Varce and Cyril parted awkwardly when Varce did not know what to do with himself after apologizing. Cyril was seriously questioning if he had heard the proud dragon correctly as Varce hurried off in no particular direction. Varce stalked his way to one of the minor administrative halls as he continued to feel a light brush of energy he recognized as Cyril's Spiritual Senses. The building was protected with formations to stop any prying eyes from observing inside without permission.
Finally out of Cyril's "sight," Varce let out a sigh. He messed up with Cyril again because he didn't know how to interact with him.
'Perhaps I should visit Uncle Arvel soon.'
Arvel always talked about Cyril more than he realized. Arvel had shut himself away from the world more and more recently; Cyril and alchemy were his world now. It was no wonder he spoke only of Cyril. Varce hoped that he could find something useful about Cyril amidst his godfather's ramblings. Anything to help him figure out how to talk to the little iceberg that was his fiancee.
Vance tried to shake his irritation as he looked around him and made the decision to give a little random inspection before he left.
Cyril had finally retracted his senses when Varce entered the hall. He left the garden and headed back. Had he stayed a little longer, he might have noticed the small eruption of chaos around a particular administrative hall of the sect. Minor elders were seen scrambling to find elders higher on the political ladder to calm the temper of the sect master that had paid them an unexpected visit and found the facility sub-par. Disciples were dowsing small fires accidentally sparked by the sect master as he released his fury on the unlucky administrative officers that had allowed the facility to fall into disorder with sloppy work and some minor corruption.
Cyril had no idea his awkward conversation with Varce started a chain reaction that would end with all fifteen of the different administrative halls of the sect receiving extreme overhauls in less than a week. He walked back to the Alchemy Hall thinking about the odd meeting with the sect master.
'I could have sworn I heard that arrogant dragon bastard apologizing for something. Maybe I should get my hearing checked,' He thought.
The weeks went by and Cyril eventually forgot the incident. Varce busied himself in affairs of the sect while Cyril and Arvel continued isolating themselves in the lab, lost in the world of alchemy and medical arts.
Varce and Cyril didn't see each other again until an accident involving an explosion in the Alchemy Hall brought the sect master flying to the hall in record time. The master-disciple pair were embarrassed, but unharmed after a little experiment in the lab had gone wrong; wrong enough to put a sizable hole in the Alchemy Hall. The two were standing in front of Varce, shuffling their feet. Varce couldn't help but compare their looks to children that got caught breaking something important.
Varce wanted to tear his scales out. He had enough stress on his plate without these two alchemy-obsessed dragons adding to things. Both his hearts nearly stopped when he had seen the damage. Although he knew that both Arvel and Cyril's cultivation should be high enough to protect them from a blast this size, the worst-case scenarios still ran through his head as he frantically looked for the two in the remains of the lab. He found Arvel shielding himself and Cyril with one of his bat-like dragon wings. The two were a bit dusty, but there wasn't a scratch on them as Arvel's giant wings took the brunt of the explosion.
"We're fine, boy. Quit your nagging. It takes a lot more than this to get through these old scales." Arvel griped as Varce fussed over them.
Even though Arvel himself was one of the best healers in the Sect, Varce ignored Arvel and had several other elders of the Sect check them before he was convinced. Arvel was fuming at the boy for ignoring him, but Varce insisted. Arvel chose to let it go as his godson was only trying to show concern in his own way, not intending to disrespect his abilities. After being thoroughly assured there were no injuries on either of them, Varce finally relented and sent them the pair to tidy themselves up.
Varce looked exasperatedly at the damaged hall. The blackened remains of the lab were still smoking as the Alchemy Hall's fire crew fought a few of the more perseverant fires. He began calculating construction costs in his head. Fortunately, the experiment was done in an isolated lab protected by formations. Arvel's workshop where he stored his books and such was untouched. Varce sighed as he began ordering idle disciples and elders to the work that had to be done.
Cyril and his Master were already discussing where the experiment went wrong when they left Varce cleaning up the mess they had made. The two discussed what had catalyzed the explosion as they walked to their quarters. The duo walking side by side with their hands similarly clasped behind their backs as they argued was a funny sight.
Varce of course could hear them bickering as they left and smiled wryly to himself. He made a note to make them promise not to duplicate the experiment- at least not without proper safety precautions. He would make sure the Alchemy Hall's safety measures were updated too. He groaned as he imagined the work piling up. The two alchemists would be the death of him.
'Wait, the work here will need to be supervised closely. As the head of the projects, I would have to visit the Alchemy Hall quite often to check on the progress here, right?' Varce stopped short realizing there may be some hidden benefits in the situation. With that, Varce suddenly found himself looking forward to the work.
The disciple and elders in the sect were freaking out as the sect master abruptly became all smiles. His excitement put everyone on edge as they tried to figure out why the sect master was so happy about the hole in the Alchemy Hall.
Cyril and his Master freshened up quickly before heading back out. They couldn't leave all the work to Varce. Even Arvel wouldn't be able to escape the paperwork this time. Even the vice-elder of the Alchemy Hall was beside himself with glee and would not be letting go of Arvel for a while. Why would he, when he had finally managed to catch his slippery superior that avoided his administrative duties like a plague?
The Alchemy Hall became a lively place as multiple projects began in the building. The sect master was even personally overseeing some of them. He was frequently visiting the hall to check on the progress, much to Cyril's consternation. Just like that, a new routine was formed for the rigid master and disciple. The new schedule even included tea with the busy sect master, as things settled into a new normalcy.