[IC] Of Blood and Magic

[Obscene Symphony]

Several minutes passed with no reply from Salem; figures, for all his pontificating about honesty he was awfully tight-lipped when honesty became inconvenient. Re-reading his initial message a few times while he waited, Aaron fumed. He couldn’t believe him! Good grief, Salem didn’t need anyone’s meddling to make him look suspicious, did he? He could achieve it flawlessly on his own! Of course, Aaron expected him to blame some noble or other anyway; Salem still maintained that his current investigation was Lady Sinnenodel’s fault, or the Queen’s fault, or his fault, always pointing outward and never entertaining that none of this would have happened in the first place if he’d remembered his position and kept his sanctimonious mouth shut.

Aaron forced himself to take a breath. He was getting far too worked up, though being forced to sleep outside probably played a part in his growing irritation. But what else could he do? Salem seemed to think of him as the scum of the earth - or that’s how he came across, anyway - and tasked with befriending the man, Aaron couldn’t very well refute him as strongly as he’d like out loud. A pit formed in his stomach as he once more remembered that he wouldn’t even escape him on break; he could just see it now, Salem trailing through the castle at his heel, all “equality would be better” this and “your traditions are dated” that, treading his ungrateful feet all over centuries of treasured history as if it were nought but some gilded cage. Aaron chuckled humourlessly; either that or doing his best to sneak anywhere he wasn’t supposed to be, or maybe piss off the head butler or try to start a revolution among the lower staff, given Salem’s apparent compulsion to get himself into trouble.

The sound of a door opening pulled Aaron out of his internal grumbling, a little spike of tension bringing him back to reality. No, he was fine. No one could see him from there. Soon after the door, though, came footsteps, and a female voice humming a familiar tune. Lilie?

Aaron risked peeking over the wall to confirm that yes, it was Lilie, leaving her dorm with something draped over her arm. His jacket! Shit! And she was walking this way!

Shrinking into the corner, Aaron held his breath as she approached the walkway, simultaneously hoping she would stop there without seeing him and devising some excuse in case she did. Oh, he was just getting some fresh air, he was just inspecting the wall, he was— wait, she was walking right past?

Indeed she was; Lilie walked up the walkway without a care in the world, still swaying a little bit and humming happily. Good, she hadn’t looked his way, but the thought was of little comfort considering she’d eventually have to turn around. As she knocked on his door, he considered jumping the wall and pretending he’d been off on some errand and was just coming back, but that was a terrible plan; she’d definitely hear him, and probably turn around to see him halfway over the wall with no good explanation.

Bracing himself for the worst, Aaron looked on as Lilie waited, a little spaced out. He watched on edge as she realized no one was answering, looked around the porch, finally turned around and…

Nothing?

Lilie turned around and smiled, looking proud of herself and strutting down the walk to the mailbox, mere metres away from where Aaron sat against the wall in plain sight. She bumped into the mailbox, sang a lyric to it, and laughed before draping his jacket over it and making her way back to her dorm again, never even once glancing in Aaron’s direction.

Astounded, Aaron peeked over the wall again to watch her go, wondering if he was more drunk than he previously thought. Had that really just happened? Had Lilie walked past him and not seen him at all? Sure, she didn’t look right at him, but he wasn’t exactly hidden either - she must have seen him in her periphery. With the moon out it was practically daylight out there, surely she would have—

Ohhhhh.

That’s right! He was a freaking light mage! For the second time that night, Aaron remembered that just because he could see in the dark didn’t mean everyone could. He didn’t know how dark the world looked to Lilie at this hour, but regular human night vision combined with her drunkenness probably left her blissfully unaware he was there at all. An astounded laugh escaped him at the thought; to think, she could practically look right at him and never see a thing!

Heaving a sigh of relief and amusement both, Aaron retrieved his jacket and put it on before sitting back down, letting his head fall back against the wall. He had to shift a bit when the mask on his arm jabbed into his side, and pulled it into his lap to admire it again. It really was exquisite work, and he couldn’t deny that it felt good to sport a Noilan raven again - beyond the one on his scabbard, anyway. He still thought blue went better with black than silver did. He smirked, wondering what Princess Ryner must have thought of the get-up. Surely she’d known about it; his mother might not have accompanied the Princess on campus, but the two were thick as thieves nonetheless.

Of course, with that thought came a much less pleasant one, and Aaron’s limbs grew heavy once more with exasperated dread. Ryner might have gotten a kick out of the outfit, but there was a certain other important noble in his life who he expected wouldn’t be nearly as amused. He sighed. He was going to get one hell of an earful when Varis let him in in the evening, that was certain. An earful and probably worse. Not just for being late - as if that weren’t bad enough - but being late and returning dressed like a Noila mascot. Aaron rubbed a hand down his face, feeling more and more exhausted at the thought of it. Honestly, he probably should have been more nervous about all that than he was. Moon only knew how he tended to freak when he knew he was in trouble with Varis - something he’d never really done too much of with the Noilas, interestingly enough. He supposed Varis had a certain talent for making him sweat.

Still, he wasn’t sweating nearly as much as he thought he probably should be. Maybe it was the comedy he’d witnessed with Lilie just now, or maybe his lingering buzz taking the edge off, who knew. Aaron was tired enuogh that he didn’t really care to find out.

_{Bitching about @Trainerblue192 and hiding from @Hero}

[Achronum]

Interacting with @Scribe of Thoth@Hero@Trainerblue192

Ryner laughed at Eris’ wink, the tension easing out of her smile as she did. “A bold move, Mr.Samael, but it seems tonight at least, fortune does indeed favor the bold. I’ll have our publicist reach out to yours. We’ll probably make official statements tomorrow night but this way, you can better coordinate whatever steps you take to protect your image.” Ryner tapped on the desk as she spoke, the movements sharp and harsh but barely making any noise. Concern flashed over her face at Max’s comment.

“You don’t need a plan at all. I’m not about to make my students defend themselves when I’m standing right here. If for some reason someone comes into this room without my permission, it’ll be considered a violation of my privacy and I’ve killed for less in a darker time. As long as you three are here, no harm will come to you.” Ryner promised solemnly. “My students are more important than my reputation but clearly I trusted my subordinates too much and you all have taken the fall for my naivety. For that, I apologize. I know it's a far cry from anything substantial after what you've been through but it is all I can offer at this moment."

Though to answer your question Salem, yes they will use mind magic to interrogate you. It is one of the horrors I intend to protect you from.” Ryner knelt in front of Salem, a soft smile on her face. “You and I both know the investigation is nothing but my mother’s ego and Lady Sinnenodel’s sadistic pleasure. Tonight's event will not impact anything. You’ve stayed strong this whole time. Trust me for a little while longer.”

---

Interacting with @WeepingLiberty

“Yes, thank you.” Dennis muttered as he clung to Amaris amid crowd, this face taking on a distinctly green tinge. “Princess Nox is here and she looks halfway ready to kill someone herself. Queen save us, that’s a nasty looking axe.” Dennis muttered under his breath. A few people around the pair glanced over at the commentary, realized who was talking, and shifted away, leaving a few paces of space around Dennis and Amaris.

“Apparently, our Princess hid Eris and the mages away. Princess Nox just finished clearing the admin building and it looks like she’s moving onto the lecture halls next.” Dennis kept a stream of information coming quietly under his breath, just loud enough for Amaris to hear. “I didn’t realize you could call someone stupid that many ways.”

The flow of students continued past the administrative building, dark and lifeless as several of the royal guard stood outside. More royal guards patrolled the walkways and the dorm area, shepherding students as quickly as they could. Tonight was a poor night to be caught outside.

---

Interacting with: @ReusableSword

She wrapped one hand around his throat and another dug into his still good shoulder as she pulled, straining to dig her fingers into Victor, but she struggled to leave a dent in him. She jumped back, wary and suspicious. “That is… unusual. You must not be a student then. I thought you were just another dumb pet of hers, prior occupation and all, but you’re a little studier than most aren’t you?”

---

[ReusableSword]

Victor Astorio

Jackpot. Just as he had thought the vampire before him was old and solitary. Going off about her life story and how the princess truly was before the war. This wasn’t entirely surprising to him given what he had learned during his last training with Ryner. How this woman spoke of past interactions and friendships almost made him think that she was in love with the princess at some point. His eyes followed her movements with ease but he did not move his head.

The girl continued to speak as she darted around him, she had definitely been alone a long time. Normally other vampires would go for the kill and continue on when faced with a vampire opponent. This one however demonstrated restraint, if only to gloat and show off but restraint none the less. One thing did stand out about her, being staked through the heart and still being able to escape. This peaked his interest on the subtle hint as Ryner did tell him that some abilities did allow for a vampire to move their heart to another portion of their body. This could explain how she escaped when the others did not.

Still, this one continued on expressing her views on this place and the current way of things. The only question he had up until this point was what the hell that operator was doing? He hadn’t turned off the phone and could still hear muffled voices. Hopefully something in the way of backup would get here soon. She stopped finally across the roof from him and pondered a few questions before lunging at him. He did not move, neither to dodge nor defend himself. This one liked to talk and although she was strong he wanted to see just how strong she was. It didn’t seem like she was holding back too much. The protective sleeve on his bad arm did conceal a small blade that he could use rather well if he had too.

She paused when she reached him, her fingers dug but didn’t seem go as deep as this one wanted. His skin didn’t tear, his muscles didn’t separate, and his bones didn’t break. They hung there in that embrace for mere moments that felt like minutes. His eyes locked onto hers, no color or interest flashed through his eyes. He showed no emotion as he continued to asses her just as she did to him. Then, she took a few steps back and spoke again.

“That is… unusual. You must not be a student then. I thought you were just another dumb pet of hers, prior occupation and all, but you’re a little studier than most aren’t you?”

He still hesitated for a moment to answer her, “Something like that.” He moved now slowly to the right of where he was, squaring up with her. “So what is it then? You speak like a spoiled little girl who whines when she doesn’t get her way. You simply can’t move on from the glory days can you? Can’t adapt to the new way of things? No wonder why you seclude yourself and only come out to hunt.” He was fishing now, fishing for anything more he could get from her. “A scarred little girl who won’t even tell me her name.” he still moved slowly angled his good shoulder toward her and the bad one that concealed the blade behind him.

“You speak like you truly knew Ryner at the time. But she changed and you didn’t, she grew stronger and you dropped, she came into the spotlight and you faded into the shadows. So tell me, just how long did you love her? Only someone who loved her would lash out like this.” He was looking for a deeper emotional response now. “Someone who loved her would do something like this, this petty revenge. Kill a few “Sheep”, stir the pot, get her to remember that you still exist and disappear into the night. All so you don’t have to face her and those feelings of yours but you still remain a topic. We vampires might not have much in the way of emotion, but those few who know what love truly is can see it on others.”

@Achronum

[WeepingLiberty]

Amaris Marivaldi

_{Mentions: Smol Dennis @Achronum}

Amaris cringed at the mention of Princess Nox, the memory of her own personal interactions with the royal still rather fresh in her mind. She found herself hoping that Nox would be too busy sorting out the mess to have to deal with a secondary encounter with the woman.

“She always looks like that, but it gets worse when she doesn’t have the axe.” The countess breathed calmly, keeping her posture tall and her eyes active for anything that might stand out. She listened intently as Dennis listed off some of the actions taken by both Nox and Ryner. A part of her was beginning to wonder how he was able to gather such in depth knowledge, especially when the subjects were royal subjects, but she opted to leave the conversation for another time. She was, however, unable to stifle a small laugh at his follow up comment.

* “Non ne conosci la metà.” Amaris chuckled under her breath as the group they had been travelling with continued to be corralled along. Every so often she would spot a student, high on the night’s festivities, attempt to break from the crowd only to be swiftly returned to the flow of foot traffic by a royal guard.

“Well, at least it looks like security tightened up a bit. I wonder how long it will take to get this mess sorted out now that Nox is back on the warpath.” She mused, taking a moment to glance down at the mage still attached to her arm. He was very clearly still distressed about the situation, and rightfully so. Amaris felt a twinge of guilt, that if she had kept her curiosity in check he wouldn’t have had to witness such frightening things… but realistically she knew it was likely he would have still looked into it and suffered silently on his own. At least she could be there to provide whatever small amount of support she could for the time being.

“We shouldn’t be too much further now, right? You’re doing great.”

*

Non ne conosci la metà = You don’t know the half of it.
~Again via google translae…. Pls forgive~

[Bert Macklin]

The sound of the door closing was accompanied by the smallest groan. Irritation aside, the night had been anything but dull. Ben had to wonder where the princess's praise for this mage had come from. Rude, uncultured, ignorant, and a myriad of other unpleasant words popped into his head as she had spoken. His image of a sweet, obedient mage had been all but shattered. Perhaps he had expected too much. His father was right, the house of Eve was the laughingstock of all the nobles, and now they were doomed to suffer the same even here. How was he to look walking around with a mage of shock white hair? It was as good as a scarlet letter. There was no hope of attempting to gain a relationship with either of the other nobles, and he felt utterly humiliated. But perhaps he was hasty with his judgment. If the princess was endeared to his new mage, then there must be a reason for it. Clearly, the girl hadn't been of sound mind and would certainly be the same person Princess Ryner had described. They could start with a clean slate tomorrow. If she was uneducated, then this was an opportunity to mold the young lady as he saw fit.

The more optimistic viewpoints served to calm him down, and after a minute of deliberation he made a decision to start his plans. When he passed the young girl's room, however, he found himself stopping. He wanted to verify her claim, and without any hesitation, he entered her room. After turning on the lights, he decided to stroll into her closet, shocked to see such few articles of clothing. Eleanore would be devastated if she had such few options! He squinted at the materials, finding them much too short for his liking. She was so small and fragile looking that he was sure she would inevitably give the wrong idea going around dressed like that! He shook his head, exiting both closet and room before he would take out his flip phone, placing several calls. Once Ben finished, he decided to visit his own room. Unfortunately, he could not bring all the weapons he desired, but this was as good an excuse as any to touch up on his traditional archery and dart throwing.

[Scribe of Thoth]

---

“You don’t need a plan at all. I’m not about to make my students defend themselves when I’m standing right here. If for some reason someone comes into this room without my permission, it’ll be considered a violation of my privacy and I’ve killed for less in a darker time. As long as you three are here, no harm will come to you.”

Max stared forward with lidded, unamused eyes as Ryner interjected. He knew royals were bound to be narcissistic, but jeez; this was an A-B conversation, Ryner, C yourself out. He drew back from Eris into a standing position, still reluctant to take off his stupid cat mask in case he accidentally pulled anymore faces. Eris had the right idea, at least. Trusting his safety to a Noila of all things without a backup plan was asking for trouble.

“My students are more important than my reputation," Blatant lie, at best her students were part of her reputation and thus important to her as a means to an end, "but clearly I trusted my subordinates too much and you all have taken the fall for my naivety. For that, I apologize." Doubt it. Max trusted her actions but not her motives; he thoroughly believed she'd kill anyone who stepped into the room without her permission, but all her sanctimonious crap was unneeded and frankly, insulting. She could baby Flower Boy all she wanted, Max wasn't falling for it.

He inched a hand into his pocket, though he paused before pulling out his phone. The Retriever might've been privy to whatever game the two princesses were playing, or at least picked up bits and pieces while his nose was lodged firmly between Noilan asscheeks, but that seemed like the type of conversation Max wouldn't want to have recorded anywhere. He doubted anything would stop Nox from pulling phone data, nor did he know if Ryner had some policy on potential recording devices in her office. The less people that knew about his involvement in this, the better; less chance for this to bite him in the ass later. He really was locked into waiting for the situation to resolve itself, it seemed. Great.

---

@Hero@Trainerblue192@Achronum

[Hero]

---

---

The deal was sealed, much to Eris' delight. Antigone would be able to pass on the message sooner than later, and of course the thought of having the princess in his pocket--shallow as it was--was the cherry on top. He grinned at Ryner, eyes traveling down out of habit, though her hand looked off. Or it sounded off? How the hell did that work? He must have been more stressed than he thought, the sound of her tapping the table seemingly out of sync, like a mismatched audio clip in a film. Maybe she didn't actually hit the desk? The entire thing was oddly bizarre, making him feel like he was having an out of body experience. No, he needed to relax, he wasn't going crazy.

He couldn't quite relax just yet, though, the princess' response to catching what Max had said making him suppress a groan. The kid was subtle, but it looked like he would need to work on that a little more. Funny, since he thought that it was just unnoticeable enough, but she must have been super attentive. Eris almost rolled his eyes at Ryner comforting Salem, shifting slightly in his seat. For once he was more disappointed in the mage than scoffing at the princess deigning to stoop down to hold the crybaby's hand. If he couldn't keep his head in a situation like this, then life as an Astorio mage was going to be very difficult for him. Maybe she felt bad for putting him in that position. Guilt always did weird things to people, but either way, Flower Boy couldn't even pretend to hold himself together.

As the thought crossed his mind, Eris' eyes widened. Flower Boy hadn't uttered a peep, how did she know what he was worried about? It was obvious, sure, but...he hadn't said anything. At all. Not a word, he was sitting there stressing and sweating. Could he have missed him talking? No, they're right next to each other! Eris inched away slightly from the princess, clearly unsettled.

"Your Highness, is there an enchantment or--what is happening?" He asked, seemingly disturbed. "It feels like something is going on here."

---

Sitting in a chair next to @Scribe of Thoth and @Trainerblue192 wondering if he's high or drunk or something with this BULLSHIT.

[Trainerblue192]

---

---

---

---

Interacting with: @Scribe of Thoth@Hero@Obscene Symphony

Salem watched as the Princess tapped her nail against the desk, sharp and harsh movements yielding almost no sound. His vision wasn't as sharp as a vampires, he couldnt tell if she was actually hitting the desk or merely stopping millimeters before its surface in what could only be years of muscle memory stopping her from ruining several desks. He watched as she tapped a few more times, noting that there was no damage to that area, not a single mark, scratch, or indent that could've come from there mere strength they're race tended to have. He was almost lost in the tapping itself, wondering if there was some code behind it, a message she was trying to convey to others outside this room? But he couldn't gain any further understanding of the noise as it didnt match any coding he knew.

Salem's attention was drawn away as she addressed Max and Eris' whispers. Ofcourse she could hear them, they were known for their hearing. He was sure Eris wouldve known that, well might've known that if he paid attention in his classes, but even then Salem believed that most all would know about a vampires ability to heighten their senses. His families partners may play hosts and show what Salem now considered to be extreme kindness, but he also knew of the fear one could strike in another. He listened to what she said, mentioning they didnt have to defend themselves, and it made him wonder all the more what those two were up to. Salem's magic was no where near where it needed to be to fight off a vampiric attack, and he doubted Max had any useful skill in that matter either.

What perhaps struck him the most was Ryners ability to kneel down before another. Her words were kind, and comforting, leaving Salem to wonder where all of this was during dinner. How could the house be so divided? A small knot began to form in his stomach as he thought of Aaron and the circumstances that he had to grow up in. It helped to explain him in some light, yet it left for more to be desired. Salem felt relief in knowing that the investigation wouldnt be affected by this unfortunate series and he began to relax a bit more. He may not have said it outright, but a Princess should be able to read her councils intentions on their face, it would make sense that she could feel Salems worries.

Salem looked towards Eris and dared not to look back at Ryner as he spoke. An enchantment in place? Of what kind and why? Everything seemed to be going civilly so why worry now about such things? What made him think about the room having some form of magic placed on it? Salems eyes finally turned and landed on the Princess almost as if they were waiting for the answer themselves.

[Achronum]

Interacting with @Scribe of Thoth@Hero@Trainerblue192

Ryner’s entire body rippled and suddenly she was standing back behind the desk,a duplicate of the chair she’d brought around next to her. She looked down at the offending piece of furniture, then to the one across from her, and back to the one next to her with an unhappy sigh. “Now why’d you go and ruin it? I was told to hold you until she got back and here I am, struggling with a punk ass vampy. One too many brews down the ol’ hatch, if you know what I mean! Haha!” Ryner cackled as she spoke, the words lining up less and less with Ryner’s mouth as she leaned over the table and poked Eris’ head. The sensation of touch never came.

“Oh, feisty boy in here tonight! Guess my little spell’s coming undone since I’m about outta magic here. They already cleared the building so my job is technically done.” The voice echoed around the room, the words coming slurred and choppy. Ryner became translucent and the room grew darker, colder. “Take the south exit and head to a dorm they won’t look for you. I’m sure someone like y’all has a friend or two to rely on. Or, you can just hide here until Princessy shows back up!”

The room when dark and the chill overtook them as whatever spell they were under disappeared. The three of them were just standing a few steps behind the chairs and nothing was set out like Ryner had done just moments before. Outside, a few voices could be heard murmuring, their footsteps loud with the sound of armor, before they passed down the hall.

---

Interacting with @WeepingLiberty

They arrived at Dennis’ dorm unhampered. Several other students stood outside, staring at the pair as the approached. Dennis let go of Amaris and bowed. “Uh, thank you so much. I had uh a good time tonight before all…” He waved back at the campus. “Do you think uh maybe we could hang out again?” A fe of the others behind him rolled their eyes and slipped back inside while the others turned to each other without speaking. One girl stood stiffly, arms clasped tightly in front of her, as she stared down Amaris.

---

Interacting with: @ReusableSword

The vampiress drew back as if she was struck, mouth agape for a moment. “You think I loved her? Ha! I couldn’t think of anything further from the truth! Open your damn ears! What bit of what I said suggested I loved her? I loathe her. No, I wasn’t going to steal back into the night. I was working my way up to the bitch. I’d play with her toys, tear them all apart and liter them around for her to see, and then when she came sniffing around, I’d tear her limb from limb!” She shouted at him, lunging for him again and baring her fangs. In the background, the lights turned off. One by one, they flickered out and the darkness advanced on the ballroom. The wailing of emergency vehicles went quiet and the chattering of the investigation stopped once only the moon and the stars remained to illuminate the campus.

“And what does a worthless little worm like you think it deserves to know my name? You, who grovels at her feet, at the feet of this blasted Council who gave away everything they worked for-we worked for!-just to accommodate so worthless agreement? We are immortal and great! They are fragile, weak, and helpless. Their magic is a crutch! So why are they worth anything?!” She screamed at him. “I’m going to kill you anyways so what does it matter? The last damn thing you’ll hear is-”

“Valentina.” Ryner interrupted, arms crossed as she stared down the vampiress in faint amusement. She’d come up over the edge of the building as Valentina lunged and brushed a bit of dirt of her suit jacket. “I thought I had you killed all those years ago. You must have had a vial of that blood still. I must have missed one.” She walked steadily, unperturbed at the violence in front of her. As the Princess spoke, Valentina’s shock quickly changed to fury. “I’m sure we could have settled this a different way.”

“Settled? You condemned them to death! If we still had that blood, I could have put the whole crew back together!” The vampiress screamed, her attention off Victor and fully on Ryner. Ryner started walking away but paused.

“I suppose you could have. But that did defeat the purpose didn’t it?” She asked, considering the question. “You all were a fun distraction Valentina but my siblings were right. It was time to come back.” Ryner waved her hand dismissively, back still turned. “You can finish this right, Victor? I’ll start the paperwork for the whole mess. Try and hurry please.” With a strangled shout, Valentina pulled a blade from her boots and threw herself at the Princess.

---

[Hero]

---

---

If it's too good to be true, it usually is.

How Eris managed to forget that rule was beyond him, the blonde's amusement somewhere in the negatives. He should have noticed sooner, but considering until their slip up the phony princess played her part just as Ryner would, it was safe to say he had fallen for it hook, line, and sinker. Illusionary magic, he really should have recognized it sooner than he did, but for some reason thought the princess above such measures. No, more like they weren't worth the time--why waste her time with 'suspects' when she had somewhere else to be? Princess Ryner was aware of the on-goings and was either with the task-force pursuing the real murderer or was doing as Nox was and clearing the perimeter.

Either way, it was a sore loss.

Moving his hand, he took off his mask for a moment, brushing his hair away from his face. That chill was something else, and he couldn't say he was entirely fond of it. Still, he was a business man through and through, and even if the little favor wasn't his to claim anymore, there was still work to be done. Without explaining himself, he snatched up the inkwell on the desk and opened it up, taking a moment to dip the quill in and pulling on the opened notepad that had been neatly placed on the desk. The quill skated across the page effortlessly, the message formed in record time. He folded the paper in half, repeating the writing briefly, and once he put everything back where it was, he left the note front and center on the desk.

Your Highness, Princess Ryner

Highness,

I have taken the liberty of contacting my team. Your people will hear from them shortly--they are at your disposal. Please feel free to contact me if there are any concerns.

Yours Truly,
Eris Samael

Now that that was taken care of, Eris was more than ready to call it a night. He was pretty sure he didn't need to ask Alderman if he was ready to do the same, but there was a tiny hitch he nearly forgot about when he looked up and saw Flower Boy. Right, the thing was probably quivering in his shoes over being tricked by magic again. Well, he wasn't alone at least.

Placing his mask over his face again, Eris leveled a look on Salem. "Well, then, we won't be inconveniencing any more princesses tonight, I'd rather not run into either of them right now. We're leaving," He stated.

As much as he wanted to leave, though, he couldn't quite abandon Flower Boy. He couldn't say it was out of compassion, maybe having another mage around just in case was good enough to ward off the chills, but leaving him there didn't sit well with him for some reason. "Are you coming or are you staying?" He asked, his voice a little lower. "I don't think heading to the noble dorms right now is a good idea. If you don't want to stay here alone, you can come to my dorm." Maxie would enjoy the new company, at least, and if he couldn't quirk up the courage to go anywhere, he could always crash on the couch or something.

---

Ready to turn it in for the night with @Scribe of Thoth and @Trainerblue192, though he knew this was BULLSHIT.

[Trainerblue192]

---

---

---

---

Interacting with: @Scribe of Thoth@Hero@Obscene Symphony

Salem stood there, fist shaking in anger at what had just transpired. This was the second time that he had been manipulated by the royals using a mage as a tool. The more he was surrounded by these royals the more he began to understand how Aaron acted. How he would survive this break surrounded by them? If it was for the strong emotion of anger and betrayal running through him he would have sighed at the thought of having to spend more time around them. Unfortunately for him, strong emotions have the tendency to affect ones magic, it's more so with primary affinities, but this may have been an exception. As he nodded towards him. "I will definitely not be staying. I appreciate the offer and would be more than delighted to take you up on that. Would you mind if I invited someone else there as well? I need to speak to someone if possible." He spoke through gritted teeth, trying to remain calm as his tattoos began to glow faintly. The roots in his mask crept further and further into the mask, small cracks beginning to form in the porcelain on the surface.

[Scribe of Thoth]

---

Max's head snapped to the 'princess' as she seemed to teleport away, then outright popped the fork out of his sleeve when her tone changed. If that wasn't Ryner, who the fuck was it? Apparently one of her loyalists, but if so; why the dishonesty? He didn't like this. As the illusion faded, Max flicked his wrist with a frustrated snarl, sending the fork flying to slice through the air where Ryner had 'stood' moments prior before it looped back around and clattered uselessly to the floor. The rest of the metal objects in the room rattled in tune with the toss, but didn't shift from their positions outright.

Stupid fucking Noilas, he knew this wasn't safe; he knew it! Granted, he wasn't expecting this level of magical bullshit, but he'd be prepared next time, and with more than a fucking salad fork too.

"I don't think heading to the noble dorms right now is a good idea. If you don't want to stay here alone, you can come to my dorm."

He can fucking what?!

"I will definitely not be staying. I appreciate the offer and would be more than delighted to take you up on that. Would you mind if I invited someone else there as well? I need to speak to someone if possible."

Who the fuck was he inviting? That pale girl? His whole extended family? The Retriever? This was getting out of hand, now there were two of them.

"Eric, what the fuck are you doing?" Max suddenly exploded, not even bothering to hide the fact that he was seething at this point, "First of all, I don't wanna sit in a room with Mister Makeout Session over there and whatever used goods he brings over to suck face with next," He pointed accusingly at Salem, "Secondly, Nox is apparently on the fucking warpath for us - if that wasn't a fucking lie too - so what happens if she just kicks the door down?! You gonna hide behind your mountain of hair products?"

At the end of his tirade, Max let out an aggravated groan as the metal in the room vibrated briefly again. Every fiber of his being was screaming at him to trash the place, but he knew it wouldn't do him any good. He wasn't even mad at Eris, or even Salem really, but it wasn't like he could take it out on whoever the fuck was playing mind games with them earlier. Or maybe he'd get lucky and Ryner's pet illusionist was still listening in, at least it'd make him feel a bit more vindicated.

---

@Hero@Trainerblue192@Achronum

[WeepingLiberty]

Amaris Marivaldi

_{Mentions: Smol Dennis @Achronum}

Stepping up to their destination at last, Amaris was able to sigh a silent breath of relief. While she hadn’t expected anything to come jumping out at them from the dark, the knowledge the pair carried with them was a heavy one. Somehow, having returned unhindered by neither criminal nor guard made the situation just a bit easier for her to handle. The countess smiled warmly at the mage as he separated from her and bowed his farewells.

“I’m sorry the night had to end the way that it did, but I had a wonderful time as well. I appreciate the opportunity.” She replied with a curtsy just the slightest bit deeper than when she had met the boy back at the dance hall. At this point she couldn’t yet say that she completely trusted the boy but he was sweet and hopeful; hopeful that perhaps the Revel wouldn’t be the only night she would be allowed the comfort of casual socialization.

“Do you think uh maybe we could hang out again?” The mage asked her lightly. The countess nodded her head, maintaining her warm visage despite the eyes burning holes into her from beyond.

“I don’t know about your friend there, but I would certainly enjoy that.” Amaris shifted her attention from Dennis to the stiffly poised girl awaiting the boy’s return. Lifting her right arm, she offered a polite wave with little expectation of it affecting the girl’s apparent mood.

“You shouldn’t keep them waiting. I’ll see you around, ok?” With a final curtsy, Amaris left Dennis to the care of his friends so that she could return to her own dorm. She doubted even the nobles would be given free passes for breaking the mandated curfew considering the circumstances, and the last thing she wanted to be dealing with was an angry Nox for failing to comply with official orders… again.

The countess walked swiftly and with purpose, quickly exiting the circuit of general dorms and setting course for the noble’s.

[Hero]

---

---

Cool beans, Flower Boy accepted the invitation. The vague idea of the mage owing him crossed his mind, but honestly, he just wanted to get the hell out of there. The kid looked like he was going to yell or cry or some other shit, which fine, whatever, Eris would just retire to his room and let the kid weep into one of the couch pillows. They could work out a thanks or deal or payback tomorrow, all Eris wanted to do was run a hot bath and then sleep off the mindfuck that had just happened. He wasn't a huge fan of being played and would much rather just forget the entire night happened.

Of course, where he expected maybe a smartass remark or a roll of the eyes from Wells, instead the kid exploded. He didn't know the guy could talk so much, lashing out at the two of them. Whatever patience Eris had clung to seemed to run out by the time Max finished, though he didn't miss the metallic shaking. Anastasia have mercy, he couldn't believe the kid lost his composure. Now he had to look after two children. Dragging along the mage with a thumb in his mouth and now dealing with this little tantrum lost its appeal fast, Eris seemingly searching the ceiling for a few seconds as he deliberated how to handle this.

When he finally looked back down at Max, he decided to be as upfront as possible. "Good thing this isn't about what you want," He snapped. "Get your shit together, we're going back to the dorm and you can cry in the shower or mope in your bedroom, you don't even have to look at anyone else for the rest of the night so fucking relax."

He wasn't going to give either one of them the chance to protest, his cape billowing behind him as he strode to the door. "Invite whoever you want so long as they're gone by the time tomorrow comes. Let's go, now," He barked at the pair.

---

Ready to turn it in for the night with @Scribe of Thoth and @Trainerblue192, though he's over this BULLSHIT.

[ReusableSword]

Victor Astorio

Victor continued with his defensive posture and side stepped her advances all for the sake of buying time. He knew help had finally arrived when the ambiance of sirens and flashing lights stopped and the utter silence that came with it encroached on the two. Still, just before this girl was going to try to strike him again he heard a familiar voice.

“Valentina.”

The distraction was exactly what he was waiting for. The princess had her entire attention allowing him to step closer to Ryner to see how things played out and turned off the phone in his pocket. Slowly drawing the thick but short knife he had concealed and waited, he could tell by the way she was talking that she was going to leave this to him, and he could barely wait. All he needed was her approval for him to continue, it wasn’t long before he had it and the woman lunged at her with a knife of her own.

Normally Victor would draw out a fight like this but not this time. This Valentina had killed some of his classmates and carelessly killing mages pissed him off. If only Ryner hadn’t told him to make it quick. At least this one was enraged and not thinking maybe if she was she would have seen the flash of silver from metal glinting in the moon light in front of her, she would have felt him grab her leg and spin her around. With a second flash of silver she hit the side of another A/C unit.

He figured that in her near blood drunk and rage induced stupor that it would take the girl a few moments to realize what just happened. The first thing she might notice would be the fact that victor was still holding something in his hand, the glint of sharpened steel in the fading moon light tinged with a dark red stain that dripped to the floor. The second, was that he was holding something large in his other hand. Something that once belonged to her. Her entire right leg dangled from his hand, tendons cut with precision and practice. Then the last thing she could notice, was a hand holding a blade at his feet.

“Dismemberment is an acceptable form of capture and I do enjoy picking apart my prey.” Victor dropped her leg then picked up her knife. She began to say something or just to scream again, he will never know. As with the simple flick of his wrist, her knife impaled through her throat. “I think we have heard enough out of you today.” The sadistic side of victor was starting to show through now.

Valentina in an act of pure rage and desperation drew the blade from her through and with her remaining good limbs lunged at him with strength and furry. Yet she was still sloppy. Victor easily side stepped her thrust and in two more strikes cut off her arm at the elbow and her leg at the knee. She was but a torso with a few stumps now, in time she could regenerate, but he wasn’t going to let that happen.

“Usually I would draw a fight like this out, but she did tell me to hurry.” The girl before him still wiggled and squirmed. “My position within the council does grant me some discretion when it comes to my targets. If they are too dangerous to be left alive, I can choose to be their executioner.” He paused for a moment as he kicked her onto her back placing his boot on her chest. “Doesn’t happen very often but it can happen.” He took a moment to look to the sky and over towards were Ryner had left and sighed.

“You already showed us that you are too dangerous to be left alive. Not only for what damage you can cause against the crown, but the council as well. For that reason as well as many others I will carry out your sentence right here and right now.” He was well aware that this part wasn’t necessary or true, but he didn’t get to do it that often and always liked doing it. That and if his memories were ever looked at he had this to at least show that he tried.

“You stand accused of murder, assault, heresy, and treason. How do you plead?” the look in her eyes was all he needed to carry on, knowing full well he destroyed her vocal cords. “By the power given to me by the Crown and the council. I, Count Victor Strigois Asterio, Council headhunter holding the rank of operative, sentence you to true death by dismemberment and sunlight.” Kneeling down he placed one knee on her chest and the other on her head forcing her mouth open with one hand the large vampire took his knife and began to cut her fangs out.

“Born of blood.” Victor spoke as he tossed her fangs aside, it was an old Asterio punishment for those that disgraced the family or crown. With his good arm he began to dig his hand into her rib cage slowly breaking through cartilage and old bones. “Risen from ash.” He could feel her shriveled heart now a pool of dark and bright colors of blood surrounded them. “This is your end.” He gripped his strong hand around her heart and looked into her eyes, “you will be dust.” Ripping pulling and tearing, blood spewed from her with a gargled scream. Her heart torn out of her and crushed in the Asterio’s hand.

His one final act against her to make sure she wasn’t getting up was decapitation. The scene on top of that roof top was now one of gore and death. Pieces of vampire and pools of old and new blood scattered. There was nothing more for victor to do now, he picked up her blade and left in the same direction Ryner went. He figured at the very least he should talk to her before heading home. He could only hope that his mage wasn’t involved in this mess as well.

[Trainerblue192]

---

---

---

---

Interacting with: @Scribe of Thoth@Hero@Obscene Symphony

Tonight was certainly full of surprises, most notably having to agree with Aaron and now having to side with Max. He had a point as to the potential for Nox coming towards his dorm as well, it wouldnt be much safer than Salems. Honestly, it might be better if Salem asked Victor to stand guard during the night as he was probably the only vampire brutish enough to stand up to Nox, let alone take her in a fight. His eyes darted between the pair as tensions rose and Eris quickly displayed his aura of Master and Mage. He'd been fairly coy with Max up until now, seemingly tolerating the metal mages stubbornness and unwillingness to bend, but in just a moment he showed that he was like most other Vampires. When things didn't turn out their way, they showed dominance over their mage in order to take back the reigns and show who is truly in control.

Salem had seen this with his families own Vampires once or twice. It was always a frightening display that caused the room to fall silent and air to still. All friendly pretenses melted away and the kind smiles turned to still, frigid, pursed lips. For a split second Eris embodied that same dominance, and it brought Salem back to childhood, seeing a ghost of his vampires in the face of Eris. After a few seconds of silence he coughed to break it as he pulled out his phone. "Right. I'll make sure to stay around back so as to not draw attention, and so that I dont bother you sir." He sent a quick message to Aaron as he began to make his way down the dark tunnel.

"Hey, sorry it took so long to respond. It's been a...crazy night to say the least. I can't speak over message but meet me at Eris's and we can talk there. Don't tell anyone where I am, or that you've spoken to me, and try not to be seen by anyone. I'll explain it all when you get here."

[Achronum]

[Bert Macklin]

_{Dates: September 21st - October 7th}

September 21st: Ben and Eris

Another First Impression

The Academy grounds were lovingly well kept. The attention to detail was exquisite and made for a welcome distraction as Ben roamed the area. Nithrexal, Algeria. Both terms that he had yet to properly understand. The latter was what he currently had Geoffrey looking into but finding the former was squarely on his own shoulders. He couldn’t say whether or not he knew what he was looking for, but unfortunately, the break meant that he would have very little to report. Perhaps it had been too optimistic to believe he could have garnered something in the matter of a few days, and maybe his father would be reasonable for once, but that may have been too much to ask for.

The Revel had been a good time to map out the area—at the very least having an accurate representation of what the grounds were like now would help to compare it to the plans his father had given him. That said, he did like watching the other students have fun. While he wasn’t used to seeing mages freely roam, he did find it endearing whenever friends were clearly having fun with one another. He truly had been born into the wrong position, wanting nothing more than to join them, but he wouldn’t want to disturb or make things uncomfortable.

He strolled past a crowd of gossiping vampires, pausing as he thought he heard a familiar name. Once the crowd dispersed, only a blond vampire remained. Ah, yes, he had heard a rumor that the actor had decided to grace the school with his presence. He had actually seen The Blood War more than a few times; it was Eleanore’s favorite film. That said, he knew very little of the entertainment industry and even less about the actual actor, except for the name and face.

The blond walked his way, staring at him. It took longer than it should have for Ben to notice he was actually walking right up to him. “Hello,” He greeted him.

Eris approached the unrecognized vampire. After everything that had happened the night before, he was a little more paranoid than usual, especially since he was just staring at him. At least he had a pretty face, but he looked a little young to be here. Barely a century old was his guess.

“Hello indeed!” Eris replied, putting a hand on his hip. “I don’t believe we’ve met.”

Ben paused, apparently waiting for an introduction that never came. That was rude, but he supposed that he should have probably introduced himself first. He reached out for a handshake. “Count Benjamin Pierce Eve, a pleasure,” He said.

Eve? What? He thought he had already schmoozed with the lower leveled nobles. Pierce, too, why did that sound familiar? Eris slowly took his hand, trying to rack his brain until it hit him: no way, another Eve?! No! What the hell happened? His jaw was hanging a little bit as he tried not to laugh, but he did put a little more energy into the handshake.

“A pleasure indeed, who knew the Eves had such a cute little vampire in their ranks?” He couldn’t resist the comment, chuckling as he gave the count a quick up and down look.

Ben took back what he said before; the lack of introduction wasn’t rude, this was rude. He didn’t miss the condescending tone, the look, or the comment. Yes, he was likely younger than most of his peers, but age meant little in lieu of accomplishments, and he was certain he had done more than make movies and pose for magazines. Why had he been expecting more from this actor?

“That is correct, I am the new representative of the house,” He said. “Judging from your tone, I assume you had some business with the previous representative?”

“No, no...I’m just surprised that the noble house has chosen to swap out vampires so quick in succession,” Eris admitted. “Lucky you, getting to join in on the fun, right?”

He wasn’t sure if that was a compliment or more condescension, but he wasn’t sure he wanted to stick around to find out. Normally, he believed in taking the high ground and being the bigger person, but he would like nothing more than to knock the man down a peg. At the very least it would let him know he was not someone to be trifled with so nilly-willy.

“Lucky me indeed. It isn’t every day that I get the opportunity to meet the esteemed Eric Samael,” He said quite plainly with a smile.

Eris laughed, crossing his arms as he wondered how sheltered the guy had to be to get his name wrong. At least, that was his first assumption, until he realized he was smiling. Okay, he wanted to see if he could get under his skin. Fortunately, Eris had heard Eric as a mistake so many times that he already had the name patented, so it didn’t bother him.

“Eris. It’s Eris,” He corrected him. “And yes, you are lucky, I’m so glad you realize it.”

Ben wondered how a misnaming could possibly upset the actor. He couldn’t possibly be the first person to misname him. Maybe he had a fragile ego, or perhaps he didn’t appreciate the retaliation. Whatever the case, it was a small victory that he would take. “My sincerest apologies, Eris,” Ben said. “You must understand, I am still getting to know the student body and have many people to meet.”

This was some really bad passive aggressive insulting right now. At least, Eris thought that was what it was. That, or he was that dumb. But if it was an insult, he couldn’t exactly let him get away with that.

“Oh? Think you’ll last longer than the countess?” Eris asked, grimacing. “Well, you’re better to look at, so I really hope you do.”

Now Ben felt that Eris was trying to get in his pants. If so, he was doing a terrible job at it. Seduction should leave the target feeling wanted, not belittled. He would have to be on the lookout for any future interactions with this one for certain, but if he was this bad at seduction, then he shouldn’t need to worry about him getting too close.

“I have no plans on leaving, rest assured,” Ben said. “If you’ll excuse me, I’d like to continue to explore the campus.”

Eris tried not to laugh at that, stuffing his hands in his pockets. “Last longer than a month and I’ll believe that,” He said, walking past him. “Good night, Count Eve.”

Sweet honey iced tea, the stereotype that all entertainment actors were terrible is something that should not be practiced, but Eris was determined to fall in line with it. Ben was much too happy to be relieved of his presence and would continue his walk as if nothing had happened. If he was lucky, he would successfully avoid the irritable man for the next four years and would not have to interact with him very much.

September 23rd

Attending the academy for less than a handful of days and then immediately returning home was a little jarring, but the Revel had been a treat to enjoy nonetheless. The decision to use the day of freedom to familiarize himself with the grounds was a done deal, a majority of his time spent theorizing on how to go forward. Ben didn’t get the chance to introduce himself to all the nobles just yet, making a note to do so once classes resumed. At the very least, he managed to get a summarized version from his mage with some surprising details.

For one, the Sinnenodel count was the teacher’s aide for their Treaty Law class. Lilie was on good terms with the mage, Aaron Starag, but had little to say about Varis Sinnenodel other than his intimidating presence. How the redhead managed to be so when he barely stood above her was beyond him, but he chalked it up to a complaint on his class ruining her chances at perfect grades; apparently, nothing she wrote was worthy. Ben would have been surprised if the opposite was true, but he wasn’t entirely concerned with the heir. Not yet, at least.

As for the Astorio count, he had a surprising side to him. Ben was aware he was of a minor branch, but didn’t seem to share the same distaste the rest of his family had. Lilie assured him that he was kind, and aside from an incident in the arena that she sheepishly tried to backtrack on, he was supportive of her abilities. And apparently to the point of training her alongside his own mage. Lilie sang his mage’s praises as well; Salem Spellman was a dear friend, and one she often communicated with via phone.

The Marivaldi countess was not someone Lilie was familiar with, because apparently any attempt at interacting resulted in the mage running away. How she could insist that an Astorio meant no harm but actively avoided a Marivaldi had boggled his mind for longer than he wanted to admit. She excitedly spoke of the mage (a now common thread he noticed), who was her partner for affinity exercises. Ben supposed he would have to meet the countess in person and see if either she had unintentionally spooked his mage or if her worries were for naught.

The only other vampire of interest was the actor attending, whose name was practically screamed wherever he went. The student body had yet to tire of him, and from what Ben himself witnessed, the actor was all too happy to oblige. He vaguely remembered his name coming from Duchess Anita upon mention of his mother, another popular socialite. He seemed friendly enough, but his polar opposite came with the mage assigned to him. Or bought, according to a few rumors he heard. His name was Maxwell Alderman, but Lilie noted that she felt that he didn’t like her much. Ben sympathized with him; being stuck with such a figure must have been cumbersome.

In short, he would need to add ‘information gathering’ to his mage’s repertoire.

The night was nearly done when Benjamin decided to step into the training grounds, catching the end of Noah’s lessons. His swordsmanship left little to be desired, even in the face of a much more experienced opponent. Look at him go. Ben swelled with pride as he watched, deciding to take out his phone to take a picture. At the sound of the shutter, the pair came to a stop, much to his disappointment. After a moment of deliberation, Noah was dismissed, and he came running to Ben.

“Hello!” He greeted him as he caught his breath.

“It’s been so long since we’ve last seen each other, hasn’t it?” Ben joked as he motioned for Noah to follow.

The pair began to walk to the Luscin wing of the servants’ quarters as they quickly caught up. Ben was too used to always being around the growing young man, and while their time apart was brief, it was still nice to see everyone carry on in his absence. He was more than happy to let Noah chat his ear off, his enthusiasm infectious. In all honesty he was relieved; Noah’s immense disappointment had worried him for some time, but fortunately he put himself completely into his studies and training. He was particularly looking forward to his Awakening in January, already taking suggestions from his father to give him a headstart on his magical training.

Said father was sitting at his desk when the pair arrived, briefly looking up when Noah closed the door. The papers in his hand were put away neatly, hands folded as he leaned back in his seat. “Welcome back,” Geoffrey greeted the pair before looking at his son. “Why don’t you go get cleaned up, there’s a few things I need to discuss with our liege.”

Noah straightened up a touch as he was addressed. “With all due respect, Father, I humbly request to be informed as well,” He stated. “I believe as part of my training that I should start getting a feel for anything discussed with our count.”

He’s wising up, Ben thought as he had to suppress a snicker. That said, if it was something that could be freely discussed, he was certain Geoffrey wouldn’t have made the suggestion in the first place. He turned to the younger Luscin, gesturing to the door. “Be quick, then you can return to the conversation,” He suggested kindly.

“...yes, sir,” It was reluctant but did Noah exited the room with a noticeable hurry.

Geoffrey stood from his seat as soon as the door was closed. He placed his hands behind his back as he sighed. “I understand that he wants to be included, but I genuinely feel he should focus on his studies more. Once he awakens, I’m certain his schedule will be filled with lessons,” He explained.

“His eagerness is admirable,” Ben replied. “He wants to be an adult already. I’m sure you can sympathize.”

There was the tiniest hint of a smirk on Geoffrey’s lips as he walked around the desk. It disappeared once he stood next to his charge. “I suppose it also has to do with a recent message from Countess Halladius. She has suggested that a connection between mages could be beneficial,” He stated as he produced a letter.

Ben did not have to read it to know what it meant. “A proposal before Noah awakens is quite bold. But I am not interested in a countess that has been seeking to take my mother’s place at my father’s side, less so if she believes I am naive enough to let her use me so obviously. Write back that it is under consideration to keep the barrage of follow ups from coming,” He dismissed it entirely. “By your remark, I can safely assume your son is aware.”

“He is. I apologize,” Geoffrey bowed his head. As he straightened, Ben noticed that there was the slightest hint of exasperation playing on the corners of his eyes. They must have had the same thought considering they had went through this before some decades ago with Geoffrey himself. But where Geoffrey had nothing but disdain for the process, Noah likely had a quiet excitement. His heartbreaker tendencies were infamous among the servants, and while Ben wanted to think that the possibility of having to settle down would erase that aspect, the opposite was likely to happen.

However, discussing Noah’s behavior without him present would get them nowhere. Instead Ben decided he would ask, “And what of your search?”

Geoffrey would already know what he meant by that. “The company behind the transportation is called Emerald Sun, operating mainly in Astorio and Noilan territories,” He informed him. “There is a minimal amount that does operate in Sinnenodel territories, however, neither the Marivaldis nor the Eves have granted them license to operate. One independant duke by the name of Horvath has granted them permits through his territory as well.”

Ben did not recognize the company nor the duke. Delving into unfamiliar territory was always a risk, but at the very least Geoffrey’s search was fruitful. Noilan and Astorio dominated deliveries did not bode well for him, but he couldn’t come to a decisive conclusion just yet. It would technically make sense for one of them to have obsidian, but why illegally? He supposed the easiest path was to confront the sole duke directly, but it felt too obvious. Not to mention it could very well be another red herring. His main concern also manifested in a lack of any hard evidence, or at least having little in the form of a possible bribe.

“Interesting,” Ben finally uttered a response. “We will need to come up with a plan going forward.”

“My personal suggestion would be to see if we could get in touch with either the company or the duke,” Geoffrey said. “But as always, I am at your command.”

Either choice was valid. He would need to carefully weigh both options. “Carefully see what information you can get on the company and the duke. Then we can see where to go from there,” He made the decision with confidence.

Geoffrey gave Ben a nod of assurance before his eyes went to the door. “Understood,” He replied. “And Eleanore?”

“Her own search has been fruitful,” Ben was pleased to inform him. “I’ve received updates sooner than expected.” It was relieving for the both of them, but the truth was that this search would likely take months if not years. Were it not for her enthusiasm, Ben would worry, but he had full confidence in his mage.

Their discussion wrapped up in time, Noah’s return marking the end. The desire to become an adult was frighteningly common in mortals, the rush to leave their adolescence behind disheartening. Ben hoped he would find the time to sit Noah down and see what the root of the issue was, but perhaps that was something better left to father and son. For now, he would simply enjoy the time he had with the two and strive for improvement on all fronts—he would seize his future with his own hands.

[Achronum]

"We interrupt your program for an emergency broadcast. One week ago, the terrorist group known as the Red Hand launched an unprecedented attack against the students of the Noila Academy. The terrorists kidnapped Valentina Ricci, once an anti-treaty activist and known isolationist, and forced her to frenzy hours before releasing her into a campus of Reveling students. While the threat was contained quickly, six students suffered critical injuries before the vampire was apprehended: fourth year Andres Santiago, fourth year Sofia Andrich, third year Elijah White, second year Mallore Dalish, second year Isabella Smith, and first year Cassandra Roth."

As their names were called, a photo of each student flickered across the screen.

“All students were transferred to intensive care immediately following the attacks and while there has still been no official word on their condition current condition, most are expected to make a full recovery in the next few years. The students and their families have been taken into protective custody until Princess Nox confirms that these students were not selected intentionally. We go live now to the steps of the Grand Citadel where the Council and Princess Ryner have gathered to release an official statement."

---

The Grand Citadel loomed above the gathered reporters, the Council standing at the top of the steps looking grim. Queen Anastasia stood directly in the center, Lady Sinnenodel's proxy and Lord Astorio on the left and Lord Eve and Lord Marivaldi on her right. Princess Ryner stood at the base of the steps, the Royal Guard separating her from the crowd of reporters murmuring among themselves. The Princess held her hand up for silence and the murmuring stopped.

"Tonight, I stand here to take responsibility for a brutal and horrific attack against the innocent. In an unprecedented move, the rogue mage group known as the Red Hand tortured a vampire into animalistic instinct and directed her at a campus of unprepared and unaware mages. Thanks to the actions of Victor Astorio, Eris Samael, and countless other students, the intrusion came to the attention of both campus security and the Royal Guard who quickly and efficiently secured the campus and ended any further threats to the students. I am eternally grateful to those who stood up against this cowardly, unjust attack."

"But as quickly as the threat was subdued, six students still suffered injuries. Even one would have been too many but six students under my protection breaks my heart." Ryner paused a moment as her calm and determined demeanor fell, showing the frustration and grief. It took her a moment to blink away the tears prickling at the corner of her eyes but she got herself back under control. "We stand in our grief with the families of these students. This attack has not only hurt their child but has taken their sense of safety and peace of mind. Yhee Council has provided them with a secure location to stay together for the duration of their child's recovery but that is a far cry from the stability the families had before this. As the person who was responsible for protecting everything they've lost this past week, I beg both their and the peoples' forgiveness."

"But I will not cower in the face of my failures. If anything, my resolve has never been stronger. Never will such an atrocity occur again so long as I still walk under the starry sky. But, I do not expect you to believe me after my incompetence led to such a disaster. In the words of a dear colleague, promises are little more than the empty shell of actions. This past week, I’ve spent evenight, midnight, and morn securing additional security measures for the Noila Academy. Princess Nox is currently occupied leading the investigation but she has graciously given one of her top mages leave to retrain the campus security, review and bolster existing wards, and develop security policy that will set the standard for all mage colleges across the realm. I am personally funding these improvements both here and at other colleges; I will not rely on public funds to cover my shortcomings.” Ryner spoke with determination, making eye contact with the cameras. “Furthermore, I have decided to develop a community outreach program to help reduce the ease with which this group can recruit. I will not be doing this alone. Many of the realm’s top empaths will be assisting, including Isadora Starag and her partner Count Alder Noila. I know nothing I can do will fix what has already happened but I can ensure this will never happen again.”

[Hero]

_{Dates: September 21st - October 7th}

9/22: Lilie and Ben

As the last of the workers gave their completed report, Ben thanked them once again before dismissing them. Their hard work had not gone unnoticed, and they had everything set up with time to spare. Part of his plan had been to switch the two rooms to give Lilie the bigger bathroom, as he genuinely felt he had no need for it, and offered to switch the rooms and personalize it with a new bedspread. The disastrous first impression had left lingering doubts everywhere and it simply wouldn't do; if Miss Dionne was to be one of his mages, he needed a positive, beneficial relationship. Of course, he had hoped his little surprise would be that way. After laying down some rules, she had expressly pointed out that she didn’t have a wardrobe to his specifications, and so he took the liberty of replacing it. Everything she had owned was respectfully packed and sent away, her closet filled with the proper luxuries a young lady deserved. He had no doubt in his mind it was the least he could do, enlisting a few trusted servants for a little help, but overall, he had to admit he was proud of himself.

That said, there had been the tiniest bump in the road after he had stumbled upon a notebook in her nightstand’s drawer. Journals and diaries were things he had only heard of, and he would be lying if he said he wasn't at least a little curious about it. He understood it was personal, a line that shouldn't be crossed, but he had caved in a moment of weakness. Fortunately for him, his mage was ever the organizer, neatly printing dates on each page; for him, there really was only one date he wanted to know. And perhaps he did read more in hopes of understanding her. He read what he wanted and immediately placed it where it belonged, as if it would cancel out the injustice. But what she didn’t know wouldn’t harm her.

The bedroom was set up with everything in its place. Now the room looked like someone was actually living there as opposed to a temporary stay. Ben smiled to himself as he patted down the bedspread, admiring the pattern. Performing a final check in the closet, he nodded to himself in approval of the much more modest wardrobe. He had complete confidence in Eleanore and only hoped that his gesture of goodwill would suffice to mend their relationship. Or at least it could take them a step in the right direction. His words to the princess would be meaningless if he couldn’t get his own mage to at least tolerate him. Was it too much to hope that this would end in a genuine friendship?

The knock on their door had Ben genuinely excited, the vampire almost running to the door. He made sure to catch himself before he would open the door, but he couldn’t quite hide his eagerness.

Stepping into the dorm, Lilie couldn’t help but notice the over eager vampire. Well, at least he was in a good mood, even if that left her a little uneasy. Or he was planning something, because he wouldn’t stop staring at her. He was like a little kid at a candy shop!

Dropping her backpack onto the kitchen counter, she took in a breath as she eyed him. “Uh...hi.” She greeted him. “What’s up?”

Ben cleared his throat in an attempt to quell his excitement, but truly, he couldn’t help himself. Instead, he would gesture to her new room, motioning for her to follow as he quickly took the lead. He opened the door to the bedroom, stepping in after she did as he patted the bed.

“I took the liberty of setting it up,” He said as he stepped backwards towards the closet as he placed his hand on the handle. “After our previous conversation, I realized that you were right.”

Lilie’s eyebrows shot up as she looked from the bed to Ben. He was agreeing with her? What? Was this a trick? Her jaw dropped as she stared at him. “You did?” She asked in disbelief.

“I do,” Ben repeated himself with a nod. “It is completely unfair to assume that you would comply with such little resources at hand. As my mage, it is within my duty to prepare you for the life of nobility; I realized your initial response was born of frustration and a lack of understanding, to which I sincerely apologize. You will find that I have taken extra steps in addition to an apology.”

He turned to the closet, brandishing the door open with a theatrical flourish that the Samael would have scoffed at. He proudly showed off the entirety of the closet, entering. “Everything in this closet was chosen to both comply with my rules and stick to a style for a blossoming young lady,” He seemed proud as he spoke. “I noticed your preference for heels and picked out admissible ones, though I did have a great deal of long distance assistance from one of my mages to ensure that everything chosen was both appropriate and fashionable.”

Lilie didn’t get a chance to ask why Ben was in her closet before he launched into a confusing sort of explanation. Yeah, okay, it was nice to see he listened to one of her points, but she was distracted by the sheer amount of clothes hanging. Before, she couldn’t even fill half, now it was completely full! The rack of shoes was surprising, too, and apparently even each drawer had something.

She was staring at the shoes when she noticed that her sneakers weren’t there. Actually, neither were the heels she had used for the opening ceremony. Or...any of her old ones. Her head snapped up to the hanging shirts and dresses, and just by looking, she didn’t recognize any of them, either. Her eyes widened, and she started pulling out the drawers and checking them. Everything was brand new, a much better quality than anything she could have ever dreamed of owning, but none of it was hers--she didn't see anything that had previously belonged to her.

“Where’s my stuff?” She asked as she kept checking, assuming that maybe her older things had been put at the bottom or maybe pushed behind everything.

The lack of reaction was concerning, but Ben stayed optimistic, simply watching Lilie. Her question was a little odd, but he decided that she was worried he had gotten rid of everything. “Your old belongings are in storage as I didn’t have your old address,” He kindly explained as he walked around her. “If you’ll check the bathroom, I made sure to replace everything with top-of-the-line products as well.”

Lilie froze--what did he just say? Storage? What storage? The dorms didn’t have any storage! And what did he mean replace?! She got up so fast that she almost made herself dizzy, walking right into the bathroom. Sure enough, all her old skincare products were gone, her makeup was gone, and when she checked the shower, even her haircare stuff was gone! Everything was different and new and not anything like what she used to have. Walking back to the room, Lilie noticed that her weapon and its case was missing too--she usually kept it at the foot of her bed. “Where’s Zantedeschia?” She asked, slightly panicking.

“I’ve sent it for some minor maintenance,” He kindly explained. “Nothing like a good polish to get it as good as new.”

She was speechless, trying hard to say something, anything. She looked at Ben briefly as she tried to grasp what had happened, her head a whirlwind of emotion as she tried to sort things out. "This...this is not okay,” She managed to stutter that much out, shaking her head as she finally got herself together.

Just as he couldn’t hide his excitement, he couldn’t hide his disappointment (and confusion) at her reaction. She must have misunderstood him, he had no right over anything that wasn’t his and could not just throw out her belongings so carelessly. Ben shook his head as he decided to properly explain himself.

“I didn’t get rid of anything,” He assured her. “Anything that was here previously that didn’t pertain to any of the rules was packed and sent to an Eve storage facility.” This wasn’t the reaction he had been hoping for at all. She also seemed to be missing the point, but he could see she was upset. “Your personal belongings are still in their places, I assure you. I didn’t mean to upset you.”

Lilie wasn’t happy, and she had every intention to make that crystal clear. “I don’t understand why you did this...just because they weren’t good enough for you doesn’t mean you have the right,” She was probably harsher than she meant to be, but she didn’t have any patience for this guy anymore. “I'm not comfortable with any of this.”

“What?” The response was blurted out with Ben entirely confused with everything Lilie said. “I was doing you a favor.”

“You were doing me a favor?” Lilie slowly repeated his words in disbelief. How dare he be so condescending, who did he think he was?! “You were doing me a favor?! Are you serious? I didn't ask for this! This is--This isn’t a favor!”

“Of course it’s a favor,” Goodness, he was never going to understand this child. “You said I was the one with the problem. I resolved the problem.”

“That’s not the point!” Lilie tried to point out, frustrated. “The point is that you don’t have any right coming into my room and messing with my things!”

She stomped towards the closet, her arms waving around wildly as she gestured to it. “You didn’t just mess with them either, you went through everything I had! That’s so wrong and gross and--so disrespectful!” She exclaimed. “You can't just go around doing whatever you want!”

Ben pinched the bridge of his nose as he let Lilie yell, trying to think of the proper way to correct her. She was entirely in the wrong, but he felt that saying that would only worsen the situation. They seemed to disagree on the topic of disrespect, but obviously saying that would also further aggravate her. Honestly, at this point there was little he could do or say that wouldn’t cause her to continue to lash out at him. He would be lying if he said he wasn’t insulted, his hopes long shattered and whisked away by the wind.

Choosing to at least try to go the gentler route, he decided that a proper explanation was due, even if he was well aware of the consequences. “Actually, Miss Dionne, I do have the right if I feel that your choices or garb could endanger you in any way,” He stated slowly. “I understand you come from a background with few rules and many liberties, but that simply isn’t the case anymore. You are a mage of the noble house of Eve, and you serve me. Your wardrobe was inappropriate and I took measures to correct it, plain and simple.”

“That being said, I will reiterate that nothing of yours is gone. If you want everything back, I will send for it,” Ben was weary as he spoke, his disappointment paramount.

Lilie huffed, uncrossing her arms as she glared at Ben. ‘Endanger’ he says! He was so full of it! “You’re not getting it,” She said. “You can’t do that! Why do you think you can just do what you want and then act surprised when I get mad? What happened to us being a ‘team’ and all that other stuff?”

“We are a team as vampire and mage, as master and servant,” Ben stated pointedly. “As much as it pains me to admit it, you and I are not equals, Miss Dionne. I can do ‘that’ and ‘this’ as I please, though I would much rather not exercise it, that is my right.” Her cluelessness was worse than he had imagined, he would have to focus on properly educating her sooner than later, lest she get eaten alive at his house.

Narrowing her eyes, the one thing Lilie was glad for was that at least Ben showed her where they stood. She couldn’t even begin to describe the hypocrisy or how he had already went back on his word about them acting like a team. Raising her chin, Lilie almost went off again, but decided it wasn’t worth it. Instead, she spun on her heel and went straight to her nightstand. She grabbed her diary and backpack before he would send that away, too, slamming the door on her way out as hard as she could.

Ben was glad she was gone as it liberated his groan. Why, oh why had Her Highness paired him with such a clueless young girl? It must have been a test of patience. He was so sure this was going to be a step in the right direction. How wrong he was.

---

Lilie had no idea she could get so steamed.

The absolute nerve of that jerk had riled her up to no end, and the more she thought about it, the madder she got. She didn’t acknowledge anyone as she stomped to the pagoda, making a beeline for the closest open table. Practically throwing herself in her seat, she dropped her backpack as she whipped out her phone. Despite feeling like she was going to explode, she needed to vent, and she knew just the person she wanted to hear her out.

Meanwhile, the dining hall had filled up with students for dinner, a low, welcoming buzz of conversation and clinking silverware filling the hall as students settled in with their friend groups and caught up; though the main topic on everyone’s lips was, of course, the suspicious events of the recent Revel. Opting to avoid the ever-churning rumour mill—and not having much other choice, given his reputation—Aaron chose a table to himself near the wall, as far as he could get from plain view. Varis’ temporary wardrobe adjustment surely wasn’t going to help his reputation, and of course there was no small amount of embarrassment attached as well; he felt cold and indecent sitting there in just an undershirt and slacks. Ironically, his best hope was that anyone looking his way would assume he simply hadn’t bothered changing after a workout session or something, rather than thinking he was some weirdo who got his kicks by going around campus half-dressed. He kept his eyes on his food and his journal as he ate, doing his best to ignore any weird looks thrown his way, and was in the middle of his meal when his phone and watch buzzed with Lilie’s pattern.

> Can you come to the picnic area in the woods? I really need to ask you something

Aaron peered quizzically at the message, re-reading it a few times and wondering what it was about. What was so important that she had to ask him in person rather than over text? He was used to Salem’s (justified) suspicion over leaving a digital trail, but Lilie had never seemed that way to him. It worried him a bit, and after tapping out a quick “Okay, be right there” and quickly finishing his meal, he was on his way across campus.

He hadn’t been to this picnic area before, but a quick question to a passing guard pointed him in the right direction. Within a few minutes he was striding into the clearing, searching around the pleasantly lit pagoda tables until he found a head of white hair sitting at one, looking decidedly (and if he had to admit, kind of adorably) angry.

Putting on his best comforting face and inwardly begging that she wouldn’t mention his weird outfit, Aaron crossed the clearing and sat down opposite Lilie at her table, giving her a concerned look. “Okay, I’m here. What’s wrong?”

Her hands had been wrestling with the hem of her shirt, occasionally running over her face. As she lowered her hands, she nearly let out a yell before catching herself. Fortunately, Aaron arrived before she could wind herself up more, and she deflated slightly as she realized she must have pulled him out of his workout. Right, okay, she could totally have some kind of composure. But just thinking about what happened was enough to rile her up again, her face scrunched up in anger in no time.

“The Count decided to replace my whole closet without telling me!” Lilie blurted out, leaning forward as she tried to keep her voice down, even if she felt like screaming. “He took everything without telling me and tried to act like it was some kind of good surprise!”

It was getting her angrier just thinking about it. “He went through all my stuff--all of it, not just my closet, but my bathroom and even my diary--and then didn’t get why I was mad!” She huffed, crossing her arms. “And when I told him it wasn’t okay, he was all ‘Miss Dionne, I have the right, you are my servant,’ and I just--just--” She cut herself off as she silently fumed, clearly worked up.

A sympathetic expression sank into Aaron’s face as Lilie told her story, the blond genuinely sad to see her so upset. Shamefully, the thought did cross the back of his mind that Lilie wasn’t the only one to have her things rifled through and taken away; still, it didn’t seem like the new Count to be so cruel.

“Hey now, just take a deep breath okay?” Aaron led with that, hoping to bring Lilie’s anger down a touch so they could talk more calmly.

After a moment, he continued. “Did he tell you why he replaced your things? What did he do with them?”

Taking in a deep breath at his suggestion, Lilie felt herself deflating at Aaron's question. She dropped her gaze to the table, staying quiet for a moment, though after a little bit of silence, she met his gaze again.

"After you had left on the first night of Revel, we got to talking," She explained quietly, looking a little ashamed. "He had a lot of...things he didn't like. How I dress was one of them, and when he said something about it, I said it wasn't like I could just replace my whole wardrobe."

She let out a sigh as she uncrossed her arms, resting them on the table instead. "My family doesn't really have a lot of money to spend like that. Not for something like clothes, anyway," She admitted. "I guess he took it to heart. He sent everything away to some storage, and he said he could get it back but...but he didn't have to do that. I don't see anything wrong with what I had before."

Aaron nodded along, although… well, the more Lilie explained, the more the Count’s choice started making sense. He kept his expression carefully neutral, but even before she finished he was formulating a plan for breaking the news to her gently.

“Sometimes vampires don’t realize the sort of impact their actions can have,” he tried to reason, folding his arms on the table in front of him. “And Count Benjamin seems like he means well. I don’t think the Princess would have taken so well to him if he didn’t. He probably really did think that you’d appreciate the gesture.” He offered a weak smile, realizing there wasn’t much of a nicer way to put what he had to say next, and looked away. “And, well…”

Lilie watched Aaron as he talked, a little surprised that he justified Ben's actions. When he trailed off, she looked at him expectantly, leaning forward. "Well, what?" She asked.

Aaron shifted uncomfortably in his seat, shrugging and spinning his ring. “Well… he also is… technically right.”

Her jaw dropped, his response being the complete opposite of what she was expecting. Here she thought she was going to get some validation, but apparently Aaron didn't think so. "What do you mean, he's right?!" Instead of being angry again, she felt a little desperate, her voice high pitched as she felt betrayed by his admission.

Eyes flying wide, Aaron instinctively reached for Lilie’s hand, his usual default when his aunt Dora got emotional. She sounded like she was going to cry! “No no no, hey, I’m not saying you’re wrong,” he tried to save it, “I understand why you’re upset, it makes perfect sense, and the Count should have consulted you before replacing your things!” He wasn’t sure if he 100% believed that, but he wasn’t about to say otherwise.

“But the thing is,” he continued after a moment, more solemnly this time, “well, at the end of the night, you are his mage, and he does have the authority to make these kinds of choices if he sees fit.” Aaron offered Lilie a sympathetic look. “I suppose we all hope that we and our masters can see eye-to-eye on these things, but unfortunately that isn’t always how it works.”

Feeling her eyes getting watery, she tore her gaze away from Aaron for a moment. She didn't really know how to feel about this, her chest feeling tight with dread. When she looked at Aaron again, she didn't know what to think, either. "Do you agree with him?" She asked, already feeling her heart sinking with dread. "About my clothes."

Aaron straightened up, a bit taken aback. Lilie kind of had him backed into a corner, and a lifetime of growing up around women told him there was probably no good answer to that question.

“...Well, keep in mind that Count Benjamin is an Eve,” he tried to rationalize, “they’re traditionalists, for the most part. With that comes a certain… well, traditional way of seeing things.” His answer was already a trainwreck, but there was no going back, and lying to the girl would only serve to hurt her more later. “So while I don’t think your clothes are bad, it’s true that a lot of your outfits would be… inappropriate for a mage in a traditionalist House.”

Lilie took her hand away from the table, surprised as she straightened up. Maybe she really did underestimate the differences between them. Of course he would be in agreement, he grew up around all this. Once again she was reminded that she was the outlier, the thought depressing her immensely as she looked down at the table. She never thought about this sort of thing before, her father always making what he thought was appropriate for her. She didn't even see what was so inappropriate about what she wore!

Rubbing her arm, she looked down at the lace on her skirt, her free hand tracing the pattern. She honestly didn't know how to respond to that.

Aaron deflated as he watched Lilie, feeling sorry for the poor girl. She really was in over her head, wasn’t she? Still figuring things out, and with yet another new master no less. He could sympathize with the yearning for stability she no doubt felt, the craving for normalcy, but even he couldn’t pretend to understand the complete uprooting she must have been feeling. Everything was new to her, everything was different and strange, and the truth of servitude would surely sound doubly harsh to someone who grew up ignorant of it. His own world had been turned upside-down when he came here, sure, but the changes Lilie faced were on a whole other level.

“Well, what sorts of clothes did Count Benjamin give you?” he asked hopefully, thinking he might possibly cheer her up. “He seemed like a well-dressed guy, and clearly went to a lot of trouble if he was so excited to show you your new wardrobe. Surely they can’t be that bad, right?”

She shrugged slightly, still staring at her lap. "Maybe. They were mostly long sleeves and long skirts. I didn't get a good look aside from the ones I threw at him," She felt embarrassed admitting it, feeling extremely foolish for her reaction in hindsight. "The ones I saw were all below-the-knee skirts, and I don't think I saw any shirts with sleeves below the elbow."

“Oh, well that doesn’t sound too bad,” Aaron replied, doing his best to sound reassuring. Admittedly, Lilie’s definition of “long” sleeves and skirts was a little funny in how wildly it conflicted with what he grew up with. “Count yourself lucky, you should see the dress code at Noila castle. Believe it or not, I’m the daring one in the family.” He offered her a chuckle. “Back at home, it’s all full-length sleeves, high necks and floor-length skirts, always formal. The queen even prefers women to cover their hair. Flashing so much as a wrist or an ankle is considered racy; even Count Benjamin’s choices would never fly there.”

She was sure he meant well, but everything he said made her feel so much worse. This was normal. This is what it was to be a mage. This was her life now, whether she wanted it to be or not. Aaron was absolutely right, she no longer had a say or choice in anything anymore. If the count wanted her dressed up head to toe in some stupid, impractical Victorian dress, she had to do what he said and that was that. There was no arguing, no negotiation--that was that.

Looking away from Aaron, Lilie bit back tears for a moment before she put a hand over her eyes. It was so hard to come to grips with it, and as stupid as the topic sounded, it felt like it was the straw that broke the camel's back.

"I just thought--I just…" She couldn't stop herself, a small hiccup escaping her as she tried to control her crying. "I...I can't handle this."

Aaron felt his heart crack when he saw Lilie finally lose her composure, a painful lump growing in his throat. Realistically, he knew that it wasn’t the clothes that were the problem, but he thought maybe comforting her about them might at least help take her mind off the real issue. What else could he say? He couldn’t promise her that things would get better, and he’d be lying if he said that things didn’t have to be this way. Honeyed words wouldn’t change things. All he could tell her was the truth, and it was the truth that was killing her.

With no more words left to offer, Aaron simply stood and crossed over to Lilie’s side of the table, sliding onto the bench beside her. Silently, he simply wrapped an arm around her, and then the other, letting her lean into him and let out her anguish. Surely if he couldn’t make reality less painful, being a shoulder to cry on was the least he could do. “I’m so sorry.”

Despite knowing she was probably making a fool of herself, all she could do was cry like a little kid. It was so stupid! Why couldn't she just get over it and just fall in line like everyone else?! It felt impossible, and as much as she tried to bottle it up, it looked like she just couldn't take it anymore. How was she going to survive if she was breaking down less than a month into the semester?

Still, it did feel good to finally let it out, unintentionally gripping Aaron's shirt as she held him close. She felt safe with Aaron, a little embarrassed that he had to comfort her like this, but it was nice. There was a little guilt there, too; even with this he didn't seem to judge her too harshly, or at least was being nice about it. He probably thought she was silly or had more faith in her than she did.

After what felt like forever, Lilie tried to quiet her sniffling, lightly wiping her face as she took several deep breaths to calm herself. "I'm sorry," She apologized meekly.

---

After Aaron finished gently explaining Benjamin’s point of view, she figured she might as well face the music sooner than later. She tried to walk slowly, hoping she’d buy some time for her puffy eyes to completely go away. The walk back to the dorm was harder than she thought it would be, her pride practically in shambles. As much as she wanted to whine, though, Aaron reminded her that this was normal, and she just needed to suck it up.

Ugh.

Lilie opened the door, letting out a sigh of exasperation. At least he wasn’t hovering around waiting for her, so that was a plus. She walked to the first bedroom, forgetting that they had switched rooms, and dragged herself to ‘her’ room and dropped her backpack off. As she left and closed the door behind her, she spotted Ben sitting at the dining table.

Taking in a deep breath, she cautiously approached him. “Hi,” She said. “Can we talk?”

Ben straightened up as he heard Lilie enter, hoping she would approach him. He held a box on his lap, waiting patiently as he listened to her footsteps. Luck was on his side as she appeared shortly afterwards, giving him a small greeting. She still looked upset, but at the very least she wasn’t angry anymore

“Hello,” He returned her greeting. “Of course we can. Please, sit.” He gestured for her to take the empty seat, waiting until she did and taking the box off of his lap and placing it on the table. He gently traced the Eve symbol engraved in the middle before folding his hands neatly on the table and turning his attention fully to Lilie.

Lilie sat down, fidgeting with her skirt for a few seconds before she finally looked at the vampire. “I guess I should start by saying...I’m sorry,” She said, figuring that was as good a place to start as any.

Ben appreciated the apology even if he felt he should have been the one to apologize first. While she was gone he had time to reflect on the entirety of the interaction and decided the delivery is where he had failed. Had he properly explained himself, perhaps the argument could have been avoided. He overestimated her understanding, forgetting that perhaps she had yet to adhere to the mage life. She had previously mentioned that she had little guidance from her previous partners and while his attempt at bridging the gap between was sincere it missed the mark. Above all, he needed her forgiveness so that they could move forward.

“Your apology is accepted, and I would return it with my own,” he started there, finding it a safe place as any. “I sincerely believed I was helping and had no intention of upsetting you. I should have tried to calm you down instead of further aggravating the situation, and my inexperience with emotional mages shouldn’t be an excuse. I wanted to amend our relationship and only made things worse. I am truly sorry.”

Oh. Lilie wasn’t expecting that at all. Not the apology, not his explanation, not his comment...she didn’t really know what to think of that. It’s not that he was wrong, or at least, maybe she did overreact, but did he really think she was emotional? Was she? He didn’t seem like he was saying it maliciously and she felt really bad hearing that, but maybe he was saying it for a reason.

She looked down at her lap for a few seconds before looking at him again. “It’s fine. Like I said, it was my fault,” She replied. “You can do whatever you want. I won’t be so troublesome anymore. I promise.” She hoped he would see that she meant it, a little nervous that he wouldn’t.

The apology was accepted, much to his relief, but Ben was unsure how to respond to everything else. Troublesome wasn’t how he would describe a normally sweet girl; it was clear he had crossed a line and she had reacted accordingly. The next course of action was to lay out his solution.

“I was sincere when I told you I wanted us to be a team. I am not a man that goes back on his word so easily,” He decided to begin calmly. “You informed me that you were uneducated and I greatly overestimated to what degree. Instead of moving forward and assuming you would follow, I should be leading you. And I promise you that I will from now on.”

“We’ll set up at least an hour a day for some extracurricular studies: etiquette, a brief history on the Eve family, and of course, vampire-mage cultural norm. The last will be our main focus and bleed into proper etiquette, and the history will be for fun.”

Lilie slumped her shoulders slightly at the mention of extra studies. Didn’t he know she had enough homework already? At first she wanted to protest, but she deflated as she remembered what Aaron said. If that was what the count wanted, then that was what was going to happen. Even if she did argue back, it wouldn’t accomplish anything. The best thing to do was to keep the peace.

“Okay,” She nodded in agreement.

Must she look so disappointed? Ben felt like he was kicking a young puppy with the way her expression changed. Fortunately, he figured he had a little something that would hopefully level the playing field, so to speak. Or at least rid her of that dreadful expression; the guilt seemed to eat at him from the inside. He would need to learn how to handle that for the future so it wouldn’t be used against him. A cynical thought, but he didn’t need to be at the whims of his mage.

He picked up the box on his lap and turned it so it would open and face her. “I had planned to give you this before, but now is as good a time as ever,” Ben said. “I had a pair of cufflinks made as well in case I ended up with a male mage, but I think this fits a young lady.”

The box opened and revealed a white-silver pendant sitting on top of a dark velvet. The Eve insignia was carved into the metal, intricately detailed and adorned with a pair of rubies where the apples would be. The line of tiny diamonds glimmered in the light, the delicate chain resting neatly around it.

Ben carefully lifted the pendant from its resting place as he would stand from his seat. He motioned for the girl to move her ponytail and fastened the chain around her neck. “This symbol is one to wear with grace and beauty, as is thy right and noble duty,” He said.

Lilie couldn’t help but feel that she had heard that line from somewhere before, but she kept the comment to herself. As she looked down at the pendant, she couldn’t help but feel like it was a mark of some kind. “A symbol of servitude?” She asked, watching him sit back down.

Ben hesitated for just a moment, but continued with, “A symbol of promise, of change, and of excellence,” He chose to correct her.

She didn’t really know how to respond to that. It looked so expensive she was afraid to touch it. What if she broke the chain? She got uncomfortable really quickly, but she felt like if she said anything, she’d come off as ungrateful. “Thank you,” She replied quietly.

“You are welcome, Miss Dionne,” He replied, although he didn’t know what to say, either. The silence that fell between the pair was excruciatingly uncomfortable, and he felt that he needed to say something to break it. “I can’t help but feel as the gift has caused you discomfort,” He stated the obvious with a frown.

“No, it’s not that,” Lilie said a little too quickly--why the heck did she say that? She was uncomfortable! But there was more to it, too, right? The count meant well, even if it kept hitting her the wrong way. He was trying, that had to count. Maybe. This whole thing was weird. But pushing him away would be just like having Mariette all over again. She didn’t want a repeat of her other partners, she actually wanted them to get along, too.

“I get that we should get along, but I feel like--do you want to be friends? I feel like you want us to get along, but ‘Miss Dionne’ is really distant. I get that you’re my superior, okay, but...I don’t know how to act around someone who won’t even use my name,” She started there, wanting to at least air her biggest gripe first. “I don’t know how to act around vampires, let alone a noble. I really don’t know what the princess was thinking, but I hoped that--I don’t know, someone would tell me something. Anything. Just a nudge in the right direction so I don’t embarrass anyone, or that I can at least pretend I know what I’m doing.”

It felt really good to let everything out, but she caught herself and felt embarrassed that she went on that whole rant. She dropped her gaze, feeling her face turn red. “Just...at least call me Lilie. We can start there. Sir,” She finished meekly.

Ben listened carefully and gave her his full attention. This sort of response would never have been tolerated at home, but it was what he needed; he was not at the Eve manor, he was at the Noilan Academy. The princess entrusted a young lady who needed guidance. And for him, that was all he really needed. He sincerely came to regret his actions and previous thoughts, but no more. Going forward, he would treat her just as he did Noah, and would strive to make this a beneficial relationship. The small drop into timid was absolutely adorable, and he could not hold himself back from a short laugh. What a passionate girl.

“I will ask that you do the same, then,” He only spoke when he was sure that Lilie had no more to say. “When we are alone, I’d be pleased if you called me Ben.”

Lilie perked up immediately, surprised, but after the realization set in she nodded, clasping her hands together happily. “I can do that.”

9/25: Solo

“Last stop, Madison Ave, Glendale. Last stop, Madison Ave, Glendale…”

Her knuckles were white from gripping the handle of her luggage, her eyes not leaving the spot on the ground that she decided to stare at the whole ride. It was hard to believe she had actually been excited to come home considering all she wanted to do was throw up now. As soon as the train pulled into the station, she lowered her head. Ugh, she really was going to be sick.

Eventually, she forced herself to get up, pulling her luggage along. Her chest felt tight as she kept her eyes forward, although her flowing dress did help distract her. She thought prettying herself up would help her confidence, but all it did was give her a lot of unwanted attention. All she wanted to do was crawl into a hole and hide from everyone, but her brother promised to pick her up, so all she had to do was find him and then she could hide in her house for the next two weeks.

Lilie looked around for her older brother, having to get on her tiptoes to see if she could spot him. Maybe calling him to see where he was would be easier, even in heels she had a hard time trying to pick him out of a crowd. She decided to put herself close to the stairs as she pulled out her phone, hoping he would use his height to his advantage and be able to pick her out from the crowd.

“Lilie?”

She looked up at the sound of her name, coming face-to-face with a pair she honestly didn’t think she would ever have to see again. She’d recognize that shade of sandy blond anywhere, especially in a sea of dark haired people, but she really wished she had run into any other person in his family instead of Jason Powell. Of course, the only thing worse than that was running into the darker haired and cold-staring Helena Miller. Judging by the way she had herself wrapped around his arm, it was safe to assume that she had finally made her move on him. The thought made Lilie queasy, but at this point, it wasn’t any of her business.

“Hi,” Lilie finally spoke, slowly straightening up.

“What are you doing here?” Helena asked, eyeing her suspiciously.

There was a split second that she thought she was going to get nervous, but right now, she wasn’t doing anything wrong. “It’s the first break of the semester, so I’m visiting my family,” She explained calmly.

Jason nodded, but while Lilie thought they would either ask something else or go away, they did neither. The three of them stood there awkwardly, and suddenly Lilie wished that she was back at the academy; at least there she could say she had homework or something and leave.

As she thought of politely excusing herself, she noticed that they were examining her. She looked down at her dress, only realizing that they were probably shocked to see her in something so refined. Maybe the grey linen dress was a little formal, but she thought the petal sleeves made it more casual despite the length.

They noticed that she definitely noticed their staring, and while Jason tried to laugh it off, Helena gave her a pointed look. He noticed her look, deciding to speak up first. “Mage life suits you, you look amazing,” Jason complimented Lilie, missing Helena rolling her eyes.

“Thank you,” Lilie replied quietly, tucking a stray hair behind her ear.

“It’s a nice improvement. I’m sure your vampire wants you to look as good as possible, no matter how much it costs,” Helena decided to comment.

Oh, she forgot how not-fun it was to talk to Helena now that they weren’t friends anymore. Being on the receiving end of her commentary was definitely different, but it wasn’t like Lilie knew what to say or do in response. She could only keep her head down, unsure if she was annoyed or hurt, but she felt like talking back would probably make things worse.

Her phone buzzed in her purse, reminding her that her brother was somewhere around here waiting for her. “W-Well...I should, um, I should find my brother, he’s waiting for me,” She said, forcing a smile. “So...”

“Spooked after one interaction? Seriously, Lilie?” Helena released Jason as she stepped in front of her. “You can’t even pretend to have some dignity?”

Lilie quickly shook her head. “That’s not--I don’t mean it like that,” She said, wishing she didn’t sound so meek and flustered. “I didn’t think I’d even see any of you.”

As soon as she said that, however, she could see more familiar faces, all in the same group. To her absolute horror, there were more of her classmates, more people she used to talk to. Once the realization hit her, she felt like someone was pushing down on her chest and squeezing the air out of her lungs. They were getting together! And they were all looking right at her!

Jason was talking, but Lilie could barely register it until he said, “We’re all going to go to Allendale, you should come with--”

“No!” It came out so quickly it took her a second to realize she blurted it out. She couldn’t think straight, she couldn’t breathe, she could feel herself shaking and any coherent thought she had was yelling at her to leave. Panic quickly set in, and she took a few steps away from the pair. “I can’t--I--I have to go, I’m sorry!” Lilie turned around and immediately bolted from the area, only giving hurried apologizes as she bulldozed through the crowd.

By the time she wrapped her head around what happened, Lilie had run out of the station and had made it into town. She eventually slowed down as her heels started to pinch her feet a little, taking a second to catch her breath. That was so dumb! Why did she run away like that? She didn’t do anything wrong, she just made herself look like a scaredy cat! She brought her hand up to her face as she leaned against a building, exhaling slowly.

She jumped as her phone rang, fishing through her purse with shaky hands until she found it. “H-Hello?” She winced at her voice wavering, clearing her throat to try again. “Hello? Ren?”

“Where did you run off to?” Her older brother forgoed the greeting. “I saw you run out of the train station, are you alright?”

She held in the whimper of embarrassment, letting out a sigh instead. “Yeah, yeah, I’m okay. Sorry, I’m um…” She paused to look around, spotting a nearby clothing boutique she used to go to. “I’m across the street from Gia’s Closet.”

“You made it that far?!” Ren asked in disbelief. “Stay there, I’m coming now.”

Lilie hung up and dropped her phone back into her purse, letting her head hang for a moment. She didn’t even make it back to her house before making a fool of herself, how embarrassing! She was hoping to quietly arrive and quietly leave, but it looked like she was particularly unlucky today. It wasn’t too long before the familiar family car pulled up next to her. She quietly threw her luggage in the backseat before entering the front, surprised to see a box of pizza.

His dark brown hair was a mess, likely from him messing with it as he usually did when he was stressed, blue eyes unamused with life. His scowl could give Max a run for his money, staying on his face even after he finally looked over at her, taking the box and carefully placing it behind them.

“Welcome home,” Ren said as he drove off. “I take it you saw someone you didn’t like or a ghost. You’re paler than usual.”

Lilie leaned back in her seat and openly groaned. “I ran into Jason and Helena. And they’re together-together, so that was...so uncomfortable,” She outright admitted.

As the car stopped at a red light, Ren gave her a wary look. “That sucks,” He said, doing a double take as he looked her up and down. “...you’re just coming home, not going to any fancy party.” He commented.

“You know, this is probably the least fanciest thing I own now,”Lilie said as she rubbed her temples.

“Ah, to be swathed in luxury...or did your leech try to buy your loyalty?”

“Can you not?”

Ren shook his head, noticing the pendant. He reached over and picked it up, raising an eyebrow at her. “Even without the fancy clothes, you’re going to get plenty of attention from this thing alone,” He said as he dropped it, hands on the steering wheel as the light changed. “Might as well have tattooed ‘I’m a mage to a fancy vampire’ on your forehead, that would’ve been a little more subtle.”

Why was she surprised that her brother would immediately notice the pendant? “It’s the symbol of serving the Eve house,” She muttered what Ben had said, crossing her arms.

“Oh, so it’s your brand. Gotcha,” Ren said in understanding. Lilie gave him an entirely unamused look, holding it on him until the next time he stopped the car. He caught her look, shaking his head. “What? I’m not wrong.”

“You don’t have to be such a jerk about it,” Lilie said, feeling her mood souring.

Fortunately, the rest of the ride was relatively peaceful, with the exception of Ren consistently poking her side. Her annoyance fizzled out eventually, and she had to admit it was nice to catch up. He mostly complained about having to take so many classes unrelated to his major, but it was still nice to hear about it in person instead of getting it through voicemail or text. Seeing all the familiar houses in her neighborhood threw her homesickness into overdrive, but soon enough they pulled into the driveway, and her chest swelled with happiness the second she got to see their little home.

Ren offered to get her luggage and let Lilie go into the house alone with pizza in hand. Pushing the front door open, seeing the cluttered walls and feeling the warmth coming from the kitchen gave her a weird sense of relief, like the past two weeks were just temporary. The familiarity was comforting, at least until she saw a bassinet next to the couch. She was taken out of her headspaced until she realized what it meant, quietly hurrying to it. Inside was a sleeping infant swathed in a pink blanket snoozing away.

“Hello, Daisy!” Lilie squealed in a hushed voice, ecstatic to see her little cousin.

After a few seconds, she thought it was weird that no one was in the living room, catching the sound of two voices coming from the kitchen. When she got there, the smell of something burnt hit her, and she quickly realized her parents were quietly bickering. She put the box down on the dinner table and quietly tiptoed towards the kitchen.

Standing over a clearly-lost-cause dinner over a stove was a tall, dark haired man with an exasperated expression on his face, one hand stroking his beard. His other hand poked and prodded at the completely scorched bird--she couldn’t tell if it was chicken or turkey or what--a look of pity crossing his face. He wore comfortable, casual clothing, though there were specks of what looked like dough on his jeans.

“I just wish you would’ve told me, Fi,” Her dad, William, sighed. “Now what?”

The woman next to him looked like she had absolutely no shame, but she avoided looking at her mistake all the same. Her short, chestnut colored hair had been chopped to chin-length, her own clothes a mess of ingredients and the edge of her sleeves burned. She sported a majority of the same features Lilie did, mainly with her eyes, round face, and large cheeks, though she was anything but gentle with her expression, looking more annoyed than anything.

“Listen, the effort is what counts here,” Her mom, Felicia, told him, fanning the kitchen with a magazine. “And it’s fine, I had Ren go get a pizza before picking up Lilie.”

“The effort is what resulted in everything getting burnt,” He sighed, scratching the back of his head. “You could’ve been hurt.”

Lilie couldn’t hold in her giggle, alerting the two of them that she was there. Felicia threw her husband a look before making her escape, hugging her daughter tightly. “I tried to cook. And failed,” She sighed.

“Yeah, I figured when I saw the pizza in the backseat,” Lilie grinned. “At least you tried.”

“And that right there is why you’re my favorite,” She beamed.

Lilie’s grin only grew, especially when her father came over and swept her into a tight hug. Once Ren came in, they all sat down, chatting away happily. She had to admit this was probably one of the things she missed most; eating with others always killed her loneliness. They asked her a lot of questions about school, about the friends she made, about the vampires she interacted with. Eventually, the topic landed on the Eve she served.

“I have a dress code now,” Lilie pouted.

“I imagine that can’t be too bad,” Will chuckled. “Dressing up in fancy clothes sounds like fun.”

“Yeah, I guess, but I didn’t really like him deciding that my whole closet wasn’t good enough,” She shook her head.

“The least he can do is get you a new wardrobe,” Felicia argued. “He wants things his way? Okay. Then he needs to get you everything--shirts, shoes, bags, accessories. And if you want something extra, then get it.”

“Mama…”

“Lilie Lyra, I’m not joking. And it’s not wrong because you’re complying.”

“Pretty sure that’s called ‘malicious compliance’,” Ren said.

“Compliance nonetheless. You should see if you can get those pumps that Rosaline Blackdale wore in that one movie with Eris Samael, I’ve always said they match your eyes.”

Lilie tried not to react too much to that, letting out a sigh. “I’ll think about it. But he already got me a new wardrobe. That’s why I had to bring everything back,” She shrugged. “Nothing I had met his standards. Well, except for grandma’s necklace and the dress you made me, he really liked them. But I can give them back if you want, Papa.”

William shook his head. “Nothing would make me happier than if you kept them with you,” He told her, waving away her concern.

Lilie beamed, delighted that she had his blessing, especially since she had left them in the dorm feeling they were safer there. As she looked over at her brother, she noticed he seemed more unamused than usual. Before she could ask him what bugged him, she was interrupted by her own yawn. Her sleep schedule was all sorts of messed up and it would stay that way for a long time, unfortunately.

“Bedtime already?” Felicia lightly teased.

“No, not yet,” She shook her head. “But, um...aside from that, I think I’m going to try to keep an open mind about Count Benjamin. It’s a little weird between us right now, but as long as we meet each other halfway, I think it’ll be okay.”

Ren scoffed, muttering something to himself. Before he knew it, the other three were looking at him expectantly. He kept eating, chewing slowly to avoid talking, but the quiet continued. “I just think you should be careful,” He shrugged. “Vampires in general are pretty scummy, associating with a noble is just asking for a bad time.”

“I don’t really have a choice,” Lilie laughed. “That’s what the princess wants, so there I am. Can’t really argue with that decision.”

“Until he decides to throw you away,” Ren commented.

Lilie wasn’t really sure how to respond to that. There had been this tiny hope that if she couldn’t do magic she could return home, but Professor Sinnenodel made it clear that that would not be the case. Besides, Ben wouldn’t do that. Hopefully.

Felicia threw a glare at Ren, reaching over and rubbing Lilie’s arm. “That’s not going to happen,” She assured her.

“I know,” Lilie said.

“Do you?”

“Yeah, I just said it.”

“I just don’t want you stewing and suddenly getting doubts.”

“I’m not stewing!”

“Not right now, but you have this really bad habit of getting too into your own head and spiraling at the worst times, I just don’t want you punishing yourself because of something someone said. Especially when that something is stupid and shouldn’t have been said,” Felicia’s glare on Ren hardened before she relented, looking at Lilie. “You’re fine. You’re a perfectly healthy, normal girl. You have a good head on your shoulders. You’re going to be great.”

Except for the fact that her vampire openly commented on her albinism. But Lilie wasn’t about to open that can of worms right now. A tiny wail brought the conversation to a screeching halt, with Lilie jumping out of her chair immediately. “I’ll get her!” She half-called, half-squealed as she went to the bassinet, gasping at the crying bundle. “Oh, don’t cry, it’s okay.” She picked her up as she tried to soothe her.

The rest of the table dispersed, with her parents telling her a few things that happened around town while her brother went to the backyard. Lilie put herself on the couch and was all too happy to watch over the baby. The adorable bundle of life in her arms had every ounce of her attention, the occasional movement and tiny yawns melting her heart over and over. Daisy was just about two months old now and no longer looked like a wrinkled potato. She had these giant, curious blue eyes that seemed fascinated with her, and her little fingers and hands grabbed at her hair and clothes. After taking a ton of pictures she settled on just lightly prodding the little one and talking, watching her reactions.

Eventually, she realized Ren never came back inside. He was probably moping, but she felt bad. She thought maybe the idea of her magehood was something he was used to, but then again, she’d be lying if she said she was completely used to the idea.

Unwilling to part with Daisy just yet, Lilie decided to take her outside with her. Ren sat on the deck, staring out into the backyard. It was starting to get dark, and the fireflies were just beginning to light up. After carefully taking a seat next to him, she watched them fly around, the two sitting comfortably next to one another. At least, until Daisy started to fuss a little.

Ren sat up, looking at her. “Want a break?”

She shook her head. “No, I’m okay,” She said, sighing happily as she gently pulled back the blanket away from Daisy’s head. “I’m trying to savor it while I can.”

Ren paused for a second. “Well...even if you were going to college, you wouldn’t have been able to see her every day,” He pointed out as he shifted so he was partially facing her. “So...no need to get all resentful.”

Lilie looked up from Daisy at his comment. “Oh, no, I mean...you’re right, but she’s not gonna stay little for so long, that’s what I mean,” She quickly corrected herself as she smiled. “I actually really like the academy.”

“Really now?” He asked, surprised.

“Yeah! I’ve made some friends, and I got a vampire that isn’t too bad,” She told him. “He’s kinda stiff, but he’s okay. But the best part has to be all the magic.” She swelled with pride at the thought, wondering if maybe he wanted a demonstration.

Ren’s expression went blank, and he turned himself to look out into the backyard. “You like it?” He asked.

“I do,” Lilie frowned, wondering what was up with the sudden change. It got quiet, the only sound between them being the crickets and buzzing of whatever bugs were still out there. Did she say something wrong? He usually didn’t hesitate to tell her what was on his mind, but he wouldn’t look at her. Lilie carefully nudged him with her foot, getting his attention, but when he looked at her, he seemed to be thinking about something.

“Come on, spit it out already,” She told him as she nudged him again. “What is it?”

He took in a deep breath, shaking his head. “I never thought you’d like it over there,” He said with a shrug, quietly cracking his knuckles.

“What, did you expect me to stay all mopey?” She joked. “I mean, it’s not all bad. I’m actually getting a hang with my affinity, too. Soon, I’ll have a lot more control, so…”

“It’s not that,” He interrupted, his tone a little harsh.

“Then what is it?” Lilie asked with a huff. “Come on, tell me already.”

He opened his mouth to respond, but closed it. After a solid ten seconds of struggling, he finally said, “I just don’t understand how you can like the thing that ruined your life.”

Lilie’s eyes widened considerably. “What?”

“You like magic? You cried that you didn’t want to be a mage--”

“Yeah, but that’s--I was scared,” She said, a little flustered that this is what was apparently concerning him. “If it was my choice, I wouldn’t, but...I can’t change that. Embracing it is probably for the best, and maybe I’ll actually be good at it, too.”

Ren didn’t seem to like the idea, narrowing his eyes in clear disapproval. That riled her up a little. “What do you want me to do? Make no effort and just cry in my room all day?” Lilie huffed at him.

“I didn’t say anything,” He muttered.

“It’s written all over your face!” She pointed out.

“Alright, I’m sorry that I’m surprised,” He snapped. “I thought you’d take more time to warm up to the idea, I didn’t think you’d be singing its praises so soon.”

“I’m not--you are being ridiculous,” Lilie said, shaking her head.

“Am I?”

“Yes! I thought you would be happy for me!”

“I’m not happy that you’re gone. I wanted you to be here. I wanted you to follow your dreams and meet someone nice and build your life here.”

“Well, that’s not an option anymore. This is my life now.”

Once again, silence fell between them, but this time, it was cut short by a quiet whine. It evolved into crying, and Lilie started rocking gently again to try to soothe the baby. She must have agitated the poor thing without noticing, but she would get up from the chair and go inside. She walked over to the crib set up in her former bedroom, setting Daisy there. Unraveling her from the blanket, it calmed her down, and she dozed off once again.

Lilie sighed, leaning over the crib. She wished she could read her brother’s thoughts and saw why he was acting the way he was. She thought he was going to be proud of her for not being such a crybaby! But he was just mad, or annoyed, or frustrated, or just throwing a tantrum. She was actually annoyed, too, but after a few minutes, she realized she was sad. Maybe this was just happening because they were both sad.

After making sure the baby monitor was on, Lilie returned back to the porch, this time kneeling down behind her brother. Without giving him a chance to question her, she gave him a very tight hug. “I’m sorry,” She said. “I miss you guys like crazy. And I’m pretty sure it’s going to get worse down the line. But don’t worry about me, I’ll be fine. I can do it. Okay?”

Ren didn’t respond right away, not even after Lilie released him. She was worried that maybe she said the wrong thing, but just as she went to speak again, he turned and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close. He didn’t say anything, but at this point he didn’t need to--she got it.

The back door swung open, making the two jump, and when Lilie looked, she watched her mother throw herself onto the chair with a cigarette in hand. She paid little mind to the pair, focusing more on getting a light, and only after she took in that first drag did she finally eye her two children.

“What’re you guys getting all emotional for?” Felicia asked, leaning back fully in her seat.

Lilie bit her lip, shaking her head as Ren scowled at her. “Nothing!” She giggled.

_{Dates: October 8th - November 4th}

10/8: Eris and Lilie

> Sorry I kinda ditched you last night. But tonight I'm going to a concert, wanna come with?

> I'm going to hang out with some upperclassmen and would love if you came!

> Hope you have a good break! Cya when we get back!

> I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have left you. Are you okay? Can you call me?

> If you're mad at me, that's okay. I'm sorry. I just want to know you're okay.

> Are you back? I didn't see you in Affinity Mastery.

> I'm sorry.

Lilie stared at her phone for a good minute before closing the conversation, putting her phone down and placing her head in her hands. She didn't have the slightest idea what had happened until the broadcast, and all she could do was spam text Cassandra's number. At first she thought that maybe she had been in recovery and couldn't get to her phone, but her guilt told her that obviously Cassandra didn't want anything to do with her. She hoped that she could catch her in class, but she was then told that she was getting a new partner.

But Cassandra wasn't in class at all, and Lilie knew that her injuries must have been bad if she still hadn't returned to school. Her guilt had been gnawing at her the entire day--well, night--but between adjusting back to a nocturnal schedule and trying to practice stupid arcane magic, she had successfully avoided it until she was alone. She felt terrible that she had a nice night while her poor friend had been attacked, feeling like the entire thing could have been avoided if she had taken Salem's suggestion and stuck together as a group.

Well, she would hear something eventually, right?

A shrill bark snapped her out of her thoughts, though she had been thinking so hard that it scared her. She looked around, another bark catching her attention, and she saw Maxie sitting in front of her, happily wagging her tail.

"What are you doing here?" Lilie asked her, getting off the bench she was sitting on and kneeling down.

The Pomeranian was all too happy to have her attention, nuzzling against her hand. It did make her smile, and she happily obliged as she pet her. What a needy girl! Maxie was all too happy to receive her affection, only looking away at the sound of a whistle. Lilie saw an exasperated Eris approaching the pair, leash in hand. He looked a little annoyed, but as he approached, his face smoothed out.

"She was doing well until she saw someone she recognized," He muttered, kneeling down and pointing a finger at the dog. "Bad. No running off like that."

Lilie stood, frowning at Eris. She assumed he was trying to teach Maxie how to walk without the leash, though at least the pup did a good job not going anywhere, remaining seated and looking between the two. When Eris stood, he gave her a look over, making her a little uncomfortable.

"Well then, looks like I wasn't the only one looking to improve on my mage's poor choice in clothing. You almost look like a real mage now, little one," He said cheerfully, lightly tapping her chin with the leash. "What, old Benji burn your wardrobe? He did you a favor if you ask me."

"Who--no, and his name is Benjamin, not Benji," Lilie shook her head, letting out a huff. "He just...wants me to look like a 'proper' mage."

Eris grimaced, reaching out with his free hand and gently pulling her ponytail into view. "He really missed out on a vital aspect of that," He replied, letting her hair run through his fingers. "Frowning and moping around isn't ideal, either. A mage should keep any feelings or personal thoughts to themselves, you know."

Lilie hung her head in defeat, crossing her arms. "I was just thinking about what happened. With the mages that got hurt. My friend was one of them."

Eris wrinkled his nose, shaking his head. "That worry is pretty belated, don't you think?" He asked as he threw himself onto the bench, patting the seat next to him. Lilie thought he wanted her to sit next to him, but Maxie hopped up instead, curling up next to him. "With all the magic in the world, mages are fragile, aren't they?" He asked, scratching Maxie's chin.

She didn't know what to think about that, or at least, she didn't want to admit how worried she was. Taking a seat next to Maxie, she looked at Eris worriedly. "Did you get to see them?" She asked.

"See who?"

"The people that got hurt. The princess mentioned you and Count Victor, and…" Lilie paused, feeling anxious, but she needed to know. "I just...I haven't heard from my friend, and she was one of the victims, and…"

Eris' expression went neutral at her words, and once she stopped talking, he threw his head back. "It must be nice to live in such an ignorant bliss," He said to himself, shaking his head. After a few seconds, he sat up straight and turned towards her, giving her an unimpressed look. Lilie deflated at Eris' look, looking down at her lap. "So, you don't hear from your friend, you see an announcement on what happened, and you're wondering why you haven't heard from them. Right?"

"Yeah…"

He pinched the bridge of his nose as she squeezed his eyes shut, but he then relaxed, giving her a smile. "Mon chérie, you really are one of a kind. I mean that in every sense of the word, truly," He sighed, reaching out and tucking a hair behind her ear. "If it falls to me to be the bearer of bad news, well...I'm just not sure I have what it takes to break your heart."

"What do you mean?"

Eris picked up Maxie and shuffled closer, placing her on his lap. He leaned in close, looking directly at her. "The victims were critically injured, chérie. If they haven't returned, then it's safe to assume that they did not recover," He told her gently. "I think that's something you didn't consider, is it?"

What?! No, that couldn’t be right! But even as the thought crossed her mind, she felt this terrible dread pulling her stomach down. Why wouldn’t they tell anyone if that was the case? She looked at Eris, trying to formulate the words, but her throat just refused to make any noise.

Eris, on the other hand, understood that she seemed to get it. "I thought only children can be that naïve," He chuckled to himself, pausing as he felt his phone buzz. "Watch her for a second, I need to take this." He instructed as he placed Maxie on Lilie's lap, standing up to answer the call.

She couldn't find any way to protest, staring down at the pup. How could this have happened? How did he know? Was this one of those things that everyone knew but just couldn't say? For a moment, Lilie wondered why she wasn't crying, but she didn't know what to think. Paralyzed by shock, she barely registered when Eris came back and took Maxie, though at least she did get up. Vaguely giving him a thank you, she walked back to the dorm, trying to rationalize how she could have missed it. Now that she really thought about it, it made more sense. Maybe she had just been in denial the whole time.

The sound of a door closing scared Lilie, and she realized she managed to get all the way to her room without realizing it. Her hand was clutching her phone so tightly that her knuckles hurt, and as she looked back down at the messages, a horrible thought hit her. Was this her fault? If she hadn’t left Cassandra alone, could her death have been avoided? As soon as the thought crossed her mind, however, she felt her knees give way and she slumped down against the wall.

It took her longer than it should have for her to realize she could hardly breathe, but she just sat there, heaving sobs as she held her head in her hands. How could she have been so stupid?! Of course something like this was going to happen, vampires didn’t care about mortal lives! The one night she let herself get comfortable and something horrible happened--why did she expect anything different? And now, poor Cassandra was just gone, and nothing could bring her back. All she could do was imagine how terrible it must have been. And how terrible she was for leaving her friend behind.

Aaron and Lilie

“Ausculto.”

Three taps of a foot and a quick breath in, and Aaron was in his own little world again. This time it was plucking instead of bowing, but he lost himself in it nonetheless, running a couple different harmonies in his head and plucking in time. For a little while, he got to forget about everything, the only thing occupying his mind a steady beat.

All too soon the part was over, and Aaron returned to the world, glancing down at the page on the table in front of him. Like the others scattered around, it was covered in notes that had written themselves while he was playing, and Aaron smiled. Without a doubt, he considered that “listen” spell to be the most useful one he’d learned so far.

Putting his cello aside for the moment, Aaron leaned over the patio table, looking over the collection of sheets he had amassed with a critical eye and picking one up from time to time to compare it to another. After a few minutes he nodded to himself, taking up his cello and bow once more. Extending a hand, his eyes flashed for a moment and the notes on each sheet began to faintly glow.

“Cano.”

One by one, lines of music began to play; they were small parts individually, but together they wove a solid harmony, waiting for the melody line to come in. Just by playing to some enchanted paper, Aaron had made himself a little cello ensemble, all on his own.

He tapped his foot gently to the music, poising his bow, and when the time came took a quick breath and started to play. Being that he was mostly improvising to the melody of an old lullaby, Aaron had no music to read, so instead his eyes fell to his hands, one dragging the bow smoothly across the strings and the other moving expertly over the fingerboard. Without realizing, he began to sway a little with the bowing, sinking into his own little symphony. The crisp night air, the slight breeze, the rustling of the trees... they all fell away. All there was in the world was him, his cello, and the music, free and uncaring no matter who might hear.

Walking up the block in somewhat of a hurry, a very upset Lilie was fighting back tears of frustration. Why did she have to get assigned to a noble? She could barely keep up with her classes, now all of a sudden she needed to be ‘cultured’ and have some hobbies to hide that she was an uneducated hick from Nowheresville. She thought her ballet and fencing were enough, but considering she wasn't an expert on either and usually combined the two, Ben had decreed that they didn't count and she would need to ‘broaden her horizons’.

Except, she was never really good at anything else. Or rather, the only other thing she was actually talented at was not something impressive by vampire terms: and she couldn't argue considering that even the most beautifully made food was pointless to them. She loved music and could hold a tune, but she wasn't amazing at it nor did she play any instruments. She liked sports but didn't excel in anything in particular. She couldn't draw if her life depended on it, her crafts were just things she did for fun, her grades sucked, she sucked at school, and she was getting more frustrated the more she thought about it. Ben had given her a list of things to try, but none of it was anything she could have had a talent for. It was just hopeless. She was hopeless.

As she looked down at the paper filled with crossed out words, another flash of anger hit her, and she found herself crumpling it up, as if that would erase the words and failures. Approaching the cul de sac, Lilie took in a deep breath to calm herself. No doubt Ben would want to talk about what she decided on, so she figured she would take the free time to think. The closer she got to the dorms, however, the more she thought she heard music. Either she left her phone playing or was going crazy, but it turned out to be neither; she had been so wrapped up in her own thoughts that it wasn't until she was nearly back that she noticed the music.

Honestly, the sight was one to behold. She had often heard Aaron practicing more than once, but getting to see him play again was a real treat. It was soothing, a quiet moment where she held her breath just to make sure she didn't take him out of his element. He looked very much into it, swaying as he played, expert hands performing for an audience that wasn't there. She felt entranced, though she entered her own property before approaching the wall that separated theirs. Leaning on it, she simply watched, amazed that what sounded like something she would hear from a CD would be coming from Aaron.

Once the last note rang, Lilie snapped out of it, hastily wiping her eyes before applauding Aaron with much enthusiasm.

The applause pulled Aaron out of his head a little faster than normal, the blonde looking around for the source before he found Lilie, leaning on the stone wall that separated their properties. Apparently she had been listening, and Aaron’s eyes lit up when he saw her, despite the flash of embarrassment that burned at his ears. Smiling bashfully, he gave her a little wave, setting aside his cello and stacking his papers neatly before hopping off the patio and joining Lilie at the wall.

“Hi!” he greeted cheerfully, placing a hand on the wall between them. “Were you listening the whole time?”

The girl found herself getting rather excited as Aaron smiled, waiting eagerly as he decided to come over. That smile of his alone managed to lift her mood in ways she didn't think was possible. Shoot, she hoped she looked normal, but there was no time to check as he approached her, greeting her happily.

“I wish,” Lilie was honest, frowning slightly as she realized she wasn't sure where in the song she had started paying attention. Perking up slightly, she hopped in place as she looked up at him. “But what I did hear was fantastic!”

And she meant it. She wasn't an expert, but she recognized talent when she saw it. Getting to watch Aaron had been a real treat, nearly making her forget about everything that had happened.

“It's nice to actually see you play,” she found herself admitting. “Sometimes I hear it when I'm in my dorm, but you're usually done by the time I finish."

Aaron’s smile only widened as Lilie spoke, and he leaned on the wall as well to listen. His ears burned as she praised him, and he had to look away, feeling bashful. “I’m surprised you haven’t seen me more often, I always practice outside.”

Fiddling slightly with the hem of her jacket, Lilie let out a short, somewhat anxious laugh. She wasn't about to admit that she sometimes watched him through the window; there was no way she would live that down if he ever found out.

“W-Well, sometimes I listen as I do my homework,” she decided to admit that much. “And it always helps me concentrate. But you usually finish before I do.”

“Aw,” Aaron couldn’t help but exclaim, though his ears got a little hotter when he realized it. “That’s really flattering, thank you.”

He tapped his fingers on his arm for a moment. He didn’t know what else to say, but he didn’t want Lilie to leave just yet. “Would you like to see what I’ve been working on?” He finally asked, looking hopefully to Lilie.

Lilie didn't think she had ever agreed to something so quickly, nodding enthusiastically in response. “Yes!” It was a very welcome distraction, the girl unable to contain her excitement. Catching herself, she cleared her throat, blushing as she tucked a stray hair behind her ear. Wow, she really needed to calm down. “If...if you don't mind, I mean!” Her response was still excitable as she placed her hands behind her back.

Aaron lit right up again, standing back up to his full height excitedly. “Of course not! Hang on,” he smiled at her before jogging back to the patio, scooping up his music in his hands and returning to lay it out on top of the wall.

“It’s not so much a project as it is me just messing around, but I found a way to use some magic to play multiple parts at once, watch.” He held a palm over the pages, and the notes began to faintly glow as before. “Cano.”

Like they had before, each part began to play itself, a harmony waiting for a melody. “...And then I play the final part, once I’ve prepared the rest. It’s a really fun exercise, especially for otherwise simple pieces like this one.” He talked about it animatedly, but also casually, as if he’d been waiting for a chance to talk to someone about it. Probably because he had. He didn’t often get to go into detail on his interests. “Isn’t it cool?”

Absorbed in every word Aaron spoke, Lilie listened intently, making sure she paid careful attention. Clearly a lot of thought had been put into this, a wonderful combination of music and magic resulting in a rather beautiful result. Part of her had assumed he played along with his phone or something, but the truth was so much better! He must have been a genius or something, she probably wouldn't have been able to come up with this sort of thing.

“It is!” Lilie agreed, absolutely fascinated by his work as she watched the notes light up. She supposed she liked it more because it was night; his efforts wouldn't have looked as nice during the day. As she watched the notes, she noticed how what she heard didn't match what she read. Oh, right, he played the cello, that was an entirely different clef. “Mmm...you write it on your own and everything, right?” She asked, lifting her gaze from the pages to Aaron. “Like, you don't just play?”

Aaron chuckled a bit, looking down at his music and waving his hand to dismiss the spell. “Honestly, not really. I’m actually kind of garbage at composing,” he smiled down at his music as he collected it. “I don’t know what it is but I usually just don’t feel the need to write music, I guess. But lately I have nothing new to practice, so I’ve been playing around with pieces I already know, like this one. It’s actually just a lullaby.”

He smiled again, eyes flicking up to Lilie’s. He got caught up in her eyes for a second, before he realized he was staring and came to his senses. “I’ll show you!” He suggested, gesturing for her to stay as he retrieved his cello, a chair and some more sheets of staff paper. Waving his hand over one of the new sheets, he muttered, “Ausculto,” and the staff lines began to glow a little, pulsing slightly.

Taking up his bow, Aaron played a quick little melody, just one verse of a common folk song. As he played, the notes wrote themselves on the paper. When he stopped, the glow faded. “How cool is that?” He asked Lilie excitedly, “Way easier than playing, pausing, copying, all that nonsense.”

It was hard to miss Aaron's staring, but she hadn't noticed she was staring back until he spoke. Lowering her face into her hands as he ran to get his instrument, she mentally berated herself. She needed to get a grip, Aaron was going to think she was weird if she kept staring at him!

Lifting her face as she thought she heard him coming back, Lilie smiled politely as he demonstrated for her. He might not have thought it was much, but it was genuinely one of the most amazing things she had ever seen. It was hard not to stare, the joy and passion he had for his playing slightly infectious. But after a few seconds, she realized she had gotten absorbed in his eyes, completely missing what he had said.

“It's…” She screamed at herself, begging her mind to come up with something. What was wrong with her today? “I mean, I just...can't believe you thought of it yourself,” She said sincerely.

Aaron smiled bashfully again. All this praise was a rare thing in his life, and he was sure he could have melted. “Well, I didn’t invent the spell or anything,” he explained, leaning back in his seat. “It’s a pretty simple spell, a lot of people use it to take notes. But I thought it might be useful for this.”

He chuckled, albeit slightly less animatedly than before. “I bet Lucan is jealous he can’t do it.”

Looking up at Lilie, his expression grew more sincere. “Do you play an instrument?” He asked, surprised it had never come up before.

Lilie shook her head, fingers drumming against the wall. It was a genuine question, but hearing it a second time had caught her off guard. “No,” her response was a little on the quieter side, feeling like she was talking to Ben all over again. And like before, she figured she may as well continue the same way. “I like music, but I don't really...I'm not good with my hands.”

Aaron quirked a brow, tilting his head a little and turning in his seat. He could still cradle his cello between his legs, but now he could hook an arm around the back of the chair. “So?” He asked, as if it were obvious, “You don’t need hands to play music. Do you like to sing?”

“Well, yeah, but…” Lilie scratched her cheek for a second, letting out a slight huff that blew her bangs off her face. She supposed that Aaron was just being curious, not judging her every move or seeing her as uneducated. Throwing that aside for the moment, she dropped her arms to her sides. “A little. Mostly in the shower and anytime my friends did karaoke.”

Aaron thought for a moment. He wasn’t sure exactly what karaoke was, but he was certainly intrigued. Lilie was so beautiful, he had no doubt in his mind she would sing like a siren.

Maybe it was a little forward, but he had to ask. “May I hear?”

Lilie was surprised by Aaron outright coming out with it. Shifting her weight from one foot to another, she opened her mouth to respond, but she was at a loss. “I...you want to?” She asked, a little disbelief in her voice. Feeling a little bashful, she let out a laugh. “I don’t know, I’m not incredibly talented or anything, you might regret asking.”

Aaron chuckled. “I sincerely doubt that,” he told her. And it was true; he was pretty sure he could listen to her read off a grocery list and be captivated from start to finish.

“Tell you what,” he suggested, shifting in his seat and picking up his bow. “I can play harmony. So you’re not just singing to nothing, how about it?”

Torn between not wanting Aaron to hear her mediocre singing and very much wanting to hear Aaron play more, Lilie took a moment to consider it. Singing with her friends back home was one thing, but with an instrument and actually talented musician was another thing. But what really seemed to weigh in was not wanting to say ‘no’ to Aaron, not with the way he was looking at her right now.

“...um...okay,” she quietly agreed, giving him a small smile.

Aaron smiled wide, adjusting himself in his seat again and poising himself to start. But as he counted in his head, waiting for a moment to begin, he realized he’d forgotten something rather important.

“...I don’t know what song to play,” he laughed, glancing down at his instrument before looking back up at Lilie. “Any ideas?”

That smile was going to be the death of her if her nerves didn’t strangle the air in her lungs first. Clearing her throat in an effort to compose herself, Aaron brought up a good point. Part of her wanted to use that as a means to escape, but he was so good-natured about it that she actually took a second to stop and think.

“...what was the song you played before?” Lilie decided to ask, having recognized some of it.

Aaron thought for a moment. “The lullaby? That song isn’t in English-- Oh, you meant this one,” he laughed a little at his own mistake, tapping the paper he’d used to demonstrate his spell. Something about this girl always threw him off. “That’s just a folk song, The Parting Glass. Do you know it?” Ever since starting at the Academy he had been learning that a lot of the things he grew up with weren’t exactly commonplace elsewhere, and part of him wondered if the song was too old for most people to know it.

Lilie made a nod of understanding, nodding in response. “Yeah, my grandmother had the record playing the last time I went to see her,” she said, as she pulled out her phone. Granted, it wasn’t something she had expected Aaron to know, but he was just full of surprises. Her eyes lit up as she looked at the lyrics, giving him a rather excited smile. “We can make it a duet!”

Now it was Aaron’s turn to be shy. “You think?” He asked, smiling down at his cello. “Because I actually am a bad singer so you’ll have to be prepared for that.”

Though he was outwardly hesitant, he was more than willing to sing with Lilie if it made her more comfortable. He was willing to do a lot of things to make her happy, he supposed. He lived for that smile of hers; sometimes it was all that got him through the night.

“Alright…” he conceded, looking to her. “How should we split it? Take turns on the verses and do the chorus together?”

Unable to contain her grin, Lilie hopped in place as she agreed. “Sounds good to me!” She said, taking a step back before lifting herself onto the wall, cautiously pulling herself into a seated position as she smoothed out her skirt. It was an excellent trade off in her opinion, though it was mostly comforting that she wouldn’t be going at it alone.

“On your mark, maestro,” she bowed her head to him.

Aaron glanced down again. He could feel his ears burning, and once again he was glad for his moderately long hair. He couldn’t consciously put his finger on it, but there was something about being the one deferred to that made him feel important.

“I’ll even do the first verse for you,” he offered, smiling. He wanted to do everything in his power to make her feel comfortable enough to sing.

Straightening his back, Aaron took a playing posture, taking a moment to remember the tempo. Clearing his throat and tossing a stray lock of hair out of his eyes, he tapped his foot three times and inhaled, starting with a long tone to introduce.

“Of all the money, that e’er I had, I spent it in good company...” It was only after he started singing that he began to play more harmoniously, keeping it simple. He could hold a pitch with his voice, but that was about it; he couldn’t do the fancy riffs that the song was usually sung with, and he’d never been able to figure out vibrato with anything but his cello, but he was more than happy to do it if it meant Lilie would soon be joining him.

“And all the harm, that e’er I’ve done, alas it was to none but me…”

Lilie watched Aaron as he started off, once again mesmerized by the unity of both cello and his voice. He said he was a bad singer, but she found his voice rather pleasant, the baritone going well with the instrument as the song went on. As she listened, she had to consciously remind herself to pay attention, nearly losing track of where he was in the song.

Taking in a breath, she found herself getting somewhat nervous, fingers pulling at her dress, though it was far too late to back out now. “And all I’ve done for want of wit, to memory now I can’t recall…” It started a little quietly, her nerves winning out for a moment until she adjusted herself, their voices singing the melody together. “So fill me to the parting glass: goodnight and joy be with you all…”

Realizing that his voice would be leaving hers on her own, she sat up slightly, unintentionally meeting his eyes and hoping she would steal some of his confidence. “Oh all the comrades that e’er I’ve had, are sorry for going away…” Despite knowing that she probably should have lost it, something about watching Aaron made her feel warm, her heart racing in her chest but doing little to deter her. “And all the sweethearts that e’er I had, would wish me one more day to stay…”

A smile played on Aaron’s lips when he heard Lilie join him, stealing the occasional glance up to her between watching his fingers and the pull of his bow. She outshone him by a lot in the singing department, and he was happy to let her take the lead, considering himself lucky to have been able to hear her.

Their eyes met for a second when it was her time to come in, and Aaron had to look quickly back down so as not to stare. Instead he listened intently, pouring a little more heart into his playing as he began to sway in his seat, wanting to do her voice justice during her solo. When it came time for him to join her again, he instead sung harmony, letting her voice take the spotlight.

“But since it falls unto my lot, that I should rise and you should not;I’ll gently rise and softly call: Goodnight, and joy be with you all…”

He couldn’t help but look back up at her at the end, struggling to stop the smile that tugged at his lips. “Goodnight and joy be with you all.”

Their eyes met once again, and it took Lilie a moment to realize that the song had ended. The quiet that fell between them made her realize just how loudly her heart was feverishly beating, something inside her that felt warm and comforting bursting forward as she unabashedly stared at Aaron. Her hands were to her chest, maybe an unconscious effort to calm herself, though after a few seconds, she finally dropped her gaze, letting out a chuckle.

“That was...you were amazing,” Lilie told him, shaking her head as she looked at him again, her eyes lit up with something resembling admiration.

Aaron held Lilie’s gaze once he stopped playing, an oddly comfortable silence stretching between them. It was as if they were both in their own little worlds, not realizing the other hadn’t said anything. He blinked a few times when she spoke, and shook his head.

“Me? Are you kidding? You sing so beautifully!” He sang her praises shamelessly, leaning back once more in his seat. Maybe it sounded like he was just being nice, or maybe even patronizing, but he meant every word. “Does Count Benjamin know about your talent?”

Whatever high Lilie felt from Aaron praising her suddenly came crashing down as he asked if Ben knew. Her expression fell slightly, and while her smile didn’t go away, it lost a lot of its energy as her eyes darted to her left. Should she be honest? It wasn’t like she had any reason to lie, but it was a sharp reminder of her nights’ events.

After a few seconds, Lilie looked at Aaron again, trying to keep her smile up. “He does, but...He, um, didn’t share your opinion,” She told him quietly, lowering her hands onto her lap. “I got too nervous, so I just stumbled over myself. It was sad, if I’m being honest.”

Aaron’s face fell more pointedly than Lilie’s, and he worried that he’d accidentally struck a nerve. But he could understand completely if she had fumbled in front of her Count; he remembered the evening before the party where he’d played, when Varis had handed him a completely foreign piece and told him he’d be playing it for their guests in just a few short hours. The Count had made Aaron sight read it in front of him, and the sheer weight of his gaze had been enough to make Aaron trip over his own fingers.

“I know the feeling,” he told her, hoping to comfort her. “But Count Benjamin seems understanding, maybe if you explained that you were nervous? I--”

Aaron cut himself off when an alert sounded in his pocket, Varis being his only contact that made a sound rather than just a vibration. Hurriedly he checked his phone, eyes widening.

“--I’m sorry, I have to go,” he rushed out, hurrying to his feet and collecting his things. “But I’d love to do this again sometime, maybe?”

Lilie jumped when she heard the door slam, eyes wide as she spotted the vampire. Aaron’s suggestion made her heart skip a beat, returning some of her enthusiasm as she nodded. “Y-Yeah, of course!” She told him, giving him a genuine smile once again. “Anytime. Ah, anytime you can, I mean, I know you’re usually busy,” she corrected herself as she watched him gather his music.

Aaron smiled, nodding in turn, but turned again to look at Varis, who seemed to be waiting for him. “Great!” He replied simply, waving as he hurried back to the house, belongings in tow.

Lilie returned his wave rather happily, and even though she knew she probably should head back to her own dorm, she stayed where she was for a moment, simply watching Aaron. She wished she had recorded their song; she was much too distracted by Aaron himself, wishing she could have heard his voice on a continuous loop. She wasn't sure what she liked more, his voice or his eyes. The more she thought about it, the more she came to realize that she really liked his eyes. Their color was so peculiar, something that she didn't catch the first time they had met but only when they became friends. They had this brightness to them, making him seem innocent and genuine. Which he was, of course, but she had seen it in his eyes before the rest of him could assure her of that fact. Even when they had been cold in the arena, they were still so full of life. It was hard not to stare, but fortunately he looked at her a lot, so she got a chance to commit the color of his cerulean eyes to memory.

Beep!

Lilie jumped, having been so absorbed in her thoughts that her own text tone had spooked her. As she looked at her phone, she let out a groan. Ben was asking what talent she had chosen so that she could take the appropriate steps to teach her. She didn't want to think about a hobby or talent. She wanted to think about Aaron--

Whoa, that was a first.

Lilie surprised herself with that thought, letting it sit for a while. She wanted to think about Aaron. For some reason that made her feel giddy, or something along those lines as she felt her heart race in her chest. It certainly explained all the fluttering in her stomach as they sang together. But was it right? She felt like it was one sided. They spent a lot of time together, but it was mostly because she often asked for his help. He probably thought she was a burden, or was just too nice to say no. What a depressing thought. But if there was even the slightest chance, wouldn't that be something?

She found herself holding on to that chance a little tighter than she probably should have, even as she finally got down from the wall and returned to her room. Especially as she indulged herself in thinking about his cerulean eyes.

---

When Aaron and Varis finally got back that morning, Aaron took some time after he was dismissed before bed to put his cello and music all properly in order, having had to stow it away in a rush before he left. But as he was organizing the sheet music he’d been working on, he came across the sheet he’d used to demonstrate his technique to Lilie. To his surprise, the page was full, instead of just having the short excerpt at the top of the page as he remembered. It took him a moment of staring for it to dawn on him: he’d forgotten to de-activate the spell!

He read it over multiple times, just to confirm. Indeed, it did look like all those notes came from their duet, with a part for each of them and another underneath for his cello harmony. At first he was ecstatic, glad to have this accidental reminder of their song together. After all, all he could think about the whole night afterwards was her voice, and the way she looked at him as she sang, perched on their property wall like one of the delicate marble garden statues back home. But as he remembered, he realized that there might be a better use for it.

---

Humming to herself, Lilie had to admit that it was hard to get the song out of her head. This time, she left the music for her shower, finishing just as she turned off the water. Grabbing her towel, she mentally went over the night’s events, remembering the way Aaron played. He wanted to do it again, but honestly, if she just got the chance to watch him practice, she would have counted it as a blessing.

Exiting her bathroom, she nearly screamed as she spotted Ben sitting on her bed, completely concentrated on a letter with a curious expression. It wasn’t until her shock wore off that she heard music, and after a few seconds of listening, she realized it had been the duet between herself and Aaron.

Once the last note played out, Ben finally looked up, unphased by her shock and confusion. “This is leagues better than your initial performance,” He said, folding the letter back into the envelope with care. “I'll get in touch with a voice coach, it's safe to say that this will be the skill you'll be refining."

Lilie wasn’t entirely thrilled to find that their talk of privacy went nowhere, but being greeted after a shower to get complimented was a new one. At least he didn’t walk in on her again. Hugging her towel to her, it took longer than it should have for the pieces to connect, Lilie’s face flushed red. “I...okay?”

Taking her words as acceptance, Ben would stand and walk to the door. “If you were nervous before, you should have said so," He said. "I'm happy to get the chance to hear you at your best."

The white haired girl took a second to wrap her head around what happened, having to wait until he left as she smiled to herself. That Aaron was too much, she was going to have to tell him off for recording her like that. Still, she was unbelievably happy, jumping around the room until she found her phone, sending Aaron a quick text:

> Maestro, I’m going to have to pay you back for that! Thank you!!! :D