A Friendly Face (Cobalt and Chris)

by **Cobalt Smith** Thu Jul 19, 2012 7:24 am

Cobalt had been given a very distressed phone call by Christopher's secretary. The woman had quite literally been crying into the phone while talking to him. Through her tears he had managed to gather that Leon Becker had shown up a few hours ago to demand a meeting with Chris about the attacks on Germany.

Whatever had been said had been harsh; very harsh. According to the secretary, Christopher had been in tears when she'd looked into his office. Arriving at the ministry, he made his way towards Christopher's office, being given a quick hug by his secretary for being so quick. He'd merely smiled slightly and knocked on the door before slowly opening it,

"Hey Chris?" he asked tentatively as he moved into the dark office, "It's Cobalt. Your secretary called... said you were upset about something?"

by **Christopher Rubin** Thu Jul 19, 2012 7:29 am

Christopher was sitting in the dark in his office, why? Because he couldn't bare to look at himself, he thought that everything that Leon has said had been correct and now he had the deaths of all of those people on his conscience...and it was not sitting well.

It didn't sit well when it was his fault that his wife had died, and now, with children on his hands too he didn't feel like he was a very good leader at the moment. He had been well and truly hurt by everything that Leon had said and his heart ached a little as he sat still in his chair.

Hearing Cobalt only served to make him more upset, how was he going to protect his own children, when if Cobalt's child Charlotte ended up in pain because of what he had done.

"I'm in here Cobalt," he said with a faint smile "Turn on the light if you wish."

Christopher knew when he did his eyes would be red and he would look far from professional, but this was Cobalt, and he didn't care much about looking professional around him.

by **Cobalt Smith** Thu Jul 19, 2012 7:35 am

Cobalt was getting a little bit concerned now. He could tell Christopher had been crying because the air smelt of salt water. Of tears. He turned the light on anyway just so that he could have a regular conversation with the man. He paused when he noticed just how red Christopher's eyes were. Cobalt moved over to the older man and sat down on top of the desk near his seat,

"What's the matter Chris?" he asked the minister gently, "You know you can tell me right?"

He glanced around and saw one of Christopher's chairs on the far side of the room. Apparently Leon had been rather expressive in his anger. He smiled a little bit and wrapped an arm around Christopher's shoulders,

"You know I know how you must be feeling right now Chris." he told the older man, "But do you know what happened? A strange man decided to take a chance and talk to me. He helped me conquer my personal demons. And now I think it's my turn to return the favour. To tear down each of his worries and show him that he can be happy again. You ready for that my friend?"

by **Christopher Rubin** Thu Jul 19, 2012 7:40 am

Christopher felt his eyes watering again and he placed his hand on Cobalt's arm as he wrapped one around the top of his shoulders, it had been a long while since he had a hug, and now it was something that he felt that he didn't deserve, he didn't deserve someone to embrace him and tell him everything was going to be okay.

"Oh just that Mr. Becker was a little bit expressive in his...displeasure towards events today and it has effected me a little bit too much, I suppose it effects me because they're true in a way."

Frowning, Christopher wiped furiously at his eyes and cleared his throat with a rough cough, he was going to need all the strength that he could get to tell Cobalt about what had happened in his office today, the insults especially.

"He pinned the deaths of all of his people upon me, including children and I am hard pressed to find a reason why it's not my fault, I took the gentle path with violent people...and I was wrong."

by **Cobalt Smith** Thu Jul 19, 2012 7:50 am

Cobalt gave Christopher's hand a gentle squeeze. The man needed his support and he needed his comfort. He was, after all, hurting a great deal and Cobalt had to make sure that he could neutralise that hurt. He wanted to be able to help this man, who had helped him so much with so little,

"I thought as much..." he muttered a little bitterly before smiling, "You shouldn't take his words to heart Christopher. He probably said them all in the heat of the moment. All flash and no substance."

When Christopher spoke about his failings with the British Rebels and how to deal with them Cobalt sighed a little bit. Cobalt shook his head,

"The deaths of those people lie directly on the shoulders of their killers. Not yours Christopher." he told the older man simply, "And I for one am glad that you chose to take the gentle path first. I mean... would you really rather have just had them all put down like rabid dogs?"

He shook his head a little bit and gave Christopher a bit more of a hug,

"Don't dwell on your mistakes Chris. Learn from them and move on. It's like my mother used to say..." he smiled, "Why do we fall down Christopher? So we can learn to pick ourselves back up."

by **Christopher Rubin** Thu Jul 19, 2012 7:57 am

Christopher knew that Leon probably didn't mean what he said to him but it was hard to hear it all the same, especially when it came from somebody who really had mattered to him, as Leon was quite a good friend in his opinion.

"How unprofessional of the man, I have every idea how Briony and Adele were wound up by him and I would not be surprised if he found himself out of office in the next few years." he said with a mild frown on his face.

Shaking his head, Christopher sighed gently and he let his head come up from looking at his lap, and he smiled gently it wasn't his way to kill people outright, he had wanted to badly to give them a chance;

"No no, I wanted to give them every chance, every chance I gave them to change their ways, to stop fighting and see that the peace was best for all of us." he frowned "But...now I still don't know what to do, I dont want to spill blood but these people have killed!"

With a small chuckle Christopher shook his head again; "I hardly think you are in the place to tell me about what your mother told you young man, I'm the one that should be saying things like that to you." he joked a little bit.

by **Cobalt Smith** Thu Jul 19, 2012 8:05 am

Cobalt shrugged a little bit. He tried to stay away from politics as a rule because politicians tended to want to use his unique skill set for their own personal ends. Cobalt chuckled a little bit,

"The man does seem to be tempermental." he agreed, "Thankfully you won't have to deal with him like that many times I shouldn't think. Besides, once this has blown over he might even apologise."

He knew that Christopher didn't have it in him to be the same kind of leader as Leon Becker. The kill-first kind of leader was the exact opposite of what Christopher was. They both knew it and Christopher wasn't going to change,

"Well you followed your gut instinct and gave them a chance to turn their lives around and be law abiding citizens." he admitted before shrugging, "They turned their backs on that chance. Not your fault they chose to kill again. All that means is that they're unworthy of another chance."

He rolled his eyes and gave Christopher a playful nudge,

"Of course Dad, I'd never dream of telling you what to do."

by **Christopher Rubin** Thu Jul 19, 2012 8:11 am

Christopher smiled gently and he supposed that after he got a good nights sleep, an apology might just work on him, but he was unsure if it was going to work quite so well on the British Press in the morning, as he knew that the story had already gotten out.

"I would like to hear his apology, but perhaps it would be more effective in the morning when I have had a chance to sleep on the feelings and events of today. Even I can get a little angry myself." he said with a wry smile.

Of course Christopher knew what he was now going to have to do with the rebels and he was loathed to send anybody there, but he had to, he really did, and he hoped that in the future he would come to forgive himself for it.

"Although I hate to make decisions like this, I know that the only place I will be able to send those rebels when I catch them is Azkaban Prison, they have killed far far too many people to let them off. I just...wish it could have happened differently."

When Cobalt had called him 'dad' however jokingly, Christopher felt like he had been kicked in the heart and his eyes watered again; "Now now, none of that teasing thank you."

by **Cobalt Smith** Thu Jul 19, 2012 8:30 am

Cobalt chuckled a little bit. It was a bit of a long shot that an apology would work for a number of reasons. One of which was the two men were both rather proud and to come to one another on bended knee was not going to be easy. Even Christopher was prideful in some ways. He chuckled a little bit more,

"Oh I imagine you could get angry with the best of them Santa." he joked before nodding in seriousness, "But I understand that you wouldn't really want to see him, let alone have an apology from the man."

Christopher, he knew, was a man who loathed the use of violence but sometimes, when all a person understood was violence, you had to use it. He nodded a little bit grimly,

"Yes some people deserve Azkaban, as harsh as that sounds." he agreed before sighing, "They have killed but that's not the issue. You don't send a soldier to jail for killing the enemy. What's set them apart is that they killed innocents. For that they deserve the prison."

He chuckled ever so slightly,

"Who said I was teasing?" he joked only slightly, "You've been more of a father to me than mine ever was. I'd be proud to call you Dad."

by **Christopher Rubin** Thu Jul 19, 2012 8:41 am

Christopher laughed a little bit, getting back to his old self once more and he pressed the button under his desk that would call his assitant into his office, he really felt in the mood for some tea at the moment, now that he had cheered up a little;

"I will get more than angry with you young man if you keep telling me that I look like santa." he joked, before smiling at his assistant and asking "Ah excellent, excellent Sofie, could you please get me and Mr. Smith a tray of tea please? Thank you."

When Sofie left the room he nodded his head and frowned gently, it was going to have to be done to keep the peace between him and Germany; "It seems like I'm the one making all the effort at the moment to keep this peace going." he sighed gently "Leon has some work to do."

Blinking a little bit, Christopher smiled a little sadly and chuckled softly before looking up at Cobalt from his half moon glasses; "And I would be proud to call you my son Cobalt, such a strong will and determination would make any father proud."

by **Cobalt Smith** Thu Jul 19, 2012 8:47 am

Seeing Christopher push a button underneath his desk made Cobalt tense a little. He wasn't used to good things coming from hidden buttons like that. They were mostly accompanied with armed guards. But he relaxed again. This was Christopher after all,

"Oh you'd like me to think that now wouldn't you? Gunna give me coal or something?" he joked before chuckling, "I have no idea why you love tea so much Chris. I'm as British as they come and I can't have more than a cup a day."

Cobalt once again shrugged, this time while he was making some tea with added sugar cubes. He didn't want to talk about politics to be honest but if Chris did then they would,

"Well I'm sure that the two of you will come to some kind of an agreement in the end." he told Chris with a small smile, "I'm sure he'll budge for peace."

Cobalt glanced away. His own father had never thought so, he'd only seen him as some kind of a failure. He chuckled a little bit,

"Thanks dad."

by **Christopher Rubin** Thu Jul 19, 2012 8:55 am

Christopher grinned a little and he nodded his head, of course he was going to give Cobalt coal if he kept this up, he was going to be invited to the Ministry Christmas Party and this was going to be one of the presents that he gets, instead of something nice.

"I just think that it is incredibly calming and it makes me feel a lot more awake than coffee, after all some brands of tea have more caffiene than coffee." he smiled gently "But if you liked something else I could get it for you."

Sensing that Cobalt didn't want to speak about politics Christophere merely smiled and nodded his head. When once again he called him dad, Christopher smiled softly and he spoke back in the same tone as Cobalt had spoke to him;

"No problem son, and tell me how is that lovely young daughter of yours? Is she doing well in school?" he asked, changing the subject.

Christopher looked at the pictures on his desk, there was a photograph of his wife pregnant with their baby girl, and one of him and his wife on their wedding day. They seemed all the more painful given the prior conversation with Cobalt.

by **Cobalt Smith** Thu Jul 19, 2012 9:01 am

Cobalt chuckled a little bit since he had a coal fire in his room at home the present would actually be a useful one. Of course he would still prefer other things but as long as Charlotte got good presents he would actually be alright with just coal,

"Well now that explains why you seem to drink your body weight in it. It'll keep you awake and full of energy." he agreed with a laugh before sipping at his tea, "Oh no this is fine thanks. It's my first cup today so I'm more than happy with it."

Seeing that Christopher seemed to have adopted the idea of him being his father, Cobalt chuckled a little bit. It felt kind of strange to suddenly have a father who actually cared about him. Was this what Charlotte had felt when he'd first adopted her? If it was he was glad he had because it meant she would have felt like this and it was a happy feeling,

"Oh your little grandaughter is doing quite well Dad." he replied casually, "Doing well in all her subjects from what I'm told and she seems to be getting a lot of hobbies. She's into fashion design at the moment."

Noticing Christopher's gaze, Cobalt looked at the photos as well. He gently picked up the one of them on their wedding day,

"Is that... your wife Chris?"

by **Christopher Rubin** Thu Jul 19, 2012 9:11 am

Christopher smiled gently and he chuckled when he said that it was his first cup today so that he was okay, it was kind of strange that he was so comfortable with the man in front of him, but he wouldn't have it any other way.

"Oh good good, just let me know if you need anything, you were called away pretty late, my apologies I hadn't meant for my assistant to bring you here, I just thought that she would inform you of what happened." he smiled gently sipping at his tea.

Nodding his head, Christopher's eyes sparkled, he had a family again? Was that really what Cobalt had just offered him? If it was then it more than made up for the pain of today, to have a chance to hold something he thought he never would be able to.

"Oh my my fashion design you say? Perhaps she will have to make me my next suit, if you think that she would like such a task I mean I know that she is probably busy with school and such so..." he said quietly.

When Cobalt picked up the photograph, Christopher smiled gently and nodded; "Why yes, it is, my beautiful Beatrix. That was on our wedding day in York."

by **Cobalt Smith** Thu Jul 19, 2012 9:19 am

Cobalt chuckled a little bit. It was strange that he'd come to comfort Christopher and the man seemed to have switched it so that he was the one receiving guidance and whatever else he wanted. He shook his head,

"Don't worry about me Chris, I don't need to sleep much. I find it much better if I don't to be honest." he admitted before chuckling and teasing, "And besides, if I'm asleep before you old man I've got problems!"

Cobalt could see in Christopher's body language that he was very happy with the way this conversation was going. And it's implications meant that the man would have a family of both himself and Charlotte,

"Yeah fashion design. Seems to be quite good at it too but I wouldn't know, I'm terrible when it comes to fashion." he admitted with a chuckle before grinning, "Well the summer holidays are coming up so she'll have time then if she accepts. I'll have to talk to her about the summer actually."

Cobalt smiled a little bit before the smile fell slightly, "There's not any other photos aside from these two... is she...?"

by **Christopher Rubin** Thu Jul 19, 2012 9:24 am

Christopher smiled happily and he shook his head at Cobalt's teasing, it was all well and good but sometimes Christopher actually didn't act his age and returned the teasing, not just yet though, with the events of today he was still feeling a little shaky.

"Well you never know I might be a little bit of a night owl still, it's not like I'm 100 just yet, and don't you dare say that I look like it you cheeky beggar." he joked with a little laugh.

Nodding his head, Christopher frowned a little bit and he crossed his hands about his chest as he thought, deciding that he would ask something he had been meaning to to Cobalt, Christopher began;

"Are you perhaps thinking of going on holiday this summer with little Charlotte Cobalt?" he asked kindly.

When Cobalt seemed to connect the dots, Christopher smiled sadly and took the photo from him, his wife smiling to him and blowing him a kiss on the one still on his desk, her dancing around and around with him on his wedding photo.

"She is no longer with us, no. Beatrix died some time ago." he answered.

by **Cobalt Smith** Thu Jul 19, 2012 9:30 am

Cobalt was trying to coax a little bit more of the teasing side of Christopher out because if he managed that then it meant that Christopher was getting a little better. It meant that Christopher was comfortable enough to joke more,

"I doubt you're more of a night owl than me Chris, I really do. I doubt you'd be able to function on three hours sleep." he teased before smirking, "I never said a word... you did it yourself."

Cobalt grinned wider when Christopher asked about his holiday plans with Charlotte,

"I am actually planning something with her." he grinned, "A new Italian city or town every week."

Cobalt hung his head a little bit. He didn't really know what to say but he knew he had to say something,

"I... I know what that can be like Chris." he told the older man quietly before frowning, "What about... what about the baby?"

by **Christopher Rubin** Thu Jul 19, 2012 9:36 am

Christopher was being a little bit withdrawn now because it was getting closer and closer to the subject that he felt that he didn't want to talk about, that was the death of his wife and his child, but he knew that Cobalt deserved to know about it.

Trying to distract himself with the idea of a holiday, Christopher coughed lightly and he placed his hands on the desk, gesturing with them a little bit;

"I was wondering if you perhaps wanted to make use of my holiday home? I never use it...I built it to use with my wife and well...we didn't get to live in the safe to say." he said quietly "It's in Spain however not Italy, I know that you probably want to do what you planned but, the offer is always there."

With a small noise of discomfort, Christopher shook his head; "Beatrix died when she was still pregnant with Estelle, that was what her name was going to be if she was born." he explained.

by **Cobalt Smith** Thu Jul 19, 2012 9:43 am

Cobalt could tell that Christopher didn't really want to talk about this. He couldn't blame him either. Cobalt was still sensative about the death of his wife and child after all. And his sacrifice had been made almost forty years ago now.

Seeing Christopher being genuinely nervous was a new event for Cobalt and it was rather amusing, though he couldn't bring himself to be insulting enough as to actually laugh,

"You would let me and Charlotte onto your property for part of our holiday? With only knowing me as long as you have?" he paused before smiling, genuinely happy, "Well if we get that offer than I feel better to offer you this one... whenever you get time off you can join us on ours."

Cobalt nodded in silence before placing the photograph back on the desk. He wasn't going to push him to talk about this but he did want to make another point,

"I know it's not the same but..." he shuffled awkwardly, "Well... you're always welcome in my family..."

by **Christopher Rubin** Thu Jul 19, 2012 9:49 am

Christopher smiled gently when Cobalt looked like he was going to accept his offer to stay on his property for some of their holiday off at least, it would make his so very happy if he was going to accept the offer anyway, it would be nice to put the house to use.

"Now now Cobalt I think if we have accepted that calling each other father and son is quite alright then letting you stay on my property is not that far of a stretch." he smiled gently.

Blinking a little Christopher coughed and tried to cover up his emotion at being asked to go on holiday with someone, what a truly family thing to do, go on holiday together;

"You want me to join you on your holiday? W-well now I would be honoured, I shall ensure that I can take as much time off as possible." he said with a smile.

When Cobalt said that he was always welcome as part of his family, Christopher smiled happily and couldn;'t help but let tears spring from his eyes, of course, they were tears of happiness; "I would very much like to be part of your family, the crazy old man who sits in the corner I suppose eh?"

by **Cobalt Smith** Thu Jul 19, 2012 9:54 am

Cobalt had to admit that staying on his property did sound like a bit of a stretch. Didn't he know who he was? What he did for a living? He could steal any number of secrets from his home and Chris wouldn't even notice. Of course the fact that he knew and offered anyway meant the world to Cobalt,

"Well I guess that makes sense... dad." he agreed with a grin before chuckling, "Does this mean that, as your son, it's my job to look after you in your old age?"

He grinned when Christopher accepted the invitation to go on holiday with him before laughing a little bit and smirking,

"I think if we have accepted that calling each other father and son..." he quoted Chris from not a minute before before smirking, "Then I'm sure it's not a stretch for you to spend the holidays with us."

Cobalt smiled at the older man, ignoring the tears because they were obviously tears of happiness,

"No not as the crazy old man..." he grinned, "As my wise father and Charlotte's doting grandfather. Think you can handle that?"

by **Christopher Rubin** Thu Jul 19, 2012 9:59 am

Christopher shook his head and he tutted at Cobalt when he said that he would have to look out for him in his old age, and he didn't think that he could feel much happier than he could right now, the pain of before was long forgotten...

He had a family again, something he had been missing and longing for for decades. The world was finallg going right.

"Why yes, yes it does, but you don't have to worry about for a good few decades yet Cobalt, so you keep your jibes to yourself about my age thank you." he said jokingly.

Chuckling a little Christopher held up his hands; "Touche, touche." he grinned.

Whend Cobalt said that he would be joining his family as his father and also as Charlotte's grandfather, Christopher wiped at his eyes and happily shook Cobalt's hand, almost laughing with happiness;

"Oh thank you, thank you." he said happily "I think I am up to that indeed, very very up to that task."