RISE

9 - Gossip

The dinner party was an elegant event, despite the short notice. Servants with trays of champagne and hors d'oeuvres walked amongst the mingling guests, who gathered in the garden as the sun began to set. Aaron led Elvorix around and introduced him to each of his relatives as they arrived. There was tension in the atmosphere, as the guests whispered to each other. Some were fearful of Elvorix and what this meant for the family; now that they had paid their debt, they worried that their successes would crumble. Most of the family, however, was suspicious that this was all some kind of trick, that either Elvorix was not actually demon and no one to be feared, or that he was building up to a grand takeover wherein he and his parents would rule the world and force all humans into slavery.

Elvorix didn't help these rumors, either, openly talking about his expectations to rule the human world someday. Aaron and some of the others asked about his plans, but he brushed them off, claiming that it was far too early to make any commitments. From what he did say, Aaron got the impression that while he and his family were concerned with the nature of his rule, whether it be for good or evil, Elvorix saw it through a neutral perspective.

It was almost a shame, Aaron thought, that the nature of Elvorix's intentions was the focus of the meeting. Under normal circumstances, Elvorix would have been a wonderful husband to introduce to the family. He was charismatic and polite, engaging in conversation with each person he was introduced to, answering all of their questions and asking his own questions to show that he was genuinely interested in their lives.

The other cousins who had been considered to be given to him had mixed reactions to meeting him; some seemed relieved for Aaron's sake and their own, no longer feeling guilty about not volunteering, and others still grateful for not being in Aaron's position. Sascha and her brothers quietly asked Aaron about the possibility of Elvorix changing his mind now that he'd met everyone, but Aaron shut it down quickly as he told them, confident but teasingly offended, that there was no way Elvorix was going to leave him for one of them. Judging by the way Elvorix grinned mischievously at him, Aaron figured that while his appearance had changed, he still had superior hearing.

Elvorix was having a good time, for the most part, but Aaron could tell he was still nervous, especially as more and more of the family arrived. The tension doubled when Aaron's aunt, Irene, walked in with her husband and five children. They hadn't come when it was time to choose who would be sent to the demon prince, which wasn't a problem since none of her children were over 18, but Aaron had secretly been glad that she didn't come. The aunts and uncles he had on his mother's side were loud, fun, and exciting; they lived in Venezuela and Aaron only visited them a few weeks at a time every year, but he always enjoyed spending time with them. His father's youngest sister, however, lived in the same neighborhood as he and his parents while he grew up, and he saw her often.

Irene was a pretty woman in her late thirties, with bleached blonde hair and the same blue eyes as Aaron's father. Aaron always thought of her rushing around in impossibly pointy heels, a pencil skirt, and a blazer, with her phone in one hand and a stylus in the other. She was a proud Christian, and took a firm stance of disbelief in the demon deal, believing it was just an old myth and that the story itself was what gave everyone nightmares. Avery's father was the oldest of their siblings, and had sort of been the golden child, at least in their father's eyes. Then came Aaron's father and then Natalie and Maybelle's mother, making Irene the youngest. Aaron supposed that being the youngest of four siblings from such a powerful and prestigious family must have been hard on her, because she seemed to spend every ounce of her energy making sure she stood out above everyone else, constantly talking up her achievements and those of her children, and was extremely competitive with her siblings and cousins.

Aaron did not think Elvorix would tolerate her backhanded compliments, and he was a little afraid to find out how Elvorix would react to being insulted. So, when he heard the louder-than-everyone-else-on-purpose voice of Aunt Irene, Aaron felt a cold dread, and tried to steer Elvorix away from her and her family.