'A mere mortal, eh?' Lasciel couldn't help chuckling. 'There's nothing<em>mere</em>about you, darling. Quite a lot of<em>mortal</em>, though.' She smirked, her perfect teeth showing ever so slightly too sharp.<br/><br/>'As for my engagement,' she continued, 'it started a long, long time ago, with someone who is no longer among us, but somehow neglected to terminate the contract in time. I am... subcontracted, you could say, to the Night Parade. That could be dealt with more easily. But, as you surely understand, I can hardly take on a new assignment without proper closure of the old one.'<br/><br/>She leaned in closer, a light spicy fragrance that seemed to rise off her very skin brushing his nostrils, tapped a fingertip on his chest and grinned. 'Why don't you come watch the show tonight, and see if you have something new to negotiate afterwards, hmmm?' Then she turned her back and walked off, offering a last, memorable view of her swaying hips, perhaps as incentive.