Private Finished Gods Among Men

This was an offer too good to be true. Or at least it would have been in Halcyon City. This was the part where Basilio would have normally casually revealed that the building was surrounded by his men, ready to kill everyone inside at his command. But he had no men, no resources, and if he was taking Asteria at face value then he had nothing to worry about. He could easily pay her back later.

"No outrageous demands, you say. Other than, I assume, a nice table and good wine if you ever stop in to visit?" He smirked slightly, a playful gesture he was slowly becoming more familiar with. Basilio the stoic looking figure was not the man he needed to be here. He needed to be approachable.

"Well I see no obvious downside," he said as his smirk softened into a smile. "I mean of course a more formal contract would need to be written up. Forgive me but I am a pragmatist and I hate leaving things to 'he said, she said'. Makes it easier for us to settle disagreements without resorting to killing each other."

"I agree wholeheartedly," Basilio said as he finished off his cigarette. It calmed Adraxis somewhat at least, so it wasn't a completely useless habit. He already had been warned about the Fae. And the conclusion Basilio himself had come to was that they would make excellent legal counsel. Should he find himself needing it, that is.

"I am frankly tired of fighting petty fights for no reason. Though if I am honest I still have that tendency in me. I don't think it will be a problem, but fair warning nonetheless. If you ever endanger my son no force on Earth or in Heaven will be able to stop me."

Basilio paised and smiled a bit before adding, "and I would expect precisely the same from you, fair Doctor."

Basilio kind of chuckled at that last bit, shaking his head. "Dr. Vrall I do believe you are trying to hit on me. It won't work, I assure you. I have long sworn off involving myself with women so obviously married to their work."

There was a beat as he swirled his glass before he finished off his drink. "I'm kidding of course. I'd hate to impose upon you any further, since you are making such a generous offer to me already. How about this then. But I know this game. You will insist it is no imposition at all. We will go back and forth like this for a bit until I relent. So I will skip the formality of it and say this: dinner. At my restaurant, when we open."

"I suppose we'll have to get to know each other better so you can decide for yourself what kind of game I'm playing here, won't we?" Basilio folded his arms behind his back, quietly cracking his knuckles and thinking to himself. Was he being flirtatious? Possibly. It had been a useful tactic back home, particularly with the likes of Calliope and the Temptress. Women who wanted attention.

"I do appreciate you having this meeting with me however. It has been enlightening and frankly refreshing to see that just because I am in a new place with such a wildly different culture, the games I am used to are so much the same." He cracked the last joint on his last finger and relaxed a bit more, feeling his shoulders sag ever so slightly. "Will there be anything else you need of me right now, Dr. Vrall?"

Basilio's smirk seemed like a permanent fixture on his face as he saw Asteria, this apparently unflappable immortal as she flapped and faltered to keep up with him. He didn't believe it for a second of course. He had dealt with enough people to know that what you see is rarely a mirror of reality.

"Please, Dr. Vrall. Silver tongue? You think so little of me already? Gold-tongued is far more apt and fitting my demeanor. However I unfortunately don't have time for a tryst with a strange immortal. There's work to be done. I will contact you when I have more of my affairs in order."

He paused at the door, his smug expression falling into a more genuine smile. "Thank you for the conversation, the brandy, and the offer. I won't disappoint you, Doctor." And then he left politely, already making plans on what move to make next in his push forward on Manta Carlos.