Celestia Academy

118. Sparked Ideas

previous chapter: lumine joins diluc for a night working at the tavern. while she is busy cleaning glasses, he has to take care of patrons who've had too much to drink. a downcast customer unleashes his woes with the aid of lumine's drink recommendation, and she offers to help in his dilemma by taking pictures of the campus buildings. the night ends with a close interaction between lumine and diluc—bringing her one step closer to harnessing electro.

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"A dream becomes reality when the dastardly heavens respond to that wish."

With a sharp gasp, I sprung up from my bed and had to catch my breath. The echoing words from my dream began to fade, and I shivered despite the layer of blankets. As far as I could tell, that had been a normal dream—or nightmare—showing horrific what-ifs. Alternate scenarios in which Thoma's life wasn't saved after all, and cases where Thoma wasn't the only victim. Though relieved to be awake from that nightmare, I felt no further comfort from being alone in my room.

The hair at the back of my neck prickled as Enjou's last words repeated in my mind. I hadn't thought much of it back then, but it unnerved me now to think about him mentioning the heavens. There was also tickling at my cheek. Tears? My hands came back dry after wiping at my face. Instead of tears, I had felt the ends of my hair hanging...not where they should be.

Now, I had the oddest phenomenon to distract from my fears. Instead of laying down flat, my hair stuck out everywhere like a dandelion puff waiting to be blown away. Patting at my head, I tried to smooth down the mess only for a crackle of static to buzz in my ears. My neck prickled again—this time due to raw energy. Electro energy.

Somehow, I had gained the power of another element—totaling three. Just like my brother.

This was a problem. Unlike with Anemo or Geo, I didn't have any sort of control over these Electro powers. So far, it's been spritzing out of me whenever emotions ran high. That wouldn't do. I had to get this under control before it grew stronger and I ended up hurting someone.

How would I go about learning control, though? With some practice, Anemo was a literal breeze. Geo had been stubbornly difficult and took a full-on swordfight before I got comfortable with it. Electro...an element that reacted with everything. Professor Minci may know how to handle it—especially since she had an Electro Vision—but there was one other person who might have a solution.

Someone who was just like me.

✧✧✧

"I need your help."

The words rushed out of me as soon as Aether swung his door open, bleary-eyed and with his pajamas still on. To my credit, I'd tried waiting until an appropriate time of day before giving him the elemental tutor role, but the sun had only just begun to rise by the time my patience wore thin.

"Are you in danger?" he asked with a yawn stronger than his concern.

"Not really, no."

He stared at me blankly while swaying slightly, and I wouldn't be surprised if he fell back asleep while standing up. Then, Aether wordlessly waved me in and cracked his neck on either side. His room didn't differ much from mine. One notable addition was a spirit borneol diffuser that had a clear liquid instead of green. There was also his wall of achievements—a collection of certificates, plaques, and medals that hung in their shiny glory. Lastly, my eyes landed on a plush, shag rug that I immediately became jealous of. Even Kaeya had a fuzzy rug in his room while I was given a simple, flat one.

"Are nice rugs a seniority thing?" I mumbled as my socks sunk into the nice material. "That's not fair. I want one."

Aether cleared his throat, grabbing my attention. "No, you don't. I'm always finding ants in mine, and it gets annoying. What do you need from me?"