Eli followed behind a very stressed maid through the spacious hallway. Their first interaction at the door after his fit had left him feeling shamed and embarrassed, promising the maid she need to clean the mess and he would do it himself despite her protests. Luckily she had told him where some clothes for him would be inside the room and gave him time to dress himself.
Soon the pair found themselves standing at the threshold of two large doors. Knocking politely, a voice could be heard telling them to enter.
Inside the room sat Cain, Lori, Trish, and Oboros sitting upon a couple of the sofas within.
"Did you rest well?" Cain asked as Eli entered.
"Not really," Eli said as he walked inside. His gaze shifted from each person in room until it landed on Trish, whose eyes involuntarily shifted downward.
Eli tried to hide the grimace on his face noticing her reaction. It wasn't the first time he'd seen someone act that way around him after seeing his other eye. Or rather what it showed too them.
It was still a shitty feeling for him, especially since it was Trish who experienced it this time.
"Would you mind taking a seat, Eli?" Cain asked, gesturing to a nearby empty chair.
Nodding, he did as he was asked and sat.
"Could you explain to me exactly what happened in the market? What exactly that thing said to you?" Cain asked with a serious expression, jumping right into the topic Eli had expected.
Nodding, Eli began to recount his brief encounter with the being. It wasn't long before Eli was done, waiting for Cain to continue asking questions. However, to his surprise, the city master did not.
Instead, the man sighed, "Thank you Eli. I wish our reunitement would be under much better circumstances than what they are, but alas it's too late for that."
Turning his head to Oboros and Lori, Cain stated, "I believe it best for at least one of you to remain with Eli for the time being whenever you are out in the city, considering the situation."
Cain turned back to Eli, "I personally would've started you on your etiquette classes tomorrow, but you'll have to forgive me. I will need to delegate that task to another person for now. Worry not, she is outstanding. She will get you up in shape and ready for your stay at the academy."
Cain smiled momentarily, then began to stand up.
"What about that thing? What about it's business in the city?" Eli asked, sounding a little irritated.
"I've already made the city guard captain aware, and he will be increasing patrols within our walls. I've even sent word to the local guilds here to make postings for temporary contracts with our guardsmen."
'Well shit' Eli thought. That probably was the right approach to make without causing too much of a panic, but he wanted more than that.
"What about me? And our group?" Eli retorted.
"You'll have your hands full with classes, and your friends are here to support you." Cain said simply.
"But I would like to help. I want to fight them," the words left Eli's lips before he even registered them.
Cain sighed as his expression softened slightly, "I understand your feelings towards this. But the whole reason you are here is for an opportunity to still be young. To be around others and have a chance at somewhat of a normal life. And it's not just you anymore. During your travels, I decided to submit an application for that young lady there as well."
Cain pointed a finger at Trish, who seemed just as surprised as Lori and Oboros.
"B-but Eli was the one.." Trish started but was cut off with a wave of Cain's hand.
"It's alright young lady. Aeros has let me know of your situation as well. Your still within the age range for this sort of thing. I believe school should be available to everyone."
Trish was at a loss for words, as well as everyone else in the room.
"Now, please excuse me," Cain lowered his head slightly, "I have matters I need to attend to. Please feel free to use my home as your own."
Cain looked between Eli and Trish, "I'll send for a maid to come get your two at dawn for your classes."
With that, the large man calmly walked out of the room, leaving the group in silence.
"Is it really okay if I go too?" Trish asked as she turned to Lori.
The woman smiled, "Of course Trish. In fact, I couldn't be happier for you. Though still relatively new, I have heard good things about it in passing."
Trish smiled to herself, feeling a bit of giddiness at the thought, her tail slowly moving forward and back in anticipation.
Eli however, suddenly had a bad feeling. He couldn't explain it, but there was an itch in the back of his head telling him for some reason to object to this. That it could be a bad idea, yet he could see the happiness on Trish's face. After what he had did yesterday, it only served to force him to keep quiet.
"Well everyone," Oboros started, "It's been a long day for all of us. I'm sure we're all exhausted, so I think it would be wise for us to get some sleep. Especially you two." He pointed to the young pair.
Everyone nodded in agreement and the group each headed back to their separate chambers.
Eli soon found himself in the room with shattered glass once again. Taking some time to at least move the shattered pieces to the corner of the room and promising to toss it in the morning, he finally played back onto the bed.
Instead of sleep coming for him, a voice came in its stead.
"Damn, that little cat girl is definitely going to grab-" before the voice could continue, Eli had tossed a decorative pillow in its general direction. "Shut up," he grumbled, turning onto his side and trying to turn his ears off for the night.