The door clicked shut behind Noel, sealing off the noise of the academy hallway.
For the first time since he'd returned, the quiet hit him — soft, heavy, almost too familiar.
His room looked exactly as he'd left it: bed half-made, stacks of books leaning dangerously on the desk, the faint scent of old parchment and mana ink lingering in the air. A place that wasn't glamorous or grand, but felt more like home than the Thorne mansion ever had.
A ripple of shadow slid across the floor.
Noir emerged from it a heartbeat later, her paws silent on the wooden boards. She stretched once, tail flicking lazily, before hopping onto the bed and sitting upright like she was waiting for him to speak.
'You've been holding that in all morning,' she said in his mind, voice low and perceptive.
Noel exhaled, dropping onto the edge of the bed beside her. "Yeah. I needed a minute."
