“She’s gone missing!?” Rowan shrieked in disbelief.

“We- we can’t contact her through the mirror…” The boy stammered. Rowan heaved a frustrated sigh, he shouldn’t take this out on the kid. I should tell Fyre about this, Rowan thought as he hurriedly left the building. Mind only set on finding Fyre, Rowan paid no attention at all, running straight into a sturdy figure.

“Watch it!” Rowan jolted, he knew that voice anywhere. He raised his head slightly to see Damien, a fellow apprentice under Lylia. The moment they met eyes, Damien’s face twisted in a disgusted fashion.

“Oh, it’s you.” He stated simply and brushed past him. Rowan scoffed at him and got up from the ground. Even though Lylia was also his mentor, a part of him decided he wasn’t going to tell Damien about Lylia’s disappearance. Damien was going towards the portal room anyway, he would find out on his own. Rowan detested him, Damien was snobbish and cold with no reason. During their first formal meeting, Rowan had been nice and even tried to make friends with him, only to be shut out rudely. The memory was still very clear to him, and Rowan could recall every detail of what happened. 

“Rowan, this is Lylia, she’ll be your mentor during your apprenticeship,” Fyre explained, gesturing towards a tall, strangely dressed woman. Rowan immediately turned and bowed, only looking up when he heard a soft chuckle come from Lylia. 

“Not need to be so formal,” She said, indicating him to get up with a small wave of her hand. He nodded almost too eagerly, moving in awkward movements. During this time, Rowan was only fifteen, the age most Daemons go into an apprenticeship. His face still bore a youthful bloom, brown locks framing his face and bright blue eyes. 

“Fyre,” Lylia unexpectedly spoke up. “I’d like to take Rowan back to the mansion so I can acquaint him with where he’ll be living during his apprenticeship.” At this, Fyre smiled and nodded. 

“In fact, he can go ahead and stay if he likes. I know you’re apprenticeship starts next week but you are welcome to start early.” Fyre added.

Rowan wasn’t sure what to think of it, he had completely forgotten that he would be living in Lylia’s mansion so she could better teach him. Lylia signaled for him to follow, guiding him to a small path leading into the woods. The woods were quite a dangerous place, it was natural for Rowan to feel uneasy, but seeing how confident Lylia was walking through the woods with an uncaring face, he felt a bit more at ease. Eventually, the trees cleared, revealing a large, beige-colored mansion. Rowan’s jaw dropped in awe, staring at the towering building before him. From the corner of his eye, he saw Lylia smile, expecting him to say something.

“It’s… Just wow,” He was at a loss of words, eyes still scanning the house he would soon be living in. Lylia nodded, pleased he liked it. They entered the grand doorway, Rowan stopping every few steps to glance at the various artifacts encased in glass boxes. 

“What’s this?” Rowan asked, pointing a finger at an enchanting black rose, hovering slightly above its podium. 

“Black rose from a deeper part of the forest, I figured I’d take it with me and study it, though I haven’t gotten there yet,” Lylia replied, still walking. Rowan walked quickly towards her to catch up when a silver glint caught his eye. 

“And that?” He questioned, stepping forward to closer inspect a silver crown.

“Family heirloom,” 

“Ooh, what’s this one?” Rowan directed her attention to a glowing key. Lylia finally stopped walking to stare at the object longingly. 

“That’s the key to the portal, we decided it was too dangerous for the people to have free access to the portal, and now it only opens the portal once every fifty years,” Lylia explained. Rowan scanned her expression, seeing the strange emotion in her eyes. 

“The portal to the mortal realm?” He questioned. Lylia nodded, looking away and clearing her throat. 

“Let’s go check out your room,” She concluded.

While walking up the grandiose staircase, Rowan stayed silent. He was afraid he had in some way annoyed Lylia and didn’t want to further agitate her. They finally reached a long hallway, with various doors on the side. Lylia walked towards a door labeled “Room One” Rowan looked around at the other doors, which were quite far apart from this one, and realized that they didn’t have labels. 

“Lylia, what are those rooms for?” He asked, curious why they were separated from hIs room. 

“Oh, I forgot to tell you. Don’t go in there, I installed them to house different portals.” She responded like it was a completely normal thing. Lylia knocked on the door politely, Rowan wondered why she knocked, when she could just open the door, but he stayed silent, sensing she had a reason. A rustle came from inside and the door opened with a click, revealing a brown-eyed boy, a book in his hand and a neat, tailored suit. 

“Lylia,” He acknowledged, then turned his head to Rowan, quirking an eyebrow. “And you are?” The boy asked, but his speech was so formal it almost wasn’t normal for a teen. 

“This is Rowan,” Lylia answered for him, gesturing towards Rowan. Rowan felt the boy’s stare linger on him, and his face began to heat up, feeling insecure under the gaze. The boy quickly returned his attention to Lylia after noticing his discomfort. Lylia then glanced at the boy again, “Rowan, this is Damien, he’s the temporary roommate I informed you about.”

“Wait- roommate?” Rowan exclaimed, surprised at the fact Lylia hadn’t told him. She brought her hand up to her forehead with a quiet smack.

“It totally slipped my mind, I’m so sorry. The roof above your room fell in, and I couldn’t get it fixed in time, since my magic has been very weak lately.” This raised many questions, but Rowan kept them shut in, realizing this wasn’t the time to be asking. 

“No, you’re uh, fine,” Rowan muttered awkwardly while playing with the end of his tunic. Lylia’s eyes brightened again, and she tossed Rowan a shiny object. Rowan caught it just before it hit his face, it was a key. Rowan turned it in his hand, it was small and caught around a gold hoop. 

“That’s the key to the room. I’ll leave you two to get acquainted now, I have errands to run and conferences to attend. Rowan, you’re luggage will arrive this evening.” Lylia spoke quickly and ran off, leaving Rowan to slowly process what she said. Rowan turned to Damien and offered his hand, trying to be polite. To his bewilderment, Damien scrunched his nose in a strange manner, before cautiously shaking his hand. 

Damien stepped aside to allow him to enter the quaint room, still eyeing him suspiciously. Trying to ignore the other boy’s hard stare, Rowan glanced around the room. It was a rectangular shape, with two beds on each side, one was extravagantly furnished, the other bare and empty. A desk was placed on the wall near the doorway, littered with scrolls and bound leather books. He walked towards the side he assumed was his, the bed was clearly put out just for his stay, and much smaller than Damien’s. Rowan pressed his hand into the mattress, Hard as a rock he thought, releasing the mattress from beneath his hand. A long sigh escaped his mouth as he covered his face and rubbed his eyes. The day was so long and tiring, all he longed for was his plush bed and cozy home. 

“So, how long have you been learning from Lylia?” He asked out of the blue. Damien only frowned slightly and turned a page in his book. Rowan huffed, maybe he didn’t hear him?

“Is Lylia a good teacher?” He blurted out again. Damien looked up from his book and stared straight into his eyes. 

“I’d prefer to pretend you don’t exist in my room right now, thanks.” He conveyed clearly. Rowan was dismayed, he had just tried to start a conversation. 

“Rude…” Rowan mumbled, and slapped a hand over his mouth realizing he said it out loud. But if Damien heard it, he didn’t react. 

Throughout the evening, and when his luggage came, Damien would stay quiet and ignored him. When Rowan asked for help, or made too much noise, Damien would snap at him. Eventually, he finished unpacking, and laid on the stiff bed. From the bed, he could hear Damien stand up, followed by his soft footsteps and a click. The light went out, encasing him in the darkness.