Kalys watched the girl stalk out, leaving a distinctly icy cold feeling in the room.

He was angry, seething truth be told. Not at her, but he did realise he'd shown her little patience. She could hardly be faulted for the circumstances. The academy was another matter entirely; they would face his ire, and there would be consequences.

It was obvious to anyone with eyes she was Illusen stock; her hydrokinesis only made it all the more evident, and her eye made it indisputable.

What galled him most was the absolute lack of courtesy the academy had shown him, letting his father's daughter run around ignorant of her family and heritage and keeping her existence from him. Had he not gotten wind of her demonstration that night and what they hoped to see, he might never have known she existed, at least not until she became a full-fledged Revenant. And even then, he might never have crossed paths with her. Perdition was a big place.

The Illusens had been staunch supporters of Perdition since its inception centuries ago, and there was and always had been an Illusen Commander. They had donated countless funds to both the academy and the base. Keeping him in the dark like this felt akin to betrayal.

It would pay to keep eyes and ears in the academy from now on. He hadn't bothered before; he had not anticipated a situation like this. He couldn't help but wonder if his father had sired any other bastards before he'd been killed. He couldn't even recall his father having any interest in anyone after the death of Kalys's mother. He had already written his grandfather, both informing him of the girl and asking if he might have an inkling as to the identity of her mother.

Then there was her eye and the power that came with it. While anyone who knew his father knew about the odd physical attribute, they had made sure to keep the power secret. It wasn't something they had wanted to get out. Throughout the extensive history of their clan, it had manifested in a few dozen people. They didn't know why it was so rare or why these specific people had it.

He let out a sigh, his eyes fixing on the folder on his desk. It was everything the academy knew about Sunshine Farron. Farron wasn't even her legal name, until coming to Perdition she didn't exist on paper at all. But that was the name she had given them. He was in the process of legally changing her surname. No need to tell her that just yet, considering how she had reacted today.

Academically, she was doing well in most classes, especially considering she had arrived here illiterate. There was an extensive list of escape attempts in the first year of her being here; they'd stopped after a little while. He assumed that had to do with the arrival of the two boys she called her friends.

It had only been a few days since he'd learnt of her, but he'd managed to amass a wealth of information on her, including how she came onto the academy's radar.

It was a sorry tale. But at least she had killed those who had tried to harm her; it saved him from having to hunt them down and make an example. From the psychological evaluation when she had first been brought here, though, the incident had cut deep. Enough time had passed that she seemed largely unaffected by it, though her reluctance to kill anyone with it during her demonstration could lead back to that. Or she just had a conscience. Difficult to tell.

Kalys disagreed with the demonstration as well, parading inmates out to be executed by a student who clearly hadn't wanted to kill anyone. When had the academy's principals sunk so low?

He'd not had much to do with the academy since his own time there, and even then it had been relatively brief. He'd been trained by his father and grandfather before attending, and he'd breezed through the classes, graduating early.

Sun was clearly not him, but then she hadn't grown up with the same advantages he'd had.

He would rectify that.

His father would not have wanted this for his only daughter. Nero Illusen had been a kind and compassionate man to his family, softer and gentler with others than Kalys was. More so than Kalys's grandfather as well. But having to take up the mantle of Clan Head at such a young age had hardened Kalys.

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

Still, he knew his father would have taken the girl in had he known about her. He would have married her mother too; it would have been the right thing to do.

So as head of the clan, the responsibility fell to him to take care of his sister. The instant attraction and connection he'd felt to her the moment he'd seen her in that hall had hit with all the force of a freight train. It made being around her uncomfortable, but he would not shirk his duty to her. As he came to know her as a sister, he was sure the attraction would pass. It was purely physical.

He could see their father in her, diluted by her mother's genes but strong all the same. He just needed to keep that in mind.

He couldn't help but wonder what it would have been like to grow up with a sibling.

With a sigh, he let his ponderings dissolve. There was no point in dwelling on it. He needed to focus on the present.

He needed to help his sister get on track.

-

She made her way back to Perdition. Despite having never left the grounds, it was easy to find her way considering Perdition was the biggest and scariest-looking compound in the town.

As soon as she reached the gates, she headed straight for Zen's dorm.

Unfortunately, she was waylaid by Seph and his friends, Cullen and Vaan. They were among the most persistent pricks when it came to trying to make her life miserable. Well, Seph was, to a lesser extent, Vaan. Cullen neither participated nor tried to stop them.

She wasn't having it today, and as soon as Seph started to spew his vitriol, she tackled him. She wasn't usually aggressive, and it was clear she'd caught him off guard. She started laying into him, releasing some of the stress, frustration, and anger. Vaan and Cullen tried to pull her off of him, but Zen suddenly appeared, jumping into the fight. He could always be relied upon to back her up in a fight, no questions asked.

It was Nick who turned up and put a stop to it, porting them both back to the boys room before any more blood was spilled. It had all just happened so quickly.

They stood in the sudden silence, Zen and Sun catching their breath.

"I've been looking everywhere for you," Nick said. "Where have you been, and what the hell was that?"

"I... snapped," she muttered.

"It's not like that shitbag will admit Sunny got the drop on him anyway," said Zen. "I think we're in the clear."

"What is going on with you, Sunny Day?" Nick pressed.

She couldn't keep it to herself, as much as she wanted to. They would find out eventually. They sat and listened as she spilled her story, not happy about this turn of events. Neither could believe this man, this Commander, how could he just expect her to do whatever he said like that? How could he do it without even discussing it with her? He was a stranger to her. But then, she'd never even heard of Perdition when they'd forced guardianship on her. Fuck the powers that be...

At least they didn't have to watch her cry. She had been on the verge of tears when she arrived, but the more she explained, the angrier she got. By the end of her story, she was furious and pacing the room.

"What even are the gentle arts?" She spat.

"I think it's like embroidery, sewing... learning an instrument... womanly stuff..." Zen said.

Both Sun and Nick looked at him, a little surprised.

"What?" He asked, defensive. "I know stuff."

"What am I going to do?" She asked them, shrugging off his comment. "There has to be a way out of this."

They thought for a while. What could she do? Perdition had done a good enough job of convincing the courts that she couldn't be responsible for herself that they had been granted control of her.

"What about dissolving the guardianship?" Nick suggested. "Maybe you can fight it?"

The other two looked at him expectantly.

"When Illusen took guardianship, my guess is they argued over who should have control; Perdition or Illusen. I doubt anyone suggested whether anyone should have control of you anymore. You're older now; you've learnt to control your power for the most part. Maybe you can bring that discussion back to the table. You're almost legally an adult."

"How would that work?" She asked.

"I honestly have no idea."

She deflated a little at his words. Most people her age with her background had no guardians; hell, they had no oversight at all. Nick and Zen certainly weren't considered wards of Perdition despite coming here as minors.

"I'll go to the library tomorrow," she said, climbing onto the blankets on the floor and lying down. "Maybe there'll be something there."

She was feeling drained from the day, and the fight. And there was something exhausting about being in Illusens presence—a constant pressure.

"You'd be better off going straight to a barrister in town," said Nick. "I can come with you tomorrow if you want."

The boys lay down beside her, and Zen covered them with his blankets. "So we're staying in today then?"

She nodded as she closed her eyes and snuggled in between them.

It was still early, but it had been a long day with a lot of information to absorb. She wanted to ignore it for a little while.

Fuck Illusen.