[It was not known what the prerequisites were for admittance into the course Modern Magecraft Theory, but rumors traveled the Clock Tower like insects traveled a corpse. Some said the young Lord accepted only those with the most power and least control (a theory to which the presence of Flat Escardos lent some credence) or the more sinister rumor: that he personally chose only those who could be bent to whatever nefarious plans the so-called Scourge of Mage Society had for the Association at large.]

[The truth was a combination of the two, albeit a little gentler in intent.]

Forgive me for keeping you waiting. Can I get you a cup of tea?

[A man only a handful of years Ai's elder stepped into the (extravagantly built yet modestly furnished) office with the click of a metal-tipped cane on hardwood floor, closing the door behind him. Dressed in black and dark green with a pair of sunglasses perched on his head, Lord El-Melloi II resembled an average person far more than he did an archaic mage--and seemed even more out of place for the fact. A flicker of liquid silver caught the light briefly behind him as it slipped around a corner, thee sound of cabinets quietly opening and closing following it.]

Hoshino Ai, do I have that correct? You can just call me Professor if you don't mind--the formality of a full title is a little annoying.

[The truth behind the rumors was that the Clock Tower was a vile den of serpents. Talent went overlooked, people falling behind and through the cracks by design of a wretched society rather than mere oversight. And the Hoshino family was not an unknown to him for exactly that reason; newer in the matter of bloodline, and that much more perilous for it. Add on the fact that the woman before him (christ she's barely even older than Escardos) was already not the latest generation, and tgat compounded his interest and concern both.]