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Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

Lucien made no comment, the gleam of mischief in his eyes was quite obvious. He already knew from this meeting alone that he and Ivory would not get along. Or at the very least on one end, they would most certainly not.

His eyes shifted toward the partition at the sound of a female voice. Honestly with all of this, he had almost forgotten Geralt had a guest, but he found it a perfect excuse to get going. His work was done, there was no need to linger any longer. He glanced at Ivory, his expression telling her to attempt to calm. He couldn't really have her walking around with red eyes, even if night had already fallen. One never knew. She took a deep breath, but her eyebrow twitched upon hearing Geralt's offer, but Lucien beat her to what otherwise would have been an incredibly rude comment.

"We'll have to decline. We've got a bit of work to do back at the circus." He said simply. At this point, it was obvious the type of man he was. Lucien would have his hands full with that one.

At his response, the man shrugged. "Suit yourselves, the invitation is open."

"We'll be seeing you." He said, before heading out with Ivory. It wasn't until they had made their way down from the fire escape that Ivory spoke up.

"I hate him." She started, before glancing up at Lucien with a furrowed brow. She had stayed silent the majority of the time, mostly because she had spent all of it observing him, looking for reasons to back up Illyana's argument, and surely she had found them. Plenty of them.

Lucien sighed. "I know." He said.

"He's arrogant, irritating, greedy, and completely insufferable, not to mention creepy. Did you see that look in his eyes? I don't mean to exaggerate, but it was like he was dead inside. It's the only way I can describe something like that. Behind all that smooth talk, there's clearly something wrong with him." Ivory told him. Part of her hoped Lucien would have changed his mind, but she knew he wouldn't, because she was sure he was already aware of all these things. Of course she understood why, they weren't in a position where they could just tell him to buzz off.

Lucien looked up toward the sky as Ivory spoke. He already knew this, but what could he do at this point? They did need him, and he knew it too. It's what made this all the more irritating, that he would have taken advantage of that fact.

"I know. I don't like it. I understand why Illyana warned me against him, but at the very least it could have been worse. This is something we might be able to keep under control." He hesitated a bit as he spoke. Honestly he wasn't sure yet, considering there could very well be way more to Geralt he hadn't revealed. He seemed to be fairly good at hiding his emotions.

"Are you sure about that? That man clearly wants to get into your pants. At this point I'm more worried for you." She muttered. Ivory knew how Lucien was, he would prioritize everyone else's safety over his own, and she wasn't a big fan of that.

"I know but.. I'll deal with it." He glanced down at Ivory. "I'm not the only one who caught his interest" He had noticed the look he had given the dhampir. It seemed Geralt didn't discriminate. That worried him a little. Ivory had already been quite aware of this, but she didn't care. She'd shoot him down without any hesitation.

”I have.. a task for you, Ivory. At the moment you're the only one who can help me with this." He said, rubbing his temples a little. "What is it?" She asked.

"Aurel, Akane, and Cora. I hate to ask this of you, and while I will make sure they know who it is we're dealing with, I want you to help me look out for them. I fear their innocence and curiosity might make them more susceptible to his.. smooth talk. I don't want to see any of them getting manipulated, and I hate to admit it, but I know I can't be everywhere at once. Illyana is already extremely wary of him, I assume she'll avoid him as much as she can, but the other three are too friendly for that, though I assume Aurel might try to keep his distance for a while.." He muttered. Aurel had always wary with strangers, that was something that hadn't changed over the years. Honestly he didn't think the man would try to do anything bad to them, Lucien would never let something like that slide, but he simply didn't want them to be deceived. He was taking extra measures, just in case. Had Illyana not warned him, he might not have gone this far but.. he didn't want to go into this blind. He wished to be prepared for any possibility. It was the least he could do after having made this decision.

Ivory sighed, not surprised he asked this of her. "I would have done that even if you hadn't asked. They're all too nice.." She muttered. "Who will look out for you?"

Lucien gave her a small smile, reaching out and placing his hand on top of her head. "You're quite nice yourself you know, even if you don't care to admit it. Everyone knows you care about them deeply." He told her, causing Ivory to avert her gaze to attempt to hide her embarrassment.

"I appreciate the worry, but I'll manage. I was taught how to take care of myself." He said, before he let his arm fall to his side.

"If you say so.." Ivory responded a little reluctantly. Despite his words, she'd be sure to keep an eye out for him too. The dhampir spent a lot of her free time during the day in her trailer, or in someone else's to pass the time, but considering the proximity of them all, it was easy to keep track of who went in and out of Lucien's trailer throughout the day. She'd be sure to interrupt whatever chances that man had of being alone with Lucien. It was the best way to avoid any problems, also, maybe it'd annoy him. That at least, would also be a little satisfying. With that in mind, both Lucien and Ivory continued their walk back to their home, night having completely settled by then.

Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

There was a lot more men than he had thought there would be in the room but, Lucien didn't care. He hated how openly they were willing to admit they had attacked them. It was clear these men had absolutely no honor. It was all more than clear now why he had been told to avoid people like this in the first place. His eyes hadn't left the man who held his relic, however. At his defiance, Lucien frowned, and without any hesitation, he stepped forward. While he had allowed Faolan to come he hadn't wanted to let him completely fight his battles. That at least, had been his intention, but the man had stopped him, furious. Had Lucien been on the end of that anger, even he had to admit he would have been frightened. All hell broke loose after that, as Faolan launched himself at the men.

For a moment Lucien was unsure of what to do, but he wanted to see his previous course of action through. At least the relic, he wanted to retrieve himself. That particular man had been doing whatever he could to avoid direct contact with Faolan's wrath. Lucien maneuvered himself through the room, to reach him, and tried to make a grab for the relic. Despite his messed up face, he could see almost a trace of amusement and satisfaction.

"I'll make sure to knock you out real good this time, poufter!" The man pulled back his arm, and Lucien felt his fist make contact with his face. The nephilim, of course, had absolutely no idea how to fight. The force of it caused his head to turn, but other than that it had no particular effect aside from the moment it took for him to regain himself. He was unsure of what to do in this situation, he didn't have the skills Faolan did, and hadn't particularly thought this through, but he didn't want to give up. He at least wanted to be able to do something on his own.

That was when he remembered what Faolan had done. What had caused the bloody mess on this man's face to begin with. The man had gone at him with another punch, but this time he just barely awkwardly move of the way, before he pulled his head back and smashed it straight into the man's face, tightly shutting his eyes. It was a bit disorienting, and caused him to stumble back a little. He was pretty sure he didn't do it right, as he hadn't been able to aim with just his forehead as Faolan had. He was much smaller after all, but considering he had absolutely no need to hold back, it had been enough to knock the man to the ground, his expression of pure surprise quickly twisting into one of pain as his previous injuries opened up again. Pulling back, it took a bit for Lucien to gain the focus in his eyes. His face was now a bit of a mess, having gotten some of the man's blood on him from the improper collision.

Taking advantage, Lucien quickly bent down and removed the relic from the man's neck and wrapped it around his own, tucking it under his shirt. Glancing back at the much bigger scuffle in the room, he took note that his money pouch had fallen to the floor, so he snatched that too.

"Faolan!" He called out. Physically he saw no way he could stop this fight on his own, so he hoped his words would be enough.

Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

There was a moment of silence, but Lucien did not move his hand. He knew that by denying Geralt's offer, that he was taking a big risk. Yes, Illyana had told him he would not refuse, but he more than anyone knew that the future could change. One wrong move on his part and that future could easily shatter, and he would return having failed in recruiting him. However, he had to believe that just as he was testing this man, he was doing the same. He wasn't about to let him have his way simply because they were in a desperate situation. Once in his life, he had been naive, but that was not the case anymore. He had people who relied on him, and people to care for. It seemed that much had gotten through.

"Of course." He said, not averting his gaze as the man finally accepted his offer. Part of him was relieved, but another part was still slightly annoyed by the development. He would have to be careful with this one. There was a small twitch of his eyebrows as the man stepped closer, invading his personal space. He decided to disregard the man's comment. Once their handshake was over with, Lucien released his hand, and stepped back as Geralt clearly had no intention to.

"Then, Geralt, I welcome you to Cirque D'étoiles." He said. Having now given himself enough room, he gave him a small bow, before straightening up again.

By then Ivory had calmed a little, but she was still incredibly pissed. Money was the last thing on her mind, after all she didn't have much need for it aside from buying clothes and other things she felt like. She had grown up without it, and she knew that was the case for a lot of the others in the circus. They weren't greedy, they weren't like Geralt. Just the fact he had the audacity to demand that much of a count without any shame was outrageous. She had wanted nothing more than to punch that grin off his stupid face, but she held back for Lucien's sake. It was clear he had also taken offense, but he was still moving forward with this deal. She knew that they needed him, and she hated that. Just seeing him get that close to Lucien was irking, but still she controlled herself. Lucien could take care of himself, and he was managing to still be polite despite all of this. She had to respect him for that. There was a reason why he was the one in charge of these things.

Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

Lucien held back a shudder at the expression Faolan showed him. He was angry, that was clear. That expression was all it took for him to know that it didn't matter what he said to him. The man was coming. He let out a small sigh, though he couldn't deny that he was relieved he wasn't going into it alone. While he knew they couldn't physically hurt him, he wasn't sure whether he'd be able to get his things back based on that alone.

The nephilim simply followed closely behind Faolan as he made his way down the hall, further below deck to another area of rooms. He wondered how he even knew where they were, but he didn't question it. He was anxious to find them quickly. He didn't take them as the type of men who would be careful with something that important.

As they neared a larger room at the end of the hall, probably meant to accommodate more people, he could hear the loud laughing of men, a few of which he recognized. Faolan hadn't wasted even a second in kicking the door open. There was a moment of surprise from the men, but Lucien's eyes quickly scanned the room. The man who had started the trouble to begin with held his pouch of coin in his hand, having previously been tossing it up and down in his hands. That was the less important of the two things he had lost.

"Aye what the bloody hell? Thought we taught the two a ye a less'n." The man with the pouch spoke up.

"Ye didn't hit the frog hard enough if he's still goin round' like that." Another man spoke up, smacking the one next to him upside the head. That one was the one whose nose Faolan had broken, and around his neck lay the same relic he was looking for. Lucien hadn't hesitated to step forward, fists clenched. It was the angriest the nephilim had ever felt.

"Give it back." He demanded.

Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

It was clear that Geralt did not like his offer. He had expected it to an extent. A magician this well known would have never settled for something so low, but in a way, Lucien wanted to know how far this man was willing to go. Despite all of his appraisal of the man to gain his favor, he hadn't disregarded the things Illyana had told him. Honestly just the breakage in his expression and the way he seemed to shake off something was just a little unsettling. What better way to pull out the man's true nature than by poking at his ego this way? Though he had to admit he wasn't pleased with the counter offer he had received. He had done everything he could to avoid revealing that they were in trouble, but the man had seen through it. He supposed he shouldn't be surprised. The man was smart.

Lucien's smile disappeared, and his brow furrowed. He was less mad about the fact that he was demanding money, and more irritated at the fact that he had no shame in demanding more than all the performers made together. It was offensive to them, and Lucien didn't like it. Ivory clearly didn't either, considering that out of the corner of his eyes, he saw her blue hues shift to a bloody red. He lifted his hand to stop her from doing anything rash, but made no move to take Geralt's hand, not yet.

"This is where I think you've misunderstood me, Mr. Wagner. Whether you're right or wrong, it would be offensive to the rest of my people to give you more than they all earn put together. They helped me build this circus from the ground up, and I have no intention of doing that to them. The leftover money from the shows goes into travelling expenses, paying our other employees, and all of the things I provide for them. The less of that percentage we have, the less money is left to make sure we can make it to our next location, and the less you would make in the long run. Taking the current depression into consideration, I cannot offer you more than twenty-percent at this current moment. If I feel that what you have brought to the table is enough for me to not feel concerned about our future, then I will happily be open to negotiate with you." He said, his tone having taken a more business-like tone as he raised his other hand for the other man to shake. Lucien was a very polite, and kind man, but he was no pushover. He didn't care how famous this man was, he wouldn't disrespect his people this way and risk their livelihood for his greed.

Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

Lucien paused as Faolan called out to him, turning slightly to face him, though he didn't seem any less inclined to leave. He didn't want to keep dragging Faolan into his messes, but from what he had learned from observing the man up to this point, he wasn't sure he'd just let him go if his question went unanswered.

"They.. stole something. Something that's really important to me." He said quietly. "But it's alright, I'll deal with it on my own. You need to rest. You've done enough for me, Faolan."

Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

Lucien wasn't sure if that was the case but, if he hadn't practiced in a while, he supposed it was possible, though from the aura of confidence the man gave off, he didn't feel he'd need long for it. He was hoping to have gotten everything settled so they could leave but Geralt spoke up again. His words made his eyebrow twitch ever so slightly. He hadn't thought he'd bring it up so soon.

"I was planning to have this conversation when you went to see us but, I suppose we can have it now." He said, though he did not take a seat again.

"Normally, each performer gets a five percent total cut. We have five at the moment, so twenty-five percent of the final cut goes to the performers. Aside from that, their living accommodations and food expenses are completely paid for. Each performer gets their own trailer they can do with as they please, their private living space, which is also covered and provided for. I make sure our performers are cared for." He explained. Considering he wasted no time in asking what he got out of this, he felt like this would not satisfy the man. However, Lucien was a man of fairness. He didn't want to offer him more right off the bat simply because he was well known, it wasn't fair to the others.

"Since you stated you might have gotten rusty, I figure such things may be open to negotiation after I see Geralt the Great at work for myself, and of course, after seeing how the public reacts to this new addition."

Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

Lucien pulled his arm back after Faolan released him, taking note of the fact that those strange black veins were subsiding. It was a little strange that he could see this take effect so quickly. He didn't think his healing abilities were this potent to get rid of something that had made its way into his system. Perhaps.. he was allergic to silver? It was the only reason he could think of for him to be unable to touch such a small blade, but to think it would cause such a strong weakness in him.. it was a little unsettling, but he didn't ask. To be honest he was incredibly relieved and thankful that Faolan had not asked him how that was possible. He hadn't wanted to be put in a position where he would have to answer him.

"It's quite alright.. I'm just glad you're okay.." He said before nodded slightly and went over to pick up the small sharp object. The nephilim then went over to the small window in the room and opened it, before tossing the blade out into the ocean water. Walking back to Faolan he briefly glanced over him one more time, making sure he was truly fine, before he glanced toward the door. Anger was not a common emotion for Lucien, but in a moment like this, he felt like he was quite close to it. Those men had taken things too far.

Seeing Faolan like this.. he didn't feel like he should ask the man for help. While he didn't know who it was that had hurt him, he could only guess it might be related to those other men, and Lucien didn't want him to get hurt again. They were even now. Lucien would simply have to deal with this on his own. While the priest's warnings rang in his head, he ignored them. That relic was too important for him to simply allow them to keep it. Worst comes to worst he could just.. fly away, or something. He wasn't sure, he'd worry about it when he got to it. With that in mind, he headed for the door.

Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

Lucien was relieved to hear the man's word of acceptance. That was enough to at least ease some of the stress the Ringmaster was undergoing. He lifted his gaze, watching with curiosity as the magician began to perform his trick. It was certainly impressive, but what he found the most intriguing was that despite the man's appearance, his motions, the way he directed his so called audience, which in this case was just them, it was perfect. He knew what he was doing. The man was indeed exactly what the circus needed.

While Ivory knew that this sort of flair was something that could be of use to them, she didn't want him to have the satisfaction of knowing it. After all, the circus had Akane. While she knew the kitsune couldn't manipulate her fire to the extent of such delicate shapes, he could have probably pulled off something more impressive if he had gone with something else. She didn't say anything in regards to it however, and simply let out a small scoff, not wanting to give him the complete satisfaction. He would see it for himself later.

It was Lucien who instead answered his question, having given him a small set of applause. "I think you most certainly do, Mr. Wagner. I would be truly honored to have you join my Circus. Our first show is tomorrow night. You can find us about a mile out from town. Feel free to stop by at any time, though if you wish to perform I must ask you show up ahead of time so we may discuss what your act may hold. Get ourselves situated and such." He said, retaining his smile as he rose to his feet.

Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

Lucien's eyebrows furrowed slightly at Faolan's response. Silver? That wasn't something that would be poison to normal people, though.. having it in your system probably wasn't pleasant either. He wasn't all that knowledgeable when it came to that particular thing. Maybe it did have the potential to be, he wasn't sure, but he wasn't going to question it. He figured in this case Faolan knew best. At his demand, Lucien moved to do as he said, but he was stopped as Faolan took hold of his arm. It took him by surprise for a moment.

He briefly averted his gaze, unsure of what he could say. He had done exactly what the priests had advised him not to do. He had given himself away but.. Faolan had been in so much pain. He had saved him once, Lucien had only wanted to return the favor.

"I-I.. healed it.." He muttered. "You seemed like you were in a lot of pain.. so.." He trailed off, clearly nervous of wanting to say more.