Book 1: The Chaos Keys

Chapter Three: Lilith🌊

Lilith took Aku from Ethan, letting him back into her backpack. She had become used to following him around the school for now, and had just tailed him when he went to the eating area.

It was surprisingly cozy, more set like a decent restaurant than a school cafeteria. The lighting wasn't particularly dim, but it didn't have the typical overbearing brightness that most of the school had. It was also comfortably warm, and everything had a gentle, orange glow surrounding it.

She hesitated, as she watched Ethan go over to a table in a corner, and sit across from someone in all black, the hood from their black hoodie over their head. There was a fluffy  cat under the table, eating contently from a bowl. It looked up at Lilith immediately, staring her down.

She didn't want to intrude, so she went to get her lunch alone, and looked for somewhere else to sit. However, when he spotted her, he quickly waved for her to join them, so she walked over and sat beside Ethan.

"Lilith right?" The person asked. Thier voice was a little monotonous, but it had a friendly feel to it."Ethan told me all about you princess." They said, leaning back in their chair idly.

Lilith gave them a strange look at the nickname, tilting her head. She waved a little, and turned away, watching as Ethan started contently crunching on his animal shaped nuggets. He really didn't seem to have a care in the world. From what she'd seen, little went on behind those gentle brown eyes.

Lilith paused, before hesitantly tasting the Mac and cheese the school provided. She gave a slow nod of approval, and began to eat carefully. It was noticeable that she was trying very hard not to spill anything anywhere, although the meal was somewhat messy. She seemed a little unfamiliar with the simple plastic fork.

"Never tasted Mac and Cheese?" The person asked. Their expression was empty, but the statement held genuine curiosity.

Lilith flipped to the page in her book where she had written "No" previously, and held it up.

"It's fine, I know sign." The person signed to Lilith.

She was a little surprised, but gave a small smile.

"That's easier, what are your pronouns?" Lilith signed back, seeming a little relieved. Writing in the book was a tiring exercise. Even more so when she was trying to eat. She had been losing her energy so quickly since she entered the cafeteria, it confused her.

The person smiled a little, and leaned back into thier chair. They grabbed a sandwich from in their bag and unwrapped it, taking a bite.

"Take a guess."

"They/Them?"

The person chuckled a bit to themselves, chewing their sandwich slowly before they spoke again.

"Trick question. I use any pronouns." They answered, glancing at Ethan. "You can use she/her or she/they if you want to."

Ethan was absently eating the fun shaped nuggies, and toying with his pendant, which Lilith quickly fixated on again. It glimmered a bit in the dim lighting, which was a bit strange. The jewel seemed to have light directly hitting it, though there wasn't much light in the room.

Lilith looked around for what could possibly be the source, but could not spot one. Furrowing her brows a bit, she slowly sat back in her seat and continued to eat the Mac and Cheese. The little curious shine in her eyes had dulled into thoughtfulness, and she seemed just as absent as Ethan.