Are you alright there? You seem a little lost-it's alright; I hear it's common for freshmen to take a while to find their feet no matter what the school is. And I'll be honest with you, even though it's been oh, what, five years since Kawaakari opened; this school is still a bit of a work in progress. I don't think all the staff even know where everything is. No, really.

Anyway, my name's Professor Ceiraii. No, I'm not one of the teachers, I'm faculty. Admin, if you like. Not nearly as prominent but just as integral to the running of the school. To its existence, in fact. Not like the day staff-you know, the cooks and the janitors and what have you. Don't get me wrong, they're vital too, and we all appreciate them, but there's a difference between us and them, a gap. I suppose it's because we have lost our mortality, and the day staff still have theirs. Ah, I suppose that you don't really care about the internal politics of the school, and I don't blame you. I don't think I noticed such things when I was your age.

But in any case, I'm sorry for forgetting to ask, but what's your name?

Aah, that's a nice name, are you from Leocadia? No, no, I just wondered since that name was quite popular there when I was growing up, but anyway, what class is it that you're-oh, Reoni's? Ah, you're in the wrong wing all together. The Angel Tree isn't going to help you get there, sadly, though I have to admit it's a more exciting way than stairs. I don't know why we haven't thought of providing students with maps yet, but as I said, this place is a bit of a work in progress so I suppose we're better off waiting to see if the place settles down. I haven't got anything in particular to do at the moment, so I can show you over to her classroom in the meantime-it's in the East Wing, and that's definitely a place that has a mind of its own. You'll see what I mean in when we get there.

No, there's no need to worry about getting into trouble. As I said, not even we know where everything is yet, so it wouldn't be fair to impose a penalty on the students for something we can't even do yet. Give it another decade or maybe even century, and it will be a different story of course. Anyway, from here we'll go through the courtyard, this way. Have you been here, yet? It's one of my favourite outdoor spaces in this building, particularly because of the stones on the ground. Take a look at them-what is it that they remind you of?

Huh. I wasn't expecting that, but I see what you mean, because there is a certain wateriness to the colour, isn't there? But think about the sky on a sunny day, and not just any sunny day but one that's just become so, after it has been raining and raining. You know the sort of day, don't you? When the clouds are grey and relentless and you don't think the sun will ever shine again. I do not know if you have ever seen a day like that, and I do not want to make assumptions. For now, though I look younger than what it is, my age is still within the realm of normal, but one day it won't be since I have lost my mortality. It's a pretty bleak realisation, but I've decided that I won't assume anything about anyone based on their age because of it. Anyone who says that a young person does not know true misery has no idea what they are talking about….

I'm sorry. I don't really talk about these things, but yes. What I am trying to say is that I have had those days, and all the staff here have too. In our own ways, we're still battling through them. But this place…Kawaakari…it's the sunshine after the rain, really. A reminder that no matter how violent the storm, there will be calm afterwards and thus, when the darkness does come, we need to fight it. Hopefully there'll be nothing on the scale of the Great War, but we must always be vigilant.

Yes, that's right. The name 'Kawaakari' does indeed mean river light, and it is meant to honour the late Goddess Akari, but not just her, or her sister. Or no, honour is not the right word for Goddess Kagami so much as to remember her. No, don't look like that, how shall I explain this for now…..hmmmm….well, to put it simply, you only see light reflected in the river when it is dark. You need the darkness to know what light is, in the first place. If you come here at night, you'll see these stones are glowing, even if the night is moonless. Of course, we do have the solar activated lights over there, those water lily shaped ones dotted around the edges there and the orbs atop the pillars there and there. But the main light comes from the stones. It's actually beautiful, so beautiful, and every time I see it it's just….

Well, I suppose my point is this: if you don't know what light is, and what it means, how can you protect it? How do you think you can protect something you don't know or understand?

Oh, I've confused you, haven't I? You'll be learning about these things sooner or later in any case, not just through the various magical and combat disciplines you learn, but your history lessons with Shippa and general studies with Snow. I would not suggest repeating the sentiments I have just shared with you outside of Kawaakari's walls, but nonetheless you'll need to grow a thick skin, because here you'll be hearing a lot more of this sort of thing, to come to your own conclusions about what the darkness is. There's no excuse for ignorance, and claiming it won't help you should you come against the darkness.

…I do apologise, that was a bit harsh. In any case, that's the door we need-do you like the carvings? I did them with the other faculty staff, with our own hands. A lot of the things that you'll see in this school are down to the magic flowing through it-even the rosestone bricks we used to build the buildings themselves are infused with magic-but these were done with hard work. It's the same flowers that we've used to name all your dorm rooms-yes, those ones are magic. Runes, for protection and the other qualities that Cher and Hades decided that they wanted you all to leave this school with. Speaking of runes, have you had a lesson with Nyamai yet? I think, from what I have heard, you will find her…quite entertaining.

Alright, so now we're here will need to go along this corridor, and then if I remember correctly, up these stairs…ah, you look like you have a question. Please, feel free to ask.

Hmm?

Ah, yes. I didn't even realise I said that, but yes, I have indeed lost my mortality. Or, as you may understand better, I have become immortal. Why? Now, I don't really want to ruin Shippa's lessons for you, but the short version boils down to this: in order to give up your life, you do not need to die.

Well, what do you think that means?

Ah, but not just for the battle. You are right that the Great War required sacrifice on that level, but it was not just for the battle that we did what we did, but also for the legacy we wanted to leave afterwards. And what legacy, you ask? Why, it's you, and where we are now. Look at this place, this corridor and stairwell without wi-

Ooops, I spoilt the surprise. But yes, since I'm out with it, this place doesn't have windows at all. No, we did put them in, but the magic of this area seemed to…well, the only way we could think of it at the time was ate them. As you can see, it's not a problem because we've strung fairy lights and lanterns everywhere, and I'm one of the staff members who makes sure they're working and stocked each night. Not by myself, naturally. But sometimes…well, we're almost at the classroom now, but perhaps you might see what happens sometimes before we get there. If not, I'm sure it will happen sooner or later, but no, I think I'll keep that one to myself. No, no, you'll just have to see and –ah, hello, if you're looking for Reoni's class then I can show you over there…ah, you're all friends. Well, that's good. It's good to have friends. This is how you get through the dark days. It's a lot easier to reach that calm after the storm, the rainbow after the rain, when you have friends…

…Ah, don't mind me, your friend and I were talking about a lot of different things in regards to this school, I am sure you will be filled in soon enough. Have you all been having a good first few days here? Yes? That's what I like to hear. Alright, so now we just need to turn the corner and…that classroom, with the star-bead curtain over the door? That's Reoni's. You'll be fine from here-as I told your friend, we can't really fault you for getting lost. If she does ask, tell her to check with Ceiraii to verify your story. Well, of course, you'll need to append Professor to the front of that, but you know what I mean. Keep your head up-there's no reason for you to be down.

Just remember, that whenever there is a reason for you to be down, that this too shall pass. The sun will shine again, and always will while you're here. This much, I can promise you. So, you need to make the most of your time here, alright?

Now, I'm sure we'll see each other around the school soon enough, but for now. I'll leave you to get on with your class.

Have a good day now, alright?

The title from this of this is the same as a title of a picture book by Smriti Prasadam-Halls (it's absolutely beautiful) which has the same themes of there always being hope, always good things after bad. Additionally, the writing style of both this and Freefall were inspired by Riku Onda's The Aosawa Murders and Kanae Minato's novels, where a lot of the narration is done in the manner of someone talking or writing to a specific person, sometimes identified and sometimes unidentified.

(Yes, I take a lot of inspiration and influence from books)