Vil would be annoyed with Ortho being so distracted...if he hadn't found out the reason why.

"You're openly making a horror movie on campus?" said Vil.

"We just need to edit a few things, and we could begin production," said Ortho cheerfully.

"What do you have so far?" asked Vil.

Ortho grinned.

Vil watched with horrified fascination at the very real fear on the faces of the students.

"How in the name of the Seven did you pull this off?" asked Vil, genuinely impressed.

There was no choppy method acting, and the 'victims' had very realistic reactions to the situation they were in. None of them were trying any cheesy one-liners or trying to steal the show at all.

"I didn't tell them what the contest was for. Just that they had to play hide and seek and if they made it out they won," said Ortho. "Best way to avoid having to do endless re-shoots is to keep them in the dark."

Vil was darkly amused by that.

"And the damage they caused?"

"Yuuka's personal rooms were spelled beforehand and we're paying for any damages caused during shooting. I'm honestly more surprised Ruggie didn't notice the cameras that were aimed at his direction when he jumped to the ceiling," said Ortho amused. "Since they had no idea it was all a movie, their reactions are one hundred percent legitimate."

"And the knives?"

"They're real too. IDIA was armed with special drugs to knock them out cold so that they wouldn't try to get up and move for at least ten minutes, and we paid them extra because they did get cut a little bit. They were healed up anyway so they really have nothing to complain about. Once they were 'killed off', our crew went in and dragged them off set," said Ortho.

Vil snorted at that.

"How did they react once they woke up outside and found out what was really going on?"

"I have a recording of that too. I've honestly heard better swearing from pimps and whores," said Ortho.

Vil was expecting a punch line. Then he realized Ortho wasn't joking.

"Pimps and whores?" he repeated, incredulous.

Ortho had a tired sigh, before he pulled out a business card. Vil's eyebrows went up in shock.

"You're the head of the editing department for Grigori Productions!?" said Vil.

"My adopted father Azazel is the owner and CEO," said Ortho. "Once he realized I had a knack for that sort of thing, he had me trained up. I mostly do it for pocket money these days."

Ortho could see the cogs in Vil's mind racing.

"Would you like some help getting these potatoes to produce something halfway decent, plot wise?" asked Vil.

"Seven yes," said Ortho with relief. "Azazel couldn't produce anything that wasn't porn related. He agreed to fund the movie if we could get it filmed, but he couldn't write a plot that didn't involve sex of some kind if he tried."

Vil was honestly looking forward to this.

~*~*~*~*~

Ortho was eager for today. Upon learning his identity, Vil had agreed to take him on a modeling shoot so he could see how the professionals worked in an environment that didn't involve an absurd amount of sex and nudity.

Ortho had put on a special cap that was spelled to make people look away if they saw him, unless he spoke up directly or brought their attention to him. He wore comfortable, but trendy clothing so as not to arouse suspicion, and he already knew how to handle himself in this setting.

Vil was mostly doing this as a partial favor to him, and to see if it would be possible to earn the attention of Ortho's adopted father/boss. Grigori Productions might specialize in porn, but their video quality was top notch and had only gotten better in recent years. Now he knew the reason why.

Ortho made a face when he saw Neige LeBlanche. He honestly couldn't stand that guy and did not see why he was so popular.

The modeling world was cutthroat, and every minute was precious especially when they were using products from one of the bigger brand names. Ortho was somewhat impressed, but he could also see room for a lot of improvement.

He was quietly taking notes during production on what areas Vil was decent at, what could be improved on, and how to maximize his screen potential. From anyone else, Vil would dismiss the criticism, but he had verified Ortho's identity as a full staff member of Grigori Productions. Mostly by having his manager send him the photo of the editing department staff.

Ortho did have to frown at how lackluster the camera crew were. It was like they weren't putting their full attention onto the models, or Vil at least.

He had what he needed to help improve Vil's image and potential. Now he wanted to see what was up with the crew members.

What he found had him scowling, because really? The filters they were using were of barely acceptable quality, and it was clear they were putting more effort into Neige's shots than Vil.

Unnoticed, Ortho picked up a spare camera and began taking shots of his own because he honestly wouldn't be surprised if someone had bribed the camera crew to focus more on Neige than Vil. Professionals in Vil's line of work had to deal with a cutthroat world that was rife with gossip, scandal and backstabbing.

If Vil noticed Ortho discreetly picking up the camera, he said nothing. He definitely did notice the way Ortho climbed up the scaffolding and began photographing the two models from a higher angle than anyone else. How no one saw or stopped him was an utter mystery.

Several hours later, Vil turned to Ortho with an odd expression.

"What was that about?"

"The camera crew were half-assing it, at least on your end," said Ortho bluntly. "Not enough to be noticed, but enough that it would have made that fool's shots look better than yours in a subtle way that would have made his popularity rise more."

Vil scowled. He had had issues with some of the shots before, but because of the time sensitive nature of the shoots he couldn't get them redone in time. It had become a major headache.

When Vil looked over the shots Ortho had taken, the difference in quality was beyond obvious. Though he did have one question.

"Why did you climb on the scaffolding?"

"Force of habit. You have no idea how amusing it is to freak out the newbies with my little trick. Makes adjusting filters on the fly easier," said Ortho with a laugh.

"Do you mind if I use these?" asked Vil.

"That depends. Would you be against an ongoing collaboration effort?" asked Ortho. "I noticed a few things during the shoot that could be improved on."

"Not at all," said Vil immediately. "To be quite blunt I've found myself in a bit of a slump lately. Having fresh perspective from a true professional would only be to my benefit."

"If it helps, I know a few rookies you can hire for any future shoots rather than simply rely on whoever was at this one," said Ortho.

Vil was darkly pleased when the shots Ortho took ended up on the cover of the magazine, with Neige taking page three for once. His manager was beyond confused, but wasn't going to argue since it was a professional photo.

You could imagine his expression learning Vil had accidentally made contact with a higher up from Grigori Productions.

~~*~*~*~

Vil looked at the contract his agent had sent over.

It was well written by someone who clearly knew what they were doing, and didn't take chances. It also promised a hell of a lot more money and exposure than half of his usual contracts.

"I don't know how you did it, but the head of Grigori Productions asked for you by name," said his manager.

"That...is a lot of money," said Vil.

"And you're guaranteed a lot more if the CEO likes your work," said his manager. "Do you have any idea how hard it is to contact the CEO of Grigori productions for him to ask for you personally?"

Vil was aware. He also knew being selected, even by a middleman was a huge deal...the people who worked under that company were all top class, especially when it came to porn and adult content. And that was just the movies...it had long since cornered the market on adult toys and products, and you'd be hard pressed to name a single rival company with comparable influence.

"Did they state what they wanted me for?" asked Vil.

While working in a porn was distasteful, he could shove aside his dislike long enough to get the job done.

"For now they want to see you model a few of their products. Some fetish gear and clothing," said his manager. "You're free to keep any pieces you like, of course. However if things go well they did hint at a long term collaboration effort."

Vil knew exactly who had orchestrated this. He would have to come up with something appropriate to thank Ortho.

When he returned to Night Raven, he found Rook waiting.

"How did the meeting go?"

"Well, actually. Depending on how they like my work, I might be making an even bigger splash than Neige."

If word got out that he was doing work for Grigori Productions, his star would rise higher than Neige. So much so that his rival would barely be a blip on his radar anymore.

When Vil saw Ortho again, the cheeky freshman gave him a wink.

Sure, the fetish gear wasn't to his taste, but the company liked his work enough that he was promised more work in the near future.

Ortho sidled up to Vil with a grin.

"So I take it the old man sent you the contract then."

"My manager nearly had a heart attack when he realized the contract was legitimate," said Vil. "Though why the gear?"

Ortho sighed.

"Like I said before, my adopted dad can't produce anything that's not porn related. People are a bit more honest when doing anything related to sex, so it gives him a decent baseline to work with...that and it gave him a better idea of your skill level. You'd be surprised how many actors have trouble performing properly when they're asked to go full nude," said Ortho bluntly.

"I believe it," snorted Vil. It helped that he had Rook take the photos and that he was used to mostly nude shoots. While he wasn't going to be the main model for the magazine the products were in, the fact he was in it at all would boost his rankings.

"In any event, the old man gave me the all clear to send any movies we make his way."

"That easily?" said Vil, surprised.

Ortho snorted.

"Do you have any idea how long I've been planning to do horror movies with my adorably homicidal little brother?" said Ortho with a grin. "The only reason I haven't tried before was because I was too busy editing and had very little to work with. I couldn't use any of his actors because almost all of them work the sex industry in some way and it would be hard to create the right vibe. They've all seen worse than my little Tonberry on a rampage."

Vil thought back to the look of sheer terror on the student's faces and had to agree. Seasoned pros wouldn't be able to produce the right atmosphere for a good horror movie.

Ortho grinned at Vil.

"Besides, aren't you tired of being the villainous side character? Why not be the hero for a change?"

Vil was smiling. Not smirking, but actually smiling at the idea.

"So what's your plan?"

"Once we get the minor bits taken care of, I'll send the video to Azazel. If it looks good, everyone gets a cut of the profits," said Ortho easily.

"That should be easy enough to do. The hardest part was the chase scenes, and that looked pretty solid," said Vil.

"I know right? Easier not to tell them that it's all for a movie, otherwise you get idiots hamming it up and just ruining the whole experience," laughed Ortho.

"So let's talk actual plot," said Vil, almost eager. Ortho nodded in agreement to that. They could edit around the chase scenes to add actual plot later.