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Post by indeath on Feb 20, 2024 23:23:06 GMT -6
Grim watched the smoke’s display with fascination, he hadn’t seen anything quite like it before. They were definitely close to one another, though he was a little disappointed he couldn’t have a smoke creature of his own. He stood a little straighter despite the ache still lingering and smiled at his companion. He kept pace towards the pawnshop, eyes lingering in the shadows to see how well the smoke hid.
“Fair’s fair. You’re a package deal. I won’t uh… blow smoke up your ass but I think you would make an excellent PI or uh PI in training at least. Join my agency! I could show you the ropes. Then rental anxiety can be a thing of the past! Perhaps it’ll help your buddy to be stealthier too. I mean I can’t exactly go out in my real form either… unless it’s Halloween.”
Grim had been considering expanding a little at least. If his competitors could have multiple PIs then why couldn’t he? He was just as good, mostly.
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Post by beastly on Feb 26, 2024 20:58:15 GMT -6
Pete raised an eyebrow at their new acquaintance.
"You have an agency? And can pay money? Like, rent money?"
It wasn't as if they'd not picked up jobs on occasion before, but there was a sense the curly headed individual was slightly skeptical, but still interested. Smokey hadn't exactly found tons of money in the guy's pockets.
"How would working with you make me stealthy? What are you?"
The smoke cloud stuck to the darkness, the only thing causing them to stand out being the flicker of curious red eyes.
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Post by indeath on Feb 29, 2024 17:37:27 GMT -6
Grim shifted uncontrollably feeling a little like a used car salesman. He didn’t want to get the kid’s hopes up too high. Still he could take more jobs on with another person around and maybe even be able to hire a real secretary.
“I have an agency, people hire me for odd jobs and investigations. I don’t turn much down and that seems to be a bit of a draw card in my favor. It’s definitely more lucrative than pickpocketing. I can’t promise a salary but you’ll get paid well for jobs you complete. I don’t have much financial know how but I do have a roof over my head. I can even promise you a free meal at my mom’s once a week.”
He turned to the cloud using his power to darken the space around it. A little showing off never hurt.
“I can help you blend in better and know how to use my environment to my advantage. I’m half goblin if you must know and this is a glamour. We could get a charm that makes you look like a cat or something?”
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Post by beastly on Mar 10, 2024 19:51:26 GMT -6
Both Pete and Grim could hear the words from the smoke.
"A magic charm. That would be useful... What do you think, Pete?"
The smoke creature wobbled around to their friend's side, and Pete glanced from Smokey to the 'half goblin'. Part of him wanted... well, wanted to be a little mean, truth be told. Dinner with the guy's mom? Admitting he didn't know anything about money? Part of Pete wanted to call the guy a looser and tell him to get lost.
He didn't want to be a mean guy, though. That snarky mean instinct didn't sit well with him. Honestly, they didn't have better offers, and Malvin already knew about Smokey and had guessed they were kind of on the run. They didn't need a snoop enemy.
"We can try it. If it really sucks, man, I'm not sticking around."
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Post by indeath on Mar 15, 2024 0:13:51 GMT -6
Grim nodded smiling, he hadn’t expected it would work out that well. He was more charming than he thought. His new friend would definitely give him another edge over his competitors. He led the pair along a rundown street towards a battered looking pawn shop. It’s front window had been cracked recently and was being held together by tape. Grim stopped in front of it.
“S’fine by me. Name’s Grim Albercroft. Here’s my card, I’ll show you where we can get a charm. They can be costly unless you’re a little flexible with the law. What should I call you both?”
He handed them a slightly bent card with his name, number and address in Comic sans.
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Post by beastly on Mar 18, 2024 21:54:44 GMT -6
The redhead smirked, and took the card, giving it a once over. Well. Maybe he was trying to be ironic.
"Pete. They're Smokey."
Albercroft sounded like a fancy name. Too fancy for the vibes the guy was giving off. Not everyone picked out their name, so they again held back from making a joke. He'd still be named 'Grim Albercroft' once they'd gotten to know each other well enough that he could mock him.
Pete looked over the pawnshop, his red eyes critical of the building they were approaching. He scanned for ways Smokey could get in, or they could leave. It wasn't the best looking place, and Smokey could certainly squeeze through the cracked window with ease. He went to put the card in his pocket, and frowned when he didn't feel his keys.
He patted his back pockets, then his side, and then the ones in his coat.
"I can't find the keys."
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Post by indeath on Mar 19, 2024 16:52:57 GMT -6
“Nice to meet you both! Shame your name isn’t Bandit though, Pete.”
It took Grim a moment before he caught the redheads patting of pockets and remembered that he in fact held the keys. They’d laugh about this later. He fished them out from one of his many pockets with a flourish.
“I uh believe these are the keys you’re looking for! Sorry I uh grabbed them as leverage but no hard feelings, right?”
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Post by beastly on Mar 26, 2024 20:45:07 GMT -6
"You can be Bandit, if you want, Malgrim."
Pete frowned as Grim reached into his own pockets. He hadn't noticed him take those- he felt like an idiot, and his face went red. He snatched them quickly back, shoving them into his pocket.
"Were you gonna try and make me join your stupid agency thing if I'd said no?"
There was an edge in Pete's voice, and Smoke(y) curled over the sidewalk, dipping closer
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Post by indeath on Apr 2, 2024 5:58:07 GMT -6
“Bandit was the sexy Burt Reynolds character so it checks out. .. Whoa..whoa there. That sounds like a lot of planning and my agency isn’t dumb. Second no, I just wanted my stuff back okay? I didn’t know if you were gonna be amiable… I’m not exactly swimming in money myself.”
He put his arms out in a sign of surrender. It had been going well before this. For someone who took the belongings of others, they sure got tetchy when the shoe was on the other foot.
“Look I’m sorry but I’m not gonna try to force anything on you. Just trying to help a fellow entrepreneur…”
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Post by beastly on Apr 6, 2024 20:24:11 GMT -6
"Not a fan of blackmail, Grim. Not a fan."
Pete stared at Grim for a beat, the gears turning in their head. Weighing things. The man, the goblin, whatever he was, didn't feel malicious. Pete took his stuff, so he'd taken his keys to try and get them back. Grim seemed to have offered him the job on a whim, he wasn't trying to coerce him into working for his agency. The lack of planning thing didn't exactly bode wonderfully, but he didn't think Grim meant harm. Well. He would've if they'd not ended up friends.
"...Whatever. We'll sell it, retrieve it and we'll be square."
They tilted their head towards the building.
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Post by indeath on Apr 13, 2024 22:23:50 GMT -6
Grim looked mortified by the accusation of blackmail, his eyes wide then he grinned slightly.
“Trust me if I was blackmailing you, you’d know about it. No point blackmailing a guy without scratch. Some people very much deserve it.m. Appreciate it. Look you can work for me or not. Or I can subcontract when I need a bit of smokey. “
Grim leaned against a graffitied wall trying to appear cool though he suspected that ship had sailed. He found it a little ironic that Pete was so affronted by blackmail after robbing him. It was going to take a lot before the kid trusted him.
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Post by beastly on Apr 14, 2024 23:09:51 GMT -6
"Are we going through with this?"
The smoke monster spoke in only a voice Pete could hear, and Pete didn't acknowledge he heard his friend verbally.
"I didn't say I wasn't gonna work," Pete shrugged, "I don't know you, man."
Pete looked down at the smoke around their legs and pulled what they estimated to be a charming grin. Like a switch had been flipped, they elbowed the goblin man lightly in the arm.
"Consider water under the bridge."
Pete didn't like floods, of course, but this wasn't a flood, not now, and they needed money. He would keep an eye on Malgrim, but for now he was all smiles and conspiratorial glances towards the poor pawn shop. If things went badly, he could always run. Especially now that he had his car keys back. He'd have to be wary a little while, there was still the chance Grim was secretly hyper competent and had copied all of his keys and- Pete stopped the train of thought.
"Anything you wanna tell me before I do a little business with the guy inside?"
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Post by indeath on Apr 15, 2024 19:29:25 GMT -6
Grim nodded, happy that Pete seemed over their misgivings at least for now. He motioned lazily towards the shop.
“Uh just like any pawnshop. The guy will try to undersell you but don’t let him talk you down. Should be able to get around 250 for it if you bargain hard enough. He coughs when he’s lying. I think that’s it. He’ll put it out back to assess it later. Act real resistant to selling it.”
He smiled proudly at his great advice, hopefully the kid was a fast learner. This was an easy mark but it didn’t mean they couldn’t fuck it up. He’d certainly had his fair share starting out.
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Post by beastly on Apr 26, 2024 18:39:13 GMT -6
"I'll retrieve it easily," The smoke creature by their feet spoke to them and bubbled in preparation for their upcoming part to play in all this.
"Right, got it. Piece of cake."
Pete nodded. The usual. They were pretty sure they could pull this off without a hitch, it was the same kind of thing they usually ran. They fiddled with their jacket and brushed a strand of hair out of their face. They pulled on an apprehensive expression and tested a few faces, then clapped their hands.
"Alright, see ya Grimbo."
The redhead entered the pawnshop, making a show of gazing around the room like he'd never been in a sketchy little shop like this before. Let the guy think he was easy to start, he could throw him off guard when it came to haggling. His red eyes darted from shelf to shelf, not really looking at the goods for sale, and then he made his way towards the front of the house.
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Post by indeath on Apr 29, 2024 21:16:54 GMT -6
Grim made an unpleasant expression at the nickname but quickly brushed it off with a forced smile as the youth left. Grimbo…
The shop was poorly lit and badly managed. It looked more like a teenager’s bedroom than a pawn shop. The countertops were covered in odds and ends. Behind a barred counter a man was sleeping on a lounge chair. Smoke billowing from his lips.
He was dressed in light browns and looked like a math teacher who’d seen some bad days. His sandy hair was covering his glasses as he continued to snore. It was no coincidence this was Grim’s favorite pawn shop.
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