As Becca led Alex through the house, the atmosphere subtly shifted. The second floor where they stood was clearly more private, with personal touches that hinted at family history.
The warm wooden floors creaked beneath their feet, and the soft light from hanging chandeliers gave the place an old-world charm, yet it felt lived-in.
"Not bad for a family inheritance, huh?" Becca said, glancing back with a mischievous grin. "My ancestors left us this place, and now it's mostly filled with students from the Ordo Custodes Academy."
"Ordo Custodes?" Alex asked.
"Order of the Guardians in the New Tongue. Mages tend to love that words have power thing. Basically the Order is the Mage association of this city, Staris. And the academy is where most mages go to get their training."
"A mage hostel," Alex mused, running his hand over the intricate railing as they descended. "Fancy. Guess the family's been in the magic game for a while then? And what's the deal with the Academy?"
Becca chuckled. "Oh yeah, centuries at least. The academy? Well, it's a breeding ground for all kinds of magic nuts. Students come here to learn, and apparently, some never leave." She winked, clearly enjoying the playful jab at the nature of her tenants.
Alex's eyes flashed with a subtle golden light. This academy sounds like a place to be.
They turned into a long hallway on the first floor, which was more open, designed for communal living.
Comfortable couches lined the walls, and large windows framed views of the academy's grand towers in the distance. There were doors leading to what Alex assumed were dorm rooms, each marked with various names and runes.
"So, you host mages… ever get tired of the spell slinging?" Alex asked, his eyes scanning the walls, where paintings of landscapes mixed with framed arcane diagrams.
"I mean, it can't be easy, all the shenanigans young people in close proximity are likely to get into, and add magic into that, sounds like a powder-keg just waiting to blow up in someone's face."
"You'd think I would," she said, pausing to tap her fingers against a doorframe. "But it's in my blood. Honestly, there's something kind of exciting about housing a bunch of walking magical disasters." She gave him a knowing look. "Present company included."
Alex shrugged, smirking. "I'd like to think I'm more of a controlled disaster."
"Sure," Becca said, her eyes gleaming playfully. "But tell that to the arm you just tried to pulverize upstairs."
They moved toward the kitchen, a space that seemed oddly modern compared to the rest of the building. Copper pots hung from the ceiling, and the scent of herbs filled the air.
"You must have quite the stories from this place," Alex said.
"You have no idea." She leaned against the counter, folding her arms. "There's always something going on. Last month, one of the students tried to enchant his bed to make it fly. Long story short—it crashed through two floors. Had to have the whole place reconstructed with wards."
"Sounds like this place is a lot more than just a hostel."
Becca smiled softly, her guard down just a bit. "Yeah, it's more than that. It's home." She pushed off the counter, and they began heading back towards the common area. "We've been running this place for generations. Not sure what I'd do without it."
"Besides we sort of err on the side of collecting the more down and out and unique characters."
Alex was amused by the implication. "Really? I couldn't tell." He answered sarcastically.
"Oh trust me, you'll be able to tell. Just you wait till you meet the rest."
"I've already met Royce, and if he's anything to go by, I really should fear for my safety here." Alex prodded
"Well what can I say. I can proudly say that we are a lot of things. Safe is not one of those things. You'll find out if you stick around. Are you sticking around?"
As Becca and Alex continued their walk through the hostel, the place started revealing more of its quirky charm.
Every corner seemed to have a story, some forgotten and some still very much alive, but Alex could sense that the place held a power of its own.
Becca's lighthearted demeanor made it easier to absorb the little details, but his mind couldn't shake off the looming questions.
He didn't know much, but this hostel screamed 'NOT NORMAL'
"Are you sticking around?" Becca asked again, her tone casual, but her eyes sharp.
Alex paused, feeling the weight of that question more than he'd expected. Am I sticking around? The idea of settling, even temporarily, felt foreign, wrong.
The echoes of the fight upstairs, the brief glimpse into his past seemed to be pushing him toward something. But what?
"I haven't really decided yet," Alex replied after a beat. He leaned against the doorframe, looking out at the academy's towers framed by the large windows. "This place is... different. I might not know much about myself, but I know I don't really do 'settling.'"
Becca raised an eyebrow, picking up on his hesitation. "You sure about that? You looked pretty settled when you were going toe-to-toe with a mechanical arm a few minutes ago."
Alex chuckled, but it was more to cover up his unease. "Well, maybe I just need to figure things out first. And fighting seems to help jog my memory a little."
"You really don't remember anything, huh?" Becca asked, her tone softening a little as they stopped near a large bay window.
The view was stunning—academy spires stretching high, a sprawling cityscape below, and the distant gleam of the star-shaped lake from which Staris drew its name.
"Bits and pieces," Alex said, his voice quieter now. "Flashes of faces, feelings. But nothing solid. Like trying to grab smoke." He sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "But I have a feeling that whatever I've forgotten isn't something I can ignore forever."
Becca glanced at him, her expression thoughtful. "The academy might help with that, you know."