Eve stares at the ceiling quietly, a soft chuckle trembling from her lips, carrying both amusement and lingering unease. She lies on the bed, kicking against its side, feeling the recesses she created slowly vanish. She stretches her arms out, enjoying the softness of the thick mattress beneath her.
She gazes through the window of her dorm, having arrived a week earlier than the other students due to her special circumstances. Her mage caretaker had taken her to the dorm room immediately after the Flux Resonance ceremony, informing her of the school's general layout—where the toilets are, where the bathtubs are, and, most importantly, where to eat.
With her special permission, the cafeteria remains open solely to serve her, the only student present throughout the week.
The breakfast she had earlier this morning was a simple one, a pottage taken from a perpetual stew in a nearby inn. Despite this, Eve still delighted in experiencing such simplicity, taking it as a thoroughly enjoyable culinary experience.
The day after she arrived, she recalled being woken up by Elastra, who slightly nudged the young elven child sleeping on the floor.
She found the bed too warm, the heat failing to conduct through the material as wood or dirt would. Instead, she preferred to lay on the hard wooden floor through the night, something she was already accustomed to.
"Get up, Eve. Take a bath, and we're going to head outside," Elastra commanded, and Eve just noiselessly nodded before looking at Elastra, waiting for instructions on taking a bath.
"Do you know where the baths are?" Elastra asked to which Eve simply nodded.
"Then, get to it,"
Eve stared shyly at the floor, shifting her weight. "Um... Can you show me how to?" she asked, the first time she conveyed vulnerability to Elastra.
The elder elf sighed before taking a towel provided by the dorm and grabbing Eve's hand. She looked around before Eve showed the direction to the communal bath area. They headed there wordlessly.
Inside the bath area are big stone tubs, enough to fit eight people side by side. The side of the tubs are etched with runes. Elastra recognized these runes to be for heating, and for self-cleaning, with the water being repelled from the tub, similar to today's concept of hydrophobic material.
Eve was instructed to change into a bathing chemise, several of which were provided by the dorm. She stood in the tub as Elastra filled it with water. Water, pouring from a water rune, heating instantly as it filled up the tub. She pulled her feet up and felt them with her hands, playing with the warm water.
Elastra gestured for Eve to sit down in the tub. Then, she grabbed a nearby soap, also provided by the dorm, and handed it over to Eve. The young elf merely responded by once again staring blankly at her. She sighed and started scrubbing the child elf.
After a few moments, as tiredness from last night's difficult conversation with Felippe set in, Elastra decided to change into the bathing chemise herself and joined Eve in the tub. She leaned back against the hard tub side, feeling the soothing sensation of the hot water.
Eve mimicked Elastra's scrubbing and even began scrubbing her in return. The elder elf allowed her to do so, pulling up her arm towards Eve.
"Ahh~ This isn't so bad, Eve. You're going to have quite the time in this school. It seems," she commented then, she tried to give a semi motivational speech to her mentee, "So, you must study hard and make good use of everything they provide!".
Afterwards, Eve was dried with a towel, while Elastra opted for a simple spell to dry herself instantly. They headed back towards Eve's room where Elastra has kept a robe for Eve to wear. As Elastra began to dress herself in Eve's room, Eve followed suit, doing the same steps as the elder elf in wearing the toga. Afterwards, Elastra tightened and corrected her toga.
Eve cannot stop herself from staring at her new garment, spinning and raising her arms to appreciate the new clothing she got. She also stared at Elastra and herself, commenting, "Now we look even more alike!".
Then, off they went to the Scholar's District to buy some schooling supplies, school togas, general garments, and undergarments for Eve to wear.
Passing by the multiple stores along the way, Eve ran her against the fabric hanging by the side of the road, sniffed the multiple incenses, and candles up close. She even came close to touching a rune on a stall, only to be stopped by Elastra pulling on her tapered ears.
"Elastra, why is this so soft?"
"It's silk, Eve".
"Elastra, this smells strange!"
"Yea. It's a scent from the Eastern Isles. Not everyone is a fan".
"Magic stones! Mag- Oww! That hurts!"
"Yea. I'm not letting you touch that".
Along the way, Elastra rested her hand on her shoulder, subtly guiding on where to go. Whenever she got carried away while looking at something, Elastra would pull on her arm.
"Hail, Grand Magister!" called out a local dessert vendor. Elastra walked over to the man, Eve following suit behind her. He smiled, eyes twinkling as he reached out from one of the display cases, taking out a small treat.
"For the child," he handed Eve a Ryschewys, a fig-filled pie that was small enough to fit on her hands.
"Elastra, you didn't give him any coins!" Eve called out.
The vendor laughed, "That's right! It's on the house, kid. Enjoy it!"
"On the house?" asks Eve, looking at the roof of the shop, much to the amusement of the laughing vendor.
"It means we don't have to pay for it, Eve," says Elastra, gesturing her to eat it, "Go on. Have a try"
Eve eager swallowed the small pie. After a brief pause... her eyes sparkled. "It's sweet!" she exclaimed.
They moved on to the next store, stopping by a parchment store to buy several rolls of parchments for Eve to write on, along with some quills, and inkwells. Elastra couldn't help but notice the twinkle in the eyes of the shopkeepers as the pair passed by.
"Why don't you give the quills a try, little?" urged the shopkeeper, "See if it is fit for you".
"Well, she could go for some practice," Elastra said, pointing to the writing upon the shop's sign, "Try copying that".
"By the way, Grand Magister," continued the shopkeeper, turning his gaze onto Elastra, "There is this new invention, the fountain pen. A combination of magic and craftmanship that combines the quill and the inkwell!"
He pulls out a prototype from beneath the desk, "Soon, the act of dipping itself shall become a thing of the past!".
"Observe!" he says as he writes on a piece of paper, ink magically appears on the paper as he moved the pen about. Elastra recognized the runes upon the pen as being similar to same rune that output water from the bathtub. Alas, this means such tools were limited to followers of Merlin.
"Look!" says Eve, her face having been splattered with ink and her hands are covered with smutches of ink all over, some getting on her robes as well. She holds up a piece of parchment, the writing are more akin to chicken scribbles.
"Remind me to get you some practice," tells Elastra, pulling out a rune that washed over the ink spots over her body.
Then, they went to buy three textbooks, all that's required for Eve's schooling. One for ritual magic, one for history, one for invocation magic.
"What does this say?" Eve traced the elegant script on a cover of a book with a finger.
"Ritual Magic: Fundamentals and Common Practices. By Albus Wasuthere" answered Elastra.
"That one?" Eve pointed to another textbook.
"Tales of Roma and Medici: Accounts from an Elf," the ancient elf answered with a smirk on her face, "By... Yours truly".
"Wow! So that's your name?" Eve gasped and the elder elf nodded.
"It is," Elastra stated, silently reminiscing on the request from the Conclave to create a comprehensive textbook on their behalf, "Not a bad read, if I say so myself".
"What does it say here on the back?"
"I didn't write this... Let's see," Elastra read off the back of the book, "During my study, this book brought me much solace to my restless nights". The pair let out a chuckle, "I guess that's one way to put it".
Opening the book, Elastra noticed something odd about the writing inside. The letters were blocky, uniform - each letter less like a scribble and more like a stamp. "What kind of penmanship is this?" she frowns, running a finger over the page.
"Why? That is no penmanship, Grand Magister," the bookstore owner noted, with a proud grin. "That is made through the latest invention of the Grand Order - the printing press. Most of Arcanum's textbooks are now produced this way".
Elastra and Eve stared at one another, neither old nor young truly understood the man's words. To Elastra, books and by extension, tablets, were always made by hand - painstakingly copied by scribes. Discussions with her teaching colleague later revealed that the printing press was a revolutionary invention made to quickly and cheaply reproduce books.
Elastra was staring at Eve, who was being measured for her school toga. The elder elf sits by the side of the table, stacks of parchments and textbooks in front of her.
Eve stood still as the tailor took out her measurement, arms stretched out as fabric draped over her small frame. She fidgeted, eyes flicking between the older elf and her own reflection in the mirror.
"Make it a bit longer," Elastra instructed, watching with a careful eye. "She's still growing after all".
Eve's finger traced the folds of the toga, her face lighting up as she glanced as Elastra's own attire. The resemblance wasn't lost on her. She turned from side to side, letting the fabric swished around her ankles, looking up with a beeming smile.
The resemblance wasn't lost on the tailor either. "My, I never thought I'd see the day the Grand Magister comes in with a daughter," she commented, eyes soft with remembrance, "Even without the ear, the two of you are eerily alike".
Eve froze, her fingers still tracing the folds of her toga. Daughter? Her wide eyes flicked to Elastra, searching for a reaction, her ears twitching slightly.
Elastra only chucked, offering no denial, "I didn't think so either but here we are, I guess". Her eyes flicked to Eve, "Heard that, Eve? Make sure you take good care of my public image"
Eve swallowed, her lips parting as if to say something but, she hesitated. A flush evident on her face. A warmth bloomed in her chest, and across her face, unfamiliar yet, comforting. She looked away, focusing on the way her toga swished around her ankle.