AN: Last one for this set :)

GROVELLING TIME

"Will you just go to the guard hall or something?! I'm sick of you wallowing in this self-imposed restriction!"

Caius ignored his mate, choosing to stomp back into his bedchamber instead and throw himself face first onto their bed. It had been a whole week since the tribune ball had ended, so a week and a day since he had been dragged from the throne room, frothing at the mouth. He heard the door slam and assumed Dora must have left their suite. She was pissed off with having him hanging around, bored, and 'messing with stuff'. It's my home, too, she seems to forget that!

Caius knew he was being difficult to live with. Partly, it was still the remnants of the dungeon blood hangover making him feel agitated, but mainly, it was his boredom. Caius was a man of action. He didn't sit still, he didn't read or anything as sedentary as that. He liked training with the guards, drinking in the hall, doing things. Anything!

Caius hadn't left his chambers since his return, except to visit Magnus in the apartment above occasionally. Missing the coven meeting on Friday morning hadn't gone down well, from what he'd heard. It will have added to the rumours floating around the coven about me, I am sure. Fuck. Magnus had told him to be there, he had even tried to talk him into attending, but Caius had refused.

"Why didn't he insist?!" Caius thought aloud.

It may have been unfair to blame Magnus for his own actions but Caius wasn't about to let that stop him. I wrote the bloody letter, at least, he thought, though that had been the extent of his 'duties'.

He was bored rigid stuck in his chambers but he couldn't leave. A self-imposed restriction to his movements in the coven. I can't go to the guard hall until I've been to the south tower and grovelled, he thought. He knew he had to apologise to Felix for punching the kid in the face, he knew he should probably apologise to Demetri for getting him drunk on bloodwine and dungeon blood. He thought he should really extend those apologies to Aro and Sulpicia - the boys being their kids. And then there's Basileus!

Caius rolled onto his back and stared at the ceiling. At least it doesn't hurt anymore. It had taken two whole days and lots of bloodwine for the full burn of that whipping to subside. Caius found himself actually feeling sorry for some of the guards during his recovery. He knew a couple of them, Afton and Odi at least, came up against Magnus on a monthly basis. Mostly minor stuff, but enough minor stuff to see them suffering similarly to him. Who am I kidding?! Caius thought. Magnus would never lay it on that thick with his precious guards!

Caius heard the outer to his chambers door open. Dora must have come back, he assumed. When the bedchamber door opened, he didn't even look over.

"I'm sorry, okay?!" he snapped.

The door slammed shut. "Not really, no."

Fuck. Caius sat up and winced when his fears were confirmed - Magnus.

"I'm bored," Caius explained, cursing how pathetic he sounded.

"Go and see Aro and then we can go for a drink." Though Magnus smiled as he spoke, it wasn't a friendly suggestion. There was no question there. He had been telling Caius to pull himself together and get on with sorting out his mess for days.

"I'm still psyching myself up for that," Caius admitted. "For both parts," he added a little quieter.

Magnus shook his head. He knew what Caius' problem was and he was getting annoyed with it. Pride, your biggest downfall, he thought.

He sat down on the bed and lay out with his hands hooked behind his head. He'd been training with the guards all morning, nothing too strenuous, but a few of their number took great delight in trying to get sly digs in with the juggernaut ... Magnus welcomed the chance to relax. That's what he was doing when Dora had brought her complaint to him. He hadn't minded. Magnus had asked her to go to him if she had any problems with Caius and he'd much rather intervene whilst those problems were still minor than wait until things were more serious.

"You've been in here for a week," Magnus began. "You're driving Dora nuts with your sullen mood."

"Sullen mood?!" Caius repeated. "She makes me sound like a child." The huff Caius added didn't help his case.

Magnus was gracious enough not to comment on it. "Why won't you go and see Aro?" he asked. "You won't be walking into the lion's den - he's your best mate, and he understands you were in a bad place."

I don't like apologising, Caius thought. He was sensible enough to keep that in his head, because he knew how weak it sounded, but it was true. He'd much rather everyone would just forget about him being a cunt and perhaps just avoid him for a while. That's how things used to work for him, and he preferred it. No one expected him to apologise.

"Well?" Magnus pushed. "What's the problem?"

This was something else Caius didn't really like - talking. Magnus talked about anything and everything. Granted, Caius seemed to find it easier to talk to Magnus than anyone else, particularly because, through his gift, Magnus knew when he was lying so there was little point to being anything other than honest. But still, Caius didn't like it.

"I don't know," Caius eventually replied. By the gods, that was piteous! Knowing Magnus would expect more than that, Caius took a deep breath. "I know I was wrong, I suffered enough, can't that be the end of it?"

"Sure it can," Magnus breezed, giving Caius a little false hope. "I think if Aro and Felix knew I had belted you then …"

"What?!" Caius started stuttering with little decipherable leaving his lips.

Magnus took back over. "If you don't want anyone to know, then you will have to drag your ass to Aro's and apologise, won't you?"

Caius threw himself back on the bed, lying next to Magnus, though he looked decidedly less relaxed. "No one can know," he said quietly. "It's bad enough that I let it happen."

"'Let it happen', huh?" Magnus repeated. "You didn't have a choice, Caius. This is your pride talking and that's what got you into this mess in the first place."

"My pride has nothing to do with it," Caius muttered in reply.

He knew Magnus spoke the truth. He knew he'd only got so wrecked in the first place because he couldn't lose face in front of Henri and of course it was getting so wrecked that led to the disastrous showdown in the throne room with Felix … and all that followed, Caius thought with a gulp, eyeing the master at his side. But this isn't about my pride.

"I just don't see the point."

"The point," Magnus said, a little irritated that he was having to teach a grown man to suck eggs, "is that you punched a child in the face when you were in a drugged-up state. That child is Aro's and Sulpicia's son. Their other son, you drugged. You did this in front of the whole alliance …"

Caius shrank hearing his crimes reeled off.

"That's the point!" Magnus boomed before settling himself back down. "Perhaps I didn't do a good enough job with whipping you, is that it?"

Caius refused to say anything. He felt too ashamed. He gave a good 'tut' though.

"Do you need another round?" Magnus offered.

"You don't have an open invitation for that, you know!" Caius complained, instinctively moving a little further away, just in case.

"You think I need an invite?" Magnus chuckled softly to himself. "You can expect the same if and when I feel you need it. Consider it a gift."

"A gift?!" Caius repeated, huffing and tutting again.

Hmmm, Magnus thought to himself, noting that Caius been as objectionable as Magnus had expected he would. Was Freyr right? Does he want more guidance? Does he need me to be firmer?

"You need to go and see Aro and Felix, at least," Magnus suggested. "Basileus too, ideally."

"Basileus?!" Caius released in a whine. "I can't face him. I just can't. He will know everything as soon as he sees me."

Magnus sucked the air in between his teeth and whistled into the air. "He already knows, mate."

Caius sat upright. "How?!"

"Well," Magnus stalled for a moment. He even considered lying, but decided against it. Though he wasn't going to tell Caius everything. "We have talked it through."

"Talked what through?! Whipping me?! For fucks sake!"

"Calm down." Magnus used his gift to settle the tension a little before he continued. "Not just whipping you, all of it. He feels guilty for letting you take the dungeon blood in the first place, so he's footing the bill to have my chambers repaired."

"Letting me - like I'm some drugged-up delinquent or something?"

When Magnus merely smiled in return Caius realised that's exactly how the pair of them saw him, and his shoulders sunk.

"But at least it won't cost you anything now," Magnus offered as some solace.

"It's cost me plenty," Caius replied.

Magnus smiled. "Only your pride, and you still have too much of that left, if you ask me."

"I didn't ask you," Caius muttered, knowing he was right. "Prick."

"Hey! No need!" Magnus sat up and jabbed Caius hard in the chest. "Do you want to go for another round right now?!"

Caius glared at the bedsheets murderously, as if it would help to set them on fire with his eyes. "Sorry," he huffed, rubbing his chest.

Magnus squinted a little as he considered the younger master, as though he couldn't quite see what sat before him. Caius had sought him out many times over the last few years for advice, or just to talk things through on occasion, but he hadn't been particularly deferential. His mask had slipped over those years when they were in private. The four of them alone, that is. Freyr said I'd changed everything taking him in hand, he reminded himself, still watching Caius as he pulled a loose thread on his shirt. Basileus said the same when we talked this through. But how much?

"You need to go and see Aro, Caius," he said, getting to his feet and shrugging off his questioning mind for the moment. "I could come with you, if you like, but I think this is something you should do."

Caius' head shot up. Would that be better or worse? "No," Caius said, shaking his head. "You're right, I need to do it myself."

"In that case, I'm going to the guard hall to see how they are getting on in there." Magnus stretched out his back. Afton had got him good in training that morning, little bastard. "Send the kids to the hall, the guard are all playing 'Go', its some new game Marcus brought."

Caius didn't move from the bed. "Now? You expect me to see Aro now?!"

"Yes!" Magnus boomed. "And then come and see me and tell me how it went," he added, holding the door open for them both to leave.

Caius swung his legs off the bed and set his feet on the floor, but he didn't move. "I don't want to go to the guard hall," he said quietly, glaring at floor between his feet. it did as much good for his mood as glaring at the bed sheets had. "This is all too humiliating. I know what they will all be thinking."

Magnus sighed. "They all think you've been put in your place by the Creator, does that help?"

Caius didn't reply, and he still wasn't moving.

Magnus had places to be and he wasn't devoting any more time to Caius' pride. Flashing to his side, Magnus hauled Caius to his feet and slapped the back of his head, hard.

"Go to Aro and then come to me!" he boomed, shoving the younger master out of the door.

Caius suppressed all the names he wanted to call the juggernaut for having the audacity to order him to do anything! But still, Caius actually did as he'd been bid and went to the south tower. No one was more surprised than Caius himself as he left, except maybe Magnus, that is.

Aro looked up from his desk as his sons descended the stairs. Felix and Demetri had been getting along rather well since the fated tribune ball, which Aro was pleased about, relieved, even, as he had feared they would have fallen out with their argument in the throne room. Fortunately, or not, Felix concentrated his ire on Caius, not his brother. The boy seemed in a better mood, joking with Demetri, that was until he spotted his father was home and the smile fell from his face.

"What's wrong with you?" Aro asked, already knowing what Felix's complaint would be.

"Have you seen Caius yet?" the boy snapped.

Aro went back to his work. Yup, exactly what I thought. "I'm thinking about bringing Caius around here to let him have a second go on you, son."

"Dad!" Felix started to complain loudly, increasing in volume as his siblings all seemed pleased with the idea of having Caius give him another thump.

"I let you off for your behaviour at the ball, both of you," Aro reminded his older pair of boys. Aro had only given Felix a reprieve because he couldn't risk revisiting the shocking temptation that arose in him to have Felix submit for his abrasion, and if he was letting Felix off then he had no call to punish Demetri, either. "I'm choosing to give Caius a break on the matter, too. Particularly as you started it, Felix." Truthfully, he just wanted the whole sorry mess over with and forgotten.

"Will you be nice to him, please?" Sulpicia asked her mate, setting a glass of wine on Aro's desk.

"I'm too important to be nice to him," Aro returned, taking his glass and draining it in one. "His complaints are doing my head in."

"You're never too important to be nice to people," Sulpicia said in return, ignoring the second part of Aro's words. You're doing my head in, too, she thought.

"Caius is," Felix answered his mother's comment. "He's never nice to anyone."

"How do you work that out?" Demetri asked. He had never had too much time for Caius before the ball but he had risen to hero status since the master's defence of him.

"Hello!" Felix said, pointing to his unmarked face as if that was enough.

"A one off, son," Aro told his boy.

"Well other than that one off," Felix shot back. "Which had better be a one off or I'm going to deck him, he's Caius, isn't he?"

Aro set his work aside. He wasn't going to get anything done until Felix had exhausted the conversation, he could see that. "You say 'he's Caius' like it's an explanation. It's not. Caius is strict when it comes to rules and order but he doesn't treat people like shit, not like you do. Or rather, as you try to do."

Felix bit back on what he wanted to say. It had been explained to him by just about anyone with a vague interest in the matter, which seemed to be EVERYONE, that it was his teasing of Demetri that had caused the showdown in the throne room at the ball. Instead, he left that issue at the door so as not to let the conversation turn on him.

"He doesn't miss a chance to bollock someone though, does he?" he settled on saying.

"Doesn't he?" Aro asked, "I can't count the amount of times he's let you two off."

"Why drag me into this?!" Demetri shot out.

"That's only because you call rank on him," Felix said, ignoring his brother and speaking to his father.

Aro shook his head and laughed. "You have been here for hundreds of years and I haven't had to call rank very often - and that's because Caius knows where the line is, unlike you."

Felix was quick to point out the few times Caius had whipped him post-mission, not to mention the occasional times he had taken him to task rather than turning him over to his father, which to be fair to Caius, was much more usual.

"I can't think of a single time he has overstepped the mark with you, Felix," Aro told him honestly.

"That just makes you both bastards," Felix muttered.

Naturally Aro caught it. "How perfectly indicative of your bad attitude. You had better get out of my sight, boy."

"I just want to know what you are going to do about Caius punching me and then I'll leave!" Felix snapped, thoroughly pissed off.

Aro laughed and went back to his work, the conversation over in his mind. "You should think yourself lucky that I have too much work to do to be bothered spanking you for calling me a bastard."

Demetri and the twins burst out laughing at the childish punishment being applied to their big brother, particularly knowing it would embarrass him so much.

Spanking me?! Why did you have to say that?! "So you aren't going to help me?" Felix asked a final time.

"I am helping you by telling you to drop it, Felix." Aro was getting sick and tired of explaining things to Felix. "I know Caius punched you, he shouldn't have. No one feels worse about it than Caius does."

"How do you know that?" Felix asked, scoffing at the idea that Caius would be bothered at all.

"Because I've been there," Aro called out, a little louder than necessary with his growing annoyance. With a calmer tone, he continued. "I've done really stupid, regretful things under the influence of that damn drug and I KNOW Caius feels like scum of the earth right now."

Felix flopped into the sofa with his arms huffily folded. "Caius is so full of himself that I doubt punching me would bother him at all. Can't we kick him out of the coven for this, Dad?"

"No!" Demetri called out. That wasn't happening.

"Demetri!" Felix jabbed his brother in the ribs. "You do know that I am your brother, right?!"

"Yes, I know," Demetri replied, jabbing his brother back. "I also know who was dragging me around the throne room and who defended me. Caius isn't going anywhere."

"Caius isn't going anywhere," Aro said forcefully before either could continue their argument. "He's had a rough few years …"

Sulpicia pulled Felix to his feet and moved him to another chair, away from his brother. "Caius has had a rough life, my love."

"Mom!" Felix complained. "You can't side with Caius over me!"

"I'm not, my darling," Sulpicia said, stroking his face. "But you are fine now," she pointed out. "I doubt Caius is. Basileus said he would be taking care of it and no one has even seen Caius in over a week."

"Good." Felix knew how his grandfather worked, and he hoped that Caius had felt the full force of the Creator's anger. Basileus did say he would take care of it, he reminded himself.

Aro looked to his mate curiously. "What do you mean by 'he's had a rough life'?"

Sulpicia turned a frosty eye on her mate. For such a perceptive man the things he chose to ignore astonished her at times. You know exactly what I'm talking about, Sulpicia assumed, correctly, and decided to try and shame her husband a little by answering his question, but directing it to their children instead.

"Caius has borne the brunt of blame for your father's activities ever since I can remember."

You bitch! Aro thought, viciously. He really hadn't expected his mate to sell him down the river like that!

"Why?" they asked, "How?"

"Aro?" Sulpicia questioned, smiling cruelly.

Aro sighed. Fucking bitch. "I may have convinced my father that Caius led me astray … slightly."

"Slightly?!" Sulpicia repeated shrilly. "Caius was your proverbial whipping boy until Atia set Basileus straight on the matter. And me! It's no wonder Caius has been …" Sulpicia stopped to think how to phrase it. "Difficult," she chose, "to live with over the last few centuries. Between your father's mistreatment of him, the work he has had to conduct, the constant reliance on dungeon blood …"

"Well, he's changing," Aro interrupted. He didn't need to give his mate the chance to point out the wrongs against Caius ... he knew them well enough. Many of them being his own orchestrating. "Everything around him is changing, too. This is good for us all."

"So what am I?!" Felix complained. "Collateral damage?!"

"This time, son," Aro said happily. A little too happily. Before Felix could start again, Aro decided to offer a sweetener. "If there's a next time I'll take him down for it."

The children all pondered how such a situation would go down and Sulpicia outright laughed in her mate's face.

Aro was offended. "Is there something that amuses you, my queen?"

With a hand in front of her mouth because she couldn't hide her amusement, Sulpicia said honestly, "You can't fight Caius, my love. He'd use you as a dish rag to wipe the floor."

Hearing his children snigger, Felix loudest of all, Aro was truly offended. "I would say we are equally matched at worst, my queen."

"I would agree," Sulpicia said, still smirking. "IF I were protecting your male pride."

You utter bitch! Aro thought, his mouth hanging open in shock.

"I'm sorry, my love," Sulpicia said, smiling to her mate like he was a simple child. "But Caius fights much more often than you. You hardly go on any missions, Caius goes on them all. It's reasonable to assume he would be the man to back if you two actually came to blows, don't you think?"

The man to fucking back?! Aro was astounded and he briefly considered showing his disloyal brood, who were still laughing, that he could handle any member of his coven with ease. But then again, Sulpicia did make a good point. For many years Aro's role had been much more administrative and he'd seen less action than Caius had. Still, he wasn't willing to admit defeat aloud.

"Well, it's not happening anyway," he settled on saying. "I'm not fighting with my best friend over a drugged-up punch that Felix deserved."

"Deserved!" Felix repeated.

"YES!" Aro spat loudly. "Perhaps now you will start to mind your spiteful tongue on matters that don't concern you?!"

"I didn't mean it anyway, he knows that." Felix looked over to his little brother and offered Demetri a pained smile. Whatever else had happened, Felix had finally seen the error of his ways on that score.

"You shouldn't say it then, should you?!" Sulpicia added sternly.

"I've apologised to Demetri, and I won't say anything of the sort again." Get off my back, Felix thought. He had hoped Demetri would have stuck up for him a little, though he knew that was pushing it, really. His brother had accepted his apology, again, but more than that would have to wait.

Sulpicia relaxed a little. "Then at least some good has come from all of this."

The door knocked, taking his mother's attention. Felix called after her, "I still think Caius should apologise to me, though!"

"Sulpicia, may I come in?"

"Of course, Caius."

Everyone's head shot to the door. "Caius?" Aro questioned, not having expected his co-master to come of his own volition.

"Caius!" the children repeated in unison.

Sulpicia glared at her family for their rudeness. "Why do I have an echo?!"

Aro smiled encouragingly to his old friend and stood from his desk to welcome him in. He wanted to put Caius at ease, knowing only too well how hard it was to face coven members after such public disgrace.

Caius bobbed his head to Aro but forced himself to continue on his path to Felix, and not take the easy way out.

"Felix, I, erm … I am very sorry for losing my cool with you," Caius said. He even winced as he spoke. Saying sorry for anything was painfully uncomfortable for the coven leader.

"You broke my nose," Felix replied. He didn't really know what else to say. He'd never heard Caius apologise for anything before and even though he had wanted an apology, he hadn't expected to get one.

"I know," Caius said, hoping he was doing a better job of hiding his shame than he felt. "I apologise."

No one said anything for a moment. It just came as such a surprise to hear Caius genuinely repentant.

Demetri broke the short silence. "I thought it was great!" he crowed.

Caius chuckled a little to the boy's undue adoration. "It wasn't my place," he said softly, giving Demetri a wink.

"I would say that it isn't anyone's place to punch a child in the face, unfortunately," Aro said playfully.

"Even that annoying brat?"

"Jane!" Felix shot to his sister for her comment.

"We've all wanted to do it at some point," Demetri shrugged.

Felix was incensed by his siblings' lack of support. "Dem!"

"I dream about it regularly."

That one surprised Felix most of all. "Alec!" he called out, before huffing dramatically with his arms folded tight across his chest.

Caius was doing his very best not to laugh, knowing it really wouldn't help matters. "I'm sorry, Felix," he said again, hoping the boy knew he meant it.

Felix settled when he realised Caius was being truthful. "Yeah, I know, me too," he said. "For mouthing off at you, I mean."

Caius quickly looked to Sulpicia to check that he'd said enough. Please, by the gods, let that be enough, he thought desperately. When the coven queen offered him a drink and a sympathetic smile, Caius finally relaxed.

"Magnus and Freyr have asked for them to be sent to the guard hall," he told Sully, accepting the wine she had offered and hoping it would settle the last of his nerves. "They have some games, or something."

"Be back before nine," Aro called to his children, none of whom had asked for a curfew before they hotfooted it to the door.

"Nine?!" Felix whined, looking aghast.

"And no drinking," Aro added to them all.

"And no cheating, Felix," Sulpicia quickly tacked on, looking to her eldest boy.

"Mom," Felix said coyly, unable to keep the smile from his lips. "I am offended!"

Sulpicia laughed after them but her thoughts soon turned to her own matters. Atia ... and Freyr, actually, had both requested that she reach out a little more to Athenodora to encourage her back into coven life.

"I assume your good lady is free, Caius?"

"That she is, Sul," Caius replied.

Once his mate was clear of the room, Aro topped up their glasses to the brim and retook his seat at his desk, inviting Caius to take the seat opposite.

"So …" Aro started, eyeing Caius curiously, "has Basileus caught up with you?"

"Yes, Basileus caught up with me," Caius lied. "Don't look, Aro," he asked, knowing his co-master would be desperate to do just that.

He will want to see the vicious hiding I got from Basileus, only he won't see Basileus, will he? He will see Magnus and I will have to kill him before anyone else finds out. Caius' thoughts were sheer hyperbole, of course, but his worries over being exposed as having fallen under Magnus were real. There was no way he could let anyone find out, his reputation would be in ruins. Aro has to believe Basileus was the one to dole out the punishments, he has to!

"You know how it goes. I feel bad enough without you taking the piss."

Aro saw how dejected Caius looked and could only imagine what his father had done to the guy to exact his vengeance.

"Fair enough," he said, settling into his seat.

He had enough experience with Basileus to know that whatever was in Caius' memories wouldn't be pretty.

"I came to Magnus' but he was still protecting you from the old guy." Aro winced for full effect and laughed into his goblet as he took a swig. "I take it you won't be bringing dungeon blood out in social again?"

"Never," Caius stated sternly. He shook his head to his own foolishness. "I don't know what I was thinking." Caius took a steadying breath before he continued. "Aro, did you know I was letting Demetri drink from my cup? It means he would have been drinking …"

"Dungeon blood?" Aro finished for him. "Yes, I do know." He wasn't happy about that. Actually, he had been fucking furious about that! But Atia had talked him around. "Sulpicia, somehow, hasn't realised. She thinks he was drunk. I suggest it stays that way."

Caius nodded and released a shaky breath, grateful that Aro wished to take it no further. Magnus had tried to assure him that Aro would be reasonable about everything that had happened. But Caius' idea of reasonable was very different to everyone else's. He wouldn't have felt it unreasonable if Aro had wanted to fight it out after what he'd done. He wouldn't have felt it unreasonable for a good many horrible things to happen to him after the fuck up he'd created.

Aro could see his friend brooding and wanted to ease his conscience. "Caius, I know you wouldn't have doped up Demetri purposely. But that is another good reason for keeping dungeon blood to the dungeons, yes?"

"Definitely," Caius agreed. "Have I screwed up the alliance?"

"Not at all. I smoothed things over. I'm very good at my job," Aro said, smirking to himself. How he managed to feed his ego in every conversation was a testament to, well, Aro's ego! "You did make yourself look a bit of a prick, though. So your real punishment will come at the next ball when you have to face everyone again."

Caius groaned and dropped his head into his hands. Yes, that would certainly prove to be punishing. "I'm planning on going to the guard hall next, so facing the guards can be a trial run, I suppose."

Aro burst out laughing. He had to agree - he knew the rumours floating around the coven about Caius'' demise. Some actually thought he was dead! "I am SO coming with you!" he said excitedly.

Caius had to laugh, too. What else could he do?

"I thought you would be angrier about all of this. Are you sure you don't want to fight it out?" he asked, head still in his hands looking to Aro through the split in his fingers.

"I was angrier," Aro admitted. "But I've had my mother in my ear reminding me of my very many fuck ups over the years, fuck ups you have covered for, even taken the blame for, and I made peace with it."

Seeing Caius relax again, Aro felt cruel for what he was about to say, but it needed to be said, he felt. "Heaven knows I have no right to tell you how to behave, or conduct your affairs, but I don't want my kids involved again. I'd prefer not to have to pull rank with you on this, brother."

Caius took it on the chin. He was still getting off better than he'd expected. "Understood," he said with a bob of his head. "I really am sorry about, well, everything. I've even written to Amun to express my regret."

"Marcus' idea, by any chance? He does like his letters, bless him," Aro chuckled thinking just how pleased Marcus would be to have set Caius' rarely used pen to paper. "Are you and Magnus okay? I saw the state of his chambers." Aro grimaced. "Yeesh!"

"He's very forgiving, thankfully. We're okay. I owe him a small fortune, but we're okay." Caius closed his eyes for a moment. Basileus is paying for the damages, he reminded himself, but he still owed Magnus a great deal and he knew it. "Freyr though …" he trailed off thinking of the ear-splitting round of fucks he had received from the female coven leader over the last week.

"She's as fearsome as Atia when she's pissed off," Aro added for him.

"You're telling me?!" Caius joined in. "She slapped me so hard I went down to the floor!" He immediately regretted his words. Why the fuck did I tell him that?!

"Did she?!" Aro asked, surprised. After seeing the state of her living chambers, Aro didn't blame her one bit. "Go Freyr!" he exclaimed. "I think you're the first man alive to survive pissing off the shield maiden. Think yourself lucky, brother."

"Yeah, I do."

Caius did feel lucky, in more ways than one. Mostly right then that Aro hadn't thought to question why he would have allowed Freyr to strike him without rebuttal. Clearly Aro thought he deserved it, and Caius knew he had. He could only hope that Aro wouldn't think much more on it.

Basileus strode into Aro's chambers, closely followed by Eleazar and Carlisle, only briefly breaking his step when he saw Caius sitting at the desk with his son.

"What have you done to him, Dad?" Aro asked casually. "You've made him meek!"

"Meek?!" Caius repeated, squaring his shoulders a little. "Shut up!"

"What have I done to him?" Basileus said into the air.

He knew Caius wanted to keep his dealings with Magnus under wraps, and Basileus had assured Magnus that he wouldn't blow their cover … yet. He left Caius stewing and begging through his thoughts for a moment before replying to his son.

"Nothing much." He placed a heavy hand on the young master's shoulder. "But I'm glad to see it was effective."

"Certainly, my lord," Caius agreed, nervously eyeing the creator of their kind.

"How are you doing, El?" Aro asked his big brother wearily. "Carmen still planning on ruining your life?"

"And then some!" Eleazar huffed, perching on his brother's grand desk. "I had hoped that spending some time with the screeching Denali brats would have put her off but she's talking through plans with Atia!"

"You're screwed," Carlisle added unhelpfully.

Caius looked between them all, waiting for someone to fill him in.

"Carmen wants kids," Aro explained.

Caius turned a curious eye on Eleazar. "And you don't?"

"Obviously!" Eleazar exclaimed. He would have thought out of their entire coven Caius would understand that the most. "Would you?!"

"They aren't all bad, I suppose," Caius mused, which was shocking for everyone concerned. "I can almost tolerate a couple of Aro's."

"Which ones?!"

Caius wasn't sure who asked that, as they all seemed to be voicing similar sentiments.

"Demetri's alright," he replied, thinking of the kid and his time at the ball with him … before things had turned so sour, of course.

Aro burst out laughing. "Only because he thinks you're a hero now!"

Caius cringed. "Let's not talk about that," he said, begging them all with his eyes.

Basileus applied a little more pressure to Caius' shoulder. "No, let's not."

Aro smirked to his poor brother-in-arms. Maybe it was the conversation he'd had with his mate and children about who would win in a fight between them, or perhaps just Aro's penchant for mischief, but he decided to twist the knife a little on Caius.

"What are your plans?" he asked his brothers and father. "Caius is about to face the guard hall for the first time, its bound to prove entertaining."

Caius dropped his head back onto the top of the chair as he heard the eruption of laughter from the other men in the room. Aro, you jackass!

"I think we should all be there for that," Basileus joined in, pulling Caius to his feet. "I, for one, would like to put the rumours to rest. I'm being accused of having murdered you out there."

"I imagine my reappearance will cause a great depression, then," Caius muttered. He knew he was no doubt last on the guards' 'favourite masters' list.

Carlisle and Aro were almost whooping in their excitement on the short walk there. Caius walked along behind them all, like a hangman to the noose. This is going to be hell. He briefly considered slipping away and returning to his quarters in shame, but one look from Basileus put that idea of his mind sharpish.

Basileus went ahead of them all and threw open the guard hall doors dramatically. Everyone turned to see what had caused the doors to bounce on their hinges.

And then they all saw Caius.

Basileus directed his sons to the bar, leaving the shamed coven leader alone to face his stupefied audience. You could have heard a pin drop in that guard hall. Caius stood frozen in position, the fight or flight response rising within the longer he stood. And then it started. Caius wasn't sure which of the cocky cunts began the slow clap, but pretty soon every single member of the guard hall was clapping and laughing.

Aro kicked off calling out good natured jibes at his co-master's expense and he was soon joined by the guards, not to mention the creator, his other sons, Magnus and Freyr!

Caius wasn't entirely sure what to do with himself. His immediate reaction was to turn around, bag his things and flee the coven, never to return! Granted, it wasn't the most reasoned of responses, but for a brief moment it felt like the only one. Magnus must have sensed the emotional turmoil the younger master was suffering as he appeared at Caius' side within the blink of an eye and threw an arm around his shoulders, mainly to keep him in the room.

"You're always one decision away from a totally different life, Caius," Magnus whispered into his ear.

"What does that mean?" Caius hissed back. There was no need to be so quiet, no one would have heard them over the raucous in the guard hall anyway, all directed at Caius.

Magnus started pulling him towards the bar. "Laugh," he advised.

Is that it?! Caius wondered then what had ever possessed him to put all his eggs in Magnus' basket. The man was clearly a moron for thinking 'laugh' was any kind of constructive advice under the circumstances.

When Caius got to the bar, Turk presented him with a glass of water rather than anything even remotely alcoholic, and the crowd descended into sheer hysterics.

"Laugh," Magnus repeated quietly.

With no other idea on how to proceed, Caius gave in. He couldn't see what good it would do, but he accepted the glass with a plastered on grin and started laughing. It was as if a switch had been flicked inside him and the tension he had been consumed with only moments before started to melt away.

Growing in confidence a little, he joined in a bit more. He even responded to the guards, telling them to keep it up and he'd get them back in training, in good nature! Caius guessed that Magnus had had something to do with his calming emotions, but he was grateful for the help.

Laughing about it all helped. That ball had arguably been the biggest of his fuck ups, it was certainly the most shameful, being so public. How is laughing helping?! Caius didn't laugh at himself - this was a brand spanking new experience for him. He was always too on edge for such a thing, too uptight, some would say. But then, Caius had lived his entire life expecting the need to defend himself at any moment of the day … such a lived experience makes a man rather aggressive in his self defence. He wasn't sure why it was working, but laughing at himself was definitely helping him feel less ashamed.

"Its not so bad, Caius," Basileus called over to him. "You've all had your day," he said, giving all three of his sons a pointed look before rolling his eyes to the heavens in true exasperated father mode.

That was all it took for attention to turn on poor Carlisle. Aro's screw-ups were mostly unknown, and out of respect for Carmen, no one really mentioned Eleazar's early days in the coven. Carlisle was the only one the guards could tease without causing too much trouble.

Carlisle's time in the spotlight was short lived when Magnus started bringing up certain guards' mischief. Magnus and Freyr kept much of 'guard life' away from the other elite members of the coven because it made for a happier and more productive guard in general. Magnus effectively grassing them up was unexpected, but with the tone of the guard hall at that moment, it was fitting, and taken as intended, all in good spirit.

Caius eventually convinced Turk to serve him to a proper drink and he stayed in the guard hall all night. His wings had been severely clipped and his pride even more severely dented. Something as simple as laughing that night ... not fleeing, not fighting, just laughing ... had changed everything he felt inside. Chancing a look to Magnus, Caius' thoughts had turned damn near complimentary towards the man.

Perhaps you aren't a moron after all?