whenthelilybedblooms | whiteoak academy

whiteoak academy

The country of Esmos has a proud tradition of raising the children of its noble houses into powerful mages who wield all manner of control over the magic that runs through the world. To this end, the most magically adept (and, typically, richest and most well-bred) children are sent to the prestigious White Oak Academy.

Here, they learn how to get along and more importantly, how to mingle and socialize in high society. Etiquette and history classes are held alongside magical theory and combat and it's impossible to tell just which is more dangerous – the magic the students are learning to control or the social circles they're expected to begin navigating.

Still, White Oak is known through the land for a reason and with nobles and royalty in attendance, the security and care taken in protecting their students make this the safest place in all of Esmos.

Surely nothing could go wrong in a place like White Oak.

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Then we can make our way straight there...!

[ She doesn't quite do anything as improper as starting to pull him along, but she definitely noticeably picks up her pace in her eagerness to show off her hard work. ]

[ she's still so cute, though?! ...he should really be making more of an attempt to keep his thoughts off of his face, but... she's so cute.

he keeps up with her easily— it's tempting to maybe go a little faster, to try to tease her into into some sort of impromptu race as though they were still children, but... propriety. he matches her pace, instead. ]

[ The indoor garden's usually at least a little busy during lunch - it's a nice place to unwind and there's no need to worry about the weather turning on a dime. But with the work being done, it seems most of the usual faces have gotten out of the habit of spending time here so when the two of them arrive, it seems blissfully quiet. It makes a sort of guilty relief turn over in Lily's stomach, that she's quick to cover for by hurrying him over to her own section of the raised flowerbeds. ]

It should be right around... ah, it's here!

[ It's not a particularly big plot, but it's very immediately Lily, even with no actual lillies (she couldn't bring herself to be quite so on the nose). It's a colorful cluster of bright flowers, all in shades of blue and purple - none of them would really pair up well individually but somehow, all put together, it sort of works.

She manages to restrain herself for a fidgety moment before glancing up nervously at his face for his appraisal. ]

There's still one or two things I'd like to add but... it's mostly finished.

[ he makes an appreciative sound under his breath, looking at the flower bed with bright eyes. he's drawn more toward deeper reds and creams himself, as well as being used to more orderly arrangements, but it makes sense Lily would like something both more colorful and chaotic than that. ]

It's beautiful. I can tell it's yours, too.

[ ...those particular shades, though...

he blinks, slowly, and then drags his eyes away. teasingly, to try to cover for the flutter of feeling inspired by his sudden suspicions: ]

...No lilies, though?

[ At his words, her shoulders visibly sag with relief. She hadn't realized she'd been so on edge waiting for his approval but – well, it's one thing to show something like this to Mina or her friends on the greenery committee. For some reason, showing him feels just a bit different.

She titters, politely if a little nervously. ]

I thought... that might be a bit much. It's not that I don't like them, but... it'd almost be like drawing attention to myself instead of the flowers. And I already had the colours in mind before choosing what to plant... I don't think they would've fit in, even if I'd wanted to plant them.

[ tilting his head, considering it more seriously for a moment, before shaking his head. ]

White ones might work as far as color, since they'd be fairly neutral, but... you're right that they tend to get one's attention. I was just joking, really.

That's a relief. You weren't the first one to suggest it and everyone else was quite serious about the idea...

[ The perils of being assigned a floral motif at birth.

She looks quietly pleased, though. She hadn't expected him to give her a scathing critique, but hearing that it's beautiful is another thing altogether. ]

Ah– shall we sit? You must be hungry after practicing for so long...

[ he laughs quietly, rueful ]

My apologies for jumping on the bandwagon, then...

...I am, a little, but— one moment.

[ letting her hand slip from his arm so that he can take off his jacket and put it down for her. a gentleman doesn't let a lady sit directly on the ground. ]

Ah-

[ At first, she opens her mouth to protest or maybe apologize. She's so used to sitting with Mina for lunch where neither of them worry about that sort of thing that she'd forgotten to bring a blanket or a sheet to sit on. But it'd be much ruder to protest when he's being so considerate, wouldn't it?

Ducking her head in hopes he won't see just how red she is, Lily carefully settles herself and their food down. ]

Um... Thank you, Your Highness... [ She's a little embarrassed by just how transparently pleased she sounds. ] I-is there room for you too? I should've thought ahead and brought something for you to sit on...

We would have to sit fairly close together.

[ if only. while he joins her, it's with (just) enough distance to be polite. ]

It's all right. You didn't know I was going to insist on seeing your flowers.

I was hoping to show them to you eventually. I don't think we're having much in the way of an official unveiling, so you're the first one apart from me and the rest of the committee who's seen it.

[ Which makes her feel a little bad – usually, Mina would be the first one to see something like this, but she's not sure her nerves would have been able to stand waiting too long to show him.

She sets the basket of treats between the two of them and carefully pulls the cloth cover from the top – she'd said these were just leftovers, but there's just under half of a pie left, and enough cookies and sweets to leave them both stuffed. J–just how much baking did she and Mina do??? ]

Here – please help yourself.

I am?

[ blinks at her, clearly flustered, before looking away to try to hide his reaction. ]

That's— oh.

[ look, dessert. he takes advantage of the distraction, letting the sentence drop before he can say something ridiculous enough to have come out of his twin's mouth.

...the look he is giving the pie is actually somewhat predatory, but— he restrains himself for the moment and picks out a cookie. the pie can be dessert. ...post-dessert-dessert. dessert squared? ]

I thought these were just leftovers...? The full spread must have been a sight.

[ It's always a little surprising to see him get like that – the idea that she might be able to say or do something that would catch him off guard like that never seems quite right to Lily. So it's... nice, somehow, to see it happen.

Sweets are a safer topic, though, so she jumps on it readily. ]

It really was. I wish I could've shown you, somehow. It was definitely a bit much, but... well, I suppose that's on us for getting as carried away as we did.

[ And it's certainly not because Lily wanted to make sure there was more than enough to feed him with. Perish the thought. ]

It's so easy to lose track of time when I'm with Mina, though.

I'm certainly not complaining, considering I'm reaping the benefits.

[ speaking of— he takes a bite of that cookie, and then visibly has to restrain himself from inhaling it. or from making more than a brief, pleased noise. swallowing ]

...the delicious benefits. If this is what happens when you lose track of time, I'm going to have to figure out some way to loan you my tendency to do just that.

[ Now that's the sort of response to her baking she likes to see. Now she feels like her efforts are a little less excessive – if left to his own devices, she's fairy sure he'll demolish the whole basket. And maybe sweets aren't the best thing to be filling up on but at least this way he'll eat something. ]

It's just a shame I can't really afford to let it happen that often. Things just happened to line up so that we had enough free time.

[ She shifts a little nervously on the spot, transparently wanting to say something but now quite sure if it's allowed. ]

We... were talking about doing some more baking on our next leisure day. When we have the time.

[ Hint, hint. ]

[ ...she has his attention, ]

Ah— really? I think my own schedule may be free that day...

[ it... isn't, actually, if he's remembering correctly. but that's easily fixed. ]

Is that so? Then, um...

[ If he's already said that his schedule is free, then that means it's fine to invite him, right? ]

Would you like to join us? I'm sure Mina wouldn't mind if you came along as well.

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whiteoak academy

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