((Give into lechery or not.))
Korvin licks his lips and looks around as if thinking this over.
[cut scene to Korvin straightening his robes and brushing straw from them]
I know you are disappointed in the length of the public negotiations. More extended I will do but not here. If we find a more private place I will continue our discussions of the contract.
Initially Korvin glances over his shoulder to see if Praxiteles is watching or something, but in fact, Praxiteles never appears to observe what is going on, and every once in a while a flurry of activity erupts and rock chips go flying. But the rock chips never fly so far as to inconvenience Alips and Korvin.
"Contract?" She seems momentarily confused, apparently thinking that Korvin really was there for sex, alone.
When Korvin gets into explaining that he's looking to hire Praxiteles for some work, before Alips can even utter a sound he interrupts, "For goodness sake, Alips, the lord magus, and the emphasis on lord magus is directed to Alips, wants me to do some additional work for them. Could you do this talk of real business elsewhere, it's most distracting." Praxiteles sighs. "I'm working on the joint where the wing attaches to the body, and it requires utmost concentration, and this talk of an additional project is not something I need to hear right now. Begone, both of you, before all my work is destroyed." He then proceeds to start speaking loudly in Greek again. Depending on Korvin's knowledge of Greek at the time, he might be able to pick out some swear words, and about people not respecting an artist's process bringing up business entanglements and matters of commerce when there's true beauty that needs to be created. No mention of sex with his wife is uttered in his rant in Greek.
During his rant, "My husband doesn't like real business discussed in his presence, and your reputation has preceded you, so I assumed you were here for me, and not my husband. Let us go to a council room, or other gathering place and discuss this in depth." Looking at Praxiteles, and then back at Korvin, "What's your apprentice doing? She could learn a lot from Praxiteles while we're negotiating..."
Haha. No my dear. I came here on business but I enjoy the...pre-negotiations that you employ and look forward to continuing them. He helps her up and waits while she straightens her robes. Abagail? She is learning the wonders of Philosophiae at the moment. Unless I've missed misread the looks she has had, I'm sure when she is done she will visit your husband. Let me escort you to my office so you may see what the work could entail. Then we can begin our negotiations again.
Alips and Korvin walk out of the workshop and out of Praxiteles earshot, which is quite a ways away before she stops Korvin and turns to him. "I need to tell you something. You may have noticed my husband is much older looking than I. His longevity ritual failed some time ago, and he has been allowing himself to age normally. He now has 5 children by other women. So a dalliance with Abigail could lead to some problems for you. Now, I'm sure you understand the futility of forbidding a child or an apprentice from doing something. It makes the forbidden fruit so much sweeter. However, one magus to another, despite the fact that my husband has never taken an apprentice, he will respect your wishes in this matter. I'm not sure how long he intends to go without a longevity ritual, though. So this may be a fleeting opportunity for your House."
Luckily, Fiona is studying the Corpus tropea this season ((did we ever decide if that has to be done at the library or if the magi can take the text back to their lab?)), while Sheelagh is assisting Viscaria in the laboratory, and Fiona can just go take a nap when the words start to get blurry. Which she does, a couple of times, to be sure she's well-rested for the evening's...entertainment. And her dreams are very erotic.
Thank you for that information. Lets stop by Otto's class room and I'll discuss the matter with Abagail. I'm sure she is interested in the experience.
After a short talk with Abagail where he is clearly giving her permission to pursue Praxiteles while he is here.
Let you husband know that I do Longevity Rituals. It can be part of the contract if you so wish. I'm doing research on making better Longevity Rituals for the non-Gifted. Not that it applies to your husband but there are others that may benefit. My House would look forward to it as would House Jerbiton.
((Fiona would have asked,at some point (since she's being asked to procure a "more robust longevity ritual"), how effect her current one is so she knows what to shop for.))
((Basically, you're giving me the greenlight to get Abigail pregnant now, rather than later in her apprenticeship or post gauntlet, just so we're on the same page.))
"I'm not sure that my husband wants a Longevity Ritual. Or at least not, yet. Me? I'm vain. And Fiona has agreed to my terms. Whether she contracts with you or someone else is immaterial to me. I know I have to be wherever the magus is, or have him come to Laurus Argenti and use one of our spare labs and I stay there, rather than Koblenz for the season. I'm familiar, because of when Praxiteles did my original ritual of longevity. Whatever option, it doesn't matter very much to me. Enough of that, though. What is it you require of my husband? Some things I can set a price on immediately, and others, i need to consult with him to ascertain the true value." As Korvin looks at her, he's seeing her veneer slowly shift and hard edges come up, and she's now in full negotiation mode, with whatever having transpired between them previously compartmentalized away from what is now going on.
yes. Have fun 
Korvin will hand her the list of projects to be finished by the Tribunal. It is grouped by Must have done, Could be done and nice to have. He will talk just about the Must have done first and if the cost is reasonable, he will start looking at the Could be done items.
And now we're back to where we started... The idea of Viscaria falling behind is a function of the troupe's desire, IMO. Amul's exit shouldn't penalize the other players. So, what is on each of those lists, is largely up to the troupe to determine... Now there should be some things on those lists, because I don't think Viscaria was ever capable of doing everything within the scope of Amul's ambition. But I would rather the troupe take a first crack at what's left to do, then having me use SG fiat to come up with something...
Oh, when Ra'am comes to visit, it will be a hoot.
[color=blue]"Before you go," Fiona says, [color=blue]"there is something else about Valerian that I forgot to tell you. You mentioned that Valerian fancies Praxiteles, and that your husband is a little bit in love with him. Valerian was also pursuing Apollodorus, rather vigorously I understand, but was spurned. Not that Apollodorus didn't fancy men...he just didn't fancy that particular man. That might be something to consider in your inquiries."
Fiona kisses her warmly. [color=blue]"Good luck, and please let me know what you learn."
i figured that was the case
Later the same evening, after enjoying the company Fiona and several grogs, Alips returns to her quarters and sends a note to Korvin via page.
"Come to my quarters when you are able, whether now or in the morning. Do not concern yourself with disturbing me if you think I am asleep. We can discuss the terms of the engagement for Praxiteles, or do whatever else you would like."
Korvin will arrive in the morning with his papers to discuss a contract. He is also looking forward to doing something else.
Alips is sleeping when Korvin arrives, and she has massive bedhead. She also shows signs of being well used, to put it lightly. Korvin may have some slight advantage at negotiating here...
"I'm not sure what your preferences are, but if you need me to be more presentable, I can be, if you give me a moment to confer with my husband..."
Fiona is semi-disappointed to see Alips leave so soon, and kisses her hungrily goodnight. Once Alips is gone, Fiona looks around at the semi-giant-sized grogs surrounding her, thinks that she's glad she cast that MeHe(Te) to fortify the bed before they arrived. [color=blue]"Who's up for more?" she purrs. She's loving this, and doesn't want to quit until she's too exhausted to keep her eyes open.
((Hopefully this lets her get a start on her little (or not so little, with time) harem.))
((Basically, what she wants in her men (and, to a degree, her women) is that they can satisfy her physically. She would like a subset of that to be "who can satisfy me intellectually?". And finally, "Who can satisfy me emotionally?" but that's waaaay down the road.))
((Interestingly enough, it's apparently Level 25 to do a R: Touch, D: Sun ReCo spell to allow them to ignore the penalties for fatigue. I was thinking it would be easier than that. And it's just a bit out of her reach. Her ReCo is Sta 3 + Re 10 + Co 15 + Rego Aura 10 = 38 plus a die roll, halved.))
+3 from the Talisman... is 41 halved... So...not ungettable... How far does Fiona want to push it? If she had Performance Magic, she could probably do more... ((that gives me an idea...))
However, the situation doesn't lend itself to resting for a few moments, so any fatigue lost by Fiona is essentially lost for the period of the encounter... 
So she can get, at best, two, fine, strong grogs to be a 60 minute man. without any penalties pretty easily. More than that, she starts taking on more risk...
((Also getting a strong Vibe of Somebody to Love here, Boogie Pimps original or remix versions are certainly apropos. I leave it as an exercise to the reader to find them on Youtube. Those are probably NSFW, btw.))
((I admit that Korvin has been thinking the same thing. It is dangerous as past unconscious is a light wound. But he could pull off a target of individual. Perhaps i will learn the Harnessed magic mastery hmmmmm 
))