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With the parlor served and Varis… looking almost a little [i]too[/i] happy, the busiest part of the evening was over, and Aaron had a little more room to breathe. Disengaging seamlessly from any attention he might have drawn from any of the guests, he disappeared quietly from the parlor, leaving the vampires to do their drinking (and probably, catfighting) in peace while he slipped back into the kitchen. Maddie’s blood was next, so with a few minutes to spare he took care to label and prepare her bottle in advance, ensuring everything was perfect before he finally rejoined the mages in the living room. 

It wouldn’t be appropriate for him to sit, so he took up a spot behind the couch; a deliberate choice, given it gave him a line of sight to the balcony as well as the hallway. His eyes flicked over to the windows before he settled, a habit he’d adopted after Malek’s jarring visit, peering out cautiously into the darkness. But, as always, there was nothing there; the hallway was clear too, bearing nothing but the distant thrum of vampiric conversation. Good; for the moment, Aaron could relax. 

Flicking out his wrist to check his watch one more time, he looked around at the gathered mages. [color=f0d705]“Well done everyone, the vampires seemed pleased,”[/color] he congratulated them, mostly sincerely, and in a tone just loud enough for the room to hear him without alerting the vampires down the hall. [color=f0d705]“That’s the hard part out of the way now, so you’re free to sit back and enjoy yourselves.”[/color]

Lilie was talking to Max and he wasn't quite prepared for a conversation with Salem, so he turned his attention to Maddie. [color=f0d705]“I must admit, when you said your skill was ‘niche’ I wasn’t expecting [i]that,[/i]”[/color] he joked good-naturedly. [color=f0d705]“Was that also a remnant of your aspiring TCL days?”[/color]
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