I had unknowingly created a destination for Serafina and myself when I had mentioned my little brother, and how he worked nearby. It wasn't a bit of information I had been hiding necessarily, but there wasn't much of me that often wanted to share my family or invite someone to meet them. There was something about our past that I wasn't often keen to share; Serafina had already seen it. And so when the young woman took the reins (literally my hand) to bring me towards the establishment my brother worked at, I was loathe to deter her.The Cat's Meow loomed with such neon lights that my eyes hurt just looking in its general vicinity. Why Finley had chosen this place was beyond me; at least he'd found a job that didn't include terrorizing Arsenaal. Though I didn't mind his eternal company, I had to accept that his life didn't need to be intertwined with mine in all areas lest our relationship blossom into something reminiscent of Troy and mine. No one wanted that, especially the general populace. Terror aside, I found myself thankful that Serafina had not been blessed with the opportunity to see any of the instances in my past that involved Finley, leaving his introduction entirely a surprise.

Before she could draw me into the burlesque, my fingers brought a cigarette to my lips while I paused to survey the ethereal sin that leaned against the side of the building. Radiant and strong, it was clear that Lust was drawing energy from the variety of patrons both internally and externally participating in the services the establishment offered. Had I never been exposed to any kind of sex trade, I might have been mildly amused by the Cat's Meow. Instead, I felt only a pang of insignificant irritability that lasted only as long as it took me to take a short drag from my cigarette. Lust watched me first, nodding her head once as if to acknowledge Serafina and myself â€" her typical haunts â€" before slinking, in a very feline way, down the line of people at the door, brushing each of them with her hand as she passed. With a sigh, I changed my focus to the young woman beside me, allowing Lust to affect me in a prominent way I didn't often accept in order to acquiesce to Sera's determination to enter the ... uh, hm. Bacteria-laden environment that could only harbor all kinds of infections I wasn't exactly keen on mentally dissecting.

The amount of electricity fueling the lights and music of the burlesque had me cringing initially, but it didn't take long to be ignored as I watched familiar beings lounging around the main room. Lust was overjoyed to have been brought to the burlesque. Massaging the shoulders of one of the patrons in the far corners lurked Gluttony. In the area opposite that sin sat Envy with his legs crossed over several chairs, drumming his fingers on the table in a manner all too characteristic of my own in order to get the attention of the man nearest him, turning the man's chin to watch the dancer nearest him forcefully. Pride took center stage, boastfully mimicking several of the dancers' routines. Greed oozed with his grimy nature from patron to patron, basking in the glory of the people come to the burlesque. The Shadow perched amiably nearby, somehow sullen and tired-looking. I hadn't quite figured out the entirety of this portion of my magic yet, but somehow it seemed to drain the Shadow and for now? I was content to leave it tired and sulking as I tried to look for Finley, but found myself far more interested in the witch who had insisted we explore inside.
The moment we sat down, I found myself watching intently as a familiar figure pushed back his horde of chairs and began to make his way over to us. With a wicked, wicked smirk did he sit beside Serafina, his head tilted as if questioning why she'd given him a reason to arrive. I, too, became curious and dropped a hand to Sera's leg, suggesting she pay attention to me.

"Is there something you want to tell me?" I started to say, a good natured but impish grin beginning to tickle my lips. "I didn't think you two had met." The insinuation was that I hadn't realized the young woman was jealous. Of what? Lust pulled up the chair beside me, leaning on her hands in order to expose a deep cleavage that took Envy's attention from Sera, allowing me to settle for watching Sera as she allowed Lust to inflict some kind of feline-esque coyness into the young witch. I wanted nothing more than to situate Sera against me and press my hand to the middle of her back and find her lips with her body melding against mine in an indisputably inappropriate way. Unfortunately for me, the presence of another being aroused Lust's attention and she gently touched the girl who had arrived, fostering a sense of the very sin itself into the waitress.

I'm busy.

With a disgruntled sigh, I let my hand find the inside of Serafina's thigh, settling for that form of contact instead of acknowledging the young woman who had joined us, presumably to take our order of some kind. Fuck you Finley, where are you? I didn't need a drink, anyway â€" not with Sera so close and so ...

If only Lust had better things to do.