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As Ariana wakes up the next day in her small dorm room, she notices that Day isn’t in his usual spot on her bed. She questions if she missed him waking up as she checks her clock, noticing how early it is. Getting up, she goes through her morning routine, trying to shake off the feeling that something’s off. As she finishes getting dressed, she opens the door to find Day standing in the hallway, his back to her. She wonders why he’s just standing there, his eyes not moving from a spot on the floor.

Ariana takes a step closer and looks around him, her gaze falling on Zephyr, the boy who bumped into Day the day before. They seem to be sizing each other up, tension crackling between them. Zephyr’s eyes flick to Ariana, his smirk widening. “Well, look who finally decided to grace us with her presence,” he says in a tone that drips with condescension.

Day’s jaw clenches. “Don’t even think about it,” he warns, his voice low. “Stay away from Ariana, or I’ll break your nose.”

Zephyr scoffs, his eyes narrowing as he turns his attention back to Day. “Oh, I’m so scared. What are you going to do, big man?”

“Try me,” Day growls, stepping closer to Zephyr. The tension in the hallway thickens, the air heavy with the possibility of a fight.

Ariana steps forward, putting a hand on Day’s arm. “Day, let’s not make this any worse,” she says, her voice soft but firm. “Let’s just go to breakfast and get on with our day.”

Day hesitates for a moment, then lets out a long breath, his shoulders relaxing slightly. “Fine,” he mutters, not taking his eyes off Zephyr. “But if you touch her, I’ll find you.”

Zephyr just sneers and turns away, disappearing into his dorm room. Ariana watches the door for a moment before looking back at Day. “You okay?” she asks quietly.

“Yeah,” he replies, sounding more subdued now. “Just wish I could’ve told him to go to hell.”

“Maybe that’s just a sign you’re getting better at ignoring him,” Ariana offers with a small smile.

Day meets her eyes and gives a slight nod. “Maybe.”

They walk down the hall together, the tension between them still palpable but manageable—for now. As they reach the stairs, Day turns to Ariana. “I’ll walk you to breakfast,” he says, his voice softer. “Let’s make sure we don’t run into any more trouble.”

Ariana nods, feeling a strange comfort in his presence. “Sounds like a plan.”

As they make their way to the cafeteria, Ariana can’t shake the feeling that their peaceful morning might be short-lived.

As Ariana and Day settle into their seats in the nearly empty cafeteria, Ariana glances around, noticing how few students are up at this hour. “Seems like everyone’s still asleep,” she muses, her voice low.

Day grins and takes a sip of his coffee. “Yeah, well, if I didn’t have to pee, I’d probably still be in bed too.”

Ariana laughs, taking a bite of her breakfast. “Fair enough. So, what’s the deal with you and the other day in class? You seemed pretty—uh—well, intense.”

Day’s expression shifts, a hint of annoyance flickering across his face. He leans back in his chair, looking down at his plate. “Just trying to keep the others in line,” he admits quietly, his tone serious. “Prove that I’m not just some weak weapon.”

Ariana frowns, feeling her brows furrow. “You’re not weak, Day. And you don’t need to prove anything to anyone. It just looked like you were losing control of your aura. I thought something might be wrong.”

Day takes a deep breath, his gaze meeting hers. “I was just… pissed off. Kai was pushing all my buttons, making those stupid comments about me not being able to sync properly with you. I lost focus, and my aura just—spiked.”

Ariana nodded slowly, chewing her lip as she thought about it. “That’s why you said you wanted to show him, huh? Dominance?”

“Yeah,” Day admitted, looking down at his coffee cup. “I know it wasn’t the best way to handle it, but—”

“But you were just trying to protect me,” Ariana finished for him, her voice softer now. “And make sure everyone knew you’re not a pushover.”

“Exactly,” Day said, his eyes flicking up to meet hers. “But maybe I took it a little too far.”

Ariana giggled softly, shaking her head. “You’re such a dog sometimes, you know that?”

Day leaned forward, his voice dropping low as he looked into her eyes. “If you want me to be a dog, baby, I’ll do whatever you say—lick you all over if that’s what it takes.”

Ariana’s eyes widened in shock, and she pushed his face away gently, her cheeks flushing. “Shut up, Day!”

He leaned back, laughing, his eyes still sparkling with mischief. “Come on, princess, you know you like it.”

Ariana rolled her eyes, shaking her head as she glanced toward the door. Zephyr was there, holding it open for a girl Ariana hadn’t noticed before. She was tall, stunningly beautiful, with long, dark hair cascading over her shoulders.

“Who’s that?” Ariana whispered, unable to keep her curiosity at bay.

Day followed her gaze, his brow furrowing. “Zephyr’s meister, I think. Her name’s Talia, I think.”

Ariana’s eyes narrowed slightly. “She’s really pretty.”

“Yeah, well, don’t let Zephyr hear you say that,” Day said with a smirk, his voice low. “He’s possessive of her.”

“Guess it’s not just me he’s jealous of,” Ariana muttered under her breath, trying to ignore the strange twinge of unease she felt watching them together.

“Hey, it’s not about you,” Day said, placing a hand on her arm briefly. “Zephyr’s always been a bit territorial, especially when it comes to his meister.”

“Right,” Ariana replied, forcing a smile. “Still doesn’t make it any easier to deal with.”

Day nodded, squeezing her arm lightly before letting go. “Just keep your distance, alright? Don’t let him get to you.”

“Easier said than done,” Ariana replied, sighing as she took another bite of her food. “But I’ll try.”

As they finished their breakfast, the tension between Ariana and Day seemed to settle a bit, at least for now. They were in for another long day of practice, but for now, the weight of their responsibilities was pushed aside.

As Ariana and Mina continue their conversation, Mina yawns and stretches her arms out, her eyes still barely open. “Good morning,” she mumbles, rubbing at her eyes. “Sorry, I’m barely awake.”

“Morning!” Ariana grins, already energized by the day ahead. “What’s got you up so early, anyway?”

Mina snorts, collapsing into the chair across from Ariana. “Scraps. I had to make him get up early to request that we all be partners for the next assignment.”

Ariana raised an eyebrow. “The next assignment? What’s it gonna be?”

“Two on two battle,” Mina replied with a wide yawn. “To show trust between you and your weapon, and also with other meisters. It’s kind of like a practice session for the real thing—learning how to work with someone else’s weapon, that sort of thing.”

Ariana nodded slowly, her eyes narrowing as she thought about the challenge. “That sounds… interesting. How do you know if you’re ready for that?”

“From what Madame Verlaine said, it’s about feeling out the other meisters,” Mina explained, stretching her legs out in front of her. “Feeling their weapons, understanding how their powers work—stuff like that.”

Ariana nodded thoughtfully. “That makes sense. I guess it’ll be good to get a feel for how others connect with their weapons before the big test.”

“Exactly!” Mina perked up a little, her eyes finally starting to focus. “And, it’ll be good practice for Day, too. Make sure he’s not still hung up on his whole dominance thing.”

Ariana shot her a look. “Hey, don’t pick on him too much. He’s… trying.”

“Yeah, well, he’s not the only one with issues,” Mina replied with a shrug. “We all have our quirks. Besides, maybe if you two work together, it’ll help him with that whole aura control thing.”

Ariana sighed, stirring her coffee absentmindedly. “I hope so. I don’t like seeing him frustrated.”

As Ariana spoke, her eyes wandered to Day, who had his head resting against the back of the chair, eyes half-closed, as though he were lost in thought. Her heart skipped a beat when she caught him staring at her, his eyes unfocused, as if he were daydreaming.

“Hey,” she said softly, a small smile tugging at her lips. “What’s got you so zoned out?”

Day blinked, dragging his gaze away from her lips to meet her eyes. “Just… thinking,” he replied, his voice low and distracted.

Ariana frowned slightly, her smile fading. “Thinking about what?”

He hesitated for a moment before he sighed, looking down at his hands. “Just had a weird dream last night.”

“A weird dream?” Ariana repeated, her curiosity piqued.

Day nodded slowly, his eyes darkening slightly. “Yeah. It was about—” He stopped, glancing up at Ariana again, his lips curling slightly. “About us.”

“Us?” Ariana repeated, feeling her pulse quicken. “What kind of dream?”

Day hesitated for a moment longer before he shrugged, a small grin tugging at his lips. “Just… a dream. Nothing important.”

Ariana narrowed her eyes at him. “Don’t give me that. What happened in this dream?”

Day leaned back in his seat, his eyes never leaving hers. “I… kissed you.”

Ariana’s breath caught in her throat. “You… kissed me?”

“Yeah,” Day murmured, looking down at his coffee cup. “And it felt nice."

Ariana nodded slowly, still feeling overwhelmed by the idea. “And now you’re just staring at my lips all day?”

Ariana met his eyes again, her own reflecting the uncertainty she felt. “What does it mean, Day?”

Before they could say anything more, Mina let out another yawn, startling Ariana out of her thoughts. “Come on, let’s go get something to eat. If we don’t eat now, we’ll miss breakfast altogether.”

Ariana nodded, finally tearing her gaze away from Day. “Yeah, good idea. Let’s go.”