Late Autumn 2010

Viper approached the black concrete steps to Midnight Symphony with a self-satisfied expression. She was dressed in what, in her opinion, was a rather simple outfit, though despite the opinionated simplicity, she was well beyond pleased, as she always was regarding her appearance. She made her way through the crowd, reveling in the looks and glances she received: desire from the men who wanted her and envy from the women who wanted to be her.

The witch noticed with mild amusement that a new Bouncer stood at the front door. He was young, probably more or less her age, though she hadn't seen him before. The Bouncer shot a rather goofy grin her way, looking at her up and down with obvious interest. " 'ello there, Miss. Got an ID with you?"

Viper blinked in confusion, not understanding the question, her irritation already rising from the man, or boy, really, and his rather informal manner towards her. Just who did he think he was, speaking to her that way? "I beg your pardon?"

"You's ID, Miss. You'll be needing it or I can't be letting you pass."

Green eyes rolled in disgust, though she humoured him and flashed him her ID, revealing her identity. The panic shined in the young man's eyes as he nervously ran his hand through his blonde locks. "Be beggin, your pardon, Miss. I had no idea you was one of them. The Vipers, that is..."

Viper glared in response, though moments later a small smile played across her face in reply, though if one were a keen obeserver, they would note the gleam of mischief and cruelty in her emerald orbs. "Don't worry about it..." she breathed out, conjuring a slim cigarette and bringing it to her lips.

Eager to please the woman, who was basically royalty from his perspective, he withdrew his lighter, igniting the cigarette gently held between her crimson lips. "My lady..." he bowed politely, stepping aside to allow Viper passage.

Viper smirked in response, looking eerily similar to a black widow spider, getting ready to feast on the helpless fly tangled in her web. "Thank you. What did you say your name was?" she asked inclinging her head to the left with a hint of faux flirtation.

"Jason, Miss. Jason Cagney." he replied, subconsciously leaning a bit closer to the female before him. "And you?"

Viper nodded, the smirk on her face growing slightly as she stepped closer to him. "Amaranth. Amaranth Viper." she replied before jamming the lit cigarette right into his eye, taking delight as he dropped to his knees, howling with agony. "Remember that." she replied after a cadence of light, icy laughter.

With a fling of her long, raven locks, she stepped over his crouched, crying form into the club's highest floor as though nothing had ever happened.

Sevastyan stepped up to the nightclub known as Midnight Symphony, where he was to meet one Leviathon Viper. He was dressed in a kind of combination suit and tie/robes that was neither stiffly formal but yet not exactly the most casual of casual.

He seen others taking slight - and some not-so-slight - notice of his passage through the nightclub. And an impressive nightclub it was! Sevastyan made a mental note to come back to England again sometime soon. Perhaps after his business concluded he would stay a while and take in what the London nightlife was like, have a drink or two... well, probably more like four.

When he reached the top floor, Sevastyan saw a young woman cram an apparently lit cigarette into a man's eye. A flicker of curiosity crossed his features, two curiosities crossing his mind. The first was wonder as to what caused such a reaction. The second was the manner in which she was dressed. Sevastyan guessed she was wearing a halter or tube top and hip-hugging pants of some sort - he couldn't pinpoint the textile precisely. Of course, that could be because his attention was focused on a rather different mode of thought.

Before he could head further into the topmost level, Sevastyan was stopped by a man with a grayish beard and short, black hair. Either that or said hair was merely pulled back into a tail. "Viper Family and VIPs only," he stated firmly. He was quite apparently another bouncer.

"I have business vith Leviathon Viper," Sevastyan stated plainly.

"What kind of business?" asked the wizard with skeptical curiosity.

A raven eyebrow rose. What kind of a question was that?! "Personal business."

"I'm afraid I can't let you pass until you tell me precisely what business brings you here of all places to see Mr. Viper, or provide proof that you are otherwise invited to this level of the establishment."

Sevastyan sighed. How very much he'd like to have cursed the bouncer to oblivion. But, doing so likely wouldn't put him on the Vipers' good list. So, instead, the Russian withdrew a coin from his pocket. "Vill this do?" he asked, handing the man the coin and crossing his right hand over his left wrist. Both of his hands were distinctly tattooed.





The bouncer examined the coin, finding it indeed a token of the Viper family. He handed it back to the wizard, and took notice of the tattoos with a mask of indifference even though he was fairly certain they had a particular, ominous meaning. "Welcome to the Emerald Lair, sir," said the bouncer with a slight nervousness to his voice.

Sevastyan took back the coin indifferently and pushed passed the bouncer, attempting to get his bearings within this part of the nightclub. He took a few steps in the same direction as the woman he'd seen earlier had appeared to go, attempting to locate Leviathon. If Sevastyan didn't find him at some point, he would buy the mystery-witch a drink in the event that he could locate her. There were several "girls" dressed in various yet similar styles.

Viper made her way into the Emerald Lair with no issue at all, unlike down at the front. The moment she approached, Bartholomew, the oldest of the Emerald Bouncers, bowed slightly, immediately granting her passage without another word.

"It's about time, Amaranth!" her oldest brother Levi called out from the table at the corner, where he and the rest of the Viper siblings always sat. However, instead of the normal five chairs there for the Viper Siblings, a sixth seat -currently empty- was positioned right beside Levi.

"You're late, as always." Odessa replied, taking a sip of her martini before pushing one towards Viper.

Viper smirked in reply, making her way to their usual table. She flipped her raven locks back, once more before taking a seat beside her younger brother Xavier, though she wondered why a sixth chair was situated beside Leviathon. "I'm never late. You all are merely early." she retorted, snickering as her eyes scanned the surrounding area at the other witches and wizards dancing, drinking, and partying. "Where's Dracovan?"

The other three siblings rolled their identical emerald orbs. "He's refused to accompany us on any outings. Apparently our excluding his wife has become a sensitive topic for the two of them." Xavier snickered.

This time it was Viper's turn to roll her eyes. "Sweet Merlin. Can he honestly blame us for not inviting her? She's unbelievably dull!"

Levi nodded. "You're forgetting unattractive and dim. I swear, I have met dogs with more wit than that woman!" he exclaimed, draining his goblet of rum. "But anyway, enough about Dracovan. The fool chose to anchor himself to Blondezilla. He wants to be miserable the rest of his life, so be it." he grinned his charming smile, before offering his hand to Viper. "Come on, sis. The night is still young and the dance floor has started a rather lively tune." he replied as he grasped Viper's hand and dragged her into the center of the room, twirling her around, completely synchronized with the rapid beat of the music.

Sevastyan had no idea where to begin his search, though there was a lot of potential for him to become distracted with relative ease between the decor, the lights, music, and the party-goers themselves. While that was not necessarily a bad thing, Sevastyan didn't want to be considered late for the 'meeting' of sorts. Various single women glanced at him as if waiting for him to ask for a dance, but the wizard ignored them.

Business before pleasure.

Not to mention none of them really caught his eye. One had a rather garishly-plumed hat, which certainly diverted his attention... but in the wrong way. Two others had feather boas, which earned them an inward brow quirk from the wizard but little else at the moment. He'd nearly mistook one woman in a leather halter and skirt for the one he'd seen earlier, but upon realizing it wasn't her also overlooked this one. Sevastyan smirked to himself in realization he wasn't the only wizard who had taken notice of the singles, for a few others had noticed them as well.

Once he'd met with Leviathon, then he could indulge and enjoy himself at this party. It had taken Sevastyan quite a few tries in his late teens to wrap his mind around that notion, but a few stern lectures and a practical lesson or five made certain he didn't make that same mistake again. When meeting at any drinking establishment it was best to go in, do business, and then relax. However, as a youth, Sevastyan's pattern was more like go in, drink and party while waiting for contact... which was closely followed up by: unintentionally find trouble.

The wizard broke out of his reverie when, out of the corner of his eye, Sevastyan spotted a large table in the corner occupied by two people, with four extra chairs. The first, he recognized, was Xavier Viper. However, he had no idea who the woman with him was. Perhaps his date? It wouldn't exactly be polite to interrupt the pair, but Sevastyan didn't see any other choice.

"Excuse me," he offered upon approaching with a nod of greeting. "Have either of you seen Leviathon Viper?" Sevastyan really hadn't thought to examine the dance floor all that closely.

At the sound of a voice adressing them, Odessa and Xavier halted their debate of which witch and wizard were the worse dressed, turning to glance at the source of the cadence. A look of interest appeared on Odessa's face as she took in the looks of the stranger before her while a beam of acknowledgement and comprehension dawned on Xavier's.

"Ah, yes, of course. Levi mentioned you were dropping by, hence the extra chair. Odessa, this is Sevastyan Kaminski, Mr. Kaminski, this is our sister, Odessa Viper: the owner of this little hot-spot." Xavier explained, introducing the two.

"Lovely to meet you, Mr. Kaminski." A smile formed on Odessa's face, as she extended her hand in greeting. "Would you like something to drink?" she offered, snapping her fingers and conjuring a tray of various beverages.

"Levi's over there, with our other sister." Xavier added, using his head to gesture towards the dance floor, at Viper and Leviathon's dancing forms.


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*


Viper nodded in comprehension of her older brother's plan which he had been whispering into her ear as they moved around the dance floor. Their father, Lucifer Viper was currently one of the Minister's Advisors: a rather useful position, for it allowed his plans executed with no repercussions or blames placed on him: all the glory without the sacrifice. Unfortunately, one obstacle stood in Lucifer's way: Augustus Seymour, a wizard at least one generation older than Lucifer with drastically different view points and opinions.

Granted, it did nothing to hinder Lucifer on getting what he wanted. After all, Vipers always got what they wanted. It was merely getting irritating having to deal with the old bloke, day after day, which lead to Lucifer's decision to enlist the help of his son to deal with the older man and his constant, mosquito-like prescence.

"So what do you think?" Levi asked his younger sister, wanting her opinion on his plan. After all, it was likely she would need to lend a hand in the process.

Viper shrugged, still moving in time with the music. "It's nothing special or amazing but it'll get the deed done."

Levi shrugged. "Well, I'm a firm believer in simplicity."

Viper smirked. "Is that another way of saying you're losing your touch?"

A hearty tune of laughter escaped Levi. If it had been any other sibling, especially the youngest "black sheep" of the clan, his reaction would have been drastically differentm but this was Amaranth he was talking to. With his position as the oldest child, and her's as their Father's favorite, they were gifted with the ability to make their father, a notoriously stubborn man, to always bend to their will: a fact they picked up on early on in childhood, which lead to their alliance, planted in childhood, nourished through their adolescence, and now a proud tree, with Odessa and Xavier, despite the childhood rivalries, now firmly included.

Sevastyan noted the interest on the woman's face, and the acknowledgment on Xavier's. So perhaps she wasn't the other wizard's date... maybe. As Xavier introduced him to his sister, Odessa, Sevastyan bowed as most aristocrats still tended to do. "Likevise, Miss Viper," he replied, as he took the extended hand and placed a kiss upon it. Another gesture of courtesy.

The wizard then took a seat and muttered his thanks for the consideration to Xavier, contemplating the drinks that were conjured. "I normally vait after business is concluded," he told her, though looked rather thoughtful. "But perhaps this time I shall break my rules." A smirk stretched across his face at the last word in particular as he selected a rather interesting looking glass... it almost seemed like a tropical beverage if he didn't know any better.

"Thank you," he said to Odessa and took a sip: fruit juice of some sort, but with a distinct and strong alcoholic undercurrent. Not vodka... but something else. He'd never had a drink like this before, but Sevastyan rather liked it. "Nice place you have here," he nodded.

His attention shifted to Xavier for a moment when he spoke, and then to the dance floor as indicated. Sure, enough, there was Leviathon, or Levi as he apparently was known as in the informal context. And then he seen her. The mystery girl whom had assaulted the wizard - possibly one of the bouncers - on the lower levels of the nightclub. So, she was a Viper as well? 'This is interesting,' Sevastyan mused. "Your other sister?" he questioned, watching the pair dance.

Odessa's smile widened, impressed by his display of traditional mannerisms. All the Vipers were raised to behave in similar manners but unfortunately, like most of the world, only Leviathon still followed those customs, with the rest of the clan doing so only on the occassion that it suited their motives.

A smirk illuminated both Vipers face as Sevastyan took the offered beverage. "Temptation does need to have its away, even if only on occassion." Xavier added with a wink before taking a beverage: a flaming cognac gladd, as well.

"Thank you." Odessa nodded in reply to Sevastyan's compliment. "Customer satisfaction is of utmost importance to us so it is lovely to hear that it meets your standards." she added with a flirtatious sigh, brushing a lock of raven hair off her shoulder.

Xavier nodded to the inquiry with a smirk. "Indeed. Daddy's little princess: Amaranth Viper." he stated, looking unto his other siblings dancing forms.

Moving in perfect match to the music, Levi spun his sister around so her back was now towards him as they danced round and around. His eyes glance briefly over at the table the others were sitting, noticing Sevastyan's prescence. "Ah, speak of the devil. That's him over there, Amaranth: Sevastyan Kaminski." he spoke lowly into Viper's ear.

Another set of emerald eyes made their way to where the owner's brother was glancing, a small smirk soon following as they took in every detail of the unfamiliar wizard. "Hmm, interesting. Definately not what I was expecting from your description. I have ti admit, he is rather easy on the eyes. A rather refreshing change from the blokes you normally hire." she laughed in reply, unable to take her eyes off Sevastyan.

Levi only smirked in return before approaching the table with Viper still in his hand. "Ah, there you are, Sevastyan. Glad you could make it." he grinned. "I see you've met my dear siblings, Odessa and Xavier. And this, is Amaranth." he added, twirling Viper so that she now stood in between the two wizards.

No words escaped Viper, only a smile of pure confidence and a hint of a smirk illuminated her features as she held out her hand to Sevastyan, her eyes locked on his grey ones.

"I suppose that is true," Sevastyan agreed to Xavier's statement with a nod. The flaming glass the other wizard selected looked rather good, too. Perhaps after the one Sevastyan was presently working on... He nodded to Odessa, stormy gray orbs trained on the lock of hair being brushed from the witch's shoulder - a subtle yet effective move on her part in getting his attention.

"Amaranth..." the Russian wizard echoed whilst contemplating the dancing pair.

It soon became apparent to Sevastyan that he was being watched by the duo, though he hadn't been able to hear what Leviathon had said to his sister. He was a wizard, not an eavesdropping device. However, judging by their actions he must've been the topic of their discussion. Or something nearby him... but the fact that Amaranth was now looking straight at him and did not shift her gaze gave him a very big clue to go on.

Sevastyan stood as Leviathon and Amaranth approached. "Thank you for... receiving me here," he replied; his pause fairly common in his speech despite his fluency in the English language. The wizard was fairly certain the word 'receive' was used in such an instance, but wasn't sure how dated if at all such vernacular was nowadays. Either way, the gist of what he wanted to say seemed clear. He nodded when the names Xavier and Odessa were mentioned.

The wizard watched as Amaranth twirled to stand between him and Leviathon, his gray eyes trained on her emerald ones. Amaranth's lack of initial speech did not phase him: he got that quite a bit amidst the Russian populace. At the confident smile, Sevastyan smirked in reply. He took the offered hand and, like he'd done with Odessa, placed a kiss upon the witch's hand in greeting. "A pleasure to make your acqvaintance," he stated before magically pulling out a chair for the woman to sit in. The chair just so happened to be one of the ones directly next to him.

"No problem at all mate. A bloke like you works too hard and needs an outing such as this very once in a while, even if it is to discuss a bit of business." Levi explained as he patted Sevastyan briefly on the shoulder before taking a seat across Sevastyan. He reached towards the tray in the middle of them all, selecting a blue margarita with bits of dry ice floating in it.

Viper continued to watch the unfamiliar wizard with barely concealed curiousity, a small smile playing her features at the courteous gesture. Plenty of men prior to Sevastyan had kissed her hand, but she had to admit. There was something different about how she felt after he kissed her hand. Something different about Sevastyan... Not a bad difference. In fact, quite far from it. It was rather intriguing.

"Likewise." she replied with a half-smile, half-smitk as she took the offered seat, crossing her legs gracefully as she sat down. Like her brother, she reached towards the middle tray, selecting a pina colada. "So how long have you been in the business, Mr. Kaminski?" she inquired lightly as her fingers played with the toothpick umbrella before taking a sip.

Odessa and Xavier rolled their eyes at each other, slightly amused by their sister's antics. As their favorite song began to play, as discreetly as possible, they slipped away from the table in search of their usual dancing partners, opting to dance the night away rather than linger.

Sevastyan wasn’t quite sure about the pat on the shoulder, but didn’t remark about it. In fact he didn’t even move, but rather stuck with a neutral posture and disposition. “That is true...” he offered musingly.

Curious gray eyes lingered slightly upon the tray of drinks between them before returning his focus back to the matter at hand, though he smirked at the fact that Amaranth had taken the offered seat. Sevastyan occupied the chair beside her soon afterward, watching as she selected a pina colada. While he couldn’t remember the drink by name, it looked to be the same drink as Kiara Magnus, a woman he’d met only a few months earlier, seemed to prefer. Interesting, he thought.

The Russian turned in his seat to regard Amaranth. A smirk crossed his face as he contemplated her question. From the corner of his eyes he observed as she played with the mini parasol. Only vaguely did he hear two of their number retreat to he wasn’t really sure where. Sevastyan surmised that this conversation apparently didn’t concern them. “Since I vos sixteen... Roughly a decade, give or take,” he replied. In his mind there was little relevance in discussing his 3-year sentence in Nurmengard, and that he was fairly recently released. Though, all the while he was incarcerated he still did his part to be a nuisance for the guards. The wizard had the tattoos to back up his claims.

“Speaking of business...” Sevastyan trailed off, not quite sure how to begin the topic of discussion. Plus, though it seemed Amaranth had an idea as of what kind of ‘business’ he did, he wasn’t sure just how much she knew or was supposed to know. Family business was odd like that, and Sevastyan was no stranger to it. “Shall ve get that out of the vay, first?”

"That's the spirit!" Levi added with a half-smile, half-smirk. "After all, you are in our domain, and in this world, business and pleasure go hand in hand."

A light echo of dark laughter escaped Viper as she smirked. "And evidently, on occassion pleasure is the business..." she replied with a hint of flirtation as she met Sevastyan's grey orbs.

Vague interest illuminated her features as she took in account of what Sevastyan said, nodding in reply. "That's lovely to hear. Leviathon has a repulsive habit of hiring inexperienced wizards." She gave Levi a scowl, before turning her attention back to Sevastyan with an added flair of flirtation.

"I need a man. A man who knows what he is doing. A man who's not afraid to reach and grab what he wants, and to risk it all for victory." She leaned closer to Sevastyan, whispering into his ear. "I need a man who knows how to use his wand to please me..."

Suggestion and multiple possible interpretations lathered her whispered statement, but whether Viper's multiple meanings wre intentional, or which possible interpretation was Viper targetting, it is difficult to say.

Discreetly she vanished her beverage and took one of Sevastyan's hands into hers, slipping a folded sheet of parchment into it. It contained all the necessary details, as well as added charms upon it to ensure their safety and protection, as the parchment would combust upon leaving Sevastyan's touch. "You have the information, as well as the right to name your price and payment."

Her free hand began to gently caress Sevastyan's cheek, her eyes never straying from his. "Do we have an accord?"

Sevastyan’s eyebrows rose at the statements in interest. He had been conditioned to not let business and pleasure mix after he’d done just that. It was interesting to him that while his father shunned it, such a practice was common here by Leviathon’s account. Amaranth Viper’s comment, however, gave him a far different signal. He wondered vaguely whose pleasure the business was, and if she meant that was what he was being hired for. Mafiosi weren’t directly involved in pleasuring clients as business. Providing pleasure for clients somewhat indirectly... that was another story. Although, for her, he could easily make an exception. And this wasn’t mafia business, which gave him allowance to act with his own discretion... or lack thereof.

A smirk stretched his lips at the compliment, though was surprised to hear about Viper’s brother’s habit. Still, he decided to keep his 3-year prison sentence silent. They needn’t know his every move, and his tattoos would indicate such a thing should they see them.

Shivers of delight raced themselves up and down his spine at the breath upon his ear; a sensation that particularly sparked all of his attention. Interpreting what she meant was rather challenging, for there were quite a few possibilities, a few in particular involving quite a lot of euphemism. The mind of business was quarreling with the impulsive of pleasure. Would her brother object, or worse, if he dared make a move? Regardless, the Russian grinned and chuckled lightly at the obvious innuendos he found and had no problem noticing or enjoying. True, he’d only just met the woman, but... well, to put it simply, Sevastyan was no saint.

He realized Amaranth Viper was seducing him long before now. The flirtatious glances, the words, the innuendos both spoken and whispered... Yet he was allowing the advances, allowing the ever-growing flame of pleasure and desire to deepen. “I assure you... I am more than capable,” he replied in a voice made deeper than previous by the subtle flirtations bestowed upon him. Sevastyan was certain this evening would be... rather interesting. “If you need further credentials from me, I vould be more than honored to show them to you. But... I vould like to go somevhere much more private to do so.” The last bit was specifically for Amaranth Viper, and was not without its own flirtatiously-dripping nuances. Sevastyan meant it as literally as he’d meant it figuratively, however: he didn’t want to attract unwanted attention by undressing to reveal his tattoos here.

The hand that was technically furthest from Viper was upon the table and thus within easy grabbing distance, while the other was – for the moment – in his lap. “Very vell...” he replied, doing nothing to keep his tone from sounding seductive. The parchment in the palm of his hand, Sevastyan’s fingers curled around Amaranth’s in a firm but not crushing hold. Her skin was soft to his touch. The Russian wondered if the rest of her had the same amount of apparent care.

His thumb traced a slow path upon her hand, at the same time she had taken to caressing his cheek. The grin formerly upon his face had returned to a smirk. “Ve do...” Sevastyan agreed, the hand formerly in his lap reaching around her for to pull her chair closer to his. The Russian made sure to boldly caress her back in the process, being certain to dip down further than necessary. There was no hesitance whatsoever in the action. “Provided you vill dance vith me,” he added, giving her his most charming smile.