count your bones one by one

[implying]

Date & Time: SUPER BACKDATED to some point before the bodyswaps...
Location: Vanadi's sweet pad
Characters: Nikolai & Vanadi
Summary: drinks and a lot of flirting
Warnings: it's a mafiya dude and a nympho????? will add any if they happen.

[ Drinks are set out— a nice assortment, from wine to whiskey— as are the glasses, and Vanadi has even prepared a light meal to go with it. More a tray of foods to pick at than anything truly prepared, which is a shame, but he can admit that that's probably what tonight calls for.

In any case, come seven, he's sprawled over the couch of the main room, scrolling through the network to keep himself amused, and wondering mildly if Nikolai is the sort of man to be late. He'll find out soon, he supposes.

The mask, gloves, and long sleeves are all firmly in place, too. He usually doesn't bother with the mask at home, but he can hardly resist adding it to the ensamble when Nikolai had made such a big deal of it. ]

Comments

[justthedriver]

[ To be honest, Nikolai doesn't quite know what to expect. He went through the network before he even made the post, and he knows Vanadi's face- but there's a difference between 'finding out' and 'being told', and Nikolai has always been strikingly aware of the different. He wants to know the reason behind the hiding instead of what is hidden.

Call it the searching of a wondering mind, or something trite like that.

It's precisely seven zero four when Nikolai stands outside the door. He has found a perfectly tailored suit with with a white shirt and black tie, and he looks every inch the mafiya man, especially the tips of his fingers, covered in leather gloves despite the constant humidity of Exsilium. He knocks just once on the door, leaning against the frame, and waits. ]

[implying]

[ Vanadi is at the door shortly, a smile already in place. And — oh, that's quite a good look for the man. He steps aside almost as soon as the door is open, adding a flourishing bow to invite him in. ]

Hello, my dear! You're just in time. [ Not that drinks and a platter of meats and cheeses don't sit perfectly well, but whatever. ] Please, come in.

[justthedriver]

[ There it is again. 'My dear'. Nikolai almost laughs at Vanadi's daring- but then again, he thinks that it might be wisdom instead. In a world where the tattoos on his skin is nothing more than ink, why should anyone be afraid of who or what he might be? ]

Not a good thing to be late.

[ Dryly, and Nikolai walks in casually. He looks at the food on the table and raises an eyebrow. ]

So 'drinks' was not euphemism?

[implying]

Why, if it were only a euphemism, that would make me a liar of a host!

[ He closes the door after him and leads the way back to the couches with their small table of drinks and food between them. A grin gets tossed back over his shoulder as he goes. ]

Can't it be both?

[justthedriver]

[ It's an interesting smile. Nikolai strides forward, overtaking Vanadi. He places his hand on the table, turning around and grazing the tip of his finger over the sharp point of the mask. ]

Maybe. [ Casually. He tilts his head to the side. ] Convince me.

[ Reaching back, Nikolai takes a glass, a bottle, and holds them out. ]

[implying]

[ Well then. That works too. Vanadi doesn't stop until he's standing just as close as the mask will allow, which tilts up to match Nikolai's height. ]

Happily.

[ He takes the proffered glass and bottle without glancing down at them, pours swiftly, and presses the glass toward him. ]

Although— would you say it's truly necessary? If you're surprised to see my invitation was no simple innuendo, and arrived anyway...

[justthedriver]

[ Nikolai looks at the liquid for a long moment. He swirls it in the glass before he lets it tilt forward, the rim of the glass touching against Vanadi's lip. It's a little inconvenient given that Vanadi's mask gets in the way, but Nikolai has always been rather adaptable. ]

Maybe I am just curious. [ Softly. His smile is crooked. ] To see if you are as ugly as I keep thinking you must be.

[implying]

[ Both gloved hands come up, one wrapping lightly around Nikolai's hand on the stem of the glass, the other finding his wrist. He doesn't try to move it away, just keeps his hands rested as they are, and smiles. His head tips back just far enough to speak without bumping into the glass. ]

You're terribly insistent about this. And what would I get out of it, hmm?

[justthedriver]

[ Very brave of Vanadi to touch him like this, Nikolai thinks. But then again, Vanadi has been proving himself to be either very brave, or very stupid, and somehow Nikolai thinks that the differences don't really matter. Not here, in this place.

He chuckles softly, and he takes the invitation that Vanadi gives by tipping back his head. His fingers grazed against the chin he can see, barely brushing against those lips. ]

You tell me. [ He smiles, a small, secretive thing. ] Why did you invite me here?

[implying]

For your winning personality.

[ That with a clear smirk, even as he decides that this is precisely the type of man not to uncover himself around. The mask is fine, but the clothing will stay firmly in place. But that's fine, really. Such is true for the majority of his partners.

He sips from the glass, turning his head to the side to meet the rim there. Meanwhile his hips have moved nearer, well within any space bubbles and just shy of brushing Nikolai's front. ]

[justthedriver]

[ There are many, many types of coverings. Nikolai has wrapped himself in so many of them that it is nigh impossible for him to be completely uncovered by anyone anymore. Sometimes, he thinks that he's a cipher even to himself, and that's perfectly fine with him.

He smiles, crooked and a little sharp. The thumb presses against Vanadi's lip, the nail a little bit too sharp. ]

Nyet. My personality won't win any prizes.

[ He knows that's not what Vanadi means, but will he call him out on it? ]

[implying]

[ Call anyone out on anything? Ever? That's silly. ]

Why, then you're not asking the right judges.

[ He sets the wineglass down on the table behind Nikolai, leaning closer still to do it. There's no room left between them, and he's sure the mask will have to come off soon. For convenience, if nothing else. There's just no room for two people to stand this close together and the mask. But in the meantime he parts his lips, turning his head just enough to graze those pointy teeth of his across the pad of Nikolai's thumb. ]

[justthedriver]

[ The pointed teeth doesn't make Nikolai start, but it does make him think about how dangerous this creature actually is. He lives in the world of the vor, and in that world, danger is inscribed in the signs of the body. It is always less of a 'who' then a 'what'.

So what is Vanadi, he of the pointy teeth? Nikolai knows it's dangerous, but he wants to find out.

He tips his thumb upwards, just slightly- the barest pressure that is still enough to prick the skin. ]

Are you the right judge?

[ Idly, while he scrapes his bleeding thumb over Vanadi's lips.'

[implying]

[ Wow, way to make him indirectly bite someone. Vanadi winces, but only because he knows the mask will hide it. Hey, if that's what this guy is into (and really, he's not surprised), Vanadi will be happy to play along. A little warning would have been nice, though. ]

Well, that's certainly where my implication was leading.

[ His hands have risen again, gloved fingers folding over Nikolai's wrist, and he closes his lips around that thumb to suck away any more blood. Oh, the things he does for kinks. ]