The lines, they go by [o, experiment]

[wormwood.]

☆ HUNG PICTURES OF PATRON SAINTS UP ON MY WALL TO REMIND ME THAT I AM A FOOL. TELL ME WHERE I CAME FROM, WHAT I WILL ALWAYS BE: JUST A SPOILED LITTLE KID WHO WENT TO CATHOLIC SCHOOL —

Perhaps, if Ivan had not been present, Caustic might have gotten a bit farther in his experiments. Perhaps Aurum would've believed him, or even not believed him, and allowed him to continue anyways, just because he wasn't looking for a fight. However, the proxy had met many a type like Caustic before, and he immediately felt a sense of unease when the wolf tried to explain himself, a soft huff leaving him. Caustic had at first reminded the tigon of Abathur, since they both seemed to have similar styles of looking at the world, but Aurum could now see that comparison wasn't really true. Yes, both were scientists, and looked at the world as an interesting puzzle to be solved, but Abathur looked at it with some amount of compassion, and knew what it meant to care about others. He learned through observation and studying, not through forcing experiments upon the world like Caustic was doing. At one point, Aurum had been glad to find himself growing to become friends with Abathur, and enjoying his time around the large arachnid. Unfortunately, it seemed as though Aurum and Caustic could never get to that point, because of how Caustic felt to force himself upon the world around him and conduct his experiments.

Taking a deep breath inward, the proxy listened to what Caustic had to say before Ivan jumped in, the young boy possessing a horrified look on his face as he faced Caustic's explanation. He noticed how Ivan glanced back at him, clearly looking to see if the tigon was really going to fall for what the wolf was attempting to do. After a long moment of silent thought, Aurum stepped forward beside Ivan, silently offering the feline a side to lean against, considering the way that the boy was swaying from side to side, nearly falling over in a fit. Once he was sure Ivan was supported, the angel turned his gaze back to Caustic, slowly shaking his head in disapproval before he spoke, "Caustic, you have been allowed to stay here under the assumption that you will work with your fellow tanglers, and not cause trouble. While Tanglewood is hardly some peaceful pacifist group, we also haven't been in the business of actively seeking out trouble in a while. I fail to see how this civic duty is helping us in any way, really. All you're doing is wasting a piece of perfectly good prey. Prey lives, to us, to be eaten. Or, in some rare cases, to serve as companionship. That poor bunny is serving no purpose except to entertain you for a while. Either kill it or release it." Aurum glanced down for a moment, his gaze slightly hardened when he looked back up, meeting Caustic's eyes, "And if you want to test your abilities, you can test it in battle. I'm sure it won't be long before The Pitt is stirring up shit again, and I have a feeling you are not lacking in the offensive department, even without whatever this ability is." Perhaps he was being a bit harsh, but he was fairly sure Leroy would be in agreement with him that it wasn't a pleasant thought to have someone torturing perfectly good prey on their territory for no reason except to amuse himself.

[div style="text-align: right; text-transform: uppercase; text-shadow: 0px 0px 2px #722227; font-size: 24px;"][color=#c16f78]— AURUM

#psychosocial.