Contrary to how it may seem Nick wasn't just giving out valuable gifts left and right without any protections in place. In any of his crafts that held the potential to harm him in some way he had placed hidden loyalty enchantments that rendered the rest inert should they be used on him. The deal made with Lucas was no different as he had placed a trap within it in the form of the "within reason" that meant that so long as he could rationalize an order regardless of how horrible it was Lucas could not disobey.-
In this way betrayal is impossible since Nick merely needed to command Lucas to return to his work with a bit of rationalization and he had no choice but to do so. The best part was that this protective mechanism was an incomplete enchantment blended into the others so there was no way to definitively point out that it was there at all. With the ring done Nick now needed to figure out how to get a meeting with a royal clan member. It should be mentioned that there are in fact not a lot of royals alive at the moment since the Tepes clan was very specific about who they turn.-
That doesn't even take into account the bloody princess that didn't even stay in any one place at once but wandered the world in search of a mate. The bloody princess was the only known natural born royal vampire who's father was none other than Vladimir Tepes himself and whos mother was an exceeded noble with four bloodline abilities. Unfortunately the princess had the perfect disguise ability thanks to her mother in the form of metamorphagus. And unlike Nymphadora Tonks the princess actually used the gift properly rather than merely assuming different features or turning into other people.-
No the princess could freely shapeshift into any non magical creature and was as a result damn near impossible to track. Contrary to how it may seem she was actually the single royal that Nick didn't want to meet. Despite having only slightly less authority compared to her father the princess was known to be horribly temperamental and whimsical which was about as bad for deals like this as was possible. "Do you know who the royal is in charge of the british vampire community or how to get in contact with them?" Nick asked Lucas after returning to the island.-
"Yeah , it's a man by the name of Jesseph Tepes. From what I understand he runs the black market in Knockturn alley so he can be found there most of the time." Lucas said honestly. "Any distinguishing features or do I need to check every vampire we meet to find him?" Nick asked and Lucas furrowed his brows in deep thought as he tried to remember anything about the vampire in question. "He has a tattoo of a dragon on his forehead but that is his only special feature I think." Lucas said helplessly.-
"Good enough I suppose , lets just hope that he isn't one of those people that use a mask while in the black market." Nick said with a sigh. He didn't waste any time transfiguring himself into an adult but different than before. This time he turned into a handsome male form with short brown hair and dark eyes. Just for the hell of it Nick had taken on the form of Voldemorts younger human self thanks to his knowledge of what that looked like. Lucas on the other hand merely put on a mask to cover his face and disguise himself.-
They had Dotty apparate them away from the island before Lucas apparated them to Knockturn alley. It was clear that the skill was rusty because Nick felt much worse than normal after they landed but he sucked it down and endured it. They got a few strange looks after they arrived but ignored them as they made their way to the black market. Nick didn't drop his guard at all though as most of those nearby had tainted souls and ill intent. Soon enough they reached the small shack that served as the entrance to the black market.-
Nick opened the way forward and walked into the bustling bazaar confidently while Lucas was clearly nervous. Humans were very visual creatures that tended to base their opinions based upon what they can see. From Nick one would see confidence bordering on arrogance and paranoia from how his hand rested on his wand at all times. This would tell those looking for easy prey that he was a bad choice and that would extend to Lucas as well since he was clearly Nicks follower. They walked forward slowly as if carefully browsing the various items being sold but in fact they were scanning each and every forehead they could see.
It wasn't until they reached the end of the bazaar that Nick spotted a dark skinned man with a dragon tattoo on his forehead and the usual red eyes of vampires. The man had a calm look on his face as he surveyed the throngs of people in the bazaar. He stiffened however when his eyes fell upon Nick and Nick smiled and started to walk over to him. "It was to my understanding that you were dead." Jesseph said with a frown. "He certainly is , but I needed a disguise and the irony was simply far too great to ignore." Nick said in a friendly manner.-
"I see and I can smell that your companion is one of my kind as well ... wait what is this!? Who are you to dare imitate a royal!?" Jesseph grew angry once he really paid attention to Lucas. Nick could tell that he was about to attack and channeled his spiritual energy into his eyes causing the vampire to freeze from the pressure on his soul. "It is no imitation but perhaps it would be best if we go to a more private location to speak on it more?" Nick offered with the same friendly smile.-
"So be it but let it be known that we will never stop hunting you if your answer displeases." Jesseph said sternly before leading the way into the building at the end of the bazaar. Contrary to it's shabby outer appearance the inside of the building looked like a grand Arabian palace with tall thick support pillars and a golden and jewel encrusted throne at the end of it. Nick ignored the scantily clad women that littered the place on beds of pillows looking at him hungrily. Mostly because they were all vampires and he wasn't making him prey to them.-
Jesseph sat upon his throne and stared at them sternly before speaking "I have brought you into my home , the least you can do is discard these disguises so we may speak properly." he spoke calmly but with a clear authority. Lucas looked at Nick who nodded at him before removing his mask and hood. Jesseph had a small change in expression at that but remained calm before turning his gaze to Nick who took out his wand and dispelled the transfiguration on him causing his figure to shrink and shift back to his true appearance.-
Jesseph sighed once Nick returned to normal "I thought as much when I saw who he was. Nicholas Ravenclaw." he said pointing at Lucas. "I take it you can hazard a guess as to why we are here then?" Nick asked with a grin. "Either a fool or someone confident in their power willingly follows a vampire into their lair , which are you I wonder?" Jesseph asked rhetorically with a smirk of his own. Nick tossed the ring he made to Jesseph "A gift before we talk business , one I am sure is more than adequate to interest the royal clan." he said without losing his grin.-
Jesseph turned the ring around with his fingers after catching it and seemed to appreciate the design. He then places it on one of his fingers and immediately shuddered as the enchantment took hold and his magical circuits were canibalized. "Is this what I think it is?" Jesseph lost all playfulness and went deathly serious when he asked this question. "It breaks the limit that you royals have on your bloodline abilities if only by a little , Interested yet?" Nick asked with a cheshire grin.-
"HAHAHAHA! Yes! Let no one dare say that your age hinders you in my presence! What a fine trap you have set for us with a bait we can not help but want!" Jesseph roared with laughter and amusement. "My proposal is simple really , I will sell equipment made to order to your clan directly and in exchange you will assist me in acquiring materials and other resources at reasonable prices. Of course I will ask for the situation with the Sturm clan be solved peacefully first." Nick spoke casually but firmly. Jesseph was still smiling in an amused manner but fell into thought at Nicks words.-
"I can solve the Sturm matter as a gesture of good faith from the royal clan to you but the rest only the King can decide." he eventually stated honestly. Nick nodded "I would have preferred to go to him directly but he isn't exactly an easy person to track down as I am sure you can understand." he said with a shrug. "Yes , even now there are those who hunt us for our nature amongst the wizarding community. The king is a prime target for such individuals and thus secludes himself unless necessary to appear." Jesseph said calmly.
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