The quiet atmosphere around the lake seemed to shift the moment that voice reached Luca’s ears, the calm night air suddenly carrying a strange liveliness that had not been there a moment before. Moonlight shimmered gently across the water, silver ripples dancing beneath the breeze while shadows from the surrounding trees stretched across the ground like dark curtains hiding unseen secrets.

Luca stopped mid-step.

The familiar voice echoed softly once more through the night, playful and distant at the same time, and as realization dawned upon him, he slowly turned back toward the lake.

Yet—

No one was there.

His brows furrowed slightly as his gaze swept across the shoreline, the rocks, the trees, the faint mist lingering near the water.

Nothing.

"...Where are you?" he asked at last, his tone carrying more curiosity than caution as he looked around carefully.

A soft laugh answered him almost immediately.

"I’m not telling you."

The voice came again, clear enough for him to hear, yet impossible to pinpoint, as though it drifted freely through the air itself rather than coming from any one direction.

Luca narrowed his eyes slightly, turning toward another side of the lake.

"...Are you playing hide and seek with me now?" he asked, the faintest trace of amusement slipping into his voice despite himself.

A quiet giggle rang out through the night.

"So what if I am?" the unseen woman replied lightly, her tone carrying unmistakable teasing now. "Come and find me."

Luca let out a slow breath through his nose before shaking his head faintly, unable to stop the small chuckle that escaped him.

"...You’re unbelievable."

Still—

He moved.

Slowly walking along the edge of the lake, his eyes scanning the shadows carefully as he tried to follow the direction of her voice, though every time he thought he had narrowed it down, it seemed to shift elsewhere.

The trees rustled softly nearby.

He turned immediately.

Nothing.

A faint laugh sounded from behind him this time.

"You’re too slow."

Luca spun back toward the water, his gaze narrowing.

"You know," he muttered as he walked toward a cluster of trees near the shoreline, "normally people show themselves when they call someone over."

"And normally," her voice replied lazily from somewhere above him, "people don’t stare at lakes while thinking about women."

Luca froze for half a second before immediately looking upward toward the branches overhead.

Empty.

"...Were you reading my mind now too?" he asked suspiciously.

Another giggle answered him.

"Maybe."

Luca sighed dramatically, though there was no real frustration behind it as he continued searching, moving past the trees while moonlight filtered through the branches above, scattering pale patterns across the ground.

"You know this is unfair, right?" he said while glancing around again. "You can clearly see me."

"Mhm."

"And I can’t see you."

"That sounds like a you problem."

Luca clicked his tongue lightly.

"Coward."

A soft gasp sounded theatrically somewhere close.

"How rude," the woman replied immediately, sounding deeply offended despite the laughter hidden beneath her words. "I’m simply observing."

"Observing while hiding."

"Exactly."

Luca shook his head again as he stepped closer toward the lake itself, his reflection briefly rippling across the water beneath the moonlight.

For a moment, the voice did not come again.

The quiet returned.

Then—

"You came looking for me."

The teasing in her tone had softened slightly now, replaced by something quieter.

Luca paused.

His gaze lowered faintly toward the water before he answered.

"...Maybe."

A brief silence followed before her voice returned once more, softer this time, though still carrying that same playful warmth beneath it.

"And here I thought you just accidentally wandered here again."

Luca let out a faint chuckle.

"...I did accidentally wander here," he admitted honestly. "But maybe part of me was hoping you’d be here too."

The night grew still for a moment after that.

Even the wind seemed quieter.

Then—

A faint whisper brushed past his ear from somewhere impossibly close.

"...You’re getting better at saying dangerous things."

The moment that whisper brushed against his ear, Luca reacted instantly, turning sharply toward the direction it had come from, his crimson eyes narrowing as he searched for even the slightest trace of her presence.

But there was nothing there.

Only the soft night breeze moving through the trees.

The branches swayed gently above him, moonlight shifting across the ground in silver fragments, while the lake continued rippling quietly as though nothing unusual had happened at all.

Luca stared for another moment longer before exhaling through his nose.

"...You’re seriously impossible to find," he muttered, though there was no real annoyance in his voice anymore.

No answer came immediately.

Still unwilling to completely give up, he continued walking around the edge of the lake, occasionally glancing behind trees or toward the higher branches overhead whenever he thought he sensed movement. Yet every single time, he found nothing but shadows and moonlight waiting for him.

And somewhere nearby—

A faint giggle continued to follow him.

At one point, Luca stopped entirely and looked upward toward the sky before letting out a quiet sigh of surrender.

"...Fine," he said at last, shaking his head lightly. "Forget it."

His tone softened faintly after that.

"It’s not actually that bad... talking with you like this."

The night remained quiet for a brief second after his words.

Then—

"That sounds suspiciously honest."

Luca chuckled under his breath as he finally walked toward the shore of the lake and sat down near the water, one knee raised while the other leg stretched lazily beside him. The cool night air brushed against his skin gently, carrying the faint scent of water and trees while the moon reflected clearly across the calm surface before him.

"...Maybe it is," he admitted quietly.

For a while, neither of them spoke.

Yet strangely—

The silence did not feel awkward.

Only peaceful.

Then her voice returned once more, softer now, almost lazy.

"So," she asked playfully, "what were you thinking about before you came here?"

Luca rested his arm over his raised knee, looking out across the lake as he answered honestly.

"Too many things."

"That sounds troublesome."

"It is troublesome."

A quiet laugh drifted through the air.

"You think too much."

"And you hide too much."

"Mhm," she hummed without denial. "But I’m more interesting this way."

Luca snorted lightly.

"That confidence is honestly impressive."

"Of course it is," she replied immediately. "Do you know how hard it is to maintain mystery properly?"

Luca shook his head faintly at that.

"You make it sound like a profession."

"Maybe it is." 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

Another quiet chuckle escaped him as he leaned back slightly, supporting himself with his hands behind him while his gaze remained fixed upon the water.

The conversation drifted naturally after that.

Random.

Aimless.

Yet strangely comfortable.

At one point she asked him about the academy, and Luca found himself explaining small things he normally would never bother mentioning to anyone else—the chaos of his classroom, Kyle’s endless teasing, Eric’s constant complaints whenever Luca ignored lectures, and even Aiden’s increasingly dramatic reactions every time Luca grew stronger.

The unseen woman laughed more than once at those stories, her voice echoing softly around the lake like a melody carried by the wind itself.

"He sounds easy to bully," she commented lazily after one particular story about Aiden nearly crying over Luca’s breakthrough.

"He is," Luca admitted without hesitation.

"You’re cruel."

"You’d do the same."

"...Fair point."

At another moment, she suddenly asked—

"What about that red-haired girl?"

Luca blinked once.

"Aurelia?"

"Mhm."

There was a faint teasing edge in her voice again.

"You smile differently when you talk about her."

Luca paused for a brief moment before a small smile actually did appear unconsciously upon his face.

"...Do I?"

"You just did."

He let out a soft laugh at being caught so easily.

"She’s important to me," he admitted quietly.

The night breeze stirred gently again.

And though he still could not see her—

For some reason—

He could feel her listening.

Time slipped by far more quietly than Luca had realized, their conversation continuing beneath the moonlit sky without purpose or direction, drifting from one random topic to another with a strange ease that made the passing hours feel almost weightless. The lake remained calm before them, reflecting the stars scattered across the night sky while the cool breeze carried her unseen voice around him like something that belonged to the darkness itself.

At some point, Luca stopped paying attention to how unusual the situation actually was.

He simply talked.

And listened.

And strangely enough—

That felt natural.

Eventually, however, the quiet reality of the hour began to settle back in. The academy grounds had grown even more silent than before, the distant lights from a few remaining windows dimming one by one as the night deepened further.

Luca glanced briefly toward the sky before letting out a soft breath.

"...It’s already late," he murmured.

Pushing himself off the ground, he stood slowly from the edge of the lake, brushing faint traces of dust from his clothes as the cool air moved around him once again.

"I should head back to the dorm."

The words faded into the quiet surroundings.

And for the first time since their conversation had begun—

No response came.

Luca waited a moment longer, his gaze drifting across the dark shoreline, toward the trees, toward the shadows where he had unsuccessfully searched for her earlier.

Still nothing.

A faint smile tugged at his lips then, small and helpless all at once.

"...Are you really not going to come out and see me?" he asked, his voice quieter now, carrying genuine curiosity beneath the teasing tone.

For a brief moment, only the sound of the wind answered him.

Then—

Her voice returned.

Soft.

Gentle.

And somehow more distant than before.

"...No," she said quietly. "Not today."

The breeze stirred across the lake once more as her unseen presence lingered around him.

Then she continued, her tone lowering slightly, almost as though she was speaking more to herself than to him.

"For today... let me remain like this."

The final words echoed softly through the night air, blending into the rustling leaves and the quiet ripples of water beneath the moonlight until even that voice slowly faded away, leaving Luca standing alone beside the lake once more.