A Night For Gold
late submission for Flash Fiction Friday 344, event hosted by @flashfictionfridayofficial
WIP ✵ Revolve
Trigger Warnings ✵ N/A
Rating ✵ Gen
Wordcount ✵ 998
this piece is a direct prequel of In The Spotlight (fff 302)
This gala is one of the most pretentious events Dajsper has ever been to, and xe's been to xir own wedding. Sure, this is pretty much the elite's occasion to gather and collectively hide their dirty laundry under an act of charity, but xe doubts that a university receiving private funding requires this much… opulence and grandeur.
Xe really wishes xe didn't have to be here, but as his father's son he'd be talked about more if he hadn't come. Besides, as the sole heir of eir mother's estate, it would have been unbecoming of Irami not to match eir father's donation to the university. And xe'd be loath to leave em alone at a gathering like this.
And so Dajsper is there, in a suit with navy accents but made of a shimmering silver and ice blue fabric that matches xir wife's dress. Don't get them wrong, they're good colors — especially in contrast to xir parents' all black attire — but xe wishes xe could have worn Volt's brighter colors. That would have pissed xir mother off.
Though xe supposes, with this gala being held at ZIoT, there's a very good reason to attend. And they spot that reason sitting at a table in the corner, with a group of other TAs not far from a table of milling department heads. Chief among them, the Cogsmith. Or, well, Doctor Zekkanid in this setting. Of course the man wouldn't be far from his protegé.
'"I'm pretty sure I've seen Tumaril,"' they tell Irami, leaning slightly down as to whisper. The flash of a camera goes off nearby.
Irami laughs as another flash goes off, taking xir hand in eirs to pull them down. '"Figured out a way to get to your partner already?"'
Dajsper makes eye contact with Doctor Zekkanid over someone's shoulder. Xe nods in greeting and glances purposefully at where xir parents are talking to the dean. Xe can see the man's eyes sparkle with mishief from over here. '"I'd say I have,"' xe answers, letting xir wife lead them over to some distant aunt of eirs who is standing fairly close to xir parents.
It is a matter of only a few minutes of empty chatter before xe feels xir mother's eyes land on xem with enough intensity to fold anyone who isn't used to it. He squeezes Irami's hand, a gesture immediately returned. Seconds later, he meets his father's eyes.
'"Ah, there he is,"' his father says, motioning for him to come over.
Dajsper excuses themself from their wife and eir aunt with a quiet question and a silent answer, and he slips into Erun as he heads over. Chin high, steps measured. Perfection is an uncomfortable mask, but Erun is his father's son. He knows how to make himself fit it seamlessly.
So he smiles and shakes hands with the dean and plays the part of the socialite kid — don't be bashful about your talent, don't be boastful of your position — as Doctor Zekkanid fakes interest in things he's heard a million times before through the Underground.
And then the Cogsmith gleams in Doctor Zekkanid's, and Voltage knows in her heart what the man is going to do. '"We have quite the prodigy with us too. I was just talking to him earlier. Excuse me a second,"' Doctor Zekkanid says, tilting his head in barely a request before stepping away.
The dean rushes to pick up the conversation. '"Quite the prodigy indeed, yes yes."' With her smile fixed in place, she sends an almost subtle reprimanding look toward Doctor Zekkanid. '"Please, forgive Professor Zekkanid. He's been quite taken with our student as he's pursuing his doctorate with him. He's the professor's TA for Bioinformatics as well,"' she smiles.
Behind Erun's mask, Dajsper pounces. '"Apa'Riani? Liralia and I hadn't realized he was attending,"' he says, unrepentant beneath their mother's invisible glare.
The dean blinks at them almost owlishly, if only for a second. Score one for breaking a socialite's mask though. '"You know him?"'
'"We know of him for sure,"' he tells the woman. Keeping the pride out of his voice is a struggle. '"His work could easily be revolutionary."'
'"He must be quite something then."' His father's eyes nearly burn into the side of his head. '"It isn't often that Erun shows interest in someone else's work. I can't wait to meet him,"' his father says, and Dajsper has to stop the mask from bristling, because xe knows xir father. Xe knows the man's arrogance like it's the code at the base of xir existance, the blind thing that keeps him from ever realizing other people have talent. Erun can take it for himself, he has since birth. But Tumaril deserves better than fake interest.
The dean chuckles before Erun has the chance to break his mask. '"Quite something indeed, Mister Wiroski. Ah, there they are."'
Erun doesn't whip to the side, but only because he's still Dajsper beneath, and Volt even further down, and she's been counting the time the Cogsmith's been gone. It still takes them all their focus not to gasp when they see Tumaril up close. The navy suit — in the same exact shade as xir own suit's accents — is stunning on him, and the warm brass details match both his prosthetic eye and the dress Ideli is wearing, off somewhere with her uncle. They're also oddly reminiscent of the bronze Volt wears. She could go weak at the knees.
But xe won't. The game's just begun now that Tumaril is here and shaking hands with xir parents. So Erun smiles, all fake and perfect, while Dajsper pushes sincerity in their handshake and Volt plans their escape. '"Erun Wiroski, it's a pleasure."' And because Tumaril deserves better, deserves the world, xe doesn't grin. '"I've read your research into biotechnological integration through magical resonance. It's quite ingenious."'
And Tumaril's eyes sparkle the way they always do, and it's truly a pity Dajsper can't kiss him right now. Xe'd really like to.
❊
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