(no subject)

He hasn't been around much, but that's been for the best. Most people in this fucking place didn't deserve the consideration he gave them during the months he was without his coin, but he'd be damned if he fucked over Eddie just by being too bloody close to him. The kid was a disaster, but he deserved a hell of a lot better than to end up dead because of some shitty, unlucky leprechaun.

Mad Sweeney won't admit to a soft spot for him, but it's there. Plain as fucking day for anyone to see if they look for longer than a second.

A few weeks back, hanging around the high school while smoking a cigarette would have gotten his ass thrown in jail. Now it gets him a few weird looks, but his luck has turned and so when he smiles at people, it's the kind of disarming smile that puts them at ease. Besides, it's not as if his plans are truly nefarious, he's just hanging out, sitting on a low wall, waiting for Eddie to get out of class. He could probably text the kid or just show up at the Home, but that place gives him the fucking creeps for some reason and he's not a man prone to the goddamn willies.

The bell rings and the kids come pouring out and past him, some of them giving him a glance, but mostly he's ignored. The flood of bodies swells and wanes, until there's just a few stragglers coming out. When Eddie finally exits, it's in the company of a curly haired boy Sweeney's not sure he's ever seen before. He stands, still smoking, and approaches them, catching just enough of their conversation as he does to hear the other boy mention detention.

Then, in a quick movement, the boy kisses Eddie's cheek before he disappears back into the school and Sweeney is left there standing just behind Eddie, his cigarette tucked between his smirking lips.

"And now who was that?"

(no subject)

Mad Sweeney is playing three games of checkers at once and winning every one of them.

One might say checkers isn't a game of luck, exactly, and Sweeney would probably agree, but he'd argue that his good luck had led him to find the three worst players in Darrow, and the three players most willing to make stupid bets on their stupid games. So while it might not be due to his luck that he's winning, it is due to his luck that he's about to win a very significant sum of money.

And when he does, there's a good share of cursing all around, but not one of the players seems to suspect Mad Sweeney is anything but an exceptional checkers player, which he thinks is pretty fucking ridiculous on their part, but he's not about to work to change their minds. He's the one with a solid stack of cash after all this and he grins as he folds it over and then tucks it into his pocket.

Money's not an issue for him. The hoard of gold at his fingertips makes sure of that, but he's always liked gambling. He's always liked winning. Seems Darrow is no different in that regard.

As he puts the cash away, he catches sight of a kid watching him. Thick glasses, the kind Sweeney figures get broken every so often by some other asshole kid at school, and he's vaguely familiar. It's possible he lives at the Home and Sweeney has caught sight of him once or twice when he goes to check in on Eddie, but he tends not to pay much attention to the other kids. Last thing he fucking needs is two of them hanging around.

"Big checkers fan or am I just that pretty?" Sweeney asks with a little smirk and a tilt of his head as he reaches into his pocket for his cigarettes.