BlossomBall: Student Edition PV Closed

The people here were disconcerting. A boy that seemed familiar, but not familiar enough to warrant Kaegen actually remembering his name looked towards him, and made a statement about the good food. Kaegen’s pupils moved smoothly to the side, nestling themselves in the corners of his eyes. His face remained directed at the food, but the tired, piercing eyes were directed at the boy.

He wasn’t entirely sure if the boy was going to say something else, or maybe give some kind of hint as to what he was alluding to. Was it a sign, a social cue that meant the food was poisoned? An ironic statement commenting on how good the food was masking the deadly potion secreted within?

Kaegen put down the plate of food he had started to make. He was missing something, he had to be missing something. Balls were something he was not familiar with, they were a kind of unknown that he did not control. He didn’t control the mists either, but at least they were in his favor. He could navigate their uncertainty with surprising confidence. Balls were another matter entirely.

There were probably codes and systems in place already. Codes and systems that Kaegen was completely oblivious to. Everyone else, however, seemed to know what was going on, as another girl came over to him and the boy. The girl confirmed his suspicions, making a comment on how it was a nice place. Place this time, not food. It was a nice place, he had to admit. But it was obvious. So why bring it up?

Kaegen took a few smooth steps away so he was facing both the girl and the boy. Her next question was one that did not have any other meaning or code that he knew of. It was the universal test.
“Kaegen Deathmote, Fens-born Scarf-wielder. He who was called fat tadpole as a babe suicidal idjit as a toddler. He who earned the name Eeh before arriving at hogwarts. He whose name was given authority by grandfather whose name was given authority by the conqueror of the 14th dark place.”

Time and time again, she managed to surprise herself. True, this time she had been wiser-- much, much wiser, as she had already sheared the skirts of the long, light dress that Eris had given her to drop just below the knee, not so much a mini-length, but just enough to be called tea-length. It was short enough for her as long as she was able to freely move her legs without restriction, and she had worn a pair of 4" inseam shorts beneath the gown.

At first she had refused the garment, deeming it too uncomfortable and skin-showing, but in time she had devised solutions to each respective problem. It was a good thing that she had learned to sew by hand back at Oxford, a skill that she had formerly deemed unnecessary, for she had spent a night sewing-- hemming the high-low hem so the fabric wouldn't fray, attaching a long rectangle of navy fabric-- hmm, it matches the curtains? Never noticed-- all around the top edge of the garment to make a modest off-shoulder neckline. In reality, she had not gathered enough time to fully sew the off-shoulder sleeves onto the neck, and the long rectangle had been hurriedly pinned on with safety pins, the ends attached with a long row of clearly visible stitches of metal. She had fretted about the metallic 'buttons,' but quickly realized that that, by itself, contributed plenty to the gown.

She wore no jewelry save for the raven earpiece that she had been given for the previous but disastrous ball, and she had tied her normal sheath-sash around her waist. It had matched, surprisingly, and Cel hoped that others would agree, but she would not leave behind the knife inside of it, especially after the conflagration that had sprung up in the previous Blossom Ball. On her feet were a shorter, looser version of the gladiator sandals she had worn last time-- this time with arch support, too, soft enough for her to run in. As a final touch, a fragile circlet had been placed on her head, matching the teal-blue of her gown and hair.

As she made her way down toward the white-bannered doors, Cel could hear the taps made by her flat sandals as she walked-- and gently she shifted her gait, so that the front of her foot touched the ground before the heel. The effect was immediate, and her steps faded away until they no longer seemed like a disturbance in the near-silent hallway-- quiet enough that the house-elf by the door looked slightly surprised when she appeared.

"Name?" the elf asked in a gruff, bored tone.

"Um. Celynne."

"That is your first name?" he inquired, cocking a brow, and Cel nodded. "Starts with a C, I'm sure? I don't see a--"

"Flores, Celynne, as in C-E-L-Y-N-N-E."

"Ah," he muttered, squinting at the list before waving her on. With a sigh of relief and exasperation mixed together, the girl entered the Ballroom, spun around to view the setting, and smiled slightly. It was considerably hard work, she imagined, to set all this up-- from the vases of flowers that were common and weed-like yet beautiful in their own wild ways to the shaky, rose-colored banners hung up along the walls. It was obviously different from the first but disastrous BlossomBall, but still it was a wonder-- not a wonder in the perfect meticulousness of the first dance, but a wonder in its own imperfection.

Immediately caught in the midst of a chattering group of people, Cel darted away-- thank goodness her shoes weren't heeled-- and made her way toward the edges of the room, eyes darting longingly toward the exit. Honestly, she would have skipped out if the people who had organized the event and invited her hadn't been two people that she was familiar with-- Rhea Bishop and Eris Fawley. After all, she was grateful to them for such an opportunity, and it might seem rude if she skipped it, especially after attending the first ball, even if it was only for the sake of courtesy.

Of course, that didn't mean she hadn't come without what she needed. Somehow, though exactly how she had no idea, she had managed to attach a sort of book sling to her sash, binding her book-- Glass Sword by Victoria Aveyard-- to her waist in a way that didn't, surprisingly, seem bulky and strange beside the sleek silver of her dagger. The novel was a good one, and she quite liked the author, although the previous book in the series, Red Queen, was the only other by Aveyard that she had read. What a fantasy in itself this was, like a story from one of her own magical novels... to think she was going to a ball, and her second one at that!

Well, obviously, being polite was attending-- not dancing. Hopefully Eris would understand. Besides, she had seemed as much of a bibliophile as herself; Cel was sure that a novel was a good excuse for not dancing or socializing-- not that it wasn't true. But really, she didn't want to socialize; she didn't want to show up as the snappy go-away-I'm-reading-or-else eccentrically strange Ravenclaw that she usually was. After all, this was formal-- and formal deserved civility.

Civility, however, did not always entail partaking in activities designated for events in which one was currently attending-- civility meant being courteous together. And so it was with such reasoning that Cel decided that she would read, but answer politely and formally-- unless the speaker was one she knew well, in which case the formal tone could be quickly omitted-- to anyone who approached. Now, a place to not be bothered...?

The girl began to make her way toward the food tables, intending to hide under them where she could more easily be left alone. Of course, there was the matter of three people-- two boys, one girl-- currently standing by it, and she would likely be noticed. No matter-- for now she approached.

Sebastian was once again dressed in his black suit, once again on the way to a ball, once again to interact with students and potentially have a dance before something caught aflame. Honestly, the Irish boy couldn't believe how moronic Charles York had been, allowing himself to be manipulated like he had, and then to overreact in such a way. It gave yet another bad shade to the other Slytherin members, painting a gloriously biased picture of them all.

If I ever see him again, Sebastian thought to himself as he reached the hallway he had been asked to meet at. I'll Flipendo him through the wall, the useless pleb.

Ahead, a number of students were also dressed in finery. There was a House Elf with a list, which most were checked off, before Sebastian reached the small creature. With a glance to the aged, drooping features of the Elf, the Irish boy raised an eyebrow - he hadn't expected an invite, and had simply been told by another to be here at this time...

"Name?" The grizzled old thing asked, peering at Sebastian. "If you're not on the list, you don't get in."

"Sebastian Leeds," The boy replied, hands in his pockets, as he waited. "I shou--"

"Not on the list, move on."

Sebastian stared, face passive. For a moment he didn't know what to do, despite some murmurs occurring behind him from others waiting. With a shake of his head, Sebastian stepped to one side and decided to wait; hopefully Dymphna would be along, and she could help sort out whatever the Elf's issue was...

The York boy hadn't been seen since the first Blossom Ball and for that she was thankful. Perhaps he had been expelled or transferred elsewhere. Dymphna didn't know him nor did she care to but hopefully he ended up somewhere that was better equipped to deal with his temper tantrums. With the first Blossom Ball ruined, she expected it to be the end of the fun events at Hogwarts. That wasn't the case as a student-run ball invite was sent to her common room. Finally, they would be able to have some fun without others starting trouble. The guest list was exclusive and seemed promising considering there would also be a few Prefects present. If anything were to happen, surely they would jump in to take care of things.

The first thing she did after receiving the invite was to write to Sebastian. The Slytherin boy was quickly becoming her friend, someone that she felt she could rely on and he didn't seem like the type of person who would sugarcoat anything. That was the exact thing that she needed sometimes, that blunt honesty and observation to keep her on her toes. How else was she supposed to get through all seven years of Hogwarts? One of the girls who had set up the second ball mentioned inviting Sebastian but Dymphna wrote asking if he would be her plus-one. Either way, he was sure to get into the event.

Since the two were far from the commotion of the last ball, her dress hadn't been touched. The blonde wasn't certain how so many people had gotten injured but it seemed a ridiculous amount. No one should have been hurt in the first place, the blonde thought with a sigh, slipping on the dress and simple white ballet slippers that she had worn before. If Katya showed then perhaps they could dance together - she knew that the girl did ballet as well from the conversations she had with her aunt, suggesting that they become friends before school started. That hadn't happened but maybe it wasn't too late.

By the time Dymphna made it down to the ballroom from the tower, she was running more than a little late. Others had already shown up, including Sebastian. "Sorry!" She rushed forward, flashing him a smile before pointing out her name on the list. "Dymphna Teague. Sebastian here is my plus one." With that, they were in. There were quite a few people there already, many that she recognized - Quidditch players, Writers of the Ravenclaw Newspaper and the Hufflepuff who had helped her defend Serena when that nasty Erin was picking on her. A few others seemed familiar enough but she was surprised to see some complete strangers. Turning to the Slytherin with her eyebrows raised, "Do you know anyone here?" 

If Sebastian wasn't well acquainted with anyone else, Dymphna figured that now was a good a time as any to mingle and introduce him. None of her close friends had made it yet, other than one of their hosts Eris who seemed to be busy with the other guests. Everyone seemed tied up with others at the moment but the blonde knew many of them to be nice and friendly folk. Pretty soon they would be welcomed into one of the groups and perhaps make some friends before the ball was over.

INTERACTIONS: Rosie Parker.
MENTIONS: Rhea Bishop, Eris Fawley, Max Avery, Kaegen Deathmote, Rosie Parker.

The letter came to him in the nick of time.

He had noticed that the earlier ball was going to be a disaster once the large incident happened with flame and fury, and like he always did, Anatole dashed out, leaving the girl mid-conversation. Abruptly, he shut himself in the dorm, slamming the door and leaning against it. Where was Rosie? And...why was Rosie still the only thing on his mind that night?

Just a matter of days later, Anatole had cooled off and returned to normal. Things had been great those other days, until he found a letter in his owl inbox. From...Rhea Bishop and Eris Fawley. One name was all too familiar, and the other was sporadically heard in segments of conversation. But...a redemption ball with a strict invite list. Nothing could go wrong here...could it?

In response to the invite, once again Anatole "suited up", draping himself in that white dress shirt and burgundy vest. Considering it was "black tie attire", he decided to play it off and wear a black tie. Unlike many, he had assumed that some of his friends were coming, but he wasn't sure who knew that he was invited or not. Most of the list could be easily predicted if Anatole decided to throw in the effort to ponder upon it.

The night had come swiftly, and he filed down toward the Ballroom, taking note of who in the halls was dressed up and who was not. It would make the list easy to predict.

"Anatole Evans? I brought my invitation just in ca--"

The voice replied swiftly, declaring he was on the list and it was pointless to bring his invitation. "Oh, thank you then." He bowed from the neck down and entered the ballroom covered in the best decorations two Gryffindors could muster up. They were slightly pathetic, but Anatole didn't mind it. He was here to have a good time and solve whatever went wrong the last time. Maybe this time, he could gain himself a dance with a fine woman.

Once he was finished marveling in what little spectacle there was, Anatole noticed those who had already arrived. There were some kids he had only known vaguely, from hushed whispers and occasional murmurs. There were those who had known him from all the audacious actions the boy took part in, such as the Book Club and Sergei and the Beast. And then, there were those he knew all too well, one jumping out at him like the lion he was: Max Avery, in all his glory. It was a funny situation, Mr. Avery talking to Kaegen Deathmote, another annoying "bane of his existence". Anatole was sure Kaegen would adore hearing the title to his face, but he decided to torture the boy even more and keep his thoughts to himself. What would they be discussing? What drama would they cause next? Anatole could only groan in thought.

Amidst all the other dazzling spectators, there lay the focal point of the room: a large cluster of those in Anatole's final category: those he had known all too well. Eris stood there with what was assumed to be Rhea and a few other girls Anatole had only heard whispers about.

There she was. Rosalina Parker.

Anatole couldn't help but blush a little as he grit his teeth, stepping towards the group and trying to plot out the best way to make an entrance: one not to flamboyant, but one much less subtle than usual. He grew tired of sticking to the background.

The ladies' chatter sounded like birds in a nest, all chattering at once, yet with an odd sense of respect for one another's opinions. If only he could communicate like he used to...

He reached out, noticing Rosie's hair and dress. It was the moment of truth as the boy pulled his fingers toward the girl, wrapping his forefinger and thumb around a little curl. Oh God, he thought to himself, doubtful if this was the best way to approach it. Surely Rosie wouldn't take notice of a little tap in such elongated conversation, so he took the road less travelled by.

He pulled a little curl of her hair, hard enough so that the girl felt it hard in her scalp.

The curl sprung back up itself, and Anatole slowly stepped back. "Rosie! Hey! Uh..." His voice drowned out. How could he say it? He was sorry for never replying to her invite, even as of this second ball. But like last time, he wasn't ready for such a commitment. Thank Merlin it wasn't some sort of arranged marriage. He didn't have to go with her, did he?

But he didn't want to hurt her.

Blegh, he had no choice.

"I-I'm sorry I never answered. I just wasn't sure." See? There we are, that simple. Just say that, and she would understand, wouldn't she?

That was also the thing, girls were complex. Patricia had helped to highlight the poised nature of girls and how they were expected to be. They held high standards and sometimes, no character.

But Rosie wasn't that type of girl. She would understand...would she?

Foolish Anatole didn't even think about the whole. Had he disturbed the larger conversation by bringing attention to himself?

Oh God, there was something terrible about this night.

Mentions: Max Avery, Rhea Bishop, Eris Fawley
Interactions: Anatole Evans

[FONT=Palatino Linotype]Oh. Oh boy

The crowd of girls was slowly growing larger, some of the girls, Rosie didn't necessarily recognize. Of course, as usual, Rosie didn't have an issue with it. In fact the growing crowd made her feel more comfortable, it felt like an actual ball. She smiled and laughed to Rhea's comments, watching her frantically abide to everyone's needs around the ballroom. That girl was too pure, her and Eris must've put so much work into the ball. Rosie was grateful she had such amazing, and dedicated friends.

Rosie turned towards the entrance, watching people walk in. Her heart sank when a certain someone walked in. Oh no. Oh nono. She turned back to her friends and continued talking as normal. Rosie really couldn't deal with a negative conversation. Not tonight. Not after the month she had. She rubbed her eyes a bit and forgot her worries, listening to the girls talk about god knows what, and putting in her own comments as well. Everything was good!

Until she felt a hair get plucked out from her scalp.

Suddenly, Rosie's face darkened. Was it Max who finally decided to mess with her again? She hadn't been paying attention to the guys all that much. Her eyebrows furrowed, her fist whirled back and she spun around. "Who do you think you--!"

Oh. That wasn't Max. It was Anatole. Was that possibly worse?

Rosie's facial expression softened and she lowered her fist. She was really about to punch someone... Was her anger getting that bad? Maybe it was just the stress. This was her best friend, after all. She needed to calm down. With a sigh, she lowered her hands and shook them a bit. She listened to Anatole's apology. Sure, she could tell he meant it, but she didn't feel any differently than she did before. Besides, it wasn't even his fault. With a sigh, she shook her head. "Don't worry about it, Anatole. Really, it's fine. I get it, it was kind of a stupid idea anyway.." Her voice faded and she looked down at her hands, fiddling with them. "'Shoulda asked you in person, it's my fault."[/FONT]

Phaedra was the first into the ballroom, and although her and Eris weren’t that close, Eris felt a certain sense of kinship with the raven-haired ravenclaw prefect. After getting attacked together, Eris considered her close. Or at least, close enough to withstand a mysterious figure together. Friends who attacked together stuck together, right? Smiling at the girl, faint pink dotting her cheeks, Eris nodded her head. “You look lovely too, Phaedra!” Eris replied, watching Phaedra turn to Rhea, smile still plastered onto her face. Rhea & Phaedra would be an amazing friend combo, considering how they were both two rich, almost royal purebloods. And, for the time being, they seemed to be nice enough.

Another girl walked up to the group, wearing a short dress that looked more benefiting of an 11 year old then the of the outfits that the other three girls were wearing.Although, unlike their dresses, it wasn’t pink or red. She greeted Rhea first, and Eris sighed, before forcing a grin onto her face. Unlike Phaedra and Rhea, she had no idea how to handle social gatherings, such as parties. So greeting a stranger was a new task for the Gryffindor girl.

Easy smile slipping onto her face at the girl’s joke, Eris nodded her head, “Well, I missed the pink memo too.” Eris laughed as Rhea talked after her , pointing to the red flowers on the top of her faint red dress, Eris shrugged. An action that was far from eloquent, but looked fine anyways. Eris was not the eloquent type. Behind the new girl, Amanda something (Eris had already forgotten, mind focused on the ball and the dresses) stood Rosie Parker, a sort of friend of Eris. Rhea mentioned that the girl looked nice, and Eris nodded her approval, before waving Rosie over.

“Hi Rosie! You look pretty too,” Eris greeted, stepping partially away from the other three girls to welcome the Hufflepuff. “I know it’s not perfect, but welcome to Blossomball Take Two.”

Through the Doors, Eris spotted Kaegen coming through, and made a mental note to visit him at the refreshments table. She had invited him due to their friendship, but had been unaware of if he would show up or not. A ball did not seem like a place that Kaegen would like to visit, yet, he was there. Eris had a feeling that he had visited just for her, but decided not to act upon it, knowing that the boy would come up to her if needed. Promising herself that she was going to visit Kaegen, and get some food while she was at it, and to shove some down his throat (the boy looked really sickly and tired, as per usual), Eris turned back to the gaggle of girls.

Anatole had showed up, and was talking to Rosie, while a black haired girl waved hello. Rhea came up to the girl, talking in an extremely slow voice, which drew a giggle to Eris’s lips. Rhea seemed to be making her words extremely pronounced and drawn out, so Eris figured she would do the same. There was most likely a reason for what Rhea was doing, and as Eris looked at the girl, she spotted the reason stamped in red and gold letters on the girl’s wrist.

She was deaf. That was fine. So she was reading lips, and that was why Rhea was talking slowly. Emulating Rhea’s tone, as her friend walked away to fix a vase, Eris offered the girl a smile. “Hello..I.. like.. Your dress..” She said slowly, careful to pronounce each word as correctly as she could, British accent extremely defined in each word.

Rhea gestured that she was leaving to greet the guests, and Eris nodded, waiting for the girl to reply in some way. While she was waiting, the girl looked around the ballroom, catching sight of new faces and friends, alike. Over by Kaegen, there was a glimpse of brown hair, and a flush appeared on Eris’s face in a heart beat, quickly realizing who it was.

Max! Max was here. At the last ball, they had gotten into a tussle, due to a miscommunication, but at the end of it, Max had called Eris his date, which gave Eris a warm fuzzy feeling that she would never admit to her partner in crime. It wasn’t like she had a crush on him, or anything gross. They were just friends, like Adam and Eris were. There was nothing odd about that, was there? Even so, there was no mistaking the thumping of her heart when she spotted the boy talking to Kaegen. She hadn’t been sure if he was going to show up, if Eris was being honest. Why would he, after the craziness of the last ball?

Turning away, wanting nothing more then to make a beeline to Kaegen and Max, Eris suddenly froze. Who on earth was the girl next to Max and Kaegen? Did Kaegen get a date? Was the girl his date? That would be amazing, although Eris seriously doubted it. She was most likely just a friend of Rhea’s, Kaegen’s, or Max’s.

Snapped out of her rambling thoughts by the sound of Rhea’s voice, as an owl flew through the open window. Rhea opened the letter, as Eris peaked her head over Rhea’s shoulder, reading the words as the other girl did.

Dorian...wasn’t..coming? Furrowing her brow, Eris felt a pang of sadness burn through her whole body. Why did Dorian not want to come? Did he think that Rhea and Eris weren’t going to do a good enough job, was he going to make a better ball with Aubren, away from Rhea and Eris, and the rest of their friends?

Feeling upset, Eris let out a tiny sigh, hot air escaping her mouth. Seeing that Rhea was about to cry, Eris directed her sadness inwards, refusing to mope when her friend was sad. “Hey, it’ll be alright. We can have a good night without him, yeah?”

Rhea seemed to think the same thing, mentioning music suggestions in a happy voice, and Eris felt herself grin. “If we’re good now, I’m going to go talk to Max, Kaegen, and random girl by the food.” Squeezing her friend’s shoulder, Eris walked away towards her two friends, and the girl that was with them.

“Kaegen, you still look as dead as ever.” Eris greeted, before turning to Max, “Didn’t think you’d show up. I assumed you were busy chasing down hufflepuffs and throwing statues at them.” Completely forgetting the other girl for a minute, Eris managed a smile at her. “I’m Eris Fawley, by the way.”

Interact with Rhea Bishop, Eris Fawley, Rosie Parker, Kalani Anderson, Dymphna Teague, and Sebastian Leeds 

Amadea smiled and nodded nervously, not exactly sure how to greet the people she had just walked over to. Both Eris and Rhea assured her that there was no pink memo; thankfully, more people were streaming into the ballroom that were not wearing pink. She listened as they explained their hopes for the event, and Amadea had to agree.

She would love to make this version of the ball much better than the first attempt. It wasn't like she had a terrible experience at the first ball (even though she did). She had socialized with her friends and eaten some good food. There was just that whole fire incident that ended with several burning things. Fire, Amadea came to realize, was one of her weaknesses. Hopefully there would be no fire at this ball. 

Another person approached, and startled, Amadea turned to see who it was. Rosie Parker, fellow housemate and opponent in the Pillow Fort contest, had arrived. Though Amadea didn't know her well, she thought Rosie was a nice girl and greeted her with a smile. "It's lovely!" she agreed. Not long after, another Gryffindor girl approached, and Rhea introduced her as Kalani. Amadea smiled at her. "Nice to meet you!" she said. She noticed Rhea was talking loudly and slowly to the girl, and Amadea wondered if she had some kind of hearing impairment. She didn't ask, however, as she didn't want to be rude.

As everyone dispersed into the crowd, mingling and greeting their friends, Amadea stood back, just taking it all in. She watched as people she recognized and didn't recognize entered the room and admired how smoothly everything was running so far. Immediately, she cursed herself in her head. She didn't want to jinx things; normally, she didn't believe in those types of superstitions, but at a magical school, one could never be too careful. 

Startled out of her thoughts as yet another student approached, Amadea made sure she plastered on a bright smile. The girl introduced herself as Dymphna Teague and the boy next to her as Sebastian. She recognized neither of them. "Amadea Campbell," she said, sticking out her hand. "Pleasure to meet you both." She was becoming a bit overwhelmed by the sheer amount of people at this event. Even though it was significantly smaller than the first BlossomBall, Amadea didn't like being in crowds this large. 

No conversation had continued after the introductions, and Amadea had absolutely no idea where to begin in starting one, so she smiled again, hoping that someone else would either say or do something to continue the conversation. 

“If you can’t do it, don’t.”
-Grandfather

“Kaegen you look as dead as ever”
It was a familiar voice, one that Kaegen had memorized. If he closed his eyes and concentrated, which he did occasionally while killing the few minutes between classes. Not enough to do anything worthwhile but too much to not have a few minutes sitting outside the classrooms waiting. He could picture her voice in his mind perfectly. Picture her voice patterns and defiant tone.

Kaegen hardly worried about what she was talking about, the little red head’s comment about his physical health and well being flying gracefully over his head as he felt a little tingle. He didn’t know what the other people were talking about, but he knew that if there was some conspiracy with secret signs he didn’t understand, Eris would let him know. The boy relaxed a little, but only a little. And only on the inside.

On the outside his expression was as neutral as ever. When Eris had first started walking over his pupils had twitched in her direction, excited that she was coming to join him. But it was a small twitch, and one that he quickly got back under control. Eris was a burning fire that attracted other students that didn’t even know they were seeking her protection. If a lot of people want something, it makes that thing precious. And precious things get stolen, bought, taken or broken.

After her short greeting Eris turned to look at the boy with the strange code and made some remark about him chasing down creatures known as huflepuffs. As his mind did a silent double take, remembering that there were four houses and one of them was hufflepuff and that he really should already know this, Kaegen closed his eyes.

He kept them closed, savoring the feeling. His eyes were tired, feeling cold against the soothing warmth of his eyelid. He took a deep, silent breath before opening his eyes again. He was not going to answer his friend, there was no reason to. Her body was facing the odd boy, her long question was directed at him. Kaegen was superfluous here, not strong enough yet. He couldn’t count on her unreasoning mercy and kindness forever. Eventually he would have to become her equal.

But that day was clearly not today. Kaegen turned and moved farther down the table, distancing himself from Eris and the other boy. He did so quietly, smoothly. If she was paying attention to him as much as he thought she was, his friend would probably not notice until she looked up.

A thought seized him suddenly, an error in his planning becoming more and more apparent. Assuming she did turn and see him, wouldn’t she then feel sorry for him? Feel pity for his lack of strength and walk over, compromising whatever good time she was currently having? It was a strange revelation about feelings that Kaegen seldom ever got.

He already knew that there was food on the table in front of him, so he leaned a little bit forward and started picking at the food on the platters. Realizing he had put his down on the table over by Eris and the other boy and girl, Kaegen pulled a dirty burlap sack out of his robe, secreted or strapped to him in some outlandish fashion. He laid the sack over his hand and then put some of the food on top, moving slowly away from both the groups as he reached for food that was farther and farther away from them. He would move away from all of them until they forgot he was there, and then he would slip out of the room.

But only after he made sure Eris was in good hands. Only after he was sure she was going to be safe.