[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.]
[ It would be understandable or even expected for a girl in this situation to seem uncertain or intimidated. If nothing else, Ai certainly looks out of place – not just in the Clock Tower but mage society itself, a flower that had accidentally sprouted among a thicket of strangling overgrowth. But if there's any trepidation at all, it doesn't show on her face. She sits straight and steady where she is, without the slightest inkling of caution – and she smiles, the same smile she's been wearing this whole time. It's pretty and pleasant but something about it is maybe a little desperate. ]
That's right! I was only a couple minutes ahead of you, but I haven't been waiting long.
[ She tilts her head in a way that manages to look friendly and appraising all at once. The look she's giving Waver is almost like that of a prey animal sizing up something with teeth. ]
I'll tell you right now, I'm not exactly the school type. I mean, I barely graduated middle school as it is! So I'm not really sure I'm what you're looking for here.
[Strangely, the moment the door closed behind him something seemed to physically change; a tension and rigidity that left his shoulders, and if one didn't know for a fact he was one of the twelve Lords, it would have been impossible to guess given his sudden casual air.]
That's fine; I only wanted to talk to you. [He sat down across from her, right leg crossed over his left and silver-handled cane placed leaning against the chair.] Hell, you didn't even have to agree to come here, but I recognize it's probably difficult to turn something like that down given my station. I'll apologize for that much; social obligations are kind of a given when I would rather they aren't, at times.
Allow me to be clear: academics in the strictest sense are not a requirement. I'm passably aware of your bloodline's status as well as your own, and a combination of the two is the driving reason behind why I wanted to offer you a position in my class.
[ They look nothing alike, but Ai finds herself reminded suddenly and sharply of Saitou. It's the casualness, when nothing about this is a casual conversation at all – Saitou had disarmed her the same way, sitting in an office not that much different to this one all those years ago, when she still called the Hoshino estate her home. He'd talked to her like she was a grown up and as if she had a choice in what he was offering her but... if it's a choice between dying in one cage or living in another, are you really being given a choice at all?
She's grateful to Saitou for getting her out of that place, of course. For teaching her how she could live in a world that seemed to want her dead more than anything else. But she'll never forgive herself for being tricked so easily. ]
If you're aware, then I'm even more surprised you're inviting me. [ There should be a bit of a bite to her words, but her tone seems genuinely puzzled. ] Aqua and Ruby are both so much smarter than me and I'm sure they'd handle your classes a lot better. Mages are supposed to start learning young, right?
[ Lie. Nobody here is getting within spitting distance of Aqua or Ruby. But before she agrees to anything this man is putting down, she wants to prod a response out of him and see if he can be trusted even a little. ]
Traditionally, yes. [There was no disagreement or counter; that was in fact the case. Mages were made into mages from birth, and such was the way this wretched society functioned.]
Personally, I prefer my students to have had some normal education and life experience first. More than that, I'd rather they be old enough to agree or decline to being instructed in the first place.
[But the distaste in his voice at that natural fact was clear. What exactly he disliked about it was not fully clear, but this high-ranking mage did not hide his revulsion of the society itself behind closed doors.]
But that is part of why I wanted to speak with you. With respect, miss Hoshino, there are those who would prioritize teaching your children, some far more poisonous to the average worldview than others and most perfectly willing to overlook your own role entirely. Personally, neither of those points are things I much care for.
[A woman made of shining silver dressed in a maid costume stepped out of the kitchen, setting down two cups of tea before slowly retreating with a polite bow. Barely acknowledging the familiar, the mage instead tilted his head slightly at Ai.]
I confess I would like to see you able to realize your full potential, if that's a course of action you're interested in. But just as much, I'm well aware that raising two children in mage society is a minefield of problems. Some of which I believe I can help you with.
[ Whatever Ai might think of his words, it's impossible to tell. Her smile says fixed in place, the angle of it stitched perfectly into place, her eyes crinkled just the right amount. You'd never be able to find any flaw in it no matter how hard you looked (and she's tried) but– maybe that's telling in itself. Who could be smiling so brightly in a situation like this? ]
It probably goes without saying but I'm not interested in handing them over to someone who won't care for them properly. [ Her voice is level, almost a little matter of fact even, but her stomach is roiling. Ai knows what it's like to grow up in a house full of mages with nobody to protect you and the idea of Aqua and Ruby knowing it too... ] To be honest, I don't really want them getting involved in any of this, if I can help it. They deserve a chance to just be normal kids.
[ The sort of chance she didn't get.
She doesn't move her gaze from Waver even for a moment. Steam from the tea coils through the air but Ai doesn't make a move to reach for it. ]
If that's what I decide to do, will it be a problem?
Actually, I would have been kind of pissed off if you gave me any other answer.
[There was no hesitation to that remark, the flat delivery abundantly clear that it was sincerity mixed with genuine distaste.]
[Muted green eyes didn't leave Ai for an instant, their owner the absolute picture of calm focus navigating a delicate situation. Stepping around landmines and over corpses, seeking the one path to a desired and needed result.]
And I'm certainly not asking you to hand them over to anyone. Taking you as a student would--on paper--imply that they would eventually follow and therefore dissuade anyone else from getting any bright ideas. Whether that is the case in the future or not is meaningless to me. It's not my choice whether they grow up as mages--in my personal experience, once they're old enough that choice may not even be yours. But it's certainly yours right now, and I would prefer offering my aid where I am in a position to do so.
[ And with that, something... settles behind her eyes, even if her expression doesn't shift at all. A wire of tension drawn tight enough to draw notes from goes slack and the stiff line of her shoulders eases a little in turn. She's not stupid enough to entirely trust this man just yet, especially when it comes to Aqua and Ruby – Ai knows better than anyone that the best kind of lies just come down to telling someone what they want to hear. But this isn't a lie he can take back easily, not without entirely turning her against him. And even if she's weak and underhanded in however many other ways... she's still a mage with enough potential that Saitou had wanted her. The Clock Tower wants her.
If she got it into her head to turn against him and lash out, she doesn't have any illusions that she'd be able to kill him... but she could certainly cause him some trouble. ]
So they'd come along with me and I'd have the final say in anything that happens to them, at least until they're old enough to decide for themselves. [ A firm statement, not a question. ] And as for me...
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
[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.]
no subject
That's right! I was only a couple minutes ahead of you, but I haven't been waiting long.
[ She tilts her head in a way that manages to look friendly and appraising all at once. The look she's giving Waver is almost like that of a prey animal sizing up something with teeth. ]
I'll tell you right now, I'm not exactly the school type. I mean, I barely graduated middle school as it is! So I'm not really sure I'm what you're looking for here.
no subject
That's fine; I only wanted to talk to you. [He sat down across from her, right leg crossed over his left and silver-handled cane placed leaning against the chair.] Hell, you didn't even have to agree to come here, but I recognize it's probably difficult to turn something like that down given my station. I'll apologize for that much; social obligations are kind of a given when I would rather they aren't, at times.
Allow me to be clear: academics in the strictest sense are not a requirement. I'm passably aware of your bloodline's status as well as your own, and a combination of the two is the driving reason behind why I wanted to offer you a position in my class.
no subject
She's grateful to Saitou for getting her out of that place, of course. For teaching her how she could live in a world that seemed to want her dead more than anything else. But she'll never forgive herself for being tricked so easily. ]
If you're aware, then I'm even more surprised you're inviting me. [ There should be a bit of a bite to her words, but her tone seems genuinely puzzled. ] Aqua and Ruby are both so much smarter than me and I'm sure they'd handle your classes a lot better. Mages are supposed to start learning young, right?
[ Lie. Nobody here is getting within spitting distance of Aqua or Ruby. But before she agrees to anything this man is putting down, she wants to prod a response out of him and see if he can be trusted even a little. ]
no subject
Personally, I prefer my students to have had some normal education and life experience first. More than that, I'd rather they be old enough to agree or decline to being instructed in the first place.
[But the distaste in his voice at that natural fact was clear. What exactly he disliked about it was not fully clear, but this high-ranking mage did not hide his revulsion of the society itself behind closed doors.]
But that is part of why I wanted to speak with you. With respect, miss Hoshino, there are those who would prioritize teaching your children, some far more poisonous to the average worldview than others and most perfectly willing to overlook your own role entirely. Personally, neither of those points are things I much care for.
[A woman made of shining silver dressed in a maid costume stepped out of the kitchen, setting down two cups of tea before slowly retreating with a polite bow. Barely acknowledging the familiar, the mage instead tilted his head slightly at Ai.]
I confess I would like to see you able to realize your full potential, if that's a course of action you're interested in. But just as much, I'm well aware that raising two children in mage society is a minefield of problems. Some of which I believe I can help you with.
no subject
It probably goes without saying but I'm not interested in handing them over to someone who won't care for them properly. [ Her voice is level, almost a little matter of fact even, but her stomach is roiling. Ai knows what it's like to grow up in a house full of mages with nobody to protect you and the idea of Aqua and Ruby knowing it too... ] To be honest, I don't really want them getting involved in any of this, if I can help it. They deserve a chance to just be normal kids.
[ The sort of chance she didn't get.
She doesn't move her gaze from Waver even for a moment. Steam from the tea coils through the air but Ai doesn't make a move to reach for it. ]
If that's what I decide to do, will it be a problem?
no subject
[There was no hesitation to that remark, the flat delivery abundantly clear that it was sincerity mixed with genuine distaste.]
[Muted green eyes didn't leave Ai for an instant, their owner the absolute picture of calm focus navigating a delicate situation. Stepping around landmines and over corpses, seeking the one path to a desired and needed result.]
And I'm certainly not asking you to hand them over to anyone. Taking you as a student would--on paper--imply that they would eventually follow and therefore dissuade anyone else from getting any bright ideas. Whether that is the case in the future or not is meaningless to me. It's not my choice whether they grow up as mages--in my personal experience, once they're old enough that choice may not even be yours. But it's certainly yours right now, and I would prefer offering my aid where I am in a position to do so.
no subject
[ And with that, something... settles behind her eyes, even if her expression doesn't shift at all. A wire of tension drawn tight enough to draw notes from goes slack and the stiff line of her shoulders eases a little in turn. She's not stupid enough to entirely trust this man just yet, especially when it comes to Aqua and Ruby – Ai knows better than anyone that the best kind of lies just come down to telling someone what they want to hear. But this isn't a lie he can take back easily, not without entirely turning her against him. And even if she's weak and underhanded in however many other ways... she's still a mage with enough potential that Saitou had wanted her. The Clock Tower wants her.
If she got it into her head to turn against him and lash out, she doesn't have any illusions that she'd be able to kill him... but she could certainly cause him some trouble. ]
So they'd come along with me and I'd have the final say in anything that happens to them, at least until they're old enough to decide for themselves. [ A firm statement, not a question. ] And as for me...
[ She tilts her head. ]
What does being your student mean for me?