"Clara!" Lady Luna's surprised expression immediately softened with a gentle, motherly smile. She stood up and circled around her desk in a hurry. As mother and daughter hugged, Aether discreetly took a step back. He was intruding, and he didn't want to be doing that.
"Where do you think you are going?" Lady Luna's sharp voice stopped him in his tracks just before he stepped out of the door.
"My apologies, I don't want to intrude." He hastily answered. Lady Luna was the one person he didn't want to piss off.
"Aw, don't be ridiculous!" Clara said with a cheerful voice as she pulled him back inside, then closed the door. "Don't be angry at him mom, I got lost and asked him to help me find this place."
Lady Luna's eyes shot up. "How did you get lost? It's a straight shot from the gate to the building!" The disbelief resonating in her voice almost made Aether chuckle. Clara just giggled. "You know me, I saw something and got sidetracked." She threw herself on one of the two couches in the office. "Then I saw him – mom, it was like a scene from a fairy tale!" She exclaimed, her eyes glimmering.
Aether cleared his throat. "I should let you catch up, if you will excuse me-"
"No." Lady Luna's firm voice sounded. Her piercing glare made Aether feel a hint of worry. "Have a seat." She added with a much gentler tone.
With a look of defeat in his eyes, Aether lowered himself onto the couch. Out of all the things that could happen, he would have never guessed he'd find himself in an awkward situation like this.
"Anyways!" Clara piped up. "I found him in the woods and asked him to help me find this place."
Lady Luna sighed. "I'm almost afraid to ask but… how did you end up in the woods?"
"I saw a butterfly. It led me to him actually – he was laying down, surrounded with butterflies! Mom, it was like a scene out of a fairy tale. It's just that… usually the girl is surrounded by butterflies, not the guy." She giggled.
Lady Luna's expression was a mix of disappointment, curiosity, and interest. "Butterflies?" She asked, glancing at Aether. "Was your summoned creature not a black butterfly as well?" She asked with a thoughtful expression.
"Yes." Aether hesitantly replied. "It's nothing amazing such as Mara's." He added in hopes of diverting Lady Luna and Clara's attention. His plan, however, failed spectacularly as Clara's eyes glimmered with excitement. "Really? A black butterfly? That's awesome! Show it to me later."
"Black and blue," Lady Luna added absentmindedly.
"I…" Aether shook his head. "I appreciate the, uh, cheering, but it's just a butterfly." He mumbled. What in the name of the chaos realms was this situation? "Anyways – it's getting somewhat late, and I feel like I'm just in the way, so if you'll excuse me." He motioned to get up.
"But I promised you dinner!" Clara protested. Aether almost choked on his own spit as he felt Lady Luna's deadly glare.
"And I told you, there is no need to trouble yourself." He scrambled to decline in an inoffensive manner. "Besides, I'm sure Lady Luna would like to spend time with you. I wouldn't want to get in the way." He hurried to the door.
"Aether," Lady Luna's voice stopped him just as he was about to reach for the door. "Master Ladran will be here tomorrow at dusk. He was hoping he would get a chance to talk to you. Make sure you drop by here then."
"Yes Ma'am." Aether said, then wished them a pleasant evening before leaving. He breathed a sigh of relief only when he had left the administrative section completely. "What is my luck…?" He mumbled, then headed outside.
As the fresh evening breeze blew his hair back, he made his way to the cafeteria. Lady Luna's words still rang in his ears. Lord Ladran would return tomorrow.
Unfortunately for both of them, they hadn't gotten the chance to speak properly ever since the wildmagic anomalies incident. Lord Ladran's schedule was clearly filled to the brim, and despite wanting to, he hadn't gotten a chance to speak with Aether.
Aether wasn't too bothered by this – he had made himself clear enough. Anything more than what he had already revealed would be too much. He sighed and shook his head as he stepped inside the not too crowded cafeteria.
He approached the counter and showed his stats bracelet – the floating text above it displayed his name. "One moment, sweetie." The elderly lady smiled as she confirmed his identification. Seconds later, a plate filled with food was delivered to him. He thanked her, then headed to the table he usually preferred.
He paused midway through the cafeteria as he noticed two people sitting at his table. His eyes met with Iris' as her lips formed a frown.
"Aether." She spoke with a flat voice. "Why don't you join us?"
The young man sighed. "Sure." He pulled a chair and placed his plate on the table. "Excuse me," He said before digging in. He had no intention of chatting with the clearly unhappy Iris, or the smug puppy that seemed to follow her everywhere.
"It's surprising to see you alone," Seth piped up as Aether almost finished his meal. He grinned as he watched the black-haired young man wipe his hands with a napkin. "I was sure I'd seen you with a beautiful lady just a short while ago."
Aether shot him a glance. "I helped someone who had gotten lost." He replied with a flat voice. "Anyways, I'll excuse myself now." He said as he stood up and took his empty plate to return it.
He could feel the piercing gaze of Iris as he returned the plate and headed out. She had glared at him all throughout dinner too. Eating had been quite a challenge – it was difficult to swallow when someone watched his every move with a gaze so intense.
With a sigh, he decided to head back to the dorms. Tomorrow was going to be a challenging day, to say the least. The defensive magic class was tomorrow, and on top of that, he was going to have a talk with lord Ladran.
"Mom." Clara's sweet voice sounded as her mother tidied up the last few documents on her desk. "Who is he?"
Luna hesitated. "Aether?" She asked. "He's one of the more composed ones. Master Soren seems to think highly of him – and he held his own against a creature causing trouble."
"Did he? How strong is he?" Clara's eyes sparkled with curiosity. Luna sighed, then tapped on the display on her desk. "Access Aether Yotsura's information." She spoke with a clear voice.