JENELLA
At the warmly spoken compliment, Jenella turned towards the speaker, as did Ricardo. As her sire admired the blonde's breathtaking body, Jenella was momentarily speechless by the woman's face. After surrounding herself with art for months, submerging herself into a lifestyle of paintings, sculptures and elaborate and indulgent creative celebration, she found herself admiring this woman as though she were a piece of art, her eyes feasting on every perfect detail. She had a sense of the unnatural, of the impossibly flawless, but it wasn't enough to break the spell. When Versace's name was guessed, she nodded.
"Versace, si," Ricardo replied. Jenella grew mutely angry, having forgotten he was there and annoyed that he had dared to speak on her behalf when the question had come to her.
"Jenella Vadim," she introduced smoothly, finally finding her voice. She reclaimed her hands to sweep them needlessly down her body, accentuating her own curves. "You are wearing someone original? A fantastic find," she said. The only thing to betray her nervousness was more than a tinge of her Russian accent coming through. She turned to Ricardo, smiling pleasantly and ignorantly to the spoken words - his only language being his native Italian. "Portami dello vino," she instructed him. Ricardo looked at her startled, having knowledge of the creature she was, and only slowly occurred to him that he was being dismissed. "Ovviamente." He moved down the stairs and towards the buffet tent, where there were only a few people picking at the delicious display.
BEN
He closed his eyes and absorbed the kiss into his heart and soul, missing the feel of someone who properly loved him, guilty of all the things he'd put him through and shame that he couldn't be a better and more deserving man. He knew the words Kerr spoke were supposed to be lightly admonishing but Ben felt a sharper edge.
Ben would've stayed out of it, but he'd felt the city's eyes on him after his sire's death and he'd felt vulnerable. The Academy had shone a positive spotlight on him, and while he'd felt safer organising it all with Conner in the background, it had also given him a lot more attention than he'd expected. It had been a gesture for Kerr's memory, but had risen in importance for him. It had kept Jake and Charon at bay, giving him some political clout. And now with Kerr alive, the Academy took on a different meaning and was now a prize, not just a memorial.
He'd shared with Kerr how this had all played out, in a series of texts. Penance, indeed.
"He's not like Themba, or Declan," he said, the latter being a moment in time he had no emotion over since he only had his movie-memories of that time and hadn't watched it all. "I'm not being harrassed, or abused." He remembered the slap but he'd gone out of his way to earn it, to see how far he could push Jake. He'd backed off after that. "It's temporary. It's until Jake gets bored of me hanging around." He looked around and spied Charon, but the ancient was too absorbed in conversation with someone Ben didn't recognise, and was with Sabrina, who he hadn't had much contact with but knew. "Charon wants me to stay another week," he said,
at least, he thought to himself, remembering the ancient's words. Until Ben could prove himself, anyway. "Maybe ask Jake if you can visit?" he cringed inside, wondering how that was going to go over.
He wanted to ask Ichabod how the Academy was going in his absence, but didn't want to risk Kerr feeling second to it.
CHARON
Instead of shaking it, Charon took Sarakiel's hand between both of his and held it for a moment before releasing. "This is my home that I share with my family. Thank you for coming," Charon replied evenly, grateful that some of the other species of the city had acknowledged him.
He heard the thought but chose not to address it directly, instead watching the interplay between Jeanne, Ari and the naked vampire before the latter was taken away. The howl hadn't bothered Charon, for the madman had answered it, which he correctly guessed to mean they were friends. "Some invitations must have been lost in the mail."
His gaze swept to Sabrina and back to Sarakiel. "There will be an important announcement later on in the night, but it might have to happen soon, before our function becomes too chaotic." So far the naked man had caused a few gasps but mostly laughter and a burst of conversation. The wolf might make things more unpleasant and he didn't want anyone to leave before hearing the news.
He glanced over at Jake, wanting to meet with him before the announcement was made but his circle had only grown. Charon felt a spike of annoyance. He spied Zohoret not too far away, and she was another who he wished to meet with. The Shifter District Leader hadn't come yet. Perhaps that meant the north was unprotected as well. He looked at Jake again, wondering if he had the courage and the means to expand once again. The north was small enough to be gobbled up easily, but would Jake even want it?
Charon decided yes, he would. He had an inkling that Jake considered himself a benevolent ruler.
Dictator, more like.
"Have either of you met the woman at my back? Ms Zohoret?" Charon hadn't discussed the missing dark angel with Sabrina, and there was a possibility that both of the people with him knew more about her than he did. Information had been surprisingly absent about her.