Meeting With the Boss [Discontinued]

[PreciousKitten]

At first, the notion that this would all be some elaborate repeat of their previous endeavor flooded into her mind and caused the blood in her heart to run cold. Surely, he was not going to just keep on tugging the leash whenever she got too far away just to keep her near. Even that was a bit of a stretch for Max when it came to his need for personal control, since that messed around with active free will. She breathed out an active sigh of relief when the walls placed back up were a bit fewer in number, at least now the vampire could smile without making the act seem altogether forced. Celeste paused at the mention of dinner, with just the two of them in attendance.

Did that not negate the idea that the two of them were not actively dating? Keeping up with him now was such a chore, especially when Max developed mood swings that gave the feline virtual whiplash. "First off, no I am by no means even close to my heat and even if I was - I believe that is for me to know." Celeste effectively cut off his mild dread, effectively soothing any notions that a pregnancy might be even a scant possibility. "Secondly, you saw fit to clean my panties for me, so I thought it only fair to do the same for your tie." Her response was a little curt, as if answering that and attesting to the fact that tearing it up had been up there on the list in the first place were one and the same.

He did not need to know about that little detail, although he likely held a sneaking suspicion that was all it would ever be. Celeste chose not to go further into details and simply nodded at the mention of taking more care as to where her claws went from now on, but in the heat of the moment it was quite difficult to rein in the primal instinct to mark his skin and let everyone know that she held a piece of him they could never hope to touch. But the mention of the pet name he had given her so long ago caused a dusting of blush to come back into play, apparently now that the two were at least agreeable to seeing each other outside of work it brought back out a part of him the feline long thought to be dead. "Understood, but can we not be using company property the next time we indulge?"

The pair were able to make it to the elevator with little issues, but at the mention of her actively trying to shut the doors on him it caused her to avert her gaze and find an interesting spot on the wall to stare at. No, she had no clue at all why he would possibly think that. Celeste was found out when he all but remembered the rapid clicking of various floor buttons in a bid to make the doors shut faster. Of course, the vampire could catch onto something like that - but mum was the word, and the silver haired female was not about to tell. "Maybe you were just hearing things, Max." She attempted to plant a seed of doubt in his mind, but somehow doubted that it ended up taking root.

Just like he did, the notion that everyone inside of the office seemed to be on their best behavior raised a couple of flags inside of her mind, normally the department was keen to shirk off their duties until the last possible moment. The fur on her tail bristled at the sudden sound of an incoming call, likely to be her mother if Celeste had to fathom a possible guess since few others had this personal number to begin with. She managed to pull herself away for a split second to answer it, continuing to follow Max into the office and almost ended up dropping the phone when they were greeted with the sight of his father lounging in his chair.

"What? No, I am still here mother wha-" Celeste stopped as she could hear ravenous coughing on the other end, the notion that the older feline was struggling to catch a proper breath caused her own lungs to cringe in obvious sympathy. "The medication for your kidneys is in the drawer by your bed, it's in the syringes." Her words were somewhat shaky as they came out, able to zone out from the other two in the room and focus on the woman who had been in her personal care for two and a half years now. Her mother ended up quite ill shortly after the previous breakup, so it was not surprising that the vampire knew little about it in the first place outside of possible word of mouth from his father.

Despite the breakup, her mother was still quite keen on Max's father and kept in touch via weekly calls. Nothing remotely romantic, the two were just long-lived friends and that was even before their children ended up having relationship difficulties. Celeste sighed deeply as she stayed on the line until she could hear the sound of her mother's whimper which meant that the medicine was delivered properly, it never got any easier to hear her in agony though. "Good, just try to rest until I get back home, alright?" Her words were soft and wistful, even laughing at something whispered from the older female - likely some sort of timely comeback to her only daughter's sass.

"Cute, mother. Now, if we could only get that fighting spirit into more productive avenues." Celeste chuckled, only to be brought back to the current situation by a cough from Max who for the most part looked confused and rightfully so. "I'll bring you some of the chicken you like before I come back, yes I promise - no, I will not forget the mushrooms this time." Shortly after, the call ended, and she was able to put the cellphone up and give the two men her full attention. "It's starting to affect her kidneys; they say it is a protein deficiency of some kind. Last time we were at the doctor, think the allowance was between five to seven months." She broke the news so matter of factly that anyone else might have thought it to be too nonchalant - but the truth was far from that, the feline just chose to live in a fantasy world where her mother pulled through even if both the doctors and her own mother tried to tell her that was a pure fairy tale.

"Now, is there a reason you are here visiting, Sir. I must ask if it is needed for me to step outside for this or not." Celeste personally wanted to get the chance to run off, since the two males could be volatile when placed in the same room together on opposing sides of a heated debate. "No, sit." The command was simple enough, and both ears and tail wilted immediately before taking a seat on the chair farthest from the desk. 'Shit, it's never good if he makes me end up staying behind to witness it.'

 

[Lockdown]

Hearing Celeste comfort her mother felt like a sharp pain in his chest as if he was suffering from cardiac unrest. His lungs atrophied for how long he had to hold his breath. The feeling in his appendages vanished as if he were weightless and at any moment could collapse. The look of unease upon his charming features casted him in a shadow of melancholy. Like a statue he was frozen and helpless to do anything but watch. The hero who saved him when he was a child was declining faster than what his father had been telling him. It was only a matter of time.

"Max-!" a booming voice shattered the vampire from his dazed state and brought him back to reality. "Y-yes sir?" Max turned his attention to his father. The older vampire was the spitting image of Max. The same charismatic and sharp features were more exaggerated with the same sharp slit red eyes able to melt steel with it's venom alone. Max had his features softened thanks to his mother to make him more approachable yet charming. But his father was an intimidating creature of the night straight from the tales of old. Stories used to spook naughty children into behaving properly otherwise a vampire like the CEO will come forth from the shadows and take them.

Yet here he was. Sitting in Max's throne and occupying his son's kingdom as if his progeny was meant to keep his seat warm in his absence of running the empire. "I understand it can be a lot to take in, but please, have some respect and give her some privacy." the CEO advised the director before taking another puff of his cigar. The older man was reading a history book and so flipped the page once his striking vermillion slits finished scanning the page.

Max hesitated for a moment before relenting, "Yes sir." He sighed before closing the giant doors shut to not let out any more of the smoke to permeate the office. There was an ominous smoke nipping at the ankles of the two. It was no surprise to Max and most likely Celeste at this point. Ever since he was a baby he's always coupled the abyssal smoke with his father. It followed him everywhere and shielded him from the harm of the sun. One of the few vampires which didn't ever need to fear the sun since he's never seen it in person himself. A personal domain which he was able to manipulate. Celeste and Max were merely humble visitors and now trespassed upon it.

Max had always thought of himself invincible given his unique ability to move objects with his mind. The only weakness being the instrument to tug on the strings of reality being his fingers and hands. But his father was an entirely different league of his own. He was able to do so much more within the mist. It was only a question on how he fancied on toying with his prey. "Sit." the CEO suggested to his son before the vampire walked further into his own office and sat down upon the same leather coach he had made Celeste squeal from pleasure from not too long ago.

The neko was about to wrap up when creeping thoughts slithered in from the corners of his mind. 'What exactly is Celeste to me?' he pondered. Sure they were fuckbuddies in the past and had sparked that relationship once more back in the car. But fuckbuddies don't get overly sentimental when their mother is deathly ill. Was it because her mother saved him that he took a keen interest in her? What about Celeste admirable will to keep persevering no matter how annoying it can be when her resolution clashed with his own? Did he misread the mood when he invited her to dinner given her curt and standoffish attitude when he asked if she could be chance fall pregnant. Max pondered while waiting for her to finish.

When she did he honestly didn't want her to be in his office if his father had important private matters to discuss. He had already gained the answer to the question he wanted to ask. It wasn't something he thought would be appropriate to ask in case keen ears were eavesdropping. So the confines of his office allowed for some privacy and for her to let out any emotions she might've felt when he would've asked. He wanted to know how her mother was doing.

So he was in shock when his father asked Celeste to stay. "If you want the both of us here. What news do you have for us, father?" Max tilted his head a bit unsure on what to make of this unprovoked meeting.

The elder vampire closed his book with a loud thud before rising to his fall stature, "Well for starters," the CEO's sharp vermillion slits looked over to the neko, "You already know that, behind closed doors, you can call me by my first name, Alexander or better yet Alex." the elder reminded the feline in case she might've forgotten given his three piece suit and overall aura of preeminence. His sauntered steps clicked along the marble floor, "As for you Maximus, you should know to call me father as well." With the formalities out of the way. The CEO had set the ground work for this meeting to be less business-like.

The smoke slowly began to buildup in front of the two until the shape of a horse appeared from the abyss and began to gallop in the center of the chessboard, "The Trojan Horse. A gift which disguised itself as nothing more but a trophy and an admittance of defeat. Only to actually be a malicious trick meant to topple over those it fooled into inviting it into their home and instead be their undoing." The misty horse then bursted into several mini Greek warriors and began to topple over the minor and major pieces of the chess board leaving it in a messy state of chaos.

"Luckily I for one like to learn from the mistake of man or the supernatural as to never fall for the same trick more than once," Alex pursed his lips into a smile before his face became dead serious. "There is a snake in my garden of Eden and I've traced it back to this subsidiary company." Alex spoke in a deathly serious tone of voice before looking at the two sitting before him.

"As you know we faced a conglomerate wide computer outage. It was because of a software security update which went live in the middle of the night but it lead to nobody within any of the subsidiary companies to log into their computer. Thankfully it was resolved within the twenty-four hours we had discovered the problem so only a minor billion was lost in revenue." Alex spoke as if a billion was merely change one would find within the cushions of their seat at home.

"Yet I had my suspicion. Why was our company subject to such an abysmal cyber overbite? Well, after some digging, I've realized," his vermillion orbs flashed hot red for a second, "It was no accident." Alex revealed before taking a pause to inhale his cigar before exhaling and allowing the flumes to join the mist.

"So you're saying the hiccup in the software wasn't a bug? But father what makes you think that?" Max chimed in briefly wondering what this all had to do with the Trojan horse analogy. Sometimes his father was hard to understand but he learned that there was always a rhyme or reason to his word choice.

"Bug? No. The culprit was a snake which shed it's skin before they could be found. But they couldn't hide their tracks leading to this subsidiary acting as it's nest to brew more horrendous monstrous plans to topple over the conglomerate." Alex leaned against Max's desk as he looked down at the two keen listeners. "The culprit implanted a virus meant to steal information and ruin our systems at the same time." Alex finally revealed.

Max's breath hitched within his throat. His head fell into his hands in his usually stoic demeanor had already cracked the moment he saw his father but had practically fractured apart when he came to the realization. "No. No that can't be! The only ones who have admin access to the software of the company are the directors and the managers." Max looked up at his father. "So you're telling me that-"

"-There's a snake hidden among the managers within this subsidiary and have now chosen to stop galloping and now lay siege to my Garden." Alex interrupted to finish Max's words before he took another nonchalant puff of his cigar as if he didn't just say that there was a manager who was not only a traitor but also a saboteur.

Alex got up from his post and walked closer toward the two. "Of course. It also can be the director who could be the culprit." Alex surmised. Max shot up from his seat and placed a hasty hand onto his chest. "Father, I would never do such a thing!" the director proclaimed earnestly. "Oh I know Maximus. But that does lead me to wonder..." he passed his son which was only a couple inches smaller than him.

So when his full figure stood right in front of Celeste it was practically overbearing. "The director and managers are not the only ones with admin access. It's also the secretaries as well." Alex leaned in somewhat. The first time he's ever really approached Celeste with an aura that wasn't warm, "Tell me sweetie. I know you and my son's relationship has been rocky in the past but do you have it in you to steal private company information and pocket a fortune to sell said information to our competitors to fund your mother's hospital bills? Is it revenge you're seeking after?" his piercing vermillion slits were much like Max's crimsons but they lacked the softness behind them. You never got to the top by being soft and he lacked the complicated feelings he had for Celeste to soften his rough edges.

"Father, I don't think Celeste could've done it she would nev-" the director fought on her behalf before the smoke ensnared Max by the mouth and kept his fists balled up. "I know Maximus, but I just need to hear it straight from the horse's mouth," he jested even at a time like this wondering if she was the Trojan horse he was looking for. The snake which threatened his Garden of Eden.

"Now's your one chance. Come clean and I won't be angry or upset. If it's not you then simply say as such."

 

[PreciousKitten]

The air within the office now felt extremely frigid in nature, almost like there would end up being ice threatening to take up shop inside of her very lungs in the span of but a few minutes. Listening to the explanation from Alex caused a lump to form in her throat, knowing exactly what was going to be implied with the direction of the current conversation and those piercing crimson eyes landing on the feline. But the fur along the ends of her tail bristled all the same at the pointed accusation, along with the poignant pause that followed suit and left the three inside of the room on edge. Celeste defiantly met the gaze of the elder vampire, as if knowing that to look at the floor was an admission to some form of guilt, but the person lacked the conviction to say it out loud and instead tried to mask it.

"There was talk once about such a thing taking place, or better yet - rumors circling the vine in terms of the managers." She admitted to that readily, it was one of the key reasons that the neko was kept around - men and women alike were easily smitten by her inherent charm and were like flies to a pot of honey and fell into the trap one by one without fail. Her ears were flicked forward, a key sign of internal agitation that the female was not wanting to admit to in the presence of the two vampires. Did the secretary dare to admit to being approached by one of the underlings of the person responsible as if to recruit her to commit the deed?

"I was the one that the - Snake, as you so eloquently put it - approached personally to see if I would be willing to do it in exchange for the insurmountable fees needed to try a risky and expensive set of transfusions to attempt to save my mother's life." Celeste swallowed audibly, able to feel a growing ache in the back of her throat the likely came from a form of guilt for now admitting to any of this when it came to Max.

But the reason for this deception was relatively simple and ultimately benign. While all that Alex stated about her being resentful of the relationship deteriorating and being left out in the cold was all true and valid, it did not factor in the loyalty that her mother instilled in her from a young age or the memories of the vampire caring for both of the felines when she was but a child. Even if the offer was tempting for a split second, the conscience that she possessed would have never allowed for such blatant betrayal to a hand that fed her.

"As it stands, they believe that I am part of the scheme - so to answer your question if I was the one who installed the virus to begin with then the answer is yes." Celeste answered with both eyes instinctively trying to avert themselves after feeling not only the weight of Alex but Max as well. "But the variant that I used was different from the one they had originally given to me at first. In a way, it had an easy to absolve loophole that made the damage it did minimal at best and just as simple to track it's movement."

Few rarely accounted for the wit and resourcefulness that the feline had in spades, just writing her off at first glance as a high-class bimbo that got to where she was on looks alone and no actual business tact. Her body stood firm in its place, not allowing either of them to make her lose even a bit of conviction. "The original one would have absolutely fried the circuitry in the computer systems that we use here - instead of merely a day of downtime it would be lucky if the company came back online in a months' time."

Celeste sighed heavily at the way that Max seemed disappointed in the notion that she was actually involved - even if the reason was to expose the plan and the perpetrator from the inside and force them out into the light. "My mother was the one who had the idea at first, to keep our enemies closer to observe each move and try to come up with a proper counter to buy the company borrowed time." She shifted a bit, clearly wanting either of them to speak and break the tension now forming in the air around them.

"Look, I know that doing this without any form of backup from either you or Max was insanely stupid - but I thought if I told either of you, they would end up going back into the woodwork and I'd lose them completely." The feline looked at Alex and the gaze softened considerably, for the first time allowing emotions to come into play and removing the cold mask that she put on for so many others. "You have been like a surrogate father to me all of these years - there is no way I could destroy something you spent so long building from the ground up."

She chose to omit the part involving Max and their on and off again relationship throughout the years, knowing that to try and explain that while she held resentment for it, it was by no means enough to attempt to backstab either of them as a means to an end. "As painful as it is to admit, my mother is going to die and there is not a thing I can do to stop it. In a years' time, I will essentially be on my own for the first time in my life." Just bringing that to mind caused both of her eyes to well up in tears but refused to allow them the chance to be shed.

"I believe that the one behind all of it is Michael, because the person who approached me was someone I could have sworn was a driver for him before. I am usually quite good with faces, and this one with the multiple scars and haircut is hard to forget." Celeste held back a gag at the memory, clearly the professional image he presented was not the most palatable to her. "But there is a chance I am wrong or there could be others in on it too."

She took the chance to look over at Max, still able to feel the way the smoke whipped at her feet, and it made her hesitant to try and make a move just yet. While Alex was a man of his word, it did not mean that he would simply overlook such a blatant disregard that the neko had for her own safety instead of coming to him for help. "I was going to say something, but I wanted to be as sure as possible before blowing the whistle and the cover I had." Celeste knew that her face at the moment was pleading for at least a modicum of understanding, something that let her know that the act of going undercover was not wasted and ended up burning the last two reliable bridges in her corner.

"I... wanted to be helpful for once instead of just a constant disappointment."

 

[Lockdown]

Max, the ever stoic man, had remained silent and motionless. But not out of a conscious restraint of keeping his emotions in check. He was more in shock. The mist chains which bound him needn't stress since he stopped fighting the moment he heard Celeste admit to be the culprit. He was a petrified statue with the constant stare of disappointment in his features. He was certain Celeste's heart irked when she met his gaze and he looked at her in that manner.

Eventually he just couldn't look at her anymore and simply turned his head away to collect his thoughts and let her speak her peace.

Alex watched Celeste like a hawk with razor sharp vermillion slits while she admitted all of which she knew and what lead up to her making these choices.He then brought his cigar up to his lips before taking in a deep puff. The exhale had shrouded himself in an abyssal mist only allowing his vermillion eyes to beam through along with a faint outline of his persons as if he were a shadow coming from the edge of oblivion. "Is that all then? If so-" a clawed hand burst forth from the smoke and reached out for her. Max's heart fell to his stomach when Alex reached out for her. But when Alex's hand reached Celeste. A congratulatory gesture brought back from when she was a child was reenacted. He was simply caressing her head like he did when she would show him something to be proud of like an award she won in school. "-thank you for telling me. You're so brave for not holding back even when I've cornered you."

His hand left her head about the same time he came back into full view. His eyes flashed hot rose, "Still." he growled as if she were being reprimanded for being a rowdy child. "You were tempted to taste the forbidden fruit and as such are no longer welcomed within my garden." True to his word his expression didn't radiate anger. "I banish you not out of animosity but because of my disappointment in you, Celeste. I can no longer allow this unruly horse trampling along my garden and I will snuff out all of the insects it hid within it's haircoat. Starting with you, my dear," Alex declared with a heavy heart when sentencing her.

"You're fired. Effective immediately."

Alex turned his back to Celeste almost to save face. She was a pseudo daughter to him so it was more than difficult to fire her. "I'll give you till then end of today to collect your belongings. Rest assured, I will find the culprit who ensnared you in this scheme." The CEO said with fierce animosity wondering who would dare try to destroy his empire with the aid of a cherished friend of the family.

Max's fists balled and vibrated as they held onto irritation. His forearms were becoming taxed from holding onto this weight. The irritation desperately yearned to be freed from this hell and prison Max called a body. The vampire rose his foot before stomping harshly onto the ground causing the room to shake and the marble floor beneath him to crack. Crimson eyes were glazed over. Sharp slits banished from his eyes all together. The smoke in the room was shoved to the outskirts and clung to the walls as if supernatural decorations. "Father."

Alex's vermillion orbs widened at the unexpected outburst. The old vampire regained composure and regained his relaxed demeanor once more. "Yes, Maximus?" he beckoned for his son to continue with a proud smirk. He guessed all Max needed was a little push to go beyond his limits. He was also willing to hear what Max had to say once Celeste finished talking anyways.

"I have a proposition. The Trojan's fatal error was inviting something into their city which they thought wasn't harmful. I of all people know how harmful this little neko of ours can be especially when you get too close to her. Her enchanting looks can charm anyone around her fingers." Max shot her a venomous glare before continuing. "Still. It's a mistake to fire her. She has further use left which I would like to exploit," he said as if she were nothing but a pawn in this game of chess against these traitors. "Let me find these heathens who wish to topple your empire and regain my honor for letting them slip under my watch. I, as the director, feel obligated to find these snakes hiding within this subsidiary."

Max pledged by holding his hand above his heart, "Let me use Celeste as our Trojan horse to destroy them. They'll only hide better if you fire her now. We don't even know how far back this goes. But if we use her alluring nature to bring these traitors out from the shadows then we can destroy them in one foul swoop." Max declared to his father. Still Alex didn't look too pleased until, "If I fail then I'll simply resign as Director for failing to do the bare minimum of what a model Director should be able to accomplish. You can then fire Celeste for her transgressions. If we succeed then I regain my honor and Celeste keeps her job."

The CEO contemplated this for a few drawn out moments. He took a long puff of his cigar while contemplating this proposition. The smoke which was banished to the wall had now slowly dripped back onto the floor and slowly permeated their ankles again once Max's balled hands finally opened to let go of the burdensome irritation he was holding onto after he spoke his peace. "Fine. I'll take you up on that offer. You've proven to be competent to run the medical subsidiary even when you had little to no experience in the medical field. You always surpass my expectations Maximus, so please, don't disappoint me this time either."

Alex's optics landed on Celeste, "As for you, dear. Please. Don't ever feel like you can't come to anyone. You're always welcomed in our household," he spoke in a warm manner lacking the business demeanor when he sentenced her earlier. "But that doesn't mean you'll always be welcomed in my conglomerate if you two fail." The familiar cold tone caused frost bite when he shifted to a more serious tone with an equally venomous glare to Max's.

The old vampire's features softened. "You two have until the Paris Summit to accomplish this task. The board is going to want to know why this happened and I can only keep them at bay for so long. He turned to face them completely now and gave Max a firm hug. Don't let me down, son," he spoke like a proud father before turning to Celeste. "Come on, you too." he gestured for her to stand up before her slouched down to give her a hug as well. The old vampire whispered, "I'm sorry for your mother's health. As soon as Maximus found out he scrambled to set up a medical subsidiary with some of the brightest doctors he could find. I'm certain he's working hard to help." Alex nonchalantly revealed as if this were common knowledge.

"Father!" Max called out preventing Alex from speaking further. "Oh?" Alex murmured before letting go of Celeste. "You haven't told her?" he bemused before shaking his head at his son. "Kids these days." The CEO sauntered over to the large set of wooden doors with the smoke slowly trailing after him. When the large doors clicked open he looked over his shoulder to the two, "Remember. If you two fail. I will terminate you both." a flash of hot red flashed across his eyes. "I look forward to the Paris Summit!" Alex exclaimed before leaving the duo with some lingering mist fading into obscurity.

There was an awkward silence which filed up the empty space the mist had once occupied. Max was the first to fill the void with sound, "How long were you going to go without telling me?" he inquired with a slightly hurt tone. The vampire continued, "No. Were you even going to tell me?" Max narrowed his eyes to the feline for the traitor she was.

"You planned all of this to happen today, didn't you? You knew what buttons to push. To get me to slightly open up to you." Max raced to conclusions to find a reason behind her actions regardless of if they held any weight or made any sense. With crossed arms, "You're right. You constantly disappointing me. Because just when I thought you were turning over a new leaf it was actually all a ruse to get all cozy with me and lure me into a false sense of security. Well that's not happening anymore," he growled before raising his hand at her and flicking his finger.

This sent a stinging sensation as if he flicked her forehead. "You have no idea how much I've sacrificed for this subsidiary to keep it running and I'm only going to make it better. When the Paris Summit arrives, the board is now going to have no reason to not give me those funds when it's revealed it was me who found the hackers. Those funds will help me purchase our rival. Then those stingy doctors will have no choice but to share their research with our doctors in hopes of finding a cure for your mother."

Max stepped closer to her as if threatening the neko, "I don't really give a damn if you put on the water works in front of father or if your story is actually true. You will help me in getting that bonus and in return you'll get a manager position for your efforts. But I'll need insurance to make sure you stay on a short leash from now on." He cryptically divulged before raising his hand and forcing her back into the chair. Her entire body except for her head was glued to the chair as if she were a magnet to a fridge. With his free hand he hiked up her dress, "Remember that summer trip when we were messing with hexes and I said I was able to erase the succubus hex? I lied. I just didn't want to freak you out since I didn't know what I was doing," he revealed.

It was a fad at the time they were in college. It required mystical ink and some incantations. The rumor was it made sex feel even better and gave both partners the libido to last longer. It also made it so they could stimulate one another without actually touching each other. But it very quickly fell out of hand when the hex was used in public for easy clicks on social media and the fad died that year when it was banned.

"I asked Beatrice about hexes, for an unrelated manner, and she told me if the right circumstances are met they can be reignited. I think you cumming all over my cock and my seed planted deep within you less than an hour ago is more than enough to connect us again." Max reached out from his wall of books. The novels shifted as if his fingers were going along them right before he found what he was looking for. The witch's notebook sprung open in front of Celeste and the pages flew with haste until reaching the succubus hex.

"This is your punishment for lying to me. Say the incantation and complete the hex. If I ever think you're lying I'll make you beg for me to stop making you cum until the truth comes out of your lips."

 

[PreciousKitten]

Celeste knew of the punishment held in store even before it left the elder vampires' lips, though that really did very little to lessen the sting that came from the words of being fired - effective immediately. Expectation and hearing the words in real time were very different, not to mention the obvious disappointment that came from Alex even if he did understand the reasons behind the feline and her secrecy up until now. Her ears perked up at the mention of Max being involved in securing some of the finest doctors that money could buy within the city, it was not something that she expected out of him - at least not for her sake alone. When it came to her mother, the vampire held an obvious soft spot for her an absolutely hated when it was brought out into the light for just anyone to see.

"No, he had not mentioned anything of the sort" She managed to bite out, though the kindness in her voice was lost swiftly when the blind accusations began to shoot off from Max and his big mouth. It was a quirk of his that Celeste could not stand at all, that he saw one single crack in the facade and everything around him had to be some kind of elaborate scheme to tear down the walls he built up over the years. Her hands balled up into tight fists, clearly on the last shred of sanity that prevented the female from doing something that she would certainly come to regret later.

"Despite your 'brilliant' observation and being paranoid into thinking the entire world is out to get you all of the time. No, earlier had absolutely nothing to do with what happened between us. You always fail to forget that I was against us breaking up in the first place - but you would not listen to anything I had to say." Celeste soured immediately after admitting to the emotions still at play, it truly did make the neko feel weak to admit to harboring such affections toward the aloof vampire.

Now, when Max mentioned her telling him about the situation; that was a point that caused her to falter. He was right about that one, if anyone would be approachable about the matter at hand - Celeste would have no doubt chosen his father instead of simply trusting in Max like she had done countless times before. "No, I did not have any intention of telling you about it. To be fair, you are impossible to get a word in edgewise with though. Ever since we parted ways, you have shut yourself off to me whole heartedly; even to the extent of believing the managers word above my own."

Her gaze hardened at the mention of being kept on a leash, only for her entire body to be sent flying through the room until she came to rest on a chair and felt the way something held it in place. Celeste gasped out loud when Max brought up that damned hex, oh, so he was allowed to keep something this huge from her but if she did it the world was bound to fall apart. "Figures, you are allowed to keep secrets and close yourself off from me without reprimand - it is only when I do it that it is considered a form of treason."

"You wouldn't...Maximus..." She hissed the name out like some feral cat, the growl that followed afterward reverberating inside of her chest before it was released into the air around them. Her lips quivered as a tome came shooting out from the wall, forcing Celeste to come face to face with a familiar incantation that made the very blood in her veins run cold. Using this kind of thing when the two were on civil terms was one thing, but for Max to hold puppet strings on her when he sometimes could not even stand the sight of the female gave her justified pause.

"Silken lace and honeyed wine, betwixt the flower and the vine. Obey the chanters beck and call, become forever thy induced thrall."

Celeste struggled to remain upright as the incantation left her lips, not long after a familiar sensation took hold of her body and made it feel like both arms and legs were no longer her own. Choked sobs came out then, unable to truly believe that Max would stoop this low all over again. Mascara tinted lashes were lifted to look up at him properly, now there was a mild stain that outlined both eyes and showed off the true inner agony at play.

"This...is exactly why I refused to tell you in the first place. Because you would lose your damn mind and do something foolish on the whim of a heated temper!" Celese could feel the way her lower abdomen began to twist and turn, simply one inkling of a thought from Max and the vampire could have the feline in a puddle on the floor and begging for profuse mercy. "Fine, we will get you the money you so desire - then I want nothing more to do with this hex and you'll find a way to remove it. Permanently this time."

Despite the fact that this hex in use was banned for its unpredictability, surely someone such as Beatrice would know how to get rid of it once and for all if given proper incentive. She waited until some of the anger from Max had abated before trying to pull herself out of the chair, even that simple action made her feel like she was lugging around lead weights since the vampire still appeared to have a want to see the female suffer just a little bit more for his own amusement.

"As in regard to my mother and her treatment - do not bother, I will procure the means to do it myself. I do not wish to have you involved in my life anymore than necessary."