The next day.
The summons came just after midday.
Aria entered the office without knocking.
Erine looked up from her desk — scrolls laid out in precise stacks, mission slips sorted by border rank and urgency. Her posture was firm, one hand resting beside a cooling cup of tea. She didn't smile.
"You made it."
Aria said nothing.
Erine gestured to the chair across from her, but Aria remained standing. Her coat still dusted from travel, her gloves faintly smudged with ash.
"Cidius' annual festival begins in two weeks," Erine said, tone measured. "After what happened, we're increasing security. I'm assigning you to patrol the perimeter during the opening days."
Aria didn't move. Her gaze didn't waver, but her arms folded slowly across her chest.
"You'll be paired with three Vigils for the outer rings," Erine added. "Nothing ceremonial. Strictly guard duty."
A beat passed.
Then, quietly, Aria said, "No."
Erine arched an eyebrow. "No?"
"I don't take parade assignments."
"This isn't a parade," Erine said, setting her teacup aside with a faint clink. "It's a city on edge, still rebuilding. Half the guard is stretched across repairs. People need to feel safe."
Another pause.
Aria's gaze flicked toward the window — not looking out, exactly. Just away. Her jaw was tense. One thumb tapped faintly against her elbow.
Erine didn't push.
Instead, she leaned back slightly in her chair, fingers steepling for a breath before lowering them. "It's not a favor. It's a task. You're still under assignment."
Silence.
Then—flatly: "No."
Erine raised an eyebrow again. "Still no?"
"I don't do festivals."
"It's not a festival. It's the security around it."
Aria didn't respond. Her arms stayed folded. Her boots were still planted like she meant to stand through the whole city cycle.
Erine exhaled through her nose, then reached for the slip atop her desk. "Double standard rate," she said. "Compensated per shift."
That earned a glance. Slight. But unmistakable.
Still, no agreement.
"I could send someone else," Erine said, watching her. "But after what happened in Cidius, it would be foolish to overlook someone like you."
Still no answer.
She tapped her desk once with the corner of the mission slip, thinking. "Besides... some of our field Wielders are already out trying to—"
Erine cut herself off.
Aria turned her head slightly, brow narrowing.
"...Trying to what," she said.
Erine hesitated. Her fingers stopped tapping.
"Track movement. On the theft," she admitted. "Some patrols were sent out earlier this week."
"You sent others."
"...Yes."
Aria's voice was low. "Why not send me?"
"Because I need you here," Erine said, more firmly now. "You were gone when the city was hit. Now we need to double — maybe triple — our security."
"That wasn't the mission."
"I know."
Another pause.
Aria's fingers flexed at her side — just once. Then stilled.
"I want the thief trail," she said.
"No."
Her jaw set. "Then send someone else to guard your festival."
Erine didn't flinch. "I already did. They're not enough."
"You have Aegis for this."
"I need someone who won't miss the signs if another hit comes. Quiet. Sharp. Reliable."
"You want me babysitting street corners."
"I want the perimeter locked down. You know how to look beyond the obvious. That's all."
A beat.
"They took nexisteel," Aria said. "You know what that means."
Erine nodded. "Which is why some Wielders are already tracking possible leads."
"And not me."
"Because I need you here."
Aria's eyes narrowed.
"The trail," Aria said.
"No."
The word hung there. Solid. Final.
Silence.
Then Erine exhaled through her nose. A sharp breath, more frustration than surrender.
"If there's still no lead after the festival," she said, voice tight, "you'll be part of the trail effort. I'll see to it myself."
Aria didn't move.
"Nexisteel doesn't just walk off," Erine added. "If they stole that much, they're preparing for something. And we can't afford to miss it."
Another pause.
Then — a slow, stiff nod.
"Fine," Aria said.
* * *
The door had barely clicked shut behind Aria when a second knock followed — faster, a little off rhythm.
"Enter," Erine said.
Lili stepped in with a sharpness that was almost convincing.
She saluted — slightly too fast, nearly knocking her hand into her brow. "Bearer Lili reporting as summoned, Headmistress!"
Erine's gaze flicked up, calm and unreadable. "Close the door."
"Yes, ma'am!" Lili fumbled briefly with the handle behind her, nearly stepping into the frame twice before managing to shut it without incident.
She turned and stood stiffly at attention, back too straight, arms pressed so tightly to her sides it made her coat bunch awkwardly.
"I'm assigning you to lead the festival coordination," Erine said, getting straight to it. "You'll be in charge of patrol scheduling, checkpoint readiness, and securing the perimeter zones during opening week. Civilian access, emergency protocols, Wielder visibility — it's all under your supervision."
Lili blinked. "I—wait. I mean—Understood. Headmistress." She nodded twice. "Sir. No—uh—Headmistress. Right. That."
Erine said nothing. Just watched her.
"I mean—of course. The festival. Very important. Safety. People. Paperwork. Absolutely," Lili continued, clearly trying to remember if standing still included not shifting her weight nervously. Her fingers twitched once at her side, then laced tightly behind her back.
But a shadow passed over her face. Not quite disappointment. Just... deflation.
Erine tilted her head slightly. "Something to say?"
"No! No, Headmistress." Then, after a beat too long, "...Just—happy to help however I can." Her smile was too quick, too practiced. Her shoulders dropped a fraction.
The silence stretched. Lili didn't fidget. Not outwardly. But her heel tapped once, quiet and fast, before she forced it still.
She already knew this feeling — being passed over, again, for the action. Again, for the field.
Erine reached to her side and picked up a scroll — one bound in dark twine, stamped with the outer district seal.
"You helped during the attack," she said.
Lili looked up, caught off-guard. Her hands loosened slightly at her sides.
"You were off-duty. Under-equipped. But you didn't run. You fought beside civilians, cleared debris, evacuated a family from a collapsed structure, and downed two Vorran before backup arrived."
Lili swallowed. Her mouth opened, then closed again. "I didn't think anyone noticed."
Erine set the scroll down carefully on her desk. Her gaze hadn't moved from Lili.
"We noticed," she said. "So did the Aegis team that arrived after. So did the family you pulled from the rubble."
Lili stood frozen, still stiff, still trying not to shift in her boots. Her knuckles whitened where her hands had curled into partial fists.
Erine leaned back slightly in her chair. "This festival assignment isn't a demotion. It's a test of command. You'll be issuing orders, not following them. Coordinating across ranks. Aegis, Vigil, even outer-post medics. They'll all report to you during your shift cycles."
Lili blinked. Her mouth opened again, uncertain. Then closed. "Oh."
Erine allowed a faint lift of one brow.
"I mean—yes. Yes, Headmistress. Of course." She straightened even more, which hardly seemed possible. Her arms dropped to her sides, then back up — stiff again. "I won't disappoint you."
"You haven't," Erine said. "And that's why—"
She reached down beside the desk and lifted a folded coat from the chair beside her. Neatly pressed. Trimmed in blue.
She set it on the table between them.
"—you've been promoted. Effective immediately."
Lili stared.
Her voice came small, uncertain. "Blue?"
Erine nodded once. "Aegis."
For a moment, Lili didn't speak. Her eyes stayed on the coat — like if she blinked, it might disappear. Then, slowly, she stepped forward, hands hovering just above the fabric before she let her fingers settle against it.
It felt heavier than she expected.
Not just the weight of the cloth.
But the meaning.
"...Thank you," she said, barely above a whisper.
Then louder — steadier:
"I won't let you down."
Erine didn't smile. But her voice was calm.
"Then get to work."