Rosa appears and makes the first offer.

"Hello there, Battler." Rosa greeted Battler with her best attempt at a relaxed, friendly manner as she stepped from the darkness, waving to him casually. I thought it was a very impressive showing for how nervous I was sure she actually was. "Interesting night we're having, isn't it?"

"Aunt Rosa! What's going on-" he started, before realizing Rosa was putting out her hand for him to stay seated. He did so, but scooted over a bit when he realized she aimed to sit beside him. "Aunt Rosa?"

Rosa's heels clacked on the wood floor as she approached him. She took a seat beside him (and a deep breath, I noticed), shifting her hair to fall naturally over her shoulder as she did so. "You've never been in here before, have you, Battler? All of us siblings thought our father's witch lived in here, at one point... It's a little spooky, isn't it?" She said that with a conspiratorial smile. In this situation, isn't a woman bringing up how spooky the room is trying to be comforted by the man beside her...?

Battler was still far from the point where he'd pick up that vibe. "Yeah, it's, uh, messed up. Wait, that game Mask Guy just mentioned... Are you a part of that, Aunt Rosa?"

"Yes, Battler. Well... This is an unusual game, but as far as my part in it, I'll just say: Happy Birthday, Battler!"

"B-birthday? I know we haven't seen each other in a while, but it's nowhere close to my birthday, hihi." The young man still seemed too confused to be relaxed, but he at least seemed more comfortable now that his aunt that he trusted had joined him in the room. No, it wasn't just that... Like any of the other members in the family, Battler probably saw her as the least dangerous of the adults. Having her here worked to disarm him.

"Yes, I know. It's a late celebration." Rosa shut her eyes... nudged a little bit closer... then opened them again, turning a meaningful smile on him. "You turned eighteen, didn't you? You've grown into such a fine young man! All of us were so sad to have missed it."

"Oh. Uh, no, don't worry about it!" Battler laughed awkwardly and shifted a bit farther towards the arm of the loveseat, misunderstanding her intention and giving her more space. "Yeah, even though I'm eighteen, I guess I don't act like it, huh? Same old Battler..."

"No, not at all! You've grown in a number of ways." His aunt placed a hand on his upper leg now, a gesture that would be much harder to misinterpret. "Say. There's all kinds of things a young eighteen-year-old like you can get up to, aren't there? I bet Rudolf's been keeping a tight leash on you, though, hasn't he?"

"Uuuuuh... Y-yeah, uh... Aunt Rosa, w-where is Maria right now?" Battler tugged at his tie, shrinking away a bit more, only to find there was nowhere else to retreat to.

I saw Rosa's eyebrow twitch. Nonetheless, she did her best to ignore it and keep her show going. "Never mind Maria, Battler. Your cousins are keeping her company. I was thinking... I might help you celebrate your eighteenth birthday. Just a friendly celebration, a little... dance..." Rosa glanced away, gathered her nerves again, then looked back at him almost apologetically. "Well, frankly, I'm talking about something a little naughty... But not too naughty! Just something I thought you might finally be able to appreciate as a young man come-of-age." To clarify that even further, she reached to her neck and turned up her collar, then began unwinding the huge lace ascot she wore. It bore the One-Winged Eagle she was permitted to wear... Setting it aside, it was as if she was saying the dignity of that symbol had no part in her plans.

The young man stared back at her stupidly, having no idea how to answer his ordinarily timid aunt. Of course, he'd probably been seeing new sides of her ever since he'd met Rosa and Maria again after a long absence earlier today. This was just one more new side, right?

"Now, yes, I'm expecting something from you, too," Rosa admitted. "I don't think it's too much of an ask, though! You see, for me to begin that, ahem, dance that I mentioned, I would need you to pay me one of those stacks of bills. That's quite a lot, sure... but, um... I want you to think of Maria, okay? That girl... is a little bit special, you might have noticed. Taking care of her requires a little bit more than a single mother can comfortably provide. I'm not trying to guilt trip you, not at all! I'm just saying, if you have any hesitation... M-maybe think of it as a donation to your cute, lovable cousin?"

Rosa was biting her lip in a way that looked a bit ****. Looking at her, I wondered if she wasn't actually regretting bringing up Maria. It seemed like a good argument, but maybe a part of her was hoping she'd secure this on her womanly charm alone?

In any case, would it be enough? Maybe being reminded that this woman was his aunt and asked to pay for his cousin to live a happy life was already making things too weird for Battler...