Dragonlord

Ep 19.5 (Extra): Lover’s Day

Extra entries are celebratory pieces written on random, special occasions; they’re not necessarily a part of the main story. Take them with a grain of salt.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Ep 19.5 (Extra): Lover’s Day

Knock. Knock.

Karas set down a set of reports on his office table as he heard the knocking on the door. He briefly glanced towards his calendar to check if he’d forgotten any appointments, but the schedule for the day showed a complete blank.

“Hm, odd. Come in!”

The door slowly creaked open as a small, familiar figure walked in, her amethyst eyes peeking into the office’s interior. Her grey, fluffy kitten ears twitched as she stepped into the professor’s office; she was holding several bags of treats in one hand, and a chocolate donut was comfortably resting between her lips. Her grey hair was neatly tied into a braid behind her, and her casual blue-and-white shirt and shorts attire suggested that the reason for her visit wasn’t anything related to academics.

“Pwofeor, ae you buiy?”

“…Light, at least finish your donut.”

The student closed the door behind her with her shoulder before setting the bags down on the floor. She then quickly shoved the rest of her donut into her mouth, chewing it down and swallowing before speaking again.

“Professor! Are you busy?”

“I-“

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“Of course you’re not, nobody ever comes here except me. I’d know.”

“…What is it, Light.”

“It’s Free Chocolate Day!”

“Free Chocolate Day?”

“Don’t you ever look at your calendar?”

Karas glanced over at the calendar on his desk again. He hadn’t written anything himself on it, but a small fine print was indeed there beneath today’s date, right below the 14^th day of the year’s second month: Lover’s Day.

‘Free Chocolate Day?’

Karas returned his gaze back to the student before him, specifically towards the bag of goods she’d brought. It was customary to give gifts of chocolate to cherished and affectionate individuals on this day; Light was a popular student among her classmates, and the professor could easily envision her receiving gifts of chocolate from a number of them. It’d make sense if the entire bag was full of chocolate she’d received from her friends and aspiring partners.

“I suppose it makes sense why you’d call it free chocolate day. Came to share some of your loot?”

“Loot? Of course not, they’re gifts for me. Why would I share them with anyone?”

The cat half crouched down as she began to run a finger through the various bags she’d been holding. Once she found the one she was looking for, she quickly brought it over to Karas, placing the brown paper bag on top of his desk.

“Here you go, this is for you!”

“Hm? Did you not just say they were gifts for yourself?”

“That one wasn’t a gift. I made it!”

The professor held the paper bag’s mouth open, revealing an assortment of what seemed like miniature brown slimes that had somehow solidified. They were probably chocolate that had every potential to look pretty once upon a time…before being cooked up by Light’s hands.

Still, they were gifts nonetheless. The professor beamed a soft grin, though it was difficult to see with his feathers covering his beak.

“They aren’t from any stores in this city, that much I can see.”

“Eh…they’re not all that pretty, but they’re good! Try one!”

The professor hesitantly reached into the bag as he pulled out one of the chocolate clumps. He soon popped it into his beak, savoring the rather familiar taste.

“Well? Well? It’s good, isn’t it?”

“…Tastes unhealthy.”

“Of course it does, it’s candy!”

“That is true. It’s…”

Karas swallowed down the last bits of the chocolate’s nostalgic taste. His eyes longingly stared into the paper bag, then at the student standing before his desk with gleaming eyes. He could almost hear her voice again. An all-too-familiar voice he’d heard in a distant past, a voice that resembled Light’s a little too much.

- ‘If we ever meet again, then it’ll be your turn to be nice to me! Promise, okay?’

Just a few days prior, the professor had encountered a phenomenon of his dreams. An individual soul had recalled the memories of their past life, and continued to be who they once were. While he hadn’t been able to figure out its exact workings, by keeping them near, Karas hoped to ascertain its cause and find a way to replicate it.

“…”

He could almost see the overlap in Light’s figure. In her expression. In her expectant gaze. They looked alike, behaved alike, and even looked at him alike. If not for the block of time that separated her two lives, Karas would’ve thought them to be twins.

But for now, Light was his student – a dear student who’d come to his office on a holiday to make sure he wasn’t spending it in his lonesome. And it was fine, just the way it is. For now.

“…It’s good. Better than anything a store could sell.”

“Really?! Maybe I should try making more then…”

Karas chuckled lightly, running his hand over the girl’s head between her ears. He was thankful, proud, and just a little, sad.

“Perhaps. One day.”

“Not today? You’re fine with just that bag?”

The professor nodded. His mind was elsewhere and he was answering his own doubts out loud, but Light didn’t have to know any of it.

“This is enough. For now.”