#( aubrey & maryan tag ; )

[museswithinx]

"I knew what I signed up for," Diana replied, "but even if it was accusation-filled to start, I'm glad you called me to get this cleared up.

"Thank you, Aubrey."

Maryan winced as Aubrey walked back in, knowing she'd been busted. "It's initiative," she started before Aubrey told her Diana wanted to talk to her. "I didn't mean to offend you." With a small smile, she prepared to leave. "I guess I'll make one last stop to that coffee shop. They have really yummy Halloween cookies right now, and the owner makes the best pumpkin spice I've ever had. It was nice to meet you, Aubrey."

Pulling her phone out of her purse, she would call Diana from the car, fully expecting to be sent back. She wasn't going to cry in front of someone she didn't know. "Sorry, have a good day. Thanks for your time!"

The look on Maryan's face said it all: She knew she was caught. "I know. But initiative or not, this wasn't the way to go about it. My coven is different from most and yes, when we come together, we can be very powerful and I'm sure that can be intimidating from the outside perspective. It doesn't make us the next Olympians. If you're going to become the next leader of the Vagus, you'll need to learn how to work with other covens without undermining their elected leader or trying to police them."

As Maryan prepares to leave, she sighs at how sad she sounded saying her goodbyes. "You're definitely in trouble." She tells her. "But maybe not as much as you think."

[museswithinx]

"Not Trina's specifically," she assured, "she took those people with her. But she left a ripple effect with some who didn't want to go to her extreme, yet didn't exactly agree with mine. It didn't help when we lost her and Callum. We had her imprisoned, and she escaped. I'm sure there are some that blame me for the mess. I don't blame you for thinking that. Vagus instructions should come from me."

"Olive might like a familiar face too, so it could have been a win-win. I'll talk to her, get her set straight, and if she continues to be a problem, you've got my number. It's okay. It can be hard to know who to trust."

That was a small relief, at least. The last thing any of them needed were people inspired by Trina's brand of crazy. "Well, I guess that just comes with the territory sometimes. I'm sure not everyone in mine agrees with every decision I make but we're all just trying our best." She sympathizes. "I'm sure you'll get a handle on it."

"I'm sure she would. Thank you. I'll have her give you a call momentarily."

More calm now, Aubrey hung up and stepped back into the front room where Maryan was still waiting. "Diana wants you to call her," she tells her.

[museswithinx]

"Well, it is my assignment, so I thought I should," Maryan replied, trying desperately not to cringe as this snowballed out of control.

Diana was surprised to see Aubrey calling already. Did they decide to have that meeting anyway? "If this is about Cait, it's been decided, Aubrey, and I'm really done talking about it."

"Assignment or not, this is not how I should've found out. This should have been a conversation before it became reality." She retorted before disappearing into the next room.

As Diana picked up and assumed it was about Cait, she corrected her. "Well so am I because that's not what this is about. This is about Maryan and the fact that you decided you were going to put my coven under a microscope without even bothering to consult me about it first. These are my witches, they're under my leadership and I am responsible for them. If you had concerns about power balance with any of them, I should have been the first the know and instead I had to hear it from her. I'm not unreasonable, we could have worked together to figure it out and I could have put your mind at ease because I keep a close eye on them." She took a breath. "We worked together through all this. I would think you'd have just a little more respect me for than that."

[museswithinx]

This was not going as envisioned. "Not saying you don't," she tried to soothe. As she mentioned Diana, Maryan stopped mid-sentence, mouth gaping for a moment. "Well--um, because I'm telling you. I wanted you to be aware before I really got started."

Oh boy. With a tight-lipped smile, she nodded as Aubrey excused herself. "Of course."

This was not how Aubrey forsaw her night going. "Well thank you for that and I appreciate the transparency, but the fact is I shouldn't be hearing this from you. I should've known about this before Diana left with the rest of the Vagus. I should have heard this directly from her. Leader-to-leader."

Stepping away to make a phone call, she quickly spelled the room to soundproof and pulled up Diana's contact. "We need to have a talk. Right now." She said sternly when she answered.

[museswithinx]

Her reaction wasn't exactly what Maryan was hoping for. "Not power abuses necessarily," she clarifies, "though if there are any, I would find them. Magic can be intoxicating. To the point some witches have died for pushing things too far in their need for more. You've brought people back from the dead, defeated countless very powerful forces including Hades, which don't hear me wrong, they were important spells in the time and I don't fault you a bit for trying or succeeding in the things you have done. We just thought an outside perspective to make sure no one wanted to continue on at that level would be beneficial."

The more Maryan tried to explain, the more upset she became. Aside from the fact that no one here was misusing power or even on a path to, the fact remained that Diana had the nerve to station one of her own here to observe her coven without even bothering to speak directly with her first. "I'm well aware of the consequences magic can have." She states, knowing that her own mother had pushed it too far back then. "Technically Seph did and she's her own entity. And I'm sorry, but why am I hearing all this from you? If Diana has these concerns then she should have told me directly so we could work together to figure it out."

Taking a breath, she thought of Levi to help her keep a level head. Maryan was just the messenger, it wasn't her fault. "Would just please excuse me? I have to make a call."

[museswithinx]

Maryan smiled cheerfully at how nice Aubrey seemed already. "Most did, nearly all actually. Except for me and Olive. The things this coven can do, it's not normal. That isn't necessarily a bad thing considering the makeup and history of the coven, however, we would like to do an impartial check that balances are being kept in check. As your fellow servants of nature. So would you mind if I observed your coven for a few weeks? Just to make sure things are returning to normal after your very trying year."

Aubrey had thought they all left, but apparently it wasn't just Olive who stayed behind. She was curious why Maryan hadn't gone with the rest and it was the very next question on her mind until Maryan launched into it herself. The answer wasn't anything she was expecting.

"I'm sorry?" She asks, wondering if she had misheard that. "You're here to observe us for possible power abuses?"

[museswithinx]

With a knock at the door, Maryan waited somewhat patiently for an answer. "Aubrey Bennett-Sims?" She asked when the door opened, extending her hand while cradling a notebook in the other. "I'm Maryan Nasiri of the Vagus. Do you have a few minutes?"

{ bc they should meet?? }

"I'm coming!" Aubrey called out as she moved to answer the door. Opening it, she found someone that she didn't quite recognize on the other side. "That's me. Who's asking?" She says before the girl offers up her own name and her association with the Vagus coven. "Oh, of course, hi! I thought you all left with Cait. I have some time. What can I do for you, Maryan?"