Ben watched the boy carefully, looking for any sign of deception upon his face. None came though; what lay there instead was a look that told Ben he understood. Instantly though, that understanding came with what seemed like...dispair? It was the boy's turn to turn a pleading tone to him an Ari, asking if there was anything to be done to sway Society of something else.

Ben turned to Ari who was regarding the boy with an expression that made it seem like he was looking at a ghost, but only for the briefest of seconds before he gave a wry smile. He looked to Mr. Holm again with the burgeoning sense that he and Ari shared some sort of kinship; a kind that told of a burden Ben knew not of.

Ari had accepted his promise - and something about the way he further questioned them told Ben that he wouldn't be going back on his word anytime soon.

He knew Ari would be able to convey the gravity of the situation better than he could. Ben understood it, but of the two of them, Ari was the one who'd been living with this the longest. "Which explains my reaction when you saw us," It didn't really explicitly explain, but... "If it got out you'd seen Ari and I together in that way, it would ruin both of us." Ben looked back up to Ari, knowing full well if this evening was to lead to such consequences for Ari, it would destroy him to the core.

His smile to Mr. Holm was a sad but grateful one as he also accepted the boy's promise. There was something else behind the boy's plea that Ben figured didn't have to do with the fact they were asking this enormous favor if him, but he didn't push it any further. "We are forever in your debt, Mr. Holm."

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