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Hm, this woman wasn’t pulling any punches, was she? Aaron was quite familiar with personal jabs - the last few weeks with Varis and Max floating around guaranteed that - but he was more used to the aristocratic tradition of thinly veiling one’s insults in public rather than laying them out for all the world to see.

Still cordial as ever, Aaron had just opened his mouth to respond when his partner sniffed at the air rather brazenly, attention locked somewhere at the edge of the ballroom. With little more than some rude parting words she slid out of his grip, disappearing into the crowd and leaving Aaron alone. A small, strangled noise of protest died in Aaron’s throat as he watched her go, glaring at the spot where she disappeared before opting to clear off the dance floor with a single indignant tug on his lapel. Maybe she wasn’t as highborn as he thought; she had the verbiage down, but clearly not the class. He was a mage, sure, but stranding one’s dance partner like that still made [i]her[/i] look bad.

Choosing not to dwell on it, Aaron went back to watching the dancers, sticking to the wall and glancing from pair to pair until a streak of white caught his eye at the edge of the dance floor, some distance away. White and gold, actually; long white hair tumbling in waves down the back of a golden yellow chiffon dress with an exquisite train, though it didn’t take long after seeing a pair of big blue eyes peeking out of a golden mask for Aaron to realize who it was.

Rude vampiresses forgotten, an excited smile immediately formed on Aaron’s face at the sight of her. He hadn’t expected [i]Lilie[/i] to be here! He had considered catching up to her sometime during the festivities, but when he’d asked she hadn’t known what she’d be doing, and he didn’t want to freak her out by chasing her around campus. But it really seemed like the stars were aligning to give him a lucky break, bringing Lilie to a ball in a gorgeous gold gown, where it would be appropriate to ask her to dance.

With a burst of courage he hadn’t felt since arriving at the Academy, Aaron schooled his expression (or at least, what part of it was visible under his raven mask) into something more polite than exuberance, instead painting on the same little smile he’d been wearing moments before. He strode over to her with his head held high, but slowed a bit as he approached her, clasping his hands behind his back as he came to a halt directly behind her. He was a little amused at the fact that he was nearly a head taller than her, though the plume of gold feathers protruding from the top of her mask made up the difference. She was talking to some people, but for once he wasn’t scared to interrupt.

[color=f0d705]“I must say, I wasn’t expecting you here tonight,”[/color] he told her, heart fluttering in his chest as he tried his best to be smooth.

The group Lilie had found herself with was a pleasant one, and she found herself listening along to a story about something that had happened in a previous class. It was a funny story, but she wondered if she could really spend the entire night listening to stories from people without having anything to contribute. She felt like she should have taken up Salem's offer, at least with friends she would've had more fun. Well, at the very least she could say she did give it an earnest try, and if she was honest, it wasn’t all bad!

A familiar voice caused Lilie to turn around, though she nearly jumped in place. Instead of the kind Aaron she was used to seeing, instead a fair haired gentleman in a raven’s mask was in his place. Her first thought was that a bird man had come to prey on her, somewhat alarming her. As soon as she saw those cerulean colored eyes of his, however, she relaxed immensely, giggling at her own silliness.

[color=deepskyblue]“Aaron!”[/color] She was probably a little [i]too[/i] excited to see him, but seeing a familiar face was always a pleasant surprise. Taking a few seconds to look at his outfit, she had to admit she was impressed. His suit was gorgeous, the blue looking fantastic on him. The feathered mask wasn’t as scary as she initially thought, and she mentally chided herself for getting spooked.

She excused herself from the group, giving him her full attention. [color=deepskyblue]“You look great!”[/color] She told him happily, clasping her hands together in front of her. Of course, she realized why he was surprised, and she immediately shook her head. [color=deepskyblue]“I know, I'm sorry, I just heard that you'd be here, too,”[/color] She apologized, not wanting him to think she had been trying to avoid him. [color=deepskyblue]“I didn't think [i]I'd[/i] be here, either. But here we are!”[/color]

That same excited smile came right back when Lilie greeted him happily; it was a smile that seemed to only come about for her. Aaron wasn’t sure what she was apologizing for, though. She had just made his night.

[color=f0d705]“Thank you,”[/color] he replied to her compliment before gesturing to her. [color=f0d705]“But [i]you[/i] look absolutely stunning,”[/color] he assured her, only now noticing that her mask had a golden peacock motif. He pointed between their two masks, remarking, [color=f0d705]“Hey, we’re both birds!”[/color]

He chuckled a bit at the statement, but moved on quickly, deciding that was probably lame. Spotting a live flower rooted into Lilie’s dress, he pointed it out. [color=f0d705]“I see Salem got to you too,”[/color] he remarked, grinning.

Aaron's compliment got Lilie to smile again; what a charmer! At the mention of their shared bird motif, her hand went up to her mask as she realized he was right. Of course, she wasn't going to mention that she thought he was initially a giant raven bird man coming to steal her soul, but fortunately he would move on from that topic. Lilie looked down to where Aaron gestured, looking back at him with a nod. [color=deepskyblue]"Isn't it pretty? He offered me another one, but I felt like just the one was good enough, I didn't want people getting the wrong idea,"[/color] She said, deciding to run off on Aaron's observation.

[color=f0d705]“The wrong idea?”[/color] Aaron asked, [color=f0d705]“What do you mean?”[/color]

She pointed to the flower and then at herself. [color=deepskyblue]"Because it's a lily! And I'm a Lilie!"[/color] She beamed at her own joke. [color=deepskyblue]"Well, Lily with an I and an E, but still. Cause walking around with a bunch of lilies…you know?"[/color]

[color=f0d705]“Ah! I see,”[/color] Aaron laughed politely, less and the joke and more at how pleased with herself Lilie looked when she told it. It was absolutely adorable, and it warmed his heart to see her so happy.

Delighted that Aaron appreciated her joke, Lilie gave him a bright smile, examining his mask. When her eyes wandered down to the unexposed part of his face, she suddenly remembered what Cassandra told her. She looked around, making sure neither she nor Salem were close before leaning in towards Aaron. [color=deepskyblue]"So I heard that you and Salem--that you two, uh,"[/color] She lowered her voice to a whisper. [color=deepskyblue][i]"Kissed.”[/i][/color]

Aaron had to lean down so he could hear Lilie’s whisper over the din, but he straightened as she finished, brow furrowed under his mask. It took a moment for him to connect the dots.

[color=f0d705]“Oh!”[/color] He exclaimed when it clicked, tossing his head back in laughter. [color=f0d705]“Yeah, he [i]really[/i] wanted to dance, and kissed me on the cheek when we were done.”[/color] He pulled out his phone, chuckling as he found the picture he and Salem has taken on orientation night, and turned it around for Lilie to see. [color=f0d705]“He did it on orientation night too, I think it’s just something he does.”[/color]

Taking the phone from Aaron to get a better look, Lilie was surprised that it was just for a picture. It looked like a friendly kiss on the cheek, not at all as intimate as she had assumed. As she handed the phone back to Aaron, her free hand touched her lips. The kiss Salem gave her was [i]definitely[/i] a little more risque, but now she was wondering if maybe she misinterpreted it.

[color=deepskyblue]"He kissed me, too, so I assumed it was the same,"[/color] Lilie admitted. [color=deepskyblue]"Although his wasn't on my cheek, it was here,"[/color] She pointed to the corner of her lip.

Aaron’s first thought was of how [i]inappropriate[/i] a kiss like that would be; Salem’s little cheek kisses were odd enough as it was - he struck Aaron like a quirky old vampire rather than a mage whenever he did that - but the spot Lilie indicated seemed… invasive, to say the very least. His face fell a touch at the information, unnoticeable under the mask, as a strange flash of anger struck him. Or, that wasn’t quite right. He was more annoyed than he felt like he should be, seeing as Lilie didn’t seem any worse for wear, so maybe he was just overly concerned for her comfort. Or…

Was he jealous?

[color=f0d705]“Well, I have it on good authority that Salem’s been drinking,”[/color] he replied smoothly, flashing Lilie a cavalier smile. [color=f0d705]“He probably just missed.”[/color] Aaron inwardly chided himself for his foolishness. Of all people in the world to be jealous about, [i]Salem[/i] was not one.

[color=f0d705]“And while I have you here,”[/color] he added, glancing back to the dance floor as the music ended and the couples broke apart and paired up again. He turned back to Lilie and held out a white-gloved hand, the other neatly behind his back, the very picture of regal elegance and propriety. [color=f0d705]“May I have this dance?”[/color]