History Main / DuelOfSeduction

* PlayedForLaughs in an episode of ''Series/{{Chuck}}''. Spy couple Chuck and Sarah are both trying to seduce ''each other''. Over their ''wedding plans''. HilarityEnsues when they both realize what the other is up to. And it gives five minutes of [[MsFanservice Sarah]] in a BellyDancer outfit.

* ''FanFic/HarryAndTheShipgirls'': [[TheChessmaster Draco Malfoy and Ehren du Chasteler's]] romantic relationship is made of this trope. Since [[WellDoneSonGuy Draco]] wishes to 'ride the tiger' by being a husband to a powerful, strong willed, and deadly woman (like his mother Narcissa's relationship to his father), while Ehren's [[OnlyTheChosenMayWield Muramasa magical nature]] demands that her beloved Master must continually prove his worth controlling his and her darker urges to misuse her, the result is a ongoing game of subtle one-upsmanship and mutual consensual seductions that results in over a dozen biological children of theirs after the wedding....

-->She promptly 'dropped the proverbial microphone' by Transfiguring her Celtic dress into her Seventh Year school uniform (complete with her Head Girl's badge) wandlessly and nonverbally before seductively posing for him with a challenging 'Do it to me! I know we both want to!' look in her sparkling eyes. "Was diese Anschuldigungen angeht, bekenne ich mich schuldig. Du solltest wissen, dass ich unter meiner Hufflepuff-Schulmädchenuniform mein liebstes Paar nuttiger, unanständiger Schlüpfer für meine 'Erotikdisziplinierungssitzung' trage, mein geliebter Held und Ehemann. Was wird der Präfekt von Slytherin tun, wenn er die Hufflepuff-Schulsprecherin dabei erwischt, wie es gegen die Schuluniformvorschriften verstößt... schon wieder? (As for those accusations, I plead guilty as charged. You should be aware that I'm wearing my favorite pair of slutty naughty panties under my Hufflepuff school-girl's uniform for my 'discipline session', my beloved hero and husband. What is the Slytherin Prefect going to do when he catches the Hufflepuff Head Girl violating school uniform regulations... again?)"

-->Draco laughed joyfully as he realized that -- once more! -- Ehren had cleverly maneuvered him right to where she wanted him to be. Not that he'd have it any other way when it came to their romantic relationship, honestly. "Das ist meine unglaublich schlaue und hinterhältige Ehrendolchin! Komm hierher, damit Präfekt Malfoy von Slytherin dir die 'richtige preußische Erotikbestrafung' geben kann, die du verdienst, du ehrenhafte und treue kleine Hufflepuff-Schülerin. (That's my wonderfully cunning and sneaky Ehrendolchin! Come here so Prefect Malfoy of Slytherin can give you the 'proper Prussian punishment' that you deserve, you honorable and faithful little Hufflepuff schoolgirl.)"

-->"You unspeakably clever underhanded little Prussian minx!" Draco declared joyfully as he stepped forward, grabbed Ehren by the shoulders, and kissed her very thoroughly and passionately. "You planned this setup all along for when I died, didn't you?!"

[[folder:Music]]
* Music/TheWhiteStripes song "Conquest": [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5xcIp5CHa2Y]]
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** In "[[Recap/StarTrekS3E11WinkOfAnEye Wink of an Eye]]", Captain Kirk romances Deela to delay her EvilPlan and get his hands on her weapon. Deela is fully aware of this and [[ILoveYouBecauseICantControlYou quite amused]]. She in turn is trying to seduce Kirk so he will [[StockholmSyndrome become more accepting of his situation]].

A SisterTrope to LadykillerInLove, this is what happens when TheCasanova and the FemmeFatale (Or [[TropesAboutPerverts some similar character archetypes]]) are both trying to seduce each other for their own purposes at the same time. Most of the time, there is no sincere romance between the two, each one is [[ManipulativeBastard strategically putting the moves on the other]], trying to seduce them to join [[FaceHeelTurn their]] [[HeelFaceTurn side]], give them information, or obtain the MacGuffin for them. As such, this is often one of the EspionageTropes. Often, a Duel of Seduction ends in a SexFaceTurn. In the mean time, it's a good opportunity for copious {{Fanservice}}.

* Alluded to in ''Anime/YuriOnIce'': Yuri, for a figure skating performance on the theme of "Eros" (sexual love) imagines the story of a Casanova who comes to town to seduce the most beautiful woman there. Since Yuri cannot empathize with the womanizer, he gives the story a twist--the beautiful lady turns the tables on the Casanova and seduces him--and Yuri then plays the woman's part in his figure skating performance.

** Steve Trevor had been working on seducing Dolly Dancer, a Nazi spy who was dating him to get information and didn't realize he knew who she was, before he'd ever met Diana. Dolly tries to keep Steve alive when her superiors' plans finally come to fruition, and manages to escape Diana in the ensuing chaos.

* In ''Series/{{Firefly}}'', a good one between Inara and Saffron. Both recognize what is going on, as they've both had the same training as high class courtesans.

[[folder:Literature]]
%%* ''Literature/DangerousLiaisons''
* Creator/FrankHerbert's ''Literature/HereticsOfDune''. Murbella tries to use an Honored Matre technique to seduce and mind control Duncan Idaho's ghola, but his secret Tleilaxu conditioning allows him to seduce and condition her instead.
** They actually manage to condition ''each other''.
* In ''Literature/TheDemonPrinces'' final volume, Alice Wroke is under [[IHaveYourWife orders]] from the villain to seduce the hero. He, being several steps ahead of the game, obligingly plays along. [[spoiler: Although he doesn't sleep with her.]]
* Implied to have happened in two of the ''Literature/LordDarcy'' stories. In one, a female spy zaps Lord Darcy with an infatuation spell. Darcy realizes what happened, and spends the night letting her get false information out of him.
* In the ''Literature/WingsQuartet'', Tamani seduces Yuki, a spy for [[HunterOfMonsters troll hunter]] Klea, in order to get her to give information on Klea's whereabouts. [[spoiler: It is revealed that Yuki is a faerie and knew that Tamani was one as well. However, she did eventually develop real feelings for him.]]
* Literature/ElsabethSoesten is hired to recover incriminating documents from Lord Cuncz, the Baron of Leyen. She decides the best means of gaining access to them is to seduce the Baron. [[spoiler: And then she learns Cuncz was the one who hired her in the first place, and that he was seducing her by letting her think ''she'' was seducing ''him'' (and her own plan was built on pretending to fall for ''his'' seduction attempt). It didn't even have anything to do with his own plans; he did it entirely because he wanted to bed her.]]
* In the UrbanFantasy ''Literature/RedRoom'' series, succubus Shannon O'Reilly and seduction-trained agent Derek Hawthorne use their formidable skills on each other to get an advantage while being forced to team up. [[spoiler: They fall in love instead.]]
* In Jason Matthews's ''Literature/RedSparrow'', Russian SVR seductress Dominika Egorova is tasked to seduce CIA agent Nate Nash for information on a mole within the SVR. Nate had just been kicked out of Moscow and was just looking to get his career back on track in Helsinki when he stumbles on Dominika. Throughout their interaction, it's only Dominika who tries to seduce; Nate was only looking to recruit her as an asset. Yet they enter into a relationship anyway.
* In ''Literature/ThinAir'' by Creator/RichardKMorgan, freelance overrider Hakan Veil and Earth Oversight auditor Madison Madekwe engage in a Duel of Seduction in order to influence the ongoing political and economic conflict between Earth and Mars. Due to the DoubleStandard, Veil's allies assume that he alone is being seduced and Veil helpfully lampshades this trope for them to get them to stop warning him off.
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** One source describes two very unlikely lovers, [[OurAngelsAreDifferent the agathinon Janarr]] and the erinyes Nalura hiding out in mortal disguise on the Prime. They sort of just did their jobs ''too well'' � she tried to seduce him, he tried to turn her attitude up to celestial standards. Before they knew whom exactly they faced, both succeeded. They had to hide from their respective bosses from that point on, though.

** One source describes two very unlikely lovers, [[OurAngelsAreDifferent the agathinon Janarr]] and the [[HornyDevils erinyes Nalura]] hiding out in mortal disguise on the Prime. They sort of just did their jobs ''too well'' � she tried to seduce him, he tried to turn her attitude up to celestial standards. Before they knew whom exactly they faced, both succeeded. They had to hide from their respective bosses from that point on, though.

* An interesting version (with PsychicPowers) turns up as Samara's loyalty mission in ''VideoGame/MassEffect2''. Shepard is required to catch the attention of [[spoiler: Samara's daughter,]] Morinth, who [[HornyDevils kills people by sleeping with them]]. This requires three steps: first draw her attention by making a scene in her favorite bar (punch people, stare down [[ProudWarriorRaceGuy a krogan]], [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking dance really well]]), then pique her interest in conversation, and then she takes Shep back to her apartment and tries to turn her telepathic abilities against the commander, who tries to resist through sheer [[TheCape virtue]] and/or [[AntiHero badassery]]. It's possible to blow either the second part (in which case she walks out and you fail the mission) or the third ([[spoiler: she draws Shep under her spell and is about to strike [[BigDamnHeroes when Samara blows the door in]]]]). Oh, and Morinth is an [[DiscountLesbians asari]], so Shepards of either gender can participate.

* In the short-lived Australian historical sitcom ''Bligh'', a Senior [[TheCasanova Cassanova]] is running a quiz competition between Governor Bligh and his SitcomArchNemesis John Macarthur, who send their wives to seduce him and steal the answers. They always seem to [[DistractedByTheSexy forget the second part of the plan]].