The next day, I sat in class, half-listening to Professor Elody's lecture on spell-casting techniques. My mind was preoccupied with the anticipation of Mr. Moon's arrival. I had left several clues in his office to lead him to me, and I knew he was getting closer. Finally, Mr. Moon burst through the door and beckoned me to follow him to his office. As we entered, the smell of tea filled the room, and I couldn't help but notice two cups on his desk. One on his side and one on mine.

Without wasting any time, Mr. Moon cut right to the chase. "Quinn, I need to know if you're X's sister," he said, looking straight at me.

I confirmed his suspicion with a nod and took a seat at his desk, grateful for the cup of tea in front of me. He reached into a drawer and handed me a piece of paper. "Here's what your sister asked for," he said, his eyes studying me carefully.

"Thanks," I replied, tucking the paper into my bag. "Is there anything else you need from me?"

He hesitated for a moment before finally asking, "Is your sister seeing anyone?" The question caught me off guard, and I nearly choked on my tea.

"I'm sorry, what?" I asked incredulously

“W-well, it’s just that your sister is really pretty and smart,” He stuttered, “A-and I was just, you know, curious if she would be open to a date,”

As Mr. Moon stumbled through his request, I couldn't help but feel disgusted. His words were so crass and disrespectful, especially since he was talking about me. It took all my self-control to maintain a composed façade.

“No,” I said through gritted teeth, “I don’t believe she is dating anyone at this moment,”

He smiled wide, like some sort of child, “Oh good, well that’s all I needed to know. Make sure your sister gets that paper,” He paused for a slight moment, “And maybe don’t tell her about this interaction,”

“Sure,” I replied, trying to keep the disgust out of my voice. I got up and made my way to the door, wanting to get out of there as soon as possible. As I reached the door, I turned around and looked at him with a cold stare, “And Mr. Moon, I hope you understand that it’s not appropriate to ask a student about their sibling’s dating life,”

He looked taken aback by my sudden change in demeanor, “Y-yes, of course. I apologize if I overstepped any boundaries,”

“Good,” I replied before exiting the room and slamming the door behind me. I took a deep breath and tried to calm myself down before heading back to class. I couldn't believe the nerve of that man.

***

I met Colette at lunch, noticing her sitting in her usual spot all alone. I once asked Sun why no one ever sat with her and he told me that everyone was too scared to try. I sat down next to her and saw her shutting her spellbook that was resting on her lap.

“Hi Colette,” I greeted her. “What’s up?”

“What was up with Mr. Moon this morning?” she asked.

“He just wanted to ask about my sister,” I replied, not thinking about it.

“You have a sister?” she exclaimed, her eyes widening.

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“Oh, I guess I’ve never mentioned her before,” I said, trying to save the situation. “I don’t really talk about her a lot, I guess.”

She nodded, “So what did he want to know?”

“He wanted to ask if she was single,” I said, rolling my eyes.

“Ew,” Was all she said in response before changing the subject, “Oh, I was going to go to town tomorrow looking for some new spellbooks. You want to join?”

“Sure,” I could hardly contain my excitement, “That sounds great,”

“Okay, I’ll let Sun know,”

“Wh-Why would you let Sun know?” I asked

“Oh I forgot to mention, Sun was the one who suggested it in the first place,” she explained with a shrug. "He said he wanted to come along too, so I thought I'd ask you as well."

I couldn't help but feel a little disappointed that Sun was going to be there, but I tried not to let it show. I was thinking that Colette was asking me on a date, but that was just wishful thinking. Of course, Sun was also a great friend, but I didn’t either of us trapped as a third wheel.

"Great, I'll meet you both tomorrow morning then," I said, forcing a smile. "Where do you want to meet?"

"We'll meet outside the main gate at 9 am," Colette said, standing up and collecting her things. "See you then!"

I was considering heading to the Dueling Club for some practice, but then Alexander's voice popped up in my mind.

"Hey, do you mind coming into the Mind Sanctum?" he asked. "There's something I want to try out."

"How are you able to speak to me right now?" I asked mentally. "I thought we could only communicate in the Mind Sanctum."

"Think of it like this," he explained. "The Mind Sanctum is like a room in your mind. Before, it was locked, but when you entered it, you unlocked the doors for me to move around. Don't worry, I just left now, and I haven't seen anything weird."

I felt a bit hesitant, but I was also curious about what he wanted to show me. "Okay, I'll come," I replied. "Just give me a minute to get there."

As I made my way back to my dorm, I couldn't help but feel curious about what Alexander had in store for me. I wondered if he had found a way to control his emotions, but deep down, I knew it was unlikely. When I arrived, Alexander instructed me to grab some papers before entering the Mind Sanctum.

Once I entered, I immediately noticed that Alexander seemed exhausted with bags under his eyes as he feverishly wrote on the papers in front of him.

“Ah, you're finally here!” he exclaimed, holding hundreds of papers under his arms. “I'm not ready for Soul Bonding just yet, but I have written down some of my techniques here.”

He spoke rapidly and seemed to dislike even a second of silence.

“Alexander, are you okay?” I asked, noticing his erratic behavior.

“Okay?” His eyes twitched, “I am more than okay, Quinn! I am doing just dandy! It's not like I've been trapped in this library all by myself for seventy-two hours!”

I was about to correct him, informing him that it had only been twenty-four hours, but then I remembered the time-dilation effect that was in effect within the Mind Sanctum.

“I think you need to relax,” I advised

“Relax?” He looked at me like I was crazy, “No, no, no! I cannot relax, if I relax I’m alone with my thoughts,” He shoved the papers into my hands, “If I keep working the problem will go away! And maybe you’ll be almost as strong as me!”

I hated to have to pull this card, but I could tell I would not make it through unless I tried, “Alexander, is this what she would have wanted?” I said thinking back to the girl from the vision, I could tell he cared deeply for her,

He fell onto his knees breathing heavily for a moment, “You’re right Quinn,” He said after a minute, “Do you mind if I stay out of this place for a while, I don’t think it’s good for my mental health,”

I nodded, “Just, uh, try to close your eyes when I shower…”

He laughed slightly, “Don’t worry, I’m not some creep who would take advantage of living in your mind,”

I chuckled. “I know, I was just trying to lighten the mood. But seriously, don’t push yourself too hard. We can work on this together when you’re ready.”