The silent aftermath
The sun had already begun its gentle descent, casting long coppery shadows across the ruined grounds of the arena. What was once a grand stage bustling with students now lay deserted, with only faint echoes of earlier excitement lingering in the air like ghostly applause.
Black scorch marks and scattered, shattered fragments of Aether's mechanisms littered the ground — mute testaments to the overwhelming strength of the year five Chosen Ones. The dust from those ruins danced idly in lazy spirals whenever a stray breeze swept through.
Amidst that quiet devastation sat Aether, knees bent, elbows on thighs, hands hanging limp between his legs. His gaze was locked on the tiny, jagged remains of what he'd poured so many nights and raw scraps of genius into.
A soft sigh escaped him. Not bitter, not exactly pained — more like an exhausted exhalation of someone who'd seen, accepted, and decided he simply had to start again.
An unexpected approach
It was into this hushed aftermath that faint footsteps finally intruded, crunching ever so lightly on the broken ground. Aether's head didn't turn right away. He simply narrowed his eyes, focusing.
Those are cautious steps, he thought. Careful… but why does it feel like they tried so hard to hide their presence?
Then he smirked faintly. The smirk widened into a knowing smile as he turned his head smoothly — almost lazily — and fixed his gaze behind him.
There stood Shanny, vice president of the year five Chosen Ones. Her long teal hair rippled slightly in the soft wind, her familiar — a sleek midnight panther — prowling close at her side, its eyes half-lidded and unreadable.
Shanny's expression was caught somewhere between surprise and playful guilt, as though a child caught filching pastries from a tray.
"How did you turn so fast…?"
She tilted her head slightly, a lock of hair sliding over her shoulder. Then, trying to sound casual — though a curious tension underlay her tone — she asked, "Say… how did you turn around so quickly? I made sure to perfectly conceal my presence."
Ah, thought Aether. So she was trying to sneak up on me. Testing me for something? Or did she just want to observe without being noticed?
His response was dry, a touch smug, and so calmly delivered it almost seemed rehearsed.
"What's the point of concealing your presence," he said, lifting an eyebrow, "if you're going to step directly on the shattered pieces of my creations?"
He pointed with exaggerated slowness — straight down to her right foot.
Caught — and embarrassed
Shanny's confident posture crumpled as she followed his finger. Her eyes widened in faint horror when she realized her fine boot had indeed crushed a delicate gear fragment to metallic dust.
Her cheeks flushed the lightest shade of pink. With an awkward laugh, she pressed a hand to her forehead.
"Haha… it seems like that, doesn't it?" She forced out a tiny, mortified chuckle. "Gosh. So much for my stealth. Why did I even bother trying to hide? Ughh…"
Her voice dropped to an embarrassed murmur, half to herself. "Argh, this is humiliating. Why did I even conceal my presence to begin with…?"
Aether's smirk
Aether rose slightly from his crouch, leaning against the back of one hand with an infuriating little smirk. His golden eyes practically glinted.
"Heh. It's obvious you're embarrassed — it's written all over your face. Even your eyebrows are betraying you."
Shanny's mouth fell open, then snapped shut. Her shoulders stiffened. Clearly toasted by a mere first-year boy, she let out a tiny strangled noise that was far from dignified.
Meanwhile, inside, Aether was practically crowing to himself. Hehe, it feels good to rattle her a bit. But honestly… that was way too close for comfort. I didn't hear a single sound when she came walking up — not even the shard she stepped on made a noise. If I hadn't sensed that faint ripple of mana distortion…
His smirk softened into a more genuine, if still mischievous, grin. Then he lifted his chin slightly. "Anyway. What did you actually come to talk to me about, Senior Shanny?"
Shanny snaps out of it
As if jolted awake, Shanny jerked upright. "Oh! Right. I completely forgot for a moment why I came… ugh, how embarrassing."
She cleared her throat, collecting herself with practiced poise. Then, surprisingly sincere, she said, "Firstly, I wanted to apologize for Luke's behavior today. He's… well, stubborn to a fault. And I'm pretty sure he pressured you into all this, didn't he?"
Aether blinked. That's it? His expression slid into mild puzzlement. "Huh," he muttered. "That's what you wanted to say?"
Standing now, he dusted his hands off on his trousers, sending tiny puffs of gray powder swirling. Then, almost flippantly, he shrugged. "I don't mind. Actually, I wanted to see how strong your Chosen Ones really were too."
Pride and childishness
Shanny immediately brightened, a mischievous grin replacing her fluster. "Hehe… so we're strong, right?" Her hands went to her hips in a very un-vice-president-like pose, shoulders squared proudly.
Aether tilted his head, golden eyes half-lidded, and gave a languid, evasive, "Who knows?"
Shanny's triumphant spark fizzled on the spot. Her mouth drooped into a faint pout. "Wha — I'm sure everyone else acknowledges our strength… is he really not going to admit it?"
Then came a sudden soft snort from Aether. "Pfft. Fine, don't make that face. No cap — you're all strong. Satisfied?"
Her disappointed look flipped instantly back into a bright, delighted smile.
Talk of compensation
"Anyway…" Shanny adjusted her tone back to something more official. "The second reason I came was to sort out compensation. You'll need to let us know how much we owe you for using your mechanisms today. We're well aware how hard it is to build things of that level — so we've already prepared to pay you."
At that, Aether went completely still. His gaze dropped to the ground. Silence stretched for two beats. Shanny's confident smile faltered.
"…A-Aether?" she tried, reaching a hand out toward him. Is he upset? Does he think we're insulting his work by offering payment?
But just then Aether's head snapped up. His eyes sparkled like sunlight on water, wide and bright, his entire face breaking into a radiant grin.
"Ohh — really? Well, it'd be my utmost pleasure to receive contributions!"
Shanny nearly face-planted from relief — and disbelief. She slapped her palm to her forehead, muttering, "Oh gods, so he was just… excited."
Unexpected teamwork: the awkward cleaning
"Then let us know once you've decided on the amount," Shanny said with an exasperated little sigh. Aether, practically beaming, nodded so enthusiastically it was a wonder his head stayed attached.
Just as she was about to turn to leave, her eyes drifted to the ground. Dust. Scattered shards. Blackened scars.
Was he… staying behind to clean all this by himself?
She hesitated, then offered, "Do you want help cleaning this up?"
Aether blinked. Then with a sly grin, he murmured under his breath, "Hehe… I was planning to clean later, but if she's offering, why say no?"
Out loud he said, "Sure. I'd be happy to accept your help."
For a second, Shanny shivered. Why is he smiling like a little evil imp?
An awkward silence
So the two of them — the vice president of the year five Chosen Ones and the first-year mechanist whose creations had just been obliterated — found themselves awkwardly side by side, sweeping dust and picking up twisted fragments.
Neither spoke. Neither seemed to know how to start. The silence stretched so painfully that even Shanny's panther lay down and covered its eyes with a paw, as if embarrassed for them both.
The petty cleaning race
Finally, unable to bear it, Aether quirked an eyebrow and teased, "Ohhh, so the vice president of the Chosen Ones can clean too, huh?"
Shanny bristled, then smirked right back. "I'm a girl, besides being a mage, you know. Of course I clean. Besides — you seem awfully skilled at this yourself!"
Their eyes met — competitive glints sparking. Shanny squinted suspiciously at his deft hands. He's cleaning more fluently than I am… how's that possible?
She scowled faintly. Hmph. I won't let you beat me at this too.
And thus began an intense, completely silent cleaning contest. Shanny's movements grew sharper, faster; Aether shot her confused side-glances but didn't slow down either. Before long, the entire area was spotless.
Aether's gentle question
As Shanny placed the last bit of debris into a small sack, she let out a relieved sigh. "Finally done. That was awkward."
Aether tilted his head, then seemed to consider something seriously.
"Hey, senior… can I ask you a question?"
Shanny didn't miss a beat. "Finally, some conversation. What is it?"
Aether's eyes narrowed thoughtfully. "I thought maybe I was overthinking it, but… is there something wrong between the president and his mana beast?"
Shanny's surprise
Shanny froze. Her fingers still rested on the edge of the sack, unmoving.
"What makes you ask that?" she asked carefully.
Aether shrugged. "It just feels like… there's no real bond there. Who asks their own familiar to do dirty intimidation work like attacking random people — unless they're outright villains? And clearly, he's not a villain."
For a moment, Shanny's eyes darted away. Then she let out a slow exhale.
"Well… I suppose there's no harm in telling you a little. Though keep it between us."
Secrets under a setting sun
So they stood there amid the cleaned earth — once battlefield, now oddly peaceful. As the last slivers of sun dipped beyond the distant academy walls, Shanny leaned in slightly and began to explain. Aether listened intently, head tilted, as quiet interest sharpened in his eyes.
A panther yawned. Aether's leftover fragments lay sorted neatly at their feet, no longer marks of failure, but perhaps — just maybe — the foundation of something stronger to come.