“The age difference in itself isn’t the problem,” Javier said. “Master Blaine practically raised Kyran, so he basically groomed a child. That’s the disgusting part, no matter what Kyran says.”
“All right, that’s a little icky,” Eridan said, making a face. He glared at Javier when he realized why he was telling him this story. “But what does that have to do with anything? My Master sure as hell didn’t raise me. I properly met him only when I was eighteen.”
“I know,” Javier said with a placating gesture. “But Master Idhron’s case is rather unique. He’s the youngest Master in history, and even if he weren’t, most Masters don’t claim an apprentice that soon after graduating. Most Masters are a lot older than their apprentices. The age difference between Kyran and Master Blaine is actually much smaller than it could have been—I think there were some medical reasons that allowed Master Blaine to take on an apprentice when he was still a Master Acolyte. Most Masters are fifty or sixty years older than their apprentices, and most Masters usually do raise their apprentices. The power imbalance alone makes any intimate relationship rather unhealthy—”
Eridan laughed. “I’m sorry, but that’s rich, coming from…”
Javier flushed. “What, a servant? I might be selling my body, but my mind is my own. I don’t belong to any Master the way an apprentice does. I don’t have to give anything but my body, and if my employer wants to do something I’m uncomfortable with, I can tell them to fuck off. An apprentice has no power over the Master; that’s why any fraternization between them is forbidden.”
Eridan scoffed. “Please. Don’t be naive. You’re speaking as someone who has no idea how the Chapter operates. I’ll have you know that most Masters in the Chapter couldn’t care less about arbitrary rules. Grandmaster Tethru would be the first to attest to that. Want to bet Master Blaine just pissed off some member of the Chapter and they used his relationship with Kyran as an excuse to demote him?”
Javier frowned. “I don’t believe you.”
Eridan sighed, running a hand through his hair. “I wish I had as much faith in the Chapter as you do, but trust me, they don’t give a fuck about the right thing. And by the way, you’re wrong about apprentices not having any power over their Masters.”
Javier shot him a skeptical look.
“I’ll prove it to you,” Eridan said with a grin. “You’ll see.”
“And how are you going to do it?” Javier said, still exuding skepticism.
“Watch.” Eridan plopped down on the couch next to Javier and looked expectantly at the door. “Master’s coming home.”
They didn’t have to wait long.
Castien looked tense as he entered the house. He came to an abrupt halt upon seeing them. His gaze flickered between them before settling on Eridan. “I told you not to wait up for me, Eridan.”
Eridan nearly scowled. Yes, because apparently you wanted to use Javier’s services.
Suppressing his annoyance, he gave his Master a smile. “I wanted to meditate with you.”
Castien stared at him. “Meditate? You?”
Eridan nodded solemnly, giving him his best innocent look.
Castien narrowed his eyes suspiciously. “And you have to meditate right now, I suppose.”
Eridan nodded, dropping his gaze for a moment. “I have felt strange all day. Off. My mind feels fuzzy, my thoughts weirdly disorganized.”
Castien walked over. Taking Eridan’s chin, he made Eridan look him in the eye. “Have you seen a mind healer?”
Eridan scoffed. “Why do I need one when I have you?”
Castien said nothing for a long moment.
“You should not be so careless,” he said at last, his thumb pressing against Eridan’s telepathic point. “You know those are the symptoms of a foreign intrusion into your mind.”
Eridan leaned into the touch, his telepathic core pulsing with yearning. “Master,” he whispered, licking his lips.
Castien stared at him.
“Leave,” he said curtly.
Eridan blinked up at him, unsure. “Master?”
“Leave,” Castien repeated, glancing aside—at Javier.
Right. Eridan had forgotten about him, forgotten about the point he had been trying to make.
Javier shot him a strange look as he bowed to Castien and left.
As soon as they were alone, Castien removed his hand and regarded him coldly. “What was that?”
“What was what?” Eridan said, feigning innocence.
A muscle twitched in Castien’s jaw. “You know as well as I do that you lied to me. There is nothing wrong with your mind, Eridan.”
Eridan shot him a sullen look. “Maybe there is. How would you know if you don’t check?”
“I do not need to get inside you to know that your mind was not tampered with.”
Eridan looked at him in confusion. “What?”
Castien pursed his lips. “You thought I would allow such a potential security breach? Your mind is a virtual fortress, Eridan. No one can get inside it without your explicit encouragement. It is protected by dozens of mind traps.”
Eridan frowned. “That can’t be true. I have joint meditations with Master Tker and he has never encountered them.”