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Tyler stuck dutifully by his Scion throughout the proceedings, in no small part because Lucas felt the need to incense the Scion of Earth and would probably repeat the stunt with the others that came after him. Now who was pulling someone off someone else? Tyler doubted the little prick was nearly as tough as his mouth was - not that he had high hopes for most of the guests Lucas would feasibly piss off either - but that still meant [i]he'd[/i] be the one eating the punch. 

Well, he wouldn't let that spoil the evening for him. There were seething people to wave at, after all. It was a mercy his face was covered and all the attention would be on the Scions for the time being, he'd caught his fill of flak for the day, and the event had barely begun. Lucas wasn't very well-received either, and Tyler almost felt sorry for him as he stepped back in line. Almost. The prince probably deserved every ounce of hate he got, but it made Tyler's job harder all the same. Truly the worst brand of solidarity.

Of course, the troubles of a public appearance had nothing on the scathing harpies that would await at the afterparty. Dipshit journalists and civilians who barely pay attention offer only the most banal criticisms, but the guests of any party that a Scion would bother to attend were certain to all be in the know. The discussion was about as riveting as Tyler had hoped; Lucas sucked, Theodore was amazing, the Mother works in mysterious ways, hardest battles, strongest soldiers, blah, blah, blah. He needed a drink.

Tyler kept mostly to himself, amicable but making no social overtures that may draw attention to him - better to keep the spotlight on his wonderful Scion - until he spotted the very man of the hour sulking in a chair. Ooh, he must've been getting slaughtered out there.

Naturally, Tyler draped himself across the back of the prince's chair, wiggling a half-emptied champagne flute in front of him to get his attention. [color=00ccff]"What was that about thicker skin you were saying earlier?"[/color] he mused innocently, [color=00ccff]"You know it'll only get worse if you let them see you squirm, Your Highness."[/color]

Theo had been so [i]easy[/i]. Tyler only had to play along and not cause any ripples while his Scion won over the room, and then they'd both go home and he'd make stupid conversation about the event in question while Theo politely pretended he wasn't laughing at any mean-spirited commentary. It certainly never involved babysitting a grump that everyone else was even more fed up with than he was. This wasn't a partnership, it was a fight for dominance that Tyler didn't intend to concede.

After that, maybe - [i]maybe[/i] - they could talk about solidarity.

[hr][@Hero]