[h2][center][b][color=gray]Aftermath[/color][/b][/center][/h2]
[right][sub]Interacting with: [Trainerblue192][Obscene Symphony][/sub][/right]

Aaron lifted his head from his hands with a shaky breath when Salem got to him, looking down at the other man with a mix of confusion and irritation plain on his face. [color=f0d705]“Good lord, who cares about [i]me?[/i]”[/color] he asked bitterly, nudging Salem aside so he could crouch on the floor by his aunt. 

His expression immediately softened towards her and he took her hand urgently. [color=f0d705]“Aunt Dora, are you alright?”[/color] He asked her, concern clear in his voice, [color=f0d705]“What happened to you?”[/color]

Dora, who had just [i]barely[/i] been holding it together while the Princess was around, simply let out a little wine as fresh tears began to flow, covering her mouth with her hand and squeezing her eyes shut. 

[color=f0d705]“No!”[/color] Aaron scrambled to his aunt’s level, perching himself on the corner of her seat and pulling her into his arms. [color=f0d705]“No, hey, don't do that!”[/color] He pleaded with her, gently rocking. She buried her face in his shoulder, grasping weakly at his clothes as a few sobs shook her. 

 Salem shook his head slightly as Aaron rushed off without having his wounds tended to. [Color=82ca9d]"There's nothing I can do for her...tell me, what is her affinity?”[/color] He slowly stood up and walked over to the pair, wondering what could cause a sudden spike in pain and the just as quickly leave. 

Aaron followed Salem with his eyes as he circled around, though he continued to do his best to comfort his aunt. But Salem’s question reminded him of something, and he mentally kicked himself for not having thought of it sooner. He reached under Dora’s veil, careful not to dislodge it, and after a brief search through her hair pulled out a gold ornamental hairpin, a round pink crystal faintly glowing in the setting. When he placed it on the table, the glow faded and Dora seemed to relax slightly. 

[color=f0d705]“Emotion,”[/color] he stated simply, jerking his head toward the pin on the table, [color=f0d705]“She can sense and influence emotion. That’s her casting medium, without it she should calm down a little.” [/color]

As if on cue, Dora pulled herself away from Aaron, producing a handkerchief from somewhere and dabbing at her eyes. [color=ec008c]“It was that [i]devil,[/i]”[/color] she spat when she’d recovered, more wickedly than one might expect from such an otherwise matronly woman. Even without her magic, her emotions had always changed like the wind. [color=ec008c]“Heavens help those poor souls…”[/color]

Aaron’s brow furrowed with concern, but he could tell that he shouldn’t press the issue. [color=f0d705]“You’re alright now though, right?”[/color] He asked her.

[color=ec008c]“Yes dear, I’m fine,”[/color] Dora insisted, though Aaron wasn’t entirely convinced. Dora tucked away her handkerchief and shifted in her seat to look at him. Her expression was overcome with something like worry, and she cupped his face in her hands with motherly concern. [color=ec008c]“But sweetheart, you…”[/color]

[color=f0d705]“Hey now, none of that,”[/color] Aaron gently scolded, taking one of her hands from his face and kissing it to comfort her. [color=f0d705]“I’m fine, don’t you start worrying about me.”[/color]

[color=ec008c]“Aaron, you’re [i]not[/i] fine!”[/color] Dora insisted, concern turning to indignation, [color=ec008c]“Look at you, you’ve been nothing but a bundle of nerves since you came here. You’re all cut up, and that [i]snake[/i]--”[/color]

[color=f0d705]“Hey,”[/color] Aaron was a little firmer this time, though there was no malice to it. [color=f0d705]“Come on, we can’t be talking like that, you know that.”[/color]

[Color=82ca9d]"She has a point however. More importantly, Isadora...never mind. This isn’t the place to ask, nor is it my place to involve you in the mess I've created for myself. Aaron, leave her be, the last thing an empath needs after her ordeal is to also deal with your emotions, let alone mine.”[/color] Salem moved away from the pair and back towards where Aaron had sat before. [Color=82ca9d]"Now, let's get that glass out of you. Honestly I'm not sure what you were thinking.”[/color]

Aaron leveled a look on Salem. Who the hell did he think he was, telling him how to deal with his own family? [color=f0d705]“I was [i]thinking[/i] that my aunt was in pain,”[/color] he shot back, with a little more acid than was probably needed. However, Dora seemed to understand, and she worked her way out of Aaron’s grasp, standing. 

[color=ec008c]“I really am fine, dear,”[/color] she assured Aaron, touching his cheek again. [color=ec008c]“I’ll leave you boys be, see what's taking that doctor so long.”[/color] She leveled her own look on her nephew. [color=ec008c]“Let him help you.”[/color]

Aaron stood as well, reluctantly accepting things and giving his aunt a quick kiss on the cheek. [color=f0d705]“Okay,”[/color] he conceded, handing her her hairpin. Glancing back to Salem for a second, he moved so he was blocking Dora from his view and lowered his voice. 

[color=f0d705]“Aunt Dora, you can [i]not[/i] tell Mom about any of this,”[/color] he insisted, a touch of urgency to his voice. 

Dora furrowed her brow. [color=ec008c]“Aaron, I can't just lie to her!”[/color] 

Aaron gave her a pleading look. [color=f0d705]“Please, Dora, you know how she can get. I don't think she could handle another lapse.”[/color]

Dora looked conflicted, but ultimately conceded. [color=ec008c]“...Very well. But [i]you’re[/i] going to have to figure out a way to tell her, because you know she’ll find out eventually.”[/color]

Aaron nodded, and he pulled his aunt once more into a hug. Who knew when he would see her again? Trying not to dwell on it, he cleared his throat. [color=f0d705]“Take care,”[/color] he told her, letting her go. 

Dora nodded and offered him a little smile. [color=ec008c]“You too, Sunshine.”[/color] She leaned around him, looking to Salem. [color=ec008c]“Be wise, Mr. Spellman,”[/color] she called to him, before offering a habitual curtsy and leaving the room. 

Aaron waited until the servant’s door had firmly closed before he took his seat again, taking a deep breath before looking to Salem. [color=f0d705]“What were you going to ask her?”[/color]

Salem pulled out his phone once more and began to compose a message. It read [b]“There are prying ears all around, best not to speak this allowed. I needed to know what she knew of the Sinnenodel’s, their business here, and why Varis kept repeating the same word over and over again.”[/b] [Color=82ca9d]"Your number.”[/color] he said as he was typing, giving Aaron a cheeky wink as he turned his phone over for him to read.

Aaron looked between Salem and his phone suspiciously as he typed, quirking a brow when he winked. Goodness, this one’s mood changed quick. He took the phone cautiously, though his expression turned to one of confusion as he read. Salem was smart to hide his message, but it still confused him.

[color=f0d705]“Right, would have come in handy earlier,”[/color] Aaron replied, tapping out his own message as he spoke. [b]“She’s not normally the Queen’s attendant, she wouldn’t know. We don’t know any more about the Sinnenodels than anyone else, just gossip. And what are you talking about? What word?”[/b]

[color=f0d705]“I’m sorry we left you at the arena, by the way,”[/color] he added, handing the phone back. [color=f0d705]“I asked Sir Bordeleaux to relay my apology. Lilie was taken somewhere by an administrator after our match, and I had to go get ready for this [i]joyous[/i] occasion.”[/color]

[Color=82ca9d]"[i]Riiiight[/i], Well, I actually have seen him since the Arena either. Just waited around for a while for you two until some school...kids? Showed up and thought I was being harrassed by a mage. It's been one hell of a first day for me.”[/color] Salem took his phone back and read the message before typing up [b]“Noon, Something is up, I can just tell. And this Red Hand nonsense? I've never known Varis to try to help anyone but himself...no, there’s definitely more to all this.”[/b]

Aaron bristled a bit at the tone, but decided to let it go. He’d been wondering where Lucan was himself. He ran a hand along his throat as he took the phone back, taking a deep breath to quell the anxiety in his chest. [color=f0d705]“Likewise,”[/color] he replied bitterly, typing. [b]“It’s nobility. There’s always more to it. You’ll have to get used to it.”[/b]

He paused for a second before handing the phone back, thinking back to what Salem had said to get himself into all of this. [b]“I don’t think it was a Red Hand agent that got you. When I went to Dora, I think the same thing happened to me. Count Varis warned me earlier about Lady Sinnenodel and her mages. ‘Skilled in the art of telepathy’.”[/b] [color=f0d705]“I’m sorry you had to wait. Hopefully tomorrow will go more smoothly for everyone.”[/color] He stated, handing the phone back. [color=f0d705][i]If I even live to see it.[/i][/color]

Salem read the messages displayed on his screen before putting his phone away. He stopped tending to Aaron's knee for a moment, his head held low, speaking in a low voice [Color=82ca9d]"You should’ve said something...maybe not…”[/color] Salem reached into his waistcoat and pulled out a Spellman Spray Anti-bacterial Disinfectant and spritzed it onto Aaron's knee before taking his pocket square and bandaging the wound with it. [Color=82ca9d]"There. Sorry, I don’t have any Loli's with me.”[/color]

Aaron quirked a brow. He hadn’t the foggiest idea what that meant. [color=f0d705]“Thank you,”[/color] he murmured, fixing his pants and shifting in his seat before leveling a glare on the plant mage. [color=f0d705]“And said what? To whom?”[/color] he hissed, voice low. [color=f0d705]“Salem, I serve the Sinnenodels now. I am [i]entirely[/i] under their… [i]my[/i] Lady’s jurisdiction. I can’t just go speaking against her! What were you thinking?!”[/color] A hint of anger snuck its way into his voice, though perhaps it was ill-placed. 

[Color=82ca9d]"I was [i]thinking[/i] that I am my own person, I have my own morals, and that I [i]will[/i] speak out against those who treat others like less than. [i]That[/i] is what I was thinking.”[/color] Salem stood up and moved over to the chair next to Aaron, sitting down with one leg crossed over the other. [Color=82ca9d]"Maybe I should've brought cricket along with me.”[/color]

Aaron was once again confused, but his confusion was curtailed by a sudden wave of sympathy. [color=f0d705]“Salem, I’m sorry, but you’re not your own person anymore,”[/color] he informed him, taking a deep breath. [color=f0d705]“You’re an attendant now. You’re a representative of Sir Bordeleaux, and an extension of his family. A family which answers directly to the Queen.”[/color] His voice darkened a touch with warning. [color=f0d705]“You can’t just fly in the face of everything she stands for! Good lord, you should be glad your head isn’t on a spike!”[/color] A touch of anger borne of concern snuck into his voice again, and he sighed, leaning his head in his hand. 

[color=f0d705]“I truly am sorry about what happened to you,”[/color] he said sincerely, [color=f0d705]“I wish I could have warned you. But you brought it on yourself.”[/color]

[Color=82ca9d]"Only because mages, like you, are unwilling to even attempt for change. It may not be a popular opinion, but it is a good one. So long as mages remain complacent,  the world can never [i]truly[/i] progress, and things like tonight”[/color] Salem gestured around the room and towards the empty spot where Lady Sinnenodel previously sat [color=82ca9d]“will continue to occur, and more mages will lose freedom, assets, what have you, all because someone felt the need to stay subjugated.”[/color]

[color=f0d705]“I quite like my head where it is, thank you,”[/color] Aaron replied bitterly, wringing his neck once again. His fingers found the Sinnenodel pendant laying there, turning it for a moment before he irritably let it drop. [color=f0d705]“And yes, things like this will continue to occur. Mages will continue to lose their freedom and assets, you’re right. Because this is how things [i]have[/i] to be.”[/color]

He leveled an indignant glare on Salem. [color=f0d705]“Do you think I’m an idiot? That I don’t know mages are practically enslaved? I’m [i]quite[/i] familiar. But I’m proud of where I stand. My whole family is. Because we understand that without mages to take the arrow, the vampires will set their sights on [i]everyone[/i], and things will go back to the way they were before the Treaty. Vampires will hunt humans like game and mankind will cower in fear, just like they did before.”[/color] He sat back in his seat.

[Color=82ca9d]"So because they have no morals, we must sit back and allow the world to be run by fear? It’s clear that [i]some[/i] of these vampires have decency and morals much like we do, well I do. If we allow them, along with magekind, to have equal say, then we could keep the more radical of both groups cornered so that no one should live in fear.”[/color]

Salem confused Aaron to no end. Was he truly so insulated to the reality of what he was suggesting? [color=f0d705]“Did you see what happened here tonight? Vampires as a whole will [i]never[/i] accept equality. They will accept nothing short of total subjugation. You should be thankful for what rights we [i]do[/i] have; we only have them by the grace of the Council. Because if they wanted to, the vampires could snatch everything away, and that is a fight that humanity [i]will[/i] lose.”[/color] Aaron crossed his arms. [color=f0d705]“Be glad that Queen Anastasia is the one on the throne. Believe it or not, she and her family are exceptionally kind. We might not be afforded the same luxuries otherwise.”[/color] He regretting having to be so harsh with Salem. Honestly, he had been beginning to like him. But he would not stand for him smearing the Treaty and the Noilas, even if it meant losing the possibility of any sort of friendship. 

The life mage that was called for entered the room silently. Salem fell silent as she walked across the room, a mix of both not knowing what to say as well as not wanting to speak before her. She glided over towards Aaron, healing his minor injuries before leaving once again. Salem opened his mouth to speak and the stopped short before actually saying anything. He turned away from Aaron and waved his hand at him [color=82ca9d]”Believe what you will. It's gotten you this far, let's hope it doesn’t get you killed for the sake of duty.”[/color]

Aaron quietly thanked the life mage before she took her leave, staying silent as Salem said his piece. As infuriating as the plant mage’s disregard for reality was, he couldn’t help but feel a pang of sympathy. This was a man who was thrust into a world he was probably unfamiliar with, and he’d just been cut off completely from everyone and everything he loved. Aaron supposed, in a strange way, that he could empathize. But he’d never been good at this sort of thing, and he didn’t know what to say. 

Another servant came in bearing the food that Princess Ryner had promised, but Aaron stood and stopped the man before he could set out the plates. [color=f0d705]“Please relay our thanks and apologies to Her Royal Highness, but if Mr. Spellman is ready, I think it’s time we were going.”[/color] He looked over to Salem expectantly. 

Salem eyed the Osso and then Aaron, with almost puppy dog like eyes, [color=82ca9d]”We could have...one bite. It’d be a shame to waste the food honestly, besides I've had nothing to eat today really.”[/color]

Aaron nodded and the servant continued his work, sitting down again. He certainly couldn’t eat, his stomach was far too jumpy, but he was content to stick around as Salem did. Of course, he also didn’t have much of a choice. But as the silence between them stretched on, the pit in Aaron’s stomach only grew deeper as the shame and fear from the night’s events crept up on him again, twisting his gut in knots. He had never been so humiliated; he had thoughtlessly disobeyed his master, he’d had his memories sifted through, been manhandled and berated in front of everyone, and good lord, he’d needed the [i]Princess[/i] to come to his rescue. He wasn’t sure he’d ever been so ashamed of himself in his life, and considering his existing punishment, he had a sneaking suspicion that everything Varis had done to him so far was only a gentle prelude to what awaited him when he got home. 

Drawing a shaky breath, he leaned his face on his hand again, staring at the table. [color=f0d705]“...I’m sorry you had to see all that,”[/color] he muttered, rubbing his neck. 

Salem finished polishing off his plate, after eating ravenously with no one else around. Aaron muttered something to himself that Salem wasn’t quite sure who it was directed towards. He looked about the room until his eyes fell back on Aaron. [Color=82ca9d]"See what? You be human? It's a shame no one else could honestly. Funny...who knew a light mage would harbor so much darkness within. Then again...given your partner, [i]master[/i], I don’t blame you. Shall we?”[/color]

Aaron looked up at Salem quizzically. It was as if the man only spoke in riddles. But Aaron supposed his intentions were kind, and he nodded and stood, crossing over to the dining room door and speaking with the guard he knew would be there. Almost immediately, he was informed that a car was waiting for them, and he turned back to Salem, gesturing towards the door. [color=f0d705]“Let’s go, then.”[/color]