Argent closed the door softly behind him as he stepped from Seren's room and into the hallway of the girl's dorm. It was dark and empty, the majority of the residents fast asleep by now if they were not locked deep into a late night study session. Figuring it was best for him to get out of Dodge before anything could put him in a position to defend his presence in the female housing area, he turned quickly and ran face-first into Naiara as she materialized from the darkness like a ghost.

The impact was like walking into a brick wall, though the wolven girl didn't even flinch as Argent stumbled and fell awkwardly onto his backside. Folding her arms over her chest, she stared down at him as he held his nose with one hand.

"So? Did you do it?"

"Wh-wha... I.. Did I what?"

Argent stuttered, eyes wide as he looked dumbfoundedly at Naiara. She rolled her eyes heavily, swishing her tail with curt impatience.

"Did you help Seren like Kingsfoot wanted?"

She huffed, and Argent blinked. How had Naiara known that so clearly when it had taken him until the last second to put it all together?

"Oh, uh.. Y-yeah, but how--"

Before he could finish, the sound of footsteps from further down the hall intruded on the silence of the dorm. Naiara stepped swiftly forward and grabbed Argent by the collar, and he was overwhelmed by a feeling of numbness. In a world of sensory deprivation, he heard nothing and saw only the faintest outlines of misshapen blurs, dark and squiggling amongst the void until suddenly he returned to existence. He and Naiara were now outside the dormitory, standing along one of the raised stone pathways overlooking the academy grounds. She released her grip on him and moved to the railing along the edge, leaning her back up against the wrought iron bars whilst turning to face him. Not bothering to comment on the use of her shadowdance, Naiara went straight back into her interrogation.

"How much did she tell you?"

"..Instructor Kingsfoot?"

"No, Argent. Seren. How much did Seren talk to you?"

She responded exasperatedly, clearly growing annoyed even if her facial features didn't show it. Argent was becoming increasingly confused by the exchange, but he stopped to consider the question to the best of his ability.

"A normal amount, I guess? Maybe a lot, by her standards? I've never really... Spoken to her before."

"Most of you haven't. What did you talk about?"

"The assignment mostly. A little about the ordeal with Cassius, a little about Kai.."

He paused, frowning a little. Straightening up and brushing himself off, he moved to the railing to lean up against it alongside Naiara, looking over at her as he took a moment to sort the facts out in his mind.

"Honestly, you seem to know more about the situation than I do. Was there something that I missed? Was something supposed to happen? It's obvious at this juncture that there was an agenda at work here, and I'm fine helping out, but it would be a lot easier to be useful if I knew what was expected of me."

Naiara sighed, shaking her head slightly.

"I'm afraid it's not that simple... And some things can't be forced. As i'm sure you've seen, Seren has a lot of hurt bottled up, Argent. She needs good influences. She needs friends."

Sensing the upcoming interjection, the beastkin girl answered the question without having to hear it asked.

"And she's too proud to accept most kindness, especially from me. She'd never take it as genuine no matter how good intentioned it was. To her, it'd just be another way of 'looking down on her'."

"...I feel like there's more to that."

"What do you know about the Dragonblessed, Argent?"

The term spun in Argent's mind, familiar but blurry. Whatever the real meaning behind it was he had no actual knowledge of, but he knew he had heard it before. His thoughts worked their way back to the duel between Seren and Cassius, remembering the stunned whisper from Jovane once Seren's draconic power had ended the fight. The older boy had used the term then, seemingly awed by it.

"Honestly? Nothing. But I'm guessing this means Seren is one?"

Naiara nodded.

"Indeed she is, and there aren't very many. Most will never meet another like themself, even with their extended lifetimes."

Turning around on the railings, Naiara stared out over the academy grounds with a distant look in her striking green eyes, their powerful gleam catching the rays of moonlight the way a wild animal's would.

"Dragonblessed.. The Abandoned Ones. Children of Sacrifice.. All titles which they bear, though you will likely never hear the other two used outside of Fusang."

"Fusang? The actual realm of the dragons? ..It exists?"

"Mm.. But the fact that you react that way is exactly the issue at hand, really. Even before Lilith's time, the ancient dragons had already isolated themselves from the world. Fusang was nearly a myth, a legend, hundreds of years ago.. Then the advent of Chaos occurred, the Story of Lilith played out, and the Dragon Elders realized their fault in the matter."

"Fault? Lilith was a dragonkin, they saved the world."

Naiara shook her head adamantly.

"No. Lilith saved the world... And she saved the world because of Eon, because of Tristan. Not because she was a dragonkin, and not because of the Elders. The entire chain of events forced them to open their eyes. They realized the world could have been utterly destroyed because of their detachment, their ignorance. Their realm had become too closed off, and too many things had become unseen. The solution was the Dragonblessed, children of dragons sent out into the world as conduits. Spiritual eyes for the rest of Fusang."

"...Isn't that a good thing? It sounds like an honour. That's a lot of trust."

"Outside perspective changes things, Argent. You try and tell yourself anything is a 'good thing', when you've been dropped alone into a world you don't understand, isolated from the homeland of your kin, left to struggle and steal in order to survive."

There was a bite to Naiara's tone, and Argent looked over at her with a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach.

"You mean Seren--"

"Seren is as good as an orphan in this world, thrown to the whims of fate. She was taken in and raised at the Academy... As was I."

"What? Naiara, you..?"

The wolven girl raised a hand, cutting him off.

"Granted, my situation is complicated... And I arrived long after Seren had. She was well and truly raised here, while I myself arrived only a year or two ago. For me it was a sort of... Professional courtesy.. But for Seren, Instructor Reimourne found her and took her in off the streets when she was very young. Her life has been difficult and frustrating for her in ways that I can't pretend to understand, and I wouldn't dare begin to blame or judge her for it."

"...But you want to help her."

"Naturally. She's important to this world, Argent, and she's a soft girl who's been forced to become hard, struggling to find her footing. Would you have me see something like that, and stand by doing nothing?"

Argent couldn't help but smile at the good natured remark. There was a lot to be said for Naiara and her offsetting roughness, but the more of her he saw, the more he believed she was an abundantly good person. His respect for the wolven girl grew each time they interacted, and she always seemed to know exactly what was happening, exactly what to do.

"Where did you come from before you were taken in at the academy?"

Naiara turned her head slowly to look at him, her ears twitching gently. Even though she said nothing, but Argent found himself backpedaling hastily under the pressure of her gaze.

"I don't mean to pry, I just.. I'm curious? You feel so far away. Like you're beyond the rest of us somehow... I can't help but wonder.. Who you are?"

He watched as Naiara thoughtfully tilted her head, before reaching out and flicking him dead center between the eyes.

"I'm your Class President."

She responded with finality, as though that was all there was to be said. Turning away from him, she raised a hand over her shoulder and tossed out one final remark before vanishing into the shadows.

"Now get to bed, I won't excuse you if you're late tomorrow morning."

**~End of Volume 1~**