Joachim's New Inn

"The guys who are out to get me... right now?" he urged.

He settled his mind onto the one who had been restrained by the bodyguards, murmuring as his own stare bored into the minds. A rivulet of thoughts and feelings surged through his head, but he could only pick out fragments.

"They are angry that they have been conned out of their earnings, that you have managed to take all theyve worked for. They're confused too; they don't understand how you have become so successful, so they are jealous." He stated it like their train of thoughts was filtering through his own.

He blinked again, the glazed look fading. "Helpful?"

"A bit." Joachim smirked with pride over having the upper hand over his competition for a change. "Ya have a name, buddy?"

"It's Rook." he said plainly, wiping his forehead with his sleeve at the exertion. "And nobody's gonna try and kill you in here now - at least, not today. That much I know." He offered as reassurance, not picking up any hostile vibes from the people surrounding them and in the bar area. 

"I'd be grateful if you kept my... ability to read people on the downlow. It makes people more likely to hurt me, of course. Nobody wants to know they're being watched more than they think."

"Hey! Trust me on this," He smiled as he showed his last hand, which was made of nothing but aces, "I know not to reveal my trump cards too early..." He slapped him on the shoulder, "You're free to stay, just so long as you keep that intel train rollin'.."

A sense of relief washed over him, knowing that for now his powers were at least somewhat safe. Rook frowned slightly at his terrible hand in comparison, but knew the deck had probably been stacked long before he'd even arrived.

"So what would you like me to do? I'm gonna drift in and outta here if that's alright with you, but I can hang around to feel anyone out who wants to cause serious trouble." He offered as a compromise, knowing he could not essentially be a sniffer dog for the owner 24/7.

"Well actually..." He took out a pipe and began preparing it as he weighed the next words in his mind to phrase it right.

"There is one guy I wouldn't mind having an eye..."

"Oh?" Although Rook was unlikely to have met the person in question, he craved this sort of information in order to re-establish himself in a wizarding world that he no longer recognised. He ws essentially a new kid in town, to most that he would encounter. 

"I'm good at blending in, that sorta thing. People don't know what i can do, which makes it easier. I won't know them anyway so it won't bother me to keep tabs." A smile tugged at the  corner of his lips, clearly wanting to do it for the sake of it rather than his own personal gain.. for once.

"Alright well..." This was it. The do or die time. Either this could be the start of his vendetta or a time to check just how good his bodyguards are. 

"You find out all you can about Crouch. Damn psycho burned down my first inn and nearly killed my girl, just for a laugh!" Outrage was clear in him but he tried to pass it off with a friendly, charming laugh.

"No bueno, you know what I mean?"

If there had been any indication that Rook was familiar with the name, he didn't show it. A frown crossed his forehead as he considered the name.

"Yeah, I've heard it before. He sounds fucking crazy, so I'm glad I've never met him." He muttered, wondering how he'd go about this. Rook, of course, was loyal to the Death Eaters as natural allies first, and this bodyguard business would come second. That didn't mean he wouldn't do his job properly, though; he'd find out what would be neccessary for Joachim without putting his friend in danger.

"So you're telling me I gotta spy on a psycho, no problem." Rook had admittedly watched worse people. "I Hope you aren't baiting me to my death.."

"Let me tell ya, I'm not a patient guy. If I wanted you offed, I would just snap my fingers and it'd be clean up on aisle three for you." 

"But I ain't too keen on murder. Much too messy, and no one profits from it. But this here is personal."

"Alright." He agreed to watching Crouch. "I'm no murderer, so this could work out fine for us. Is there anything in particular you want me to look out for? Evil plans, weaknesses?" Admittedly, direction would be helpful in this instance.

"All of the above and whatever else you can find out. Just let me know what the lunatic is up and anything that can make him worm food." Psychopaths weren't good for business. They couldn't be controlled, bought, or reasoned with. 

Even worse was a psychopath who held a grudge against you.