A few months later...
Nozel sat in the meeting room, having been scheduled for a one-on-one meeting with Julius to go over the progress and status of his squad. He had been waiting for over an hour already, Julius was late and the Captain of the Silver Eagles grew impatient. Deciding to go to Julius' office and confront the the Wizard King about his tardiness, Nozel was not entirely surprised to find that the office empty. Save for Ellie.
Ellie had tried to meditate while she had a moment, but she was hit hard with memories of the experiments again. When Nozel came to Julius' office, he found her sitting in one of the chairs- covered in sweat and panting.
"Are you... alright?" Nozel asked, concerned seeing her in distress despite his mistrust in her.
Ellie tried to calm her nerves and nodded. "I'm f-fine, it's nothing..."
Nozel's eyes narrowed. "It doesn't look like nothing. What happened?"
Ellie sighed. "It... was the memories..."
"What memories?" Nozel asked, then watched as Ellie stood to go to the window.
"Before Julius found me, I..." Ellie paused a moment, wrapping her arms around herself. "I took part in the Diamond Kingdom's experiments. They would take in orphans, teach us to control our magik, clothed and fed us, and told us it was all for the good of the kingdom. And like fools, we believed them."
Nozel recalled hearing rumors about the experiments she spoke of.
"The goal was to enhance our magik power, so we trained hard and grew as young mages. The students all became friends, learning to rely on one another, supporting each other through everything we were put through. We were promised the chance to go outside into the world, once we had completed the training and the experiments." Ellie fought back the tears beginning to brew. "But it all turned out to be a lie. The final experiment ended up being a battle royale where all the students were pitted against each other until only one remained. All I remember after that is everything going black, then waking up in a pit. They must have presumed I had died in the process, too, and discarded me with the others that didn't make it." Ellie's hands clenched her sleeves, something that didn't go unnoticed by Nozel. "They just threw us away like trash and didn't even bother giving us a proper funeral." She sighed once more. "I knew I wouldn't be safe if I went back, so I just started walking and kept walking until I couldn't anymore. I didn't even know that I had crossed into the Clover Kingdom until I woke up in the infirmary with Owen. If Julius hadn't found me when he did, I'd have died- alone and cold."
Nozel watched as Ellie turned back towards him and offered him an apologetical smile- as small as it was.
"I'm sorry, sir... You didn't come here to hear my sob story." Ellie tried to change the subject as best as she could. "What was it that you needed? Were you looking for Julius?"
"It's fine. I... am sorry that you had to endure such hardships," Nozel started, unsure of what else he could say to her. "I was supposed to have a meeting with Lord Julius, but after an hour of waiting I came here to find him."
Ellie sighed. "I'm so sorry, sir... Julius must have forgotten about the meeting."
Nozel handed Ellie the report he was to go over with Julius. "Just give this to him when you see him next."
Ellie looked down at the report for a moment before turning her gaze up to the Captain of the Silver Eagles once more. She made to reply, only to find that he had already taken his leave. She set the report on the Wizard King's desk and took a seat, wondering why Nozel had been so insistent on her talking about the memories. 'It's not like he cares or anything.' She sighed and rubbed her temples, then sat back in the chair and pulled her knees to her chest. 'So why did he look so concerned..?'
As he made his way back to the Silver Eagles' headquarters, Nozel thought over what she had been through. He was beginning to understand why Ellie was the way she was and he honestly felt sorry for her. No one, regardless of their lineage or station, should have to endure something like that.
'It's no wonder she was so quick to agree to the king's request for information,' he thought as he made his way back towards the headquarters of the Silver Eagles. 'Perhaps I was wrong about her.'
"Hey, braidy bangs!"
Nozel sighed and looked over as the Captain of the Black Bulls, Yami Sukehiro, waved at him. "What is it?" he asked, ignoring the insulting nickname.
"Some of the other captains and I are going out for drinks later, you in?"
"I have more important things to do with my evening."
"Like what, practice your braiding?"
Nozel knew that Yami wouldn't give up and wasn't in the mood for his jests, so he begrudgingly agreed. "Very well..."
"Great, the usual place then."