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For Aaron, the first night of Revel began very quietly. Aaron’s request to use his free night on this had been granted, on very strict conditions that he be out of the house by the time his breakfast was usually delivered and that he not show his face anywhere [i]near[/i] the Sinnenodel dorm until he returned for his curfew. 

Given that Aaron had [i]finally[/i] slept solid through the day for the first time in weeks, the nightmare having finally left him alone (which he credited to his meeting with Ryner), he was feeling pretty good, though he would admit some disappointment at having to get up at his regular time. But no matter; he had a plan. He tiptoed out of the dorm at exactly 8pm and made a beeline for his second home for the night: the infirmary. 

After spending a good chunk of the night crashing on a spare infirmary bed (solid day of sleep or no, he had a lot of rest to catch up on) Aaron finally woke up for the second time around the middle of the night, to a welcomed email alert from the on-campus post office that a package had arrived for him. Right on time; he supposed he’d expect nothing less. The package awaiting him was a sturdy garment bag on a hanger, lacking the regular postage that the rest of the mail required; all it had was a label on the outside, bearing his name and the Noila crest. 

He opened it in one of the Arena locker rooms, where he’d managed to sneak after having to avoid a few water balloons straying from the fight raging on the sand. His eyes widened at the contents; he never knew his mother to cut corners, but she never failed to impress him. Inside was a fine black tuxedo with a lavishly embroidered jacket, dark blue vest and tie and a saturated, royal blue dress shirt to match. There were a pair of nicely polished brogues in the package as well (because of course there were, Revel was the [i]only[/i] time those things weren’t too ridiculous to be seen in public) but what took the cake was the mask. 

His mother knew he would need a mask for a “masquerade” themed Revel, but Aaron didn’t expect anything so… [i]much[/i]. It was a half-face black mask in the shape of a raven’s face, adorned with countless real feathers in an impressive crest (though still modest compared to some masks, only a bit larger than his forehead), but the focal point was the beak; extending down past where his nose would be, the beak was made of glossy black porcelain with a branching crack running diagonally up the middle, repaired as if the pieces had been glued back together with gold. 

Aaron took a moment to admire the mask, turning it over in his hands delicately and looking on with a mixture of amusement and awe. It was no secret that his mother had chosen the pieces with a Noilan theme - the royal colours and raven motif weren’t exactly subtle - and Aaron had to admit, the familiarity was endearing. When he turned the mask over, there was a note fastened to the inside of it, and reading it, Aaron smirked. 

[center][color=ffae3d][i]Hopefully these will help you make the most of your [u]free[/u] night. 
XOXO,
			Mom[/i][/color][/center]