols, he’d only seen a couple of them, but then… with something as intricate as this… he supposed the master of these aliases didn’t just dabble in the black market. No, he could do so much more with this kind of stability…

A shiver moved down Pantera’s spine, as he looked up from the bronze object, one man? Ahh… that was why his theory hadn’t felt like it would fit, he was thinking along the sorts of lines his father would have, groups of people… not necessarily more efficient, in fact… it was more dangerous then being alone, but still. The dark male’s equally dark eyes moved back to the ‘P’ in the center and he smirked, closed his eyes and drew his thumb over the surface absently, letting loose a low chuckle.

”There’s a gap in the web… I’d say, he already knows…” The male half purred looking obviously amused as he let his gaze move back to the woman herself. With this knowledge the gravity of the situation had escalated and judging by the manner of Portia and his intricate, genius design… Pantera was aware of issues with any refusal, not that there would be any. That wasn’t the only issue though, but Pantera wasn’t willing to think about those just yet, they would only suffice to make him more hesitant then he needed to be.

”Of course… If not a more so.” The male answered but his smile didn’t reach as far as it might’ve. His acceptance was good for Portia and would be good for Pantera himself in the long run, but currently? This knowledge and the offer itself destabilized quite a few already precarious things. The male averted his gaze for a moment, as he offered these things a thought or two; he was just lucky he didn’t mind a couple more scars. Though, it would be the Tsua themselves that he’d have to keep an eye on most, Pantera might be able to act the part of an ignorant son, but he was aware his father was still paying a certain amount of attention on him. “Its too good an opportunity to refuse…”

“But I have to ask, Professor, what’s you’re role in all this?”

[Cindra Rourke]

And again Pantera impressed her with his quick wit. He too noticed the empty space on the coin and came to the same conclusion she had. Cindra had no idea what exactly Portia knew of the situation at present but she had always had her suspicions as far as what contact with the coin entailed. Though good about coming at it from an angle, he often knew more than she voiced, be it her doings or her anxieties. Despite the trust and respect she had for him, she didn’t question him about it, directly at least. There were reasons she remained so close to him.

But she did wonder what he might be aware of with Pantera holding that piece of bronze.

“Its too good an opportunity to refuse…”

Not surprised by his words, she was confident by now that he was up to the task, to the game, and a very able player at that. Stating it that way was wise no matter who was listening. It made you look eager while said nothing of any misgivings you might have.

“But I have to ask, Professor, what’s you’re role in all this?”

Cindra knew this would come up sooner or later. Question was, how much was she willing to divulge, how much should she, and how much was best left to Portia’s discretion? Being trained to join him at his side, and possibly take over in the end, she knew Pantera would become privy to more than anyone else, save her and Portia. Only now did the thought unsettle her.

It was complex, with a lengthy history, and unconventional by many standards. That aside, Portia had skillfully weaved his business precisely because he didn’t care about the conventional. He did what suited him, worked for him, and with that work ethic, she had found herself immersed in it. She never meant to, but he had managed to spin her in as easily as if she had consented, and by the time she was given the coin, she knew there was no out.

Cindra wasn’t sure if she was more uncomfortable with having been drawn in without protest, or the fact she didn’t mind when she realized it.

Perhaps she had best start with what he would undoubtedly learn anyways and see how much more Pantera would endeavor to get out of her. No need to give more than was asked.

“I offer Portia my talents. My calculations, connections, knowledge… my insight.” He might scoff at ‘offer’ but it was closer to the truth than he knew. She did it freely, and Portia never ordered her. Yes, he knew how to get her to agree, but she also learned that she could say no, though it was far more difficult.

“I’m his second set of eyes and ears, his second thoughts.” Slowly she moved back into the chair to lean against the back once again, a playful grin on her lips. Technically she wasn’t in his ranks, she was in a different, more personal circle.

“And take whatever role is necessary.” Cindra paused and lifted a hand to her face, her index finger lightly tracing the dip just below her lower lip as she silently gazed at him, her curiosity toying with her. Maybe she could see a little more into his mind.

“I assume you had some thoughts on the matter, so may I ask… does this surprise you? Did you have a similar idea of my role or did you have something more interesting in mind?” She smiled and added sweetly, “I’d hate to disappoint this far in the game.”

[Pantera Tsua]

Well of course, this woman would be a good ally to have, she was calculative, thoughtful, careful and observant among other things, that and Pantera didn’t believe she’d sit under anyone’s shadow unless she truly respected them… which meant she was loyal. No in deep enough to be a pawn but settled enough for certain tasks, if you could charm consent out of her. Well, that was what he speculated after her plays in the game so far.

He hadn’t though she would offer herself up though, which came as a mild surprise, but then… he hadn’t seen her when it counted; Different situations and people would create different outcomes, different decisions, circumstances. Pantera had no knowledge of how she would act anywhere but in this secluded room, with only him for company and here, at best; she was pretty at ease, if not enjoying herself. Or, that’s what he picked up on anyway. It made sense that she’d carry a high position, but he didn’t think that was it…

The way she spoke of Portia made it sound like she admired and respected him and, going the rest of the way on speculation… he didn’t think she let herself be anything other then an acquaintance, a friend? Perhaps. He hadn’t asked for her history and probably wouldn’t bother to as things like that usually tended to turn round an bite him, but he felt it was safe to assume she knew more about the guy then just another follower, or hired goon. Again though, it was hard to say for sure, he didn’t know how Portia did things, his temperament or anything other then this particular alias… it wasn’t clever to make any certain assumptions now, not when the smallest detail to ruin all his speculating.

He could build on the information when it came to him… if it came to him.

Pantera smiled slightly when she finally asked, he presumed she would, other peoples thoughts held a dastardly sinful interest, especially if you weren’t sure how to mimic their particular pattern.
” Well, I suppose I thought something similar to what you said… I pegged you more as an acquaintance, rather then someone working under, Portia’s ranks. The way you talk about him, with respect and admiration in a sense. I presumed you were trusted higher-up. Above the ranks…to an extent.” Pantera had his eyes on the face of the coin of which he held at the opposite ends of its base, looking at the surface before he released it and captured in his fist before it fell to the table.

”I decided against thinking about it too much… It’s harder to take in information, follow the right course and remain receptive if I’ve already made up my mind, don’t you think?” Pantera let a smile pull across the seam of his black lips and chuckled slightly, feeling warmth cut into his hand from the bronze coin. He outstretched his arm and placed the item in the middle of the table precisely in between them, keeping a black nail pressed against its surface as his dark eyes flickered to the woman’s face. “ What else does the coin do?” he asked, with a smaller smile.

He wasn’t asking IF it did anything else, he was asking what. The item got abnormally hot in his grip and there was something oddly transfixing about it. Definitely more then just archive of aliases.

”And, I’m positive there are plenty of... interesting things concerning you and Portia, but I doubt you have a habit of divulging them, not that I’ll press. I’m intrigued, sure. But It would depend on what the price for the knowledge is – not that I’m not pushing my luck already.” The male looked amused and pulled back his arm, letting the buckles scrape across the table before he let his fingers press against his temple, as if to hold it upright.

”Oh, at this point you couldn’t disappoint…” Pantera half chuckled, with an almost feline looking smile.

[Cindra Rourke]

“Oh, at this point you couldn’t disappoint…”

Her laughter was genuine and full of mirth, even if it lasted only a few seconds. Any doubts left about whether she would like being tied to Pantera through their association with Portia were now gone. Despite the risks, despite the world of unknowns regarding to his future, conversing with the young wizard was anything but work- it was downright enjoyable. A smile reaching her eyes, she noted his and voiced the next thought that struck her without hesitation.

“Likewise, Mister Tsua.”

Letting the moment pass, Cindra sighed lightly, the nature of much of what he said being more serious than their last comments. Lowering her hand to her lap, she tilted her back slightly and backtracked. “While you have presumed correctly in several respects,” Namely the respect and admiration parts, though he was rather close on the ranks assessment. “The nature of my relationship with Portia is… well… interesting may be the best choice of words, but in time I have no doubt you’ll come to understand more of it.” Her eyes ducked to her lap briefly before returning to his, a slip in her posture as her thoughts got the better of her in her present state of ease. “No need to push luck.”

Knowing Portia, he would eventually draw his apprentice in very closely, perhaps closer than she would feel comfortable, and at some point Pantera would have to know more about what went on between them; it would be impossible to keep from one he meant to be his future equal. Perhaps she had best talk with Portia beforehand.

Inwardly sighing, she dropped her eyes, but this time to the coin. Slowly Cindra lifted her right hand, her wand hand, and placed the heel on the edge of the table so her fingers barely stayed an inch over it’s surface, hovering. Without a sound, or hesitation, the coin suddenly slid across the table loudly until it struck the underside of her hand that came down on top of the metal with an audible snap. Her eyes now boring into his, she lifted the coin up and wrapped her fingers around it. It wasn’t playfulness in her eyes, but a serious, penetrating glace that spoke of the severity, and secrecy, of what she just revealed.

Only two men knew of her wandless abilities. One was dead; the other now linked her to the wizard across from her. It was privy information, but a calculated risk. Eyes and ears she might be, but not simply that.

“The coin,” she began, drawing his attention back to the question he posed that she had pondered many a time. “Is connected to him, in some fashion. As you saw, he was aware of my having made you the offer, as I’m sure he knows it was accepted.” Pausing, she looked at the coin as she ran her fingers over it, the raised marks and symbols brushing against the pads of her fingertips. It was, to a point, her exact thoughts she next spoke, her eyes still on the small item. “There is something else to it, certain… thoughts,” she now held it out between her fingers, turning it over and back as she examined it, her voice becoming more subdued and whisper like. “Seem to trigger its recognition and he’s aware of… extremes in emotion. Fear, anxiety… excitement.”

Cindra snapped her eyes back to his as she quickly lowered the coin and hand to her lap with a slight shake of her head. “Exactly how or why, or whether it entails more than that I’m not sure.” What she didn’t say was that she didn’t dare brooch the subject. When said item was kept pressed against her chest, the possible dark nature of its abilities was something she preferred not having confirmed. Portia sometimes loved to lead her along to discovering the genius behind a design and she might just get the truth she didn’t want. However, knowing to what extent he gleaned knowledge from the coin was a different story.

“But perhaps that is knowledge best revealed to his apprentice?” Because that she would certainly be interested in, and the glint in her eyes screamed as much as she grinned and slid the coin back down the front of her shirt, where it's warmth was hard to ignore.

[Pantera Tsua]

"Pantera... Mr.Tsua is my father."

The woman didn’t sound particularly pleased about him learning about this relationship between her and Portia, but why would she? No one had a past that they could speak freely of, not in this day and age anyway. Wherever you went normal seeming things just got more and more unacceptable, which was unfortunate really, because people in the past used to get away with rather a lot. That was true then, if this Portia really wanted Pantera to be his heir, then the male was going to have to learn a lot of things about Portia and the people he was close to; all information was necessary but none came without a price.

Pantera wondered absently what his price would be for this. So far Pantera hadn’t paid anything really and the philosophy that ‘nothing was free’ began to nag at him a little. He watched the Arithmancy Professor’s head dip, and tipped his own slightly, watching her avert her gaze to her lap for a moment. She was obviously uncomfortable with it, but then in contrast comfortable enough with him to let that show. “When will I get to meet him?” There, he threw the woman a bone – of sorts-. Pantera was aware of the issues that came with letting someone else rummage through your history and so, he’d let her know in her own way that he didn’t care essentially and would allow her to move off from the subject until it came up either in lesson or from the Professor herself. Judging by what he’d picked up from her, if there was something she particularly didn’t want him knowing, then he expected her to get it removed from the storytelling. This...subject change was a show of respect, tinged to Pantera's own unique manner.

That and it was also a good question. Of course, Pantera expected this to be a slow and precarious process, he didn’t think he’d get the meet the maker himself straight away; it only made sense.

The young male’s dark eyes remained set on the female’s face as she dropped her gaze again, but to the table, instead of her lap and Pantera tipped his head back slightly. For a long moment the questionable male didn’t react at all to the movement of the coin, but a cross between a feline and serpentine smile moved across his blackened lips, despite the seriousness in her face. Oh, he understood that she’d done that in confidence, it wasn’t something that went down well within schools… Wandless magic; though it was useful and better connected ones self to the magics, it was dangerous and children were easily led.

It they were to see a man turn a glass into an owl with a wand; fair enough, but when someone did the same spell with nothing but their hands… children went mad with a need to learn it. Wandless magic came with its costs though; Pantera had heard it was exceedingly hard to learn. So she had other uses too? Good, Pantera might’ve doubted her a little if he found she was only average with magics and the like. The Professor seemed to enjoy taking these uncharacteristic risks while Pantera was in the room and the male chuckled slightly at the thought, looking rather pleased even though it wasn’t his concern…yet.

”Full of surprises, aren’t you Professor? But you’re taking a lot of risks; perhaps we’ve spent too much time together?”

The male’s smile only grew yet more questionable, until it was a near-fierce grin that the male had to cage with a couple of angled slender fingers. So she didn’t know either? Pantera wondered why she hadn’t asked, but he could move pack to his point about not knowing Portia to explain that one. A shiver made its way carefully down the center of Pantera’s smile and his grin didn’t fade for a long moment as he mused through a couple of ideas, eventually returning his attention to the female. “Well, if you’re correct, then I’m afraid I might already have given myself away.” His chuckle was rich and low after that, like and strange purr as he let his grin slip back into an amused blackened smile.

The coin idea was clever too, a good way to make sure everyone remained in check, were cool, calculated and were, above all, competent. Pantera would be interested in how Portia filtered the information from these coins however. Not to mention what else they did, somehow – like everything he was being told- about the coin’s abilities felt irritatingly like it was just the tip of the iceberg.

That chuckle returned, but on a subtler scale when the female spoke again and Pantera smiled at her. “No knowledge is free… you should know that by now.”

[Cindra Rourke]

The gesture had not been lost on her. The shift from student and teacher to, well, for lack of a better word, allies, had been undeniable. While that didn’t bother her, the sudden exposure that was inevitable did have her nerves on edge.

“When will I get to meet him?”

Pantera was either equally intuitive or becoming very good at reading her. She couldn’t argue with that, she had become increasingly relaxed in his presence and let more show through than would normally be acceptable. At the moment, she was rather glad as he was clearly giving her a graceful out. Her respect for the young wizard went up a notch.

As the time of mincing words had past, she replied honestly. “I’m not sure. He will contact you soon though, that I do know. After he has become familiar with your name.” By now she didn’t doubt he would know what that meant. Portia had rats scattered about that were good at crawling into tight spaces, listening and sniffing things out. They were easily expended pawns, but also not very reliable. Information from them was never taken at face value, but it did give a starting point. It wouldn’t be until he saw Pantera for himself that Portia would make his own assessments.

“When he does decide to first meet with you,” and then Cindra found herself grinning. It wasn’t often that she played with fire, but she knew her limits, as well as what interesting things could come of it. The opportunity was irresistible; she’d have her fun with Portia, and him with her no doubt, but she’d also be giving Pantera a hand. He had caught on quick enough with her, but if he could do so pretty much from the start with Portia, things would go smoother, and faster, for the Slytherin. “It’ll be when you least expect it.”

“So be mindful. Aliases serve as more than a name,” she warned. They served as a mask, a persona, and Portia was good at finding one that could draw the worst out of someone, just because he wanted to see what it would entail.

“Full of surprises, aren’t you Professor? But you’re taking a lot of risks; perhaps we’ve spent too much time together?”

She laughed, unguarded and genuine. “Some risks are worth taking, and some aren’t nearly as dangerous as one’s previously taken.” Her smile reached her eyes and she licked her lips, wetting them as she shifted to cross her legs the other way. “And please, when we’re not having to play our roles here,” she gestured towards the window overlooking Hogwarts grounds with a light wave of her hand, “it’s Cindra.” It was far easier seeing him as Portia’s second with the damned titles out of the way.

“But, yes, perhaps you have brought out the worst,” she held his gaze and a playful tone laced her words. “Or would it be the best in me? Either way, we’ll likely be seeing far more of each other, so I suppose this won’t be the first surprise.”

And he was right, Pantera had likely given himself away, but that was neither here nor there now. They were both caught in a spider’s web and neither seemed to give a damn. Especially judging by the chuckle and smile he cast. They had circled back to her weakness and it seemed she was going to be seeking something from him after all.

“No knowledge is free… you should know that by now.”

Slowly Cindra barely shook her head, a smile reaching her eyes. In that moment, Pantera had effectively flung her back ten years, to her first encounter with the wizard to become Portia, her first dalliance in the game where her own quick wit found her not only holding a piece but seeking one, and those same words past a familiar set of lips. Her voice lowered a little, softened, perhaps so miniscule that he wouldn’t note, as she gazed at the young man across from her and had a brief vision of what he would be. And as she spoke the words, they were more open and true to her form than any before.

“Yes, Pantera, I do. There always is,” with a soft sigh she lifted her hands and rolled her wrists over to leave them palm up, out to her sides in a gesture that left her exposed. “So what price will you ask of me?”

[Pantera Tsua]

Ahhh, investigation; Pantera wondered just how much Portia’s spies would be able to uncover; it wouldn’t be particularly difficult if one had the right kind of spy, but if there was a slip up, the Tsua wouldn’t be particularly merciful, not on the spy and not on Pantera himself; it all meant more precarious things were going to appear and, as fate would spite it, probably all at once. A clashing of wills, a clashing of times and a clashing of powers, sometimes it was hard to believe the young male could still get into these sorts of things… But then again, those scars weren’t there for nothing. Despite all the issues that came with it, it was nice to know there would be an investigation, as such was severely underused these days, which usually made things turn rather bitter and disappointing as an end result.

Having said that though, full out investigations were unnecessary, which was precisely why Pantera wondered what might be uncovered.
“Well that could be fun.” Pantera decided, slipping one his hands under his jaw after running a couple of fingers along its frame, he lent his head on it after a moment of thought and returned his attention back to the woman, somewhat surprised that she’d gone so far as to offer him a hint. Sure, he liked the woman and he respected her intellect, he could even say they were allies to a degree, but even so that hint threw him off a little. A smile slipped across Pantera’s blackened lips as he took in what she’d said and looked somewhat amused, smiling as he turned the hand under his chin over, so that his palm cupped his jaw and his fingers were evenly positioned at intervals on his jaw. “ Hmmn. I knew you were going to say that.”

“What would be the point in an alias if you couldn’t then play the part?” It would be like some poorly written novel, where the basis of each character, aside from name and general appearance, were the same; a horrible world of plot-holes and a triumph over evil. Cliché, but that worked for the small minded, if not stupid, people of the world; either them or those that were naïve enough to believe in a just existence and that bright light that awaited you at the end of some tunnel. Portia would have been found by now, if his aliases weren’t convincing… perhaps, Pantera rathered he was giving the people of this world a little too much credit for a long moment there but looking back to the woman across from him, he felt the dulling fog lift a little. “Depending on how you use it and alias can be your best or worst nightmare, considering how many Portia can handle, then it wouldn’t do to doubt him now; would it?”

Pantera allowed himself a small near-genuine smile as the female laughed differently then the times she had before, he couldn’t count that it was totally genuine, but it had incurred a smile on his face none the less. The male’s dark eyes flashed with a light hint of their so far hidden mismatched hue and he dipped his head with a chuckle at what the female said. “Oh? That sounds more like my kind of thinking – what would you do with that dragon now? With that new outlook in mind, I bet it wouldn’t be what you said earlier.” Pantera kept his smile and looked both pleased and amused as he spoke, wondering what changes would go through her answer.

The male tipped his head into a slight nod as the woman, Cindra, offered her first name. Pantera hadn’t expected that, but it didn’t add any gravity to anything, he was already aware she quite comfortable with him now, it was quite easy to tell from her rather stiff mannerisms from earlier. She was easily shifting about now, smiled, laughed and even wore some expressions with a little more… fervour.

“Irritatingly charming, isn’t it?” The agony of choice, to decide whether any kind of change would be for the better… Pantera believed that it depended generally on your outlook of ‘worst’ and ‘best’, worst might not necessarily mean death and ‘best’ might not necessarily entail to anything good; only the end result could really tell you what had even been good or bad and by that time it was already too late. “Unfortunately though, it’s not my place to decide.”

The male watched her more carefully with this turn in the conversation as the female’s tone changed just that little bit more, until Pantera had tipped his head to the side enough to incur a couple of sweet noises from the chains and the earrings obscured by his darkest black tresses. It was almost strange to hear his first name, had it really been that long since he’d heard it? Well… probably, he was just ‘Tsua’ to the few kids he bothered passing some miniscule amount of attention to and he was ‘Tsua’ to the teachers, he had his own alias for business but even that came up more often then his first name.

He watched Cindra spread her arms to her sides, leaving herself open, before she upturned her wrists to finish this expression of exposure, of submission in a most abstract and precarious form.

”I’ll leave that discussion until the time I need it. You never know what could happen… only that lots will.” Pantera smiled slightly, but his tone tinged a little at the end of the sentence, turned a little sour around the edges. There was no doubt in his mind that he wanted this and all things that came with were necessary and justified, because he had yet to pay any real price for it. That didn’t mean he had to be happy about it though; potentially, like his mind kept wandering off to, a lot of this was going to turn round and bite at his throat in the case of his family. Things were bound to get precarious here at Hogwarts too and Pantera’s markets, if he wasn’t more careful then was really needed.

Well, Pantera knew he could handle it, he’d been through worse you could say and it would make him feel less agitated by the lack of ‘exchange’ for this golden opportunity.

[Cindra Rourke]

He took the details, if you could call them such, about his meeting with Portia more lightheartedly than she anticipated, but then Pantera really shouldn’t surprise her at this point, he seemed to be filled with them. He even knew Portia’s research would be taking place. He was better prepared for this line of work than a wizard his age should. Course, Cindra imagined Portia had been as well.

“Depending on how you use it and alias can be your best or worst nightmare, considering how many Portia can handle, then it wouldn’t do to doubt him now; would it?”

If there was a mistake anyone shouldn't make, it was that. “No,” she replied, “Never doubt, or underestimate him. He knows how to use people’s assumptions against them.” An eyebrow rose as a lock of ginger hair fell against her cheek. “Much as I imagine you do.” Though he probably already knew it, she wouldn’t take the chance and not reiterate it. Cindra made the offer in Portia’s stead with the full expectation that he succeed. It surprised her when she realized she had already set her mind to helping him when and where she could.

Somehow, that made Pantera’s new position all the more real.

“Oh? That sounds more like my kind of thinking – what would you do with that dragon now? With that new outlook in mind, I bet it wouldn’t be what you said earlier.”

The playfulness was back. “Oh, I don’t know… maybe trick it into thinking it’s a horse, so I can ride it.” Merlin, being around Slytherins was definitely taking a toll on her. The double entendres was bad enough, but to be grinning as she was made it worse. If she was spiraling into hell, the two of them were going to make that journey interesting at least, and she’d probably go down smiling.

Serpents were indeed hazardous to her health.

Pantera reminding her of how Portia ultimately held the reins wasn’t particularly welcome, but the truth was sometimes uncomfortable. How much he’d reveal, let alone what direct connections he would forge between her Pantera, left too many questions in her mind. Cindra preferred knowing.

“I’ll leave that discussion until the time I need it. You never know what could happen… only that lots will.”

No doubt there. Already Cindra would be more alert now, just as him would, knowing Portia would be seeing her well before visiting Pantera. Her weekend outing was sure to be… productive.

As for his price… She had knowingly put the cards on his table and relinquished control of the deal. Portia was, to a point, predictable after ten years together. Pantera on the other hand- she just hoped she wasn’t going to regret the move. She asked for a lot and he was smart to hold off on payment so he could get a hold of the merchandise and determine it’s worth. For all she knew, it might not be as valuable as she suspected, but then a small part of her feared it would be worth vastly more. There were some prices she had never agreed to. But then, she had never left a check blank before either.

Taking a lot of risks had become an understatement.

“Wisely put,” she conceded, her gaze locked on his dark eyes, as if trying to get a hint to what sums he might imagine. After a few seconds, she decided there was one detail left to address. “There will be times we need to meet. I have an idea for our notifying each other, but I’m curious as to whether you have a way already?”

[Pantera Tsua]

There were very few people Pantera would underestimate, that sort of thing was a well known downfall in his business, the moment you didn’t see everyone as a potential threat was the moment someone would shoot you down. You didn’t have to go round being careful though, initially that point would seem rather abstract, but really it depended what you did with these estimates. It was all a delicate sum; one should gather information on even the smallest most insignificant detail before they categorised their foes and friends. If indeed the information was available, if not then it took clever risks, a skilful tongue or an underestimate on the other person’s side of things to get things done.

Pantera had to cut corners with this theory though, because it just wasn’t efficient time-wise.

As someone who was often underestimated himself, Pantera knew how to act a variety of parts, partially because he had a lot of practice and partially because the male’s personality wasn’t all that clear in the first place. Sure, he openly relied on circumstances, but that alone wasn’t enough for anyone to presume what the male would do; not unless they calculated along the same line of things as he did. Typically, if one was weary enough, Pantera was quite a precarious person, which made him consider his price for this opportunity all the more.

He offered Cindra a small smile, but it didn’t pertain to anything particular, it was genuine but there was no open reason behind it, aside from a sharp glint in the male’s dark eyes. Pantera shifted and sat forward in his head a little as he closed his eyes, emitting an array of jingles that had been quiet for longer then ever before, just as he went into an airy chuckle toward the more playful side of their banter.

”Very cute.” Pantera scoffed slightly, raising his arms from their position angled lazily over the back of his chair, he slipped his elbows onto the table, tipping his hands together until both had been partially obscured by the still sleeve of the other, which clattered noisily as the buckle of a couple of decoration belts scraped across the wood. “I like that answer better then your other one.” The Slytherin smiled, with another chuckle.

Pantera only hoped that Portia’s timing wouldn’t be spiteful, interruptions to certain things made the male tetchy at best and it was probably a bad idea to be sent into a foul mood by someone who was going to be his ‘teacher’ of sorts, even if the Asian male didn’t make it to the existence as an heir; it was still a fantastic opportunity. Once that he wasn’t allowed to exploit until he knew what the price would be of doing so… like most things, it all depending on what happened.

Even Pantera couldn’t gauge his own actions until he had to make a spur of the moment decision or quick improvisation, that wasn’t to say he couldn’t plan though, but that didn’t pertain to his actions… that was about other people and the male liked to think he was good at that.
That was part of the reason why he didn’t ask for a price from the female now, as most businesses went, people reviewed and researched the stock they took in before buying it, or trying haggle the price. It didn’t make sense to say now because he could yet be misinformed. Not to mention something of value today might not be tomorrow; the market was as changing as the young male himself.

Though perhaps that wasn’t necessarily a good thing.

Crindra locked gazes with Pantera again and the male met it without a moment hesitation, raising a brow as he waited for a question of some sort, it did come as expected… but its topic hadn’t really crossed his mind yet. “Well you’re not wrong, ” the male admitted resting the pad of his thumb under his chin with a small smile.
“But no one thing works under every circumstance… so I have a variety for different things. I haven’t though of one for this yet, as I assumed it wasn’t going to be me doing the contacting.” Pantera’s smile was slick and he looked quite amused, flicking a couple of styled layered tresses from his dark eyes as the frames narrowed slightly before closing in apparent ease.

It was important to separate them, obviously. Buyers couldn’t contact him in the same manner, which he could by the darker side of the markets; that was just plain stupid. Not to mention he had his own alias to deal with that couldn’t in any way connect to his Tsua heritage. Pantera’s father would do more then attempt ripping him to pieces if anything got out about his dealings. No to mention Hogwarts would go down the drain for him too and despite its vast array of flaws, there were a couple of good reasons to stay.

And on the other side of things, Pantera doubted the business he’d forged would become obnoxious if he openly threw out his age. No matter what he’d done, or how efficient he was for these people; that fact alone made him and idiot, a liability that would squeal rather then take torture or mild threat.

Even the thought of them irritated him and Pantera’s brow twitched slightly before he opened his eyes and set them back on Cindra with ease.

”I’m curious about your idea, though.”

[Cindra Rourke]

“I like that answer better then your other one.”

The fact Pantera would find her answer about the dragon amusing was reassuring in that he wouldn’t apparently think the less of her when her sense of humor got the better of her. It also appeared he liked her loosening up, and as he said before, taking a lot of risks. The young wizard had quite the effect on her, and Cindra didn’t doubt he knew it. He was proficient reading her and was making things easier than they might have otherwise been.

He wouldn’t know how rare this was. She lived behind her crafted façade, just as most did in these times, and letting herself take the chance to be unguarded to a degree was a treat that enabled her to feel less stressed. Ironic, considering the nature of their conversation and new association. Portia had the same effect on her, though she was still careful to not let all her shields down. Everyone had their demons.

Pantera had clearly anticipated her query, and cleverly turned it back on her. What tricks he had in his arsenal she couldn’t tell, but she expected something good regardless. He hadn’t impressed her for no reason. Still, it was a bit disappointing being caught in a counter that would leave her revealing yet more and him still concealed. Not a fair trade, but then exchanges in this sort of game rarely were; someone would pay the higher price.

He’d now have both a blank check and one of her tricks, she had… an agreement. A grimace had to be held back before it could change her expression. Portia was clearly not going to have to teach Pantera everything; he had several skills mastered already. It painfully reminded her of why she fell into this in the first place and why she would likely never get out, her abilities had limits while their maneuvering didn’t.

Portia was definitely going to like him.

Drawing a deep breath through her nose, and then letting it out slowly, Cindra prepared herself for the inevitable. As the last bit escaped her, she reached over and slid a new folded piece of parchment out from the back of her book, lifting it to the table where she set it down to unfold itself under her outstretched hand. Normally she only utilized her wandless ability in the privacy of her quarters or when her solitude was ensured, but as he was now aware of it, she might as well make use of it.

Once it was laying flat, she ran a finger across it near the bottom, twice, so that two thin strips were left separated from the rest of the sheet. Pulling them closer, Cindra placed her palm against them, her eyes locking on the back of her hand and the ends of the parchment pieces sticking out from beneath as she focused on the spell.

Her palm grew uncomfortably warm, and her knuckles began to ache, but she expected it with the spell and just when it felt like the muscles in her fingers would seize, the sudden jolt of ice in her veins told her it was done. Working her fingers a bit as she lifted them, she gazed up at Pantera and pushed the furthest one closer to him before casting a grin and pressing a finger to the nearest strip of parchment, her reply in her thoughts.

And on the strip facing him, like a Muggle typewrite, handwriting being easily traced, the reply appeared. One way is with these.

Her hand still feeling a bit stiff from the intensity of the spell, Cindra tapped her strip as she spoke. “The message appears and vanishes as you instruct it, with just your touch. Know that once erased, it can’t be recalled… a safety measure,” she warned, her finger now still. “The spell isn’t effected by transfiguration and it awaits your choice of… alarm. I tend to prefer a tingle sensation,” she noted with a smile before removing her finger and producing her wand to transfigure the strip into a thin silver band that she slipped on her right middle finger.

“I can make it recognize your magical signature, as an added precaution, and…” her eyes fell to his adorned clothing before lifting back to his with a quirked eyebrow. “Chains work just as well.” Her hand was then left to rest on the table, the silver matching her pale complexion nicely. “Strictly one form isn’t wise, so… Pantera, what was yours?”

[Pantera Tsua]

Pantera kept his eyes on the female’s hand as she pressed her pale hand to the piece of paper and cast her spell, the male focused his attention on the air around the female’s hand for a moment as glanced at Cindra’s look of slight concentration then back to the female’s hands. You’d be surprised how differently people cast their spells, forgoing the wandless magic in this detail, Pantera was curious to see if it was easier or harder to determine this woman’s ‘style’ because of her rather difficult wandless preference.

His eyes flickered to the strip of paper closes to him as the words bled smartly into the blank surface. It was good idea and loosely covered each base, but Pantera found holes he could poke in it, but he didn’t really suppose anything terribly important would be expressed through these things. No matter how secure something as, it was never safe to talk so openly about both important and private issues, dealings or explanations. Well, strictly speaking it would never be safe to do so, not in person, not through code, not through forms such as these… it was an inclination toward, simply, keeping one’s mouth shut.
Ikuto chuckled and slipped one of his arms from the table, before he snapped his fingers as his hand ducked under the edge of the table and out of sight, the crack was a sharp one and Pantera’s eyes flashed as he committed to whatever motion he was making and withdrew his long dark wand, holding it lightly between two fingers. He gave the wand a flourish and watched the piece of paper writhe and lengthen, before it contorted and transformed into a thin silver chain with an empty rectangular strip in its center. Oh, sure it looked obvious but Pantera smiled at it none the less, of course he probably had something bizarre up his sleeve to spruce it up a little.

”An alarm?” Pantera tipped his head slightly, before lifting the dainty looking chain, smoothing his finger across the flat metal plate in the center. “An alarm for me or for you?” He asked with a small smirk, indicating he probably already knew the answer, but Pantera smiled like that an annoying amount, even when the extent of his knowledge couldn’t be proved, or didn’t make sense. “Its alright, I can tinker with it if need be…” Pantera decided in the end and smiled happily at the female across the table from him.
That smile switched to something unnervingly questionable at Cindra’s finishing question and Pantera tipped his head to the side slightly and looked like he was evaluating Cindra for a long moment, possibly gauging how much this information would be worth, or how much he stood to loose by revealing it. Of course, because of his personality there was no way to tell which way he’d go with it, risks were fun and the male seemed to enjoy them, but he was reckless to a point – not stupid.
Stylised words floated across the bind of the ring on Cindra’s finger, the sketch of it was elegant but unkempt, and formed a single word on the silver surface.

’Guess.’

“Don’t worry, there’s no reason to hold out on this one.” Pantera informed the woman with a grin stretched across his blackened lips. Well, that was true if the female didn’t delve deeper then was needed, at that point he’d need something of equal value to exchange it for. He’d be able to talk with the woman more freely one day, but a lot of things Pantera had constructed were about to go underwater for a while – now was not the time to be lenient because he liked Cindra.

Of course, it took a moment for that message to actually force its way into the male’s brain and a ripple of colour flashed across the male’s hues. “ I was wondering when you’d start asking better questions about me.” The male admitted with a half smile, that seemed a little more genuine then the one’s he’d been letting loose more recently. Thinking back on it, the female had dodged any open questions about the male during the beginning, it was about time the female became at ease to the point where her curiosity would get the better of it. She had the additional security of knowing that she’d probably learn a lot about him too, through whatever means.

[Cindra Rourke]

“Its alright, I can tinker with it if need be…”

Cindra didn’t doubt that. The fact he had numerous tricks up his sleeve was beginning to surprise her less each time. With everything else he’d shown her, the fact he would handle any ‘refinements’ to the charmed item himself spoke abilities he hadn’t alluded to. She smiled and nodded in reply only a moment before she noted the calculating expression he fixed on her. Quirking an eyebrow, she wondered what he was pulling out now, it was obvious he was finding a way to avoid answering her, yet again, and when her finger felt a weak electrical pulse go through it, the corner of her mouth rose as she looked down at the silver band.

Guess.

Evasion. Damned evasion. Spinning the band, erasing the word, she cast him a look that screamed you’re doing it again. He had gotten a good deal out of this and she had only a new associate whom she liked and was far too amused by. Not exactly an equal trade.

She could think of several things, all of which she had encountered at one time or another. The problem was, other than his transfiguration abilities, she knew little about his actual applied magic skills. It wouldn’t do to suggest something that turned out asininely simple for him and have him think she doubted him, or conversely, guess far beyond his current abilities and appear to have done so to point out any superiority on her part. Cindra honestly didn’t relish having this turned back on her and though she wouldn’t grimace, she knew her eyes would be telling him so.

“ I was wondering when you’d start asking better questions about me.”

A light chuckle escaped before she could hold it back. “Oh, indeed. Because you are so forth coming with answers.” Her sarcasm was makign it's presence known, it was hard to contain when irritated and somehow, she knew he’d find that relatively amusing. The correlations between him and Portia weren’t always a good thing. Well, perhaps they also shared a love of circles, particularly making her run in them.

Two could play that.

“Alright,” she conceded, “perhaps you could enlighten me as to that little cover up,” she nodded towards the door, a playful smile on her lips as she knew she wasn’t about do anything about it, but was curious all the same. Distraction was a good defense, but choosing the staff door isn’t exactly what she would consider a safe alternative. “And then I’ll make a guess. For surely you must have better places to conduct business than the corridor," she replied, showing him he wasn’t the only one who cast feline worthy grins.

[Pantera Tsua]

Pantera let out an abrupt laugh at the female’s sarcasm and looked more amused then perhaps he ought to, she couldn’t think his evasion of her questions was anything but justified, could she? No matter how you looked at it, it was still free information and he didn’t owe the female anything until he actually used that little agreement of theirs. Though, Pantera found he didn’t particularly mind telling Cindra anything she asked, despite the repercussions; perhaps then he was just teasing her – the irritation the female must’ve felt was certainly satisfying.

”Maybe you’re just not asking the right questions?” The male decided, with a loose shrug before he tipped his head to the side and lent it on one of his hands, entwining the light silver chain between the fingers of his other hand.

The earlier incident? Pantera let out a short airy chuckle and slid the small chain between his fingers, moving his dark eyes to the cold metal before he returned his gaze to Crindra and then shifted slightly, as if he needed to make himself more comfortable before the words themselves would roll off his silver tongue. It didn’t matter if she knew the answer to that, even if she took measures against it, which he didn’t think she would, would still survive as well as it had before. Cutting off a small sect made no difference, there were so many and it was easily rebuilt; this was hardly a dangerous place for business anyway. Pantera didn’t like the word business as a term for his dealings here, it was more like child play really, unless of course someone was up to something particularly interesting.

“New stock.” Pantera said quite bluntly, and then smiled to let the woman know that he was going to continue. “The younger Slytherin kids like to help out if I pay them or give them a discount. They’re not very competent, but they don’t really have to be in this environment… I’d gotten in a new-born wyrm, which are quite volatile for their first few years and the boy was scared of it, mostly likely, skittish enough to flinch when it snapped at him.” Pantera shook his head slightly, but then it was proper a wiser course of action then he would give it credit for. “He hit the door when he jumped back, so I decided to take the fall for his uselessness.” It didn’t make sense to let the kid get captured with Pantera’s monster, not only had the little beast been quite tricky to get a hold of, as wyrm don’t often breed, but Pantera didn’t doubt the boy would squeal like a prize pig.
Not to mention the fact he’d have to improvise made things more interesting. The dull had looked pretty dull so far and Pantera had jumped at the chance to rectify that insidious wrong. Of course, it had all happened a bit too fast for the male to take credit for all the planning, seeing as most of it had consisted of pure impulse.

”It’s more of a hobby then a business…when I’m confined to Hogwarts, anyway.” He decided to correct, grimacing at the use of the word ‘business’; the dealings here pretty much sullied the word, toys, sweets and other useless things… it made him cringe, but it was good for some things… which was the main reason why he put up with these kids ridiculously clueless requests. It got him enough money to make his more dangerous transactions easier, at least.

After explaining that, Pantera smiled slightly and dipped his head a little before he moved his hand from his cheek and pulled his blackened slender fingers through his hair, smoothing the darkest black tress back enough so they were flat for a moment, before flicking back into places over his face as if nothing had happened. For a moment his gaze returned to the grin on her face and he matched it almost automatically.

Fine, he’d narrow it down for her.

”I’m an Animagi.”