A shadow surrounded by a ring of light was the first thing Sion saw. The fluorescent light was blinding, and the only thing protecting her from was the shadowed figure. It took her a moment to realise that the figure had fallen ringlets of pink crowning their head. 

The figure was much less willowy than she originally thought, and less coal coloured too. Instead, their skin bore a strong resemblance to the colour of the pale silk that royals commonly covered themselves with. Ash pits morphed into light green irises. Each feature danced with the other to create an insufferably waltzing smile.

“Vuela?” Rin asked, and at that moment Sion wished nothing more than to pinch the infernal boy until his skin was bright red. Useless questions were her biggest reason for annoyance, and the idiot in front of her seemed quite fond of them.

“Yes?” Sion’s voice was gushing with all the sarcasm she could muster. 

“Are you feeling all right? You were out for an hour there, must have been a long journey here huh? Here I made some broth for you, have it. You were looking a little pale there so I was just wondering if you were having a cold or somethin.” Rin fumbled over to the desk and grabbed the bowl of brown liquid before handing it over to her.

Sion felt a pang of guilt hit her. Rin may have been troublesome but he was considerate. For a stranger that he barely knew.

A growling sound filled the room and her attention move on to her starving stomach. She gulped down the warm broth in her hands.

“Thank you”, she said after the bowl was wiped clean.

Rin grinned and hummed out a welcome. He took away the bowl for another refill before she could protest. After three refills, Sion was sure that she was more soup than she was blood. Two more refills later, Rin had finally decided that Sion was full, and put away the empty bowl into a cabinet.

“It was delicious”, Sion repeated as she dabbed the skin around her mouth with a cloth towel. 

Rin only brightened with the comment and hummed a jolly tune as he cleaned the cluttered cabinet.

“My mum taught me how to cook, she’s the one you should be thanking. Hated it at first, and kept telling her that it was useless, I was a real mongrel cook back then. Couldn’t even fry a damn egg, she kept pushing me and I eventually got the hang of it . Couldn’t keep me out of the kitchen after that, it was my new home.”

Sion politely nodded along to his story, chuckling at the part where he called himself a mongrel. She could imagine a younger Rin covered in cooking powder and spices. His pink hair covered in flour, accidentally getting sugar all over the floor, and clapping baking powder into puffs. The imaginary scene made her giggle.

“Well, I still can’t manage to fry an egg so I suppose you'd be better than me in culinary no matter how much of a mess you make.”, Sion commented.

Rin tilted his head to the side before ruffling the tips of his hair.

“You know what? You're the most prim and proper commoner I’ve ever met, are ya sure you aren’t a secret princess or something? Like in the books, where you're switched at birth but you still have royal blood?”

Sion gaped before laughing it off. Under her shirt, she was sweating rivers.

“A storybook? You do know those are fictional right, meaning they aren’t real. And of course, I’m a commoner, I was born and raised in a village in the South Eastern province before moving here. My parents look exactly like me, and I even have my birth certificate.” 

Sion’s voice gained pitch as she went on, turning shrill at the last word. She hoped Rin wouldn’t notice.

He didn’t. He raised his hand in a gesture of defeat, ending the conversation. 

After Sion had changed out of her rumpled uniform in the bathroom she and Rin decided to start planning. As in planning how they would manage their chore schedule. This proved to be an easy task because Rin was humane enough to take his fair share of tasks, and Sion was responsible enough to take on even more. 

She hadn’t ever done proper chores before, that was the servants' job but she was sure that she could manage it. She had watched the maids scurry around and clean in the manor, and it didn’t seem so toilsome.

“I feel like I’m forgetting something…”, Rin whispered under his breath, interrupting Sion’s train of thought.

“Hmm?”

“Oh yeah! I forgot to tell you that you missed your first class, I think it’s the start of second period now. But, if you aren’t feeling well I think you should stay though. They won’t mind if you miss a day.” 

Rin resumed writing down his list of tasks, completely oblivious to Sion’s sudden panic. She immediately grabbed her satchel and coat and raced down the corridor, not knowing where her second period was but assuring herself that she could find it soon enough. Trailing her, was one completely miffed fairie boy who wasn't sure where he was going either. But he did know that a sick patient should always grab a quick snack before involving themselves in tasks like running. Something warm and relaxing.

Soup should do the trick.