{Armia}
Armia strode through the halls of the academy, her mind focused on one thing: the upcoming tournant.
She had questions, concerns, and above all, a burning desire to prove herself. And, right now, the only person who ca to mind to seek guidance from was Professor Folden, thus Armia was making her way over to the woman's office after class.
As she approached Javir's office, however, the sound of voices made her pause.
Javir was speaking to soone, her tone serious and slightly exasperated.
"I know it looks bleak, Miria," she was saying, "but we can't write them off just yet."
[Miria?] Armia thought, her brow furrowing. [Must be another teacher. I wonder what they're discussing.]
Unable to resist her curiosity, Armia inched closer to the door, straining to hear the conversation.
"Javir, be realistic," the other woman, Miria, replied. "You've seen them in action. They're barely able to hold a sword, let alone wield one with any sort of skill. So much for being the most talented generation of students."
[What the hell?]
"They're young, Miria. Inexperienced. But that doesn't an they don't have potential. With the right training and guidance, I believe they could surprise us all. I just wish we had more ti."
The next words out of Miria's mouth made her blood run cold.
"Well, they'd better surprise us, and fast. The top perforrs in this tournant will be declared knights of Syux. The king is counting on us to bolster his forces, and we can't afford to let him down."
Armia's heart nearly stopped, her eyes widening in shock.
[Knights? The winners will beco knights?]
In an instant, a thousand possibilities flashed through her mind.
As a knight, she would have status, respect, a place of honor in Syux's hierarchy.
She would be seen as a true lady, refined and regal, not just so brutish darian playing dress-up.
[This is it,] she realized, a fierce determination taking root in her heart. [This is my chance to prove myself, to show everyone that I am worthy of the title of a Lady.]
But even as the thought filled her with excitent, Armia knew it wouldn't be easy.
She couldn't just win the tournant through brute force and raw power. No, she needed to do it with elegance, with grace, with all the poise and finesse of a true noblewoman.
[I'll need to train harder than ever,] she thought, her mind already racing with plans and strategies. [I'll need to master my magic, to find a way to fight that showcases my femininity, not just my strength.]
It would be a challenge, but Armia had never been one to shy away from a challenge.
She was about to turn and leave, her head full of ideas and her heart pounding with anticipation, when the door suddenly swung open.
Javir and Miria stepped out, their eyes widening in surprise as they caught sight of Armia standing there, looking like a deer caught in the headlights.
"Miss Duskscale!" Javir exclaid, her brows raising. "What are you doing here?"
Armia felt her face flush, heat rushing to her cheeks as she stamred out a response.
"I-I was just... I an, I wanted to talk to you about... about the tournant, and..."
She trailed off, realizing how flimsy her excuse sounded.
Miria, for her part, just looked amused, a smirk playing at the corners of her lips.
"Well, well," she drawled, crossing her arms over her chest. "It seems we have an eavesdropper in our midst."
Armia's blush deepened, mortification mingling with the adrenaline still pumping through her veins.
[Oh gods, this is so embarrassing. What must they think of now?]
But even as the thought crossed her mind, a sudden, mischievous impulse seized her.
Maybe it was the remnants of her earlier excitent, or maybe it was just the sheer absurdity of the situation, but before she could stop herself, Armia found herself grinning.
"You know what? You're absolutely right. I was eavesdropping, and I'm not even sorry about it."
Javir and Miria blinked, taken aback by her bold admission.
But Armia wasn't done.
"In fact," she continued, her grin widening, "I think I'll just see myself out. Lots of training to do, you know. Gotta get ready to beco a knight and all that."
And with a cheeky wave, she turned on her heel and sprinted down the hallway, leaving two very bemused professors in her wake...
... And making sure to hide her blushing face.
[I'll do it,] she thought. [I will beco a knight!]
---
{Isabella}
As Isabella made her way to the academy, her mind was buzzing.
She had finally shared her secret project with lisa, revealing the work she'd been pouring her heart and soul into for the past few years.
But now that the initial thrill of the revelation had worn off, a small, nagging doubt began to creep in.
[Should I have told her?] Isabella wondered, chewing on her lower lip as she walked. [I an, I trust lisa, but... what if she thinks it's a stupid idea? What if she doesn't believe I can actually pull it off?]
The thought of disappointing her cousin, of seeing skepticism or pity in those warm, crimson eyes, made Isabella's stomach twist with anxiety.
[No, no, it's fine,] she told herself firmly, shaking her head to banish the negative thoughts. [I'm overthinking it.]
With that reassurance firmly in mind, Isabella squared her shoulders and marched into the classroom, ready to face whatever the day might bring.
As soon as she spotted lisa, though, all her worries lted away, replaced by a giddy, bubbly warmth that filled her from head to toe.
Without hesitation, she bounded over to her cousin, plopping herself down on lisa's lap with a contented sigh.
lisa, to her credit, didn't even bat an eye, simply adjusting her position to accommodate Isabella's weight.
[Hehe, she's getting used to this,] Isabella thought, a mischievous grin tugging at her lips. [Pretty soon, she won't even rember what it's like to have a lap that isn't occupied by yours truly. Ha! You see, mom? I'm not pushing her away at all!]
Soon, as the professor droned on about the day's lesson, Isabella found her mind wandering, drifting back to the rune hidden away in the Alchemist's Tower.
She was so close, she could feel it.
Just a few more tweaks, a little more experintation, and she'd have a working prototype, ready to change the face of magic as they knew it.
Lost in her thoughts, she almost missed lisa's whispered question, her cousin's breath tickling her fluffy ear.
"Hey, Izzy? Want to work on your project together later? I have so ideas that might help."
Isabella's eyes widened, surprise and delight mingling in her chest.
"Really? You want to start helping today?"
lisa grinned, giving Isabella a quick, affectionate squeeze.
"Of course I do, silly. It's an amazing idea, and I want to see it succeed just as much as you do. So, what do you say?"
Isabella felt a rush of warmth flood through her.
"Alright," she agreed, her voice thick with emotion. "Let's do this."
---
Later, as they climbed the winding stairs of the Alchemist's Tower, Isabella could barely contain her excitent.
She chattered away, her hands waving animatedly as she explained her thought process to lisa.
"Okay, so here's what I'm thinking," she said, practically bouncing on her toes as they entered the laboratory. "The key to creating an unspent rune is to make it self-sustaining, right? It needs to be able to continuously draw in Essence, even when it's not actively being used."
lisa nodded, her brow furrowed in concentration as she listened.
"So, what if we created a sort of circular function?" Isabella continued, her eyes sparkling with enthusiasm. "Like, the rune would pull Essence into itself through the user, then store it until it's needed. And when it is used, it would automatically start the process all over again, drawing in more Essence to replace what was spent."
She looked at lisa expectantly, waiting for her cousin's reaction.
To her surprise, lisa didn't look confused or skeptical. Instead, her face lit up with understanding, a slow smile spreading across her lips.
"Yeah, I think that could work."
Isabella felt a rush of pride.
"You really think so?"
"Absolutely," lisa said, already moving towards the workbench. "And I have so ideas on how we could make it happen."
And, just like that, she launched into an explanation of where Essence ca from and how they could make this happen.
"If there are any spellsigns that create or manipulate Essence directly, making this rune could be as simple as weaving those spellsigns into an existing spell. Aside from that, the material used could be key as well."
"What do you an?"
"Well, theoretically, you could make a rune with anything, right?" lisa shrugged. "People just use rocks because they're easy to find and store. But, all a 'rune' is, is a material with a spellsign written onto it and Essence infused into it."
"Right."
"Well, what about those Essence lakes outside of Syux?" lisa asked with a smile. "Javir showed one to . What if we get so of it into a bucket, freeze it into a rock, and etch the spellsign onto it? Those things are pure Essence! Maybe it won't be spent."
As lisa rattled off other suggestions, her mind clearly whirring with possibilities, Isabella could only stare in awe.
[Wow,] she thought, a newfound respect for her cousin blossoming in her chest. [Mom told lisa was smart, but this... this is next level.]
It was a humbling realization, but also an exciting one.
With lisa's help, Isabella knew they could take this project to heights she'd never dread of.
They worked together seamlessly, bouncing ideas off each other and scribbling out complex equations and diagrams.
Ti seed to fly by, the outside world fading away as they lost themselves in the thrill of discovery and creation.
But eventually, lisa glanced at the clock, a rueful expression crossing her face.
"Ah, shoot. I hate to cut this short, but I really need to get back to training for the tournant. Gotta make sure I'm in top form, you know?"
Isabella felt a pang of disappointnt, but she understood. The tournant was important, not just for lisa, but for all of them.
Part of being in the Prestige Class, after all, was establishing one's reputation.
In other words, this was an opportunity to show off.
"Of course," she said, nodding in agreent. "I should probably take a break too. Can't have my brain turning to mush before we even get this thing working."
But then, an idea struck her, a mischievous glint entering her eyes.
"You know," she purred, sidling up to lisa with a coy smile. "I could help you train, if you want. Train your sorcery, I an. I may not look it, but I'm actually a pretty competent fighter myself. Perks of being a kitsune, you know. Magic cos easy to us."
lisa raised an eyebrow.
"Really? You could?" lisa tilted her head.
[There still a few schools of Magic I haven't learned about,] she thought. [Life Magic, Wind, Water, Light... Syux has given a lot, but for so reason, they tend to ignore certain parts of sorcery.]
"Well," she murmured, her hands sliding around lisa's waist, "How about we take a few minutes to... charge your Essence, and then I show you a few things?"
lisa visibly swallowed.
Their eyes still locked, lisa said:
"Sure."
And, that was all the permission Isabella needed before she went and crashed their lips together.
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