"You must know why I called you?"
The words settled calmly in the air of Miss Elowen's cabin, a space far quieter than the classroom, its interior reflecting the same refined aesthetic of the academy yet softened by a more personal touch, with faint streams of water flowing gently within glass conduits along the walls, casting a tranquil glow across the room.
Damon sat across the table from her, his posture relaxed but his eyes sharp, as if already prepared for what was to come.
"I don't like it," he said after a brief pause, his tone steady, "but I guess… I was looking forward to this."
A faint glint passed through Elowen's eyes, her smile subtle yet knowing.
"You must really want to control that power, huh," she said.
Damon gave a small nod.
For a moment, neither of them spoke, the silence not uncomfortable, but deliberate.
Elowen leaned back slightly, her gaze still fixed on him as she continued.
"Well then… let's start with the assignment I gave you last time," she said, her tone light, "did you complete it?"
Damon let out a slow breath.
"Didn't you say it doesn't have a deadline?" he replied.
Elowen nodded.
"I did," she said calmly, "but it looks like you have no intention of doing it at all."
Damon's gaze lowered slightly, his thoughts aligning before he spoke.
"You told me to find an anchor," he said, his voice carrying a quiet resistance, "but isn't that the same as asking me to find a weakness?"
He looked back at her.
"It just feels like a burden."
Elowen's smile did not fade.
"If you have a weakness… or carry a burden… what exactly is the problem with that?" she asked softly, "doesn't that make you human?"
Damon shook his head immediately.
"No," he said, his tone firm, "that makes me a weak human."
His eyes sharpened.
"A human who expects something from others," he continued, "a human who allows someone else to hurt him… to break him."
There was no hesitation in his voice now.
"What if I do find an anchor in a person," he went on, "and that person turns their back on me?"
His fingers tightened slightly against the arm of the chair.
"If the boundary of a dam breaks… the water doesn't just flow… it destroys everything in its path."
Silence followed.
Heavy.
Unmoving.
For a few seconds, neither of them spoke, their gazes locked in a quiet standoff, one grounded in experience, the other in understanding.
Then—
Elowen spoke again, her tone still gentle, her smile unchanged.
"You seem to have a lot of trust issues… don't you?"
Damon did not answer.
He did not deny it nor did he react.
He simply sat there in silence, his gaze steady yet distant, as if the question had reached somewhere deeper than he was willing to acknowledge, while across from him, Elowen watched him quietly, her expression unchanged, her eyes carrying a calm understanding rather than insistence.
Then—
Without pressing him further, she spoke again.
"After our last session," she began casually, as if shifting to an entirely unrelated topic, "I returned to my quarters and realized I had spent the entire day teaching without eating anything, so I tried to cook something for myself…"
Damon's brows furrowed slightly.
"…tried?" he thought.
Elowen let out a small breath, almost amused at herself.
"It did not go well," she continued, her tone light, "I somehow managed to burn something that was supposed to be boiled… which I still do not understand."
A faint pause.
"And then I spilled water all over the floor while trying to fix it," she added, her lips curving just a little, "and nearly slipped twice."
Damon blinked once.
"What?"
Elowen continued as if nothing was strange.
"A few days later in the evening, I went out for a walk near the lower gardens," she said, her voice softening slightly, "it was quiet… peaceful… I watched a group of students training, and for a moment, it reminded me of when I was still learning myself."
Her gaze drifted slightly, as if recalling something distant.
"There was a girl there," she added, "who kept failing to control her stance while punching… she grew frustrated, almost to the point of tears, but she kept trying again and again."
A faint smile returned.
"And eventually… she managed to stabilize it, just for a moment… and she looked so happy, as if she had conquered something far greater than what it actually was."
Damon's eyes narrowed slightly.
…Why is she telling me this?
Elowen shifted slightly in her seat.
"Of course, not everything was pleasant," she continued, her tone still even, "I received a report later that night about a minor breach instability near the outer district… nothing serious, but enough to remind me that things don't always stay calm."
Her fingers tapped lightly against the table.
"And this morning," she added, a hint of amusement returning, "I misplaced my notes before class and spent several minutes searching for them, only to realize they were in my hand the entire time."
A brief silence followed.
Damon looked at her.
Puzzled.
His mind trying to connect the pieces of what she was saying, yet finding no immediate pattern.
…What is she doing?
Elowen met his gaze again, her smile still gentle, as if she had been expecting that exact reaction.
Elowen held his gaze for a moment longer before speaking again, her tone as calm and unhurried as ever.
"Now tell me," she said gently, "what happened with you after our last session."
Damon did not answer immediately.
He simply stared at her.
For a few seconds, his eyes searched her face as if trying to understand something deeper than the words themselves, before he finally spoke.
"What is this?"
Elowen's smile did not change.
"I want you to trust me."
Damon's eyes narrowed slightly.
"Why?"
There was no hesitation in his voice.
Elowen leaned back just a fraction, her tone steady, almost patient.
"If you don't trust me," she said, "how can you follow what I ask you to do in order to control your emotions?"
She paused briefly, letting the question settle before continuing.
"I know it is a lot to ask you to trust me suddenly," she added, "so we don't have to start with anything significant."
Her eyes softened slightly.
"You can begin with something simple… just telling me about your day, or your week," she said, "but trust is a two-way street, Damon."
Her fingers rested lightly on the table.
"If I do not learn to trust you enough to share my own experiences," she continued, "how can I expect you to do the same?"
A faint pause.
"So let us start small," she said, her voice almost light now, "we can simply tell each other what happened in our lives over the past week… shall we?"
Damon said nothing.
He just looked at her.
Her words echoed quietly in his mind.
How can I expect you to trust me… if I cannot…
His hand moved almost unconsciously, picking up the glass of water placed in front of him as he took a slow sip, his thoughts shifting, resisting, analyzing—
And then—
Settling.
Elowen did not interrupt.
She simply watched. Waiting for him to respond.
Damon closed his eyes briefly, taking a quiet breath.
…Whatever.
I will just say random things.
He opened his eyes again.
"I guess…" he began.
His voice was calm. Measured.
"I trained on what Instructor Brakkar pointed out," he said, "then returned home… cooked a meal with my maid… had dinner… and slept."
A brief pause.
"Then I had a conversation with Duke Valecrest," he continued, his tone unchanged, "where he arranged a blind date for me."
His gaze shifted slightly, unfocused.
"Over the weekend, I had to complete voluntary service as part of my punishment," he went on, "which was also when I was supposed to meet that person…"
A faint exhale.
"It did not go well," he said simply, "I pretended not to recognize her."
He continued without stopping.
"So instead, I went with the Dean to an old home… where I…" he hesitated for the briefest moment, "…spent the day."
"The next day, I chose a volunteering task for cleaning the training chambers."
His words began to flow more naturally now.
"After that, I went to the outer city with my maid to buy some things," he said, "then came back… the next morning, in instructor Valerian's class formed a party… attended Instructor Brakkar's close combat session…"
He barely noticed it.
"…yesterday we had to choose weapons during Instructor Garrick's class, but I did not find anything suitable…"
His voice continued, steady, almost absent-minded now.
"Then we went out with the party members to a cafe to discuss the assignment—"
He stopped mid-sentence as realization struck him.
His eyes sharpened slightly as he became aware of what he had just done.
He had not spoken randomly.
He had just—Told her almost every significant event.
Elowen, still smiling gently, spoke.
"That is all, I presume."
Damon looked at her then gave a small nod.
"…Yes."
A brief silence followed before Elowen tilted her head slightly, her tone light yet observant.
"What is the name of your maid?" she asked, "you seem close with her."