In one word... Arras would say... awing. That was the first word that came to mind as he laid eyes on the city walls. Of course, one word couldn't possibly summarize his feelings. So, why not go for a few more?

Shocking, inspiring, surprising, overwhelming, incredible, but most importantly, the one word that he could truly believe to be accurate... it was... familiar, somehow. Mostly in the sense that the sheer force of magic he could feel from the city was similar to his place of birth, but also that... there was something deeper than that. Which couldn't be right, because Arras most certainly hadn't been here before! He just chalked it up to a longing for his old home, for... perhaps not better times, but simpler times. He couldn't in good conscience ever long for a time that didn't have Illia in it.

Blinking a few times, Arras dismissed the thought for the moment and mentally prepared himself for the oncoming wave of people that he would no doubt have to deal with. It wasn't as if he could just take the carriage right into the city, it wasn't his property to begin with. Just the Ephimarus families parting gift. Now Arras found himself walking along the gravelly path that the carriage had been bumping along on for so many hours, the city perhaps only a few more minutes of walking away. It's opulent white walls off in the distance.

To be frank though, walking, that was a much more pleasant experience when he had shoes, walking along this path. Much more pleasant than walking with his bare paws, it tended to get stuck in-between his toes otherwise.

Anyways, despite knowing what was to come, he really couldn't say that walking into this place would be all bad. The air itself had a quality to it that every other part of this Kingdom didn't. Whether that stemmed from whatever went on inside of its walls, or merely because it was closer to the center of the Grand Forest than anywhere else he'd been too, he wasn't sure. But whatever the reason was, it still WAS more vibrant, more close to home than anything else Arras had so far felt.

That was reassuring, even if he knew it was likely just going to lead him to be disappointed. It helped in the short term.

Speaking of helping in the short term, Arras reached a hand up to Illia whom had been mostly quiet, predictably, she leaned her head into it. A reassuring presence amidst any would be doubts.

"Everything alright?"

"Certainly. I guess you could just say I'm a little nervous? It's one thing to plan to do something, another to, well, commit to it."

He'd come this far, there was really no point in worrying about anything else now. He had his documents in order, and there were still a few days until the Academy officially started its work. That being the start of a new educational year. Even if he didn't find the place immediately, which he really should be able to, there was plenty of time. Illia and he had a few golds to spare on living expenses, and it most certainly would be enough to last them until Arras had his own place in the Academy.

Professors staying on Academy grounds was the preferred method of living, and while the Academy wouldn't exactly stop somebody from living off site, that wasn't quite what was preferred, as he'd learned. Arras would be more than happy to oblige as long as his living quarters weren't quite as dull as his time in Fort Waoakua. But hopefully they were a little better than his time in the Ephimarus estate as well. Not that they weren't perfectly survivable conditions... but just... no windows, no light, it grated on Arras. He'd learned to live in such spaces, but he'd still much prefer open air, or at the very least a window to the outside world.

"Seriously, are you alright?" Illia asked, now completely unprompted. Well, unprompted by any direct contact.

...Arras sighed as he reigned in his thoughts. There was no need to disassociate with the world right in front of him. He didn't need to distract himself with mostly unrelated topics. There was nothing to go wrong, Arras was a competent mage, his senses constantly on high alert regardless of if he wanted them to be or not. No physical harm would come to him in the very center of power of this Kingdom. His contract with the Academy was already set in stone as well, nothing to be broken unless he were to under-perform.

"...Yes."

So...

Arras steadied a hand to his chest. Regardless of everything logical, any semblance of reasoning he gave to himself, he just couldn't help but be anxious. It was just the way he was, an inescapable state of being. Sure, he could push it aside for a moment, ignore it, place it out of mind. Which, he did in that very moment, activating his senses magic and breathing in deeply, but it would never be truly gone.

Arras supposed he hadn't quite come to terms with that yet. He didn't like the prospect of constantly feeling like this for all his life... but what could you do? He'd done his best to break through that haze, and he would continue to do so. For now? There was only one way forward with his life, to follow through with the choices that he made. Running away and looking for something else to do would be absurd. Illia might follow along with him regardless, but if he were to give up now just because a voice in his head kept screaming at him, "danger! danger!", then he DEFINITELY didn't like what that meant for his future.

...Also that he couldn't just up and forget his contracts, but that held a very small portion of his drive in comparison to his resolve to move forward with his life. Another breath, another step taken. And another, and another.

There were more and more people as he made his way closer to the main gate, walking to and fro, both into and out of the city. He'd been dropped off maybe ten minutes away from the city, but the amount of people around him increased explosively the closer he got.

It was fine, it was all going to be fine. Arras forced his best smile, and stepped up to the gates. He'd practiced this more than enough, his papers would be plenty.

...

They were, indeed, plenty. It took Arras all of five minutes to properly enter the city and...

"...Wow."

"Yeah, welcome to Arbre, Capital City! I kind of forgot just how... BIG these places are. It's been like four fifths of my life since I've been around though, so can you blame me?" Illia asked humorously, conveniently leaving out the part about how four fifths of her life actually equated to only four months.

Arras didn't have a witty retort to pick up on the obvious joke, he was just... admiring the architecture around him. He'd grown to enjoy this kind of thing with his time in human territory. Not too much, not too little. The structures here were... to the point, or at least he thought so. Yet, they were also very aesthetically pleasing to his vanity seeking brain.

The dominant color by far was white, occasionally paired with blue. Much like the walls of the city, each and every building stood opulently, with what almost felt like a sheet of magic draped over every separate structure. The sheer density of power, despite what Arras would've otherwise expected... was rather reassuring. It was the same way he'd felt while outside of the city. It felt like home, like this was his land, like he was back in his own room, in his den, with his sister.

The current of power was uplifting.

"...I kind of like it, honestly. Well, at least the buildings anyways."

Now on the other hand, the constant flow of people on all sides everywhere around him at all times with no escape to ever be found because things could just never ever be convenient like that in any possible waaaaaaaaaaaaaay-the crowd. The crowd, sucked, of course it did. Arras knew it was going to suck from the very first moment he'd learned of the higher population density in the Capital City.

"Yeah, I figured you'd think this was all pretty neat, besides the people anyways. It's alright though, the crowds should thin out a bit the closer we are to the center of the place. The Academy should be around there, and you'll only have your co-workers and students around then. Maybe a few other people too, but shouldn't be that bad."

"Hm." Arras nodded, made sense. So clearly there was only one thing to do. "Then I suppose we should get going?"

"...About that, I have a proposal!"

"...Hm?" Arras's eyes drifted to Illia as he took a step around a group of Beastkin, their cacophony making his ears twitch in discomfort. So loud... louder than the rest of the people around, what were they even doing? That was far too many weapons to be just strolling around for no purpose... But, it didn't exactly matter right now, he set his attention back onto his companion.

"So... There's a lot of cool things to do in these more populated places you know, whole lot of recreational activities... Maybe a little manicuring... It shouldn't be that difficult! It's been... so long, since I've felt really properly clean, Arras, you wouldn't believe it."

"...Illia."

"...Please?"

"I'd love to let you do all of that, but do we even have the money right now?"

"...Actually, you raise a good point. It might not be a good idea to waste the few golds we were given on something..." she sagged as she forced the next words out of her proverbial mouth. "Frivolous."

"Well, it surely wouldn't be that much of a problem-" Arras instantly cracked under pressure, but Illia quickly interrupted him.

"No! No, no. It's fine, completely fine.It can wait... A day or two... Been four months already, not a big deal to wait a few more days when it's so close." She resigned herself with what sounded like dejection. It almost broke Arras's fragile little heart in two right then and there, but Illia was having none of it.

"Okay... Jeeze! Don't be such a sad-sack when I'm telling you I'm fine to go without it! I'm the one who brought it up in the first place, so go, walk!"

"But..."

"No buts! Move it!"

...

The further Arras walked into the city, the less crowded it got. But, the buildings also got larger. Unlike the place he'd visited over a month ago during the noble gathering, it wasn't just one building that towered over the rest. The architecture steadily grew larger and larger the longer Arras walked. He assumed that it would level out at some point... but no...

Surely this all required a ludicrous industrious endeavor, no? This couldn't have been any small amount of work. Each and every structure looked as if it would take more than a day for Arras to raise. And as he was well aware, just putting the material in place wasn't enough. Sure, earth magic could help soften up materials and to move something around, but without any other physical touches the molded landscape would merely return to its natural position.

Each and every one of these buildings had to be a work created by two or three people at the very least. And buildings weren't just empty towers either, they had things inside of them. That took awhile to do as well, it having taken an entire day on average for Arras to decorate his previous dens...

So... long story short, he couldn't imagine this having been done in any short amount of time. Weeks and multiple individuals for each structure. Months, years, probably, in order to create the amount that Arras had caught within eyesight so far. It was an interesting thought to think that everything around him could very well be years older than he was. But, years apparently weren't a particularly long time. So perhaps it was just he who was young, and maybe this city hadn't taken too long to build? There was always the possibility that Arras just wasn't privy to the methods used to create this place.

With a shake of his head, Arras redoubled his focus. His magic wasn't even starting to slip as he concentrated on other matters, but he didn't want to relegate something as important as remaining unseen to his subconscious for very long.

...Yes he was using his illusion magic, no, it wasn't a problem. He was perfectly fine with being seen, it was just... less annoying to not be seen! He didn't want to feel other peoples eyes on him, somebody with his appearance was still by far not the norm. Sure, he'd seen some obvious nobles around, but there weren't really THAT many of them, the fact that his eyes were drawn to them already told him all he needed to know!

"Do you know what we should be looking for, exactly?" Arras asked Illia after an extended period of silence. They'd both just been looking around so far... but the thought occurred that Arras had only read about the Academy. He hadn't actually bothered to learn what exactly it, well, looked like.

"Hm? It shouldn't be difficult to spot, that's for sure." Illia stretched her wings and glanced up as she hummed the thought. "I could fly up to the top of a building and look around for the place, couldn't just fly around though, my magics not synced up with the detection artifacts, so it could cause some issues if I just flew around unprompted..."

"...Detection artifacts?"

"Yeah, they're pretty basic defenses for well, any defended city. They... Oh, right, you know how I told you I literally couldn't fly back in Efiramus, because I'd get shot down?"

Arras paused at how casually she brought that up, but didn't choose to take issue with it. "Yes?"

"Well, I wouldn't get shot down, it's not like Arbre is in the middle of a war or anything, at least... I think so? But it could cause some issues with the city guard, so that's probably not a good idea."

"...Wait, so shouldn't you not fly at all then?"

"The detection range is only above nearby buildings. It's a pretty common thing for cities with architecture as big as this. It's more of a net, rather than a lid. Uh... bottom line, it'd be safe for me to fly up. Should I?"

"...No, not yet. I'm perfectly fine with looking around some more. Like, look at that. Do you know why civilizations presumably spend so much time on these things?" Arras looked in the direction of a massive building, easily five or six times larger than any of the ginormous towers off in the distance. Brilliant gold trimming exacerbating the places appeal, on top of the already existing color scheme.

"...Oh, because that'd be the Academy." Illia noted in mild surprise.

"...Oh."

Arras supposed it made sense, there were some smaller humans out on the grounds now that he took a closer look at it. At least, he assumed there were. He could only see a little bit of what was inside the walls around it. They weren't particularly large walls, but there was a gate to keep any uninvited visitors out.

"I see. So I just... head on in?"

"Uh... look, I know about politics and some general things, but I'm really not the authority on this particular subject."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Arras, I haven't had a job before. All I can tell you is that you need to go speak with the current Headmaster as per your contract. They can tell you the rest themselves."

"...Okay. But... what... what about you?"

"People... aren't awful..." Illia paused as she thought her life over, before sighing in a not so reassuring tone. "Well, I'm sure it'll work out. Worst case scenario, I can just hang out on the roof or something before your first paycheck. Nobody will know, probably."

"I... don't like the sound of that-"

"Arras. I'll be fine. It'll be fine. Just... go. You've been waiting weeks to get this all done. Head on in."

"...If you say so." Arras sighed uneasily, and dismissed his illusion magic. He... did still need to be let in through the gates.

...

For the first time in a long while, no eyes were specifically on Arras. Sure, it wasn't like everybody just ignored him, there was the occasional glance in his direction, but... nobody stared, nobody approached him. Nobody even gave him a passing wave, it was... he couldn't quite name many times he'd been as relieved as he was now. To be frank, he wasn't quite sure what he'd expected beforehand, but certainly not apathy. Regardless, it worked well for Arras.

Right now, he needed to find his way to the Headmaster's office...? Or well, he needed to find whoever was in charge of him for the moment.

...Arras didn't like how that sounded, he needed to find whoever he worked for at the moment.

Better. Anyways, Arras was currently making his way through the halls. On the inside, the color scheme had changed somewhat. As opposed to the marble-ish appearance of the city outside, the inside was much more aesthetically varied. But, if he were to give it a clean description, he'd say it reminded him of where he'd lived just a day prior. Except instead of being a single room, it was the entire building.

Also that there were windows. A welcome addition, to be sure. It was still secondary to actually being outside, but certainly better than feeling like he was stuck in a box.

"Uh, Arras?"

"Hm?" He turned his head away from the windows, and over to Illia whom currently resided on his left shoulder.

"Big group of kids ahead? Might wanna you know, not bump into them?"

"...Oh."

He definitely hadn't been paying attention, that was on him. He was just getting side-tracked by various other concerns. A bad habit of his, to be frank. He needed to recenter himself, and move on. It didn't matter if the upcoming events might be uncertain, they still had to happen.

Arras simply held to the wall as he passed the group by, a curt nod was thrown his way in appreciation for his polite evasion, and Arras completely not understanding that little cue, merely nodded back in confusion.

"Did I do something?" He asked Illia with a mild amount of concern as he continued onwards, strafing slightly to the side as he prepared to round a corner off in the distance. He didn't exactly want to bump into anybody, though it ended up being pretty pointless given that nobody was nearby. Well, better safe than sorry.

"...Uh, not really? You were just being a good person?"

"What?"

"Well, you saw a group of people coming your way, and instead of making them move out of the way you moved before they had to. Right?"

"I just... I just didn't want to have to deal with them...?"

Illia took a moment to respond, but she wasn't exactly surprised. That sounded about right for Arras.

"You know what? Just take the compliment."

"Hm. Anyways, do you have any idea what exactly I'm supposed to be looking for? I think I know what I'm looking for, something like a decorated door? But I've seen a few of those so I don't think they're very important..."

As Arras asked, he continued to scan his surroundings. He was a little confused with the structure of the place, it mirrored itself every once in awhile which almost made him think he was walking in circles... but no, he wasn't. He'd spot the occasional difference, or see a new face. Speaking of new faces, the amount of people most certainly wasn't an issue either, given that the amount of people was a single person walking past him every other minute and the occasional group striding past him. Some groups comprised of children, others of adults. Yet both of them perfectly content to ignore him.

"Well, you've read the inscriptions around here, right?"

"Yes. They're directions, I believe? A few new words to me, so I haven't been giving them too much thought..."

"...Oh yeah should've occurred that you don't know Arian. Sorry about that."

"Arian?"

"It's an off-shoot of common. It's a cipher developed by Arbre. They use it in proper education systems, just a brain-teaser. It also doubles as an actual viable military tactic for encrypting information. They change it up every academic year, so "Arian" is just kind of an all purpose name. Usually pretty easy to get used to. I can't really say how effective it is as an actual cipher given you could probably figure it out in a day with direction... But I don't think that's all the Kingdom uses? I wouldn't know though. It hasn't changed yet surprisingly enough, probably happening in a few days though. Good thing it hasn't, otherwise I couldn't tell you what the heck it says!"

"...So you can read it?"

"Yes."

"I see, but this whole thing doesn't really make sense to me though, how do you properly spread something like this every year?"

"Magic. Dimensional magic, specifically. Artifacts with pre-set locations, I think?"

"...Yeah that makes sense. You can do that?"

"Uh-huh, pretty expensive though. Takes a lot of concentration and magic, plus the talent to do it. There aren't that many mages with the skills to do that properly."

"Well... That's interesting, but regardless, which way is the Headmaster's office?"

"Hm. Not on the directions over there." Illia raised a wing in the general direction of the inscriptions on the wall. "But professor residences are in that direction." She raised her other wing, pointing down the hall. "So, probably good to go through there."

"Thank you."

"Of course."

The halls sort of blended together over time, and started to become monotonous to Arras. However, just as he was about to begin to stress out again, and therefore, space out as he thought about something else... Arras stepped foot into a wide, open space, closing a door behind him. As his mind settled once more, now on the space before him. He couldn't help but shift his gaze away from the door on the other side of the place.

"What is this?"

What Arras believed to be seats stretched out upwards. Desks and vials of ink on said desks. His head turned slowly to the other side of the room, a lone podium, a seat, and a large greenish board above it.

"A classroom. There's a whole lot of these across the Academy. It's where, you know, classes happen."

"Hm. Interesting enough. I knew we would be teaching in a "classroom", not quite what I expected though... How am I supposed to teach people how to... well, fight in a place like this? This... Doesn't work. This wide open space, flammable materials no earth, what?"

"Well I mean, not EVERY class takes place in here. There's different classrooms, with different settings... I think."

"You think?"

"Look I don't know this stuff. I'm almost as fresh as you are. You know what you've gotta teach, they should give you whatever you need for it. You studied for this, you'll be fine."

"If you say so... Anyways, Headmaster's office just ahead?"

"Yup!"

...

Arras had walked through a few doors on his way, and they each had an exactness to them. Not a single difference etched into the wood that made up their frames. There were multiple variations, depending on where said door led, but each and every door was identical in some way.

So given that each door was replicated to an exact, the tell-tale differences in the one that he currently found himself standing before were more than enough to tip him off.

After a moment's hesitation, Arras lightly wrapped his knuckles against the door.

Knock. Knock.

"One moment!" A voice not dissimilar to Illia's called out shortly afterwards. Which was... somewhat odd, given Arras could name a very clear distinction between voices he didn't recognize and voices that he did. If there was a voice he hadn't heard before, it generally found itself filed into a completely new category. Not... sharing space with somebody he already knew?

Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.

It had always been an automatic response for him, so it bore noting that this time it wasn't.

"That's odd. They sound a lot like you." Arras noted evenly as he scratched at Illia's crown.

"Uh... yeah... They kind of... do?"

And that gave him even more pause. They sounded very... shaken. Not quite upset, but... afraid? Not afraid either... Something inbetween those two things.

"Are you alright?"

"I-I think so? No, no no, I am fine. I know so."

It... didn't feel like she was lying. She wasn't, she was alright. She was just... shaken by something.

"You're sure you're alright?"

"Of course I am. Don't worry about me."

"You know I can't help but be worried."

"...Yeah, I do. I appreciate it, but really, I'm fine."

Before Arras could manage to tie up the conversation, his attention snapped back to the door. A low creaking emanating as the door cracked open. A somewhat short person with ashy grey hair and green eyes. It was hard to not take a quick look at them, given they almost swung the door right into him.

"Apologies for the delay. Lady Sharran is waiting inside-"

Decidedly-she blinked in surprise as she looked Arras up and down. Her mouth quickly closing as her gaze shifted from that of a warm neutrality into a calculating, cold, stranger. Something distinctly familiar, yet despite that it only seemed to make their eyes even more unnerving. Arras could put a name to that face, Illia. Specifically Illia when she had to deal with speaking with Pennsworth.

She tilted her head ever so slightly as her eyes locked onto Illia. Before sliding back over to Arras's own. "Hm... oh my, that's a very interesting coincidence."

Arras didn't like the look that she was giving him. It didn't feel like he was being looked at like his own person. Just... he wasn't even sure what. He just knew. Her eyes were unnerving, exceedingly so. But somehow, he didn't feel intimidated. More than that, something felt like it was burning up inside of him. A deep seated sense of anger, at something, at someone. With a moments focus, Arras prepared his own magic.

"...Can I help you?" His eyes narrowed as he asked that particular rhetorical question. His gaze hardening rapidly.

"Why don't you come inside? We have a few matters to speak on." Her shock quickly transitioned into an easy smirk, and with a wave of her arm she threw the door all the way open.

The quick shift from surprise to... whatever the hell this person had on their face, certainly didn't help with the mixture of feelings he was currently feeling. "...Why? What do you want?"

"My oh my, while you've done quite the good job of spreading our families name, I don't think that excuses being quite so dull." Her smirk widened even further.

"Excuse me? W-" Before Arras could indignantly respond to the blatant insult, a booming voice called out from behind the unpleasant person before him.

"Veile! I don't care if you've met your long lost lover or if you're seeing your nemesis in the flesh! Either step in or step out, and don't waste your teachers time!"

"...Well, you heard her." The girl before Arras frowned. "Come along, you're here right now, no need for me to go looking, or for me to wait."

"Just-just do it..." Illia halfheartedly mumbled. She sounded dejected, defeated. Part of the reason that Arras himself had been on guard in the first place. The ball of negativity on his shoulder certainly hadn't helped in regards to a first impression.

"You're sure?"

"Nothing good will come of just walking away. Just... just go on."

He didn't like it... Arras VERY MUCH didn't like it... But what else was he even supposed to do? There weren't many other options left here. So with a singular breath in, and a very, very long sigh, he stepped foot into the doors before him.

The girl closed it behind him as he stepped in, looking up to give him more of her obviously fake smile. "There. Door's closed. Would you mind giving me and my 'siblings' here a moment?"

Somebody who looked almost the polar opposite of the short individual before him found themselves sat at a desk across the room. Long, brown hair. Purple eyes. A much more gruff face, as opposed to the fake charm that rolled off of whoever it was that had just... called... Arras her... sibling?

He couldn't help but construct a rather hasty, "Wait, what?" in response to the words that had parsed this girls lips not a moment earlier. But she didn't bother to deign with a response. Though for some reason, he could feel an apology already oozing from Illia's very being. Despite having not, well, done anything.

"Make it quick. You have a dorm to head to, and I have more guests to speak with. In fact, you're holding one up right now." The woman grumbled as a she glared at the girl.

"Very well." Her smile widened just a little further as she held her hands up in a faux surrender. But she quickly turned her gaze back to Arras as her hands came to rest at her sides once more. "I'll take it that I'm not simply making an egregious error here, and that a duo of a Spirit Fox and an Ashwing here at this precise moment on this day wouldn't happen to be one Professor Veile, and also, Illiana Veile?"

"...How do they know you?" Arras's eyes drifted to Illia, whom was currently stone still on his shoulder. Unfortunately, he felt he already knew the answer.

She didn't respond, instead rising, and then deflating a moment later.

"...Lilly."

Lilly's smile widened even further, bordering on a comical degree as she came to realize that she'd been connected to a link, as opposed to simply being spoken to. "Ah, dear sister, here I thought I would never see you again!"

"I think you have places to be." Arras spoke up almost immediately, being a participant in that link. Now actively paying a bit more attention to this girl, he took in more of her features naturally. Her dress was bright red, not too dissimilar to other dresses he'd seen, but certainly more vibrant in comparison. Something rather unfitting, given that she was clearly soulless. The black frills were a closer match to what he saw of her at the moment.

So this was his technical family. Somebody who he was related to, but not actually related to. He supposed he'd been putting the pieces together since he laid eyes on her, what else could explain the simmering rage he felt? Illia's description of her relatives hadn't exactly been... glowing. Speaking of Illia, she was immensely uncomfortable. And Arras wasn't eager to keep her in proximity with the family that she so clearly disliked.

"Nonsense, I'm right where I need to be." Lilly held her smile and carried on before Arras could put his most aggressive-not aggressive words together. "Quite bold of you to just use the family's name. We'd be well within our rights to simply execute you, as I'm sure you're aware so blatantly using it. I know we're a family that adopts others into it quite often, but come on Illy. Surely you didn't think that was a good idea?"

...That did give Arras pause, execution... that didn't sound good. That meant killing somebody, if that was something on the table... Oh how badly he wanted to lash out right now, to just lay into this girl for making Illia suffer so clearly. He wanted to get her away, to probably kill her if the situation allowed for it... But it didn't, and if lives were at stake, it surely didn't allow for petty disagreements either. Doing his best to not show it, Arras breathed in deep and filtered all of his less savory thoughts from conversation. Though despite his best efforts, a glint in Lilly's eyes definitely indicated she noticed his stress.

"I-it was... just for conveniences sake. Everything was so much easier to deal with like that-and besides! He actually is-"

"Uh-uh-uh! Regardless of the circumstance, you practically abandoned the name of your own volition. You're not really a member of our family in any way besides blood now, sister. However, Mother doesn't much care for whatever circumstances led to the fox using our name, only the consequences of it."

"...So what." Arras interrupted before she could finish whatever it was she was going on about, doing his best to portray neutrality, to run counter to his currently burgeoning desire to toss the girl in front of him out of the window. "What are you here for? You're clearly making Illia uncomfortable, and I don't..." He did his very best to find not hateful words. "appreciate it." But his tone of voice didn't do the statement many favors. "Like...Lady Sharran said, please... make it quick."

"My, my, so very rude aren't you? No need for such hostilities, like I said, Mother only cares for the results. So, what have you done with our families name?"

Arras himself didn't much want to listen to her, but Illia thought it over for a moment. Her brain had been running on overdrive for a good long while now, but to be fair, a good chunk of that was also just nervous gibberish. Regardless, she knew her family was based somewhat close to the Capital... but obviously, her sister would be attending the Academy! Probably her brothers as well... And it was just wishful thinking to assume that news about important players in the war wouldn't spread.

Illia didn't think it was likely... but there was definitely a solid chance that they'd kept tabs on Arras after catching word of him through the grapevine. Word of a Veile acting as a spearhead for the final attack of the war would obviously surface. It hadn't been a busy year for her family when she'd ran away, maybe that changed but... clearly it hadn't, given that they'd had enough time to practically track him down! But, no, this was still salvageable. Really, what had Arras done with the family name?

"...All he's done is bring the family good reputation. T-there's no need for repercussions." Illia managed to nervously work out after a few seconds of silence, Lilly had been waiting for an answer, and when given it, she clapped.

"Correct! It's good that you had the sense to not try and abuse it, otherwise, this situation would be going down VERY differently." Her smile vanished at the clear threat of violence, replaced by a glare of nearly unrivaled proportions. "Really, what were you thinking sister? I know you were always a little slow, but-"

"Excuse me?" Arras immediately stopped her, seizing hold of the link so as to not even give her the ability to finish that thought. For once he glared with emotion, more than any indifference that he'd given her so far. His magic wisped away from him in a dangerous manner, though when he sensed another source of magic rearing in his presence, he immediately released his own power. His eyes nervously flitting towards the woman whom he'd only heard named so far.

There'd only been one other instance in his entire life to compare that to, and that had been when he nearly died to an Arrassima. If Arras could sweat, he'd have had a cold one right there and then. But with a shake of his head, he broke off the staring contest between himself and Lilly.

"Do not insult my mate."

...

"Pffff-hahahAHAHAHA. What!?!"

"Eh-Arras!"

"...What?"

He'd simply spoken his mind. He didn't want any emotional abuse to come to his mate, not from any source. In his momentary surprise, he relinquished his hold over the mind link, allowing Lilly to use it once again.

"Now, now hold on, I think this can wait a moment, you're telling me, in the four something months you were away from home, you met a highly skilled mage, and married him? In four, months? Goodness me Illy, perhaps Mother was right to keep you learning support magic. You found somebody to work with in practically record time! And all it took was running away from home." Her smile felt ever so slightly genuine in that exact moment, but it didn't do much to raise Arras's opinion of her.

And then she paused for a moment, and leaned in towards Illia. "Ah, that's what you meant by 'W-wait, no!!! He actually is family!' Right? That's what you were going to say, right?" With each "right" she leaned in ever so slightly further, Arras leaning back to balance out the advance.

"N-not technically m-married, yet."

"Wait... how old is he?" Lilly's tone suddenly darkened, as did her eyes.

"...Since when did you care about me?" Illia halfheartedly glared back at her sister. But when she didn't relent, she gave in fairly easily. "...Slightly younger than me. Just over five months old by now."

That just seemed to puzzle her even further, which Arras was content to let happen. As long as Illia wasn't feeling abject despair, and that she wasn't being insulted.

"...What, you're telling me you just both happened to meet in The Grand Forest, by sheer chance, and what, lived together? From then on? Through thick and thin? Grew a bond that deep? Only had each other to rely on? That's the kind of thing that happens in fairy tales dear sister. Come now Illy, surely you can't... expect me... to..." Illia's emotions stayed stock still throughout her entire tirade, she looked genuinely shocked. "Well then, that's really what happened, hm?"

"...More or less."

"Hm. Well, I am unfortunately running out of time. I must be showing our brothers to the dorms, and Lady Sharran might just crush me on the spot should I take too much longer. Oh, do come by some time I suppose. I know you and them never really got along well-" Lilly said like she and Illia got along "-but don't be afraid. I'm sure their fragile ego's will have smoothed out some by now."

Arras didn't think he or Illia would be coming b-

"Ah, and unfortunately for you, that's not a request. You might not have any official consequences for using the family name... brother in law. But, if you're going to use the name, and, marry a relative apparently," she mumbled that part, "you're going to be a part of this family, like it or not. And as such, you have responsibilities to carry. I don't care what my sister'"s told you, how much she's complained about the, Ohhhh~so stifling environment! It doesn't matter. We'll speak more later, see you around. Ah, and, your name, if you would?" She conveniently decided to ignore that she'd already heard his name.

When Arras came up blank in the moment, Illia filled in for him. He was still struggling to use nice words.

"Arras. His name is Arras. And we'll... see you later, Lilly."

She nodded once, and still maintaining her same grin, she stepped outside once again, speaking in the very same sing-song tone that Arras had heard before laying eyes on her. "I'll be leaving now, sorry to keep you waiting, Lady Sharran!"

And... Thump. The door closed, and Arras deflated the instant it did.

"Given she apparently had quite a lot to say to you," the woman, presumably Lady Sharran, leaned back and slightly tilted her head in Arras's direction. "Veile, I assume?"

Arras hesitated for a moment, but something about this woman gave him... bad vibes. Better to stay far, far away from their bad side.

"Yes."

"Good. Seeing as how you came to my office, I take it you have a few things you need to be brought up to speed on?" She tilted her head ever so slightly, her entire body following the motion as she leaned an elbow into her desk.

"...What should I tell her about you?" Arras switched his focus to Illia, whom was still a little shell shocked, on a dime.

"Wh-don't say anything unless asked. If we're lucky, they'll just assume I'm your familiar?"

"Illia... I don't want you to just be my familiar."

"But..."

"Is there a problem?" She narrowed her eyes slightly from across the room, and Arras could attest to feeling very, very small in that moment. "Come, take a seat."

He shuffled over as quickly as he could, saving any words he had for Illia for later. And immediately, he sat right down, sitting up as straight as he was physically able.

"As I'm sure you're already aware, my name is Kaleileus. V. Sharran. Headmaster of the Academy. I represent his majesty's authority for as long as you remain on campus grounds." She paused for a moment, and then continued as she leaned forward. "Now, in light of your earlier outburst, I must ask... are we going to have any problems?"

It was gradual at first, or well, at least gradual in comparison to what came afterwards, but Arras began to feel an inexplicable pressure against his being. An oppressive force almost unlike anything he'd ever felt before, once again, only comparable to his near death encounter with an Arrassima. His hair stood on end as he somehow snapped even further to attention.

And then all at once, it was almost like he was drowning, as if he had suddenly been dunked into a barrel of water, which had no bottom. It only got deeper, and deeper, the pressure weighing on him more and more. Crushing him, restricting his senses, every single method of perception available to the fox vanishing one after the other, leaving him only with his eyesight, which blurred by the second.

His ears were ringing, his balance was off, it felt as if he would fall out of his seat right then and there. Magic, overwhelming, overpowering. The sheer force of it was beyond anything that Arras had ever felt. His eyes dilated as he rocked in his seat, but it only got worse and worse. His breath rattled in his own body, the familiar pressure on his shoulder tightened as Illia's talons dug in for purchase amongst the storm.

"Well?"

He couldn't think, much less actively cast magic. He could barely move his body... It felt as if he would black out at any moment... but... but...!

He sucked in a breath of air as best he could as he felt Illia's grip begin to rapidly loosen, shakily nodding his head side to side as best he could, trying to give a clear answer despite his current... inhibitions.

No... no problems!

And all at once Arras felt that pressure vanish, his body returning the agency it had so frivolously stolen away from him. He fell forward panting and heaving the second he had the ability to, Illia collapsing just as quickly, splaying out onto the wooden surface nearly unconscious.

"Good. Had you failed to answer me I might've simply fired you on the spot."

Still heaving, he shakily managed to push himself back up, wincing as he laid eyes on Illia's still shivering form. He... wanted to retaliate... but what in the world was he supposed to do against that!?! And what about firing him!?

"I... cannot speak... without my magic." Arras very slowly articulated, he didn't want to do ANYTHING to upset the woman before him.

"Hm. Regardless, you still managed to respond. My apologies for the outburst of my own, but such aggression will not be permitted between a teacher and a student." Lady Sharran stated simply as she leaned back in her chair. "Now, what are you here for?"

Arras continued to breathe in and out as best he could as he scooped Illia up, her shivering form bringing a veritable cocktail of emotions to Arras's mind, most of which he couldn't currently act on. The link she'd been maintaining today so far had been utterly shattered in the storm of magic that the two of them had just been faced with, and Arras was barely collecting himself as of the moment. Illusion magic was all he could manage.

"And best not to waste time." She noted simply. "There are still dozens more I need to speak to today."

Another breath in, cradle Illia to his chest... he'd memorized what he needed to ask... he just... needed to do it.

"Which classrooms will I be using, and which room is mine?"

She paused for a moment, eyes flaring in a very slight amount of surprise, but only for an instant. "Hm. Excellent control of your magic. You might be lacking in your total pool of it, but I suppose you have more than a passing grade on that front. Ah, here I am telling you not to waste time." She smiled slightly as she bent down and fiddled with a few things under the desk, before pulling out some odd circle, with a few things hanging off of it.

"I was told you wouldn't be coming with your own housing, so I took the liberty of attaching what you'd need to your key chain. Room numbers of your classrooms are written down on the plaque there, and the key itself has your room number on it. T31, I believe. I take it there won't be a problem?"

"...No."

"Good, that should be all then." She waved for him to get up as she leaned back even further. "You're not needed for anything else, dismissed."

"...Wait."

What am I doing?

"Hm?"

"My..." Arras pondered on what exactly he should call Illia, companion? Mate? Friend? On second thought, playing it any way other than straight might backfire on him with this person. He already didn't know what kind of temper she had, and things could go very, very wrong, judging on what she'd already done. "Mate, isn't in any sort of contract regarding the Academy. Is that... going to be a problem?"

"...You brought a complete non-affiliate onto campus grounds?" Lady Sharran asked in a scarily neutral tone.

"Yes." Arras answered as quickly as he could, better to get it over with than to let the thought rattle in his mind.

"Hm. Shouldn't be too big of an issue. I suppose she can act as your assistant for now, given you said she's your mate?"

"Yes."

"Odd thing to call it, but I don't care I suppose." She leaned forward again and brought her hands together, resting her head atop them. "Not too big of a deal, certainly nothing to cause problems over. But you understand, should they cause any problems, it'll be on your head, yes?"

"Yes."

"Hm. Straight to the point, aren't you? I like that. We can discuss this later, for now-"

Knock-knock-knock

"-you need to leave. I have more people than you to speak with."

"Yes. Of course."

And Arras stood up, and made his way to the door.

He nodded as politely as he could to the man who walked through as he helped Illia back up to his shoulder, whom flinched as she saw fresh blood dripping down his sleeve. As for Arras, he hadn't even noticed she'd drawn blood. He was far too focused on... Everything else.

Then, he stepped out.

And in the possibly biggest verbal outpouring of Arras's life, he proceeded to release the most guttural set of incomprehensible whines he had in a long, long time. The two inside might've heard him, but he didn't much care. Actually, probably everybody in a pretty big radius around heard him.

...He still didn't care.

"...Are you alright?"

"ARE YOU!?" Arras immediately shot back, she was the one who passed out for a moment!

"I-I think...?" She mumbled back, for the first time in a good while not immediately trying to shift the subject of self care onto Arras.

"Think or know?"

"N-no, I'm fine. Just... Still a little woozy." She admitted as her talons flexed slightly in a rhythmic manner.

Arras hesitated for a moment, not quite sure what to do at that moment... But after giving it a little more thought, he started to work what meager healing magic he could. It was, quite literally barely anything without the use of his tails as a conduit, but it was something.

"...Okay. How about we go to our room?"

"S-sure." Illia agreed with little resistance.

Great... Now he just needed to actually find, this, supposed "T31".

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