The first day at Aurenvale Academy had its rhythm — confusion, whispers, and egos trying to find their place.
For most students, it was the start of a dream.
For Ira Vale, it was another cage.
He stood in the academy courtyard, looking up at the sky-colored sigil still faintly glowing above the tower. The mark hadn't faded since he arrived. Most couldn't even see it — but he could feel its pulse, like a heartbeat echoing through the stone beneath his feet.
"Strange…" he murmured. "It reacts only when I'm near."
"Talking to yourself already?"
The voice was soft. Calm. Yet every word carried quiet confidence.
Ira turned.
She stood by the fountain — a girl about his age, dressed in the same dark academy uniform. Her hair was white, shimmering faintly under the sun, her eyes a pale silver, calm but unreadable. The air around her felt… still.
He didn't respond immediately.
Most people tried to avoid eye contact with him — but she looked right into his eyes as if testing him.
"You're new," she said.
"And you're observant," Ira replied.
A faint smile tugged at her lips. "Only when something catches my attention."
The moment lingered — quiet, charged.
Something in the space between them pulsed faintly, like invisible strings of energy brushing against each other. He felt it too. Whatever it was, it wasn't ordinary magic.
It feels… familiar.
Before he could speak, the academy bells rang — a deep tone that vibrated through the ground. Students began to scatter toward the lecture halls.
"I guess introductions will have to wait," she said, turning slightly. "Try not to scare everyone before class ends."
He raised a brow. "No promises."
As she walked away, he noticed something impossible — the sigil above the tower dimmed, just slightly, in sync with her steps.
---
That night, while others celebrated their first day, Ira sat by his dorm window, staring at the moonlit courtyard.
He thought of the sigil.
The strange pull in his chest when she appeared.
And the whisper that had brushed his mind just before the bell rang.
"The bond has awakened…"