Note: Written for Sophie (Screaming Faeries) with the prompts: Barty/Luna/Regulus and Escort/Brothel!AU. Obvious canon divergence
Barty leaned in his seat, his glass settled securely between his fingertips. He sported a scowl, his eyes narrowed at the other men in the establishment.
"Stop scowling. You resemble a leprechaun without his coin," quipped a voice across from him.
Barty's eyes drifted to the source of the voice. "Shut it, Regulus. I hate the decor. It resembles blood, yet we both know that spilling blood in this place is forbidden."
Regulus snorted, the grey of his eyes shimmering from the candlelight flickering on the table. "Enjoy the ambience and illusions, Barty," he replied. "You wouldn't be here if you didn't want to be." The dark-haired man picked up his own glass and drank from it. "Besides, your curiosity wouldn't let you leave without seeing the surprise performance Lucius promised us."
Barty grunted, refusing to agree with his words. What his companion said was true; he enjoyed seeing the acts that the women entertained them with. Malfoy started it all with a small group before it became a larger organization for the privileged men. The women were at their beck and calls, dancing and singing to their heart's' content. If they had any 'other' talents, they would gladly show them privately in the suites stationed in the West Wing.
The two of them had yet to indulge in the West Wing, as entertaining as the women were with their singing and dancing. Nothing caught him in the captivating scale, and Regulus never made note of it either.
He didn't know how much that would change in seconds. Before he could pick up his glass, the announcement came for the enchanting piece of the evening.
Smoke covered the stage, spreading into the audience gradually. A low, steady beat began to play in the speakers.
Tap…
Tap, tap…
Tap…
Musical snaps began to follow, and the shadow of a woman appears in the smoke and lights. Mirrors are lowered from the ceiling, causing the men in the audience to give sounds of approval.
It caused Barty to give his full attention to the circular stage. None of the women in the past used smoke and mirrors like this, nor did he think that they'd be capable of concealing their appearance in the mirrors surrounding the woman like this one. He licked his lips subconsciously as he continued to watch her.
She ran her hands up her sides, over her chest, and through her hair. As she did so, the light rose up her body to reveal a pale-silvery satin material that settled at her mid-thigh at the most.
Barty bit his lip, taking a quick glance at Regulus to see him staring at her as well, his finger lightly tapping at the rim of his glass to the music playing. Surely he would want to take this one to the West Wing.
He knew that he wanted to.
The lights began to shimmer around the mirrors, giving away more than the silver cloth. Barty could see her hair; it was blonde, perhaps darker than the blondes he was used to seeing. It flowed around her neck and framed her face.
Her skin was like porcelain, the mirrors giving away how soft it looked to touch. Though that could be Barty's line of thinking because he wanted to touch her now.
He closed his eyes for a moment, pretending that the beats were the woman's heartbeat. The heartbeat being close to him, close enough for him to wrap his hand around her slender arm and pull her into his lap.
Barty opened his eyes before his thoughts escalated. There was still the actual show for him to see, and the actual body dancing before him. She was moving her hips in a figure eight manoeuvre, her arms outstretched and swaying.
Tap…
Tap, tap…
Tap…
The blonde began to descend the stairs from the stage, the lights trained on her movements. The silver satin shifted with every step she took, showing plenty of skin yet leaving enough for them to imagine from her covered bits.
She circled the tables the men sat in, her fingers tracing the surfaces gingerly. Her hips swayed sensually, and Barty nearly drooled. None of the previous performances showed the natural talent the blonde possessed.
At the moment when the tempo sped up, she swung her arms and hair simultaneously, earning appreciative whispers from the surrounding men because the material around her body began to shimmer.
Barty scowled. He wanted to be the man sitting at the table she danced in front of. The sound of Regulus clearing his throat caused Barty to glance at him, but he'd only met the eyes of the blonde coming their way.
Their eyes locked, and Barty noted the pale silvery colour of her eyes. They matched the colour of the fabric around her body.
"Behave, Barty," he could hear Regulus say, but his voice drifted off when the blonde touched their table. The beat of the music returned to its steady rhythm as her fingers moved from around the table to Barty's arm.
The more her fingers moved, the more his other fingers began to twitch. His body was on fire, bursting from the inside from his instincts wanting to grab the dancer. By the time he thought to react, her hand was gone from his person and moved on to Regulus.
Barty watched as her fingers raked through Regulus' hair, effectively touseling the style he liked so much. He wanted to be jealous, but the way Regulus' lips parted in response to her touch reminded him of the way her touch felt to him.
He'd still been one of the only ones she touched, and if he had to share that luxury, it'd be with Regulus.
The blonde was on the move, weaving through the tables gracefully until she reached the stage again. Taking a bit of the satin material, the blonde raised one arm and spun around, the fabric making a spiral around her that didn't tangle. To have a feat like that was impressive.
It made Barty want her more. That growing attraction and lack of touch from the woman made Barty grip the side of the table and grit his teeth. He refused to show these other pigs what he had to offer, so he had to control himself.
Tap...
Tap, tap…
Tap...
The melody began to die down as she faced the front from her spin. Her eyes, heavy-lidded and captivating, started to close as a soft smile grew on her face. Smoke surrounded the stage once more, and it began to engulf her body. Within seconds, she was out of everyone's sight, and once the smoke was cleared, the blonde and the mirrors were gone.
A thunderous round of applause sounded throughout the room along with whistles and howls. Barty released his hold on the table and glanced at Regulus. The dark-haired man's face bore an unreadable expression, but there was a spark of something in his eyes as they never left the stage. His thumb was rubbing his pointer finger, a thing Barty knew Regulus did when he was intrigued and plotting.
Before Barty could open his mouth, Regulus turned his head to him and quirked his brow.
"Bartemius, I believe that we should have a conversation with Lucius," he said.
Barty nodded eagerly. He was pleased to know that they were thinking in a similar manner once more.
With that, the two men stood up as the next woman started her performance. Barty didn't care; he knew what–or rather who–had his interest now, and he was going to get it. He was positive that Regulus felt the same.
Lucius would have been a fool to deny them their request, and incidentally, he wasn't one. While he could have argued about the value she brought to his establishment, he accepted their payment and gave Barty and Regulus the room number she was occupied in. When they reached her room and opened the door, she was sitting on a black suede sofa and wrapped in a navy blanket, her skin contrasting with its dark colour. Her eyes were closed as she rocked side to side gently.
Barty preferred the silver satin she played with onstage, but he wouldn't complain when it looked like she was still very much bare underneath the fabric around her body. He was itchy to touch her skin, yet those thoughts were momentarily halted when Regulus placed a hand on his chest, keeping him back.
Regulus shook his head, and Barty pouted. He wouldn't harm her; he was too captivated by the blonde, mysterious beauty.
"Are you here for me?" she asked.
The men in the room turned in her direction, and Barty saw that she'd stopped rocking her body. Her eyes were still closed, however, so he assumed she heard them opening the door. Her voice held his attention strongly. It was firm yet airy, an elegance Barty had the opportunity to hear on the regular.
"Is that what you think?" Regulus responded, removing his hand from Barty's chest.
Barty knew not to test his eagerness again with Regulus; he didn't want to lose his chance entirely with the woman in front of them.
"I've seen other girls like me being taken along with men in this place," she explained, opening her eyes. "I'm no fool. I would like to know if you're here for me or simply messengers sent by the requester."
Barty grinned and chuckled deeply. "I'd very much like to ravage you, darling, if that gives you insight on the answer you want."
"Luna," she said.
He frowned, tilting his head in confusion. "Pardon?"
"My name. It's Luna, not darling."
Regulus was the next to chuckle and took a step towards the woman on the sofa. "We are here for you," he confirmed. "However, it's not to simply take you in the other wing. We're to bring you to our home."
Luna tilted her head in a similar fashion that Barty had, and he couldn't help but watch her every move. "You bought me then," she said.
"Yes," Barty exclaimed, following Regulus and stepping towards Luna. "We did."
Regulus reached forward and laid his hand on Luna's knee above the cover. "Your moves were simply stunning, Luna. Bartemius and I wanted to ensure that we'd have the ability to see it whenever possible."
Barty had to admit, Regulus charm was much smoother than his. That wicked tongue got that them far in their lives.
That soft smile Luna sported at the end of her dance was back on her face. "Your persuasion abilities are nice, though it's in horrid company with this tie."
She unwrapped her arm from the blanket and shifted the tie around Regulus collar. Both men were too stunned at her boldness to respond in a usual manner, but one thing was certain.
Barty was going to be entertained by this woman beyond her dances. Touching and watching her were worth it and hearing the sharp, peculiar with she possessed, confirmed the unhidden desire.
Luna finished and gave them a swift nod. "That's better. Now if I'm going with you, I better get my things." She stood with the blanket secured around her body. As she glided around the room to the vanity mirror, Regulus and Barty stood side by side.
"That was easy," Barty murmured.
"Perhaps too easy," Regulus added.
"Is there a reason to fight?" Luna remarked, her body facing the vanity, but her eyes meeting theirs in the mirror's reflection. "While my flexibility is better than yours, I doubt I could attempt escape. I also have reason to believe that I'd rather be in your possession than Lucius Malfoy's. You've yet to threaten me into complicity."
The pair shared a look before returning their gaze to Luna. She turned around and faced them, shaking her head.
"I'm placing my trust in your auras, gentlemen. Not that I have much of a choice," she said. "I only ask that you don't break it."
Barty knew that he'd done a large amount of foul and ill things and planned on continuing, but something stirred inside him that made him come to the conclusion that he wouldn't break her.
Make it a mission to imprint himself and Regulus in her mind forever? Yes. Break her? No. It was evident that the blonde beauty was broken somewhere. He was sure they'd find a way to piece that back together.
He shared another look with Regulus. Regulus gave an affirmative nod, letting him know that they were on the same page. Regulus clasped his hands together.
"Let's gather the rest of your things, shall we?"
Word Count: 2,110