“Mediterranean cuisine and delicacies at Restaurant Davvero. What do you all say?” Erlind suggested, Kai promptly giving him a slight nod. "That sounds like an excellent choice." he agreed, and offered Annika his arm once more, for her to place her small hand onto it, and lead her forwards, showing her off as if she were a jewel on a crown.<br/><br/>Raising his hat once more and bowing softly as the figure of the Witch appeared by him - speaking up with kindness in an amicable voice, but he could sense an air of uneasiness from her - he returned her smile, courteous as ever. "Indeed, it is a pleasure, Fraulein Deveraux." he nodded. Annika smiled, too, though it was nothing more than a hint of her plump lips curling upwards. "I'm pleased to meet you. Annika Rohr. I'm Kristoff's fiance. Hopefully you'll have a wonderful evening, Fraulein Deveraux."<br/>"Indeed," Kai nodded, giving his fiancee a short glance. "I wish you a beautiful evening, too, so may anything you do tonight turn out successful." A little more but a hint at those words, and he watched her exit. Little witch, little heart beating like a caged bird. He could well near feel the atmosphere of bottled-up emotion, following her like a hazy crimson veil.<br/><br/>It wasn't long before they'd enter the restaurant itself, their coats taken courteously; Kai preferred, rather than hiding in a private dining room, to put both his trophy suit, and his trophy woman on display before everyone's eyes, and thus, he chose the table right underneath the chandelier, glimmering with light, brilliantly reflected from crystal. The polished silver of the pocket watch's chain shimmered as he seated himself on the bolstered chair, placing one hand onto Annika's waist when the woman sat down beside him. Dressed in a clean tailcoat, though nowhere near matching either Erlind's simplistic suit, nor Kai's victorian outfit, the waiter came just moments later, handing every one a masterfully done menu.<br/><br/>Red bourbon and blue lobster, they dined like french kings in Versailles...<br/>The wine glass twirled the burgundy liquid, reflecting the light of the chandelier. Conversations were upheld solely for the purpose of conversing in itself, presentation of each other's social graces and riches, and subtle, yet to a skilled eye obvious showing off. That was the high society...<br/>So greedy, so greedy...<br/><br/>Greed. Greed was the original sin; Greed was the seed of darkness in human souls that made them commit wrongs. After all, everything wrong was done from greed - Gluttony the greed of consumption, Envy the greed for another's riches, Lust the greed for pleasure, Pride the greed of one's ego and praise, Sloth the greed of comfort, even Wrath - the greed for violence. Everything fell prey to its poisonous flame, bowing like grass in the winds of storm. Greed was at the beginning of humankind and Greed was what shaped it, what paved its way through the millenia. The forbidden fruit was only taken from curiosity, and that, too, was a pawn of Greed. Empires fell to it. Blood was shed for it. Men died for it. It changed earth and shaped borders, carved deep holes into mountains and built towers, shearing the sky, from stone.<br/>That was his domain. Greed. All-consuming, there was always a seed of avarice in the hearts of men, demons and angels alike...<br/>Even God himself wasn't free of Greed; would that be so, demons would not have come to existence, they would have never been banished in the first place. No, the deepest, gaping hole of blackness was there, within everyone. And you could never get rid of it.<br/><br/>Greed. It came in many forms and shapes, but at the very core of every longing was that, Greed. And it was a powerful weapon, too, a double-edged blade, for it could grant one power, and power corrupts - no one knew better how dangerous that blade was, how deep into one's soul it could strike, to tear it apart and shear all bits of innocence to nothing but charred remains.<br/><br/>Finally, the clicking of the waiter's heels warned them all of the coming of their meals - two men brought dishes on exquisite silver plates, served on porcelain of great quality, and placed them down between the already prepared cutlery. The shards of ice, on which oysters were served before Annika, were crisp, and the steam, rising from the blue shell of the lobster, with five small bowls of different sauces and dressings, which was placed in front of Kai, twisted in the stiff air. He, however, refrained from eating yet, knowing far too well it was likely too hot to eat; instead, he took one of the prawns from a smaller bowl between the fingers of his gloved hand, for a try dipping it in one of the sauce bowls.<br/>Delicious; it was cooked perfectly, and the the sauce had just the right amount of spices, mixed with yogurt. "The cuisine is indeed exquisite." he concluded.<br/><br/>An uncomfortable feeling of eyes on his back had him worried, though. As if someone was staring right through him. It was impolite to turn around and look whether someone's watching, but...<br/><span style="font-style: italic">Erlind. I think we are being watched. Is there someone odd behind us?</span>Even though in a mental connection, there was a hint of concern in his voice.<br/><br/>----<br/><br/>The Eyes saw everything. The Ears heard everything. Ever vigilant, ever watching, nothing escaped them.<br/><br/><span style="font-style: italic">He</span>saw through their eyes every sight, heard through their ears every sound, and there was nothing that he did not perceive.<span style="font-style: italic">He</span>wasn't there, but his puppets, moving on invisible strings, fastened to his fingertips, were moving like pawns on a chessboard, their eyes belonged to him, their ears belonged to him.<br/>Their thoughts belonged to him.<br/><br/>A figure slithered in through the door, dark and faded, long hair shadowing her face, devoid of any color. Eyes, black as night, without an iris or sclerae, stared stubbornly at the ground. There was nothing that could even distinguish her as a sentient creature; she lacked expression and words alike. She didn't even let the door service rid her of her high-collared coat, dressed as she was did she sit in the corner, those lifeless black eyes scanning every chair and every table.<br/>And<span style="font-style: italic">he</span>] saw them through her eyes, doubtless that they were no humans.<br/><br/>Her empty gaze was glued to them.