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((Internet was cut out yesterday and I couldn't even read the posts...))

Ben excused himself after a man at a table next to them had mistaken his dire wolf for a young woman whom he was talking to along with a tall fair haired man whom he embraced as an old friend and clearly colleague. As they caught up, Mairead kept one eye on them and the man who mistook the dire wolf for the young woman clearly from the west.

Lady Aaren attempted to engage her in small talk to which she turned part of her attention back, but she was interrupted when the man at the table next to them switched to their table. He was unkempt, his hair in disarray as if he hadn't combed it for at least a month or two, his clothes they smelled like his only set, and he himself smelled of booze. Mairead studied him carefully, she wasn't judging him, she couldn't but she was definitely on pointe.

The man didn't answer her, just drank from the remaining champagne in Mr. Black's flute as another group approached. One she recognized instantly as High Commander Vossler Stone, he was bedecked in his formal uniform and looked as if he were the cork board for all the medals, medallions and ropes he wore that marked his grand and glorious achievements, which she had learned not from her three month training, but by experience they were not so glamorous as he had lead many to believe. The girl, Layla as she had introduced herself was a petite young thing perhaps a few years younger than herself and although Layla attempted to keep her composure, her naivete danced along her skin just like her dress. Mairead wasn't interested in the boy, he didn't seem to be anything of concern but she did take note of his name Shalev.

Once everyone had been seated at the table Vossler made an unveiled slight towards Lady Aaren regarding the peace festival. Mairead was rather annoyed that he had not bothered to introduce himself appropriately (although it was not necessary for she was quite sure everyone knew who he was) she opened her mouth and was about to give him a lesson in courtesy before Mr. Black charmingly and quite sarcastically interrupted her.

The tension in the room elsewhere might have been as thick as air, but at their table as crowded and small as it was the tension mounted. Mairead doubted anyone would pull as stunt on anyone here and now at the host faction leader's table, that didn't stop her however from fingering the latex covering one of her throwing knives. She took a discreet deep breath and removed her hand from the latex and casually fiddled with the beads on her clutch. When the stare down between Black and Stone finally ended she spoke.

"High Commander Vossler Stone, I am sure you are very well aware that there is a thing called the 'Festival of Peace' where negotiations between factions occur every year. But again being rather young and in your rather newly appointed position, being untraveled and rather inexperienced you probably have never been aware of this. So perhaps I might correct your misconceptions starting here and now, it would help you in the future to know the standard protocol regarding the negotiations. But tonight is not the night for business, it is not a night for us to get into fights, disagreements or arguments, it is however, a night for us to get to know one another without the biases of our factions."

Mairead kept her tone light and her expression neutral and her eyes on him, smiling her practiced poker smile. She was very aware that they were playing the game called politics. They were all the pieces and they were all playing the game, the board was set, the cards dealt and the pieces were in place. Mairead continued to smile and at the risk of being cliched she kept her thoughts to herself, Let the games begin.

Moa had made her way outside through the crowd. She kept going until she was at the rail of a balcony, where she looked up at the sky and took in a deep breath. There were so many people and so much going on that when she finally felt free from it she could tell her own body was quivering slightly. It wasn't from the cold though it was from being around so many people. Even now her senses were high as if she thought something was going on.

Breathing in deeply she could smell something in the air that was not right at all. Blood..... Western Blood..... A lust for it that couldn't never really be quenched at all. She blinked a few times as she looked around, but with all the other things going on she couldn't quite make out anything in her head.

Maliarc, shocked, followed Lady Aaren out of the back door, per what he was sure were her wishes when she looked at him. Walking down the corridor towards Lady Aaren, Maliarc thought about the events that had just transpired. He was not sure what was said, but he was sure it was pointed towards one of the men that Maliarc did not have a good feeling about. He would have to keep a closer eye on those men in the future. With a sigh, Maliarc realized that tonight had an extreme possibility to become dangerously exciting. Those men could spell disaster were it to come to it.

Adjusting his robes so that he could make a short jog to catch up to Lady Aaren, he couldn't help but ask her a question. "My Lady, I hope you don't mind me asking, but who is that man?" Maliarc said, hesitant to ask her any questions. He was sure she would like to use the quiet time to relax, but he was too curious to stay quiet. The more he knew, the more he would be able to help her in the future.

Following Lady Aaren and her knight, whose name he had just learned to be Emer, Maliarc was happy to be outside. Being a mage, and from the west, the outside was something he liked, something he knew. He could concentrate better int he open air, he felt more relaxed. As he listened to Lady Aaren and Emer tell him about the man he did not like, he watched as she sat, looking exhausted now, and he took a position in front of her, so he could process this information and be in a position to ask any questions he felt he should.

So, that was Commander Vossler Stone. Maliarc had not heard of him, simply because he was from the West. Not many people from the West needed to know much of the other places. What was the need? He need not know of the other leaders, for the leaders had no need to know of anything from the west. Temerarious, huh? So, he was right. He really would need to keep a close eye on this man in the future.

"Ah. Thank you for the information my lady." Maliarc said, bowing a little. Upon hearing her apology, Maliarc was a little shocked to be honest. She had no reason to apologize. "My lady, there is no need to apologize. You are under a lot of stress here, since this is your event, and in your condition, it's naturally hard for you to be how you would like. I think you handled yourself quite nicely in there. Exactly what is to be expected from a leader such as yourself. Exactly why I decided to offer my services to you. You know the right choices to make, and to not let you get the better of yourself. 'You are your own worst enemy'." The quote ended Maliarc's response, feeling he might have been a little mean, but he was sure Lady Aaren would appreciate the brashness. She was surrounded by the prim and proper and pompous attitudes almost all the time. Everyone, even her, would be happy to be talked to bluntly, he was sure of it.

((Bleh. Sorry for not posting last night everyone. I'll try to throw a post out before I go to bed. Got extremely hammered last night cause i lost my job yesterday. I'm gonna watch Game of Thrones, then I'll be on here to make a post later.))

A black carriage made its way towards the Venue where this supposed "peace party" was taking place. The carriage had a royal victorian style to it, marking it as the carriage of Judith Halloway. Inside the carriage, Judith sat with her legs crossed, enjoying a fine Noxian cigarette, while also reading a book. The book she was reading was a boring love story that ended with both of the protagonists dead, which was the reason Judith liked the story. She never did like the usual stories with the typical "happily ever after" ending, like most women did.

She brought the book down to her lap, now aware that they were pulling up to the large estate. Taking a drag off her Noxian cigarette, her dark eyes almost seemed to glow in the candlelight of the lamp that was mounted on the inside of her luxurious carriage. She exhaled the smoke to the side, allowing the smoke to escape through the open window of her carriage. Across from her sat three men, all dressed in male Victorian clothing, though they each were armed with a fine flintlock pistol, that was secured to their waists by a fine black leather belt.

Judith wore a gorgeous black Victorian dress that probably cost more than the estate that they pulled up to, adding to her famous beauty as the Queen of Ater Nox. The dress had a bit of a dark red hue to it, giving her a beautiful yet dark appearance. Her long silver hair fell down past her shoulder, in soft curls that accented her lovely pale face, and on her head she wore a black touring hat, with crimson feathers and black roses that complimented her rather expensive dress. Connected to her touring hat, was a black net veil, that extended down to her nose, giving her a noble, yet mysterious look. She wore black lipstick, and black eye shadow and mascara, that gave her a dark look as well. She also wore fine black suede gloves, that clung to her small hands like a second layer of skin. Her dress only extended down just past her knees, and on her legs she wore fishnet stockings that went all the way up to her thighs, giving her an attractive appeal.

As they came to a stop, she put her cigarette out on an ashtray inside of the carriage, and closed her book after putting a feather in it to mark her place. Barely a moment after they stopped, the door to the carriage was opened by the footman, who extended his hand to assist Judith in exiting the carriage. She took his hand with her own, and gracefully stepped out of the carriage, her black high heels making a soft clop sound as they touched the ground. She let go of his hand with a nod in his direction, now aiming her attention at the estate in front of her.

As the three men exited behind her, she looked up to a balcony, where she saw a woman enjoying the night air. She then looked over to the side of the building, and saw a woman sitting on a bench, accompanied by a Lucidus Knight, and another man. A devious smile played on the corner of her mouth, recognizing the woman to be Lady Aaren. Despite her interest in Lady Aaren, she returned her attention to the entrance, where a few guards stood, clearly acting as the bouncers for this event.

She glanced behind her for a moment, looking at the three men behind her, who were ready to continue forward. She knew they would fulfill their duties as planned, when the time came. Each of them were armed, but they were also her personal guard, each trained in the ways of dark magic. She had an especially interesting outcome planned for this party, one that none of the Factions could possibly have predicted. She then made her way forward, and up the stairs, each step echoing in the quiet outside area. Once she reach the entrance, she stopped in front of the guard, and handed him a black envelope before he could greet her. The guard opened it quickly, read it for a moment, before handing it back to her. "Good evening Miss Halloway, you and your men are welcome." The guard didn't object to her bringing her men with her, because as a faction Leader, and as a Queen for that matter, she was required to have her personal guard with her at all times.

She nodded to him without a word, nor any trace of kindness on her face, and let the guard open the door for her. She then walked through the entrance, flanked by all three of her men. As she entered, the sounds of conversation, laughter, and a mixture of other sounds filled her ears. She looked around, recognizing many faces, as well as faces of people she hadn't seen before. After a moment of scanning through the drunken masses, hey eyes fell on a table, where several of the other factions leaders were all seated. She recognized the newly appointed Ambassador of Armatus, Commander Vossler Stone, and a man she guessed to be Benjamin Black, Head of the Merchants guild in Thesaurum, judging by the rather large direwolf at his side. Next to Commander Stone, she noticed a girl, and a boy. The boy she did not recognize, though the girl seemed... odd. Judith could feel some sort of aura coming from girl, something that made her different. She knew the faces of Commander Stone and Ambassador Mairead only through photographs, though Mr. Black's face she did not know. She didnt need a photograph to know it was him, though, for his direwolf companion was a giveaway. It was something that the rest of the world knew him for, aside from his wealth and connections that came from being in his position.

She also noticed a man at the end of the table, a mysterious looking man that managed to hold her attention for a few moments. It seemed that he was purposely avoiding Mr. Black's gaze, for reason's that Judith did not know. After a moment of looking at the man, she glanced around the room again, spotting Chance Godfrey of Thesaurum. She had heard a few things about him as well, but only that he was a Gangster, and the head of a crime family in Thesaurum. Without any visible acknowledgement, she brought her gaze back to the table, noticing that it had an emtpy chair at its head. She guessed that it was more than likely where Lady Aaren had been sitting, before going outside to get some fresh air. Judith's devious smile returned to the corner of her mouth, thinking on Lady Aaren and her supposed illness. 'Fools...' she thought to herself.

Though the rest of the people at the table didn't interest her, the little girls aura caught her interest enough that she decided to join them all. She strode forward gracefully, with a stride that only a Queen could enact, until she reached the table.

She walked around the table to the side where Benjamin Black and his direwolf sat, and stopped next to a chair. As she stopped, one of the three men with her grabbed the chair, and pulled it back for her, allowing her to take a seat. As she took a seat, she glanced at Manson, before introducing herself to the rest of the table.

"Good evening everyone, my apologies for being late. I do hope none of you thought I wouldn't show up." Her voice was soft, yet had a harsh tint to it, something that commanded authority from her people. As she spoke, her face didn't betray any trace of kindness, though it didn't do much to hinder her beauty.

Mairead nodded politely to the Lady Aaren as she excused herself and mentally muted herself when Vossler made his defensive statement. Speaking to him would acknowledge that she knew more than she was supposed to let on and encourage more business talk which tonight was not supposed to be apart of. Not replying would give him the win, but thankfully she didn't have to reply, Mr. Black had saved her from speaking by inquiring with polite curiosity about his father. However things were interrupted once again by the entrance of the Witch Queen of Ater Nox.

Mairead stood as the Witch Queen approached the table and sat after she sat as was per courtesy. She then greeted everyone in such a relaxed demeanor that Mairead felt an undercurrent and it was sparkling like mad along her skin, in fact it was itchy, but she refused to scratch. She wouldn't deny that the Witch Queen was beautiful and powerful not only by the power she commanded among her people but it also resounded in her voice that turned everyone's attention to her.

Mairead leaned back casually in her chair crossing her ankles and tucking them under her before taking a deep hardly noticeable and silent breath, exhaling silently. Noting that every single moment that passed just added to the tension at their table. The mysterious dark haired man that had sat at their table and had not introduced himself refused to raise his head, it was almost as if he were trying to keep out of sight of a certain someone. She had an idea of who but didn't know why, she would find out, after all what were contacts for if you didn't use them now and again. Mairead looked about the table, there was a lot of power here, not to mention that they all would have their own contacts in the underground. With all the tension building everyone seemed to be dancing on eggshells. She had to admit it was rather entertaining and she was highly amused.

"Greetings Your Majesty." Mairead said bowing in the formal Ater Nox style.

( Bet your a**. Chance has no intention of playing those reindeer games. Haha. )