Who let the birds out

Date | 13th of march
Time | 3pm
Weather | It is getting warmer, but still cold, might start to rain soon. Who knows.
Surroundings | Now this is where it gets interesting
Attire | Outfit

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Was it a little daunting to just walk around in Athena again? Yes, even though she had been back since November, it was still nerve racking. Which was a little laughable, when one thought that she didn’t look like her former self. Nor Killian’s latest ex-wife. But that wasn’t all that mattered? Because even though her scent and looks were different, one would figure it out if they paid attention to her aura. But she wanted her life back, and that meant facing one’s fears and get back on the horse. Now, she was coming from a meeting with a potential client and was onto the next, to talk to a pair of brothers that were to help her retrieve an invaluable artifact. That was when the ground around her started to shake around her, she stopped in the middle of the road. A car that had hold back for her, started honking at her. But her eyes were transfixed on what seemed like a hoard coming towards her. But as it came closer, she was sure that it actually was a hoard. Of ostriches!? She blinked, completely frozen in fear. First off, where the hell did a pack of ostriches come from. And this was so not how she was going to die!
Move Artemis, move God damn it! She screamed at herself in her head. But she couldn’t move a muscle as she saw how the birds came closer.
Linus that was sitting with his brother in a quaint little café, had looked up as well as he had felt how the ground was shaking in the café. He looked out and saw a small woman standing in the pedestrian crossing not moving. He got up, as he saw the birds that came running towards him. How the person in the car was running out of it and people was screaming as they ran past the café. “What the actual-“

It was elleven days since he had seen these people, Juniper, Hope - the redhaired fairy, and of course Reginald. He had looked at the number Juniper had given him over the last couple of days, still debating with himself if he wanted to unlock this part of his mind, but like any other control freak, he didn't like knowing something was missing from his mind space. Now Francis knew he could never be what they perhaps wanted him to be, he could barely see himself as one who had gotten himself into that sort of situation. Maybe it was also the main reason why he wanted to know, to figure out what had been going on inside his mind. Francis took a sip of his coffee just sitting observing people while enjoying a cup of coffee with his brother. He looked towards the sound of chaos starting to unfold a little bit away from them. The ground was shaking, something was coming closer in. Linus was getting up from his seat, while Francis just took a sip more of his coffee. Then moving his eyes to the sight of the birds storming in towards the woman and the person in the car even got out to run off. "Looks like the ostriches escaped the zoo," he mumbled a little bit before getting up himself and narrowed his eyes a little bit. For a moment he just really wanted to see what happened once they ostriches hit their target, but as people screamed up around them, running for their lives. Francis tilted his head a little bit, before walking closer. The ground was still shaking, but well he didn't care. He just bended down placing this middle and index finger on the asphalt, lighting up a flame all the way from him to the car, creating a wall of fire to stop the birds for a moment. Francis got up now walking closer, blowing the fire out from his fingers and looked shortly towards his brother then back at the still panicked birds. But it was also like the birds responded to the fact that both Francis and Linus were there, not really knowing what to do with themselves.

Now, with his powers Linus could do a lot of help. It was only a matter of wanting and doing, and right now he found it much more entertaining to see what the birds were going to do. What would happen to the lone woman just standing there staring at the birds coming her way. But that might not set him in the best light, given that they were here for a meeting. His brother however, that had seemed just as reluctant to do anything about it, got up and walked outside. He followed, seeing how he created a wall of fire between the witch and the ostriches. Artemis, breathing out seeming more relaxed with the fire than the actual two-legged balls of feathers. She turned towards her rescuer and gave him a reluctant and strained smile.
Linus turned away from the beautiful woman towards the birds and started moving towards them. Some of them started to turn around and run the other way. Giving someone else the headache of getting these birds back into their cage or where they were coming from.

Artemis took a deep breath in, steadying herself, before she walked towards the man that had made the wall of fire. “Thank you” she said with a more genuine smile than she had presented before. She looked towards the other, then narrowed her eyes. Could this really be? “Francis and Linus Mccoy?” she asked, knowing those were the two men she was meeting today, with a proposition of her own.

Now Francis was never the one to kill a fire, it was far to magnificent to just kill. So, he let it be, let the people admire the destructive yet beautiful flames that dances over the road. An almost soft smile blossomed on his lips as his eyes observed them, then returning to reality. The thanking him for the gesture didn't really do him much, so it was first as his and his brother's name were spoken that Francis really did peak more interest in the events unfolding. "Depends on who is speaking," he replied with a more smug smile crossing his arms a little over his body. His eyes wandered over her for a moment then looking towards Linus for a second. Seemed like they had just helped the fine lady who they were going to met up with today either way, so Francis hoped that this little show down hadn't just been a waste of precious time.

Francis raised his brows a little bit, letting the smug smile stay in his lips while he for a second let his eyes wonder to his brother, then back to the witch. Linus being Linus having already offered the woman a cup of coffee, and perhaps they could get down to business rather fast after the yes, as mentioned the incident. "Who lets birds out like that anyways, people should know better than taming animals like that," he mused a little  lowly, not that he seemed to be bothered by the event that had unfolded other than it had forced him to get up from his chair. Then again, no one for maybe except Linus perhaps, really knew how the mind of Francis worked. And well, no Francis didn't really support the captivity of wild creatures and putting them behind lock and key for others entertainment. Perhaps why he in the past over a few times had set animals free from zoo, well he had learned from the first time and not just let them out to get their revenge on the humans, but actually the second time host for them to get away, the ones that could anyways. At least he owned a little bit of compassion.

He then gestured back to the cafe where they had been seated not long ago, and sat down in the seat he had not many minutes ago. Francis made sure that her coffee order was placed as well for a second a round for him and Linus, and then headed with back to work really. "So you had a proposition?" He asked curiously and narrowed his eyes just by an inch.

Artemis had to bite back a remark about those birds like that shouldn’t even be around this area. Maybe it would be something they could all agree on, that all types of animals were better off in the nature. But it wasn’t really what the young witch meant, because if it stood to her, she wouldn’t have any animals anywhere near her, especially cats and dogs. Hated those creatures. Maybe one day she would get over her phobia, but it wasn’t something that she would actively work on.
With a small breath she stepped inside and walked over to the table that both the brothers gestured too. She sat down and placed her bag beside her as she looked up, she realised that there wasn’t anyone in the café anymore. Well, that was convenient, well besides not being able to get any service. With a small twist with her hand, she made the coffee machine start making a cup of coffee for her. Francis spoke to her, and she turned her attention towards him with a soft smile forming over her lips. “Well, it is more; what can we do for each other” she said with a mysterious twinkle in her eyes. “Let’s say that I have a broad clientele, which means that I have means to obtain things many people would dream of, but also has a network to get things out of the country fast, so no one can trace it” she said, and grabbed the cup that came floating towards her and took a sip of the coffee before she sat it down in front of her and let out a small breath before leaning back in the chair and looked at the brothers to see how they reacted.

He narrowed his eyes just a little bit, well it would take some offer for him to invest working with a witch - not that it was impossible if the deal was good enough. Francis just simply didn't like to put his trust in them, which was to say he never put his trust outside of the circle of himself and his brother. Scorpio could get a pass, but other than that, Francis didn't completely open up his trust to just anyone. Francis pressed his brows a little bit together, now he always did like a good mystery and finding stuff he was searching out to get. It was about having the right range of contacts to actually find your heart's desires. And it wasn't really because himself and Linus couldn't make a plan themselves to get hands on something, the matter was perhaps knowing what to find. Because sure there was still plenty of things out there that they could get if they wanted it bad enough and thought the rist was worth it - which it typically was. Just here in Athena with all the families gathering, it seemed like they had just landed in a land of treasures for the time being, and just waited for the sweet chaos to unfold. Francis could see the smart thing of having people getting the goods out of the country within a speed of light to make it noticed, however so he was also just seeing a situation where he wouldn't have much hands on the scheme. Which was just a bit sad in his opinion. "Sounds like you have a lot of unsolved puzzles in your sleeve. The means, but my question is why does that make you different from any other with the right ressources?" Francis wondered and leaned a little bit back. You didn't get where he and Linus were in life by taking the first deal or offer handed. Truth was many started their little sale like that, able to get the objects from your wildest dreams - but words were also just words. And no one had said it would be easy.

She clicked her tongue and lifted her brow “Please, boys” she looked towards Linus before looking back at Francis. Now working with sceptics wasn’t the first time, and she understood why. No honour among thieves was after all a very well-known phrase.
Letting out a small sigh, and then she pulled her bag towards her. “Because my contacts include some that no one else has, I travelled far and wide, and I now have access to teleportation throughout the globe, now, if you find anyone else with my expertise and network, please send them my way as well, because I would love to meet them” she said before she pulled out, what at first just looked like a thin twisted branch. But Linus eyes stared and then widened as he realised what it was. “A horn from a unicorn” he grabbed it before anyone else could and studied it to see if it was real or not. Now, he was dying to ask how the hell she had managed to get a hold of it, but it was too big of a hand to give away, to show just how excited he was about it. Even if his quick hand might have told more than he was ready to admit.
Artemis leaned back giving them both a smile, then she pulled out four laps of papers. “Word on the streets tell me that you are about to do something big, four very strong cloaking spells, on the house, just to show my appreciation that you might consider me in the future” she took a sip of her coffee and looked from one brother to another. Now she didn’t need much of their time, just enough to peak some interest.

The witch pulled something out her bag, and it was very clear that his brother had excessive interest in the object, even got a hand on it before Francis got to scan it - even if it didn't take Francis sharp eyes to confirm what it was, then looking back at witch again. Maybe it was the part of him who was seeking more to obtain supernatural elements such as this without using it like magical means, like how witches time to time hunted him and Linus for their feathers, the horn from a unicorn was pretty much the same - even if Francis cared more about his own ass than another mythological creature. Maybe Juniper was just a bit too much in his head, or maybe Francis was just extremely skeptical - a mix of both really.

Then she said something that actually caught his interest, the word on the streets, well it was always something, and words travelled fast. And truth to be told Linus and Francis always had a few good plans up their sleeves, and even if no they didn't have a big plan in the works of this moment - it never failed to have the people believe you did so. They sure could use a few cloaking spells in the future, now couldn't they? It was a tempting offer. "You seem very keen on keeping our interest, but what is it you want from us then, other than our attention," she was talking an awful lot about what she could do for them, but it never came without a what I want - people like her, people like themselves, there was always something they wanted.

She gave Francis a charming smile as he kept asking her questions. She could feel how he wasn’t that keen to strike a deal with her, which could only mean that he had a mistrust for witches, more so than his brother. Clearly. Or maybe he was more easily convinced when there was something in it for him. Who knew.
“I deal with stolen and antic artefacts, usually things that have changed hands so often that you aren’t sure who owned it first or how it was obtained. I know you work in the same branch as the people that I either sell or steal from; now, I’m no specialist in stealing even though I’ve done my fair share of burglaries, but you are – that is where we can help each other. Suppose you have an item that is too hot to sell. In that case, I’m your woman, and that will earn me the reputation that I’m starting to rebuild, so what I want from you is simple, keep me in mind when you have items such as these” she pointed towards the unicorn horn that Linus pushed back towards her giving her a smirk before turning his eyes towards his brother. “I think that is something we’ll have to talk about among ourselves, but thank you for the offer” Linus thanked her, and with that, Artemis drowned her coffee and got up from her seat. Now the whole ordeal with the birds that had been let loose, she wouldn’t mind cutting this short. She had made her impression and said her piece. If there was nothing more they wanted from her, she was more than willing to go. “Thank you, gentlemen, for at least hearing me out” she handed Linus her card, which earned her an odd glance. “Put heat on it, and you’ll find my information”, she said with a smirk as she walked away from the table. Linus turned the greeting card so his brother could see that nothing was written on it, and all there was to see was a blank white paper. “I like her, for a witch, I actually have a good feeling about her” he looked down at the card before tugging it away. “She’s pretty too, that helps” maybe he just had a thing for women with darker skin. Who knew.

Francis knew it didn't take a genius to steal something, it was all about having quick hands, but if you wanted to do something right - you had to earn the skill, and even if Linus and him were naturally gifted in the area, it didn't mean they hadn't needed to learn everything the hard way - it was just a long time ago by now. He clicked his tongue a little bit, not minding having her in the back of his head, but he wasn't going to rely on her expertise till he had seen her in action, if anything Francis never took words as a lot - many people talked so much and very few acted. Sadly, he had met many people with great visions but when it came to delivering, they had lacked in that department. But before he could say anything, Linus thanked for the offer and said they would talk about it among themselves, which Francis couldn't agree more to. His eyes watched the witch getting up on her feet and handling the smitten Linus her card, making Francis roll his eyes for less than a second.

He looked at the card as Linus showed it to him. "Mysterious," he mumbled a little unimpressed and took a mouthful of his coffee. "You sure its a good feeling or the fact that she is pretty that helps you along?" Francis chuckled a little bit, "I don't know -- I don't mind having her in the back of my head in case something comes up -" Francis clicked his tongue a little bit. Well, one thing was there were only one witch he trusted, knowing Linus wasn't a fan of Sarah. But Francis just didn't do witches otherwise, not that they always had to agree, even so he also wasn't blind to work with this dark skinned witch if they could find a situation where he could actually see her in action. "But I've heard Elena Ahlers is in the area, just not to be found," he replied back. "She is pretty too -" Francis hadn't had much luck finding Elena's whereabouts, even tried to ask Imogen, but she didn't really say much, and it seemed like if anyone was to even get it out of Imogen it would be Scorpio. "Even so you know as much as me Elena has a dramatic flair, if she doesn't want us to find her - she will not be found, at least not without the right contacts."

Linus was just about to get up to service himself from the bar when his brother mentioned Elena Ahlers and then turned to look at him as he added the part of her being pretty. Now, it wasn’t because he couldn’t see the beauty that the demon possessed, but it wasn’t his type. “You and blonds”, he shook his head, “The only reason you and River never got into arguments about Norah Jones was that she was a witch” he clicked his tongue and jumped over the bar and started making himself a cup of coffee. But besides Elena being a pretty woman, they had seen her in action and knew what she could do. “It might be worth looking up, if anything, she is an excellent contact to have, and she always knows someone and can vouch for them – and she isn’t scared of getting her hands dirty”, he said, even though one could argue what she did to Jack hadn’t been fair. Still, it had been a necessary evil in Linus' eyes, and it had taught the young thunderbird a lesson he would never forget.

Francis chuckled a little bit if anything, it wasn't the women that got between them, seeing the twins had each their type. Still appreciating the beauty even if it weren't the type the other had. Francis let out a laugh when it came to the talk of Norah Jones, then pointing towards his brother, brought back some memories though. Then waiting for his brother to come back to the table. "Precisely, now I would have called up Robin on the matter if it weren't for the whole thing being messy, and something clearly is completely off at Southside," Francis clicked his tongue a little bit and then shook his head. The times Jack would have cut Francis' head off for getting a little too close to Elena back then, oh well, he would have loved to see the cryobird try. Now as far to Francis' knowledge the Serpents and River had nothing to do with each other and didn't have any contact, which was the reason why the brothers were blindsided to what was going on, or Francis had sent out a few contacts for information. Because it seemed big. "You aren't in contact with any of the Southsider's are you?" He didn't think so, but sometimes asking just made it easier to sort through questions.

Linus rolled his eyes a little to think that a man thought he could both be a teacher and the leader of the Southside Serpents; it was like trying to battle two sides of yourself where neither would win and both would end up losing, which was very clear with how Jack had ended up being thrown and banned from ever setting foot in the area again. Foolish boy.
He shook his head when he asked if he was in contact with any of them. “Not at this very moment, but it shouldn’t be hard to see if someone is willing to at least speak with us,” he said with a crocket smile; he didn’t believe all of them would be overly happy with Anthony’s takeover. The human always had a flair for the dramatics, in a way most would loathe. “It’s just the matter of finding one weak point, and the whole card house will start to fall down the ears of Anthony, always believing he is so smart that will one day be his downfall”, he laughed before walking over to his brother again. “Well, should we get going? It doesn’t seem that productive to stay here,” he said with a smirk before walking towards the door.

Francis took a sharper breath in and nodded a little bit, it shouldn't be hard no. Every time a crew was faced with a change, a new head or the like, there would always be people fighting for the change not to happen. It would be hard to imagine that the people of Southside would have gone down without a fight, it so seemed like Anthony had defeated Jack, which made him wonder what had happened to the rest of the members whom he knew would have been standing by Jack's side. Not that Francis would have sleepless nights about it, but he liked a few of the crew members Jack had. The fast boy and the pretty shapeshifter with pink highlights in her hair - it was how he remembered them at least, always hanging around Jack. Anthony needed to be removed one day, get taught a lesson or two. But today was not the day. Then placing his hands on his thighs, "yeah," he got up from the chair, "let's get the hell out of here." Francis took a sharper breath in and looked around as they then headed down the streets.