Salem's anxiety shot up even more, practically pushing him into auto pilot as he made his way towards the front door. As he opened it up, he stood to the left of it giving her a half bow while waving her in with his injured left hand. "Welcome in Lilie. I hope you're doing well” His voice was soft and serene while the one in his head was much louder What're you doing you idiot? Are we really hosting? Is this how these things go? Salem's eyes opened slightly and he realised he was still wearing his plant pajamas from earlier in the night. His cheeks began to blush as he cleared his throat a bit. ”Sorry for my appearance, to be frank I was expecting you to decline as Aaron had.”

The white haired girl brightened up, though her expression turned to one of concerned as she noticed the hand he waved had bandages around it as she entered. As Lilie wanted to inquire, she found herself a little confused by his statement. Maybe she was just used to pajamas at this point, though she did give him a small smile, shaking her head.

“Oh, it's okay, I was a little eager for some company,” Some human company, to be exact. Lilie tried to blame herself for rushing over, though she paused for a moment before continuing with, “I ran into Aaron earlier, he did seem busy.”

”Sounded like it. His…master was none to pleased with his performance last night at dinner. But then again, there is no pleasing a Sinnonodel.” Salem spat the word like venom, uncomfortable with the idea of a ‘master's and servant approach to the partnership. As Lilie came in, Salem closed the door behind her and escorted her into the living room/kitchen where there lay two trays for tea on the coffee table. ”I'm not going to lie to you, I'm new to having...friends...over. I typically host guests and attend to their needs. I'm not sure if that is how people interact when they're hanging however.”

Master? What? Lilie raised an odd eyebrow as Salem spoke, a little confused by both his tone and what he was talking about. Was it typical for mages to call vampires that? Maybe that's just how things worked around here. Aaron never did divulge any details about what had happened. As she took a seat, she found herself grinning as he mentioned her as a friend. Yes! Two friends! Putting that aside for the moment, she wondered which topic she should address first.

“Well, don't worry too much about me, like you said, we're just hanging out,” She replied, hands lightly tapping her knees as she thought to herself for a moment. Would Salem be honest with her if she asked? Only one way to find out. “But, um...what did happen last night? It certainly seemed eventful for the Queen to suddenly show up out of nowhere.” Testing the waters, she watched Salem cautiously.

”Hmmm. Well, as I mentioned earlier I am under investigation now. I'm not quite sure how much I'm allowed to say, or if anyone's even listening right now.” Salem went and sat next her to as he poured her a cup of tea and then one for himself from a different pot.”Spellman tea, grown by us and using secret techniques and recipes for it.” he gave Lilie a small wink and then stared into his cup for a moment.

”I was getting ready for a relaxing evening, waiting for Lucan to come home, I hadnt really seen him since the Arena and we hardly got to talk. All of a sudden there was a knock on my door, asking me to get ready to meet the Queen for dinner. As I've mentioned I typically host parties, I am not a guest at them…” he stared a while longer at his cup again before continuing along.

”The car took me to her mansion where I was met by the Princess as we awaited the other guests and Lucan, whom I assume was the main reason I was invited. Once everyone had arrived we made our way into the dining hall where we spoke on some subjects and i said some controversial thoughts on how i believe we should move forward as a society. That's...that's when things went weird. Someone invaded my mind and began to pour through my thoughts, it was obviously magic and also an invasion of privacy. When it finally ended I had accused a council member of having done it seeing as how a mind mage was present at the time. The chalked it up to me being rebellious and stated I had no proof of the accusation to which I recounted my experience and they agreed it was a high form of interrogation. However they believe at some point along the lines I may have unknowingly encountered a member of some group and that they had planted this seed of interrogation in me and chose to trigger it while in their presence. Thus my current investigation where I am now cut off from my entire life outside of these school gates. Aaron's views and mine didn't exactly align, putting us on opposite ends. But we both agreed to help each other see other others side.” Salem took a sip of his tea and looked at Lilie with a ghost of a smile. ”Honestly I'm surprised Aaron didn't mention anything to you, you did say you spoke on the matter.”

Wow, that was a lot to take in.

Lilie was grateful for the tea, but she hadn't quite had a taste as she chose to listen carefully instead. Talk about an eventful night. As Salem addressed her, she found herself drinking at last, the flavor of the tea calming her somewhat. What could she even say to any of that? Well, aside from all the craziness she wasn't expecting Aaron and Salem to have been on opposing views so quickly.

Lowering her cup, Lilie cleared her throat. “No, um...he didn't mention any of that,” She replied softly. “He mentioned you were there but...didn't say anything else beyond that.”

And apparently for good reason. It was a lot to take in, but she didn't think Salem was exaggerating or anything. Not to mention she had seen Lucan last night, operating on the Marivaldi residence, so it just seemed like a night of madness in general. As she thought about how to respond, she did recall waiting for Aaron to text her back, but he never did, did he? The time stamp had shown some time between hers and his.

“Well, I guess that's my own fault, I got so absorbed in my own house's rotating door that I didn't get a chance go ask for a lot of detail, there was a bit of a commotion outside of the noble dorms,” He had shared what happened with him, she may as well return the favor. “I actually saw your partner--Lucan--along with Princess Nox. They had been arresting someone, and, uh...shoot,” She looked up at the ceiling, trying to remember through her panic what little she had learned. “...someone got arrested, accused of...something I can't remember. It was pretty serious, I don't believe I had ever seen the princess so...terrifying.”

Salem raised an eyebrow as Lilie mentioned how Lucan was at the noble dorms last night. Whatever had happened, it must have cleared out by the time he arrived back. Although, why invite Lucan to dinner if he was doing business? Something didn't sit right with him, was this happening behind the Queens back? Calm yourself Salem, no more baseless accusations.

”Sounds like you had quite the evening as well. Though I suppose it's somewhat comforting to know Lucan is just caught up with work and isn't just avoiding me.” a small awkward pause filled the air as Salem searched for what to say next ”Sooooo, you excited for class?” Really Spellman? That's your big move?

Despite the sudden change of topic, Lilie nodded enthusiastically. Whatever was going on with the royal members was far above her head; no need to think on it too much right now. Taking a second to have more tea, she seemed a little more energetic as she spoke. “I can't wait for class, I'm so excited to finally get into magic and controlling my affinity,” She admitted, bouncing slightly on her seat. “There's really not a lot of magic where I come from, so it's all new territory. Not that I mind! I was pretty studious in high school, so studying magic is just exciting for me. How about you? Are you excited for class?”

”Very excited. I can't wait to see what all I can learn from this academy.” Salem leaned in close and began to whisper to Lilie "Between you and I, this tea will help us focus our magic much better today.” Of course that was a lie, but a little placebo never hurt anyone. ”What class are you in? Maybe we'll be in the same room!”

Lilie suddenly felt very much like a child, having to stop herself from outright chugging the rest of the tea. After a few seconds of successfully holding herself back, she giggled to herself, mentally chiding herself for getting overexcited. She'd end up exhausted at this rate. When Salem asked for her classes, she fished out her schedule, neatly unfolding it for Salem to see. “With Sariel's tour yesterday. I might actually not be completely lost,” She joked, pointing to the rooms. “I got lucky, two of the classes I have are at the Rose Hall so that will be easy to memorize. Aaron and I have Treaty Law, Spell Theory, and Self-Defense, I'm hoping we have some shared classes, too. Maybe we can all sit together?”

Salem chuckled at her joke of Sariel, who in and of herself was practically a joke. ”Maybe, let's see I have…” he realised his schedule was no where near him so he got up and began walking towards his room, gesturing for Lilie to follow. ”Schedules in my room on my desk. Feel free to come in.” As he walked into the room he could be heard saying "Morning cricket. I have company.” As she walked in Salem began to read his schedule to Lilie. ”I have Affinity Mastery in Ceruleum Hall, then Treaty Law in...Vilbrek, Spell Theory back in Ceruleum, and Self Defense. Oh...and at some point I have to take etiquette classes to learn how to properly speak to royalty.”

Following Salem as soon as she managed to down the rest of her tea, Lilie was surprised to see his room completely covered in plants. Ot was actually rather nice; everything was obviously well taken care of, though at the mention of a ‘Cricket’, she wondered what he was referring to until she spotted the caged animal, though she had to admit that she wasn't expecting an actual cricket named Cricket.

Giving Salem her attention again, she found herself getting excited again. “We have Treaty Law and Self Defense together at least!” She pointed out, pausing as she realized his schedule had more classes than she did. “Is that last one an extracurricular?” She asked.

”A punishment, one of the many I got for speaking out if turn at dinner. But I suppose its better than having my magic locked away, or execution, or many other things. By the way, this is cricket. My abuelita believes that he will bring me good luck at school and in my endeavors. I'd of brought cat but, well I don't think the school would've allowed it. Anyways, be careful of the plants please. They're not all friendly.” he said as he began to place his schedule into his bag and than sat on the bed.

What?! Lilie's eyes widened at his last statement, cautiously looking around the room with a concerned expression. ”Wh-Why aren't they friendly?! She squeaked out in slight horror, making sure she wasn't particularly close to anything and making sure she took up as little space as possible.

Salem laughed at her display, wiping an invisible tear from his eye and patting the bed next to him for her to sit. ”I make potions and tonics of many kinds. Sometimes to cure an illness you need poisons, especially to make anti-toxins. So excrete it and can be absorbed through skin, I try to keep them out of reach but curiosity has been the downfall of many people, and...I like you too much to let that befall you.”

Looking around at the room, Lilie realized she really couldn't tell what plant was alright and which wasn't. How did he live like this?! Well, this was the type of business he did, or at least that was what she recalled. For now, she wouldn't think too hard on it, instead carefully making her way to Salem without touching anything. As she would take a seat where he indicated, she finally stopped looking around the room long enough to look at Salem, breaking into a bit of a laugh. ”Thank goodness for that, then, otherwise I'd be in real trouble,” She couldn't help but joke, though his warning was appropriate for her curious self. Pausing for just a moment, she decided to go on her original intention for wanting to speak with him. ”Um...I'm really sorry for yesterday, at the arena. I promise, I didn't leave you on purpose,” She said, frowning. ”I was basically whisked away and...I tried to go back, but was denied.”

Salem's smile faded "That seems to be going around. Who was denying you access to go back? He began to wonder if the two students who had blocked Max off earlier were responsible for keeping others out while the altercation was dealt with. He couldn't quite fault Lilie or Aaron, as much as it hurt to be left by them, he did understand how some mages have more of a duty to their vampires than others.

Lilie wrinkled her nose, a small pout on her face as she remembered sitting there doing nothing until she was made to follow to meet Ike. ”It was another Eve, apparently she works in the school. Felt like I was a little kid being held at the principal's office waiting for a parent to come collect them,” She didn't seem too pleased with the experience, letting out a sigh. ”I got to see Arianna before she left, but...it's the worst feeling, getting passed around from one person to the next. Like you're not good enough. And all for nothing, after that show Ike left, too, so...”

A compulsion took over Salem, as if her feelings were in perfect sync with his. He quickly hugged Lilie tightly and held on for a brief moment as he said ”Don't ever think you're not good enough. You're more than that, you're amazing...I can tell.” Salem released her and gave her a warm smile, she may need a bit more self esteem help than he did. ”I'll tell you what. I know, a little bit of magic. Not much. But, just a smidge that may help, we just need that tea cup you drank out of. Care to see?”

Salem's hug came as a surprise, leaving the girl momentarily stunned. She couldn't deny that it wasn't unwelcomed, and his words sincerely made her feel a lot better, even if she still had some doubts. But that wasn't his fault; it was hers. The previously repressed anxiety crawled up on her, though she forced it away; no need for that, not now when there was someone else around. As she was released, there was no hiding the small look of joy in her eyes as he mentioned magic. Right, that was the whole reason she was here, to learn and improve herself. Everything else, specifically serving a crazy noble household, came second in her mind.

So Lilie nodded, curiously examining Salem. ”What're you going to do?” She asked him.

Salem quickly got up, asking her to wait there as he went to grab her tea cup. When he returned he held it up and sat back onto the bed, staring into the cup. ”You see this line here? It tells me that you're very determined. You seem to have an eagerness about you in wanting to learn as much as you can on how best to focus it. That curve there? That shows me the strength you have inside of you, even if you aren't aware it is there. And that odd shape, that shows your spirit, how well natured you are and sweet and it tells me you are someone worth being with. And I hope you learn to see these things too.” Now, while tea leaf reading wasn't a hoax, he never fully learned how to do it from his grandma. Most of that reading was him telling her what she needed to hear and he hoped there wasn't any nefarious signs in the leaves he didn't catch.

Listening intently to Salem's explanation, Lilie wasn't entirely sure what sort of magic this was. It must have been a plant mage thing, her eyes trying to follow what he pointed out, but having a harder time seeing the same things. Still, as he continued, she found herself smiling rather bashfully, watching Salem as he spoke and occasionally glancing at the cup. She supposed if it helped with magic, reading the leaves wasn't so far fetched. At least, not to her. She did find it a little incredible that he seemed to get a lot more information than she had anticipated, and whether she realized it or not, it really felt like a nice little boost of confidence.

”That's pretty amazing of you to see,” She told him, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear as she straightened up slightly. "I didn't think you could garner all that from just a cup!”

”You can get a lot from nature, its information and skills are as bountiful as the things it can grow. Of course, it helps coming from a line of plant mages who eat, breathe, and sleep herbology, botany, and many other forms of plant based studies. Though there is superstition surrounding tea readings, one cannot read their own cups as it'll cause them to change. So this really only works in the company of others.” Salem chuckled a bit at the old superstition, yet it's one he never tempted to try.

”By the way, you were amazing in the ring yesterday. I'm sure Lucan would want me to pick up how to fight at some point, seeing as how he is a guard and all that. I'm thinking...whip. What do you think?”

Ah, yes, her public defeat.

Lilie averted her gaze, letting out a small, somewhat bitter laugh. Right, that was something she had completely forgotten all about. Salem's compliment was truly nice, but really, the spar hadn't ended the way she would have hoped. Not that she thought she would have cleaned the floor with him, but the way he ended it on his terms had been just a bit embarrassing for her taste. She could already hear her mother's sharp words critiquing her sloppy strikes, she could see her rolling her eyes at her hasty movements, she could practically feel the glare as she would chide her for not using enough technique against her opponent. They had the same length, but it was obvious who the superior swordsman was among the two.

Clearing her throat, she waved away Salem's compliment. "I, uh...yeah, a whip sounds really interesting, Sidestepping her defeat for the moment, she focused on Salem as she moved her arms, pretending to crack a whip. "It would be really cool if you could control it, making it wrap around people's limbs and then yanking them back, or hitting them super hard--those things hurt,” Dropping her arms at her sides, she grinned. "I wouldn't have expected that to be your choice of weapon, but maybe it's only because I can't see you fighting, you're just so nice!”

Salem leaned both his hands behind his back, looking up at the ceiling in a sort of dream state. ”I always thought they were so cool. The fluidity, the way the crack, but most importantly...the thought of crafting one with magic out of a rose's thorny stem. Then I'd really be able to control it and have it wrap around people. Maybe even have little Rose's bloom along its length as a display of victory” He sat up and cupped his hands around his mouth, mimicking the sound of an audience cheering him on. ”But you're right, I'm not much of a fighter. But if it's something my partner desires, then it's a simple demand.”

‘Partner’, not ‘master’. So at least Salem and his vampire saw themselves as partners. Lilie rested her chin onto her hands as she leaned forward, gaze unfocused as she thought ti herself for a moment. It was very admirable for Salem to want to learn something on his vampire's behest, but did Salem want to? Well, if he didn't, she was sure he would have said otherwise, or at least be less enthusiastic about it. Speaking of ‘partners’, though, she still wasn't sure how she was going to handle hers. What an issue. Clucking her tongue, she would sit up as she looked at Salem again, her hands on her knees.

"At least it sounds like you have a plan!” Better than her clueless self, anyway. "I'm sure Lucan would be happy to hear it, he really was something in his fight.”

Pausing for a moment, Lilie looked away from Salem, a question lingering on her mind. After a few uneasy seconds, she would finally speak. "Um...It's best to get along with your vampire, right? But…” Arianna's words still hung over her, and she ended up finishing with, ”That doesn't mean we have to trust them, right?”

Salem looked a bit shocked at Lilie, his head hung low as he searched for the right answer to say. Silence filled the air for what seemed like an eternity to him before he finally spoke. ”You should strive to get along with your partner, but I believe that trust is something of a different matter. In most cases I believe that distrust should be earned and that trust is a default you should fall upon. But that's a naive notion, if you feel like you can't trust them, you should talk to them about what it is that is causing this rift. But no, I don't feel like you need to trust them. Why do you ask?”

Lilie bit her lip, his initial shock already telling her she was treading dangerous territory. Right, no matter how kind Salem was, he was already integrated into this world. She kept thinking other mages would have the same kind of thought she had, but it was much too naive to keep thinking like that. Granted, despite Mariette's words, she had yet to instill actual distrust in her, but she just couldn't put her complete faith in her, either.

Knowing she needed to speak carefully, she decided she would not lie, but she wasn't exactly going to tell him why she said what she did. "Honestly...vampires are terrifying,” She admitted quietly as she dropped her gaze back onto her lap. "My hometown doesn't really see a lot of them, much less interact with them. Mages, yeah, they oversaw a lot of things, and I'm sure they visited at night, but...it's mostly farmland where I'm from, and honestly, the first time I had interacted with one was…” Her throat seemed to close on her as she inhaled sharply, a horrible memory threatening to resurface before she pushed it away. "Less than pleasant. So I guess maybe I have a bias against them. Not on purpose, I just...I don't know, I'm not sure I'm making much sense.”

”They aren't all great I'll give you that. But they aren't all bad either. The Marivaldi's been a good example of some you shouldn't fear. My family's own being another. Just as there are good people and bad people, human, mage or otherwise, out in this world, there are good and bad vampires too. You just have to trust in your gut that you can tell the difference. You mentioned you have an Eve?” Salem tapped his index finger against his lip thinking back onto the Eves. ”Their house is a bit...disorderly, but I believe most of them mean well. A house based on neutrality, regardless of one's personal opinions.”

Right, neutrality, Mariette mentioned something about that. Lilie slowly nodded, taking Salem's words to heart despite her mixed feelings. He did have a point, she supposed the best thing to do was to just keep her head down and hope for the best. "Yeah, I was partnered with the Eve house for...whatever reason,” She shrugged. "I don't really have any experience with nobility but...I guess we'll see what happens.”

”Trust me, there are far worse houses to be partnered with. But I suppose that means we're on the same boat huh?” Salem nudged her gently. "After all, I'm literally taking etiquette classes to learn how to behave around them, although it's much easier when the person in question isn't Varis or a Sinnonodel.” His feet began to sway off the edge of his bed as he looked off into the distance, after a moment's pause he said to Lilie in a soft voice "Thanks for being here with me. It means a lot.”

The white haired girl watched Salem for a moment, though she smiled as she nodded at him. "Of course. That's what friends are for, right?” She asked him with complete sincerity.

”Right.”

Energy and anticipation buzzed through the mage halls. Most of the high level classes started half an hour later so only first years poured into the buildings, excited to stretch their magic for the first time. As students entered their Affinity Mastery class, they were directed to the walls of the smaller room. Ten tables with two chairs and an awakening crystal set into a wooden base filled the room. Each table had a number marker on it. Two older students, both wearing TA badges, either checked the crystals one last time while the other kept the incoming students along the wall. Above the room, a small balcony ran its length which vampires would use during the last fifteen minutes of class to observe their mage’s progress and interactions.











Unlike the mage halls, the vampire buildings were usually quiet early in the evening. Many of the younger vampires passed up feeding for extra sleep and their sluggish conversation reflected that. A few bats passed above the crowd, some filtering in and out of special alcoves meant for the vampires’ shifted form. Inside their rooms, a small series of raised seats similar to the orientation auditorium looked down over the a podium, three screens side by side, and a small table. Four seats with the House crest on the back comprised the entire first row.

---

---

When dusk came, Joryldin was up early once more. Sleep didn't offer him much rest, again; but rather than cryptic nightmares of the past, he was plagued with anxiety about the present and future. It seemed every passing moment, things became more and more complex. The academy was like a political minefield, and he cursed himself for not taking more than two steps before he landed on the biggest one... But he shook it out of his mind for now. They were a secret, and he didn't plan on telling it, so why bother worrying? The one thing Joryldin was here for was to take the opportunity for a good education. Nothing more, nothing less.

"Keep your head down, and make mother proud." was the motto he repeated in his head as he got dressed and ready. The ensemble she sent him had a charm that cleaned them with the push of a button. The outfit was completely pristine already; the dead don't sweat, after all. In spite of that, he pushed the button just to see what happened, and a swirl of minor arcane energy left his uniform with the scent of cinnamon. Neat. He finished his sunset routine without an issue, getting clean and dressed quickly. Despite how he hated it, he did the responsible thing and downed a small glass of blood before saying a quick goodbye to the still waking Dakota.

The fledgling decided to get some exercise in on his first day. Though he wasn't sure his body even needed to stretch, he was comfortable doing it. It took him a moment to try and think of what speed would be socially acceptable... but he eventually began jogging down the road at a comfortable 8 mph. There was a feeling of freedom to effortlessly moving so fast, and it made his trip to class way more enjoyable than he expected it to be. Starting off the evening right proved to be necessary, because for the rest of the night he would be seeing red.

The second Professor Marcella opened her mouth, he already wanted to punch her.
-Being a hard-ass about punctuality was understandable. It's a dick move to not show up when you're supposed to and keep others waiting. Locking the doors, though? What the hell? News flash: Life happens, lady!
-Handwritten. His kryptonite. It would be pretty embarrassing for an embraced to fail Mortal Biology, but how would it be his fault if she demanded everything be handwritten??? He hadn't learned to write until he was twelve!
-The future is now, old hag. Deal with it.

By the time she had gotten to the first lesson, Joryldin's eyes were already red. With a hand on his chin he intended to ignore her droning, ESPECIALLY when she started talking down to humans as if they were dumb disobedient puppies. That alone would have been enough for him to stick a silver pin on her seat if she were a tutor at home, but his spite and disinterest were quickly replaced with sheer disgust when she began her lecture.

Feeding. Why did it have to be feeding? He didn't even have a functioning stomach yet somehow just thinking about it made his insides shrivel even more... Feeding efficiency, training, conditioning, control, foreplay!? It was appalling. He expected the worst from a class like this, but what he got was a new low. Still, most of this information was totally new to him. He had no clue that he needed to be so careful were he to bite someone. While all the rest was less than garbage in terms of useful information, he took extensive notes on how to access blood safely. By the end, he had no questions... At least, none that wouldn't get him de-fanged...

Amaris’ eyes slid open the moment her body sensed the setting of the sun, a quick glance at a clock confirming her assumption of the relative safety of exiting the building. It was still rather early, so she wasn’t expecting Cassandra to up and about just yet, giving the noble time to sort herself. Curious to see the state of things, as it was entirely possible for the royal mages to have been snooping around throughout the day, Amaris approached the door to peek outside.

A small flutter caught the young woman’s attention as she opened the main door, a note tacked to the structure addressed to Amaris and Cassandra each. It seemed that the dorm was already cleared for their return, and a request for prompt relocation was implied. No doubt someone would be by during classes to move Cassandra’s belongings to her new home, the urgency a good indicator that a new occupant for the Astorio residence had been found. She thought it a bit sudden but had far more things to worry about than the house dynamics of the Astorios. Propping the door open just enough so that she would be able to reenter without a key, Amaris stepped outside to see what damage still remained.

Impressively, as she approached the structure, it was almost as if the morning prior had never even occurred. The door had been replaced and it seemed as if any damage to the exterior had been mended, most likely to give the appearance of having never been disturbed at all. The only clue to the guards’ presence were her own memories and a slight depression of the front yard grass.

Following the path up to the door, Amaris let herself into the building and scanned the room for signs of disturbance. Anything and everything that had belonged to Minfilia had been stripped from the room. A trinket here, a decoration there, and undoubtedly the entirety of her room bore blank spaces where items used to be. Everything that belonged to Amaris, however, seemed to have remained, or at the very least returned to, their original locations. She wasted no time in making her way down the hall to her private quarters, pushing open the door with zero hesitation. All night she had thought about this moment, wondering what it was that she would find when she returned. As she stepped into the room, Getsuga emerged from his hut, standing to his full height with his fangs bared.

“Hush now, it’s just me. They didn’t hurt you did they?” The snake appeared to calm considerably once she had spoken, responding to her tone of voice by curling back up on the bottom of the tank. Looking at him, she could tell that Nox’s word had been kept. Not a single scratch could be seen on the animal, but his stress was apparent. Someone he was unfamiliar with had gotten too close to him. Reaching below the tank, Amaris brushed her fingers of the inscriptions etched over the hidden compartment. Had she a functioning heart, it was at this point she was certain it would have stopped. The book was gone.

Violet eyes shifted to the sharpest of sapphire as she swallowed an aggressive snarl. In taking the book, Amaris was now set in a very difficult position. Had it been found by chance, it could be used as a way to incriminate her for crimes she did not commit. She doubted there was anyone at current who could properly and quickly translate the language held within, nor would there be anyone who would believe that she could not understand the language of book in her own possession. However, there was the smallest of thoughts tugging at the back of her mind asking if the book was the reason Salazar had not warned her in advance. The timing had left her with no way to safely move the item to her person, and it was unlikely with her request than anyone other than the guards had been snooping around her room.

“I need to see that report.”



Having calmed down some, Amaris had returned to the Astorio residence to wait for Cassandra. There was much to inform the mage on, and not a whole lot of time to do it. It would seem that her original plan with Minfilia would have to be altered with the hope that Cassandra could learn on the move.

For the time being, Amaris could be grateful for the opportunity to change clothes. She had swapped into something far more casual than the day before; donning jeans, a form-fitted tee, and a gray sweater wrap to match the dreary weather she had witnessed on her walk over. Amaris had also taken the opportunity to snag a slim backpack she had brought, slipping a few class supplies into the bag for the day ahead. Just to be on the safe side, she had packed the laptop she had been instructed to bring to the school, but for the most part her supplies consisted of paper notebooks and pens of varying colors. She had always preferred a manual method of note keeping and would see to using it as much as she could over the electronics.







When Amaris set off, there was still plenty of time before the start of classes to run an errand or two. There weren’t many things that she had in mind, namely one stop that took priority over all else. Passing by the lecture halls altogether, Amaris made for the student service buildings with an extreme sense of purpose.

She could feel the eyes on her from all around, no doubt rumors already beginning to make the rounds as to what may have occurred the night before. Luckily, or so she hoped it to be, the grounds had been under curfew minimizing the number of eyes who saw what went down in their cul-de-sac. Amaris wondered what news the other students had been given, exactly what image she now had to compete with, but for the time being it did not seem that anyone was attempting to mock her. If anything, students she strayed near scrambled to put distance between themselves and her path.

Despite the fact that her family crest was neatly tucked in under her sweater, the receptionists were already well aware of who had stepped through their door. Polite greetings were given as they attempted to hide nervous glances, most likely wondering what sort of night they were about to have. While Amaris was finding it difficult to control the shade of her eyes, she made damn well sure to keep her tone in check. She knew it wasn’t any of their faults that she was in the position she was in now, and it wouldn’t do her any good to alienate a service that might be able to help her out after all.

“I need to speak with Princess Ryner, it’s urgent.” A few glances were shared between the clerks before anyone chose to speak, the sound of fingertips on mechanical keys filling the silence in between.

“I’m sorry Countess, but she isn’t available to see you at the present moment. All visitations must be scheduled and approved prior to an audience. The best I can do under such short notice is to pass your statement of urgency along, a granted audience will be at her sole discretion.” Amaris nodded her head in understanding, a determined expression making her intentions quite clear.

“It would be a shame for me to miss the opening lectures anyhow. Please, let her know that I wish to speak with her as soon as she can see me. I’ll be eagerly awaiting an update, thank you for your assistance.” With a quick bow of her head, Amaris left the clerks to their work.

It wasn’t an ideal situation having to hope that her message was passed along promptly. She had never expected to get to speak to Ryner immediately, but she had hoped to secure a meeting for today at the very least. At this point, she had done what she could to get the ball rolling and there wasn’t any use trying her luck as she had the night before. For now, it was all just a waiting game.

Glancing at the time on her phone, Amaris began making her way toward the hall that had been printed on her schedule. First order of business for the day, if her memory served, was Mortal Biology in Cardinal hall. Where the subject was concerned, she was already quite familiar from lessons taught in her home. Between their relationships with the mages in their care, and the state of the Lord’s family, it would be rather embarrassing to not have at least an elementary understanding of the physiology. Amaris hoped that there would be something new to learn, but she wasn’t going to be on it being presented immediately out of the gate. The anticipation sent a shiver down her spine, the excitement easing some of the anxiety and frustration she had allowed to pent up.

Victor Astorio

Eventually as the stars grew ever brighter in the dark night, more and more Vampires and Mages alike began to come out of hiding. The tall vampire didn’t seem to care about the influx of people. He had finished what he set out to do and filled in the blanks of the map with trees, brush, and outbuildings. He even had some time to check out the arena.

It was quiet and peaceful until the rest of the populace began to wake and make their way around campus. The new bloods sticking out like a sore thumb, either acting like a mopey zoo lion or being in an unnecessary rush. He under stood stretching one’s legs but there was a time and place.

Victor was keeping track of time while he was out for his walk. He didn’t want to be early but didn’t want to be late either. There was no need to fray relations between himself and those that would see themselves as his superiors. He could only hope that his teacher wasn’t too extravagant in their teachings and general way about them.

He would soon find out that he would not be disappointed. Finding his way to the class and his eventual seat near the front of the class. Their teacher looked rather elegant in that red dress of hers. The way she spoke and dressed reminded him of home and the other nobles that shared the underground half of their winter home.

The tall vampire sat straight in his chair, never slouching. Giving off an air of arrogant superiority towards any that would look at him. His eyes stared straight ahead and never wandered around the room. He was perfectly content in knowing what he already did about the others in the class just by looking at them. Few seemed confident, others seemed to be barley awake, and the few that seemed competent to him looked like they never fought a day in their lives.

“Did high born nobles and pure bloods always look this soft?” he thought to himself. Honestly he was never able to stray into the areas where other noble vampires would be. Their clan within their house wasn’t high on the list of nobility. Normally only his father and one of his elder brothers or sisters would go to the fancy parties and meetings. While he was left to train and go through his lessons.

Their teacher proceeded to go through the first part of her lesson rather well. He honestly was not looking forward to the computer parts of this school. At least so far it was just an overview of what he already knew about humans. Of course he learned what he did to be able to learn their weaknesses. Weaknesses that would allow him to kill easier. Humans were an enemy once they could be again.

Taking a few notes here and there with his scratch paper he continued to listen till she asked if there were any questions. Pausing for a moment to see if anyone else would speak up first before he did. Victor stood looking towards the teacher with his hands clutched behind his back. It was customary from where he lived to always stand and say what you needed to say at a form of attention before the class would carry on.

“Ma’am.” Speaking with a deep clear voice and eyes that never left hers. “Victor Strigois Astorio.” A short but polite introduction, to him at least. “If I may, I have one statement for the class and one question for you. The statement is this, for you new bloods here, a good way to tell if your biting into an arterial vein or not is that arterial blood is a light shade of red almost pink because of the oxygen content. The blood of a non-arterial vein will be a darker shade of red.”

“my question is, in your opinion, with the carotid artery. Would you suggest tipping the mortals head back to gain access to this point even though the neck muscles move to protect the artery, or tipping the head down which in turn can increase blood flow to the area?” after stating his question he still stood for a moment longer before taking his seat.

He was well aware of the muscles that protected the artery when the head was tipped back. a protective measure gained through evolution. To protect vital spots. When the head is tipped down these arteries’ almost move in front of the jugular itself. This being the preferred position if you wanted to bleed a human dry quickly by cutting its throat like cattle.

The walk to Cerulean hall was mercifully uneventful, Aaron letting out a breath he hadn’t known he’d been holding when his and Varis’ paths finally separated. As he neared, his excitement began to overtake his lingering unease, and by the time he reached the room, his mind was abuzz with anticipation.

The temperature was a surprise, to say the least, a bit of a tangible chill climbing up Aaron’s spine as he followed where the TAs indicated to stand. Briefly he examined the balcony above them, wondering exactly what it was there for. Maybe for instructors to observe. He supposed he’d find out soon enough. He recognized the Awakening crystals on the tables, and absently touched his ring; it was a memento from his own Awakening, fashioned from the very crystal that had been used for his ritual. As well, with the crystals here, he was pretty sure he knew what they were meant to be doing; Sariel had shown him an exercise with his own crystal shortly after his Awakening.

His wondering was interrupted by a rather amusing entrance by the professor, introducing himself as Mr. Martin. Aaron’s eyebrows raised at the name -- he’d have to ask about it after class if there was any time. It turned out he’d been right, though; as he watched Mr. Martin’s demonstration, he definitely remembered doing the same exercise with Sariel. It had been some time since he’d done it last, but he was confident he could do it again.

Finally it was time for them to give it a try, Aaron excited to get started as the TAs came down the line with table assignments. There was a moment of confusion, though, when the TA the teacher had addressed as Ralph stopped in front of him, the temperature between them shooting down to freezing as the mage looked between him and the paper, apparently displeased.

“Great. The guy whose family enslaved us. Welcome on.” Ralph said flatly. He handed the paper over to Aaron. “Table three, Salem Spellman. Don’t fuck up.”

Immediately Aaron bristled, excitement vanishing into an unfamiliar burst of anger, though he was more than practiced enough not to let it show. He was well aware that opinions on his family varied, that there were probably wide swaths of humans and mages who hated them and what they stood for, but that didn’t make the comment any less inflammatory.

Head held high, Aaron didn’t dignify the comment with a response, only taking the paper and holding eye contact with Ralph until he moved on to the next student. Hopefully that was the beginning and end of Ralph’s little ‘issue’; he’d hate to have to get into it with a TA. If Varis wanted to kick him around, so be it, but he wasn’t about to take that sort of disrespect from an equal.

Letting out a breath and resisting the urge to roll his eyes, Aaron focused instead on the paper he’d been given. Table three, Salem Spellman. Quite the coincidence, if it was one, but fortunate nonetheless. Aaron still wasn’t entirely sure how comfortable he was with what he was supposed to be doing, but hey, the teacher said to get to know his class partner, right? And it wasn’t as if he was supposed to be mean to the guy or anything. Getting to know people was all a part of making friends, having some semblance of a social life. He probably would have done it anyway, without Varis’ direction. Especially if he was meant to be spending his breaks with the man. Maybe not the ‘report everything’ part, but… would what Salem didn’t know really hurt him? After all, Aaron wasn’t convinced that he was actually a rebel, so he probably had nothing to hide anyway. It would be fine. Probably.

He concluded his rationalizing as he sat down at table three, tucking his bag under his chair before straightening. Finding Salem had beaten him there, he offered the other man a smile. Make friends. He could do that.

“Evening!” He greeted cheerfully, placing his sheet on the table. Grinning, he eyed Ralph nearby, leaning in a little to Salem and subtly pointing him out. “I don’t think that TA likes me,” he chuckled, swallowing his former irritation and straightening up again. “But I suppose everyone can’t be friendly. Speaking of which, did you ever get ahold of Lilie?”

The lack of echoing clicks to accompany her pace was somewhat odd for Amaris, having grown accustomed to wearing some form of heeled shoe wherever she went. It had been quite some time since she had worn a flat soled shoe such as the black converse she had paired with the outfit of the day, but she couldn’t deny how much more comfortable they were to walk around campus in; a fact she would be sure to keep in mind moving forward.

Pausing outside of Cardinal Hall, Amaris took a few moments to breathe and bring her emotions under control. While she couldn’t see them, she was almost certain her eyes were still rather harsh in comparison to their normal hue. She didn’t want her classmates getting the wrong idea about her so quickly out of the gate. Once she found herself feeling more comfortable, Amaris ducked inside to find her lecture room.

At first glance, the room seemed to be set up just as the auditorium was. The seats were arranged in neat rows, raised a level with each additional section so that the front of the room was visible no matter where you were sat. Instead of there being a stage, however, the front of the room was flush with the floor. Display monitors and a podium were the focal point of the space, suggesting a good mixture of spoken lecture and image references for those of the more visual learning spectrum. There was also a table present, but it wasn’t all that large in comparison to the rest of the pieces that made up the professor’s ‘stage’.

It wasn’t until after her initial inspection of the space that Amaris noticed the figure dancing about at the front of the room while the other worked at setting up their materials for the lecture. An odd sight to be sure, but amusing all the same… or at least amusing to her. Somehow, she doubted the woman setting up the laptops shared the sentiment, if her expression was any indicator. Amaris could already tell that if these two were going to be her instructors for the next year, her learning experience would be engaging in the best of ways.

As per usual, Amaris caught sight of the four lonely seats set apart from the rest of the group. Front and center were the designated seats for the noble representatives, her own house crest staring back at her in a semi-mocking fashion. She made her way down to the front row and claimed her chair, setting her bag on the floor beside her feet once she had pulled free a pen and notebook. While waiting for the lecture to begin, she found herself twirling her pen gracefully about her fingers, never once faltering as she tracked the dancing vampire with her eyes. She couldn’t quite put her finger on it, but there was something odd about the man… aside from the unique choice in fashion.

Before she could figure it out though, the woman stepped up to claim the attention of the student body. She and the dancing professor were introduced respectively, a curt explanation given to excuse the strange behavior being displayed by the elder. Amaris couldn’t help but to smile at the notion of an elder discovering something for the first time. What delighted her even more was how much the man, known as Nasir, appeared to be enjoying himself. The lady, who had identified herself as Lucille, seemed less entertained by his notions suggesting his antics were something of a regular occurrence to her.

While Professor Tariq amused himself with the walkman, Lucille wasted no time in diving into their first lesson of the day: some program or site of some sorts known as Blackboard. She wasn’t at all familiar with it, not being the most tech savvy, but the concept seemed simple enough. From her understanding of things, Blackboard was essentially a digital planner. It was where the syllabus information could be found, had a calendar to keep track of due dates far in advance, and best of all, a place for assignments to be submitted from anywhere. Her preference for handwritten notes wasn’t going to change, but she couldn’t figure it taking a whole lot of effort to transcribe her physical copies of assignments into digital ones. She would have to touch base with Cassandra to see if she would be comfortable with sharing access to her calendar for the sake of keeping academics on track.

Before Lucille had the opportunity to continue with her demonstration of the education portal, she was promptly cut off by the sudden appearance of a pineapple. Slipping off the headphones that had been previously occupying his attention, the professor interjected with his desire to begin addressing the class’ true purpose. Amaris had to admit that she was somewhat surprised by the reasoning behind the curriculum, having figured all fledglings would have been exposed to feeding from a living source long before attending the academy. It was possible that in the excitement of it all students had forgotten themselves, an embarrassment that few were likely to ever admit. By making lessons such as these mandatory, it cut out any need to single students out and instead ensure the standards were reinforced via a reward system.

As Amaris suspected, there was little presented in the first lesson that she did not already know. The list of pros and cons for each location were a nice addition to the curriculum, however, a neat list made in her notebook leaving enough room to add other arteries or techniques if need be. Surprisingly, there was one thing in particular Professor Tariq touched upon that was completely new to Amaris. She had always been aware that the feeding process had some physical effect on the mages but she had never put any additional thought into what sort of effects they may be. At most she expected a sense of comfort to mask the potentially lethal consumption that was taking place, either an evolutionary cushion on the mage’s part or a predatory advantage on the vampire’s. However, from Nasir’s lecture, it sounded as if there were certain other factors to take into consideration. Things such as physical arousal caused by feeding from particular locations, or purposely feeding from painful locations for similar effects… it was a bizarre concept for Amaris, but a fascinating one all the same.

She was pulled from her thoughts as the professor was dropped to the floor, Lucille having dodged some sort of demonstration she was uncomfortable with. It was a fun and comfortable dynamic to watch, something she hoped she could get out of her own partnership with Cassandra. Granted, Amaris doubted their would be any instance where she would be trying to publicly disrobe the mage… but the sentiment still stood.

Amaris looked up as Nasir opened to floor to questions, pausing only a short moment before she calmly raised her hand into the air. She allowed her hand to fall flush with the rest of her body as she pushed herself to her feet, her eyes twinkling as they did whenever she got particularly excited about a topic.

“I apologize if this might be a bit off topic and I hope you can forgive my rampant curiosity. But is there a specific purpose to the pineapple you hold in your hand? Correct me if I am mistaken, but it is inedible unless your biology is embraced. So what need would you have for such an… exotic plant?” The countess awaited a response with more anticipation than would be warranted by such a bizarre question. She had realized that it was the presence of the fruit that had been weighing on her the entire time. She could never be truly certain with some vampires as to what their origin may be, but it was often assumed than elders his age and status would be pureblood. Despite this fact, even if Nasir were embraced, the man would have to regurgitate the food at some point anyways. It was because of these things that his continued possession of the item nagged at her throughout the presentation.

Interacting with: @Obscene Symphony

Salem walked Lilie to his front door. Closing it behind him, yet continuing to watch her for a l moment as she left. He watched as she skipped away, seemingly without a care in the world, save for those she expressed inside. In a way, Salem kind of admired her blissful ignorance to a lot of what had transpired, and began to wonder how she would react to hearing Aaron's side of the dinner tale, as well as what her view points were on the current political system and if they aligned with his ideals or Aaron's. He moved away from the peephole and made his way back into his room, sitting on his bed and looking at the space where she once sat. It would take some getting used to, having no one at his side, not even his family or vampires, and he only hoped he could make more friends like Lilie. Salem began to swing his legs, thinking back on the last thing Lilie had said to him "Thats what friends are for". A smile crept onto his face as he pushed away the negative thoughts and focused on what would lay ahead, class and the mastery of his affinity.

Salem stood in the freezing cold room, blowing small tufts of air out as if he were a dragon. He shivered every now and then, not being one for the cold but finding seeing his breath as amusing as ever. By the entrance stood two mages, TAs no doubt, and he began to wonder if everyone in this school ran on their own time. Whatever the professors motive for being late was, he was sure it must be a good one. A small sheepish girl began to speak as a jet of water shot out from beneath the doorframe and into the classes view. There it formed the professor theyd all been waiting for. He spared no time immediately getting into lecture, Salem pulled out a very rustic looking notebook and a pencil that still retained the trees bark on the outside. He took notes of what the teacher was saying, although basic, any leads on control and how to mastery his affinity were greatly appreciated.

It appeared their first excersises would be similar to the awakening. They would hold the crystal, see it light up, but this time they would attempt to control its brightness. Too much power it seemed would short circuit the medium, two little and itll fizzle. The sheepish mage from before made her way to Salem, handing him a note and striking conversation. Salem began to smile as she mentioned his tattoos, ofcourse, how could he forget? His family is always with him, even when he cant reach them. "They're casting focuses, the design and placings are a Spellman family trademarked tradition." He took his slip and thanked her for the conversation, making his way over to the table and sitting down. Salem wrote down into his notebook "Sent a girl into the mines." onto the last page, then flipped back over to the front and began to sketch an illustration of the crystal before him. After a moment, Aaron joined him at the table and seemed friendlier than their last encounter. "What did he say that makes you think he doesnt like you?" Sslem asked, blatantly ignoring the topic of Lilie.

Aaron raised his eyebrows at Salem’s question, a little surprised that that was the part of the greeting he’d stuck on. Well, it was as good a conversation starter as anything, he supposed.

“Great. The guy whose family enslaved us.” Aaron repeated Ralph’s words, making air quotes around them and leaning back a little in his seat. He shrugged, doing his best to laugh off that little flash of irritation. “I mean, I know I’m not all that well-versed in meeting new people, but I don’t think that’s meant to be a compliment.”

Salem stared at Aaron confused for a moment. He kept opening and closing his mouth, as if he was going to speak but would stop himself short of any words, finally leaning forward and saying “You are aware the Spellmans have never enslaved anyone right? And what does that have to do with why you think the TA dislikes you?”

Aaron stared at Salem for a second, equally confused, until it dawned on him that there had been a miscommunication and a laugh escaped him. “Oh, no, that’s what the TA said to me,” he clarified, chuckling. “When he handed me my paper in the lineup. I suppose I should expect a little hostility, I know my family isn’t popular with everyone, but I wasn’t quite expecting it from someone working here.”

Salem flipped through his pad as Aaron spoke, making sure to give clues that he was listening but also working on something else, writing out of Aaron's view ‘Paid off employees? Thinks school will be a breeze?’ He flipped back to another page, touching the crystal briefly and having it give off a soft glow with one hand as he drew it with the other. ”That's definitely not something I'd expect from an employee of the school, towards anyone. However, much like Varis, they are still students. I am curious though…” Salem brightened the crystal up while it was underneath his face, giving him a gaunt under lighting. ”During Treaty Law will he be your Teacher...or Master.” The glow dimmed back down as Salem passed the crystal to Aaron.

Aaron watched Salem as he drew, noting that his control seemed good if the crystal was any indication, though the question deflated him a bit. Was Salem making fun of him? What was the point of that? As much as he chided himself for it, this whole ‘Master’ business wasn’t exactly a comfortable topic. Aaron took the crystal, face falling a tick and humour dissipating as he slid it toward himself.

“All signs point to ‘Master’,” Aaron admitted, placing a hand on the crystal. He took a second to savour the feeling as the crystal made its connection with his magic, an uncanny sensation, but a pleasant one. The crystal began to glow much brighter than it had for Salem, bathing the table in pale golden light. “Truth be told, I’ve been forbidden from using his name,” he continued quietly, watching the crystal absently as he let it dim and brighten slightly with his breathing. After a moment, he looked over to Salem. “Maybe keep that under your hat, though, if you wouldn’t mind.”

”That's rough buddy.” Salem tried to mimic a line from a show he watched growing up. Though his guess was Aaron had never seen it. Clearing his throat for a moment before speaking again, "That's fine, I was just trying to...forewarn you...of how class may be for Treaty Law with him as our TA.” Salem searched around for a brighter topic, Lilie? No, that would only end badly. His relationship with Varis was clearly out of the question, and they couldn't very well speak of last night here. ”So, when you don’t have a chunk of crystal before you, what do you use as a focus?” Salem’s eyes kept looking down onto his pad, now on a new page as he began to illustrate something, to avert his gaze from the blinding light.

Aaron kept his eyes on the crystal, focusing on dimming the glow as much as he could before fizzling it out, then brightening it as much as he could without doing the same. “This,” he replied to Salem’s question, holding out his left hand. The light from the crystal glittered off the ring on his finger, which itself was made from a pale yellow crystal with many facets cut into the surface. “It’s actually made from my Awakening crystal,” he explained, finally taking his hand off the crystal and sliding it back to Salem. Hands now free, he patted the pommel of his sword, turning a bit in his seat so Salem could see it. “However, I’m also working on using Dawn as a focus as well. How about you?”

Before he reached for the crystal again, Salem held his hand up showing Aaron the back of his hand and forearm. He concentrated for a moment, making his tattoos glow an aetheric blue for a moment before dulling it back down and taking the crystal. ”My tattoos. Every Spellman mage gets them after their awakening if they're found to be a mage. We do, of course, have other focuses, but this is my main one.” Having seen how Aaron took the exercise, and thinking back to other training hed done, Salem decided the best test of this control would indeed be to match it with one’s breathing. After all, magic should be as natural as breathing to a mage. Salem let out a long drawn out breath through his mouth. The light dimming gradually with each bit of air that escaped his lungs. After a moment’s pause, he inhaled slowly through his nose, the light beginning to gradually brighten up. He repeated this twice more before letting Aaron have a go.

Watching Salem use the crystal, Aaron found himself impressed with his control. Then again, he recalled Lady Sinnenodel’s mage saying that Salem was 21, so he supposed it made sense for someone three years out of their Awakening - he realized he was almost three years out too, good lord how time could fly - to have had some measure of training.

Taking the crystal back, he put his hand on it again, watching as it glowed, casting light over the table once more. Like before, he took a moment to really feel the flow of magic between himself and the crystal. It was a circular flow, through him and the crystal and back again; if he simply let the channel be and didn’t try to stem it, the glow was steady, its brightness similar to the lightbulb in a lamp. Slower this time, he inhaled, holding the magic back in his own body much like his breath. He could feel the crystal tug a little more insistently as the glow faded, the flow of magic trying to reach equilibrium once more, but held on, forcing the glow dimmer and dimmer until it was barely there. The anticipation of the magic he was holding back felt very much like pulling the tempo in an orchestral piece, everything in him anticipating when that energy would at last be released and the rhythm would pick up again.

Carefully, be began to exhale, gradually loosening his ‘grip’ on the flow of magic as he did so. He let the glow slowly go back to its former brightness, feeling the circulation reach equilibrium again, and then began to push, the crystal brightening as he did. Now he could feel resistance in the other direction, the glow of the crystal growing uncomfortably bright. He pushed it as far as he could, right up until he could feel that any more would blow the connection, and finally released his hold, letting the glow go back to normal before taking his hand off and snuffing it out completely.

“It’s been a while since I’ve done this,” he told Salem, leaning back in his seat and taking another breath, smiling. Something about working with magic always put him at ease, a happy calm washing over him. “How about you? What sort of training did you have before now?”

Salem continued to scribble into his pad while Aaron used the focus. His glance only looking up during the periods of dim lighting. Once the connection stopped and the light was no longer present, he placed his pencil down with a small clatter as he closed his pad so that Aaron couldn't see what he was working on. As Salem continued his breathing exercises he responded

"I assume you're referring to my magical training as opposed to medicinal? It was a lot of meditation. Breathing exercises, Tai Chi, and feeling the magic flowing within me. As I said, I have these tattoos which act as my focus, and when we would practice-” Salem removed his hand from the crystal and pressed both of his palms together, almost as if praying (not that he, nor anyone knew what that was), "- the goal was to control to flow of our energy within ourselves. I must say, it's easier to do these breathing ones you've got me doing.” Once both palms were together, a glow could be seen on Salem’s right shoulder. It flowed downwards to his bicep, then forearm, and then from his right hand onto his left, finding its way to his left shoulder before breaking the connection. ”It was just a lot of breathing, meditation, and Tai Chi to help with natural flow.” he reiterated, placing his hand back onto the crystal.

Aaron watched Salem’s demonstration, paying rapt attention to the glow of his tattoos as it traveled over his arms. He listened absently, more focused on the demonstration until it was done. By the sounds of it, Salem’s training had been… well, it was a little hard for Aaron to place it in comparison to his own. He’d definitely done a lot of breathing, but he hadn’t been sure if that was a typical technique or if Sariel had used it because he was already used to controlling his breathing from his combat training. He’d never heard of Tai Chi, though, and Sariel had only attempted meditating once before realizing that he wasn’t exactly skilled in the art of sitting still. Magic training had been marginally less painful than combat training or his other education, notably lacking swords and rods and buckets of pebbles, but he’d still managed to hurt himself a few times at first, so eager to start casting that he’d tried to use magic before he’d actually fully connected with his casting focus. That had always been the way for him, though; ever since childhood, he never could quite grasp his boundaries until he felt the consequences of crossing them. But he never did make the same mistake twice.

“I see it was effective,” he commented, though he paused to watch Salem go back to the crystal. “And that’s your family tradition? Are you all self-taught?”

”I don't understand your question. We are taught by the generations before us, we pass down our knowledge like legacies and ensure that the next generation will be able to take the pasts lessons and adapt them to the ever changing world in the same way that the we must all adapt to fit the future.” Salem looked around the room for a moment, watching as some students couldn't quite get their focuses to work properly, a few fizzling out from too much exposure, and then looked back at Aaron. ”Care to try something? Clearly we have control beyond those of our peers, how's about putting yours against mine. See whose magic can stay in control over this focus?”

Aaron shrugged, leaning back in his seat. “I was more wondering if you’ve always been taught by your own family, or if anyone had ever gone to a school like this one. My family were all taught by royal tutors, of course, but since we tend to have unique affinities rather than all sharing one, we can’t usually teach each other much more than basic control.”

He looked around as Salem did, interested to see that many of their classmates were having some difficulty. He supposed that made sense, though. Most of these students were probably fresh out of their Awakenings; he was willing to bet that for a lot of them, this was their first time using their magic. Salem’s suggestion brought a grin to his face, though. The crystal exercise was getting old, and he had to admit, he’d always been competitive.

“Sounds like a fun challenge,” he agreed, sitting a little more upright. “I’d make a wager, but I’m afraid I don’t have anything to bet with.” He set his elbow on the table, poising his hand near the crystal, not unlike preparing for an arm wrestling match. “When you’re ready.”

Salem leaned back thinking on what Aaron had said. A wager sounded interesting, though he wasn't much of a betting man. What would they even wager? Salem didn't have access to anything outside of the school, that's when a thought dawned on him. ”A wager then, your noble training versus my family traditions. The forfeit for this is…” Salem leaned in close and whispered to Aaron, "The loser must be forthright about everything for a week. No hiding details, no misleading sentences, and no lying or avoiding subjects. Deal?”

Aaron quirked a brow, considering the proposal and letting his hand fall to drum his fingers against the table. A week of honesty, hm? That had the possibility to end poorly for him, considering Salem asked the right questions. But on the other hand, he could get a lot out of Salem if he won. Maybe determine if he really was a rebel. Of course, perhaps it was naive just to take a man’s word that he’d be honest. And why did Salem want his honesty so badly anyway?

Despite his questions, Aaron found himself grinning. He didn’t usually make bad bets, but… this wasn’t too bad of one, now was it? “Deal,” he replied, holding out his hand to shake on it.

Salem smiled at Aaron's good gesture and held out his hand. Either the Starag mage was very cocky, or he truly had nothing to hide and all his sneaky business with Lilie and this girl in the mines was simply a mistake or misunderstanding. Once they shook on the deal Salem held his hand near the crystal as Aaron had done previously.



Both men touched the crystal at once; immediately it lit up, shining brightly from a quick burst put in by Aaron, met in intensity (if not brightness) by Salem’s glow in return. Soon the green of Salem’s magic started to overtake the gold of Aaron’s, but just just as the advantage became clear, Aaron’s magic pushed back, gaining the upper hand. Salem would not be outdone, however, and rose to the challenge; soon it looked like the two were evenly matched. They grappled like that for a moment, neither ceding to the other and intensity mounting, until both glows rose to an uncomfortable brightness. There was a flash, green or gold one could not tell, and the crystal fizzled out, going dark without revealing a winner.

Aaron fell back against his seat, letting his hand fall to the table and breathing a little heavier. Despite his new exhaustion, though, he couldn't help but laugh, a little giddy from the thrill of it all. “A draw,” he said finally, almost disbelieving.

It was strange, the feeling Salem had as Aaron's magic began to overtake the crystal. He could feel his magic, its intensity, as if he was feeling a part of Aaron's soul. However, Salem knew that this was a bet he couldn't lose, he needed to win this, for Lilie. She deserved to know the truth about what transpired at dinner. In a bright flash it all ended. A draw… Salem couldn't believe it. He'd be sweating if it wasn't for the cold in the room keeping his temperature low. A long, deep exhalation flew out of his lips as he heard Aaron chuckling to himself. ”It would appear it is.” A small guffaw taking over him. ”I suppose neither of us need to fulfill the forfeit then.”

“Good to see the favorite snack is still human.” Ralph said as he approached the table, clapping slowly and clearly unimpressed. “That was a pathetic attempt at the wrong exercise. Just because you sold the rest of us off for your benefit, doesn't mean you can snub our lessons. Do it right or don't bother at all.” Ralph turned from Aaron to Salem, regarding him for a long moment.

“Don't let his cocky attitude ruin you. His control needs work. He's blinding half the class as it is. He could learn a thing or two from you.” Ralph waved his hand towards the crystal. “Go on. Let me see how you're doing.”

Salem now saw what Aaron was speaking about earlier. He was unsure on if he should speak up or keep his head low, after all the last time he spoke up he lost everything. ”Of course.” he said in a low voice. He took a deep breath in and then exhaled it slowly through his mouth, regulating his breathing before beginning to exercise once more. Salem reached for the crystal, eyes closed and concentrating on the feeling of his magic flowing within him, inhale through the nose, it would ebb creating a dim green glow, contrary to before. Exhale slowly, the magic would flow, brightening and glowing a luminescent green, inhale ebb, exhale flow. This continued for 5 cycles until he finally stopped and looked towards the TA.

“Whoopie, a natural.” Ralph deadpanned. “Don’t let it go to your ego. Continue working on it and then try varying the speed of the change. You're up next, turncoat. Let's see if the grass is greener on the other side.”

Ralph’s arrival robbed Aaron of that little bit of joy that always followed practicing magic, that flash of anger from before quickly rising to take its place. He was better trained than to talk back, of course, opting instead to burn a hole into the side of Ralph’s head with a glare as Salem did his demonstration.

When it was his turn, he set his hand on the crystal, it coming to life just as it had before, in a steady, lampike glow. He was a little tired from his little match with Salem, sure, but irritation had always had a way of invigorating him. Instead of tempering the glow, though, he held it for a moment, looking back up to Ralph. “Is this what you mean by ‘blinding half the class’?” He asked, only slightly condescendingly.

“Yes just like that. Considering you're brighter than everyone else, it means you pump out more magic naturally. Also means you'll exhaust yourself with bigger spells if you don't get it under control.” Ralph scoffed. “Apparently, being a blood traitor didn't pay off too much now did it. Now come on, let's go.”

That little jab very nearly made Aaron’s magic spike, but fortunately, unbeknownst to Ralph, he did have more control than that. He had to admit, though; it was satisfying to see that Ralph didn't seem to know what he was talking about.

“Forgive me, but I don't think I'll exhaust myself doing this,” he commented dryly, taking in a breath. The glow dimmed as he did, all the way down as he'd done before, before it spiked back up with his exhale, reaching a far more uncomfortable brightness. Well, to anyone else’s eyes, anyway. “I'll exhaust myself doing this...” he added, pushing up to the edge and holding the glow at its peak brightness for a second before letting it blow out with a flash, looking back up to Ralph expectantly. “...But that's not where my equilibrium lies.”

“Okay, mark you down for delusions of grandeur. Try working on that upper limit. Maybe spend some time with us plebs; might teach you a thing or two.” Ralph said, dismissing Aaron's display. “I'll expect some improvement when I come back around, turncoat.” Ralph moved to the next table and the area warmed up again.

”That just happened.” Salem watched in almost disbelief. It's true that Aaron's light was brighter than all the rest but did that truly mean that he didn't have good control? ”I'm sorry about that, maybe this will cheer you up?” Salem ripped out a page from his notepad that he had been scribbling on the whole class. It had an illustrated sketch of Aaron using the crystal, the glow from it given him almost angelic tones. He slid the image face down to Aaron, both wanting to look away embarrassed as well as see his reaction to the image.

Aaron glared at Ralph as he left. “Don’t worry about that,” he reassured Salem, only looking back over once Ralph had diverted his attention first. “If I didn't have control I would never--oh,” he interrupted himself when he finally looked down to see that Salem had handed him something, sliding the paper toward him and turning it over.

His eyes widened slightly at what he saw, and he stared for a moment. Salem had drawn him using the crystal, in shocking detail despite how quickly he must have done it. It was impressive to say the very least, not to mention flattering, and for a moment Aaron simply looked at it, a little amazed. What do you even say to that?

“That's incredible,” he remarked finally, smiling despite himself. “You’re very talented, thank you.” He chuckled a bit, tapping the drawing. “But what are you doing wasting your talent on me?”

”It's not a waste, typically I use it to help with recipes, or information on certain plant life and what not. It helps to have an illustration of a Conium maculatum rather than just hoping that someone knows what it looks like to avoid it.” Salem looked towards the crystal and then back at Aaron, speaking shyly as he began to smell a hint of post rain weather, chamomile tea, and the scent of an old book. ”I don’t mean to sound rude but...have you...have you tried to change the brightness?”

Aaron quirked a brow at Salem’s sudden shyness, noticing the scent of wood polish and rosin. “Oh, this?” He clarified, placing his hand back on the crystal and letting it glow at its regular brightness for a moment before releasing it again.

He shrugged, leaning back in his seat. “I’m a Light mage,” he explained simply, “It was like that on my Awakening day too. I suppose it might be possible to adjust the brightness beyond just altering the flow of magic, but Sariel never seemed too concerned. As far as I know, for my affinity, this is normal.” He didn't seem too concerned. “I can tell when I'm overdoing it, and I know I wasn't, so I'm inclined to think it's just an aesthetic difference.” He let out a laugh, though it was a little cold as his eyes fell briefly on Ralph across the room. “I think he was just looking for someone to pick on, honestly. Either that or he doesn't know what he's talking about.”

He sighed, tearing his eyes away and back to Salem and letting his anger subside. Without it, he began to notice that he was feeling a little spent, the exercises and his little match with Salem catching up to him. “Anyway, yes, it looks like neither of us is bound to honesty for the week,” he continued, shrugging again. “Though, I see no reason to use that as an excuse to lie, right? No need.” He laughed a little, eyeing Salem with a touch of humour coming back. “We get enough subterfuge with the nobles without lying amongst ourselves, don't you think?”

”I suppose so, but he is going to return to our table and check on our progress. So I figured I would ask to see if it was actually possible.” Salem thought on the words Aaron had said, There's no need to Lie, there's enough subterfuge with the nobles. But wasn't he a noble? A Starag of the Noilas now passed to the Sinnenodels. Two Noble families, twice the subterfuge.

Salem placed his hand onto the crystal once more to continue the exercises, taking into account what Ralph said about changing the intervals. He began to breathe rhythmically but faster, like a pregnant woman given birth. The exercise alone was straining, having not been used to such rapid changes, on top of the exhaustion from his wager. After a few breaths Salem stopped, tiredness taking over as he laid back into his chair. ”That was not fun.” Salem tried to sit up, using his elbows to keep him upright against the table. ”It’s not just the presence of lies Aaron, it's the absence of truth. I spoke to Lilie, she seemed to think dinner was a delight last night.”

“Why don’t you take a break,” Aaron suggested, noticing Salem’s exhaustion. His next words gave him pause though, Aaron lifting a hand to tug at his ear. So Salem had gotten ahold of Lilie. After a moment he sighed again, looking to Salem a little bashfully.

“I didn’t want to scare her,” he reasoned, inwardly groaning. Briefly he rubbed his hand across his neck, before forcing his hand to drop once more into his lap, not wanting to linger on the memory. He lowered his voice, less than excited at the prospect of anyone - especially Ralph - hearing him.

“Besides, I was embarrassed, okay?” He admitted, perfectly sincere. “I trained my whole life for this only to utterly fail on night one. If possible, I’d rather not advertise that.” He gave Salem a sidelong look, suddenly a little concerned. “Why, what did you tell her?”

”Everything.” Salem gave out a tired and weak chuckle as he waved his hand lazily in the air. ”I'm kidding of course. I told her everything that pertained to me. I left out your half of the story, as it's not mine to tell. Only mentioning that you and I had varying opinions, one we both said we'd work on together as opposed to animosity. But I'll warn you Aaron.” Salem's voice entered extremely hushed tones as he leaned towards Aaron. ”Withholding such things tends to drive a wedge between people, Lilie seems very pure and unsure of herself and I will not see you hurt her.”

Aaron raised an eyebrow at Salem’s remark, grateful he hadn’t said too much, but a little confused with his warning. Hurt her? Aaron could have laughed out loud. The last thing he wanted to do was hurt Lilie. He’d only known the girl for barely a night, and already he found himself looking forward to seeing her again.

“Believe me, I don’t want that either,” he told Salem, leaning in and matching his tone before returning to his former position. “I just… I don’t see any reason to burden her with my problems. Her or anyone else.” He let out a breath, letting a little wave of fatigue wash over him before he made himself perk up. “Besides, I can handle it. I got thrown off by…” he paused a moment, swallowing his pride, “...by Master’s methods, but I’m sure I’ll be fine once I catch on.”

He regarded Salem for another moment, mulling over his words and his apparent urgency. “Was there anything else weighing on you, or was that it?” He asked genuinely, glad for the opportunity to clear things up.

Salem thought for a moment and decided if there was ever a time to clear the air it was now. ”I heard a rumor...that you sent a girl to the mines.” There was a small pause as he searched Aaron's face for any sort of reaction. ”I need to know the truth. I heard there was an arrest last night while we were out and I know it was done by Lucan, whom you hold close it seems. I need to know what happened. Was it another defenseless mage like me who is now under the scrutiny of a family just for potentially mispeaking? Although if i'm being honest with myself, I still believe what I had said the other night. It's just too coincidental.” He spoke low, making sure no one near them could hear the conversation, much like Aaron, Salem didn’t need his dirty laundry aired out.

“What?!” Aaron didn’t bother hiding his shock, though he kept his voice a hushed whisper. There was a rumour going around that he’d somehow sent someone to the mines? “That’s ridiculous,” he dismissed the idea immediately, caught between laughing and having a miniature crisis. How many other people had heard this rumour? How had he managed to tarnish his family’s reputation this quickly?

“Salem, I don’t have that kind of power,” he explained, scoffing at the idea. “Lucan follows orders from the crown, I couldn’t coerce him even if I wanted to. I--ohh…” Suddenly it dawned on him what Salem was talking about. An arrest involving Lucan, of a mage… He recalled Lilie mentioning something like that, and he’d seen the boards on the Marivaldi dorm for himself. Combined with what Varis had said at dinner…

“That must have been the Marivaldi mage,” he concluded, almost to himself. “Remember, how they said at dinner that someone managed to infiltrate the Academy?” He lowered his voice even further, loath to start some kind of rumour or panic.

Salem watched as Aaron seemed to go through several stages of emotion. It was clear that the accusation offended him yet as to why it did he was unsure. Could it be it was false? Or was there truth to it and he was upset to get caught. ”Again I feel that was a cover to shift the blame off of you know who. But seeing as how I was the only one to get probed” Salem was racking his brain searching for answer but only coming up with more questions. ”Why would the queen even invite Lucan if she had ordered him elsewhere? It makes no sense. None of this makes sense Aaron.” Salem voice was still low, as he held the crystal, continuing to brighten and dim it but now somewhat sporadically with his emotions, attempting to make it seem like idle chatter as they practiced.

“I don't know,” Aaron hissed, still unsettled from the accusation. “I don't know, it's nobility, nothing ever makes sense, no one ever tells you anything, you just keep your head down and do what you're told and try not to ask questions.” It just about fell out of his mouth, his frustration growing apparent. It was a lesson he'd learned well growing up, to concern himself with doing his job and turn a deaf ear to the rumours. So many flew in Noila castle, it would be impossible to keep up with them anyway.

Salem read Aaron's tone loud and clear. Sitting back into his seat again and keeping silent. He opened up his pad once more and picked up his pencil, using the tip to point towards the crystal before jotting things down. ”You...may want to practice. Get that brightness in check and all.” His tone was almost defeated, sad, like a child who had just been reprimanded by his father.

Aaron's face feel a tick, but he took the hint, letting his eyes fall to the crystal again. “Yeah, we just have to be careful,” he murmured, setting to the exercise again and hoping Salem would understand what he meant.

Cassandra

Tired, but excited, Cassandra trudged into class. She had been up too long the night before, her energy drink making it hard to sleep until early afternoon. It might be fitting, though, that she started her first day right after seeing the sunrise, possibly for the last time.

No, that was dramatic. She would get to be out in the sun less often now, but it wasn't really all that bad.

“Okay, Cassandra right?” One of the TA's approached, to direct Cassandra to her table and class partner.
“I like your name. I’m a little jealous. Everyone pronounces mine wrong and yours flows so nicely. I think you’re going to be a natural. You’re at table six with Lilie Dionne. Good luck; you’re gonna do great!”

When she got to her table, it looked like Lilie was already getting started. Cassandra watched as she approached, seeing Lilie apparently blow the stone out, just like Allison had warned could happen.

"You okay?" she asked as she sat down.

@Hero

Cassandra

[/center]

“Maybe they did it on purpose?” Cassandra suggested. “I also can’t help but see the color of your magic in the stone. It’s kind of funny if you’re a water mage. My element is fire.”

She eyed the crystal, her hand hovering hesitantly. The whole “Awakening” thing had never had good associations for her, but it’s not like the crystal was harmful itself, right? Her eye flicked up to Lilie, and she seemed to firm up in the face of an audience. She dropped her hand onto it. More forcefully than necessary, as if to prove it didn’t bother her.

The crystal began to glow, a deep dark red, with a heart of bright orange.

Watching Cassandra as she would place her hand on the crystal, Lilie’s eyes lit up, fascinated. ”Fire?” She repeated the word, although she found herself grinning at her previous comment. ”Actually, I am a water mage! Funny coincidence, water and fire. I can put you out if needed and you can…” She trailed off, trying to think of another reason they would be paired together. ”...well, I’m sure there’s some reason.”

“Thought so, from the color…” she trailed off, focusing on the crystal, tongue poking out of the side of her mouth. If she put in too much, she’d blow out like Lilie did, but if she was too hesitant she’d give a pathetic glow and go out anyway. May as well fail spectacularly.

She pushed it out, the magic. The fire, as she had always thought of it, though now she would learn to do more than just burn. But not this moment, apparently. The orange heart of the crystal expanded outward, but unevenly, with spikes reaching through the red. One of the spikes reached to Cassandra’s hand, and a small flare of fire burst from the back of her hand. Then, she too lost the glow.

She looked at the back of her hand, where there was a small, irregular black circle.

“You didn’t put me out,” she grinned at Lilie, trying to cover up her embarrassment, make it a joke.

Lilie was completely silent as she watched Cassandra, completely entranced. She couldn’t imagine actually being able to control fire of all things, though as the small burst manifested she gasped. Maybe she should be grateful she had water, it seemed a little more predictable than other elements. Even if fire was cool to watch. Unpredictable, but it had its own little pulse of life and vigor.

She smiled at Cassandra’s joke, shaking her head. ”I don’t even know if I could, honestly,” She admitted. ”Control is one thing I’m sorely lacking at the moment.”

Taking her turn, Lilie decided to try to learn from her mistake, furrowing her brow in concentration as she rested her hand on the crystal. The soft, blue glow lit up once again, although this time it remained steady. Right, if she put in too much, it would burst and she’d get that weird feeling. Focusing, she pushed just a touch, watching the crystal brighten slightly, though it wasn’t enough this time, the light fizzled pathetically.

Sighing in defeat, she gestured towards it. ”This is the first time I’ve actually tried to control it, and...I suck,” She took it in stride, shrugging. ”How about you? You managed to make a fire already, you’re probably leagues ahead of me.”

Cassandra opened her mouth to agree, then closed it again. Her usual bluster felt uncomfortable in the face of Lilie’s easy humility. Instead, she shrugged, and came up with an excuse for it.

“I had an early awakening, and been stuck with tutors ever since. I don’t have any practical experience. I’ve only been able to actually use my magic for a few weeks now.

“I had a thought, though,”
she placed her hand on the side of the crystal, and then her other on the opposite. “She said it was a circuit, sort of, didn’t she? Maybe it would be easier if it goes in one side, and out the other.”

With her left hand, she pushed at the magic. She didn’t do anything in particular on her right, just letting it flow back into her. The orange heart in the crystal made a kind of bridge between her two hands. It glowed brighter and brighter, and then stayed steady.

“Okay,”
she said, biting at her lip, “Wait, I might have it.”
Her hands were gripping the crystal hard now, and she was starting to sweat. She stared at the light, which stayed the same bright orange, until finally she gave an exhausted sigh and pulled away, the light dying all at once.

“Maybe that’s not right. I can't get it to slow down like that.” She was breathing heavily, trying to quell the dizzy light headedness.

Focused on Cassandra’s progress, Lilie tilted her head as she watched, curious to see her method. So she had an early Awakening, too? She seemed a little more nonchalant about it, but she was right about Cassandra having an edge. All Lilie had gotten out of the ordeal was being put under house arrest.

Deciding to take a turn again, Lilie decided not to focus so hard, hoping a more relaxed method would help. ”Tutors, huh? I haven’t really tried to use my affinity after my...incident,” She put her hand on the crystal, her sigh matching the light dimming before she would push a little. ”Do you come from a family of mages? You don’t have to answer, I’m just curious since I’m the first in my family.” She decided to inquire.

She shook her head. “No, I only know of one other in my family.” She didn’t care to elaborate, the subject of her brother was a wound long since healed, but that didn’t make it any less personal. Instead, she changed the subject, slightly. Still talking about their past and magical discovery, just not about family. “So you had an incident, too, huh? I set my kitchen on fire, what’d you do?”

Keeping her eyes on the crystal, the light dimmed slightly before glowing, the girl managing to keep a steady rhythm as her heart beat against her chest. Flickering her gaze to Cassandra for a second, she returned her attention to the crystal. ”My Awakening...was unpleasant,” Lilie admitted quietly, removing her hand and extinguishing the blue light completely. ”There aren’t a lot of mages or vampires where I’m from, but...”

As she trailed off, Lilie closed her eyes, letting out a sigh. So much for moving on. ”Sorry, I don’t really like to talk about it. The whole ordeal happened a while ago, but it feels pretty fresh to me,” Lilie threw on a small smile. ”No one in my family had magic, so it came as a complete surprise. But now I’m here, and I’m going to master it.” A rather bold declaration all things considered, but she was determined. ”Just have to keep at it, right?”

Cassandra shrugged off the apology. “Don’t worry, I get it. I feel the same way. I can’t escape it, so I’ll make sure I’m the one in control.”

She took her turn again. If Lilie had gotten it, she had better do it right this time. Humility be damned, she wasn’t going to be left struggling. Cassandra looked down at her hand touching the crystal. It was glowing passively, the way it did when a newly awakened mage touched it. And she looked at the palm of her other hand. That wasn’t right. Her body was irrelevant. The only thing that mattered was the fire. She closed her eyes, and pushed… then pulled. She thought she felt it; like breathing but… in reverse? Once she got some kind of rhythm going, she opened her eyes to see the effect.

She smiled watching the orange heart growing and shrinking in a sea of blood red.

“Yes… Now what, though?”

Lilie clapped at the other girl’s demonstration, happy to watch. ”We keep practicing ‘til it comes naturally,” She replied, grinning. ”But before that…”

She pulled out her cellphone, offering it to Cassandra. ”Since we’re neighbors and classmates, it’s a good idea to keep in touch,” She suggested hopefully.

Cassandra blinked at the phone at first, then it clicked what Lilie was doing.

“Oh! Yeah, definitely!”

She dug into first one pocket, and then the other, not used to reaching for her phone. She handed it to Lilie, with a slight flush. It was a little brick phone that slid sideways to reveal a keyboard for texting. They traded phones, and with some fumbling in menus, Cassandra managed to input her name and number.

All too happy that her gesture wasn’t rejected, Lilie returned the favor, amused by Cassandra’s phone. It looked like the kind her dad liked to use, complaining that he couldn’t quite figure out smartphones. Not that she was one to talk with her own older model, but she enjoyed the little sense of nostalgia as she put in her own name and number.

”Excellent!” Lilie was probably a little too giddy, but she was all too happy to have someone else to talk to.

---

Max's eye was already twitching before the professor - what was his name? Ratshoe? - even finished his opening spiel. It can take a whole year to learn your affinity? Unacceptable. This school really must be garbage. The affinity is the basis of all magic, isn't it? What are they supposed to teach if the student can't even master that basic level? He eyed the awakening crystals on the tables disdainfully. Would he be stuck doing this same stupid exercise over and over again if he couldn't figure his affinity out? No, that didn't matter. He'd have his affinity down by the end of the week, tops. Let these losers wallow in mediocrity, he wasn't them.

Max gave the TA a lidded stare as she handed him the slip. Too perky. Just hand them out and move on. He heard his name out of the other TA's mouth as he was heading for his table. Must've been talking to his partner. Max quirked his head backward for a quick glimpse. A... girl? Weirdly effeminate boy? Whatever it was, it looked annoying. Just his luck.

He sat down with a grunt, one hand propping his head up lazily while the other reached out to touch the crystal. At least he could feel the flow almost immediately, although the dim light the gem was now producing was hardly inspiring. Why did it look gray? Wasn't it supposed to be colorful? And the magic felt so... rigid. The way everyone talked about it, it seemed like magic would be more comparable to a flowing river than a brick wall. It felt like he was pushing on something solid trying to pour more energy into the crystal. Naturally, his solution was to just scowl angrily at the poor crystal in hopes that he'd somehow intimidate it into working.

Having received a table and partner assignment, Dakota stepped away from the wall and approached the scowling figure. The face was somewhat familiar but the young mage was certain there was no known name to accompany the image. The pair had crossed paths previously at the orientation when he had asked stopped to speak with Sariel. It seemed that little had changed about the boy's demeanor since their last encounter, but that wasn't going to stop Dakota from making an attempt to lighten the mood.

"Careful now, I think you're giving it stage fright." The young mage spoke lightheartedly, a half-smile greeting meant to break the frigid ice surrounding the boy. Truth be told, though, Dakota was already beginning to feel nervous. This class was the first, not just of the day, but of the entire school career. And from the sound of things, the partnership formed at this table could make or break the scores moving forward.

"The name's Dakota... so how goes it? The crystal ball show you your future yet?" Glancing down at the activation crystal, Dakota ran through the instructions once more in their head. It seemed simple enough in theory: place hands on crystal and feed it some magic to change the brightness of the light. There was only one problem, unlike the activation ceremony, there was no outside force acting on the exercise. It wasn't about detection anymore, it was about control, and Dakota had no idea where to even start. The young mage slid into their seat opposite the boy hoping to learn something about the process before their turn came up.

Max's eyes trailed from the crystal to Dakota, although his gaze didn't soften much. As far as he was concerned, the jokes were unneeded but not horrible. He'd humor the other mage. "Max. And the only future I'm seeing is me throwing this useless thing across the room." He muttered as he took his hand off the crystal and sighed. The already-dim gray light faded to nothingness. He didn't see how he was supposed to alter the brightness if his max power wasn't even a nightlight.

"You do it, tell me how it works." He needed a feeling to judge his own against. That would, at the very least, give him a frame of reference in which to form viable questions he could ask. This was assuming Ratshoe was a competent instructor, of course - which Max didn't. Despite all the turmoil in his life surrounding magic, he'd been given very little detail on what any of it actually entails. One would think the idiot class he'd gotten himself placed in would cover some basics. Leave it to a Noila institution to gloss over the less-fortunuate, he supposed.

From an outside perspective, Max was just sourly glaring at the crystal while his mind raced with criticisms and postulations, awaiting Dakota to make their move.

Dakota understood the feeling of frustration of not getting the device to work as advertised. Many an object had ended up disassembled after boarding a one way flight to the wall. But to Dakota, it was all part of the process. Not everything was going to work as expected, that's when you had to take a step back and study it from a different angle. Learn how the device works to find the range of acceptable handling.

"I can try but I don't make any promises on something spectacular." There was a moment of hesitation as the mage stared at the crystal, running through a mental picture of how the process was meant to function. Sitting forward, Dakota placed their hands gently on the crystal and waited to see what would happen. At first there was no change in either the way the crystal looked or how Dakota felt. Brown eyes shifting with determination, the mage tried shifting the thought process. Perhaps that was the problem, too much thought. But Dakota didn't understand the basics of magic, there was nothing concrete saying what it actually was. It was difficult to picture something that had so many different forms dependant on each individual. At best it could be considered a form of energy, a catalyst that just so happens to effect real world phenomena.

That's it! Dakota had been struggling to find something to equate the unknown to, but it had been staring right at them the entire time. Two hands placed on the crystal could allow for the current to flow not all that dissimilar to electricity, but that also meant there was little use in trying to control the movement of the magic. With this in mind Dakota set to stop thinking about how the magic moved and instead focused on generating some kind of pool of it. Within a few moments, Dakota began to feel strange. It was almost as if their arm had fallen alseep and was just waking back up, a tingling sensation that rattled its way down the mage's arm and into the awakening crystal. Watching with a small amount of delight, the crystal lit up as it had back at the ceremony.

There was something different this time about the light though... During the Awakening Ritual, Dakota's light had been a pure white with little indication as to what element the affinity would be towards. The light that Dakota now saw in the crystal was an off white, leaning in the direction of a pale, pastel yellow. So far, it was not enough information to discern an element but was enough for Dakota to feel like some progress had been made. The feeling was almost enough to make up for the disappointment in the consistency of the light. For whatever reason, Dakota could not maintain a glow of any sort, watching as the light flickered between varying intensities at random. As Dakota attempted to reign the light in to a dim to try again, the light blinked out as if a switch had been flipped. Another attempt was made but the light refused to turn on the second time despite the mage's best efforts to recreate the feeling from before. Removing their hands from the crystal, Dakota sat back in a huff and folded their arms.

"This is going to be a pain in the ass."

Max watched the other mage work with rapt interest, although his cheek was still being propped up by his arm. He couldn't look too eager, of course. It took them a moment, but Dakota seemed to be faring better than him. They were even getting a colored light, if faint. Was two hands the trick? It seemed superficial to think of, but that would theoretically double the magic flow, right? Or was that a bad thing? Dakota's magic was all over the place; he was half-worried the blinking might make the other students think an alarm was going off somewhere. Max at least had stability, if not power.

"Let me try again, then I think I have a plan." Max placed both hands on the crystal this time, flexing his forearms as he tried to push more energy into the crystal. Once again, he met that same solid resistance and only produced a dim gray glow. Or maybe it was just a really pathetic white. What kind of element was gray supposed to be, anyway? Maybe his affinity really was pocket lint.

"Everytime I try this, I end up hitting some kind of... resistance," Max started, agitation thinly veiled in his tone as he kept up the underwhelming light, "But, my glow's stable." Either that, or he couldn't even get enough energy into the awakening crystal to get to the point where the light could fluctuate. They had opposite problems here, so it stands to reason that they could correct eachother's mistake. He'd have to just be one half of a whole idiot for now. "Since this is a team effort, I propose you focus on giving me a pool of energy to work with, and I'll try to keep it from... doing whatever the hell you just did."

The sullen mage took his hands off the crystal, flexing his fingers. Maybe he was brute forcing it too much, like shoving a square peg in a circular hole. It only fits in if the square is smaller than the circle. What a pain. Max shifted his gaze toward Dakota, silently gesturing toward the crystal as if to say 'Your turn.'

"Well, we don't have anything to lose. Here goes nothing." Dakota shifted forward to place their hands on the crystal in an attempt to light up the device. Once again, the tingling sensation shot down the mage's arms and into the now lit apparatus. The look of determination bordered on pain as Dakota stared at the light, trying to force it to commit to a steady light. Unfortunately, it seemed the more Dakota tried to push it, the more sporadic the light became.

"Ugh, what do you think I'm doing wrong? I'm not feeling any sort of resistance like you did, but it's like it's got a mind of it's own. I can't get the light to chill." The young mage simmered but refused to remove their hands from the crystal. There had to be some trick to it, something they were missing.

Max brought his hands forward to rest on the crystal alongside Dakota, pushing his own magic into it with less fervor than before. The feeling of hitting a barrier didn't lessen at all, and from what he could tell inbetween flickers of Dakota's magic, his light hadn't improved either. There goes his square peg theory. Although, the immediate sensation of their magics interacting did confirm a number of things to him.

First, magic was extremely varied. The other magic floating around in the crystal - Dakota's magic - did not feel anything like his. His had no motion or give to it, where this was animated, but ephemeral in nature. The feeling couldn't even be compared, it was like two completely different states of matter. He also decided he didn't like the way it reacted with his own; it was like Dakota's magic was dancing against his own, like a bunch of squirming worms or something. His hands started feeling tingly. Great. Lastly, was the revelation that he couldn't interact with others' magic as he does his own. Any attempts to reach out and wrangle the other mage's energy into obediance was left with even less cooperation than his own stubborn magic.

Annoying, but he'd have to make do.

"As far as I can rationalize it, magic... flows differently for each person. Yours is like a fast-moving river or something. It moves a lot and it's hard to make it stop. Mine's like a rock. It just sits there, but it's sturdy." Earth magic, maybe? Not his first choice - it's no fire, after all -but it beats pocket lint. He instead tried to turn the rigidity of his magic to their advantage, shutting his eyes and visualizing the formation of a cube in his head, as if to contain the boundless motion of his partner's magic. His eyes immediately shot back open as he started feeling the earlier resistance giving way.

Of course, he was still thinking of magic as a flowing stream. Solids don't flow, but they can bend; he just needed to fold it into a shape that would fit inside the crystal. Max's fingers twitched against the crystal, trying to shape his magic into a sort of framework for Dakota's to sit inside. It was no origami masterpiece, but it sort of felt like he was making something coherent in there. This metaphor bullshit was really starting to get on his nerves. Why didn't they start with at least a quick lecture or something?

"How's that feel? Better? Worse?" The question was phrased innocently enough, but his voice was laced with a fair degree of hostility. Thankfully, it was aimed primarily at the crystal. And the professor. And the Noilas. And... lots of things, but not Dakota, surprisingly.

"I'm not sure if it's better, but it doesn't feel any worse. Still doesn't feel like I have all that much control over my own magic, but maybe that'll come with practice. What are we going to do about this light though? The last time I tried to dim it just shut off." From Dakota's perspective, all the pair had managed to accomplish was filling the crystal up with magic that seemed to work alright together but not on their own. Somehow, it didnt quite feel like they were on track with the assignment but how were they expected to brighten and dim a light if they didnt understand how the light worked in the first place. Dakota began to wonder if it might be time to call the TA over for assistance.

No... We can figure this out ourselves, we just need time.

Max sighed at the question. Bending his magic into shape was more energy-intensive than he thought, and he was still nowhere near creating an efficient flow. He still wasn't even sure whatever he was feeling wasn't just a figment of his imagination. It didn't even make sense on a rational level. How did energy he put into a rock feel like a cube? Still, he maintained his grip on the crystal, if only to not look hopeless should the professor walk past.

"Don't look at me, I can't even get mine past dim." As it stood, the 'folding' he was feeling took way too long for him to actively modify how much energy he was feeding the crystal, and he hadn't even had a chance to see if it was actually making a significant difference with Dakota's glow mostly overshadowing his own.

His eyes flittered about the room in search of Ratshoe or the TAs. As incompetent as they seemed, they had to hold some kind of advice, right?If not, maybe one of those jackasses condescending him would make his magic flare up. That spark yesterday was definitely anger-induced, and that was the closest thing to a success he'd had so far.

---

As the class continued, doors opening could be heard upstairs and mages not too occupied would notice their vampire partners shuffling onto the balcony above. A purple sheen rippled across the space and vanished. While there were a few seats available with little tables, most vampires leaned on the balcony railing as they watched.

The Royal Guard returned to the barracks stationed between the Noila Academy and the Noila estate without further incident once the meddling Countesses returned to their dorms. Nox had ordered the house physically and magically sealed until the sun rose, when the mages could work on finishing the investigation without noble interference. The investigation ran long, continuing until nearly five in the afternoon, and picked up little of interest except a book stashed away in a secret compartment in the snake's cage. There was a side note in the report Nox received that the snake had been mildly aggressive but otherwise there was nothing of note. The book however was in Ryner's custody as an artifact of the Children and all historical information fell under her jurisdiction.

With eyes hidden behind reflective sunglasses Lucan stretched his arms out after the raid was fully finished. His team had performed flawlessly, as was expected, but he himself had felt that the arrest was almost to easy. He hated that feeling, as it made him paranoid. His father would no doubt tell him that his paranoia was a good thing, and Lucan decided to just accept that the Steel Mage was simply caught entirely unawares. They were tricky to combat, metal mages, as they required special weaponry, tactics, and protection to safely bring down.

He briefly recalled a run in he had with a Rogue Metal Mage. His rapier had been rendered useless and the Vampire was forced into hand to hand. This wasn’t a problem to be fair, but the familiar weight of his rapier not being in his hands always made him feel naked and without hope, a true part of himself. He sighed as the car pulled into the familiar driveway.The ride back to the barracks was rather uneventful, Lucan simply advising one or two of the Guard on a tactic they could have employed to get the job done better or easier. He was well liked by most of the Guard and while he was young they followed his orders to the letter. A few still resented his age and position but having such a strong title behind his back, along with the results that spoke clearly of his ability, Lucan’s naysayers were few and far between.

Upon reaching the Barracks, Lucan dressed down out of his tactical gear and back into a black and gold dress uniform. He had, had it pressed and ready to go for the next time it was required. But even he, two weeks ago felt he’d need it again this soon. He was unsure of whether he was simply -that- good at finding the Rogue mage or it was that she had just been very careless with her trail. Minfilia, he mused as he thought of her. She had been someone on Lucan’s radar, but it was more her affinity than anything else, and he berated himself mentally for not being more suspicious. He consoled himself with the fact that his presence may have made her anxious and careless so he could have some of the credit.

The debrief took place at 7pm, an hour before sundown. Nox stood in full armor at the circular table holding a variety of photographs and documents detailing the results of mundane and magic inspection of each piece. Her axe leaned against the blank wall behind her and her sword, engraved with the name Greta on it's scabbard, hanging from her hip. She stood arms crossed, looking thoroughly unimpressed at the mage stumbling over a report.

“Dismissed.” Nox snapped after she couldn't handle the trembling man anymore. He took his opportunity and was gone in the blink of an eye. She turned back to the table.

“Useless. Since I was occupied during the arrest, report.” Nix demanded as she picked up a picture of the snake. Lucan and Valerie, captains of the guard, and Derryl and Jacob, her head inspectors, stood at attention on the other side of the table.

After he finished dressing, the Knight of the Evening stepped into the command room where Nox was being given a report. Lucan perfectly hid his humor at seeing the trembling Mage and stepped up beside of Valerie, adopting a crisp and perfect attention pose. When he was addressed he gave a salute and snapped a step forward, returning to attention and beginning his report on the situation. “Ma’am, initial approach was picture perfect. Lights only so as to not surprise the individual and risk a bolt. I employed a simple containment perimeter around the home and on your order made rapid and overwhelming entry through the front door.”

He paused for a moment to let his superior catch up with the information and then continued on. It wasn’t a long pause, a professional one even. One that most higher-ups appreciated because the knowledge those with boots on the ground or in this case, in the home was essential. “A single yell announced our presence and whom we were and then myself, Jaxon, and Holmes entered as one. The pathetic excuse for a Mage was easily handled and thrown back out towards the transport. I then ordered the standard overview search of the rooms.” He stepped back, his time with the report finished as he had turned over the scene to the Inspectors while he held security after. He saluted one final time as he entered his original spot beside Valerie and became a gargoyle.

Nox listened to his report, eyes shut, head tilted right, and deathly still. She stayed that way for a few moments after Lucan concluded his report before she opened her eyes and clicked her tongue.

“Moving forward, we will establish a perimeter at least one hundred feet outside of the target location when dealing with nobles. The Marivaldi's interference gives us enough cause to strip the nobility of the privilege to information. If the Red Hand agent hadn't been a novice, she would have been a liability.” Nox added as her own mage, Clara Starag, stood behind her taking notes. “Derryl.” The mage stepped forward and saluted.

“Just after sunrise, my division placed several layers of protective wards within the Marivaldi dormitory's yard and unbarred the front door. We deployed three forensic teams, starting with the study, the formal sitting room, and the kitchen. We found nothing of note in these rooms. As our units continued into the living room and bedrooms and secured them, Jacob and I took the time to listen to the spaces. Nothing of relevance was immediately clear but we transcribed what conversations were clear and forwarded it to headquarters for further evaluation. I labelled it as a priority and to be delivered to you personally.” He picked up the folder with a picture of the Countess’s room.

“We found nothing of relevance in the mage's room either. Nothing suspicious in the walls or floors and the room was used as intended. The Countess's room caught our attention however. As per your orders, our forensics teams added additional warnings and Jacob and I entered first, reading the room immediately. Initially the results we found confused us. Jacob contacted Sargent Raquel, who discovered the readings of the room suggested the presence of the Originals or their Children.” He flipped the folder open and laid it down with an analysis of the room’s aura compared to the aura records for the Originals. “Our records indicated that whatever the source was, it was weaker than these parties so we continued our investigation as per protocol. Nothing of relevance was discovered on site until we took a closer look at the snake. The creature itself was mildly aggressive but irrelevant. Its cage however held a secret compartment with a book written in a language incomprehensible to either Jacob or my magics. Sargent Raquel later confirmed it was the First Tongue and so we sent it to Princess Ryner with a containment team. Between regular consultations with the royal archives and cleansing the Countess’s room, our investigation lasted four hours longer than originally expected. The forensics teams only managed to clear and cleanse the Countess Marivaldi’s belongings; the rogue mage’s belongs are still being catalogued and contained.” The mage saluted once more and stepped back into position. Princess Nox maintained her position for a few quiet moments and nodded.

“Jacob, Derryl. Assist our forensics teams with containment and cleansing and prepare the mage’s belongs for transport. Valerie, take Clara and ready a prisoner shuttle for the mage. We will interrogate her in the Guard's facilities.” Nox remained still as her orders were followed as she expected, silently and immediately. The room cleared, leaving Lucan and Nox alone.

“You will be remaining at the school. This entire situation, a Red Hand agent escaping my sister’s notice and the Sinnenodel upstart providing the identity of the agent just before the Queen’s dinner, is entirely too coincidental. I don’t like it. A power play is brewing between the Houses, and Ryner and the Sinnenodel are willing to gamble the Crown’s security on it.” Nox passed another folder over, this one with a picture of a mage and a name along with two schedules, one Lucan’s and the other Damien’s. “Ryner has taken the liberty of reassigning your mage since your last one is under investigation, despite my recommendations. She decided the pressure from a constant guard, since it wasn’t required by the Queen, would inhibit his learning and be detrimental to his health. Your new mage fell ill shortly after accepting the invitation and only recently recovered. You will intercept him, travel the rest of the way with him, and give him a tour of the grounds and a copy of his schedule. You will regroup with the rest of the students by lunch and continue with your day as if nothing happened.”

“The events of the morning are confidential. The official story is she attempted scrying magic on behalf of another vampire outside of the school but ultimately failed when campus security discovered the faulty spellcasting. You are staying behind as punishment. During the arrest, you authorized an excessive use of force on the mage and damaged her beyond reasonable containment measures. You will take mandatory weapon handling classes to control your aggressive styles and will engage in non-aggressive, noncompetitive extracurricular activities to learn more respect for mages. This story will start circulating among instructors later this evening and several security campus locations are authorized to sparsely spread the official information among the students.” Nox paused a moment for Lucan to absorb before continuing. “Your mission during this time is to observe and report. Any suspicious activity, whispers of rebel connections or influences, or activity pointing to a possible conflict between the noble houses that revolves around the school should be compiled and sent directly to me. This information is under my direct supervision so only the Queen or myself may hear or read your reports. Ryner, the nobles, or any of your classmates are to be stalled or apprehended as applicable if they attempt to access this information. Understood?”

Lucan listened intently as the Inspectors moved on with the report. Nox’s words had been locked away for future use. He held back any returning excuses, it wouldn’t do to try and give any. He knew that the Princess was correct. Most of the time a perimeter of 100 was established anyway, Noble or peasant alike, but Lucan had lacked two of his men who got held up on the way to the home. As it was, he had ordered for a quick perimeter and rapid entry regardless. He was the commander, it was on him and he readily took in the advice given by Nox.

When the Inspector mentioned the language of the children being uncovered in a tome he definitely felt his interest pique. They were legendary obviously and the vampire would only guess as to why the rebel had it in her possession. He didn’t have a lot of time to consider it however as Nox continued with her orders and soon enough Lucan found himself alone with the princess. His stance relaxed into a more parade rest in the less formal environment, remaining rapt and attentive however as Nox gave him his new orders. So he -would- be going back to the school.

Lucan sat when it was obvious that Nox didn’t expect a strict attention or honor position and studied the picture that was attached to it. He lifted a singular eyebrow as he took in the piercings and tattoos but nodded at the order. He was at the point of responding when his superior moved forward with her briefing. His brow furrowed only slightly as it was no use trying to deceive her with his political mask. Nox was someone who had known Lucan from near birth and had even trained him when he was a child. She knew him extremely well and despite that, was old enough to see through the masks of the court. “My Princess, I do not meant to dispute your plan but Aaron Starag is attending the school as that Sinnenodel upstarts mage. He knows that losing control is not something I would do, and could alert the slime to your plan of my reconnaissance.”

He knew she would understand he wasn’t just saying this to save his own reputation. He didn’t care what others thought of him, and duty always came before any personal gain, this was a legitimate concern and one he wondered if the Princess considered when she came up with the plan. If so, he was more than willing to go along with it. There was a brief flash of concern that he -had- actually done something wrong however, but the vampire had thrown it into the back of his brain while he talked the plan over.

“Steps have been taken.” Nox responded as she picked up another image of the mage's room. She read for a few moments and slapped it down on the table. “Get ready to return. Whatever belongs you left have remained untouched but take anything from the barracks you think may assist you. You have half an hour before you will leave to intercept your mage's vehicle.”

“Yes Princess.” He salutes and fully trusts his superior. If she says that she has it taken care of then he would do his job. The punishment, even if it was for an undercover thing stung greatly. He wondered if he had actually messed up being so rough with Minfilia. He shook his head, he knew his team appreciated it. Metal Mages were nothing to be trifled with, trained or not and eliminating the threat was the highest priority. Had he wanted to kill her, the throw could have been much stronger. He just sighed and shrugged his shoulders after exiting the room and securing the door.

He wandered into the main barracks room where his team was finishing up their own debriefing and nodded to them all. Every Vampire stood and saluted the Bordeleaux and Lucan felt pride for them fill his form. “You did well, it was a flawless snatch and grab. I made a mistake however, so next time be sure that we secure a one hundred foot perimeter when dealing with Nobles and try and get to the location without being stopped. Nothing is more important than the destination, not even if you get sidetracked by a Count or Countess. Understood?” Everyone answered in the affirmative and Lucan continued. “Good, now I’m being assigned to the school once more. This means that, like last time, Tristan will be in full command of the squad. Follow his orders as you would mine.” Luc nodded to another younger vampire that had grown up with Lucan as a family in the Bordeleux’s lands. “You’re all dismissed, I’ll see you when I see you.” He gave a salute to his men and woman and then turned towards the armory. He would be going back ready for anything this time.

He cracked his neck as he entered the armory and approached the desk where the logistics officer stood going over some sheets. “Quincy, I’ll be taking some hardware with me on my next assignment. I’ll collect the tags and bring them to you.” Quincy gave a nod and salute to the Officer and then went back to his work. Lucan went first to the ranged weaponry and secured two mini-crossbows, along with a pouch of ammunition. A heavy crossbow was slung across his back, picking up both regular bolts and specialized for the killing machine. Next was the heavy two-handed shock weapons which the vampire ignored, instead heading straight for the daggers. He secured 5 regular daggers of various heights and widths, 10 throwing knives, and another gauche knife which went to secure itself on his belt, behind his back. He next went to the specialized weapons and procured a heavy plastic baton should he run into any other metal mages. Once he was sure he was good to go he pulled a suit of heavy ballistic tactical gear and strapped it to his form, along with sun reflective skin protection. Overtop of the tactical gear went a lighter weight jet black dueling trench coat. The collar of the coat was flared and quite stylish which went hand in hand with Lucan. With everything collected he let the many tags fall onto Quincy’s desk and just smirked as the logistics officer sighed and started writing down what was taken.

Now fully armed and ready to go, Lucan strode towards the vehicle that would intercept his new mage and as he climbed into the backseat, the mage that would drive him gave him a polite greeting. Lucan responded in kind and leaned back, covering his eyes with his reflective glasses and catching some needed rest.



On the other side of the Academy, a car drove silently through the forest surrounding the institution. The sun disappeared beneath the horizon an hour ago and only the headlights of the car illuminated the world around it. The driver, a mage in the services of the Academy, drove quietly with the music turned low to whatever was playing on the radio. Every now and then his eyes flickered to the rearview mirror, a little exasperated as the fledgling mage in the back jostled his seat unintentionally as he bounced to whatever was playing in his big over the ear headphones.

Damien on the other hand didn’t notice his foot lightly tapping against the driver’s seat, too engrossed in the music blaring out of his headphones. The restlessness kicked in just before sundown and Damien decided having an impromptu dance performance was the perfect distraction for a long car ride. And if it helped distract him from the growing separation anxiety creeping up on him as he counted the miles, well, who was around to judge him. Except for the statue in the front seat but who cares about a guy who just rolled up the soundproof divider at hello.



He’d discarded the pink, purple, and blue hoodie on the other seat long ago, leaving himself free to wiggle around in the confines of the back seat, much easier to move in just shorts and a tank top. He pulled out a few pencils and tapped in time with the drums, making sure to tap on the divider just because he could. It reminded him of having to wake up his older brother for a job interview, looping his younger sister into blasting music from both their phones and he air guitared across Mark’s bed and flopping down over the guy. He laughed at the memory, the tightness that had been building in his chest dissipating. He still had his memories and he could always call them when he wanted to see them. It still sucked he was bedridden for his last month with them but at least he got a few extra days. Nights. That was going to be rough to adjust to.

His music suddenly shut off as his phone buzzed away. He fished it out from his pocket and a grin broke out as a younger version of himself stared back, face contorted in an ugly face that damien saved as the boy’s contact photo. Double checking the time, he was a little worried since it was past the eleven year old’s bedtime but then he remembered he wasn’t his parents and didn’t care. He bunched up the hoodie and propped the phone up so his entire torso could be seen in the picture.

Charlie! He signed excitedly as it connected, the name a combination of a C and the sign for silly. What’s good, little man? Charlie grinned at Damien and suddenly their sister popped into the picture behind the boy as well, saying a quick hi and bye, and then disappeared off camera.The boys shrugged at each other.

Girls. Charlie signed, exasperation clear in his face. Just giving you a heads up, Dad’s on a mini ramage. Apparently, someone nicked his popcorn stash. And when we mean someone we mean… the following flurry of signs made Damien howl with laughter. Normally pretty chill, their Dad turned sailor level pretty quick over few things. The coveted popcorn stash was one of them and he couldn’t help but think of the box safely stored away in his suitcase. There was no way he was leaving home for the first time without his favorite comfort food. He’s going to have a very long message left for you tomorrow. Charlie’s fingers shook with amusement and Damien sent him a grin.

Thanks for the heads up, little man. Now go to bed before Mom or Papa catch you. Charlie just rolled his eyes but agreed. Damien sent a quick love you and the call ended. He flicked back to his music and sat back, feeling more relaxed after seeing his little sibling’s face. But just for good measure… He started dancing again, definitely not purposely tapping against the back of the seat.

“Sir, we’ve almost intercepted the other vehicle. Perhaps ten minutes out.” Lucan stirred as the voice of his driver invaded his sleeping brain. With a nod the vampire sat up, checking his phone and noticing he had an email version of his briefing. He deleted the message and sighed, sometimes hating how easily he could just be ‘awake’. With a small sigh Lucan tapped a few buttons and brought up the number to his brother Jonah, knowing his father was away from the castle he clicked it and after four quick rings his brothers voice could be heard on the other end, sounding groggy. “Lucan? Why are you calling so early, I haven’t even brushed my fangs yet?” Lucan gave a roll of his eyes after removing his sunglasses. ”Where are the other little bats? Still sleeping?” Jonah nodded and stood from his bed. “Where are you? Are you coming back home?” Lucan gave a shake of his head and frowned slightly. ”No, I still have a mission to complete. I just wanted to say hello since I may be out of contact for a bit. Let the others know I called?” Jonah nodded and stretched before saying his goodbyes. Luc turned off his phone and sighed heavily, rubbing the back of his head and getting his hair back into a semblance of professionalism.

Not even five minutes later the fast moving jet black car speeds around a corner and puts on flashing blue lights to signal for the oncoming Noila Academy vehicle to pull over. Lucan remained in the back seat, ensuring all of his new weapons were concealed and comfortable. He then brushed off his trench coat before standing and exiting the car, standing patiently beside of the door until the Academy car pulled over.

Damien dropped his air guitar as the blue lights caught his attention outside. His hands flew to his pockets, instinctively checking for anything...questionable. Not that he would but he’d done a bit more than dabble during the Revel bu this last one hadn’t ended well for him. That was neither here nor now and he pressed his face against the window as he tried to catch a glimpse of what was going on. The bright lights contrasted harshly with the dark around him, leaving Damien squinting fruitlessly into the dark. He could make out maybe a person?

“Hey dude, what’s goin’ on?” Damien tapped on the partition. And again. And again. Completely ignored. Great. Damien sat back, crossing his arms as he waited to find out exactly what the problem was.

The intercepted vehicle pulled over off the road and took up a position with the back-door stopping right beside of Lucan. The vampire gave a nod of appreciation to the driver and then took an unnecessary breath inwards. Luc gave a thankful wave to his own driver, before stepping closer to the door. ”Safe trip back to the barracks.” With that he opened the back seat door and smoothed down his trench coat, sliding into the back seat beside of Damien with one smooth, crisp motion.

Lucan stared at the Mage for a few long moments. His eyes didn’t seem to move but Damien would not doubt feel fully and completely scanned. Finally, after some five minutes the car began moving once again and Lucan spoke. His voice was a soft, whispery tenor that while quiet contained more authority than the poor human was probably ever used to hearing. ”Remove the nose ring and gauges first before we speak. I will not tell you how to dress on your own time but while you’re with me or speaking to me you will appear as professional as you can. My name is Lucan, and you just happen to be the Mage assigned to me for the Academy.”

He stopped for a moment, removing a handkerchief and wiping off some invisible dust from his sunglasses which were for all intents and purposes, useless. ”From my understanding, this will be your first time experiencing vampiric customs, though your Aunt is actually an instructor at the Academy. Am I correct in this statement?” He didn’t wait for an answer, continuing on to his next point. ”As I said, your time is your time. I ask that you don’t make a fool out of yourself but other than that you’re free to fail or succeed as you see fit. I will not baby you, but I will respect your opinions. However, this doesn’t mean that I will agree with them and my word is final, there is no other option. I handle feeding two different ways, either from the neck or drawn by needles either by yourself or myself. You may now speak and ask questions if you have any. His voice ended the same way it began. In fact, it didn’t really move in timbre or pitch the entire time he spoke. After he finished, he tilted his head to the right as if questioning the young man.

Damien thought he knew fear. He thought he'd felt it when he was six and his accidently dropped a whole cup of water on his brother. He thought he'd known fear when his sister broke her leg and he thought she was dying when he found her. He thought he'd known fear when he came back from his first Revel, sneaking back in at three am and absolutely trashed, only to jump out of his skin when all three of his parents flicked on the lights in the living room and stared him down. In his condition, Damien honestly thought they were creepy murderers but that was just the paranoia speaking apparently.

But nothing beats the absolute terror of a vampire sliding into your car and just starting. Like, what is this dude-thats an appropriate title for someone that's going to open your veins on a consistent basis right? Yeah totally!-doing? Is he already considering the best way to open him up? Damien normally wouldn't turn down someone paying him some attention, especially a good looking guy like this, but the whole silent stalker crap was ruining that real quick.

And then the vampy opened his mouth and he went from scared to pissed in about .5 seconds. Take out his piercing before speaking? Did this vampire even know him? Firstly, Damien had a talent for making things vanish. Keys? Yeeted. Phone? Into the Void. Sense of self worth? He didn’t know her. These things came out now, he may as well just 'em goodbye. Secondly, apparently Damien missed the memo that holes could fit like two pencils in each ear are more professional that plugs.

“Well Mr. On His Fucking High Horse, I'd say it's nice to meet ya but it's not. So, I'm just gonna unpack this in your order and all that jazz. Number one, are you a dick normally or is this a special occasion? Number two, news flash: gaping holes in the flesh bag, not professional. I have clear gauges for that cause it freaks everyone else out less. Number three, you really should get to know me a bit before all these proclamations, your Majesty. I specialize specifically in fucking up. I'm practically a full time court jester here.” As Damien spoke, he counted each point before dropping his index and ring finger to flip Lucan the bird. “And you can respect this opinion cause that's all I got for you. Here I was hoping we could get along but you slide right in like some drunk creep and ruin my hopes and dreams. Livin’ up to the stereotype, nice.”

One minute, two minutes, three minutes and the only thing that happened was silence. Lucan didn’t blink once as he stared at the human. Then he spoke, his voice was similar but a bit lower and quite sinister, though still at that low tenor register. “My name is Lucan Bordeleaux, Captain of the Noila Royal Guard, Heir to the Duke of Anjou, Knight of the Evening. First, if you ever raise that finger to me again I will snap it off and force feed it to you while licking up the blood trail. Second, you make a good point on the gaping holes, so you will remove the gauges and let the skin heal back. Third, these are my orders until I -do- get to know you. Finally, we have two ways of going about this partnership. We can chafe and scrape against each other or there can be mutual respect, and if you have a problem with any of my ‘declarations’ you may always offer a counter argument. A well thought out counter argument at that. But you will never disrespect me with that tone of voice again.” He got closer, staring -straight- into Damiens eyes. His Trench Coat opens slightly so Damien can see all of the hidden knives and hand crossbow. “Is that perfectly understood?”

Damien flinched at the tone, his hands diving underneath his arms and the barrage of threats forced him flush against the car door. His fingers brushed against the door handle and stilled. Probably locked but better to have an escape plan, even if it probably results in horrifying injuries and possibly death. But how petty would it be to let everyone know that this guy with a half a mile long title met a mage that would rather fling himself out of a running around than be anywhere near him.

The thought did calm him but only barely. He could feel himself trembling, the whole silent staring act unnerving him more than he would like to admit. Who just stares at someone? Is that something he got off to? Did he just stand around, staring at people silently? Did he look over their beds in the middle of the night until they woke and feed them their fingers when they screamed? His imagination ran with the idea and the concept of sleeping anywhere near this guy made him incredibly uncomfortable. Torture, creepy staring… next the monster would threaten to string him up by his damn toes or something! Like he was going to take this lying down. Probably going to end up dead but he'd go to his damn end screaming and kicking.

“Mutual respect? Counter arguments?” Damien scoffed, his voice trembling still. He forced himself to return the vampire's intense stare even though he was absolutely terrified. He did not think those threats were bluffs. “Listen here vampy, I don't know how this crap rolls in your world but you literally set up for “chafing and scraping”. You slid into my car-a complete rando off the road like some fucking axe murderer or kidnapper or rapist-and stared at me for the next damn eternity, open those piss poor fangs, and judge the shit out of me! Then, you get pissy when I get angry? What is wrong with you? You’re screwing me every way but physically, for now, and you have the gall to say I'm the problem?! What kind of backwards bull crap is that?” Damien laughed bitterly at Lucan, tightening his grip on the door handle.

“You want respect, Mr. Seven Mile title? How about you try leading by example first and then I'll talk.” Damien snapped. “I came into this shitty situation hoping to make friends with the blood sucker determined to bleed me dry but I can be your worst damn nightmare if I have to.”

Lucan leaned back and nodded once. When he speaks again his voice is back to a normal level tone, the fast swapping seemingly random. “Well, that’s at least one thing I don’t have to worry about. You have a backbone, and you’re not afraid to give your opinions. This is a good trait to have Damien, in the right scenarios. As my Mage you will be privy to my trust, and as such information not even vampires are allowed to know. I had to make sure you could be trusted to stand up for yourself. I can help you learn the opposite as well, how to appear humble and feeble. My apologies for the intimidation, even if it doesn’t seem to have affected you all to much. Now, as you said it wasn’t very mutual of me to make demands but I was serious in that any of my requests may be debated upon by yourself. Despite my initial impression I will not force anything. You’re new to this and I don’t expect perfection, I simply expect your utmost dedication to trying.”

He let his sentence end and relaxes into the chair, pressing a button on his watch. “You may enter the Academy ground proper when ready. I have finished my initial evaluation.” The car takes a quick right turn and Lucan sighs a bit. “Now, I do hope you can accept my apology for my earlier actions as you seem to be a good choice as my Mage, and I’d hate to have to find another.” His actions seemed genuine as well, his entire posture changed from intimidating pure blooded vampire to a nonchalant and relaxed one.

“Now, don’t get me wrong. I do tend to better when you discuss your complaints as well, and I will promise not to get annoyed, it doesn’t happen very often so this promise I’m sure I can keep. If I do something or order something that annoys you let me know as I’m also new at having a Mage not used to the strict life of the military.”

Damien gaped at the vampire as he spoke, no longer the Incarnation of Terror but speaking like a reasonable person and offering an apology. His first reaction: Tell the damn monster where he could shove his apology after all that. Licking the blood trail while forcing feeding fingers level of threats needed way more than just a plain jane apology. A rare moment of introspection however brought him to the conclusion his standard “Foot in Mouth” method would likely only make things worse. Damien took a deep breath and relaxed a little, still keeping his hands tucked away. Vampires were terrifying beings and after some whiplash, Damien wasn’t risking his middle fingers. Still probably going to flick him off. Definitely going to. Behind his back though.

“Yeah, okay. I guess we’ll be cool and everything. Say it was some friendly banter or something else less nightmary. Cool, cool, cool.” Damien spoke hesitantly, recovering from the whiplash of this conversation. He didn’t really appreciate his chain being yanked like this but he also just wanted that not to happen again. First real meeting with a vampire: Not Awesome.

“So, uh, real talk then. If that was all just... whatever you call it, what exactly is the plan and all that jazz? Everyone’s heard about the grovelling and boot licking and the “Yes sir, right away sir” but uh, gotta say I’m…” He untucked his hands to gesture at all of himself. “I think we both know I can’t do that but that really long list of names tacked on after yours sounds like crap news for me.”

Lucan peers over at him as the Mage speaks, looking even slightly amused? No, it was gone in a flash. He lets the boy finish and then gives a shrug. “As I said your mistakes will be your own however in special situations. Such as meetings with my superiors, nobles, and the the like I would suggest complete obedience. As if you disrespect them, not even my name will save you from death. That’s how highly they take respect, and that’s the world you’ve been thrown into. I will train you, you won’t like it, and you will no doubt want to kill me when it’s done. But, I’ll at least turn you into something worthwhile in the political scene.”

He stops and listens, having heard the car engine getting softer. “Hold that thought. We’ve arrived.” The car stops then and Lucan waits for his door to open by the driver, stepping out into the night. His sunglasses tuck into his front pocket and he nods to the guards stationed at the gate. He doesn’t approach however, moving to stand next to Damien’s door to wait. An Academy steward comes out of the gates pushing a small trolley, no doubt to help carry the luggage.

Worthwhile? Training? Damien did not like the sound of that. Why couldn't they do the whole “leave the sulky child at home” thing? Then he wouldn't need training, wouldn't have the chance to mess up, and wouldn't be incredibly terrified in front of other vampires. Really, it seemed like the easiest route but the terror turned gentleman outside probably wouldn't take to it but he had to try. Anything if it would get him out of dealing with more of this. He grabbed his hoodie before he forgot it.

“We could always just not involve m-” Damien cut himself off as he stepped out of the car and looked around, almost immediately latching onto Lucan. The entrance to this place looked like it cost more than the net worth of his family and Damien felt immediately out of place. Damien dropped his voice to a whisper “You sure this is the place? I feel like if I even breathe, someone is going to arrest me. Just for being too poor for this shit. There's gotta be a big Do Not Trespass sign here somewhere. I thought you just said you didn't want to lose me.”

The attendant took the trolley to the back of the car and opened the trunk. He began placing the various luggage that Damien brought with him while Lucan just peered at the Mage. “This is in fact the place. No one will touch you so long as I’m around, but you will need to stay close. Do not make eye contact with anyone without them speaking to you first, do not try and make jokes, act funny, or act like your true self until we’re safely in the dorm. I will escort you around campus and show you where everything is. Also, I’m not saying all of this to be a jackass. Believe it or not, I think you have promise. And I wasn’t lying, I don’t want to lose you. Not after I went through all of that time and energy to make sure you were worthy.” He inclines his head after and then turns towards the gates where the guards stood.

“Procure a cart for myself and my Mage.” The guards nodded and instantly activated their radio. The attendant pushed the trolley up beside Damien and when the Mage looks, he would find all of his belongings neatly stacked and ready to go.

Okay, Damien had been partially joking but Lucan did little to reassure him. Don't make eye contact? Don't joke? Don't be himself? Did even the mages here threaten to ripped fingers off when you stood up for yourself? Damien was going to start losing fingers real fast if that was the case. Damien looked up at the slightly taller vampire skeptically.

“Bro, in the…” Damien checked his phantom watch, “however long it’s been since you nearly made me jump out of a moving car, what in the Queen’s name makes you think I am capable of anything you asked right now? Cut me some slack here dude. Jokes, I’ll dial it down. Acting out, eh I'll try. But eye contact? Now there’s a damn joke. I’m lookin’ around, people or not.”

He pulled out his phone and started snapping pictures of the grounds, adding them to a family share file on his phone. He wanted everyone to see this back home but he was very careful not to catch the guards in the photos. Authority figures were always iffy about unapproved photos. He hummed happily as the cart was pulled around and he hopped onto the cart quickly, grinning at Lucan.

“And anyways, the kick ass Knight of the Evening is behind me with the terror eyes and finger ripping.” His face screwed up briefly in confusion but brightened again quickly. “Not sure what that evening thing means but sure sounds awesome!”

“I don’t think you’re capable of it either at the moment, which is why I’m keeping you close for the time being. I’m not going to just throw you out into the world.” He began to point out the various buildings and sights, speeding just a bit as he was quite tired from the night’s activities. He was doing a stand up job of hiding it, but it was going on 48 hours of no rest and his reserves were rapidly depleting.

“The title is one of ceremony, generally only known in the more political circles. It means that I’m meant to become the next Sword of the Night, one of the best duelists in the world and the best swordsman of House Bordeleaux. Complete with its own specially crafted Rapier from a meteorite. The current Sword of the Night is my father, the Duke of Anjou and head of House Bordeleaux.”

He stops his tour at their dorm, having gotten the new number from the front office on the phone earlier. “This is our dorm, take your time to unpack and unload. I will leave my phone number on the table and ensure all of my own belongings have arrived.”

The Academy blew Damien’s mind. Is this what being loaded meant because Damien could totally get used to this. He’d just have to trade it for opening up his veins and giving out some blood sometimes… maybe. He wasn’t really sure how this whole feeding thing worked. Was it every day? Once a week? That was another thing he’d have to forget to ask about. Especially since it seemed a pretty important part of his daily life. They’d get there, they’d get there.

“Ten four!” Damien saluted sloppily with a grin. “That’s what people say right? I don’t know, I tried. I get points for that right? I totally get points for that.” He muttered to himself as he walked up to the dorm and then started recording. Gotta show the fam after all!

---

Max grimaced distastefully as his light was immediately overshadowed by Joey's magic. The feeling unnerved him; it was too comforting, made him want to drop his guard. He wanted to pull away, but he dutifully kept his hands rooted on the crystal during the TA's explanation.

“That’s… intense. Okay well, I think I see your issue mostly. Definitely not a primary element so if you’re trying to get emotional as a way of working it, your affinity will fight you. No that’s not quite right either.”

Not a primary element? There goes his earth magic theory, although that would explain his inability to do any magic before now without a catalyst. That also meant extra work for potentially less payoff. A particularly niche affinity wouldn't lend itself well to the type of grandiose shock and awe he was envisioning when he learned he had the ability to warp reality by sheer will alone.

“I think the easiest way to explain it is your magic is like a crotchety old man. It’s very set in its ways. It’s stubborn and prideful and it doesn’t want to do something it thinks is a waste of time. You’ll have to make the activity worth its while or trick your magic into thinking it wants to move. Your magic is comfortable and stubborn; it doesn’t want to leave where its been for so long.”

Did he and his magic share the same ideas on what constituted a waste of time? Because if they did, he'd never get this asinine exercise down. Hopefully his magic at least hated vampires bothering him or this was definitely not going to work. Max took his hands off the crystal and stared at his hands like a generic shounen protagonist. This was starting to get annoying. Even his own magic didn't listen to him.

Listen here, you old fuck, there is no higher pursuit than self-improvement. I get stronger, you get stronger, everybody wins. All you have to do is make the damn rock light up.

Why was he personifying his magic? It couldn't hear him. Could it? No, that would be stupid. He needed a new plan. The TA's suggestion of sharing with his partner was woefully stupid, of course. Clearly neither of them knew what they were doing, and talking about his feelings or whatever this jackass wanted them to do sounded lke a worse fate than spending a year to learn his affinity.

"Can you at least give me a rough estimate on what my affinity is? It's a lot easier to work with something if I have the properties down, and I don't see how playing psychoanalyst will help with that." He questioned tersely, cocking his head up to give Joey a blank, lidded stare.

---

@Achronum

It wasn’t long after Aaron and Salem fell silent before the professor, Mr. Martin, came bounding over, all cheerful advice and friendly suggestions. He didn’t leave much room to get a word in edgewise - though Aaron would have liked to point out that they weren’t having any trouble - before he scooted off again, leaving an annoyed-looking Ralph in his wake.

“Now how are you failing already?”

Aaron’s eyes only flicked up for a second, settling back intently - and maybe a touch dismissively - on the crystal before he spoke. “We’re fine, thank you,” he replied curtly, mostly ignoring Ralph’s actual question in favour of shrinking his crystal glow down to something like the light of a candle and holding it there.

Salem gave a weak sigh as he shook his head at the pair. “It would seem Mr. Martin believes that we should focus on building the strength of our friendship rather than this exercise. He said that you could help with that.” Salem glanced around to ensure Mr. Martin wasnt near, “So, how come you stay so far away from him? Is it because of your affinities? Or?”

“Have you met him?” Ralph glared at his Uncle's back, the man treating the other table with as much enthusiasm as the pair's and moving on just as quickly. Ralph scoffed and turned his attention back to the table. “I get why you're struggling with it over there but just fake it for now. It'll keep Mr. Brightside away from you for a bit. Once he clears you, you'll only have to deal with the turncoat twice a week.” Ralph's attention drifted upwards and back down to Aaron. “Speaking of which, our overlords are arriving. Best make sure their favorite pet looks sharp.”

Salem rubbed the palm of his hand, distracted, thinking of Aaron's magic and how it felt inside of him during their little match. It was always tricky, describing magic. It's more of a feeling, a being, than it is just a force to wield. And describing another's magic? Even more so. He thought back on it, the rush of emotions that waved over his when Aaron's light began to overtake his. It was lively...no that wasn't quite right, excited? Closer. Enthusiastic, that's more like it. Bright enthusiasm, eager to bend and shape to its users whim. Cooperative, malleable...Salem's thoughts trailed off as Ralph mentioned the arrival of their partners, the previous nights dinner flashing back into his mind. Of course this would be the emotions that Aaron's magic took on, he is a servant through and through...He shook the idea out of his head as his eyes scanned for Lucan, seeing even now he was still abandoned.

As Ralph spoke, Aaron narrowed his eyes at the crystal, more out of disdain than focus. Soon, the light inside the crystal began to move, drifting lazily from side to side before finding a more steady, circular path near the edges. He continued until he heard the shuffling up above, and turned his gaze up as Ralph did, looking to the balcony overlooking the class. Ah, an observation platform. Of course, the vampires would be interested in their mages’ progress. Aaron wasn’t entirely sure how he felt about being watched, a little caught up in his irritation for the moment, but a streak of red hair up top brought him back to his senses, and he dropped his eyes to the crystal again.

“It will be fine, thank you,” Aaron replied, practically spitting the word back at Ralph. “Now if you have no more sage advice to offer, I’m sure there are other students who need your help more than we do.” Perhaps against his better judgement, he finally looked up from the crystal, offering Ralph a shrug and an icy smile. “Beats spending your valuable time with turncoats, anyway.”

“I couldn't agree more.” Ralph dismissed Aaron as he turned to Salem. “Good luck with the lap dog.” The ice mage moved away from the table, once again moving away from Mr. Martin even as the other TA gave him an odd look as he stopped at the table next to hers.

“I suppose the crystal’s all yours. Not like Lucan bothered to show up anyways. Tsk. Some partner, he hasn't made himself visible once. Go on, feel free to impress yours, I'll just make notes on how to best progress forward.” Salem began to scribble into his pad once more, a tad faster than before and clearly a bit upset. Without lifting his head to view Aaron he said “So, apparently we must be simpático if we are to press forward onto the next lesson. How do you propose we go about this?”

Aaron glared at Ralph as he left, taking his hand off the crystal and leaning back in his seat when he was gone. He looked back up only long enough to confirm that Lucan really was absent, and flick his eyes to Varis again before he lowered his gaze once more. Right.

“I think I’ll take a breather for now,” he decided, realizing that his irritated showing off had succeeded in tiring him out a bit. Salem was right, though. They needed to come to an understanding, but for more reasons than one.

“Can I be honest and say I don’t know?” he asked finally, smirking despite himself. It was a bit of an absurd admission, but oddly enough, it was genuine. “I mean, it was true what Lady Sinnenodel said last night; I haven’t had much exposure to life outside of castle walls. Closest I ever really came was the observation deck for Sanguenum.” He couldn’t help but laugh a little at himself, imagining how ridiculous it must sound to someone like Salem, but it was all he could say. “Forgive me, but I haven’t had much practical experience in making friends.”

“You could've fooled me.” Salem stopped what he was doing, clattering the pencil onto the desk as his other hand pinched and rubbed the bridge of his nose. “Sorry. That was rude, I'm stressed, but that's no excuse. I just...I have so much swimming around in my head right now…” he let the table fill with silence for a breathe until final he sighed “Alright. Friends, this should be easy right? What's your favorite T.V. show?”

Brow furrowed, Aaron let Salem have his moment. He could certainly sympathize, though seeing someone else apparently as freaked as he was softened him a bit. “Don’t worry about it,” he replied quietly to Salem’s apology, though the stress the man showed drew his attention far more than the remark.

“...we don’t have a TV back home, but I like to watch TCL fights online,” Aaron replied warily, watching Salem. He was tempted to press on his comment about the stress, but he figured that it might be best to leave it alone for now. “You?”

“Well that varies from what's on really. Currently watching a cute cartoon called Steven Universe. It's...hard to explain.” Salem clicked his tongue a few times searching for a topic. “Whaaaat’s your favorite kind of...tea? No, that's stupid. What's your favorite hobby?”

“I play the cello,” Aaron kept an eye on Salem, not entirely convinced of his change of attitude. It wasn’t like him to prod, but… “Are you alright?”

Salem stared at Aaron for a moment. Was he for real? Did he just ask him if he was alright? Was he not at the same dinner as he was the night before? Did he suffer a concussion? Salem tried his hardest to smile as he answered back “I'm perfectly fine.” the answer was pointed and through gritted teeth. “After all, my entire family is only under investigation, I have no ties to the outside world, I must spend my free days from these walls with you, I cant even call or text to apologize to my family for the inconvenience, the Queen thinks me a liar and traitor both of which I am not, not a single soul in that room could bother to defend me, my supposed partner can’t be bothered to be bothered with me and all the while I sit here being tasked to make friends as if the world is fine and nothing wrong has happened in the last 24 hours. So yes Aaron Starag I am perfectly fine.” His tattoos began to flare up, growing brighter than they ever have in his presence as his emotions began to flare.

See? It was always better not to ask.

Aaron fought down the urge to grimace at Salem’s outburst; no wonder he was so tense. He eyed the glow of the man’s tattoos warily, shifting a little more upright in his seat. What was he supposed to say to that? He didn’t know what was keeping Lucan - the vampire hadn’t answered any of his texts - and he was sure apologizing about the events of dinner would come across as an empty gesture. What could he say about any of that anyway?

“Me too,” he admitted, sarcasm and exhaustion creeping into his voice. He averted his gaze for a second, letting silence stretch between Salem and himself as he thought.

Finally, he sighed, looking back to Salem. “...I don’t know about most of that, but I might be able to help you with your family, if you’d let me.”

Me too? Me too?! What kind of response was that? Oh sure, he was certain that he had soooo many issues. Salem would've choked the damn man had it not been for what he said after. His gaze wavered for a bit as his eyes began to tear up. The thought of it washing some relief over him as his tattoos began to dim a bit. “No. Thank you but no. My family and I are innocent of the claims. Any possible interference…” he began to choke up for a spell, then cleared his throat, pushing the lump down “Any possible interference would make us seem guilty or that we are hiding something.” Salem wiped the tears out of the corner of his eyes. “So, do you like ice cream?”

Aaron’s face fell, but he nodded down at the table. Of course Salem wouldn’t want his help. Who could blame him? He was dutifully cooperating with the investigation, doing everything in his power to help it go smoothly and clear his name. And here Aaron was, doing the opposite.

“Of course I do,” he replied, more than a little crestfallen. But no, he couldn’t think like that. Sure, he might have been tasked with relaying information for the investigation, but what would it reveal? Salem’s conviction in his innocence was convincing; so if he was innocent, what would any of Aaron’s digging hurt? And if he was guilty, then he was a rebel and it was good that he was caught. But he was innocent, so it was fine. Right?

“Do you play any instruments?” Aaron asked, doing his best to lighten the subject. “Or… do you like animals? I haven’t interacted with many, but I used to talk to the palace ravens and I was pretty fond of meeting racehorses.”

“I play a mean test tube. But aside from that, no. Now animals, who doesn’t love them? I have a cat named cat. A cricket called cricket. My abuelita has a snake. We have dozens of lady bugs and other critters at the mansion. Haven't met any racehorses, what are they like?” Salem saw Aaron's efforts to change the subject and appreciated them, attempting to keep the mood light himself.

“Jumpy,” Aaron smirked, remembering the first time he’d met one. He’d been so excited, all of twelve years old, that he’d spooked the poor thing. “They call them ‘hot blooded’ because they’re high-energy and reactive. Breeds like that make excellent competitors, but they can be hard to handle.” His smirk widened to a smile, happy to transition to a more pleasant topic. “When I was little I used to want to be a jockey, but I was never good enough for that. And now I’m too tall for it anyway,” he chuckled.

“How about ravens?” he asked, “There’s a special way to deal with them, you know. And I’m sure the campus is crawling with them.”

“I hear they like shiny things. With your magic I'm sure they must've loved you. Glistening out there, calling to them. We didn't keep many by us though. They're bad omens, so we stayed clear. No, black cats. That's all a myth, they're not bad at all. I didn't quite spend most of my time with animals however, a lot was fixated in training for my magic, if I had any, from the ground up.” At this point Salem began gesturing with his hands, excitedly speaking on the subject as if the vampiric overlords themselves demanded there be a break between the long dialogue. “Sure, anyone can just feel and will their magic to go forth but...do they truly understand it? Before the awakening I has herbology, botany, and many other plant based knowledge taught to me up until my awakening. It is believed that by knowing the full cycle of plants and life and understanding each bit of nature from beginning to end will give us a stronger connection and understanding to our magic, making it easier to commune with it when needed. I haven't really gotten a chance to practice it, not in the sense of growing, fertilizing, and nurturing them with magic only. I do however feel connected to its power when I'm working on potions and tonics and other medicinal things. Like their guiding my hand on what's needed next.”

Bad omens? Nonsense. Where Aaron came from, ravens only caused bad luck if you didn’t address them properly. Haughty things, they were. But Salem wasted no time on the topic, launching into a fascinating description about his studies growing up. Seeing an opportunity, Aaron fished a small notebook and a fountain pen from the bag beneath his seat, jotting down a few lines. But it wasn’t english he was writing, or even the latin alphabet; instead, it was a series of loops, swoops and lines, seemingly random and messy.

“That’s impressive,” he commented as he finished, looking back up. He paused for a moment, deliberating on something, before he continued. “But… What if you hadn’t turned out to be a plant mage? I remember you said your whole family were plant mages, but there’s still that small chance, right? What if you were being prepared for the wrong thing?”

“Not possible. The Spellman line has only been plant mages for generations. We marry into other plant mages to help ensure that. Those that don't get the gift of magic are still offered a life with us. I mean, we're all free to choose what we wish, but many enjoy the lucrative pay there is within any of the many companies we have. After all you don't need magic to tend to plants, it just helps.” Salem watched curiously as he spoke, at Aaron grabbing a notebook and jotting things down. His life wasn't that interesting to take notes on but perhaps Aaron really did have such a horrid memory that he couldn't even recall simple details of a friends life.

“Fascinating,” Aaron replied, quite sincerely. “Starags don't have much of a ‘family affinity’, although fire does pop up more frequently than others, I'm sure you can guess why,” he shrugged. “We’re bred more for health, capability, blood quality, certain features Her Majesty is fond of… that sort of thing.” He flicked a lock of golden blond hair back, to emphasize the point.

“That’s admirable that you keep ties with your mundanes, though,” he continued, shifting the subject a little. “We’ve never really had to deal with that; there isn't a single person on the Starag family tree who didn't have magic.”

“We prefer to call them family, not mundanes. Fire mages huh? Can think the Queen is too fond of that, who knows, maybe some of that fire magic is inside you, filling you with a bit of fight. So, do friends usually take notes? Or is my life really that interesting?” Salem joked, a small smile creeping up.

Aaron laughed, pointing at Salem. “Careful there, my mother’s a fire mage you know,” he joked, dropping his hand to the table.

At the mention of notes, he chuckled a bit, tapping his pen against the notebook. “Your family’s methods are so different from mine, I can't help but be intrigued,” he replied, shrugging. “My upbringing was all academics and etiquette and swordsmanship. We didn't even touch on magic until my Awakening.”

“Right. Etiquette. Suppose I'll be learning all about your cucumber sandwiches, silver spoons and when to hold out my pinky soon enough. Speaking of, how was your upbringing? How were you treated? Viewed? Taught to believe and behave?” Salem looked up at the Vampires viewing down on them and back to Aaron. “Don’t forget, big brothers watching.”

Aaron was a little surprised by Salem’s questions, not expecting him to go so… deep. Weren’t questions like that a little personal for someone you barely knew? He supposed he couldn't be sure, reminded once more that he was sorely inexperienced in the art of making friends.

He glanced up to the balcony as Salem did, but didn't linger on it. For the topic at hand, it didn't concern him much, though he was sure Varis could hear every word of their conversation from there if he wanted to. “I assume you're talking in relation to the royal family, and not my mother,” he remarked, perching an elbow on the table and gesturing lazily. “Well, they unchain us from the dungeon on special occasions and even feed us twice a day, so I suppose I can't complain.”

He paused for a second before chuckling to himself. “I’m kidding. It's like I said, Queen Anastasia and her family are exceptionally kind.” He offered Salem a reassuring smile. “I really don't have any complaints about my upbringing. The Noilas treat their mages with dignity and make sure we have the best resources available to us. I was taught everything from math to magic by the best tutors in the realm, I had free reign to go almost wherever I wanted in the castle, and my family and I were held in high regard, all things considered. I wouldn’t recommend making mistakes or misbehaving, but even then you'd never end up with any more than a few days of soreness and a lesson learned.” He sighed, grinning fondly. “Besides, I never did make the same mistake twice.”

Salem placed his hand on the crystal, making it glow as he darted his eyes motioning towards Varis. He removed his hand and sat back in his chair “That's not what I meant. How do I phrase this...your magic. It seems...to be dependent. No, that's wrong. It seems to want to...it's like a puppy. Eager to please its owner and willing to do what it takes to make them happy. I am simply asking, were you groomed to be a servant.”

Aaron raised a brow. What was that, a trick question?

“Of course I was,” Aaron replied, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. He shrugged, not sure what Salem was expecting. “Salem, that's pretty normal among mages whose families serve nobility. And I'm a Starag. Being an attendant is literally what I was bred for.” Despite how his words might have sounded to an outsider, Aaron said them with conviction. He wasn't ashamed or even self conscious about it. To him and his family, it was a point of pride.

“Perhaps I don't get it because I'm not nobility. We weren't raised to serve. We were raised as equals. I don't know how you could ever be ok with just...being a tool for someone else. Especially for…Nevermind. It's not my place to say. Well I don't have a teen vogue magazine so, have any other topics?”

A prick of Aaron's former irritation returned at Salem's remark, Aaron stiffening a bit. What, did he think he was raised to be a draught animal or something? Maybe Salem was right in that it was his social rung that was the culprit; he clearly didn't see a mage's work as vitally as Aaron did.

“Well I’m not nobility either, I just serve them,” Aaron corrected, though he took the hint and decided to move a little along.

“Well, you asked me about my upbringing, only fair that you return the favour, right?” Aaron leaned back in his chair. “You were raised as equals, how did that work?”

“Exceedingly well. We act as if we are one big family. They feed when they need to of course, but we also offer to have our blood bottled and ready for them at a moment’s notice. They attend and also host a few of our parties and we invite other socialites into our homes to greet them and entertain. Not quite the same as making friends but you do hear some interesting gossip amongst all the conversations of who is doing better than who. It's what I wish the Queen could see I was attempting to say last night. Not words of treachery but words of a more blissful future. Where you don't have to serve you may be equals, families intertwined, making people less fearful of vampires and more trusting of them. Does that not sound like a future worth sharing?”

Well, no wonder Salem was so progressive. Apparently, it was all he knew. Suddenly it made much more sense to Aaron why Salem seemed to chafe so much in the face of more traditional expectations, even if to him, it was all perfectly normal. If he were being honest with himself, Aaron found the prospect of a household where mages and vampires were considered equals to be… disorderly. With no clear hierarchy, conflict would be inevitable, wouldn’t it? Wouldn’t there be some lack of direction?

“Are you sure your family doesn’t serve nobles?” Aaron asked, mostly joking, “Because it sounds like your vampires would be right at home among the Marivaldis.”

He was quiet for a moment after that, touching the crystal absently and watching the glow pulse rhythmically, this time to the tempo of his heartbeat. He took a second to jot a few more things down in his notebook before he released it, looking back to Salem much more sincerely.

“It sounds like you and your family are very fortunate,” he said, a little quieter than before. “I’ll admit that the notion of equality between vampires and mages seems… odd, to say the least, but I’m not saying that it shouldn’t be allowed or anything.”

He let out a long breath, perching his elbow on the table again. “I do understand, or at least I think I do, where you’re coming from. You want everyone to be able to enjoy the sorts of privileges you did, and you don’t like the idea of mages being treated as lesser. I can understand.” He looked Salem in the eye, somewhat more serious.

“But try to understand my position. I don’t think that serving vampires is something to be resented, or ashamed of. My family and I, we see our work as a point of pride.” He laughed a little then, though there wasn’t a lot of humour to it. “Maybe you think we’re brainwashed, I don’t know. But remember, my grandfather, the man who started all this -” he gestured to the room and vaguely to the balcony, “- he was the Treaty’s biggest opposer. He hated vampires, he killed more of them in the wars than anyone else. But he signed the Treaty anyway. He gave up his freedom and that of all mages for the greater good of all humanity. And as a result, we got peace.”

Aaron shrugged. “My family has grown out of hatred. We recognize that we, and other mages, by doing what we do and sacrificing our freedom, we’re upholding that peace. And even though what you hope for might be better, I don’t think the vampires would accept it without a fight. And I won’t see our peace destroyed for that, even if the alternative is disagreeable.”

“With all do respect Aaron, we didn't get peace with that treaty. We got tolerance. If we had peace then we wouldn't have people like Dora being tortured via her own magic. We wouldn't have young minds invaded and probed, and we certainly wouldnt have them being bashed against a table and choked. Don't get me wrong. Serving is noble, but it's hardly a personality. Don’t you have any aspirations of your own?”

“We got an end to the unchallenged hunting and brutalizing of humans,” Aaron retorted, Salem’s words having struck a nerve, much like the night before. “We got enough peace for the human population to live without vampiric interference, to stop hiding in the dark and live their lives in relative safety. Everyone can’t have everything, remember. This world needs a lightning rod, Salem, and like it or not, we’re it.”

Aaron had to pause a second, realizing his tone was growing sharp. It wasn’t like him to get snippy, but Salem seemed to have a way of drawing it out of him. How dare he throw Dora’s ordeal in his face like that? How could he not see that that dangerous idealism of his was the very thing making his life harder? After a moment, Aaron rubbed his jaw, willing his anger to subside.

“This is my aspiration,” he insisted, though it might not have been the complete truth. Being a good attendant, that was his aspiration, but just… for someone else. “You’re proud of your family, aren’t you? Is it so bad to want to follow in their footsteps?”

“Here is the difference between my family’s footsteps and yours. I'm given the choice to follow, you're being led by those footsteps. Well...I was given a choice, until I joined this academy. Now I'm forced to be another's and my freedom has been stripped. Just like that in one night...My prospective future, gone. My choices, taken. That's the peace you so valiantly uphold. Tell me Aaron, how elated were you that you, a Starag, is being forced off onto another family? Do you truly wish to serve anyone other than the Noilas?”

Aaron very nearly whirled on Salem, but held himself firm, swallowing the spike of anger that shot through him at the comment. Salem did have a talent for dredging up sore topics, didn’t he? As if the fact that he wouldn’t be serving the Noilas hadn’t been swirling around in Aaron’s head ever since he got notice about his acceptance to the Academy. As if tonight would be the first time it tortured him. And yet, Salem seemed to think that he was the only one of the two of them whose entire future had been torn apart and set on fire.

“The Noilas made that decision,” Aaron replied simply, much colder than before. “I’m sure they have their reasons, and I will happily comply. For all they’ve given me, it’s the least I can do.” He slid the crystal over to Salem and turned his attention back to his notebook, jotting down more swooping symbols and making it clear that their conversation was over.

Salem felt sorry for the boy. Raised and bred to serve without question, so much so that now when he is being given a command to do something that would strip him away from what it is he dreamt he’d be doing, he has to face the world and pretend not only to like it, but actively defend it. He glanced back towards Varis for a moment, thinking to himself about what Varis said the other night on Aaron's training. A servant made to serve isn't living up to Varis’ standards...how much more was he planning on breaking him? What more could he need of him? He glanced at Aaron scribbling down more notes, just wondering to himself what Aaron had gotten himself into.

Victor Astorio

The viewing platform above the mage’s classroom was larger than it seemed from down below. A few smaller tables lined the edges with two comfortable chairs around each, letting the vampires lean easily on the railing, and a few raised platforms boasted couches that gave vampires an opportunity to lounge while viewing. Each couch was flanked by small side tables that held a menu for the turned if they were interested in snacking and several pairs of opera glasses if a vampire preferred external means of seeing their mage closer.

Varis claimed a table with the closest view of Aaron. Luck had it that he was paired with the annoying Spellman child and it seemed he’d already taken to his assignment, the silly loops and swoops that filled his journal on display, if one chose to look close enough, on the table. After an irritatingly obvious lesson in feeding, it helped Varis’s mood to see the boy taking his job seriously. Why anyone needed a lesson on feeding at this age was beyond him. It was the very basics of vampirism; that the turned couldn’t handle it and the suggestion that purebloods ignored them made his head spin. It was as disgraceful as it was disgusting.

Down below, the mages were putting on rather good displays of their control. Almost every table could complete the basic exercise, a wide variety of color shining out of the crystals, and were urged onto trying to moderate the rate of change. The instructor flitted around like a hummingbird, only staying long enough to say a few words of encouragement and moving on again. The TAs were more methodical, staying at each table for a few minutes to get a feel of how things were going, and then moving to the next table to rinse and repeat.

Victor casually made his way towards the viewing area. Glancing at the note book he carried with him, the words “VicStragois@Vmail.com” and “password - DrowSsap117” etched into the page. He was unsure why he needed such a thing for this blackboard nonsense but at least that aid helped him with it. A submissive and very well trained human, but thin and almost fragile looking. Something like that would not be well suited as a mage for him.

Entering the viewing area, The tall vampire could see several other vampires finding their own perches to watch. He honestly should pay more attention to the class schedule, it seemed it would be his new life for the time being. Slowly walking towards a balcony with one other vampire who looked like he wasn't all that talkative either. Making sure his footsteps were known by forceing the heel of his boot a little more forcefully onto the ground.

Walking up to the balcony and peering over, Victor could see different colors of light flickering between mages and crystals. He had only witnessed one mage ceremony were these crystals were used and it was not as vibrant as this. His dull red eyes peered through the faces of the mages below him before finally settling on the face of one that he recognized. “Spellman.” he muttered to himself with a disappointed sigh.

Varis hadn’t bothered reacting to the approaching vampire, already dismissing them as below him. The conflict brewing between his own mage and his target held his full attention. The Spellman child clearly held the upper hand in the discussion, practically slicing his mage into ribbons from this view, while the light mage struggled on the defensive. Varis rolled his eyes with a sigh. For a Noila mage, his deflection needed work. Hopefully, his swordsmanship didn’t follow in the same steps.

It was the muttered last name that drew the vampire’s attention away from the struggling mage. He nearly missed it but the name wouldn’t let itself go unnoticed and Varis gave his attention to the vampire who muttered it dejectedly. A scar adorned man towered nearby, watching the same table as him. Varis’s lip curled in disdain but he quickly smoothed it away as he took another few moments to observe. While his strength and build were certainly commendable, his looks left far too much to be desired. If that Spellman name hadn’t left his lips, Varis would have looked over the brute as little more than insignificant.

“Spellman.” Varis repeated the vampire’s words, loud enough to catch his attention. “Are you part of the investigation team because you certainly don’t scream Knight of the Evening.”

The two mages below them at the table seemed to be enjoying each others company. His mage, this spellman seemed to be drawing off and on or sketching the other. This tallent did have its uses but otherwise this mage looked scrawny and weak. Almost as if he hadn't eaten a proper meal in days.

It only took him a few more moments after muttering the name that he felt it. The other vampire was staring at him. First impressions count right? Purposefully he moved his hand to his neck and pulled his collar up to cover the scarring on his neck. He wanted the other to think he was self conscious about it but didn't return the gaze. At least for a little while longer.

The other vampire spoke, first repeating spellmans name then something about an investigation, “great im paired with someone who is already suspicious and likely can't be trusted.” he thought to himself before sighing. Victor glanced up at the man next to him taking a moment to look this one and his demeanor over, rather obviously as well.

“I find no use for fancy titles.” he spoke with a deep monotone voice that sounded surprisingly smooth. “No, I am not part of the investigation team, at least not for this one. This one unfortunately is mine.” He answered with a frown and a half truth as he turned his attention back to the mage, “that other one yours then? Or perhaps one of the others nearby?”

“The Starag at the same table. As disappointing as he is for a Noila breed, I'm stuck with him. I'll have to wean him off the Noilan milk for the next few years.” Varis sighed in response. He watched them a moment longer and returned his attention to the vampire. “The Spellman child is opinionated. Believes mages should be elevated to a vampire's station and that their opinions should be considered in matters of state. An amusing thought when it isn't spat at the Queen's table on the heels of an accusation of Lady Sinnenodel. You'll have your hands full with that one.” Varis raised an eyebrow as he sat back, evaluating the vampire. He hid his scars after walking across campus, ashamed or forgetful Varis didn't know or particularly care, and he had little problem ignoring titles and proper greetings. Either a small branch or some commoner above his station; either way, Varis would much rather ignore him but his unwilling attachment to the Spellman could be useful down the road.

“So now I know your mage but who exactly is his partner?” Varis asked, returning his attention down below.

“So he is a Starag? At least you will have fun with that one.” Victor prodded a small form of amusement towards him before thinking about the others comment about introductions. “Victor Strigois Astorio. Apologies i have only just come off an assignment with a mute mage. I have not had the pleasant company of fellow vampires for some time.”

At least this time he was telling the truth, spending the better part of the last year with a mute mage named owl. They were tracking a lesser vampire that broke the law and was running away with a mage. Victor had only returned last week as the vampire tried to sacrifice himself for the mage only to end up getting both of them captured.

“Yes I'm sure I will have my work cut out for me. We will see how talkative that one is after training. He wouldn't survive my current assignments in his condition and the council will not accept lack of physical prowess as an excuse.” glancing at the other for a moment before looking back down at those two.

“And you? You don't look like an Astorio. What should i call you?”

“Varis Sinnenodel, current favorite of the fickle Lady of the House. Technically, I'm the heir but short of her assassination, I won't see the Council seat in my lifetime.” Varis responded with wry amusement on his lips. “Not that I have the time to plan that. Far too many other family members to get in my pocket or kill as necessary. And the boy is amusing. He still has suffers the delusions of modesty, one of my favorite ones to break. His pride however…” Varis shook his head, clicking his tongue. “That will be an unpleasant task. Noilas bred it strong and it'll take the next few years to undo all that.” Varis took a moment to consider the information he'd gotten. The last Astorio was the exact opposite of this one; maybe he could goad this Victor into doing a few of the more unpleasant tasks tucked away in his desk. He certainly seemed capable enough if his physique was anything to go by and that someone trusted him to hunt rogue vampires. He'd have to test that.

“So how does Victor Astorio change a mage's attitude? We've all heard the stories and seen a few of the more creative displays your family seems so fond of.” Varis suppressed a shudder at a memory, Lord Peiron disciplining his mage for his Lady after a pathetically small insult. He still wasn't sure if the mage survived it or not but the foolish thing probably wished it wouldn't. “But how do you plan to break the little stubborn streak your new pet got himself in trouble with?”

“Hmm Varis, a pleasure.” Again trying to be polite and not create too many frayed edges on his first day. “My clan is rather low ranking in our family but we have something that most other Astorio do not. Restraint or at least better than the others. That is why they put us in charge of judiciary means.” Victor became quiet for a few moments as he eyed his mage and pondered the vampires question.

“Although Lord Peiron’s methods are effective, but brutal. I was told I would not be able to get away with such… activities.” Again he continued to ponder this one's question. “More than likely will have to settle with corrective punishment through physical exercise for a time until I can find some leverage either through his family or his friends that he finds here. All it takes is the right rumor, the right nudge, to watch their world burn around them.” He couldn't help but smile at that comment. It seemed more likely that he was reminiscing on some past event rather than Spellman’s future.

“However, it seems this pride will be the downfall of both our mages if we continue to let them speak out of turn. If what you say is true, speaking to the queen in such a manor from spellman will not be tolerated. Simply being investigated isn't enough of a corrective measure. He should know that he is lucky, if it were my father or the lord. Well I'm sure you have heard of the training accidents that are abound in the Astorio house.” glancing at the Sinnenodel for a moment before sighing, “we really should update our safety procedures when it comes to training with mages.”

“I’m shocked your family even has them.” Varis snorted, amused at the idea of Astorio safety procedures. They must be dreadful and the mages subjected to them must know exactly what they’re in for when they discover them. Absolutely fantastic. “And considering what safety procedures you do follow, how long do you expect it will take to whip the Spellman child into shape? He’ll likely fight it the entire way.”

“Well what do you expect? We do have to have something down on paper to get the council out of our affairs.” He was joking and knew that talk like this was something he could likely get away with because of who he was talking to. “That I'm not sure of, judging someone based on their looks alone is what you would call foolish. I won't know until I have a proper read of his abilities.” he smiled again but was well aware that the other one here likely knew of this himself. “As for a fight? Well I would hope so. It wouldn't be any fun if he just laid there and took the abuse.”

“I look forward to it.” Varis murmured, eyeing the vampire. An Academic setting seemed odd for this one as focused on his duties as he seemed. Not only that but between this one and the Knight of the Evening, Ryner was crippling the Council's enforcement powers. He couldn't have been the only one to notice meaning these two and maybe a few more had their own agendas, personal or otherwise. His fingers drummed lightly on the table as he contemplated, excitement bubbling up inside him. Unexpected surprise aside, the likely possibility added an extra sense of danger to his game and it made Varis feel alive. Why not stoke the fire a little more though.

“Princess Ryner's student selection is certainly interesting. Two members of the Council's military arm, two arguably important figures, and the questionable heirs to two Houses.” Varis mused aloud, just loudly enough for Victor to hear. “I do wonder what her goal is. It all seems a bit… convenient, don't you think?”

The tall vampire fell silent at this one's pondering while he watched the two mages below them get into something of an argument. Their posture changed and he could pick up bits of what they were saying. “Hmm perhaps, but i wasn't summoned here at her request. I was told to come here by someone who is above my father but wouldn't give me their name.” he lied best not tell everyone who you get your orders from. “Something about having me come here to help teach these nobles and mages a few things when it comes to fighting Lycans.”

He emphasised the last word, an ancient enemy he does not joke about. “My family, before we were accepted into house Astorio, were known as Strigoi. Specifically Armata De Strigoi or army of the dead. They were tasked with the most dangerous missions and proved their worth by not only completing the objective but returning. Never with everyone but returning every time.” He seemed to be reminiscing old stories now but stories backed by all members of the clan and other Astorio nobles as well.

“We are the Stormbound, The Avatar, we are the sons of death and sorrow, we are the ones who see no tomorrow, Suck up, Armata De Strigoi.” an old tune inscribed in some of the old books. He pondered again the others question and wondered what he was trying to get out of it. Victor knew enough not to give everything away. He knew he wasn't the best when it came to getting information this way from people.

So instead of continuing this he looked back to Varis once more and gave him a nod. “I best be on my way to the next class, i want to make sure i'm not missing anything that i might need. It was a pleasure talking with you Varis, have a good evening.” He would wait for a moment longer before giving him a nod and continuing onto his next class. At least this time he had something to think about, mostly how to deal with this Spellman character and what Varis might be playing at.

Varis maintained polite interest as the Astorio rambled. Knowing how staunchly Ryner defended the Academy's independence from the Council, Varis doubted a higher authority demanded a spot for the bumbling Astorio against Ryner’s approval. Which left two options, either the neolithic vampire made the worst lie the Sinnenodel heard in recent decades or he was another one of Ryner’s hiccups. After the whole several months early assassination, Varis wasn’t inclined to give his collegue the benefit of the doubt. He leaned back with a sigh. Just another headache.

And then Victor just rambled. In a perfect world, Varis would have laughed the little Count out of the room but little and less is perfect and Varis predicted their paths would cross more often than he’d care for if his little game with the Spellman child continued. It almost made him text his own mage, rescinding his orders for his own comfort, but a little suffering now would pay off later as pleasant as one less task would be. He spared the pair one last glance before leaving the observation room, his own preparations neglected. He would have to speak to Aaron about getting along with the boy better. His performance today was abysmal; Varis could feel the tension between the two. Today’s lesson: Deflection and Mitigation. The mage’s soon to be marking should work as a reminder if done properly.