"I'll see you later then." Serana waved at Lena, then rushed outside. Lena smiled as she watched her friend leave in a rush. After trying for days, she had finally received permission to leave the academy grounds to see her family.
Her smile shattered as she remembered her attitude towards Ren. He seemed really hurt earlier. And if that wasn't enough, she had tried to pull Aiden into a completely meaningless conversation, preventing him from going after Ren. The young Lord Condor seemed really angry too. Lena couldn't help but feel somewhat responsible of her friend's actions.
"Hey Lena!" Mirielle called out with a cheerful voice, pulling Lena away from her thoughts. She had a whole new pile of books with her.
"Hey Mirielle. Back from the library?"
She nodded. "I bumped into Princess Iris on my way back. She was leaving the academy grounds, apparently." She had to slow her steps as the pile of books seemed somewhat unstable.
Lena raised her eyebrows. "Really?" She couldn't imagine what would cause the princess to leave. She doubted it would have anything to do with her family. If that were the case, the entirety of Arkon would know about it.
"Let's head back upstairs." Mirielle said with a smile. She seemed to be eager to dig into her new pile of books. Somewhat lost in thought, Lena nodded and followed the cheerful girl.
When they reached to the top of the stairs, they saw Aiden. He was heading to his own room. He had a dark expression. In the short moment she saw him, she could swear there was blood on his cloak.
She took a breath to call out to him but then decided otherwise at the last second. His aura was much darker than usual, and he was clearly not in a good mood. Perhaps it was best if he was left alone. She wished Mirielle a good night before heading to her room, her head filled with thoughts.
* * *
Aiden was staring at a letter when Ren walked into the cafeteria. The young noble had a faint smile on his face. Ren hesitated to approach him. Was it really okay to intrude right now?
He remembered Aiden's words last night. He really was good at creating awkward situations – or walking into them. After a few more seconds of hesitation, he took a deep breath and approached Aiden's table.
It was one the couch sets next to the windows with the low coffee tables. "Good morning," He forced a smile. "Is it a bad time?"
Aiden quickly put the letter on the table and leaned back. "Oh, no not at all." He grinned. "I was sure I'd have to drag you here." He gestured towards the couch. "What are you doing standing around for? Sit down."
Ren sat down and pulled a bunch of papers from his bag. He still had to add some finishing touches on his report on wildmagic and he hadn't even gotten started with the report on the Ancients yet.
"Oh yeah, how's your hand?" Aiden asked, glancing at his black gloves. "I see you're hiding the wound."
Ren nodded. "It'd be difficult to explain why I'm not going to the infirmary. I'll be fine, don't worry about it." He hesitated. He wanted to thank the young noble for his help and support, but that'd just make this even more awkward.
"Alright," Aiden said with a grin. "In that case, you have two reports to write and I have an entire presentation to prepare. Let's get this done by dusk."
Ren nodded as both of them got to work. Though the silence made him nervous at first, he soon was buried deep into his homework. At around noon, Mirielle also joined them even though she didn't have any homework to do. Instead, she helped herself – and the two men – to some food and started reading one of her books. At a glance, Ren could tell it was about the Silkweavers.
Hours later, as the sun finally started to set, Ren stood up, stretched and yawned. "Finally done." He put the much more organised pile of papers back into his bag.
"Same here." Aiden leaned back and closed his eyes. "I want to sleep." He mumbled.
"Should we go back to the dorm?" Ren asked. "It's getting late."
"I'll drop these to the library!" Mirielle said with a cheerful voice as she gestured at the small pile of books. "See you guys tomorrow!" Without even waiting for a reply, she rushed away.
"Well, she's as cheerful and energetic as always." Aiden mumbled. He packed his bag and stood up as well. "Let's go."
As they walked back to the dorms, Aiden seemed lost in thought. He constantly kept fiddling with the letter. Ren thought about asking, but after a brief moment of hesitation, decided not to. He sighed and fiddled with a few strands of his hair.
"Is something wrong?" Aiden asked after a brief moment. "You seem worried."
Ren flinched. "Oh, no, not at all. I was actually going to ask you the same thing."
Aiden smiled. "My uncle is going to visit tomorrow. He said he had some stuff to do at the academy, he wants to meet up with me as well." He put the letter in his pocket. "I hadn't seen him in nearly a month, so I'm actually glad for the opportunity."
"Your uncle… You said he was with the Council, right?" Ren asked. His whole body tensed up as Aiden nodded. "He's… Well I don't really know what exactly his job is." He hesitated. "It's confidential." He said with a wry smile.
"I see." Ren mumbled. He clenched his fist, hidden beneath the cloth of his cloak. "I hope you get to spend plenty of time with him tomorrow." Keeping his voice emotionless was difficult. He looked up to the sky. The moon was slowly rising. "It's a full moon tomorrow."
"Yeah." Aiden said as they arrived at the dorms. "Let's review your report and my presentation one more time before heading off to sleep."
Ren nodded, one last review before having to submit it tomorrow was a good idea. Once they were in his room, Ren took his place on the bed as Aiden picked the chair. "I'll start first." Aiden said with a grin and started with his presentation. "The Dragonkin are one of the older races of our world…"
Ren found it difficult to focus on Aiden's words. His mind kept wondering – what could Aiden's uncle even have to do here? He could hazard a guess, though it wasn't a pleasant one. He glanced out the window. A full moon meant more visibility outside. Yu, Alicia, and the others were probably not even going to be in Arkon. He suddenly felt a lot less safe.
A knock on his door caused both of them to flinch. Who could it be this late in the evening? Ren couldn't feel anyone's mana. Before he could act, Aiden walked up and opened the door.
"Your highness!"