Spirits of the Earth

@Moonie

For all that she considered herself a fairly worldly person, Wisteria had never actually been to Essyrn before.

She wasn't sure if she liked it.

It was loud, and hot, and crowded, and so damned bright. Grumbling to herself, she ducked into the nearest building in an attempt to escape the sun.

Well, it was certainly darker in here. And hotter, stuffy with the scent of incense. She coughed, delicate nose crinkling as her sense of small was almost overloaded, and looked around.

Huh. It seemed she'd stumbled into some sort of den of iniquity. The incense was obviously burning to cover the scent of whatever it was most of the patrons were smoking, and scantily clad serving girls- no, those were probably slaves- were weaving their way around the dim, stuffy room bearing trays of drinks that did everything from glow to steam to give off colorful sparks.

"Well hello there."

Wish jumped and whirled to face what she assumed was the proprietor of the...store she'd entered. The man grinned at her smarmily, eyes flicking over her in a calculating sort of way she was used to. She was suddenly very glad she was "overdressed" for the Essyrni weather. "What can I do for you, miss? Not often we get foreigners in here."

"I'm looking for someone," she replied after a moment. "If you'd point me in the right direction..."

Her voice trailed off and her eyes widened as she inadvertently glanced around the gathered patrons and nearly choked on her own voice. One of the men lounging back against a pile of cushins, smoking a pipe, seemed to have a slave with him- judging by the way he kept glancing at his companion haughtily and barking quiet orders.

But it wasn't the master that drew her attention. It was the slave. She'd never seen anything like him.

Lounging about, indulging oneself in the pleasures of drugs, flesh, and whatever other vices one could imagine would have been a perfect way to spend his time under other circumstances. Not being the one indulging, being forced to stand next to some lesser creature as it partook in such frivolity, having his power wasting away under unseen shackles...

It was criminal.

Zenith could only endure the pungent odors wafting through the air, gritting his teeth and curling his lips back in a silent snarl at each arrogant demand. White fangs glistened against his dark lips as his crimson eyes stared off into nothingness.

Hell would have been preferable.

Sadly the contract bound him here to this man. As much as he'd have loved to choke the man with his own entrails he could not harm the stupid human as long as it was his master.

He didn't notice when a pale foreign woman entered the building, such a creature was beneath the notice of something like him. Zenith's master noticed her, though, and he gave a quite command while flashing a smug smirk and puffing on his pipe. It was actually an amusing order, and since the man was still his master, he obeyed.

Sharp talons clicked on the floor with each step as he made his way towards the owner of the building, his rich dark voice full of mocking venom. "My master wishes to know how much for the pale foreign sow. He says he always wanted to make a little piglet squeal."

The shop owner sputtered, "Ah, actually I don't think-"

Wish cut him off with a smile and a wave of her hand. "That's quite alright." Her eyes flicked curiosity over the slave, then to his master.

She was hungry.

She smiled at the creature. "Why don't I tell him how much myself- would you escort me?"

White teeth contrasted sharply against such dark skin as Zenith's lips pulled back in a devilish smirk, crimson eyes glinting in amusement and malice. "You seem unconcerned, little piglet. Do you not realize how much danger you are in? This is Essyrn, and no one will bat an eye when my master puts a collar around that pale little piggy throat."

Who cared if some foreign whore was taught her place? Not that he cared. It would amuse him to watch another enslaved and tormented. Especially such a tasty looking little morsel.

"Maybe when master is through with you he will give you to me." Zenith taunted her as he gestured towards the lounging man with one of his massive clawed hands. He dwarfed Wish in size, the dragon built powerful and tall, an obsidian monolith and all that power on display as the only garment that covered him was a long crimson silk loin cloth.

Rather than listen to the instinctive chill that ran up her spine, Wish just smirked. "Perhaps he will," she purred as she looked him over again, apparently unconcerned.

She sauntered her way over to the man and leaned against the wall next to him. "I'm told you have interest in...shall we say, something exotic. How much is it worth to you?"

She batted her lashes and artfully leaned against the wall to tighten her dress around her curves, one eyebrow raised.

Zenith didn't know if it was arrogance, ignorance, or confidence that was emitted in that purr, but whatever it was, he answered with a dark chuckle as he followed her. She was bold, that was for certain, and he could appreciate such fearlessness - to an extent.

He rather enjoyed the sweet, savory aura of fear that he could cause. Encountering someone who, at least on the surface, acted unafraid of him was amusing.

The Essyrni man smirked at Wish as she leaned against the wall, eyes roaming over her unabashedly. "You are very overdressed, little sow. We aren't enamored with little pink pigs in Essyrn, you'll come to find, but there is a certain brutish appeal to you soft northern hogs. Perhaps if you amuse me enough I will let you be one of my concubines instead of just a slave, but I doubt it."

He laughed wickedly and gestured to Zenith. "I think I will take her home with us, slave. The haughtiness will be fun to break out of her."

Wish just smiled, dipping her head demurely. "As you wish, sir. After all, I am merely a stranger in your land. It seems you must teach me your ways."

To someone who was paying attention, it might be suspicious that she spoke such practiced Essyrni for a foreigner. Of course, her father would never send her on a mission unprepared.

She looked to the slave, calculating. She wasn't worried about the master, but this...man, if he could be called that, was an enigma.

She'd be better off trying to get on his good side than outright attempting to fight him. "Am I allowed to know your name?"

"Now you are just being coy. That will be fun to correct as well." Of course anything he could do to her would be fun for him. He was arrogant enough to think that this was that easy. Of course he assumed the woman was simply smart enough to realize that his slave could do great harm if she didn't cooperate.

The man gave a short barking laugh. "You need only know me as master, and that thing only has a name if I give him one. You would do well to hide your interest in that monstrosity. Dragons eat little pigs, and if you annoy me I might just let him eat you. Slowly."

Zenith smirked, folding his arms across his chest. He almost wished she would put up a fight so that he would have an excuse to toy with her. As it was the master was interested in playing with her and he couldn't damage his master's new toy without permission - something he doubted he'd be getting without due cause.

"Of course, sir." Her eyes flicked to Zenith again, unable to completely hide her curiosity. And he did rather draw the eye.

With a toss of her multicolored hair, she shrugged away from the wall and dipped into a northern half-curtsy. "I suppose you will lead on, then?" she murmured, looking up at the two men through her lashes.

The slave master seemed anxious to get moving now that he had his curiosity, and she was no less eager. The longer she stayed in this place, the more her hunter's instincts rose to the surface. It was taking a great deal of self control not to simply pounce on the man then and there.

"So eager, maybe we can make a proper slave of you yet." The master laughed softly, rising from his cushions and making a subtle gesture to his dragon.

Zenith wrapped one of his clawed hands around Wish's upper arm, squeezing just slightly so that his claws would prick threateningly against her skin without actually breaking the skin. It wouldn't do to leave marks on the newest toy prematurely.

His scales were surprisingly cool and warm to the touch. Although given the extreme heat of Essyrn warmth was probably not the greatest asset.

When the master began sauntering out Zenith left Wish little choice on whether or not she'd follow. His grip was like iron even if it wasn't being used to crush at the moment. "You'd do well to keep up, our master is an impatient man." Not that she could fall behind with him leading her along - or pulling - he didn't care if he had to drag her kicking and screaming to be honest.

Wish made no move to resist. She was playing the game now, and it wouldn't do to show her hand too early.

She glanced up at Zenith with a small smirk as they trailed along behind the human. "Are you really a dragon?" she asked curiously, voice soft in an attempt not to draw their "master's" attention. "I find it hard to believe such a powerful creature could be chained by a mortal."

Zenith snorted softly at the very idea that such a pathetic man had chained him. He was a veritable god of destruction. No mortal could have reduced him to this. He gave her a slightly harder pull than strictly necessary given her willingness to follow him through the streets as if this were the most normal and boring of days.

"That man could never chain such a magnificent being. No, my chains are far older than a hundred of his pitiful lifetimes, and my chains will remain long after he's nothing more than dust. That man merely holds the chains - for now." There was a bitter bite to the words. Zenith wasn't going to pretend that he was happy with his current master. Not that he had ever been pleased by being beholden to any master.

Hm. Intriguing. Wish tilted her head at him, almost birdlike, in curiosity. "A binding spell?" she guessed, though judging from his rather immodest assessment of his own power she had a feeling it would have to be quite the spell.

No matter. She supposed it didn't really make a difference if she knew the specifics or not, as long as she was sure the creature wouldn't actually eat her.

She glanced at his master, then back. "I take it there is no loyalty here then?" she murmured softly. "You would hardly weep if he died."

"What else?" It had been so foolish to underestimate his rival, but even he wasn't sure just how the trap had actually succeeded in imprisoning him. Zenith made a dismissive gesture with his free hand. "It hardly matters now."

They kept moving, keeping just a short distance behind their master.

"Loyalty is a delusion. Only power and fear can buy loyalty." Or a binding contract, he supposed, but it wasn't actual loyalty, only forced obedience. "When that man dies I will relish the opportunity to collect my payment due." Although his soul would probably hardly be satisfying.

Wish smiled, showing the barest flash of fang. "Excellent."

She fell quiet, doing her best to emit an air of placid obedience as she allowed Zenith to pull her along behind his master. Her eyes kept moving to the man's neck and wrists, the most obvious places where she could see the pulse of blood through his body.

Crimson eyes glinted darkly as he ushered them along at the pace his master set. They received many strange looks, mostly directed at Zenith, his appearance was somewhat monstrous, but a some looked oddly at Wish. Her pale skin stuck out like a sore thumb in Essyrn. It was a wonder how she wasn't burnt to a crisp by the brutal sun.

They passed into a large garden surrounding a modest estate. His master was a man of some means, but not so impressive as a Trade Prince. A middling merchant with enough wealth to have a small harem of concubines, a few wives, and a handful of slaves.

As soon as they passed into the archways of the home Zenith released his hold on Wish, seemingly bored of the task of guiding her. His master waved his hands in a grand gesture of his foyer. "This will be your new home, little pig. After I have amused myself with you it would be wise to learn your way about. I won't tolerate lost little sows running about when they have work to do."

"Yes, sir. Of course, sir." Wish looked around curiously, taking stock of this place and, more importantly, the people in it.

She was reasonably confident that the only being who pose a real threat was the one with the death grip on her arm.

Batting her eyes, she murmured, "what am I to do now then, sir? Is there a...certain room to be used for such activities?" She was getting anxious now, bloodlust rising up in her chest and giving her lavender eyes a predatory glint.

Aside from herself, Zenith was the only non-human around. His master could afford certain things, but not especially exotic slaves. How he had come to possess the dragon was probably a tantalizing mystery.

The man ignored her batting lashes and turned his attention to Zenith. "Take her to a spare room and make her ready for me. I will be there as soon as I've checked on my wives."

Zenith bowed his head obediently before giving Wish a small tug in the direction of the slave's quarters, pulling her to an unoccupied room. There was a large bed in the center, with chains and shackles ready to bind unruly slaves who might try to run. He gave her a shove towards the bed, but at least he let her go.

"Master will expect you to be waiting for him disrobed, and perhaps chained if you are uncooperative, but I seem to recall you being very well-behaved on the way here." The way he said it and the smirk that came to his lips suggested he was well aware that her compliant nature was nothing more than an act.

Wish knew a predator when she saw one- and it had nothing to do with his claws or scales. She smirked in reply to Zenith, tossing him a rather jaunty wink.

He knew she was faking, and she knew he knew. Hopefully his master would be slower on the uptake.

"Are you staying here then?" she asked casually as she started to strip out of her dress, apparently unconcerned. "Does he have you watch or something?" She screwed up her face at the idea, tsking quietly when she thought of girls that must have come before her, girls not strong enough to defend themselves.

"My role varies from girl to girl." Zenith answered casually, flexing his wings, stretching them from the uncomfortable folded position they had been in far too long. "Until he arrives I am simply babysitting to make sure you do not try to escape. When he comes he may dismiss me entirely, or insist that I restrain you if he thinks you might put up too much of a fight. Bad girls are sometimes punished, and I am merely his chosen tool to accomplish his discipline."

There was no reason to lie about his role in the harm and subjugation of the girls his master tormented to his heart's desire. Zenith enjoyed hurting them. It was one of the few pleasures he took in his service to the man.

His crimson eyes were watching her keenly the entire time, not at all shy about observing her as she undressed. For the moment she was nothing more than a toy to be played with.

"Hm." Wish watched him in turn, just as interested. Her attention was particularly caught by his wings.

Once in her undergarments she paused, gathering up and neatly folding her clothes as she tilted her head at him. "Could I...?" She moved toward him, ducking around to try to see how his wings connected to his back.

"Do they work?" she asked curiously. "I mean, can you you fly?"

It didn't bother him to have her eyes on him, Zenith knew he was an impressive specimen. He unfolded his wings and turned for her examination as she came closer. "Of course they work."

They were quite large, his wingspan much wider than he was tall if fully stretched out, but the room was too small for that. Instead they curled around, taking up much of the free space. She'd find they connected at his shoulder blades, the frame bones, but fine, pliable membrane between the fingers; much like any dragon or bat.

"Well why am I not surprised?" The master walked in, looking hard at both of them. "You're not prepared for me. Maybe if you're so interested in him I will just let him keep you. A pet for my slave, how generous of a master I am."

She was just reaching out to touch the junction of wing and shoulder blade- perhaps not her smartest idea, but she couldn't seem to stem her curiosity- when the human entered the room.

She jumped back and immediately effected an air of sheepish resignation. "Oh! Forgive me, sir, I was merely curious," she murmured, keeping her head down. She shifted her weight, cocking a hip and wrapping her arms loosely around her middle.

"And I-" She bit her lip and glanced up at him, hoping she seemed nervous. "I thought perhaps you would like to do this part." She plucked at the fabric of her smallclothes delicately, head tilting to the side.

"Curiosity killed the cat, or in this case the little pig." He began undoing the sarong wrapped around his waist, still looking at them venomously.

Zenith folded his wings and bowed his head to his master, but the man waved a dismissive hand at him. "Go stand in the corner until I need you for something." He bowed his head again and moved to the corner to stand with reluctance.

"If I wanted to do that part myself I would have told you to leave them on. Now strip and lay on the bed." He dropped his only garment onto the floor, displaying himself proudly, although he honestly wasn't much to look at. His body wasn't particularly well-sculpted. It was soft from being lazy and spoiled instead of the strong, muscular look Essyrn was so proud of.

Finally her facade started to crack, just a bit. Wish started to snarl, but she caught herself quickly and turned it into a simper, murmuring a submissive, "Yes, of course, sir."

She put her back to both men as she climbed onto the bed, easily wriggling out of her undergarment and folding them to lay them on top of her dress. She sat back on her heels and tilted her head at the Essyrni man, eyeing his form none too subtly.

She seemed thoroughly unimpressed. Nevertheless, she laid back to prop herself up on her elbows, still with that birdlike tilt to her head.

"Disappointed?" He asked with a sneer, obviously aware that she was not exactly impressed with him, and equally obviously he did not care whether she approved of what she saw or not. "I hope you weren't expecting that this was about you getting anything you wanted. You are just a northern sow, good for two things: bringing me pleasure and breeding more slaves."

Zenith shifted his weight in the corner, giving a low chuckle. To be fair - in Essyrn most women were viewed as little more than breeding vessels, but his amusement stemmed more from his master's own ignorance as to the danger he was in.

A good slave would warn his master and protect him. He should have chained her to the bed so that she could be more safely ravaged by the disgusting man he was forced to call his owner until she was broken and all thoughts of fighting back or resisting had been disciplined out of her. Zenith was not a good slave, and so other than that dark laugh, he remained silent.

His master ignored him, climbing on his knees on the bed and gripping Wish's knees to try to push them apart.

If the man had been paying attention, he might have seen lavender eyes flash with a glimmer of scarlet for just a moment.

"I understand, sir," she said softly, allowing him to push her knees apart. She could've resisted in that moment, she supposed, but this was more fun. She wanted him to think he was in control until the last possible moment.

Probably crossing the line for a slave- but she was just a foreigner, what did she know?- she raised her hand to cup his cheek and tilt his head so he was meeting her eyes.

She smiled without showing her teeth. There was just enough power left in her for her to murmur, "You want me to do this. You enjoy my touch. You won't fight me."

The hypnosis wasn't by any means a sure thing- in her semi-weakened state it worked best on those with soft wills- but she had a feeling it would be enough to make him compliant for a few moments, and that was all she needed.

As soon as her legs opened he was crawling between them, holding himself above her and looking down at her lecherously. He flinched slightly as her hand came up, but smirked when the touch was so light as to almost be affectionate.

It had amused him that she had been so eager to comply with him, thinking her just some stupid whore hoping to be pampered.

What he should have felt was alarm.

Especially when she started talking, but he was too arrogant and too stupid. He stared down at her, brows furrowing in confusion. "I want..."

Zenith shifted again, leaning forward to watch with gleeful anticipation as he sensed this game the girl was playing rising to its climax. The dragon didn't want to miss a moment of the grand finale of this little unfolding drama.

"Yes," Wish purred, leaning up to feather an almost sweet kiss to his cheek, then his lips. "You want this."

Her kisses trailed to his jaw. "Just relax," she breathed as her lips moved to hover over his neck. Her eyes flicked to the dragon standing in the corner and she smirked, flashing her fangs. If he wanted a show, she'd give him a show.

She pressed a soft kiss to the man's neck, just over his jugular. She could feel the blood rushing under his skin and a soft rumble rose up in her chest.

And she bit down, sinking fangs into flesh as easily as a knife through butter.

It was possible to feed and be gentle about it, but this pig didn't deserve that. With a growl Wish jerked her head to the side, ripping open his throat. Then she bent over him, pinning his shoulders to the bed as his body jerked and spasmed in death throws, and started to drink.

It wasn't as if Zenith wanted to remain standing in the corner, he'd have loved to get closer and observe up close and personal, but his master had commanded him to stand in the corner until he was needed by him and as long as the stupid man breathed the dragon was compelled to obey.

Her prey, for that was all the man was by now, fell into a helpless stupor. He groaned softly at the soft kisses, enjoying her attention in his last moments. Even as her fangs sank into his neck he couldn't muster any struggle. It wasn't until his throat was ripped open, spraying his blood onto her olive skin - and the bed - that his body reacted to the threat. Of course it was far to late to save itself.

Zenith's eyes, red as the blood staining Wish's flesh, dilated as he watched his former master's body twitch and finally become still as the vampiric girl feasted on his lifeblood. It was rather glorious to watch a predator trap and destroy it's prey.

Of course being the predator was even more fun.

With the master dead, the dragon no longer need obey the command to remain banished to the sidelines. It did mean that before very long Zenith would be forced to return to his prison, but first he needed to collect on his contract. He approached the bed, gazing down at Wish with a toothy grin, flashing his fangs at her. "Don't be greedy now. You may have earned his blood, but his soul is mine."

"Oh." Wish sat back on her heels, smiling at him through the blood staining her face. Her whole body was spattered in it, but at the moment she couldn't care less. "Of course, be my guest." She gestured to the body sprawled on the bed in front of her.

Licking her lips and wiping at some of the blood trickling from the corner of her mouth, she asked with a curious head tilt, "Are you free now?" Most binding spells she knew would end with the death of the "master"- though he had said something about his chains predating this current bond.

As soon as she moved out of his way, Zenith leaned down over the corpse, pressing his lips to those of his former master for a few moments before slowly drawing back, his own lips parted. A wispy mist would seem to be drawn from the dead man into the dragon's mouth. He growled in pleasure, eyelids flickering as he consumed yet another wicked soul owed to him.

Too bad it wasn't so sweet and delectable as someone pure and innocent.

Task done he straightened back up, glancing over at the vampire with a grimace as he was reminded yet again of his own folly. "In a sense. My contact is fulfilled with this pathetic creature, but now I will leave this world again until a new master claims my leash."

Wish tilted her head the other way, absently licking at the blood on her hand in an almost catlike manner. "Do you want to go?" she asked curiously, an idea forming in the back of her mind.

She suddenly started a bit and flashed a quick smile. "Oh, pardon, I'm being rude. Did you want something more corporeal than a soul?" She gestured to the body again. Not being a full vampire, she didn't require quite as much blood. As far as she was concerned, the dragon could do what he liked with what was left.

"Would you wish to return to an eternal prison? Even my own personal hell becomes very dull after a time." Zenith sighed and ran a finger through the blood on the body's chest, then brought it too his lips, sampling it before making another face. "A bitter, small man to the very end."

His tail flickered behind him in mild agitation. "Perhaps there is just enough time for me to take some pleasure in this world before being forced back. This dog could not afford the prettiest of wives, but listening to their screams as I send them to join their fool husband would be far sweeter a revenge for his arrogant mishandling of my time than anything else."

She frowned at that, shaking her head at him. "Could I convince you not to do that? The man deserved his fate, certainly, but I'm not sure the women he abused do."

Her eyes moved up and down his form, calculating. She certainly couldn't stop him if he really set his mind to something- he positively dwarfed her, and she had no interest in testing what exactly he could do in terms of magic.

So she'd have to hope she could talk him out of it. "What if I could prevent you from being sent back to your prison? Would that be payment enough to leave the women alone?"

"People that deserve to die live long, prosperous lives and people that deserve to live die young and impoverished. This has nothing to do with what they deserve." No, it had everything to do with what Zenith thought he deserved. That man had humiliated him and he could not even kill him! Those women held no such protection from him, and now that the man was dead why not unleash himself on whomsoever he pleased?

Her suggestion caused him to throw his head back and laugh almost manically. It took a moment for him to calm himself. What she barely dared to hint at was comical at best. "Prevent me from going back?"

His crimson eyes were malicious as he fixated his gaze on her. "You have no idea what you suggest. What do you think you could do for me to make me shackle myself to a soft-hearted woman that would spoil my sport?" Zenith's level of darkness and depravity were not something he hid from anyone, and just by asking him to spare the women he could guess that he would not be getting much worthwhile from the little vampire who thought herself so clever.

At least the fool man had allowed him some fun.

"Perhaps I don't." Wish shrugged. "I just thought you may prefer more time away from your personal hell, even if it meant being shackled to a...soft-hearted woman." She'd ever particularly thought of herself as such, but she supposed in comparison she was.

She shrugged again and leaned back on the bed. "I could offer you different sport, though. Perhaps more challenging. I always find those kills to be more satisfying anyway, don't you? A group of broken, terrified women is hardly a proper hunt."

"Who says my desire to harm them has anything to do with hunting? Perhaps I am more interested in outright butchery in this instance." Zenith ignored the comment about returning to his personal hell - he didn't want to go back, but he wasn't going to show his eagerness to stay either. It was unbecoming to seem desperate and downright sinful to show weakness.

Making himself loom as he began moving towards Wish, focusing his frustration on her, Zenith let his voice dip into a lower, more menacing tone. "Perhaps you would be willing to take their place in my amusement if you pity them so much."

An instinctive shiver of fear ran down her spine, but she pushed it away. "That would depend on how you planned to amuse yourself," she replied evenly. "I can think of several options I would be more than happy to provide you with. But if you simply plan to butcher me, I'm afraid I must decline."

She smiled a bit and moved to get off the bed, trying to pretend his looming presence didn't have her on edge. "Besides, didn't you say you would be forced back soon? Surely what I'm offering is a preferable alternative- years ahead of you to slake your bloodlust, rather than hours."

"Oh so there are options?" His voice taunted her, barbing her with underlying tones of amusement. Zenith knew that she was not a stupid creature and did not hold the same unjustifiable arrogance as his former master. No, this little dove knew better than to not be afraid.

He knew that she knew, and he wanted to make sure she knew that he knew it too. If he wanted to do something to her... how would she stop him?

Zenith blocked her as she tried to rise from the bed, towering in front of her and leaning down to stare into her eyes. His crimson pupils had dilated to mere vertical slits and his lips were pulled back into a smirk. "Years trapped with a troublesome master with poor terms would most certainly not be better. If you don't want to be my last amusement before leaving this world, I suggest you offer me very appealing terms."

Wish gasped- she tried to swallow it, but the small breath managed to slip past her lips. Knowing better than to resist, she allowed him to keep her pretty much pinned to the bed, staring up at him.

"I am allowed to dictate terms then?" she murmured softly. She'd been rather under the impression that would be left up to him, but she supposed it was part of whatever binding held him. "Very well. I cannot offer you fields of blood and gore, but I can promise you would hardly go a day without being able to kill something. We'd have to be relatively subtle on occasion, unfortunately, but not too often."

She let her eyes flick from his face to his wings, his claws, then back. "I can promise I would never disrespect what you are. A creature such as yourself is no mere slave, and I would not treat you as such. And..." A considering sort of frown stole across her face. "Do you have the same lusts of flesh that most males do? I could provide for that as well, if you wished."

Zenith wished he was allowed to dictate the terms of his contracts, but then he would not really have any master. No, he could not force the stipulations of his contract, only manipulate as much as he could out of the poor fool negotiating with him. The dead man on the bed had been willing to give him plenty of innocent souls to torment, but little else of real appeal - besides his own soul.

That was always non-negotiable.

A piece of parchment appeared in a flash of flames, but it was black as night and words began scrawling themselves across the surface in bright crimson that looked suspiciously like blood. The dragon chuckled softly.

"You will respect what I am and the power I hold - you will provide me a lifestyle befit a creature such as myself. I am quite amiable to luxury and pampering, you will come to find. I will become an instrument of your will and a weapon in exchange for your devoted care to my needs. Fortunately for you I will be incapable of bring you physical harm, but unfortunately for you I will always find loopholes if I become ill-content." It was not an idle threat or warning.

Amusement flashed in his eyes as he looked over her naked and blood-splattered form, a claw running over her skin lightly from her throat down between her breasts. "As for my lusts, how do you propose to provide for them? Personally? If you are so against my harming that pig's precious little breeding cunts I doubt you would take pleasure in subjecting poor, innocent women to a monster such as I. You mortal females are so very picky about your males. How many little whores do you think you can find that would willingly allow me to fuck them?"

He was purposely being crude just to toy with her. Zenith wanted to see her reactions as he attempted to push her buttons.

Her eyes widened slightly as the parchment appeared and she muttered, "Neat trick." She listened to his restating of the terms intently, determined to commit them to memory.

She had no doubt about his ability to find loopholes, and she wanted to be prepared for any eventuality.

A shiver rippled through her when his claw traced over her skin and she took in a shuddering breath, not entirely sure herself if the feeling was purely fear or...maybe a little of something else. Power was attractive, she had to admit, even power that was so obviously dangerous.

"You're right," she murmured. His crude language didn't seem to have much effect on her, but she couldn't hide the goosbumps that rose up on her skin, again that combination of fear and a curious sort of desire. "I would not give you innocents to toy with. I...suppose I would offer myself, if I am to your liking. But you must understand I have my own needs in that particular department."


[Feel like I should throw up an M here, just to be safe 0.0]

Zenith chuckled at the shiver his claw caused as it traced across her skin, his eyes glinting with pride and amusement at her reactions. He could sense that she liked the power he radiated, he wondered if she liked it as much as she feared it, because he could sense the ripples of fear that went through her lithe body.

"Aww, such a pity, but I suppose it cannot be helped." Given her reaction to his intent to harm the little wives of the house he had expected as much as her refusal to give him innocent toys. "What of the ones that are not so innocent?"

He purposely ignored her comments about giving herself to slake his lusts as long as he 'understood' that she had needs too. His hand smoothed over her stomach, allowing his warm scales to glide across her moist flesh, smearing her with the cooling blood of his once master. As he waited for her response he tilted his head down, allowing his tongue to snake out and lick a little stray blood from her jaw. Slowly.

The crimson letters were still forming on the parchment as it continued to document the agreements they reached.

"Those-" She had to pause to swallow and draw in a shaky breath, arching up into him a bit quite unconsciously. "Those...I would have no problem with you claiming. As long as I was allowed a say in who you deemed as not innocent."

Wish tilted her head a bit to the side, offering the cooling blood that had trickled down to her neck. Normally she hated going too long without washing the blood of a kill off, but she was willing to indulge him as he smeared it over her stomach.

"My name is Wisteria, by the way," she murmured, shifting a bit to try to look at his face again. "Would you give me yours?"

"That is...acceptable." Zenith conceded, while thinking that as long as his mistress was not too lenient in her condemnation. If she always deemed everyone too innocent to be an acceptable toy then it would of course become completely intolerable, but for now it was something he could bear.

He liked the way her breath became uneven and her body responded to him. Perhaps she was not a complete waste.

His tongue continued its slow trail, cleaning the blood from her skin for a little longer before he relented and raised his head so that he could match her gaze. "I am Zenith, and we have reached acceptable terms."

The dragon slowly removed himself from his hovering position, snatching the document from the air and bringing a claw up to scratch his bottom lip, producing a bead of blood which he pressed lightly against the bottom of the contract as his only signature. Satisfied he offered it to her with a smirk. "You need only sign with a drop of blood, but I do have to warn you of the final condition..." Pointing at his old master with a claw he relished informing her of this last payment. "In exchange for my service for as long as you live, I must be given a soul in exchange. Yours."

"Ah." So taking his old master's soul hadn't been just a whim then.

Well. She was damned anyway, wasn't she? What difference was there between which devil would eventually claim her soul? May as well take advantage of his power while she could.

"I see." She eyed the contract, then him. Carefully, she allowed one of her fangs to prick her bottom lip and held her hand out for the parchment. "Tell me something- will you claim my soul as you did his? Eat it? Or would you... I don't know, torment it somehow?"

She hesitated only a moment before pressing the dot of blood beading on her lip below his. She'd never believed in much of an afterlife anyway, so she supposed it didn't really matter what happened to her soul once she died.

"I believe we have a deal, Zenith."

"Once it is mine I will do with it as I see fit." Zenith shrugged his shoulders as he watched her eagerly as she pricked her bottom lip. "Ultimately it will be a reversal of our roles. In death you become the slave. Your soul will reside in my hell, but how bad it will be for you depends on how much I wish to hurt you by the time you die."

The dragon glanced at the corpse on the bed with a sneer. "If I find your service bearable enough you will live a long and prosperous life."

Once the blood sealed the contract it disappeared in a puff of smoke and Zenith grinned broadly. He would be able to remain in the mortal world for at least a little while longer. With any luck Wisteria would not prove to be a nuisance of a mistress and he could have his future secured for many years to come.

"What is my mistress's first command?"

"I understand the terms then." Alright. All she had to do was not get on his bad side for the next century or two, and hopefully her afterlife would not be completely unbearable.

The contract disappearing was an interesting little trick in and of itself, but it didn't hold her interest long. Her eyes flicked up to Zenith's and she smiled almost coyly, fangs glinting.

"My first command..." She tilted her head from side to side, considering. Her hand reached up curiously to touch his face, but she stopped just short of contact, asking politely, "May I?"

She was most curious about his wings, if she was being honest, but if he'd allow her to touch the scales on his body that would be enough for now. She didn't want to waste a true command on something so trivial, it seemed silly.

Though she was thinking hard on what her command should be. She had the feeling she needed to be careful with each and every order, or things would go south for her fast.

The only danger of her commands was that if she left them open for too much interpretation Zenith could carry them out in completely unexpected ways, leading to results and consequences that Wish couldn't even fathom.

Amusement glinted in those malevolent blood eyes and he lifted his clawed hand to cup over hers, pressing her palm against his cheek. "My body is yours to do with as you see fit, Mistress. Touch me as much as you like, learn all you wish about every part of me. The more you know and understand the more effectively you can put me to use."

He chuckled and ran the claws of his other hand along her hip. "And I am no genie, Mistress, there are not a limited number of wishes. Your every command is my prerogative."

For now.

"Hmm." Another tingling shiver ran up her spine. "I rather like the sound of that."

Lips curving up on one side, she stroked her thumb over the line of his cheekbone and skated her fingers up to curiously feel at the horns on his brow. "I think I'd like to be cleaned," she decided, voice a low purr.

Her eyes flickered to the hand at her hip and she smirked slightly. "The way you did before. With your tongue. That was...surprisingly pleasant. Do you think you could take care of the rest of this?" She gestured to the spatters of blood staining her olive skin, eyes glinting almost playfully.

Of course she liked the sound of that. Who wouldn't like the sound of a powerful creature like himself being at their disposal? Zenith closed his eyes lightly as her fingers began exploring the small horns that ridged his brow softly.

"Cleaned?" It wasn't as if he could refuse the very first request his new mistress made, but it was amusing to say the least. At least it was an easy command to obey. That pig's blood would taste so much sweeter when licked off such delectable skin. He gripped her hips with both hands, scooting her up on the bed so that he could position himself comfortably over her. He lowered his head down, letting his lips and tongue trail over her chin with a deep purr.

"Does my Mistress wish for me to work my way down until she's all...clean?" Zenith could barely contain a chuckle as he lapped his tongue lazily at her throat.

Wish tensed for a moment, very aware of how close his sharp teeth were to her skin. If she was being honest with herself, that was part of his appeal, balancing on that razor edge between pleasure and danger.

A soft, blissful sigh escaped her as his tongue moved to her throat and she let her eyes flutter closed for a moment. "Yes," she whispered. "Yes, I do."

Taking advantage of how close she was, she let her hands slide from exploring the scales on his face down to his shoulders, then around to his back. Her fingers traced curiously over the places where wing membrane melted seamlessly into skin. "Incredible," she murmured almost unconsciously.

Zenith knew that power had its own appeal, but he had to admit he was slightly surprised that Wisteria had agreed to tend to his carnal needs personally - at least so quickly. He hadn't needed to convince her at all, and she seemed eager enough to have his attention so focused on her. Why really shouldn't matter, only that she allowed him to use her in his own turn, but he was curious.

Most mortal women would have found him monstrous or simply too intimidating to willingly copulate with such a beastly male as himself.

The dragon let his tongue slide over her collarbone, cleaning the blood from her skin while leaving behind a warm, moist trail of his saliva - which probably felt marginally better than blood. His tongue was long, warm, and flexible, at least next to a normal sized man of a more human nature. Beneath her hands, Wisteria would feel his powerful muscles flexing with her exploratory touches.

He raised his head from his task to tut softly at her as she touched his wings. "I'm glad you approve, Mistress. I hadn't realized you had such unorthodox tastes." Zenith teased her, punctuating his words with a soft squeeze to one of her breasts, just barely allowing her to feel his claws against her skin. He couldn't hurt her, after all, but he did enjoy giving little reminders of just who, and what, she was dealing with.

She chuckled a little breathlessly, arching up a bit into his touch as her hands continued to explore his back and wings, then moved a little lower to tease curiously at his waist. The prick of his claws sent a little shiver down her spine and she gave a soft sigh of pleasure.

"Most of my kind have unorthodox tastes," she murmured, sliding her hands back up to hold his shoulders gently. Giving him a fang tipped grin, she added, "Though I'll admit I'm a bit more...adventurous than most."

Feeling bold, and relatively confident that it wouldn't offend him too badly, she leaned up and flicked her tongue over the small cut on his bottom lip, more curious than anything else. "Hmm... Power is attractive, Zenith. Tantalizing. The threat of being overpowered but never quite reaching that point..." She shrugged and smirked. "Even more so."

She shifted a bit beneath him, sliding up on the bed so he could more easily reach the patches of blood on her breasts and stomach. "You don't have to call me Mistress you know, unless you want to. Wisteria is fine. Wish, if you prefer."

It was undoubtedly a curious mixture of textures she felt as her hands explored. While his scales were warm and relatively smooth, they were quite different feeling than his skin which was smoother and a little cooler than the more reptilian features. Zenith shifted his hips slightly, enjoying the attention he was being paid. His vanity did love to be stroked with the sweet sensation of admiration.

"Your kind?" He questioned idly, wondering if she meant vampires or mortals, because from his experience humans were rather timid and easily frightened wastes.

A hot breath was released as her tongue flicked over his lip, his blood was near scalding and very potent. The dragon laughed quietly at her explanation for her lack of repulsion with his strange appearance. "If it is power that wets your appetite I must be attractive, indeed. Of course if it is a threat of being overpowered that makes you squirm I can oblige you."

Oh yes, if she liked the idea of being made to feel powerless he could easily tickle her fantasies - even better for her that he couldn't hurt her.

Zenith chuckled as she moved up the bed and told him what he could call her, without answering he lowered his head to run his mouth over her chest, allowing his fangs to lightly touch her skin once as he ran his tongue over the top of her breast, growling softly as he kneaded the flesh gently with his hand while his mouth covered her sweet bud, suckling lightly.

Had to make sure it was nice and clean for his mistress.

The taste of his blood lingered on her tongue, almost like a fine wine, though she had a feeling if she'd tried to truly drink from him it would have scalded her throat.

"Yes, my kind. Vampires, though I suppose technically that is only half of what I am-" Her voice cut off with a sharp breath as his mouth closed over her breast and she shivered agreeably. She had become rather addicted to the feeling of running her hands over him, particularly where skin changed to scales, loving the exotic sensation under her fingertips, but for a moment she went perfectly still.

Then she gave a shuddering sigh and relaxed a bit more beneath him. "Make me squirm, hm?" she mused playfully. "Normally that is not such an easy task, but something tells me you will be rather adept at it."

Wish tilted her head a bit so she could look at him as he worked over her, and she raised one hand from his back to stroke lightly over one of the horns that grew from his skull. Her other hand moved down to his hip, fingers digging in just a bit when every so often his attentions made her tense.

Demons above and below, this was like nothing she could have imagined. Her chest tightened, heat coiling low in her belly and making her shift her hips slightly.

If his mouth weren't so very preoccupied he might have laughed at the way he made her choke off mid-sentence. Instead Zenith settled for softly humming and growling around her breast as he paid her close attention.

At least until she spoke again.

He pulled his mouth back, releasing her pert nipple after a gentle tug. "I have had a long time and much experience with making females squirm. Sadistic as I might be, you won't be the first woman I have pleasured and left unharmed."

Then his mouth descended on her other breast, paying it the same attention as he cleaned it of every drop of blood. One of his hands smoothed down her stomach as she squirmed her hips, teasing just softly at her mound. He couldn't completely neglect that while his mouth was preoccupied elsewhere, now could he?

"Ohhh..." Wish sighed appreciatively as his attention traveled south and arched up into him again almost unconsciously. "Mmm, that...I can believe," she murmured, letting her eyes flutter half closed.

She normally wasn't so docile, preferring to move a bit, but she found simply allowing him to pay her such attention was quite gratifying in its own way. Still, she found herself stretching out over the bed and her arm bumped into the body of the dead master.

Frowning slightly, she gave the corpse a shove to roll it off the bed, giving herself more room to spread out. "Much better," she muttered, almost to herself. Experimentally, she bent one knee to press her leg against Zenith's hip before cautiously hooking her leg onto the slight dip of his waist.

"You know, I've always found these things to be more gratifying if the pleasure is mutual," she noted softly, glancing down at him as he suckled her breast. "Is there anything in particular you enjoy?"

An appreciative hum rumbled through the dragon at her sigh of pleasure. His scaly finger only gently stroking its way up and down her wet slit. Zenith obviously only intended to tease her with the touches not to use them as a means of reaching satisfaction. No, that would come later.

He couldn't help but laugh softly as the bed was cleared of the dead body they had been sharing it with. Not that it particularly bothered him to have sex next to a corpse, but it would give them more room to work with, and given his size more room would probably come in handy at some point. Sooner rather than later.

Zenith gave a final pull on her breast before raising his head to look up at her with a smirk. Given their size difference, it was going to be difficult for them to please each other at the same time in their current position. "I enjoy many things."

He swiped his tongue across her stomach, clearing a line in the smeared blood before leaning up on his knees. The feeble loin cloth that had served as dressing was woefully inadequate now. It hung to the side as his erection jutted out proudly. Zenith was a behemoth of a male in all other respects, that his member would also be larger than normal men only made sense.

The organ was covered in rich dark skin, with pulsing purple-red veins. Aside from his size, it looked fairly normal in shape. "Does this also meet with your approval?" He smirked arrogantly, quite confident that it would.

She curled up slightly as his tongue swiped across her stomach with a soft gasp, then propped herself onto her elbows so she could watch with unabashed interest as he leaned back onto his knees.

Her eyebrows crept toward her hairline and she licked her lips in a rather predatory fashion. Leaning forward, she deftly untied the loin cloth and tossed it carelessly aside- it wasn't as though it was really doing much now anyway.

"Very much so," she purred, flicking her eyes up from his length to his face with a small smirk. "But you knew that." She trailed her fingers lightly up the inside of his thigh, paying close attention to the blending of skin and scales, before her direction veered off to trace her fingertips over his hip.

"Do I also meet with your approval?" she asked suddenly, curiously. Her hands grasped his hips gently and she leaned into him until her cheek rested against erection, eyes on his face. "Be honest, I'm not going to be offended."

The covering fluttered to the floor without a care. Zenith held not a shred of self-consciousness about his body. It did not bother him to walk about in a crowd with just that scrap of silk to cover him, but he'd have been equally unabashed to roam completely naked.

"Yes, I did." He rumbled softly as he stared down at his mistress smugly. It felt nice, the way her fingers teased along the places where skin and scale collided.

His eyes fell to half-lidded as he enjoyed the attention Wish lavished upon him. The way she looked at him when first seeing all his glory stroked his ego. He could tell she desired him, and what male didn't love it when a female wanted him so obviously as this one did?

"If you didn't do you think I would have agreed to bind myself to you? Or that this..." Here Zenith grabbed himself by the base of his length and squeezed his way up a little so that precum oozed from his tip, showing off how hard and anxious his sex was for her warmth and attention. "...would be so eager?"

"Hmm." She watched the movement of his hand with the attention of a predator on the hunt, licking her lips again unconsciously. "I suppose that's a good point."

Her eyes flicked up to his face again and she wrapped her hand over his, then slid it down to the base of his length, head tilted curiously all the while. She shifted onto her knees, pressing her legs together in an effort to relieve some of the tension building in her core. She sort of nuzzled against him, eyes drifting half closed with a soft croon as her hand started to move.

Falling into a gentle rhythm, Wish twisted her head and pressed an oddly chaste, sweet kiss to the tip of him, eyes on his face again. "I want you," she breathed. "Now. Please."

She supposed it could have been an order, but that made her feel...awkward about the whole thing.

Zenith let his eyes fall closed as her hands wrapped around him, tilting his head back as he moved on hand to run his claws carefully through Wish's hair. He wished she would take him into her mouth, but he forced himself to be patient. She was the mistress and would do that when she was good and ready. Besides, the longer it was drawn out...

He breathed out a soft groan, dropping his head forward as she kissed him softly and demanded that he give it to her. Well, she was the mistress and he really wanted to.

A clawed hand seized her face as he leaned down, holding her as his lips caught hers, tongue forcing its way into her mouth in a hungry kiss. Pulling away his hands seized her wrists as he pushed her back down on the bed, pinning her easily beneath his body as he positioned himself between her legs.

His tip teased along her folds, sliding down until it caught at her entrance. Zenith kissed her again before steadily sliding himself into her, inch by delicious inch until he stretched and touched every part of her.

"Like this?" He teased as he pulled his lips away, giving an experimental grind of his hips - just to make sure they were thoroughly joined.

Her breath caught in her throat and she growled into that kiss, parting her lips for him easily and arching her back in an effort to get as much contact as she could when he pinned her to the bed.

Wish gasped as she felt the tip of him teasing along her heat, then he was sliding into her and she groaned softly, drawing her bottom lip between her teeth as she stared up at him through heavy lashes.

"Yes," she breathed when he pulled away. "Exactly- mmn- like that." Her hips rocked up gently to meet his, drawing a shivering mewl from her lips as that ground them together quite deliciously. She slid her hands down his sides to grip his rear and pull him more tightly against her, a challenge glinting in her eyes.

Zenith growled softly as she pulled him in tighter, tilting his head down and running his lips along her jaw, sliding his fangs softly against her skin. Had it been any other woman, he would not have been so gentle. The dragon would have drawn blood and not held back from brutally rutting her until his own needs were satisfied. He'd have left her battered and broken - perhaps dead.

As it was, his eyes had narrowed at the way she challenged him. His hips rolled harshly, delivering a powerful thrust, pushing as hard and deep as he dared. Zenith couldn't hurt her, but he could make her ache if she wanted it rough.

Groaning hotly against her skin, for no matter his arrogance she felt quite amazing, he began rolling his hips in a slow but hard rhythm.

Wish tossed her head back with a soft cry at that first thrust, fingers digging into his skin as her hands clenched unconsciously. Her lashes fluttered against her cheeks and she groaned quietly when he started to fall into a rhythm, subtle shivers wracking her frame.

Curious, she moved one hand to stroke her fingers along the base of his tail, sort of dancing her touch between skin and scales. But it was rather hard to focus her attention on anything but the way he was moving against her for long, and she started to rock her hips up to meet his as she fell into the rhythm.

She turned her head to kiss his neck, scraping her fangs gently over his skin as he had done to her. Instinct demanded she bite down, drink her fill of him, but she knew that wasn't a wise idea. Still, the image haunted her, and as she moved to kiss his jaw she murmured, "If I told you to...could you bite me?"

The bedding was really no match for Zenith's claws as they tore through both sheets and mattress as he gripped the bed for even better leverage when angling his thrusts. It prided him to feel soft shivers going through his mistress as he roughly drove into her over and over again.

A breath hissed through his clenched teeth when her fingers began stroking at the base of his tail. The appendage arched into her hand and his hips gave a particularly hard buck forward as a reward for the attention. It caught him by surprise when her lips at his jaw caused him to shiver slightly, but her soft question was answered immediately by his fangs sinking into her neck.

A small amount of her blood flooded his mouth, but he'd take care to puncture a tender, fleshy area away from large veins and arteries. A deep, rumbling groan vibrated through him as his hips began moving a bit faster.

"A-ah!" Wish wrapped an arm around his shoulders, clutching him to her as her other hand continued to stroke the base of his tail, quite enjoying the reaction it got out of him.

The flash of pain from the bite was nothing compared to the pleasure that followed. She'd been with other vampires before, and had found that feeding from each other during sex inspired an illicit sort of thrill.

But this was a dozen times more potent. Her kisses grew fiercer, hungrier, and against her better judgement she scraped her fangs along the slope of his neck and shoulder, not quite enough to puncture skin, and her hand on his tail clenched involuntarily, nails catching at his scales.

Not many people stroked his tail - regardless of whether they were in the middle of being ravished by him or not. It was an erotic sensation, and Zenith purred in pleasure when she continued to do it.

The dragon shifted his body, allowing more of his weight to settle on top of Wish, pressing their bodies close together as he moved harder and faster. His breathing changed, growing more ragged as he growled lowly in his throat as he suckled the skin of her neck, relishing the taste of her blood on his tongue.

He jerked his head back, growls evolving into a low hiss as her fingers clenched on his tail. Zenith drove himself into her as deeply as he could and ground their hips together almost frantically as his sex grew hotter and swelled slightly further.

"Give in, Mistress." It was no secret what she wanted to do. His blood was hot and powerful and she was a vampire.

Wish groaned low in her throat, back arching as she dug her heels into the mattress to get more leverage and angle her hips up into his. She figured out he enjoyed the attention she was paying his tail and put more effort into it.

His words drew another groan from her throat and her eyes flashed, hungry, predatory. With a quiet growl she tilted her head and slid her fangs into his neck. Like him, she took care to bite away from any major veins, pricking just enough to draw a taste of blood.

Her eyes widened and she moaned against his skin as the hot liquid filled her mouth, almost burning in its intensity. Any self control she'd held vanished and she lapped eagerly at his neck, hips bucking against his in harsh, desperate strokes.

"Zenith." His name came from her lips unbidden, purred against his neck as she licked and suckled at the small puncture wounds she'd left.

"So close." He growled lowly against her skin, not sure if he was warning her or bragging.

Whatever control Zenith had been exercising vanished when she purred his name against his neck as she lapped at his blood. He groaned hotly, tangling his claws in her hair and pulling her head away from him so that he could kiss her fiercely, letting their blood mingle together as his tongue danced against hers.

His hips had a mind of their own and seemed intent to drive Wisteria into the mattress, and it did not take very long at all of such intense thrusting for him to begin spraying his hot seed deep inside her.

She nodded, not sure herself if it was in acknowledgement of his words or agreement. A small sound of surprise caught in her throat when his lips came crashing down on hers, but she certainly wasn't complaining. Her arms wrapped around him, fingers digging into his shoulders as she arched up under him with a heated gasp.

Wish wasn't quite sure what exactly it was that drove her over the edge, but suddenly his hips were crashing into hers and every muscle in her body tensed, her back arching and a cry slipping past her lips as she tore away from the kiss to toss her head back.

She could feel his own release and shuddered delightedly, panting beneath him while still clutching him against her, riding through the last waves of pleasure from her own peak with a few soft mews and murmured praises.

Even after he had emptied his seed into her, Zenith continued to move his hips for a short while, until he began to soften slowly. He finally stilled, lingering inside her and against her as he caught his breath. Wish was clutching him anyway.

When he grew tired of being pressed against her the dragon drew himself back, slowly slipping from inside her as he backed his way off the bed; crimson eyes looking down at her smugly. His new mistress had enjoyed being taken by a monstrous beast like him. Well, he knew she would. Her attraction to him was not only obvious, but she'd said as much outright.

"Now that you've been sated, perhaps we can focus on your business in Essyrn." Zenith said matter-of-factly despite him being responsible for that lusty detour as much, if not more, than Wisteria. "Didn't you say you were looking for someone?"

Wish simply laid on the bed as Zenith gradually moved off of her, giving a soft sigh of reluctance before pushing herself up onto her elbows and looking at him with a wry sort of smile. She sort of envied how easily he could brush off the encounter, she was still feeling a little light-headed herself.

"Right. Of course." Another soft breath and she sat up, stretching her arms over her head and arching her back before she reached for her clothes at the end of the bed. "I am. My brother- well, half brother. He runs a brothel called the Stray Cat, but I'm not sure where to find it."

She fell quiet for a few moments as she pulled on her dress, but slowly a small frown started to steal across her face. She tilted her head in a considering sort of way, the pleasant soreness between her legs prompting her to look up at him with a thoughtful sort of expression. "Zenith," she started slowly. "Can you...breed with mortal women?"

It probably shouldn't have been surprising that a demonic dragon could recover so quickly. Zenith found a clean section of the sheet and used it to clean the mess of their encounter off of himself before moving to find his discarded loincloth. He was listening as he put his scrap of clothing back around his waist, making sure that it properly covered himself so as not to upset the sensibilities of stupid humans once they left this place.

"A brothel you say? The Stray Cat sounds like a rather unfortunate name - or a very clever one." He actually laughed softly as he thought of another word interchangeable with both a feline and female body part. "My former master might have known where to find this place."

Zenith wasn't sure where this brothel was located, but what use did he have for such places? Why would he pay for the use of a female when he could simply take what he wanted? Well, he could have if it weren't for the shackles that bound him. His previous master had given him toys to abuse, although not as often as he liked. Wisteria had promised herself to quell his lusts. Either way, brothels were highly unnecessary.

"Eh?" He arched a ridged, horned brow as much as he could at her question. Breeding with her hadn't crossed his mind, accidentally or otherwise. Most of his toys didn't live long enough for that to be a concern. Wisteria would be different. The dragon shrugged and made a dismissive gesture. "It is possible."

"Hmm." Well, that certainly might pose a problem, if only because Wisteria didn't have easy access to the proper herbs she would need to prevent a pregnancy here in Essyrn.

Hopefully the wording of their contract meant she could compel him to wait to slake his lusts until she could be more careful about the whole thing. It had been a foolish mistake on her part- though she couldn't deny the experience might have been worth it.

"I'll have to take care of that then," she murmured, more to herself than him. She had left her smallclothes on the bed, following Zenith's lead and scrubbing herself clean with a bit of sheet before finally slipping them on under her dress. "Alright."

She stood and straightened her skirt, then gave him that winning smile her father had taught her to employ to cajole and set at ease. "Do you perhaps know what district of the city such an establishment might be in?" Her eyes flicked to the corpse lying beside the bed and she crinkled her nose. "Should we...leave him? His wives will find him eventually, yes?"

Given Essyrn's views on women and child-bearing it was unlikely Wisteria would find any such herbs anywhere in the country outside houses of ill-repute. Lucky her they were seeking just such a place. Not that it mattered one way or another to Zenith. He hardly saw a problem.

"I wouldn't ask around about solutions to your little problem. All life is sacred, children are blessings, blah, blah, blah..." He mused. Everyone was supposed to hope that they had a child every time they bumped their naughty parts together. It was an idiotic notion to him. Then again, the dragon viewed most of the mortal races as rather stupid and unimpressive in general.

"Leave him to rot. It won't take long for him to begin reeking in the heat. I'm sure his little toys will find him rather quickly." His former master was no longer his problem. "I've no idea what part of the city it might be located. Shouldn't you have at least some idea where to find your own brother?"

"Noted." She frowned a bit- ridiculous notion, these Essyrnis seemed to enjoy denying women the right to control their own bodies in apparently every possible way.

So now she had two reasons to find her brother. Surely the owner of a brothel would be able to aid her in this, and from what her father had told her of the man he was rather softhearted. He'd probably jump at the chance to help a long lost sister.

She smirked a bit as she looked back at Zenith and moved toward the door to the room. "I've never actually met the man- in fact, this is my first trip to Essyrn. So no, I've no idea where to look." She huffed out a breath and shook her head. "Blood magic it is, then, I suppose. There'd probably be a bronze bowl in the kitchens here, yes?"

Zenith didn't much care how Essyrni treated women. What did it matter to him what mortals did to themselves? It didn't. Very little actually concerned him. All he had to worry about was keeping himself entertained and keeping his new Mistress just happy enough with him that she would allow him as much freedom as possible.

"I'm sure we can manage to find what you need for your magic." The dragon hummed, following Wish as she headed for the door before moving ahead of her to take the lead. After all, she didn't know where they were going in this house. "This way."

He led her down the hallways, which were fairly deserted, they only passed two slaves who did not so much as look at them His claws clicked on the marble of the kitchen floor as they entered the room, he gestured around lazily, not at all inclined to actually help her find or dig out her bowl from the many cabinets. "Here you are. Let's get this over with quickly. I'm sure it will be better if we're gone before they discover your little snack."

"Thank you, Zenith." It was strange to taste his name on her tongue without the mix of blood and passion. She followed him easily, looking around the deserted halls and eyeing the docile slaves curiously as they passed.

Once in the kitchens she slipped past him to begin rummaging through the cabinets, starting to hum softly to herself. "Yes, yes, I'll be quick." After a minute or so of searching, she turned up a bronze bowl that would work passably well- she would have preferred something of better quality, but ah well.

Placing the bowl on a counter, she held her finger to her lips and sunk her teeth into the soft pad, ripping open a small wound so she could drip blood onto the burnished metal. "Could you fetch me some warm water?" she tossed over her shoulder at the dragon, squeezing lightly to force more blood out with a small hiss of discomfort. 

Whatever little dabbling magic his mistress was up to didn't really interest Zenith. He folded his arms and waited impatiently as she began searching for her bowl. The dragon went so far as to tap a claw against the marble floor, causing a soft ticking sound as he remained idle.

At least until Wisteria asked him to fetch her something. Zenith released a sigh, but moved to do what he was told. Getting water, how domestic and boring. He needed something far more stimulating to preoccupy himself with. Still, his mistress had made a command - more like a request - but either way he was compelled to obey.

There was an empty pitcher on one of the counters and filled it from a basin. It wasn't really hot water, but it wasn't cool by any means. "How warm does this need to be?"

"Just...not cold. Tepid is fine." She took the pitcher from him and tested the water temperature with a finger, then nodded and poured a bit of it into the bowl.

Holding her still sluggishly bleeding hand over the bowl, she murmured a short incantation that seemed to make the shadows at the corner of the room flicker for a moment. Her eyes glowed scarlet, then faded quickly back to lavender.

Wish took a sharp breath and closed her eyes as though reorienting herself- and she was, now forcing her body to get used to the uncomfortable tugging sensation in her chest. "Alright. We can go, I know where he is," she said after a moment, throwing Zenith a quick smile before slipping back out of the kitchens. She was fairly sure she could make her way back out of the manor.

Zenith watched Wish perform her little blood ritual with only mild interest. It wasn't something he would be doing much of himself. Using the essence of souls wasn't quite the same thing, and above all else fire held the most potency in his magic.

"As you wish." It didn't much matter to him if they found her brother or not, after all. For the time being the demonic dragon was simply along for the ride.

He hated having to have a master to anchor him to this world, but that was the price he paid for getting overly arrogant. Not that his arrogance had improved much since his downfall, but that was just part of who and what he was.

His claws clicked and tapped against the floor, his tail swaying and dragging across the ground as he followed his mistress.

As they made their way to the entrance of the manor, Wish paused and glanced back at her new companion.

"This will probably be my last stop in Essyrn before going home- do you have any...unfinished business here?"

"What business might I have here? I am your slave, my only business in this world is your business." Zenith had always been kept in Essyrn, and because of the daytime heat he did enjoy the atmosphere, but there was nothing tying him to this place behind those that owned him.

Wish nodded. "Very well then." She fell quiet as she slipped out of the merchant's manor. Sooner or later someone would come across the body, but she wasn't overly concerned about that. She'd probably be long gone from the city by then, if there even was anything to implicate her presence or guilt, as it were, at all.

Essyrn was large, and without the blood spell guiding her, she probably would have been hopelessly lost. As it was, she followed a fairly straightforward path down into the lower districts of the city, ducking easily through the occasional crowded market.

She had a feeling something of the ease of her passage was aided by the massive presence now accompanying her, but didn't pay it much mind. As long as she could finish her business without interruption, she was content.

Zenith was completely unreadable as he followed the woman that had become his Mistress. People scrambled out of their way, but the dragon didn't so much as glance at the humans that shared the streets with him. They clearly feared him, and equally as clearly they were beneath his notice. What did gods care for the presence of insects?

At least until they made a nuisance of themselves.

"Are we close? What business did you have with your brother?" Zenith wasn't sure if he had asked already or not, but he hardly cared.

"Well..." Wish frowned slightly as they ducked down a slim alley. "It's...more of an introduction than business, you see. We've never actually met."

She paused, re-centering herself, then smiled. They were close. She strode out into a little side street; they were now quite clearly in the red light district.

"So I suppose we must start with the introductions, then I have a proposition for him. Our father would like his aide. Family matters, that is all."

Introductions and family matters.

"How boring." Zenith would just have to find ways to entertain himself. Hopefully there would be more interesting things going on with his new Mistress later. If nothing else he could always try to bed her again.

That had been a satisfactory experience.

"Hm, yes, very boring." Wish didn't feel the need to elaborate on her business with Darius. The less her new companion knew about her family's convoluted nonsense, the better.

Gods, sometimes she wished she was more in the dark about it.

"Ah, there it is!" She gestured to a rather lavish three-story building just a little ways down the street. Compared to the other, similar establishments scattered throughout the city, it seemed almost...high class. Gauzy fabric hung in the open doorway and draped out the windows, the smell of incense billowed out into the street, music and laughter rang out from the many open windows and archways. A rather jaunty sign hung above the doorway, painted brightly and proudly proclaiming the business to be "The Stray Cat".

"This shouldn't take long. Then we may be on our way again," Wish assured Zenith as she strode forward into the building.

Inside was a riot of color, golds and purples and reds from floor to ceiling. Exceptionally pretty men and women lounged around what seemed to be the main room, most dressed rather provocatively but a few in more "modest" garb. They seemed to just be milling about, sprawled across chaises or a pile of cushions, some reading, others drinking and laughing, several clustered around a low table and playing some kind of card game.

Most looked up when the rattle of several beaded strings heralded the arrival of customers, smiling and dipping their heads respectfully to Wish and Zenith. To the dhampir's surprise, they seemed rather bold for Essyrni prostitutes, especially the women. Their eyes roamed freely over the newcomers, clearly sizing them up.

"Hello."

Wish found her attention drawn to an elegant young woman dressed in sensually draped crimson and gold fabric. At first glance she was pretty enough, and incredibly imposing; on closer inspection, Wish realized that she was in fact beautiful, but that the hint of danger to her stance and aura should not be ignored. Save for her crimson eyes and the sharp, thin scars that crested her cheeks, she was the epitome of Essyrni beauty.

She looked between the two of them and artfully raised one eyebrow. "May I help you two?"

"Whatever time you need, Mistress." Zenith said with a bored air as she assured him it shouldn't take long at the brothel. It wasn't as if he much cared one way or another. He was there contractually to serve Wisteria, for the time being.

The dragon let his eyes lazily rove over the inside of The Stray Cat, taking in the sight of the people lounging around the establishment. Some of them were not hard on the eyes, and he smirked when their eyes moved over his form. He shifted his stance slightly as he stood behind his mistress, allowing his muscles to flex just a little.

Zenith did love to show off how intimidating he was.

"My Mistress has business here." He said casually, casting his gaze to the woman that had approached them, giving her an appraising once over before smirking at her.

The woman, Tamina, as she brusquely introduced herself, did not seem to be in the least bit either impressed or perturbed by Zenith's presence. Then again, she didn't really seem to react to anything much, either positively or negatively.

When she pressed to know what business Wish had with her employer exactly, and why she couldn't simply deal directly with Tamina, the dhampir cheerfully informed her that she was Darius's half-sister, there for a long overdue reunion. The woman just blinked at her, then closed her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose with a sigh.

"Right. Of course you are. Why not." Quickly she snapped back into her emotionless role and dipped her head to them both respectfully. "If you would not mind waiting here a few moments, mistress, I will speak with Master Darius and see if now is a good time for you to...talk."

"Oh, would you? Thanks ever so." Wish beamed at her, rocking back to rest her weight on one heel and grinning wide enough to show a flash of fang, a hint of crimson bleeding into her eyes for just a moment.

Tamina didn't react. Waving a hand toward the lounge area, she offered in an almost bored tone, "Make yourselves comfortable while you wait." She turned to head up a flight of stairs, then suddenly paused with a soft, "Oh," and looked back over her shoulder.

Eyes narrowed and tone steely, she informed Wish and Zenith, "Our employees are to be respected. You will not touch them without their express permission, you will not leer, you will not make lewd comments unless you have made an appointment and such action is part of the contract. Any attempt to break or bend these rules will result in your immediate expulsion from the premises. Clear?"

Wish's eyebrows crept up, a little surprised that her unknown brother ran such a tight operation. "Transparently," she replied easily, though she cast a quick glance at Zenith over her shoulder, just slightly worried. 

Zenith felt himself growing incredibly bored as his Mistress exchanged words with the woman that had come to speak with them. She was a handsome woman. It was a pity he wasn't allowed to play with her. He doubted his Mistress would subject anyone to his mercy for no real reason other than the dragon's interest being caught.

They were told to make themselves comfortable while they waited for this Master Darius to appear, but he raised a ridged brow when the whore turned back to them to rattle off some rules they needed to follow.

Zenith smirked, more than a little amused. He wondered how she intended to remove him from the premises if he were to break one of her silly little rules. That would actually be quite fun, seeing what the woman would try to do if he didn't behave himself. Sadly that would likely cause trouble for Wisteria, and he didn't feel like ending a contract so soon after forming it.

If his Mistress agreed to the rules, then he would abide by them for now.

Reassured that Zenith would follow her lead in this place, Wisteria relaxed just a bit and wandered over to a nearby couch.

"May I?" she asked the young woman who was lounging across half the couch. With a grin, the woman nodded and scooted to the side, allowing Wish to take a seat.

"You and Broody over there here for business?" the woman asked in heavily accented Common, and Wish had to raise a hand to her mouth to stifle a small chuckle. She shook her head.

"No, not exactly," she replied.

The prostitute clicked her tongue and pouted. "Pity." Her eyes drifted over Zenith's form rather brazenly. Wish suddenly found herself wondering if she should interfere in some way-- perhaps warn the girl? Did she really need to?

Before she could decide, the young woman got to her feet and gestured to her recently vacated place on the couch, saying to Zenith, "Why don't you get comfy, love? I've got an appointment in a few minutes anyway, I'd better head up to my room."

Wish nodded to her with a smile as she sashayed her way out of the room, exchanging a few brief quips in Essyrni with her coworkers as they waved her out. She looked up at Zenith, idly wondering what exactly he was thinking about the whole situation.

"Your old master never came here?" she asked softly, voice low enough that none of the works lounging around them should be able to hear. "Never visited brothels in general?" That seemed...rather surprising, given what little she knew about the man.

Zenith didn't follow Wisteria when she moved to the couch, simply stood placidly with his arms folded across his chest and a rather bored expression on his face. He noticed the way the one prostitute looked at him, and smirked knowingly at the woman.

Many human women found him monstrous, but there were others that found him fascinating. Those adventurous sorts were quite amusing.

When the brazen woman rose from her seat and offered it to him, he chuckled lowly as he allowed his eyes to follow her from the room. There was an appreciative glint to his calculating eyes at the way her hips moved as she left the room. They had been told not to leer, but when there was blatant invitation...

The demon settled gingerly on the couch next to his mistress, casting a glance down at her as she asked about his former master. "Not to this establishment, no. This place is too tasteful for that swine. He preferred less reputable businesses, and I imagine cheaper."

"Ah." Wish nodded as she leaned back a little into the cushions. "Yes, I suppose that makes sense."

The workers around them were eyeing them with some combination of wariness and interest; a few seemed blatantly afraid of Zenith, giving their little couch a wide berth, but most seemed simply intrigued.

"It really is quite a nice establishment," Wish noted as she glanced around. Clean, luxurious, clearly well organized-- not what she had been expecting, actually. "I wonder how well Darius is doing with this place, really. He seems to be rather strict on his customers..."

Not at all a flaw, in her opinion. But before she could muse much further, Tamina suddenly reappeared beside the couch, arms folded and her lips drawn into a tight line. She clearly did not seem pleased.

"Darius will see you. Follow me," she told them briskly, and without another word turned on her heel and headed for the stairs.