Julius blinked again, trying to figure out what had just happened, before guilt hit him like a tidal wave. Flushing with shame and more than a little anger at both his actions and Galen\'s, he stepped back, wanting to put as much distance between himself and the doctor as possible. Ignoring the stinging of his knuckles, he retreated back into himself, struggling to hold onto the calm and patience that he\'d been forced to learn during the years of his travelling. He didn\'t want to revert back to that sort of violence, and sorely regretted raising a hand against the doctor. It was always so much harder with people so close to home, though. And the arrogant expression on the other man\'s face made that old demon claw at the inside of his chest.
Watching as the doctor backed away, Julius bit the inside of his lip hard in the attempt to control his emotions. Realizing that it was hopeless- there was a certain satisfaction about hitting the other man, even if it was largely clouded with guilt- his expression then hardened, ignoring the mutterings of the market place around the both of them.
“I\'m not the one running away, doctor,” he said coldly, the twisting shame mixing in with the fury in his chest, making his lungs feel as if someone had reached inside him, constricting his airflow. “And you\'re not fooling anyone with your talk of consent. I wasn\'t joking about Dee. If you come anywhere near him again, I\'ll have you in front of the King\'s Guard.”
