Sometime later, Rurik and Luna had donned elegant, black-tie server outfits, and entered the ballroom. Large groups of ostentatious rich people and influential socialites were chatting and laughing—all with their own hidden intentions.
While people like them did enjoy the luxurious atmosphere, these events were intended for the striking of deals and the increasing of influence, not to have fun.
Rurik's outfit was a little tight around his large body, but he didn't mind. It was garnering a lot of attention from women who hoped the suit would rip. He responded to their attention by rolling his muscles and winking.
At this point, Rurik was still young, and relatively immature. He enjoyed the attention.
As soon as they entered, they were stunned for a moment… it was the first time they'd seen luxury like this, but they quickly shook themselves free and nodded at each other, before facing the crowds.
With charming smiles and confident gaits, they mingled among those who considered themselves their betters. In their hands, they held serving plates filled with drinks and snacks.
Despite keeping an eye on each other, they mostly moved independent in order to find their targets. Fortunately, doing so proved easy enough.
"There they are…" Rurik muttered under his breath when he noticed the hosts of this evening: Lars Berg, and his wife, Greta Berg. They were in their mid-forties, but Greta didn't look like it. She'd been a local star in her youth, famous for her beauty and singing voice, until she married Lars and gave up that life.
'She still has the beauty of her youth,' the young Rurik grinned to himself, as lust flashed through his eyes. 'I wonder if she can still sing? I'm sure I'll be able to find out later…'
He could already feel his desires beating against his will. His little soldier was beginning to stand at attention… which was a bad idea in this tight outfit.
Unfortunately, his discipline was still in its infancy stages—the discipline hammer of his mind was still being forged. He had to take a moment to calm down, lest he ruin the whole thing. 'Calm down,' he growled inwardly. 'You'll get her soon, just don't be an idiot.'
Fortunately, he'd spend the early hours of the day releasing his lust on the various girlfriends he'd gathered over the last two years while Luna put the last pieces of their plan in place.
After finding his centre, and convincing his uppity little brother to calm down, he moved in their direction, eyes focused. Fortunately, their hands were empty, so he had a reason to approach.
The Bergs were chatting with some of their friends. When Rurik arrived at their group, he performed a short bow, and presented the plate in his hands with a charming smile. "Sirs. Ladies. Might I offer you a refreshment?" he asked politely.
Normally, people like them would grab something of the plate, and ignore the server, but Rurik's size and charismatic aura were hard to overlook. As soon as they saw him, the women felt their breath stick in their throat, while the men frowned, some narrowing their eyes, jealousy rising.
"Why thank you, young man," Greta smiled gently, her gaze appreciative as it danced over his young, powerful muscles. She took a glass of his plate, and thanked him with a nod.
Her husband, meanwhile, eyed him suspiciously at first, but quickly calmed down, as did all the other men in their company. None of them understood why, but Rurik snickered inwardly. It was his natural charm that made their defences drop a little, even as their lizard brains told them he was a threat.
When everyone had taken something off his plate, Rurik gave another bow, and moved away again, to great disappointment of the ladies.
Immediately afterwards, he met up with Luna. "Done?" she whispered, a conspiratory grin on her face.
Rurik nodded; his expression no different from hers. "Of course. She should start to feel the effects soon enough… I'll give you a sign."
Luna nodded. "Good, but we should wait until the number of guests begins to thin a little." Rurik agreed, and they quickly parted ways again.
For the next few hours, they acted as regular servers, even as Rurik made sure he could always keep an eye on Greta. Over the course of the evening, he noticed she would constantly glance in direction, confusion in her eyes, and a blush on her cheeks.
Finally, it was time to move. At this point, Greta was constantly flushed, and even started panting a little. Lars had asked her multiple times if she was alright, but she kept telling him she was, before discreetly glancing at Rurik again.
Now, it was Luna's turn to move.
With a serving plate in hand, she stalked in their direction, purpose in her step… until she suddenly tripped at the last moment.
Stumbling forward and yelping, she bumped into Lars, spilling the drinks on her plate all over him.
"Faen!" he cursed as he was forced to stumble as well. Eyes spitting with fury, he turned around to face the clumsy wench who dared spill all over him… but was instantly stunned by her beauty.
He barely noticed her hand was on his arm when he felt a strange urge enter his mind. Desire and fury mixed together, and he grabbed the flustered Luna's hand. "You're coming with me, young lady! I need to clean myself up, and you're going to help me!"
Panic shone in Luna's eyes. "Ah!" she yelped as he pulled her along to a side door. Her eyes were darting to the people around them for help, but she went completely ignored. Even his wife was barely paying attention, her gaze trained on Rurik instead.
"S— Sir, please! I'm sorry!" Luna cried out softly, tears in her eyes. No one saw the cunning light that passed inside them.
"Not yet you're not!" he growled mercilessly. "But you're going to be!" No one noticed the quickly dimming willpower of his mind.
By the time they left the ballroom, Lars's face had become slack, his eye vacant, and he'd released Luna's hand. The cunning woman chuckled, and quickly grabbed his shoulder to maintain her control over him.
They now stood in a spacious, but deserted hallway… until another door suddenly opened.
Luna didn't panic, however, and simply looked over confidently at the woman who came in with a domed serving plate. "Boss!" the woman whispered, respect in her voice, as she quickly approached them.
"Any issues?" Luna asked her curiously.
The woman shook her head pridefully as she handed Luna the serving plate. "All good, Boss! Sneaking this stuff in was easy."
"Good," Luna nodded imperiously. "Now, quickly go back, and make sure mine and Rurik's absence won't be noticed."
The woman quickly nodded and scurried off to fulfil her orders. Meanwhile, Luna turned to the glassy Lars and grinned. "As for you, show me to an empty room with a lockable door…"