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For Leto, the battle was far from failure. Getting to bring several Pages to their end was the highlight of the girl's evening. Dark and twisted? Okay, maybe a little. And she had hoped that the White Moon Senshi would see Acubens' love for the faction and push her closer towards Chaos so that she would be Leto's success story. The one Senshi that she can convert, because facing facts? She wasn't much of a talker.

But beyond all of that- she was radiating pride at her Court.. At her newbies making it through the battle alive. At the group of them working together as a team. Slowly but surely, the Court was growing and regardless of their differences, they were becoming a family.

Regardless of their win over Order and their growing camaraderie with the Negaverse, Leto had a knot in her stomach. She was rarely called in to meet with Ares outside of their scheduled time. She took a deep breath and slipped through the familiar cool surface of the mirror and into mirrorspace, where she greeted her Queen with a wave.

"Always a pleasure, Ares." She dipped into a half-curtsey-half-bow and grinned at her.

Leto's fallback: a stupid grin and a sense of humor.

Leto wasn't one to say no when Ares materialized a chair just for her. She quickly took a seat and crossed her right leg over her left.

She chewed on her bottom lip as Ares spoke, nodding at the mention of no danger. That was always good.

Except not so good was that she wanted to discuss her role in the Court. Was she going to be demoted? Maybe Ares heard about her killing that Page a few months back...

"I... Um..." Her fingers twisted into knots in her lap as she spoke. It was difficult to make Leto nervous, but when she was put on the spot by her fearless leader about her position... Well, that changed everything.

"I think things have gone well? A few bumps in the road, but that has nothing to do with Vice Captain stuff. I'm enjoying liasoning with the Negaverse a lot more than I'd expected to. Our original recruits from the Surrounding have grown so much and come so far so I feel it's more of a mentor role with them which is nice. And I think from the ambush, that my training with our new recruits has gone well."

Her right hand raised to rub at the back of her neck. She fell silent for a moment before adding, "Did I do something wrong?"

The look of worry that was on Leto's face quickly slipped away as Ares began to compliment her. Leto hadn't heard any complaints, so she always assumed she was on the right path; but to hear that she had been doing a good job. Well, that put her at ease and her concern was replaced by a smile.

"Thank you Ares, that means the world to me. I really never in a million years thought that this was where I'd be when I was awakened. To work under you, to lead such an incredible group of people... You've done a lot for me. I truly cannot thank you enough."

She would have felt the same way if the two of them had still been in the Blood Moon Court. Leto would likely follow this woman into anything she threw at her. And for Ares to think so highly of her... It meant the world to her.

Leto blinked a few times as she stared at Ares, processing for a minute what the woman before her was asking. Captain? Promoting Remarque? Her nose crinkled at the thought, as Remarque wasn't her favorite person in the entire world. But from a professional point of view, he was the one person in the Court that Leto knew deserved that rank.


"I'm honored. I just... Wow." There were no words. "Of course I accept. Absolutely. And Remarque is perfect for the job. He demonstrated leadership and went above and beyond at the ambush to make sure newer recruits were safe. He's good at talking, convincing the White Moon Senshi of our cause. I can't think of a better person to take my place as Vice Captain."

Receiving a summons had not been on Remarque’s list of things to do this evening—not that he was complaining. It had been unexpected and instantly resulted in suspicion. He did a quick check to make sure everything was in order—ran his hands over his outfit to smooth it out, and then turned to the nearest mirror.

He’d been, so it wasn’t like there was any shortage; he found a mirror half a block away and stepped through as casually as one could when they their boss was calling them for no apparent reason. He made a mental check that he hadn’t done anything contradictory, but just in case prepared a few backup stories as he entered mirrorspace.

He hid any sort of concern behind a well placed smile as he looked from Ares to Leto and then back again.

Oh, good. It wasn’t just him. Which was fine, as long as Leto hadn’t decided she felt the need to divulge his previous lack of support.

Which could be a very good reason for him being here.

“Evening,” he greeted calmly, bowing his head jus slightly in greeting. He hadn’t had a need to meet with Ares on a personal basis, so certainly it felt a bit out of place to be standing in front of her without the rest of the Court. Lifting his head to meet her eyes, he continued, “Apologies if I kept you. You requested me?”

While Remarque remained suspicious until he took a seat, when Ares started speaking, he was quick to relax. He cast a quick glance to Leto at news of her new position, though now didn’t really seem to be a proper time to congratulate her—not when Ares was addressing him.

Any concern for conflict or reproach had quickly dwindled, instead replaced with a sense of pride and eagerness. More responsibility was hardly a concern to Remarque; he had the time to spare—and his ego wouldn’t allow him to pass up any opportunity Ares presented him with.

Keeping tabs, giving reports—that couldn’t be too hard. And maintaining a high standard of excellence? Remarque would present nothing but. He hadn’t known any members of the court to step out of line, so couldn’t imagine the last part to be too much of an extra burden.

That he had been selected to replace Leto as she ascended in the ranks left him with a smugness it was hard to keep off his face. He and her might not have been the most compatible, but that didn’t mean he was unhappy with Ares’ decision. Leto had so much to offer—and how could he be upset when he was being presented with this opportunity?

“Of course. I’d be honored to accept such a position, and all accompanying responsibilities with it,” he replied. His demeanor never wavered; he still wore the same slightly lethargic, mostly complacent smile on his face.

Princess Ares appreciated Remarque's professional air. She felt it was one of the many things that distinguished her soldiers from the White Moon misguided senshi. "Leto will be able to fill you in on all the details. You two will work in tandem on a lot of these issues, dividing responsibilities. I trust that you can manage this on your own. If there is any kind of disagreement, bring it to me, and I can make the final call." With the Dark Mirror Court, Ares was largely hands off. She appointed people to power because she had faith in them. So she wasn't going to turn around and micromanage them too.

Getting to her feet, Ares moved toward two civilians in the mirrors. She reached through the glass into their prisons, pulled each one out by the collar and tossed them back to Destiny City through a mirror. It did not matter to her where they ended up. They would get there alive. Whatever else happened was up to them.

Having settled the important business, Princess Ares felt a sudden need to stretch her legs. A little hunting would be nice. Unhitching her torch from the floor, she turned to the both of them. "My Captain and Vice Captain -- keep your finger on the pulse of our faction. Tell me if something is wrong, if people are disheartened. And Leto." Her gray eyes moved to the Captain of the Court. "I believe taking the life of a Page is a noble pursuit. Our Court has absolutely no use for them. The future of this universe has no use for them. But if the Negaverse were to become aware of us targeting soldiers whom they might corrupt? That could cause us trouble. Kill if you can do it in secret. If not, atone if you must, if pressed by Negaverse soldiers. But know that murdering that kind of soldier will only earn my respect, not my spite." It was unclear how Ares had heard of what Leto had done. The mirrors had ears.

"I will leave you two to discuss your new roles. Call to me if you need my input," she said, one clawed hand touching the surface of the mirror. "And, again, congratulations. The faction will depend on you now." A ghost of a smile kissed her lips, and then Princess Ares was gone, disappearing through a mirror with her torch in hand.