Welcome to Gaia! ::

His personal study was deep below the main floor of the University. Away from prying eyes or fresh air, past several magical wards to ensure that it would be untouched by most. Besides Lazarus, only the new god of vampires had made it past all those wards. A god was exactly the sort who could slip past those wards, but now that his magic had been reinforced with Grendel's endorsement, only a select few could make it to the door. Whoever was on duty to warn him of emergencies at the university and... well, the other was not a name he had thought of in awhile. She was still sleeping somewhere, at least from his understanding, and not something to concern himself with at the time.

His robes were tossed on the back of a chair crammed into a large wooden desk that took up some space towards the front of the room. Shelves of all sorts lined the walls, except for a space that had a scrying mirror placed near the desk. Books, tomes, magic supplies were scattered around those shelves, but in an order that Lazarus understood himself. Things grouped by what could be used together, within the same schools of magic, with some exceptions for items that could create nasty results together. An explosion in this space would not be friendly, even for him.

Beyond the shelves was a larger space. Cushions towards the ouskirts of the area, ones that he liked to sit on while reading, but the center of the free space was dominated by magic runes written in a dark, deep red liquid. Lazarus was currently seated on one of the cushions along the edge, one tome open on his right knee, as he leaned forward to example the latest set of runes he had scrawled on the floor. Everything had to be exactly right because one wrong detail could cause a mess.

His hair was tied in a ponytail at the nape of his neck to keep it out of the way, and those glowing eyes narrowed before he wrote another rune from the book to finish the set. Which was when the door to his study opened. Presumably there was some trouble on campus again and Laz felt a spike of irritation being interrupted while scrawling. "Tell me what requires my attention, quickly." Lazarus tried not to growl out the command, but his voice was already low to begin with and it likely sounded that way no matter how he might have tried otherwise. He also couldn't remember who was on duty, but he was slow to remember new names since waking up. There had been many changes and not enough time to commit them all to memory.

The voice that responded was not the aide on duty. Lazarus paused without meaning to, though his eyes did not lift from the rune, and for a second he held still. Lazarus had sired a handful of vampires during his lifetime. He had always taught the ones he sired, though some excelled more than the others. A few had died. Two he had sired around the same time and trained together. Kilah, the blue haired woman with a terrible personality, and her.

Sionann was the one student he had ever had that made him feel things that had otherwise lain dormant for centuries. Lazarus left the rune as it was and carefully stood up, stepping back from the runes to ensure he wouldn't accidentally scuff anything while processing the fact that Sionann was in his study. How many years had it been since he had seen her? Lazarus couldn't put a number to it, but things had drastically changed in what time had passed.

"You may." He moved carefully along the edge of the open space with a measured pace. His movements were typically careful and controlled. Despite how his mind was racing, nothing about his posture had changed. Always carefully in check, always calm in his demeanor, because he had learned a number of lessons as a young vampire. Lessons currently covered with tattoos across his chest and shoulders, beneath a number of necklaces and bracelets that held various spells locked away in their charms and symbols.

Lazarus stopped at the end of the shelves, stretching for a second. He had been crouched over for some time, but that was not abnormal. Finally those glowing eyes looked at the dark haired woman from head to toe. A sweeping glance to ensure that all was well with her, or so Lazarus told himself. She looked just the same as she had before with nary a hair out of place. As expected for Sionann. “How much have you learned since waking?” His question would need an answer before he delved into whatever questions she might have had. She would need to be brought up to speed on a good number of things. Lazarus was already making plans for Sionann in his mind, assuming she would want to continue her role as she had been before. When they had worked together…

The tall man hadn’t moved a muscle after his eyes found her face. Straight to business, shutting out other emotions, making no assumptions. He had felt desires more strongly in his youth, but centuries of spellwork had taught him a measured self control that was not easily unlocked. Not even by his own memories. But he was staring a little hard without meaning to, still as a statue. Business… and yet, things were not the same as they had been. He now led Tremere. What fea–concerns he may have had before were now unfounded. A funny thought to run across his mind.

The air always felt like it was electrified around Sionann. The way she spoke, the way she moved, all of it was familiar and just as delightful as... well, somewhere along the way something had changed in him. He was her sire, but that had been a long time past. The dark haired woman always spoke to him as someone who was almost equal, ever toeing the line that they both were distinctly aware of.

Loyalty to Caine had been severed. Her words snapped his attention back in place. His eyes had been following her as she slowly circled him, not moving more than to turn his head slightly to watch her, even as she commented on Caine. There was a slight grunt that could have been taken almost a laugh, but Lazarus nodded at the statement. Caine was no longer their god. Instead Grendel was. Tremere respected power and hierarchy, but this change was one that needed to be embraced.

One hand lifted to touch his a few strands of his ponytail, lifting it slightly before shrugging. "I have not found time to cut it and it's mostly hidden by the robe." As long as it was tied back, it mostly stayed out of his way, and that was all the tall man really needed. "Grendel is now our God and many of the Disciples of Old could not be found. Or perhaps... could not agree with the change." Which one was the truth Lazarus could only guess, but it had been a deciding factor in his own choice. "Including the one that led Tremere." That Disciple had been Lazarus' sire. One that he had not... gotten along with except when necessary for a wealth of reasons. This would have been known to Sionann of course. He had hardly been able to contain his irritation at a great number of choices that had been made in the past.

Lazarus didn't move, allowing Sionann to finish her inspection. "I was chosen to replace him." He doubted she had made it into his study without someone protesting and levelling a title at her to try stopping her. Sionann would have already known that Lazarus had claimed the top spot on the pyramid that was their clan. "An agreement was made, the clan is whole, and we continue on as before under a different god. Little has changed within our walls and everything has changed at the same time, Sio." He used her that nickname, the shortened version in a manner that felt very intimate for Lazarus. It was not one he had used often, but they were alone together here. Wards on the walls that kept others from being able to pry or listen in unless their magic was somehow stronger than his. "I'm glad you've woken. Your timing could have only been better if it had been a few weeks earlier." A small smile appeared on his lips. He really hadn't realized how much he missed her until she was suddenly there.

Sio's fingers touched the end of his ponytail and Lazarus concentrated on that delicate feeling. Was it the first time she had ever touched him? No. Casual brushes and the like had been pretty common while she had been his apprentice, but there had never been anything more than that. For various reasons that Lazarus had kept to himself, guarded closely to his chest. Secrets that Sio and everyone else in Tremere would know longer know of, because they had happened long before any of them had joined the clan.

Those memories had always made him cautious and truth be told, the tall vampire was still cautious because there were too many unknowns he was still trying to figure out. So he didn't react to that touch, though he wanted to. He is making great choices already. There might have been a snort of laughter under his breath, but it was barely heard, and Lazarus allowed himself to nod slightly in agreement.

He was in charge, there was no one to... chide him for getting too big for his status any longer. And Sio was correct, who else could have been suited for Disciple? If he had not been in the picture, Lazarus knew it would have fallen to one of his two remaining apprentices. Sio or Kilah. He had a preference, but would Grendel have thought the same considering he had had children with the blue haired woman? It didn't matter. He had been chosen and Lazarus wasn’t one to waste time thinking about what ifs.

The possible names that Sio offered did make Lazarus smile just a little bit wider. The dark haired woman always had the perfect thing to say to pull him from his thoughts. She had always been distracting but for some reason, he felt it a little more keenly in the moment. "Lazarus is fine in most situations. As for the others... old and wizened may I be, but I suppose sire may fit the most upon official meetings if you feel the need to use something else." Lazarus lifted a hand, for a moment he wanted to reach out to her. Her shrug had brought a bit of hair across one cheek, dark locks escaping and daring him to move them in response. Of course, that was all in his head. Sio was half a step away and he wanted to know what the curve of her cheek felt like. Easy to imagine, and his hand might have looked like it was about to reach out before hesitating slightly and coming to rest on his chin instead. Something to keep him busy, though he only looked like he was thinking things through.

“Master doesn’t suit any longer. You haven’t been my apprentice in quite some time.” Before she had fallen asleep, she had been able to research whatever she wanted and do whatever she needed… but there was one matter they did need to discuss. “The Covenant doesn’t have a leader right now. I can think of no one better than yourself, if you’ll accept.” Lazarus had been in charge of the society before Grendel had made him a Disciple, but Sio had been a member as well. Business was so much easier to discuss than the longing he felt. Another item ticked off an endless list he was using as a shield against his own feelings, but one that would thin as the items became less pressing.

His hand did move then. Lifting from his own chin to finally, gently, and softly push that little bit of hair away from her cheek. He didn’t allow himself to linger on the touch, feeling it would be impolite at best. She had touched his hair for a moment, so he was allowed to do the same. The tall vampire was still waiting on her answer though, wondering if there was any reason why she wouldn’t step up to lead. Things would be safer in her hands, they always had been. And the curve of her cheek had been softer than he would have imagined. Perhaps it had been a long time since he had touched another in a manner that was considered intimate. Maybe too long.

He hadn't been expecting any kind of reaction to the light brush of his fingertips. Instead Sio surprised him, clasping his hand to her cheek in a swift move. His hand was suddenly pressed against the full curve of her cheek and her words were rather straight to the point despite being coded. Anything. She was staring directly at him and while normally Lazarus would have tried to brush off the intended meaning behind the tone, he wouldn't be able to ignore this.

His thumb brushed against the curve of her cheek as he thought. Wants and considerations weighed with each other, but Lazarus could feel that the wants were winning. He no longer had the fears that kept those wants at bay, because hew as the one in charge. There was no longer his sire trying to show him what the truth of the world was. Trying to keep him under lock and key.

Instead, the only thing holding him in place was his own fears. His hand moved slightly, shifting so that his thumb could trail along different spots of her face. Gently pressing against her soft skin, until it drifted along her lips. Impossibly soft and he had a feeling that the rest of Sio would be the same. Which only made him want to touch more of her, even as his glowing eyes matched her gaze.

This had always been lurking inside of him, wanting her. "I trust you understand what you are offering, Sionann. I do not take lovers easily or lightly. And I do not trifle with passing distractions." Which was true now but hadn't always been true. Passing moments had been the only cure for a physical needs that had overwhelmed him, but they had always felt so hollow. Empty, leaving him lonelier than before, and Lazarus had locked away those needs for perhaps a little too long. But Sionann? A minor distraction would not be allowed. He would not get a small taste of her only to return to that loneliness. It would always be her choice but Lazarus was seconds away from letting go of his self control and that would be difficult to recapture quickly.

"It would be best for you to decide one way or another. You can always change your mind at any point, but I need you to understand that this cannot be something without meaning. Not for me." His thumb still traced the edges of her lips, staring down at her intently. His other hand wanted to reach out to drag her closer, but for the moment it was clasped into a fist tightly. A yes or a no. That was all he needed to pull away or pull her closer. He wanted the latter and would act on in a second if she said yes.