01 ⚡ Wandering Relic

[maddening_gale]

[Jade is at his desk, which is a welcome change. He hasn't been able to sit at his desk in his office in months, or what feels like months, thanks to an extended stay in the magical musical city of Elegy. Yes, a very welcome change from dealing with irritating employees and the constant music. So welcome, in fact, that he's actually dreaming about

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[waterfell]

[In the dream, it doesn't occur to her to wonder why she's reporting to a man she suddenly knows, instead of to Kunzite as usual, or her superiors at the hospital. Ami simply steps forward to the desk and holds out a small sheaf of papers.]

Everything is there in proper order. The latest data.

[She waits expectantly, for approval or further instruction.]

[maddening_gale]

[He takes the papers without really looking at her, glances at it, and gives a small sigh. He takes a small envelope that has been paperclipped to the report in hand, and twirls it idly.]

... You're new here, aren't you? Have you ever been to the Intelligence Division's wing?

[waterfell]

[A crisp nod; she's new.]

Not yet. I know the way, though. [Building layout maps are lovely things.]

[maddening_gale]

[Normally, he'd just give it to her and tell her to deliver the letter to the unlucky soul it's supposed to go to, and tell her to figure it out for herself, but dream logic is exactly that. It is imparative that he show her the Intelligence wing of the building. He stands up, gives her the letter, and goes to open the door.]

Well, it's a start. Come with me, and don't lose that.

[waterfell]

[She nods, and waits attentively until Jade is ready. She moves to follow him once he passes her on the way to the door.]

I expected an eventful first day. [Her tone is deliberately too even to tell whether this is shaping up to meet those expectations, or the opposite.]

[maddening_gale]

Oh no, not for us. If you were looking for excitement, you should have chosen a different occupation. [And yet, the way he says it suggests that someone else will be having plenty of 'fun' soon.]

This way. [He turns and begins to walk through the waiting lobby, and toward a hallway on the other side.]

[waterfell]

[Ami follows Jade and eyes the surroundings with open interest; the dream makes them familiar but a part of her still knows they're not. She likes new places.]

My profession is something I wanted ever since I was young. I'm not going to choose a different one now.

[But something feels puzzling even as she says it. Was this really that goal she worked towards all her life? Was it something else?]

[maddening_gale]

[He finally gives her a look that might be considered interested.]

Dedicated to the Empire, are you? How admirable of you.

You aren't a fonist, by any chance?

[waterfell]

[The dream gives her to understand the term to mean something like elementalist - in short, her connection to the Water. But she's slightly guarded, so she plays it off as half a joke.]

And if I was? What then?

[maddening_gale]

[His tone is flat now. Not only because it's time to be blunt, but because newbies shouldn't be so cheeky around an officer.]

Then I would advise you to take up something else, at least on the side. By the time you're my age, the demand for fonists will be so low that you likely won't be able to hold a steady job.

[waterfell]

[Please. Her first day in the Dark Kingdom had involved telling off Queen Beryl to her face. Beryl had not been amused. Mercury hadn't particularly cared - and more importantly, neither had Kunzite, the one to bring Mercury there.]

My interest is medicine.

[This still avoids the question of whether she is, in fact, a fonist. But it works.]

[maddening_gale]

Ah~ A noble calling. Are you studying at the Academy?

[Because if she is, he can just look up her school records instead of asking directly. Not to be nosy, but because it bothers him to not know his underlings.]

[And anyway, they've reached the Intelligence wing. Jade stops at one of the offices, which appears to be locked up. There's a mail slot on the door, and a brass nameplate that reads 'Cadogan.']

Here we are. Just drop that envelope in the slot and be on your way.

[waterfell]

No. I'm ready for practice.

[Confident in herself, for someone who the dream may or may not have provided academy records for. Ami slips the envelope into the slot.]

Shall I go now?

[He can always ask directly, really. She likes the interest.]