darkness has no need [christoph]

It was a cool June evening, the sun had long since disappeared below the horizon and the air was turning crisp that was customary for Dublin this time of year. A tall figure was shrouded in the shadows down a stretch of Eblana Lane that was both nondescript and away from the foot traffic of this place, an orange dull flare lighting up the darkness in front of him as he lit a cigarette, waiting impatiently like usual. It was just past midnight and Torrence Regan had plans for tonight, but he had decided to meet one of his previous clients who had owled him discreetly asking for a meeting. The types of potions Torr made weren't exactly safe to detail in mail that could be so easily intercepted.

He had half a mind to leave as soon as he got there. The temptation was there. He was just a second away from apparating, but he knew that he was in the fucking business for a reason and this particular client paid well. Of course, it always came with a price, but Torr asked for as little details as possible when dealing with the dark potions that were requested of him. He fucking hated and loved and hated what he did, but Merlin knew his work was top notch. That's why he could charge as much as he could.

Exhaling shortly, Torr leaned his back against the building he was standing next to, his dark leather jacket whispering against damp brick wall behind him as he puffed on the cigarette. His cobalt blue eyes finding the dark night sky above him, only seeing the faintest flickering of stars because of all the city lights leaking into the sky.

Torr checked his wrist watch impatiently, tempted by the thought of leaving right then and there so he could start in on his plans of getting a drink and finding a girl to take home. But then he heard a noise to his right, his head turning to examine the noise as he continued to lean against the wall, a familiar figure appearing before him. "You're late," he said shortly as he took another drag from his cigarette, glancing away. Customer service wasn't exactly his forte.

@Christoph Klein

He was dressed casually, but darkly. He did not want to be seen tonight. He wanted to blend in. He had to take a portkey to make it to Dublin, but he knew that Torrence was worth it. He was a good potioneer, or at least that’s what he heard in the streets. His first potion for Christoph had been all but completely perfect—tasteless, scentless, mimicked a heart attack. Lycidas had been dead in less than a minute, and there had been nothing to stop him—not even Christoph’s heroic attempts at reviving him. It had been easy, too easy to slip it into his drink.  That death had been almost anticlimactic. Still, watching Luther fall apart had been very satisfying. He still hadn’t recuperated from the death of his firstborn, and soon his second heir would be out of the picture too.

His portkey had been late by a few minutes, and that had annoyed him, but he made his way to the meeting spot as quickly as he could. He was a few minutes after midnight, their meeting time, but he didn’t think Torrence wouldn’t show. He was glad that the other was already there, waiting. He felt a little guilty for making the other wait, but this would be quick, hopefully.

“Hello.” He greeted, in response to Torrence’s first words. He didn’t offer an apology or an excuse and just seemed to act like he hadn’t said a thing. “Thank you for meeting me.” He began. “Let’s get down to business.” He offered, sliding next to him, but not uncomfortably close. “I need something different this time. Another poison of the same type. Just like before, odorless, tasteless.” He explained. “However, it needs to do something different. Not a heart attack. I want it to look like a drug overdose.” Leoline was a junkie and everyone in the family knew it. It would be easy to spike his drug of choice with something letal and watch him hang himself with his own rope. No one would question it.

“I can pay you just like before, in cash or favor.”

Torr just gazed at him, not acknolweding the nicety, not caring for it. The closest he got to civility was turning his head slightly in the other direction to exhale his smoke. But as the other wizard got down to business, Torr listened, both loathing this guy and knowing people like him kept him in business. He just kept repeating in his mind that it wasn't his fucking business who this motherfucker killed. He was just supplying him with the tool to do it. He wasn't actually pulling the trigger.

He nodded as the wizard listed out his requirements. "Yeah, no shit," he muttered as he stipulated odorless, tasteless, scentless. All standard. But drug overdose? His dark gaze flicked up to the other wizard, his brows perked. "What are we talking here? Hallucinogens, narcotics, inhalants?" Torr asked in a clipped manner. He needed more details if the client wanted something specific replicated. "Slow or quick?" he added. Again, he told himself he didn't care, but he knew some of his clients were kinkier than he was when they wanted to watch the life leak from their targets.

As for payment, Torr smirked. "Hmm cash is always great, but favors seem more useful. Any limits on the favor?" he asked as he pushed away from the wall.

Christoph didn’t mind that Torr seemed disinterested. It was par for the course, really, and Christoph was certainly going to make it worth the man’s while in one way or another. Cold, hard cash spoke volumes, but his own set of skills were worth far more than simple coin. He could provide Torr with almost anything he needed, and had very little stipulations. In fact, he couldn’t think of any off the cuff. He supposed it would depend on what Torrence asked of him.

Truthfully, Christoph was glad for Torr’s response, as he hadn’t considered that different drugs had overdoses that behaved differently. “Stimulant.” He said, after some consideration. “…and the quicker the better.” He didn’t like killing. He didn’t want to get his hands so dirty. Leoline seemed like a nice boy, all things considered. He was simply part of the plan. Collateral damage, really. He wasn’t in it to hurt Leona, Leoline, or even Lycidas. He was only in it to harm Luther in the only ways he knew how.

“I can’t think of any off the cuff, but if you come up with something, I’ll let you know if that’s within my power. I can travel, and as you know I have a particular set of skills.” He offered. He looked at him, not fully trusting him, but hoping that the other could keep professional and that his quality would be just as good as the first time.