Kitty had come prepared. She'd been unable to talk herself out of this -- she'd need to be discerning, she knew, but the idea of finding new treasures (even if potentially in exchange for old ones) was just too good. She had three things she could potentially offer -- the exquisite diamond she'd received from Pride was safely in Slimespace, but she was carrying her gemstone-studded goggles and her long, intricate pocket watch and its chain around her neck (the latter having been loosely tied so it wasn't too long).

She sat down and looked around. She'd been told that she had to call for him, which... made sense. She took a deep breath and put on her businesswoman persona. The one who was selling you something. Obviously, her first offer would be a fortune. She was one for haggling.

"Collector!" she called, her voice a half an octave higher than usual. Her eyes were bright and she was smiling. "I've heard you trade for treasures, like me!"

Ahh, if only physical treasures held value to him. If only they mattered.

If only the twist of the soul and the taste of chaos like black smoke on the air wasn't his sweet drug-... And did she know, even, who had given those empty gifts--left them lying around like so much preciously-wrapped refuse?

They were ignorant children, fumbling in the dark, but ahh--he would gladly indulge them all. How could he not-? It was what he'd been made for, and it was ever so much fun.

"Just here, my dear," he crooned, leaning quite idly against a nearby pile of bones--and for once, it wasn't magic that slipped him through the air to appear, but mere luck that he had already been so close. "My, what a fine pelt you have," he next observed--it would make for a lovely coat ruff. Ahh, but he'd keep that tidbit to himself. "I am the Collector; whom do I have the pleasure of meeting, may I ask?"

@Kitty

Her head turned, ears pricking up. He'd startled her a little bit, but she was sure that was part of the charm -- she rather liked dropping in on people as well. Not that the bones were really close enough together or sturdy enough for her climbing, but oh well. More importantly, there were alarm bells going off in her head. Instinct told her that this creature was dangerous -- but she was sure she'd made dealings with worse, and who was she to judge when a deal was on the line?

She looked down at herself and then back up to him. "Why, thank you! My name is Kitty -- I've heard that you make deals." She nodded at the things she'd brought along. "I am... something of a collector myself, and I'm always seeking the opportunity to fill out my own collection. I was wondering if you had any wares that you yourself might be willing to make a trade or two for -- I've brought some treasures of mine, though I can offer you other things as well, such as making things or reading your fortune. I've been blessed in that respect -- I can see the future and I can see the past, though my gifts are somewhat finicky in nature."

Kitty's head inclined slightly, her eyes bright and beady as she watched him. "But I'm willing to haggle, if you are."

"Ahh, haggling. But of course, little one; talking business is my favorite pastime. Come," he added, and from within his cloak--one at a time--he pulled out two steel folding chairs. They mostly gleamed, though rust touched them here and there. "I will borrow these, for the moment--tacky as they are--and I am sure our mistress will not mind their temporary use. To do business we need an office, after all."

Each chair was unfolded, turned to face the other. The Collector then swept forward, pulling together a small pile of bones; he passed a hand over these. There was a faint flicker of light, and what looked like a little blue fire started to spark up; but the flames were ghostly, translucent to the point of being near-absent, and no warmth came from them.

After a moment he took one chair, turning to half face it toward the bone pile, and half toward Kitty. He gestured with a sweeping movement of one hand to the other, empty chair. "Please, take a seat, and let us talk business." His voice was a pleasant croon. "So tell me, Kitty--what sort of items do you seek? And is your gift a real one..? Can you truly see the future? I would find that of interest, whether true or not; but it is important that you be honest regarding your... shall we say... success rate." He did not care if she was accurate, or not. What he cared about was knowing what he could do with her abilities--if she chose to trade them out. Because--ahh--wasn't there fine potential there, either way..?

@Kitty

Kitty stared at the chairs, taken aback and somewhat baffled as he just... whipped them out from nowhere. But she could do something similar, and so hesitantly recovered. Still, she was staring at them as she picked up her wares and leapt up onto the chair. She eyed the flicker, and recognized that, too -- it was like a wisp! (Or not, but she didn't really know that.)

Kitty set her goggles and her pocket watch on the table, but kept the diamond in Slimespace. She didn't want to put all her cards on the table just yet -- she was a businesswoman, of course. "Our mistress?" Kitty asked, echoing him for clarification. She had her Mother, but she didn't know anything about a mistress.

In the meantime... She mulled over what she sought. "I'll be honest," Kitty began, "I mostly just like to collect things. Rare things, mostly -- objects that you won't find every day, and things I can use to enhance my crafts." Her ear flicked. She was a manipulator -- she manipulated people, things, and her environment. She had accepted that. Her head inclined slightly as she looked the hooded figure over. "I almost feel underdressed, Collector," she mused, a hint of teasing in her tone.

"I'd say that I'm offended you question my honesty," Kitty mused, "but honestly, I'm mostly flattered that you think I'd be that bold. Or be able to pull it off. My predictions, Collector, are sound." When asked about her success rate, she paused to mull it over. "Of those I've kept up with, they've all held true." Comet, the bee thing, and... that was about it, people didn't ask her for fortunes very often. Of course, he didn't need to know that. "And nobody has tracked me down to complain that I've misled them, so as far as I can tell, my success rate is perfect." She gave a sharp-toothed grin, satisfied with herself.

Finally, she nodded to the objects she'd brought -- the goggles wtih glass lens covers studded in gemstones, and the snap-close pocket watch with its delicate chain. "These are treasured parts of my collection. They're not things you'll find easily in these caves, to be sure. They're finely crafted, beyond what anyone I know could do. I've brought these because I've heard good things about you and your own collection -- I trust that we can come to a mutually beneficial agreement."

Her words were right, but her ignorance was astonishing. Or perhaps that was the other way around..? To say her ignorance was astonishing, yet somehow her words were right; was that more of a compliment, an admiration, rather than a mockery?

The Collector showed neither. A dim amusement, perhaps; a greed that glittered in his scarlet eyes. A raise of one finger to hooded lips, mischievous, was his only response to her echo of "mistress."

"I can assure you that your coat is finer than my own," he responded, with a little sideways dip of his horns. "As for these," and one clawed hand gestured delicately to her treasures; "they are fine objects, to be sure. But I do not seek objects in payment. I am a Collector, yes; but most of my own stock I have... acquired, myself. So, on to business," he continued.

One hoofed leg lifted; it crossed over the other, hands settling neatly in his lap. The barely-visible fire flickered weakly. "Your objects are of fine make, but they are, in the end, briberies. I could perhaps provide you information on their source, of course, but that would come with a cost of its own. I give nothing away for free, I'm afraid," and the hands parted out, palms out, in a delicate gesture--as if to say this was not his choice. Only business, you see. Nothing personal whatsoever.

"That is not to say they are worthless, of course, but they do not hold my interest. Your powers, however. If they are legitimate; that does interest me. There is a lot... that could be done, if you knew how to wield your visions properly, Miss Kitty." He studied her solemnly for a moment. "But before we went further, I would require some form of proof, and I fear you would not give that away for free, as you do strike me as a businessperson with sense--ahhh, but there is an idea. I will tell you what; as an opening gesture to our... negotiations. I offer you the knowledge of the source of those precious little treasures," and he gestured to the objects; there was no mockery in his voice. "In return, you can test your abilities on me. If you truly have the gift, and can prove it... well, we can then move from there, hm? I must know what you have to trade with, after all. The quality, so to speak, of your goods."

He offered out one clawed hand, as if for a palm-reading. "If you are amenable to this... tell me what you see in me, past or future. And I will tell you where your treasures came from... and if we find one another honest, then I will offer my stock for your service. For a... specific service," he added, smoothly.

@Kitty

Her head inclined slightly -- curiosity struck her. What sort of collector did not collect such rare and fine wares...? Her ear flicked, somewhat suspicious of him. Still, she inclined her head as he mentioned not giving away anything for free -- it was only fair, she acquiesced. "Nor I," she agreed -- though she did briefly wrack her mind to try and recall if that was true. She couldn't remember off the top of her head if she'd ever given anything away for free, and so settled on it. Kitty was making an effort to lie less.

Kitty's eyes widened fractionally at him stating that her powers were worthwhile to him. "Is that so?" Her eyes danced as he hit the nail on the head -- she was not any more willing to give things away than he was.

With anyone else, she would have immediately leapt at the chance and proceeded to make something up if her visions were uncooperative. But in this case, she paused and looked at his hand, and then at the pinprick eyes hidden by the cloak. She glanced back to her treasures, as if giving it real consideration, and finally nodded. "Very well," Kitty decided, and placed both of her paws gently on the Collector's own hand. "We'll see what I can do."

Regardless of what she did, she always found the need to start in the past.

Canis... faded. The flicker of the ghostly bonefire became a bright, flashing spark. Spotlights danced overhead. The distant roar of a crowd--cheering? Fighting? Working?--could be heard muffled through walls of rock.

The little sprite-like figure, bowtie at her throat, legs kicked up and crossed, waved one hand idly. 'You know, like... unpredictability! It's meant to be chaos, duh...' A tiny hand lifted a tiny martini; the other hand tossed the cherry down to a monstrous, toxic-eyed near-skeletal beast that lay at the foot of her tall, spiral chair--a chair glittering with gemstones.

Before her, sat neatly on a far more plain steel folding chair, waited the Collector. His hands rested patiently in his lap, his attention silent and unwavering. Beside him, in a second chair, sat a very similar figure--but with a white mask-like face; a more slender, gentle build. 'Your brother's got all the... y'know, stuff-giving-out stuff down. They've got the armor, weapons... whatever. Who cares. Except that one with three blades, hahaha! THAT was cool! So cool. His head just--' (one hand flailed) 'FLOP! Hahaha! Fuck,' and the martini glass lifted to her tiny lips, again. One ankle bobbed over the other. 'Soooo I'm thinking, you-! Wrench in the works. Special items. Make 'em, I dunno, uhhh. We're supposed to be testing, right?' (A tiny, possibly drunken grin.) 'So make 'em kill each other! Bounties, trophies, whatever, and give 'em stuff that's FUN. They gotta be ready for stuff that isn't PLANNED. The fights are fun, and all, but they get... Ehhhh.'

The little glass was tossed idly down, the Valkhound's jaws snapping up to crunch it, swallow it. It paused--whined. The little winged figure winced. 'Oh, Fluffy, you weren't meant to eat that, you big dumb idiot-!'

The Collector leaned forward. It seemed as though he were about to speak; but at that moment, the vision faded. He waited, watching Kitty politely, in what might have been the very same chair.

@Kitty

Canis fell away in a blur of tan, revealing the hues of her vision instead. Kitty felt rather like she was watching from the sidelines -- the tiny, catlike sprite creature tittering about in excess while the great, hulking monster (it sort of reminded her of Draconua's comparatively smaller but still huge friend, from the Wild Hunt) lay curled around her feet. She threw away the cherry, which seemed rather like a waste to Kitty.What an interesting pet, she thought, and then nearly laughed at herself. Where had that come from?

Kitty's attention snapped to the two hooded figures. She recognized one of them, from another vision -- the one who'd taken the stone of that poor fighter and put it into the belt. Suddenly, she realized why the Collector was so familiar to her. Her ears swiveled to the sprite as she told one of them to, in no uncertain terms, raise hell. Then she threw down her cup, which seemed to be made out of... some kind of quartz, perhaps? and the hulking creature ate it. The poor thing didn't seem to enjoy it, but at least she seemed a little remorseful.

Then, one of them leaned forward -- and in the same moment, Kitty snapped back to reality, and pulled back slightly. She was a little out of breath. Her eyes snapped to the Collector, intense as she looked him over again. "Hm."

Kitty pulled her hands back, more demurely this time, and pushed back the fur on her face for a moment -- if she'd been more humanoid, perhaps she would have been adjusting her glasses or pushing her hair behind her ear instead. "As for past... well, Collector, you've had an interesting one." She smiled mysteriously. "A brother, working in a forge in Leo... him a crafter, but you?" Her head tilted slightly to the side. "You, well, you're meant to make chaos. To make your business partners... ahem," Kitty cleared her throat and then began in a slightly uncanny impression of Nemean, "'be ready for stuff that isn't PLANNED.'" She assumed, based on the fact that the Collector's modus operandi did indeed seem to be giving out special items, that he'd accepted this offer. Now that she'd seen where the chairs came from, she had a better understand of who 'our mistress' was.

She placed her paws neatly on the table, as if folding her hands. "And hopefully, get them to make some chaos for you," she continued, eyes dancing. "In any case, Collector -- as for your future..." Her eyes closed for a moment as she mulled things over. After a few more moments, her eyes opened again. "You'll continue to seek your goals with enthusiasm. You make chaos with glee, don't you? If I had to guess, it almost makes you giddy, to watch a plan fall into place. Your charisma and confidence only enhance it, Collector. I sense that you will continue to work as you always have -- although I understand that such a reading for your future may not be..." She paused, and waved a paw slightly in the air, as if searching for the right word. Finally, she settled on, "interesting."

Kitty cleared her throat. "As for what I saw in your specific orders, Collector -- I must warn you that I am a pacifist. I too am a follower of chaos, but I firmly believe that one needn't be cruel or violent in order to make a little mayhem. I will not harm another Greater, not if I can avoid it." Although lying was... well, if lying was harmful was a debate she'd been having with herself for a while. So, after a moment, she bowed her head slightly as if admitting defeat and added, "Well, physically, at any rate."

He listened in utter silence, one hoofed leg gently bobbing where it was crossed over the other, much as Nemean's had been in the vision. There were no words, no overt gestures, as Kitty spoke; but the slight cant of his head, the faint glimmer of red beneath the hood, somehow suggested mischief.

"Well," he said, at last, "for the past, at least, you do have the gift." He paused for just a moment, as if choosing the correct words; one clawed hand idly picked a stray little feather from his cloak, tossing it aside. A soft, brief laugh escaped him. "My 'business partners.' What an... interesting turn of phrase. In any case: I will honor my end of our first bargain now."

A clawed hand lifted to point idly at the little treasures Kitty had borne with her. "Those were briberies: gifts from a creature too weak, as yet, to take what it wishes by force. It would gather its soldiers and for that it must bait its first few in. Promises of security are the empty oaths given by rigid Order, embraced by those fearful of true change. You claim to be a follower of chaos," she didn't know what the word meant, "and so I trust you do not fear it. But if you did, perhaps you would wander to this pretender, and offer friendship in return for these seemingly well-meaning gifts. All you would receive would be servitude. They are certainly pretty, though, aren't they-? And harmless, on their own," he added, glancing to them again.

Some part of him wanted to toy with that--to jam his clawed hand in and muddy the waters and see where it all went. It was part and parcel of the clay with which he'd been molded, but even for him, there were rules.

...Or consequences, in any case.

"Now, if you are as satisfied with what I have told you as I am with your magics, we can move on: you might, perhaps, tell me what it is you have in mind, what it is that you want. What things interest you? You may name any price; the worst I can answer is 'I do not have it,' and that is hardly a loss, hm?"

@Kitty