Kell was composed, as his station implored. He watched her excitement for his father, and knew that it was natural. It was he that was doing saint's work, he thought, martyr in their room, biting his tongue. Father had such naive beliefs. How could some wine and the songs of the people turn Charlotte into what she needed to be? He'd read about the human body, which Jarek should be familiar with, and the mind's propensity for change in the face of great new contrasts. Ritual. Event. The words were right but they would be acted out poorly, if things continued as now. Strong beginnings need strong happenings.<br/><br/>He wasn't opposed to basking in his good work of bringing her. It couldn't have been anyone else. Not for their becoming Oracle. Like he'd trust that soft hearted John to protect her. He was even less for action than father. Kell wasn't blind to how that appealed to Lotte. How she might like something so tender. It was exactly this kind of environment that would hinder her growth into what they wanted. More so, it would keep her available to all the others here. She belonged to the commune, sure, but Kell needed to govern the distribution of her beauty.<br/><br/>Both men reacted to her question about the light-haired absentee, but none of them wanted it to show. Jarek was much more forgiving than Kell, and therefor not as concentrated on dispelling suspicion. "Of course he'll be there." he said. "Everyone will! It's the single most important moment for us, Charlotte." Even the father, who'd not been there, knew what it meant when she touched a very specific part of her cheek. He was well-meaning, but he'd not stood as the leader of so many people if he didn't have ambition for her heart, too. After all, he who controls the voice of the Oracle decides over all her listeners.<br/><br/>They watched her walk to the books, and Kell's fingers curled before they relaxed by his side. He'd never willingly let her go, but he couldn't very well chain her to himself yet. Jarek was happy to see her move freely. To him this kind of independence was proof of continued healing. His head tilted to the side as he admired her while she found the jacket of a book. It was like a performance, showcasing how lovely she was. The physical form of their salvation. It was hard to believe she wasn't full of herself, with such porcelain build and pretty tresses.<br/><br/>Jarek took her hand when it came for his, and held it firmly, nodding securely at what she asked. "Of course they'll love you! They'll love you more!" he promised and pulled her along, always doting. He put her down in a chair by his desk, one of the visitor's, and sat on the desk himself, looking down at her. "You see, we'll have the greeting room decorated. The'll be a stone table in the middle." he said. It was all according to rituals he'd read about. He had all the old parchments. "Your voices, we'll finally present them to the world through you." he was so elated.<br/><br/>Kell hid his fists behind his back when he came closer to the two. He'd seen the design of the ordeal. Even if he hated it, it was beautiful. Gentle, and perhaps dramatic as far as those things went, but not nearly enough to usher in a miracle in the sense that they promised. It was a guaranteed failure, though a festive one. He put a hand with tell-tale white knuckles on her shoulder, to try and take her attention away from father. "Doesn't it seem like too little, father? It's basically what you've been doing so far, and while she's come a long well, we'll need something special on the day of the event, don't we?" he pressed. It was an old argument, and the mention of it made Jarek sigh and let go of her hand. The older man stood from his lean on the desk.<br/><br/>"Pleas excuse my son, Charlotte. You know how he is about this." Jarek shook his head and circled his desk. "And you should know that you're under me, son." he said with some stern. "I thought we agreed on this."<br/><br/>Kell kneeled by her chair, and stroked her cheek softly. "You know it's right, don't you? You want to be what we need. It can't happen if there is just signing and candles. You need something more." he said, ignoring his father and staring into her lovely face.<br/><br/>We like that his eyes are black. He looks like he's strong.<br/><br/>Raker had always been on Kell's side. Lately, his voice was changing. The soft darkness that used to lull her into decisions she was sometimes punished for was morphing to become somewhat similar to the Ovrem son's. It was subtle, but she would have noticed the development.<br/><br/>Jarked hammered his fist into the desk to break the spell between them.<br/><br/>"That's enough for now." he declared. "You're to see to the teachers in the far school. They asked about you." Women all of them. He'd been trying to get his son's focus away from Charlotte for years, but Kell had clamored on to her since the start. He'd even nudged the girls in the commune about it, and many of them were eager for it - and by the stories it wasn't like Kell wasn't hot blooded about those things - but no one could hold his interest like the becoming Oracle.<br/><br/>"Father, I..." Kell protested, standing up, but was eventually sent out, anyway. He looked at her with some condolences about the fight in front of her, and was soon gone.<br/><br/>"Excuse him. He's headstrong, which is my fault, but he can't go on like that in such important matters." Jarek said.