"It was not like that, Cairbre. I just-" She began.
"I am not judging, but I do wish to hear more about these excursions later… In private."
The room fell silent once again. Cairbre's gaze moved back over to the three mages, namely Opeline. The Emperor had shown a curious affection towards her throughout the night. It was much to the displeasure of the young witch, but she did not comment. Rather than playing into it, she simply would redirect attention towards Leland or Warwick, allowing for them to tell more stories about their time wandering throughout Kairos.
For a moment, she had finally made eye contact with him. A foreboding feeling began to fester in her heart as Cairbre offered a small smile. What appeared as a harmless gesture to others, she found it to be menacing.
"Opeline, was it?" He began. "Have you always traveled with these two?"
"Yes, we grew up together…" She took a pause as attention was shifted onto her. "Warwick and I are siblings, so that is a given, but we adopted Leland as our honorary brother."
"Charming. So you grew up around mainly men, for the most part?"
It was a very off putting question to ask, but it seemed more questionable to not answer. She did not want to find out what he was insinuating or trying to pry out of her, but it was inevitable. Cairbre did not exactly dispel the thoughts of royalty being intrusive and nosy. It left others to wonder how little the royal family must have to do if they were so interested in the lives of others.
"I guess you could say that."
"No wonder you three seem to get along with my sister," The Emperor hummed. "She is not exactly the most feminine, nor does she conform to gender roles that well."
For the first time tonight, Cairbre's expression seemed genuinely affectionate. Even though his words were disconcerting, it was evident that he meant the comment affectionately. Opeline relaxed a bit, letting out a quiet sigh of relief.
Noticing her discomfort dissipating, Cairbre let out a chuckle. "Did you think I would humor a negative connotation?"
"My apologies, your highness. I was not intending to seem distrustful or have doubt in you."
"Call me Cairbre," He said as he reclined against the side of his chair once more. "Any friend of Aithne's is a friend of mine."
Opeline and Warwick tensed, feeling more concerned than they were before stepping foot in the room. Leland, of course finding the situation comical, glanced over to Aithne and back to his companions. It was difficult for him to hide his grin and stifle any sort of laughter that might erupt, but he persevered.
Aithne, noticing his reaction, kicked him under the table before clearing her throat. "I do believe it is getting late. It has pained me to sit through this painful dinner with you four, but I digress. We all need our rest. Cairbre and I are returning home for a while and you two are going east to visit some friends, correct? Then, let us get going."
The Emperor rose from his seat, giving a quick nod in agreement before taking his leave. As soon as he disappeared from the room, time felt as if it were at a stand-still. It would take more than a night and a few drinks to recover from the encounter that took place.
Warwick was the first to leave his chair, offering his hand to his sister. No one wanted to break their momentary peace as the servants began preparations to clear the room after they had left. Staying near the table still had a residual awkward energy that left a grimace on the ones who thought about it. While Aithne was originally joking about it being a pain, she did not realize how true her words really were.
"Warwick, you may want to personally take Opeline to your room after that," Leland teased.
"Not funny," he growled. "Besides, I am not the one who should worry. You should have seen his expression when you and Aithne entered together," Warwick quipped.
The two shared a slight panicked look before expectantly staring at Opeline. The poor girl could not tell a lie to anyone, even if it would cost her life. She shook her head and grabbed her brother's hand, pulling herself to her feet.
"He is joking, I promise."
Surprisingly, Aithne was the one who let out a sigh of relief. Even though she would not be the one to suffer any sort of wrath due to a misunderstanding, she could not handle any other sort of insinuation like that. Even though they were her friends, she could not bear the thought of something like that occurring between any of them.
A few exchanges were shared between the group before they slowly filtered out of the room towards their assigned quarters. Warwick did indeed walk his sister to her room, humoring the remaining two. The same offer was given to Aithne by Leland to humor their acquaintances, but she declined. She wanted a few more moments to herself before the night ended.
"I appreciate your offer, though, but I have dealt with enough of you four for the day."
And with that, she was finally alone.
"Great…" Aithne sighed.