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Count Benjamin’s compliment did not go unnoticed, but bound as he was waiting for leave from Eris, Aaron was unable to acknowledge it. Eris was certainly taking his time, too; if Aaron didn’t know any better, he’d think the answer to his question was written on his chest in Mandarin and Eris needed a moment to translate. 

While the actor deliberated, Aaron did his best to keep tabs on what was going on in the living room. Conversation down the hall had definitely picked up—talking about the clock that materialized from a hole in space, no doubt—but with conversation in the parlour matching suit, it was hard to make out anything usable. He’d lost track of the sound of the clock ticking, too, but that wasn’t as much of a concern. Time marched on at its cruel and gruelling pace the same as ever; Aaron didn’t need a clock to feel [i]that[/i]. 

Distracted as he was, though, Aaron didn’t notice Eris reaching for him until he snaked his hand down his arm. He caught Eris’ look just long enough to see that he was planning something [i]bad[/i] before he was yanked off his feet, the world a blur until he landed unceremoniously in Eris’ lap. 

Lucky for him, there was no time to cry out in surprise. His reflexes took care of what was most important, avoiding shattering five crystal glasses by sheer force of luck and preventing the neutral bottle from flying across the room by grabbing its neck and all but driving it into his tray. It certainly wasn’t the most elegant recovery, but the glasses were intact, and he didn’t spill a drop. It took a second to get the air back into his lungs after his life flashed before his eyes, and another to free up one hand to fix his hair, and by that time Eris was batting his eyelashes and declaring that no, he wouldn’t let Aaron go just yet. 

Aaron’s stomach turned at the statement, and it took all he had to resist checking his watch yet again for how many minutes remained to him before Varis put a stake through his heart. Immediately his mind started racing, searching desperately for a way out of this. If he let Eris do as he pleased, he’d be here all night with an eccentric actor running his fingers through his hair—sun and stars, it was hard enough to stop him doing that on a regular night on campus—Malek’s alarm would sound, and the night would have to end early so Varis could have ample time to plan out his mage’s untimely demise. If he rebuffed Eris’ advances, he’d get an earful about anticipating guests’ needs and being charming and accommodating and whatever other adjectives Varis could dig out of his pocket. Aaron considered some lame, middle-of-the road excuse about not wanting to make Eris uncomfortable, but that wouldn’t work either; a vampire could comfortably cradle a hatchback in their lap, there was no way one 175lb man would give him any trouble.

Ugh. Eris was doing this on purpose and he knew it—Aaron would think Varis put him up to it as a test if it wasn’t for the fact that this was far from the [i]first[/i] lecherous look the actor had shot his way.

[color=f0d705]“I’m honoured by your attention, Mr. Samael. Any other night I’d be happy to oblige,”[/color] he finally began, opting to start with the safest bet while he worked out the rest. He took a second to re-balance his tray, the motion both grounding him and drawing the eye to the glitter of his focus ring. [color=f0d705]“But regrettably, as tonight’s only attendant, I must prioritize my duties.”[/color]

Moderately confident he was on the right track, Aaron carefully untangled himself from Eris, standing and moving smoothly into a bow. He wanted nothing more than to end his excuse there, but he knew that wouldn’t be enough for Varis. This was a dry run of his future duties as a show mage, the guests stand-ins for serious political bigwigs that needed to be wooed and impressed; unfortunately for him, there was no room for half-assing anything. 

Swallowing what little scrap was left of his dignity, he let his look darken just a touch, still polite but notably more suggestive. [color=f0d705]“Of course, should your interest persist and my Master agree to it,”[/color] he added, just barely quieter than before, [color=f0d705]“I’d be more than happy to arrange some time for you once the night’s events have concluded.”[/color] 

Eris watched the blond with much interest, leaning back as he watched Aaron for a second. There was nothing but pure amusement on his face, a wry smile on his face as he contemplated his words. [color=ccff99]“That sounds good to me,”[/color] The actor happily agreed, and for a second, there was an odd, hungry look in his eye. [color=ccff99]“I’ll very much look forward to that.”[/color]

[i]Ugh.[/i] As happy as he should have been that Eris agreed to release him, Aaron was all but paralyzed by that [i]look[/i], the same shiver snaking up his spine as he’d gotten when he first met the actor, on his knees after Treaty Law on the first night of classes. There was nothing good in that look: it was the look people gave a statue they were considering buying, or a particularly expensive cut of meat. 

Still, twisted up as he was, Aaron did well not to show it. He thanked Eris calmly and rose easily from his bow, turning on his heel toward the kitchen with bottle and glasses in tow. The brief glance he caught of Varis on his way made it clear he’d been watching that little test intently, appraising his response. Unfortunately, it was impossible to tell yet if he’d passed or failed. 

Aaron all but collapsed in the kitchen, managing to safely deposit his tray before having to grip the edge of the countertop to stabilize himself. He felt like he’d been holding his breath for five solid minutes, horrible images of shattered crystal still swam in his head, and every sordid story he’d heard about those little after-party [i]excursions[/i] twisted his stomach in knots. But he made it out, no broken glasses, no spurned guests, and with a few minutes to spare. For the moment, that would have to do. 

Aaron allowed himself only a few seconds in the kitchen to compose himself before straightening up and striding back into the living room, face clear and attentive as if nothing had happened. Unfortunately, where he expected to find a gaggle of confused mages and a ticking clock, he found only a gaggle of confused mages and a pile of debris on the coffee table. 

The shock broke through even his carefully composed expression, eyes wide and face unreadable as he approached, glancing around at each mage. [color=f0d705]“What happened here?”[/color]
[right][sub][@Hero] [@Achronum] and the mages[/sub][/right]