Anything You Want

Who: Seph and Eris, then Seph and a Babylon girl
When: late night
Where: Babylon

It had taken Seph a long time -- almost two full days -- to actually walk out of the Martens' house and go searching for Babylon. He'd given himself time. He'd given himself space. He'd lain on the floor of the attic for hours, just feeling the cold seep in and trying not to focus on any thoughts at all. The mental shadow-movements he'd gotten from his sister the day before, when she'd been with him again ... hadn't helped matters. He'd tried to turn his back, so to speak, do something else, but he kept feeling it, like a presence at his back. Beating the shit out of the heavy bag hadn't helped much. Neither had the meeting, and after being in the same room with so many people for that long ... yeah, he had to do something.

An idea had occurred to him. Something that might help, if only for a little while. Something to drown in, maybe let off a little tension. Doc had done it, why couldn't he? It was with those thoughts continually running through his head -- along with the tiny, cruel one that said he could drop walls at the right moment and let her feel it -- that he'd broken down and actually decided to do it. He'd waited until everyone had cleared out, tucked the wad of money he'd withdrawn into his pocket, taken the keys, and left the house without a word to anyone.

The only problem was ... he didn't know how to begin. He'd found Babylon easily enough, and was quietly surprised to find that there were a lot of people there. And a band. He'd only been for Halloween, and for some reason he didn't expect it to be ... lively under normal circumstances. Not having worked up the nerve to ask any employees how one got upstairs yet, he found a place to sit toward the back and sipped on the water he'd gotten, one leg bouncing restlessly, blue eyes scanning along everyone passing by.

When Seph had entered, Eris had perked up. Mostly because he had such an interesting signature to him. Someone certainly had an interesting life and times he could write down. She sensed so much from him. So, she watched for at least a brief while, before she headed over, ghosting up out of the shadows next to him. "You, sweetheart, look a little lost." she mused, smiling at him.

He startled a little, being the jumpy bastard that he was, and looked over. She was gorgeous, was she ... one of them? And god, was he going to wonder that about every woman in the place? "Yeah, I guess," he said after a beat with an odd little smile. He couldn't quite get a handle on the karma around her. "It's my second time here." As if that would explain anything.

"Goodness." Eris said, still smiling. "Well, it's kind of a big place." she noted, looking around, then letting her eyes settle on him again. "Looking for something specific? I could probably help you find it. I'm good at that sort of thing." she said. Only his second time. She could only remember one other time she'd sensed a death elemental and that was at the masquerade. So, she was guessing it was then that he'd first ventured in.

Seph stared at her for a moment. How did one just come out and say they wanted a prostitute? It seemed like one of those things that could get you arrested or thrown out. Or both. He scraped his teeth over his bottom lip. "Well ... yeah, actually. I heard there was an upstairs to this place. Was wonderin' about that," he said, kind of carefully, blue eyes on her face. He hadn't given her his name or anything, and he could always get the hell out and never come back, if he had to.

"Were you now. Well, it so happens I know the way." she said, reaching out to ruffle his hair lightly. "Follow me." she invited, crooking a finger at him and she started to drift through the crowd, staying close enough that he could follow her. It was very white rabbit of her, but she couldn't resist occasionally playing the little headgames. Plus, with as nervous as this one seemed, she thought it was just too good an opportunity to pass up.

His heart twisted oddly. He was really going to do this, wasn't he? Strong arm himself into a piece of normality. Something that guys who weren't in love with their sisters did. Sex with someone else. He stood up to follow the dark-haired woman, feeling kind of excited along with the nerves. Maybe this would do it, maybe this would fix him. He'd kissed other people at least, and it hadn't been awful. Even if ... both had kind of been in fucked up circumstances. He went along with Eris wordlessly, tucking his hands into his jean pockets.

Eris led him to the small doorway between the bar and the club that tended to appear and disappear when people weren't paying attention. Opening it up, she revealed a very narrow, very steep stairwell that was painted entirely black and red. The red was rich if dark, very blood-hued. "So what's your name?" she asked, starting to lead him up the steps, which she'd tweaked to be taller, the space more narrow than usual.

It was ... kind of an intimidating stairwell. But Seph walked up it, one hand emerging to trail fingertips along the wall at his right as they climbed. "Seph Martens," he answered her, still following as some of his gears continued to grind over where he was and what he would potentially be doing soon. His shadow was there, next to him, against the wall to the left, keeping pace.

That certainly sparked up some things in Eris' head. "Really." she said, drawing the word out as they kept on up the stairs. "You look a little young to be a brother of the older gentleman who shares the last name...do you happen to be related?" she asked, tone light. Like the confirmation there wasn't going to make her damn night, all things considered.

Oh fuck. Seph stopped walking, knowing exactly who she was referring to. "Doc. No, he's my ... adopted father, more or less," he said, feeling dread creep in with the excited nerves. He paused again, rewording the demand into something better. "Please don't tell him I'm here. Or was here. I'm nineteen, I'm legal, it's my business, not his. Please." Because if she didn't say she wouldn't? He was out of there. Goddammit, stupid old man knowing everyone.

Eris stopped, then turned around in the narrow space to face Seph. Since she was a stair or two above him, she was looking down at him, and she leaned forward, putting their eyes on the same level. "Seph, anything that happens here? Stays here. It is your business. Which means it's no one else's, period." she told him, sliding into her statement that bit of empowerment that he seemed to need in that moment. "My clients, no matter who they are or what they're doing, are always considered with the most care possible, and everything is strictly confidential." She stood straight and smiled. "I suppose this would be a good time to tell you that my name is Eris--and this is my establishment."

He could very much feel, without any extra-sensory perception whatsoever, that she meant that. A weird mix of appreciation and attraction surged forward at the tone in her voice. His eyes widened very slightly as she said she was the owner of the place. "Thank you," he said, gaze locked on to her. Not that there was much else to look at in the stairwell, but she was definitely an impressive figure. He hoped what he'd asked hadn't been insulting. "Sorry, I just ... never done this before. And I can't seem ... to get away from some people, if you know what I mean," he said with a faint smile. "It's nice to meet you, though," he added lamely.

She smiled at him again. "I can tell." she said, to the bit about it being her first time. "It's alright, there's a first time for everything." she turned to head back up the remaining steps, then opened the door at the top. The tight space was replaced with one that was wide open and airy, and she nodded towards her office, heading them inside. "Would you like a drink?" she asked as they entered, and she headed over to the personal liquor cabinet she had. Glancing over her shoulder, she smiled. "Don't worry, I won't tell anyone about that either."

He followed her again, feeling his cheeks heating up a tiny bit at being so obvious. Which, on deeper thought, was kind of a screwed up thing to be embarrassed about, but he couldn't really help it. Seph walked into her office with her, looking around in a half-interested, half-wary sort of way. "Yes, please," he said, chuckling a little uneasily. "Rum and Coke, if you've got it." Maybe it would settle his nerves a bit.

"I have anything you want." Eris said. And she produced a rum and coke for him, walking back over to offer it. "So, sweetheart, why don't you take a seat, and tell me what it is you want?" she suggested. She sat on the couch along the back wall, and patted the cushion next to her. "We're fairly...accommodating." she said, as if she had to search for the correct word.

Seph took the glass from her and watched her go sit down. Then followed. He realized then that he was probably going to have to get some sort of specific. Which made him even more nervous. He took a swallow of the drink, settling down into a slouch next to her. Then cleared his throat. "I um ... a woman," he said, starting with the basics. He glanced over at her and wondered just how much detail she was asking for. "Who um ... doesn't mind it a bit rough. With dark hair, if that's okay," he added in a mumble, taking another drink and glancing away for a second. He was blushing, he could feel it. Doing it was one thing, stating what he wanted was another.

She smiled at him. It was amused, but there wasn't a cruel bent to it. "First of all, honey, you don't ask me if something's okay. You tell me what it is you want? And I get it for you. That's how this woks. So take a drink, sit back, relax, and talk to me." she instructed patiently, relaxing herself, tilting slightly towards him so her attention was centered completely on him. She crossed her legs then clasped her hands loosely over her knee. "Don't limit yourself."

That was the thing, Seph had never been in a position where he could do that. Telling what he wanted and getting it. That just didn't happen to him. His eyes ticked to her face, the hands on her knee, and then to his glass again. He took another swallow and thought. He knew what he wanted, it was just awkward to put into words. "I don't want to really hurt anybody," he said first, gaze out in some middle distance. "But I need someone that can ... take rough. Biting, back-against-the-wall kind of stuff. Who'll ... bite back, but still leave me control. Dark brunette. And that's ... that's it, really, as far as I've gotten," he said.

"Well, all of that can be arranged." Eris said. Then she smiled, and leaned closer to him, voice lowering slightly. "But you are aware that here? We cater to fantasy. Completely. I can get you whatever you want. Don't limit yourself to something so...standard. If that's where you want to start, we can certainly stop now, and go with that, but just in the interest of full disclosure...if you can dream it, we can do it."

His stomach did something weird, and he felt his neck heat up even more. Whatever he wanted? If he could dream it ... fuck, he almost never dreamt of anything else. Seph glanced at her out of the corner of his eye and took another slow drink. " ... can you make them look like anyone? Someone specific?" he asked, tone turning almost overly casual as he examined the ice cubes in front of him.

She smiled. There was the predatory edge beneath it. Because there was the hook, of course. There was what digging beneath the surface got. Men were always the same. They always did this. They pussyfooted around until something was dragged out, and when it was? They were generally the types that never moved forward from visits to her establishments. She'd had people who got so sucked in that they blew their entire lives just for another taste. It was like a drug, only for the psyche. "Of course." she said simply, tone a light little purr. "Who is it you want her to look like?" she asked sweetly. "Do you have a photograph? Other specifics?" she asked.

Seph had grown up around magic. He was no stranger to the Weird in the world. But it had never occurred to him that he could ever be handed a woman who looked exactly like his sister. The idea was ... well he didn't know what it was exactly, only that it got his heartrate going faster already. He leaned foward to pull his wallet out of his back pocket, balancing his glass on one knee as he pulled a small picture of Syn out and offered it over. It was one he'd taken of her one of the first times he'd reversed their camera-roles, out by the lake. She'd printed it for him on a smaller scale so he could carry it with him. She was giving the camera a sardonic, smirky sort of look, dark hair blown out to one side of her. "Just a girl," he said quietly, that protective instinct stopping 'my sister' in his throat.

She looked at the photograph, and didn't say anything. She merely nodded, then looked back at him again. "This can be done." she told him simply. Most of the time she pushed for men to really get into details. What color eyes, prettier and prettier girls, or, in some cases, less and less attractive ones, depending on what they truly wanted. But if he was modeling his experience after someone this specific, someone he actually kept a snap of on him, then she wasn't going to try to tweak the looks. Of course, she knew that it never worked. Seph, she was definitely thinking, was the type of person who ruined their lives here. Because if he gave it to himself here, then the next time he saw her...oh, it would be delightful. Especially considering it would be a lovely little 'fuck you' to Doc. And she could claim complete innocence, even, because it was all Seph's specifications. He'd come in on his own...everything. It would only be a matter of time before he found out, even if she wouldn't let that particular bomb drop herself. "What sort of scenario? Do you just want to walk into a room and take it from there? Do you want it to be a specific place? Is there a role she needs to fill? For example...the babysitter, or maid, or whatever it is people fantasize about these days. It can all be provided."

"She has to be in bed," he said before he'd really given it conscious thought. "In just a t-shirt and panties. ... only blue, black, white, or gray, no other colors. No makeup. Just sleeping." And then he would come in, the same way he ghosted into Synnove's room at night. Climb into bed with her, and ... do all those things he wasn't actually able to do. And she would submit to them this time, she'd let him give her pleasure. It was obvious that his gears were turning, eyes still on the photograph he'd handed over to Eris.

She made sure she didn't turn it so he couldn't see it. "Do you want her to be quiet? Does she stay asleep in this scenario, or are you going to wake her?" she asked. Some people had very strange fetishes. There was a reason there was a 'morgue' scenario that ran occasionally. "Should she call you anything...give me details and I can give you exactly what you want."

"I wake her up," Seph said. Then swallowed. It was the second part of what she was asking, because he could very clearly hear Syn's breathy voice in his head, calling him 'little brother'. He was caught up in the temptation of the full fantasy now. If he was going to do this, why not go all the way. "She can call me Eric. And 'little brother'." His eyes ticked up to Eris's face on that one and then away again. "And say she loves me." Because his twin definitely did that, liberally.

See, now it was getting all the more interesting. "Certainly." she said. She kept any judgmental tone out of her voice, like it was absolutely a normal request. "Any other specifics you want added into things? You can even have your own soundtrack if you want it. Anything, remember." She was guessing that they'd discuss price another time. Really Eris never did this for the money. She had enough of that to fund countries. She did it for much different reasons. And if she could hook the little death elemental? Make herself and Babylon indispensible to him? Well then. That would be worth it.

"Just quiet," he said, and shook his head a bit. She didn't sleep with music on, and he wanted to make it as realistic as he could. For this time, a part of his mind added in a murmur. Because if this worked out? He knew himself well enough to admit that he would probably come back. Some things you just needed, and with it dangled in front of him, Seph felt like he needed this. It was the closest he was going to come in his waking hours. Maybe ever again, gods knew if she even still wanted to keep anything going in their dreams. But that didn't bear thinking about at the moment. "Just quiet and dark and the two of us. ... queen sized bed. The room itself doesn't really matter."

"Done." she said, with a smile. "I'll go make arrangements, if you don't mind. I'll need this." she said, indicating the photograph. "Would you like to stay here? It shouldn't take too long." she assured him. "Finish your drink, relax...and soon enough, you'll have exactly what you want."

There was that tantalizing phrase again. "I'll stay here," he said, giving her a nod. His nerves had changed from bad to more of a good anticipation. This was really going to happen, he was really going to do it. And now that he'd laid it all out to Eris, he couldn't wait for it. To see how it would be. He was keeping his mental walls carefully up for the time being, not wanting to alert his twin to this stomach-twisty feeling.

Eris stood, then headed out of the room, looking back with a wink. It wouldn't take long to arrange, especially since she was going with a full on fantasy type of situation. She went to talk to a few different people, to set the whole thing up, and the building started to arrange itself accordingly. Really, it wasn't longer than a half hour before she returned to her office. "Go to the stairwell at the end of the hall, and take the stairs up. There's only one door up there. Go inside, and your fantasy awaits."

He'd waited patiently, finishing off his drink and then just sitting there like a good boy. She came back sort of surprisingly fast. Seph stared at her for a beat before he stood up to follow the instructions. "Thank you," he said quietly as he passed by her. It occurred to him in a very vague way to ask about payment, but he figured he could take care of that after. More of him was focused on getting up there and seeing -- and touching and kissing and exploring -- for himself.

He didn't rush, he just walked to the end of the hall and then started climbing the stairs. He hadn't noticed this set of stairs before, but that didn't really matter. He stopped in front of the only door in the hallway and stood there for a moment. His heart was beating hard in his chest. Seph put his ear to the door, as he did so often at home, and closed his eyes. No sound came from inside, but he imagined he could hear soft, peaceful breathing. He put his hand on the knob and turned.

It wasn't her room, but that didn't matter. They could've been anywhere, it could've been any room. He could make out the bed and the shapely curved form laying on it, through some softly diffused light coming from somewhere. He toed out of his shoes, shrugged his jacket off, and quietly left everything but his boxers in a pile by the door. He stood there for another moment, feeling as though he blended into the shadows. Like he wasn't really there, he was watching as a non-entity. Then his feet were taking him forward, he was carefully pulling back the comforter, and slipping under it to curl against the warm body there. His sister, his twin, the only love of his entire life.

She stirred very slightly when he settled against her. Seph smelled her hair, slid his arm around her waist, pulled her into rolling over. His breath caught as her face came into view and she opened her eyes. The likeness wasn't just uncanny, it was impossible-seeming. It was Syn, eye color and all. She gave him a sleepy-looking little smile and his heart twisted. He immediately kissed her like the world was ending.

For a time there was nothing but that, the shuddery inhale and rushed exhale of breath, the sound of two mouths working as one, the rustle of sheets, the softly whispered endearments. He was able to lose himself in the fantasy, putting his focus onto the physical, the feel of her. It was accurate enough under his groping hands. And when he bit her, she bit back, and made him shudder with nails down his back. When he pinned her arms, she pushed back just enough. She didn't mind it when he roughly tugged her shirt off of her. It was heady and perfect and he felt more than ready, pushing his hips against her instinctively.

It was when she -- Syn my sin my Syn ohgod -- squirmed free and slid down underneath the covers that everything crashed. He could feel her warm breath through the thin material of his boxers, a skilled hand gliding over his groin and hips, teasing in just the right way. His eyes rolled back in his head when teeth grazed the bulge of his erection. Seph wasn't even thinking about the scars on the inside of his thigh until her hand brushed over them. Then came back to them, fingers tracing over the short straight lines as she touched him elsewhere. She couldn't see them in the dark, didn't know what they spelled. But he did.

Pervert.

Carved into his flesh with a straight razor, the pale thin lines marked him for forever. What he truly was. His eyes opened on the ceiling again. The blankness really hit home, then. The absolutely nothing he was getting from the girl at his crotch, mentally and emotionally. Syn would've felt something, touching those scars. He would've felt a flood of love from her, of protection. Of forgiveness. Of acceptance. Understanding. God only knew what this woman who looked like her would think of him if she really knew.

His skin was all of the sudden crawling. She was still touching the word on his thigh, but he was losing all the heat in his body. He reached down to push at her shoulders, a panicky feeling surging up to replace the arousal. "Stop," he said, voice rusty. "Stopplease."

She responded immediately, unburying herself from the covers and sitting up with a questioning look on her face. Gods, they'd even gotten her breasts right. Seph moved so as not to touch her as much as possible, and squirmed out of the bed. "I'm sorry," he was muttering as he did so. "I'm sorry, I can't, I just ... " It wasn't her. It just wasn't her, as much as it looked like her.

The girl tried to say something, a different voice coming out of Syn's perfect mouth, but he waved her off. He hurriedly got back into his clothes, and pulled money out his wallet with shaking hands. He didn't even look at how much it was, a few hundred dollars, and he put it on the dresser nearest him. "Here ... for your trouble, I -- ... I'm sorry," he stuttered, not able to look at her. He snagged up his jacket and sneakers and hurried out of the room.

Practically running down the stairs, Seph made sure his mental walls were up. Everything was turmoil and he wanted his twin to get as little of it as possible. He bypassed Eris's office blindly and hurried through the door that led to the club proper. Not meeting anyone's eyes, he pulled his jacket on, paused for three or four seconds to tug his shoes on, and beelined for the door.

He didn't even realize there were tears streaking down his face until he was halfway down the block.