Nerluce groaned into Eden's mane.

Technically, he was supposed to be helping Aristide haul the old hay out but Nerluce needed to finish cleaning Eden's stall first and he was struggling to do anything right now. He was tired and frustrated and even after a week's worth of work, Nerluce still couldn't get his Magickal Weapon to keep a consistent form or even take a form that he was really satisfied with.

And when Nerluce was so focused on something, he tended to be completely unable to do anything else. For example, he was falling behind in his other classes because he'd been neglecting to study in favor of practicing with his Magickal Weapon. Now it even seemed to be affecting his ability to work. He was itching to summon it again, to keep working on it until he was satisfied.

Until he did that, though, he'd be completely useless.

"I'm sorry I forgot snacks again, Eden," Nerluce said, stroking the horse's neck. Though Eden didn't seem as large as he once did, he was still massive. "I'll try to bring them tomorrow."

Eden snorted.

Aristide scoffed.

Nerluce swung his head around to glare at Aristide but he was already gone and it felt a bit pointless to chase after him just to glare. Nerluce sighed and gave Eden a final pat before he left the stall and went to visit the mare in the neighboring one.

"Hey Lilith," Nerluce said, his elbows resting on the gate. "How are you doing today, Momma?"

"Don't call my horse that," Aristide said.

Nerluce jumped because he swore that Aristide had just left the barn yet here he was. "Gods, why have you made it your life mission to scare me?"

Aristide shrugged.

"Anyway, I was just saying hello," Nerluce said. "I think Lilith is going to let me pet her any day now. Probably a day I bring snacks, though." He rubbed the back of his neck, sheepishly. "So where is the wheelbarrow?"

"I put it up," Aristide said. "I finished."

"Shit really?" Nerluce asked, glancing around to see that he had, in fact, finished while Nerluce was messing around. "I'm sorry, Aristide. I'll do it all next time, I promise."

For some reason, it didn't look like Aristide believed him. "It doesn't matter." Aristide glanced to the side and then... "What's with you lately? You've been acting..." He trailed off as though he just realized what he was saying.

"Aw, are you worried?"

"A bit," Aristide said.

That... that caught Nerluce off guard. He didn't know why. Aristide was never the type to hide how he was feeling. Yet... his simple words caused Nerluce's face to flush. Nerluce was always helpless around people so he imagined his cheeks were as red as his eyes. Gods, would it kill Aristide to never say anything nice to Nerluce again? He didn't think his heart - or dignity - could take it.

Doing the only thing he could to escape, Nerluce laughed. "I'm fine. My head's just... been in the clouds. You know how it is."

"You're working on your Magickal Weapon, right?"

"Yep," Nerluce said. "It's been... pretty frustrating. I just can't get it to work for me no matter what I do."

Aristide nodded and Nerluce guessed he really did understand the feeling. While Nerluce struggled with his own weapon, Aristide struggled to summon Coam's. Nerluce didn't know why Aristide was so focused on summoning Suru-Suru but he felt like Aristide was much closer to reaching his goal than Nerluce was to reaching his.

However... that did give Nerluce an idea.

"We should train together!" Nerluce said. "Are you doing anything tonight?"

"I'm not."

"Great! We should totally-"

"However, the lower-level water disciples are using my personal training ring for their one on one sparing. And Fonbi and Kierli are in my quarters so we can't use those either," Aristide said, ruling out the only two places they'd ever trained together before.

They could train in the garden, but Nerluce doubted that Aristide would approve of that. Besides, it was getting dark and that could be unsafe. They couldn't use any of the courtyards for the same reason. Which left... "We could always train in my room," Nerluce offered. "Lyana usually stays in the common room until pretty late so we'll be left alone."

"You sleep in the same room as Lyana?" Aristide asked. "Why?"

"There's an odd number of boys," Nerluce said. "And I've been doing it for the past two years so... whatever."

"I see..." Aristide said.

However, that was all he said as they finished up in the stables and headed to the fire Affinity dorms. Students of other affinities weren't exactly forbidden to visit the other dorms but it wasn't something that was actively encouraged either. As Nerluce led Aristide into the building, he wondered absently if Aristide had ever been into the fire Affinity dorm before.

Throwing a glance behind his shoulder, Nerluce somehow doubted it. Aristide didn't have many friends so who would have invited him here? And he was such a rule follower that there was no way he would have come without an escort.

They walked through the common room, where some game was in motion. Lyana's brows were pinched as she held two cards in her hand. Corbett had an equally distressed look on his face as his gaze went from card to card. Eko leaned casually against the couch with an identical hand of cards. They looked pretty confident which probably meant they'd already won. Hamelin was the only one not playing but he seemed plenty content just watching.

"Nerluce!" Lyana said, waving him down. "Come here and play with us! Eko is totally cheating..." She trailed off when she noticed Aristide behind him.

"Sorry, Lyana, but I'm going to get some extra training in tonight," Nerluce said.

"Oh..." Lyana said before smiling. "Oh."

"I don't like that face you're making," Nerluce said.

Corbett lifted his head, took one look at Nerluce, Aristide, and Lyana's smiling face, before smiling in a very similar way. "Oh."

"Hm?" Eko asked, looking over their shoulder. "Oh."

"Guys, stop," Nerluce said. "We're going upstairs. And Lyana, please knock."

Lyana scoffed. "Like I'd forget. Stay off my bed."

Nerluce lifted a hand in acknowledgment as he and Aristide started to climb the stairs and Nerluce started an apology. "I don't know what that was all about. They're weird like that sometimes, you know? Then again, the water disciples don't seem to talk to you or even one another all that much."

"No," Aristide agreed. "Do you usually play?"

"Huh? No, not usually," Nerluce said, shaking his head. "I mean, I don't have the time to. I have to focus if I want to become a Seraph."

"You will become a Seraph," Aristide said.

He said it so simply and with so much confidence that Nerluce nearly missed a step and fell flat on his face. He caught himself in time - thankfully - but he couldn't shake the prickling embarrassment as he and Aristide reached the third floor and Nerluce showed Aristide to his room. It was a bit of a mess - or as messy as a room with so few things in it could get.

Nerluce scooped up Lyana's clothes from the floor and dumped them on her palate. "Sorry," he said. "Make yourself at home."

"It's been forever since I've been in one of these rooms," Aristide said, pulling out the pillow at Lyana's desk and sitting on it.

"Really?" Nerluce asked. "How old are you, by the way? We're betting on it."

"You're betting on... my age?" Aristide asked.

"Yeah," Nerluce said with a grin. "You know Magick affects how old people appear so..." He shrugged. "Most people think you're around Taayir's age, but I don't buy it. My guess is that you're like... twenty. At most."

Aristide made a face.

"So... how old are you?"

"I think I'd prefer to keep it a mystery now," Aristide said.

"No, tell me! I'll tell you how old I am," Nerluce said, sitting down right next to him so that he could poke Aristide's arm. "I'm..." He frowned and thought about it for a moment. "I'm uh... hold on... sixteen. Seventeen this spring. I think."

Aristide frowned. "Then you won't like my answer."

"What, why not?" Nerluce asked. "Please tell me."

"I'm seventeen this winter," Aristide said.

"I don't believe you," Nerluce said.

Aristide shrugged and to stop Nerluce from pestering him further, he summoned Kōttaiki with a flick of his wrist. Nerluce watched in awe as the beautiful ice sword had life breathed into it right before Nerluce's very eyes. It was thin, almost delicate but no one who'd seen Kōttaiki in action would ever make that mistake.

"Do you want to hold it?" Aristide asked.

"Yes," Nerluce said, instantly.

Aristide handed over the sword and Nerluce touched the blade for the first time. It was colder than he thought it would be. It burned his fingers just to touch it. He had no idea how Aristide could bare gripping it. The blade itself was long, thin, and curved in the traditional Tilican in style, but Nerluce didn't recognize the type, despite how much energy he'd been spending researching that as of late.

"What kind of sword is it?" Nerluce asked.

"I'm not sure," Aristide said. "I think it's based off of some type of sabre."

Nerluce's head shot up. "What do you mean you're not sure."

Aristide took the blade back from Nerluce. "Kōttaiki is unlike any sword forged by a master craftsman." He ran a finger along the edge before stoping at the hilt and tracing the precise details able to be carved onto ice. At first, Nerluce thought it was some pattern - and there was an elegant pattern carved, like frost on a window but beneath that he saw there were a couple of marks that cut deeper into the ice.

Squinting at it, Nerluce reached out and traced them with his finger. They almost looked like string, the type that tied toy swords together.

And then it hit him.

"A little kid forged Kōttaiki after being saved by some soldiers. He had nothing but a couple of sticks and a shoelace," Aristide said.

Slowly, Aristide handed the blade back to Nerluce and Nerluce looked at it with new found respect and awe. He'd known of the power and grace of Kōttaiki but he'd never before seen its true worth. Kōttaki was made of beautiful and elegant ice but marred by echoes of poverty and despair - a bit like the one who wielded it. It truly was a fitting blade of a creature as divine as Aristide.

"Why did you show me this?" Nerluce asked, looking up.

Aristide frowned, as though he wasn't certain either. "I guess... I just thought it might help. The most powerful Magickal Weapons originate from strong emotions." He turned and looked Nerluce dead in the eye before smiling. "I know that your Ealatus will be every bit as powerful as Kōttaiki."

A helpless laugh left Nerluce's chest as he looked desperately at Aristide. That misplaced confidence again and yet it was all Nerluce needed to burn as brightly as the sun.

"Then let's get started."