Celeste Academy - Date with Aurora

Carida stands at the entrance to the forge, watching the door nervously as students enter and exit. She checks her phone again, rereading Aurora’s message.

I’m just finishing up! Come find me in the forge when ur ready!

She’d never paid the forge much mind in the past, seeing it as just another building to pass by on her way from one class to another. But looking at it now made it come into intensely sharp focus. The heat wafting out from under the door, the sounds of clanking metal...it was a lot to handle. But how much of that intimidation was actually from the building, and how much of it was related to the girl waiting inside?

She clenches her fists. You can do this, she tells herself before taking a deep breath and pushing the door open. As soon as she does, she’s blasted by a wave of heat so intense it threatens to knock her right back outside. She somehow manages to push forward and shut the door behind her, looking around at the students hammering away. Some of them poke and prod at items in the fire, some take tools to objects as they cool, and some are making minor adjustments to completed pieces...but none of them seem to actually be practicing attunement.

Except for one.

Aurora sits at a forge close to the entrance, a sphere of metal swirling and changing as it hangs in the air in front of her. The flames beside her illuminate her golden skin, making her eyes shimmer as she stares intently at her work. Carida can’t help thinking that she looks like something out of an old painting; some kind of medieval blacksmith forging a magic sword for a great hero. It isn’t until a particularly loud clang from the forge next to her shakes her out of her fascination that she can actually start moving toward Aurora. She approaches cautiously, not wanting to disturb her work. It isn’t until the sphere drops back down into the flames that she lets out a small cough to alert Aurora to her presence. As soon as she does, Aurora spins on her stool to face her. Her mouth widens into a big toothy grin as that sparkle in her eyes intensifies even further.

“Carida! Hey!” she calls, her voice filled with enthusiasm. She doesn’t seem to have so much of a trace of the nervousness weighing Carida down. “Great timing. I’m so ready to get out of here.”

Hopping from the stool, she pulls off her soot-covered gloves and wipes her brow with a white handkerchief stuffed into her overalls. She extends her hand and Carida only hesitates for a moment before reaching out to take it in hers. Aurora’s handshake is firm and powerful. It’s clear that there’s a whole lot of strength packed into that small frame.

“Man, it’s so good to meet you!” The excitement in Aurora’s voice makes it clear that she really does mean what she’s saying. Something about it instantly puts Carida at ease. “I’ve been looking forward to this all week.”

“M-me too!” Carida responds, her voice a bit too loud for comfort. “I’m really glad we were able to find a time to meet up.”

“Sorry I couldn’t get us a free moment other than right after my forge time. I hope you don’t mind if I’m a bit disheveled.”

“It’s no trouble at all,” Carida says with a sweet smile. She chooses to leave out mentioning that Aurora looks incredible even without time to prep for the date beforehand. That’d probably be too fast, right? Better to err on the side of caution for now. She’s got time to figure it out.

“Let me run back to my locker and get changed real quick.” She lets go of Carida’s hand and takes a few steps back towards the changing room. “I’ll meet you outside in a second.”

Carida nods as Aurora turns and runs to the room, deftly weaving around the forges in her way. Carida makes her own beeline, dashing out the door and breathing in the cool outside air. Before meeting her, she’d wondered how Aurora could stand working in that heat all day. But having met her, it had become a lot more clear. She seemed like the kind of person that could weather a hurricane with a smile on her face. In other words, she was special.

True to her word, Aurora didn’t keep her waiting long. It was only a minute or two before she joined her outside, her hair tied up with a blue ribbon that matches the color of her suspenders. Even her casual clothes screamed “hard worker”. Carida could learn a thing or two from her.

“Thanks for waiting, hon.” She gave her another grin, once again moving her hand towards Carida’s. But when she takes it this time, she doesn’t let go. “Ready to get going?”

“You bet!” The nervousness falls away from Carida’s voice as Aurora gives her hand a reassuring squeeze. “It’s been forever since I last went to Karla’s. Some ice cream sounds great right about now.”

“You’re telling me.” Aurora chuckles. “I swear, I’m gonna give myself heat stroke in there one of these days.”

“I don’t know how you do it. I’d probably be a puddle after spending a couple hours in there.”

“You get used to it. Eventually.”

They set off towards Karla’s Scoops, chatting pleasantly.

Carida learns the basics about her date: she’s one of 5 children, she loves the Ruler of Rings series, she’s a morning person. That sort of thing. Carida responds in kind, telling her about her time as a culinary student. She saves the big dreams for another time, focusing on the small details instead: that one time she made green steak, that one time she accidentally invented a new kind of bread, that sort of thing. Anything deeper than that can wait until they’re sitting down and enjoying their ice cream. After all, Carida’s got one big question she’s been waiting to ask.

When they arrive, Aurora is as jovial to the woman behind the counter as she is to Carida, albeit without the slight flirtatious tinge. As soon as they both order, her wallet is out in a flash. It’s clear that Carida paying is out of the question. Strange as it is, having another girl pay for her ice cream gives Carida a very pleasant feeling. It reminds her that this really is a date. She’s really doing this.

Once they sit down to enjoy their ice cream, she finally brings up the question that’s been on her mind since she read Aurora’s profile..

“So, Aurora. What did you mean when you said there was a unique ring for everyone?”

Aurora nearly leaps out of her chair, propelled by the force of her own excitement. It seems like she’s been looking forward to this conversation just as much as Carida has. Maybe even more.

“Okay, so…” She clears her throat, as if she’s preparing to recite a speech. “I’m a metalworker, as you know. Have been for a long time. And from the start, I was obsessed with jewelry. Maybe it was a childish fascination with how shiny and pretty it all was, but I just knew that’s what I had to make. I tried making all sorts of stuff. Necklaces, earrings, tongue studs...you name it. But rings called to me.”

She half expects Aurora to start referring to them as her “precious,” but she lets her continue. She enjoys being able to hear from someone that’s as passionate about their work as she is.

“I started with basic bands, but it only took me a month or two before I moved on to ornate designs.” She chuckles, rubbing the back of her neck. “Not to like, brag or anything, but I guess I was kind of a natural at it. The designs would come to me without even trying.”

“I know what you mean,” Carida responds, her own voice carrying some of that same passion. “When you find the right thing, it becomes second nature.”

“Yeah! You get me!”

Aurora laughs, a loud warm laugh that makes Carida’s heartbeat quicken slightly. She’d been spending so much time around seniors that didn’t care about anything but graduation that such genuine excitement was almost entrancing.

“Anyway, one time we were given an assignment to make a piece of jewelry for someone else in the class. I was just going to make a basic design for a friend of mine, but something struck me when I was talking to her about it. Her aura.”

“Wait, hold on.” Carida blinked in surprise, raising a hand to her chin. “You could see her aura? I thought that only showed up on stuff we work on.”

“For most folks, yeah. But different Attuned have different proficiencies when it comes to that sort of thing. I’ve met a few other people like me that can do it. Usually, they’re even better at it than I am. But I’m at least good enough to get a sense of someone’s energy by looking at it.”

“What do you mean, energy?”

“Y’know, like…” Aurora scratches her head, licking her ice cream absentmindedly. “Intention, I guess? I can tell if someone’s intense, passionate, mellow, or some mix of them.”

“Enough to make a ring that fits the aura.”

“Oh no, not even close! The aura’s just one part of it.”

“What’s the rest?”

Aurora doesn’t answer, instead leaning forward slightly to look at Carida with narrow eyes.

Carida nervously licks at her cone, feeling heat rise in her cheeks. She wasn’t sure if Aurora was looking at her aura, or...something deeper. It wasn’t an unpleasant sensation, but it was certainly unique. When she sat back in her chair and looked away, Carida let out a breath she didn’t know she’d been holding. Once she did, Aurora continued.

“I’ve gotta look at someone on a personal level. Figure them out as a human being, not just an aura. I’ve gotta talk to them, understand them, listen to them.” She chuckles. “Basically, I’ve gotta get to know them.”

Carida takes a deep breath, then asks another question. This one has a lot more weight to it.

“Is that what you’ve been doing today?”

Aurora doesn’t seem taken aback by the question. On the contrary, her mouth turns upward into a slightly devilish smile.

“It’s not the only thing.”

She chooses not to elaborate, instead focusing on finishing her ice cream. Carida does the same, hoping it’ll cool her burning face. Once they finish up, Aurora slowly extends her hand across the table.

“Can I see your hand, Carida?”

Carida nods, swallowing her last bit of ice cream. It did little to soothe the lump in her throat. They’d held hands on the way here, but reaching out to her now felt different. More...intimate. When Aurora turns Carida’s hand over to stare at the lines running across her palm, Carida can feel the softness of her skin, the gentle lingering touch as she traces a finger along the surface...it’s enough to make her shiver. Aurora’s brow is furrowed in concentration, and she’ll occasionally look up to stare at Carida’s face with an intense gaze that seems to belie a hunger Carida’s not quite familiar with. It’s not a bad thing.

“Emerald.”

Aurora’s voice snaps Carida out of her trance. When she lets go of Carida’s hand, Carida can’t help feeling an urge to grab it again. Being touched like that was...intoxicating. She’s so focused on it that it takes her a few seconds to process what Aurora said.

“Emerald?”

“Your ring. It needs to have an emerald in it.” Aurora sits back in her chair, rubbing her temples. “Maybe three of them.”

“And the band?” Carida asks, her eyes wide. She’s gotten a lot more invested in this than she thought she would. However, Aurora’s sigh tells her that a simple description isn’t going to be easy.

“I’m not sure.” Aurora says, her eyes shifting to the side. “Your aura is...complicated.”

“Is that a bad thing?”

Aurora’s toothy grin returns, putting Carida at ease. “It’s a great thing. I’m dying to know more about it.”

“And how would you learn more?” Carida asks, letting a bit of flirtation creep into her voice.

“Well…” Aurora says, her voice carrying the same tone. “Auras can look different on different days. I suppose that means I’d have to see you again.”

Carida can’t help giggling at her brashness. This girl really does have confidence to spare. It’s a welcome trait.

“I think I might be able to work with that.”

Their conversation finished, both rise from the table and head for the door. Once they step aside, Aurora takes her hand again. But this time, Carida notices something she hadn’t felt before.

“You don’t have a ring.”

Aurora chuckles nervously, looking away from her. Did she say something wrong?

“I’m...still working on that. It’s a lot easier to figure other people out than it is to figure yourself out, y’know?”

Carida nods, all too familiar with the feeling. “Sounds like you could use an outside perspective.”

“Are you volunteering?” she teases, gently elbowing her side.

“Maybe I am.”

Aurora smiles up at her, but it’s not her usual grin. This one is softer, more intimate. Enough to make Carida’s heart speed up again.

“Well then...if you’d like to help, you shouldn’t have any trouble finding me.”

She winks at Carida, squeezing her hand.

“As long as you can handle the heat, that is.”

Previous Chapter | Index | Next Chapter