Astronomical Misunderstanding

Towa always considered herself a nice person. Always doing her best to stay civil and polite even when she felt that she was being pushed to her limit by her friends, peers, and instructors. In truth, her family and friends questioned whether or not she even had an angry bone in her body.

However, it was clear that the limits of Towa's politeness were being tested by Rean as he made small talk with her while they exited the Student Union building together.

She couldn't help but feel an intense annoyance towards him as he continued speaking with an earnest smile on his face that she usually found dashing.

Wanting to put as much space between herself and Rean before he could notice the fury behind her eyes, Towa excused herself. Informing him that she and a classmate were meeting up to work on a group project. Oblivious to her current feelings, he happily waved her off before walking over to the library.

She felt guilty for lying to him, but she didn't know how else to exit that conversation before she blew up on him. Needing an outlet to vent to, she decided to head over to the engineering building to meet with her friends.

All the while, the words Rean had said just a few minutes ago echoed in her head. She tightened her fists each time she remembered his offensive comment.

"B-By the way, President Towa. I heard that you're really big on stars, and well, I was wondering if you could give me a few astrology pointers. I'm still having a bit of trouble getting the hang of fortune telling."


"How could Rean do this to me!?" Towa angrily shouted as she slammed her fists on the table.

Due to her short stature, it wasn't that much force hitting the table, but that was beside the point.

Crow, Angelica, and George had never seen her this angry before. Considering that she's had to deal with their antics for the past year and never raised her voice to this extent could only mean that their black-haired underclassman must've done something truly horrible to get Towa this fired up.

"What did Rean-Bean even do to get you this worked up?" Crow questioned as Towa did her best to calm herself down.

"H-He… He…" Towa began to answer but began to stutter as a result of her rage.

"He what? Say that he'd stop helping the Student Council?" Angelica guessed.

"He… H-He-" Towa tried to answer again.

"Did he cheat on a test or something?" George interrupted.

"He-" Towa tried to explain before getting cut off again.

"Oh, I know! He finally made one too many short jokes for you to handle!" Crow jokingly suggested.

"Enough! He… talked to me about astrology!" Towa loudly revealed.

"And? You like stars, don't you?" Angelica replied.

"Yes, I like stars, but because I'm a fan of astronomy! Not astrology! A-S-T-R-O-N-O-M-Y! There's an abundance of differences that I couldn't possibly begin to explain to people outside of the sphere of astronomers like you guys." Towa began to rant. "Ugh. Why would Rean all of a sudden be so interested in astrology of all things?"

George, Angelica, and Crow collectively gulped knowing full well the answer to her question as they recalled their encounter with Towa's personal gopher the day before.


"Yo Rean-Bean, why the long face?" Crow questioned upon noticing Rean sitting by himself at a table outside of Kirsche's Café & Inn.

"You know, the point of these outdoor tables is to enjoy them with company." Angelica pointed out as she looked at the empty chair in front of Rean.

"I'm sure Towa could use a coffee break right about now." George suggested, not the least bit subtle about the three of them trying to wingman for their petite friend.

"That's the thing. I'm not really sure what I would be able to talk with President Towa about to help her relax." Rean admitted.

"What are you talking about? Don't you already stop by the Student Council room every once and awhile to help Towa out? Surely you two have already shared small talk." Angelica pointed out.

"We don't really talk when I stop by to help her. What with both of us trying to finish all that paperwork efficiently before sunset." Rean explained. "Most conversations outside of school when I spot her out in Trista have all focused on her asking me how things are going regarding school and not much else.

The three upperclassmen couldn't help but facepalm in response to Towa's behavior around Rean. They had explicitly told her to take advantage of his help to try and start up small talk so that they'd both get to know each other better. Clearly it seemed that they put Student Council work over their own personal desires. Which all things considered, wasn't all that unexpected from the Student Council president.

"Hmm… You guys are President Towa's friends. Mind telling what type of stuff she likes?" Rean asked.

"Give us a minute." Angelica responded before she, George, and Crow huddled up to discuss their next course of action.

"You know, we can speed things up and tell him that one thing Towa likes above all else is him." Crow suggested.

"It's not our place to tell Rean that, he clearly still needs to get to know her better before Towa can work up the courage to confess how she feels." George suggested.

"Let's just start with something basic." Angelica suggested. "Towa likes stars, if we tell Rean that she likes them then he might get the idea to start talking to her about them. Next thing we know they can go on one of those stargazing dates on the school roof or something."

"Sounds like a plan!" Crow responded.

"There's no way we can screw this up." George commented.

Rean watched as his upperclassmen separated and looked at him with prideful smiles, he couldn't help but feel as if they didn't have his or Towa's best interests in mind.

"If you must know, as Towa's friends we do know all sorts of things about her." Crow informed Rean.

"I'd be worried if you guys didn't given the Class VII Trial Run you guys partook in together last year." Rean sarcastically pointed out.

"Ahem. If there's one thing Towa likes above all else, besides schoolwork, it's stars!" Angelica explained.

"Stars?" Rean repeated.

"Well, not just stars. She's into all sorts of things that make up the night sky." Angelica continued.

"I see…" Rean noted as he began to think. "So, she's into astrology?"

Not really being knowledgeable about the specifics regarding Towa's nightly hobby, the three of them nodded their heads.

Unaware of their crucial mistake.


"Is something wrong?" Towa questioned upon noticing her friends having zoned out.

"It's nothing." George assured her.

"Clearly this is a subject matter you're passionate about." Crow noted.

"You better believe I am! I wasn't raised by my astronomer grandfather for nothing! I even managed to set up a telescope in my dorm room!" Towa explained. "Ooh wait, I think there'll be a full moon tonight. I guess I know what I'll be doing later."

"If Rean's ignorance regarding astrology and astronomy bothers you so much, why not invite him over and give him an Astronomy 101 lesson?" Angelica suggested.

Towa began to think about Angelica's suggestion. From the way Rean had spoken earlier, it didn't really sound like he was all too knowledgeable about astrology to begin with. Perhaps there was still time to set him down the path of astronomy, and she was the best woman for the job.

"Well?" George asked as the three of them watched Towa ponder.

Without answering, Towa pulled out her ARCUS and dialed Rean.

"Rean Schwarzer speaking." Rean greeted. "Did you need something President Towa? I'm in the Student Union building right now. Want me to make my way to your office now?"

"My dorm room, tonight, nine o'clock sharp." Towa bluntly informed him before hanging up.

With that, Towa excused herself and began to make her way over to the Lower Class Dormitory to prepare for her Astronomy 101 lesson with Rean later.


Rean focused as best he could as he shuffled a deck of cards before pulling one out.

"Is this your card?" he asked his audience as held up a card labeled as the Fool.

"That's not what those cards are used for." Beryl informed him.

"What's with your sudden interest in astrology anyway? To be honest, you've never looked like a spiritual person to me." Emma questioned.

"Well, I heard that a friend of mine was into it, and I wanted to try it out myself so that we'd have more to talk about." Rean explained.

"Anyway, if you really wish to see the future, then you should-" Beryl tried to explain before Rean's ARCUS began to ring.

"Rean Schwarzer speaking." Rean greeted. "Did you need something President Towa? I'm in the Student Union building right now. Want me to make my way to your office now?"

"My dorm room, tonight, nine o'clock sharp." Towa bluntly informed him before hanging up.

"Hmm? I see that it was President Towa whom he wished to better get to know. That's funny, I thought she was into astronomy. Oh…" Emma thought to herself before realizing the mistake Rean had made.

"I suppose I should go take care of my homework now to free up my evening. I didn't realize the school gave President Towa so much work that she needed to call me for back-up outside of school hours. Thanks for your help, you two." Rean said before walking away to go get his assignments done for that night.

Once Rean left, Beryl decided to have some fun and began to use her crystal ball to get a peek at his and their Student Council President's future.

"What do you see?" Emma asked.

"I see… a not-so-distant future… older versions of the two of them, hugging what looks like… a little girl with white hair…" Beryl revealed.

"So soon!?" Emma responded as her glasses fogged up.


Ever the gentleman, Rean arrived at Towa's dorm room at the exact time that she told him.

"President Towa, I'm here." Rean informed her as he knocked on her door.

"Please come in, Rean. Thank you for coming to see me on such short notice." Towa said as she opened her door.

"Good evening, President Towa. It's nothing, I'm happy to help you whenever I can." Rean replied as he entered her dorm room.

"Hehe, is that what you thought this was about?" Towa chuckled. "I suppose I may have accidentally conditioned you to see us spending time together as work."

"Huh? Then why did you invite me?" Rean questioned.

"Come on, Rean. We're schoolmates, not co-workers. Well, technically senior and freshman, but that's beside the point. Not everything we do has to be work related to the Student Council. If anything, I'm the one helping you right now." Towa explained.

Yes, she was helping him see the beauty of astronomy. Cleaning his corrupted mind of that silly unscientific astrology he had begun showing interest in.

"Ahem. Tonight, I will be showing you the basics of astronomy!" Towa proudly declared.

"Astronomy…?" Rean repeated, unsure of the difference between that and astrology.

"Yep, right this way, my pupil." Towa responded before grabbing Rean's hand and walking him over to her window, where her telescope was waiting for them.

Rean listened carefully as Towa explained how to use her telescope, along with her gushing about how beautiful the star filled night sky was tonight with the full moon. He couldn't help but find her enthusiasm regarding stars cute. This was the first time he'd seen her so focused on something outside of schoolwork. A part of him wouldn't mind getting to see this side of his upperclassman more often.

"Okay, that should be all of the basics. Do you have any questions, Rean?" Towa asked as she stood up.

"Just one." Rean replied.

"What is it? I'll happily answer any questions you have!" Towa excitedly responded.

"Um, what's the difference between astronomy and astrology?" Rean innocently asked.

"Sigh. Astronomy is the study of stars and all things space. Astrology on the other hand is the (foolish) belief that stars and their position in the night sky have an effect on us." Towa explained, doing her best not to show her frustration with the latter in front of Rean.

"You seem a bit tense." Rean noted.

"Fine. I'm not a big fan of astrology. As an astronomer and as someone who was raised to have a love for the night sky, I can't help but find such an unscientific alternate view of stars just plain stupid. Pardon my language. Please, pay no mind to my opinion. If you really like it, well, it's your opinion to have." Towa continued.

"Oh, I didn't know that they were different." Rean replied.

"Wait, what…?" Towa responded. "T-Then why were you talking about astrology earlier!?"

"H-Haha… Well, I asked your friends for an idea of what type of stuff to talk with you about that didn't involve school and they mentioned stars. As you can see, I thought astrology and astronomy were one in the same." Rean shyly confessed.

He felt like a real idiot for trying to help Towa relax only to screw up and end up making her mad.

"Y-You really went out of your way to get an idea of what type of stuff I like just for me?" Towa anxiously responded.

She felt like a real idiot for not realizing that he had been trying to get to know her better this whole time.

"Of course, you work so hard every day on schoolwork. And we don't really talk that much outside of school, I kind of got worried that school is all you ever think about." Rean admitted.

"I suppose I haven't been that good of a role model to my underclassman by only seeking you out for work." Towa added on.

"Well then, I guess we should start correcting our mistakes, together." Rean suggested as he placed his hand on Towa's telescope. "How about you tell me more astronomical factoids while I take a look at the night sky?"

"Teehee. Sounds like a plan, Rean!" Towa responded as she helped Rean adjust her telescope to better accommodate his size. "Although, how about we talk more about ourselves instead? I'm rather curious about your hobbies given that you aren't in any club."

"You could say that I'm a bit of an aficionado when it comes to hot springs." Rean revealed as he began using Towa's telescope.

"Really? My aunt and I went to this spa in Heimdallr once. They had this artificial hot spring there that was so cozy. You should try it out some time. The capital isn't that far away via orbal bike, I can show you where it is. Um, if you don't mind me tagging along on your bike's side car." Towa suggested.

"Not at all, President Towa." Rean calmly assured her.

Rean did his best to stay calm as Towa and him continued getting to know each other better. As someone who adored the natural hot springs that could be found in Ymir and throughout the empire, the idea of her only ever trying out a poor imitation in the form of an artificial hot spring shook him to his core. He'd much rather take her to Ymir and have her try out a real hot spring in the Phoenix Wings for herself, so that she could see how superior a real hot spring was compared to an artificial one.


Author's Note

Hey there, hope you enjoyed this ReanTowa piece!

You're probably wondering when the next chapter of Trails to Eternity will be posted. Good question.

Anyway, this fic was inspired by a funny scenario I thought up awhile ago of Rean trying to impress Towa by getting into astrology, unaware of the fact that it's not the same as astronomy. And since Towa is all about stars, it's a mistake that really gets under her skin.

Special thanks to CrowgoesCaw and ZetianWu for beta-reading this chapter for me!