Madalyne waltzed up towards them, tension clear in her face and on her shoulders. Dorian hadn't expected the punch, but it came all the same. He was in shock, unsure of how to take that as he began to wonder just how ‘heroic’ some of these students truly were. To hit a defenseless person, villain or not, was uncalled for. Her words stung him just as much as he figured that punch had stung Arcade's cheek. Resonating with the thoughts he was already having about the entire situation. It made him nervous for whatever was about to happen next. Dorian could take some of his classmates if it really came down to it, but he was greatly outnumbered and sorely didn't want to damage any bridges that he had been building over the year.
It was his luck that Danni had come to his rescue, if even a bit threatening without meaning to to Arcade, but helpful all the same. But with Danni at his side, Dorian felt more at ease, mote confident in his ability to hold strong and defend Ed if need be. More so if April joined, but she stood frozen in place for now. He wanted to call her over, ask her to help them stand strong, The Triumphant Trio, The Three Musketeers, The Triumvirates. But before he could, the silence that had been building was broken by a screech. Vicky clearly wasn't happy with the decision, saying something about having killed someone, yet everyone was here and alive. Had something happened within the game? Any further pulls on that string would be immediately halted as he heard her last sentence.
Heroism is overated. Did she truly think that the answer to all this was more villainy?
He'd have turned to say something to her, to try and talk to her to see where her head was at, but he didn't dare take his eyes off of Arcade. The room was still too tense to leave him be. Even that small of a distraction was enough for Sabine to close the distance on them slightly before she just stopped and closed her eyes. Dorian's hands gripped into a fist, sweat beginning to form on his temples as he feared the worst. His parents had warned them both about telepathy and mentalists. The Kingstons had been plagued by them for years, every imaginable way from torture to removing autonomy to creating fully new persona's withing them. He was waiting for the shoe to drop, when Sabine soon opened her eyes, the edge still there but a softness hiding behind it. Contentment? She claimed Arcade had changed, perhaps she saw it inside of him with her powers and chose to voice it for those who didn't believe. That's what Dorian chose to believe. That would have to be his truth, because the alternative was unspeakable.
Zari's comment served as a distraction, welcome change of thought from what Sabine may have done. Though he didn't understand a word she said. It was confusing as hell and he wasn't sure of the state of Usagi now. Had something occurred while they were in the tanks? He wanted to ask, to press for more information. But Zelda's soft voice cut through in the empty room. How could she say that? Her family tree was full of Villains who had a change of heart. She of all people should know that. Her own grandfather used to run a group called The Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, a gang of mutants and miscreants that went around causing harm. If one of the greatest villains in X-men history could change, surely someone who was just starting on the path could.
But there was no point in arguing now. No point in saying anything towards Zelda or anyone. Too much was happening too fast. Zari was speaking nonsense while fiddling with her watch, several others began to leave, Ed was having a breakdown, and April, his best friend, was having a panic attack. Dorian didn't know what to do. What triggered it? He couldn't leave Ed alone, not with the others who still looked at him with hateful eyes, but he wanted to be by April's side, to help her, yet so many were already there and too many crowding her could make things worse. He was stuck, torn between duty and friendship, and he had no idea how to answer this quam. So ignoring the threats his boyfriends sister had just said to him, he gripped Ed's hand and tried to drag him with him towards April, just enough to let her know that he was there.
”April, talk to me, what's ‘appenin? What's goin’ t'rough your mind?”