Ezera slept soundly after the start of that night. He woke up the next morning admittedly feeling better. But as he made to get out of bed, he felt a burden against his chest under the cover. That was when he remembered.
The night before, as his troublemaker students went back to their own warm beds, one boy had asked to stay with him.
"Can I sleep with you on the bed?" Ming had asked shyly.
Ezera, "..."
He had accepted. All of this probably hadn't been reassuring for Ming, and Ezera could understand how the presence of a familiar adult might help him feel safer.
Now he pondered. Should he wake the sleeping Ming? Should he not? If he did, he should figure out a way to untangle himself from Ming without waking him. That could be tough.
Ming spared him the choice and woke up on his own.
"...?" he made a drowsy noise, still half asleep.
He cuddled a bit more against Ezera, who chuckled.
What am I, your teacher or your father?
"Wakey wakey," he murmured, careful in his jostling. "Come on, time to get up."
Ming made some more sleepy sounds before opening his eyes.
He instantly let go, horrified.
"Professor! I'm sorry!"
"Now, it's fine. Let's get ready for the day, alright?"
He thought for a second. There should be clothes for him, he had checked last evening. However, he doubted anybody had been prepared enough to predict to put child clothes in the closet.
"I'm up, I'm up!"
"Good. You should go back to your dorm while you can, to dress yourself. Hop hop, up you go!"
Ezera ushered the boy out of his room. He watched Ming run silently in the empty corridors, dawn nearly on them now and he thought. What did they say Ming had been again?
Right, a 'dragon master'.
What could that mean anyway?
He went back inside to prepare, sparing the question for later that day.
Once he was freshened up and dressed – white sleeve and black pants, whatever they thought a teacher should be wearing, but he didn't feel like wearing that grand coat yet, too classy, eye catching and also seeming difficult to move in, so he just opted for his usual jacket tied at the waist – he stepped out of his quarters, curious of how much he could explore before somebody went to look for him.
He passed the kids' rooms in front of which four guards saluted him as he passed. He nonchalantly made his way to the end of the corridors, and after checking they weren't looking anymore, walked up the stairs to the next stories. He was thinking that perhaps he would have less occasions to explore that area in the future.
It was even more quiet in the upper parts of the castle. Ezera tried to open all the doors on the way. He was glad nobody was awake so early in the morning but him, it left him plenty of time to explore all the rooms at his leisure. He had found next to nothing interesting thus far, which was boring but thankfully not saddening.
Quickly, in the third stories, he found a grand door that refused to be opened. He didn't have to wonder what it contained, as the function of that aisle was written in capital golden letters on the wall above, with a nice flourish. This was the library.
Mn, Ezera thought. It wasn't surprising to find it locked. He pondered: would they let him in if he asked nicely later?
He passed it by, made his way to the end of another corridor. After some more wandering, he fell on what was probably the royal study. He gracefully decided not to enter. If need be, he noticed there was a big window inside leader to the outside, from what he could see in the lock.
From there, the ways went 'round and around. It was only thanks to his great exploring sense that he managed to find the royal bedroom. Okay, he knew he shouldn't be there at all, if only for propriety's sense, but he had really wanted to memorize a bit where everything was.
Beside, if they had nothing to hide, there'd be no harm in shuffling about some, right?
About fifteen minutes later, he was done with his self-guided tour. He decided to go back to ground level, probably the only zone he was actually allowed to be in.
He searched some more. He deemed himself with an excellent timing when he found the dinner area at the same time his students arrived. He appraised them with a satisfied smile. They were well dressed, and nothing showed they'd spent half of the night in his quarters. Except perhaps Kai's eyebags, and Helene's constantly muffled yawns, but what is new?
With a look around the room, he checked again thatno other official but the guards guiding his students had been in the giant room before he himself entered. Only then did he make himself more obvious to them.
The first to notice him was Ming. The boy turned to him, taken aback to see him there already, before nodding a shy greeting. Ezera made a gesture with his hand in return. The next one to see him was, without surprise, Suzuka, always perceptive.
The first to speak up seeing him though, was Ashera, the class representative with Lucas.
"Professor Gemstone. You're here," he said, surprised.
They all turned to him and he smiled at them as he always did.
"Here I am indeed," he repeated with indulgeance. "The real surprise here is 'Here you are!' I've been waiting here ever since I woke up and I was starting to think I wouldn't see the nose of a single pupil today. Guess I was wrong?" He teased them.
It was his students' turn to appraise him. Alan laughed nervously.
"I always thought you must be lazy, sleeping all afternoon till morning after class, to always look that refreshed every school morning. How are you actually doing that?"
Leo nodded, disbelieving.
Ezera tilted his head.
"How I do what?"
"That!" Ernst, looking honestly put upon. "It looks like you've been up since the crack of dawn and yet you look like you're... You're... cognizant? No one looks cognizant at six in the morning."
Ezera let his eyes deliberately roam over his students' brand new outfits.
"If that is your worry, you should quell it. You all definitely look quite... 'smart', yourselves," he smirked.
"This and that are completely different!"
"Stop moking our clothes, teach! He's moking us!"
"Mh," Hymei hummed, contemplative... Then she adressed Kai without even looking at him: "Maybe you should take notes, Kai."
"I didn't ask you shit, so shut up."
Well. Aren't some of them quite grumpy in the morning? Even the ever happy Alan seemed somewhat tired. Perhaps he should stop bullying them.
"Alright, alright. Come sit and wait with me, won't you? Let's wait for these guys to tell us what you'll be doing this morning."
Sure enough, after another quarter of an jour – Ezera guessed that was the minimum adequate time to make guests wait – the Queen herself arrived with her sons in tow. And a handful of knights.
They greeted royalty before sitting down again and eating what they were served. Ezera was glad the kids were following his exemple, saluting when he did, only eating when he begun himself, not speaking until told to. He was proud of them.
Finally, as almost all the kids finished their plates, the Queen rose placidly.
Ezera made a show of putting his spoon down, and so followed the rest of his ducklings.
"I hope your night has been restful. Today, I would like to introduce you to the first knight of my kingdom."
She turned toward the man standing next to her.
"This man, Dereck vi Dowmrish, has been the captain of my personal guard for fifteen years now, he is my most trusted man. Under my command, he will from today onward train you into your divine gift to become true champions. Forgive him if he is a bit rash."
The man, not at all offended not to have been able to introduced himself, instead hit the low of his stomach with his fist like a salute.
"Enchanted to meet you. I'll be in your hands from now on."
They shyly returned the greetings under Ezera's watching gaze. Himself nodded once at the man, who smiled lightly at his recognition.
The queen didn't sit back down. Instead, she motioned for her sons to stand as well and excused herself.
"I will retire myself until dinner time. I hope that everything will go well."
Then, with all the procedure that it necessited, she walked away with her escort of knights, the priests and her sons.
Dereck's smile turned a bit warmer as he gazed at what would be his future students. Ezera knew that feeling. The one when you saw young people and realized you were going to help them become bigger persons eventually.
Then, his features hardened into a professional mask and he announced:
"When you are finished eating, I will guide you to the training ground. If that is alright with you, Professor Gemstone ? I hear that is your name."
Ezera stood.
"Indeed. I have no objection, as long as I am allowed to supervise."
"Condition granted."
Now. He was anticipating the next few hours.