Chapter 97: Understanding Friendship

Disclaimer:

Hi guys! This chapter is a bit smaller but still quite a good one in my opinion. It focuses on one character that I've been thinking about what to do with for a while and, well, here it is.

There are references to events in past chapters to help with foreshadowing and whatnot. Here they are:

Chapter 68, 88 92-93.

At the start of the Star Festival…

A few members of the Golden Dawn started arriving, one by one. They landed at the main entrance, sending their broomsticks off to the side so that they wouldn't be in the way.

"This is going to be fun!" David walked forwards, one hand in his trouser pocket and the other slicking his blond hair back. He looked around, his eyes widening with excitement at all the festival had to offer.

"Are we going as a three?" Hamon raised his hand, looking at David and the one right next to him.

"I have no quarrel with that", Shiren replied, nodding at Hamon to the left.

The Glass mage and Stone mage focused on David in front but he didn't respond to them for the next 10 seconds or so. Instead, his wide eyes were fixated on the two ladies a few metres away.

The two shrugged, not realising who he was looking at. Hamon walked forwards and put a hand on the Dice mage's shoulder, snapping him out of his trance.

"What's up?" Hamon asked, trying to follow his line of sight.

"Do you not see who's in front of us?" David whispered even though he didn't need to. He moved his mouth closer to his friend's ear whilst his eyes didn't budge an inch.

Hamon looked around, eventually stopping two seconds later when he saw the two ladies. His heart jumped as he focused on one of them.

"Ooh, that nervous reaction. I like it!" David clapped his hands.

The two in question were the dates that the duo hit it off with during the mixer. Tina and Natalie were buying some snacks at one of the vending stalls, not knowing that their past two dates were staring at them.

"I say we double date", the Dice mage suggested, wrapping his hand around Hamon's shoulders. He turned to look at his friend but all he saw was a pale face that looked like he had seen a ghost. "Yo, what's going on?"

The glutton twiddled with his fingers and took a few steps back. "Th-That would be a bit… awkward, right now. I um… kinda rejected the invite from Natalie earlier, ahaha…".

David had a look of disbelief about him for a few seconds before he turned back normal. He looked up into the air, picturing a certain someone that Hamon had been paying more attention to that normal recently. "Melody, huh?"

The blond lightly poked Hamon's forehead which made him shake his head in response.

"I'm not going to force you or anything, bro. If you don't want to then that's perfectly fine!" David smiled.

Hamon sighed and then smiled. It was like a weight was lifted off his shoulders. However, once David said the next thing, his worry returned.

"It's just that… Tina invited me and I um… kinda accepted it, ahaha", he said, copying the exact same phrasing that the Glass mage used without realising it. "I can always cancel, but-".

"No, no, don't cancel because of me. You clearly like Tina and that's cool. I think I'll just walk around the festival with someone else I have in mind", Hamon suggested, quickening the pace he was talking at.

"Well, if you say so…", David brought his hand to his chin to think. "Wait, I've got it!" He turned to the one who was silent this whole time. "Shiren, do you want to join me?"

"I…", he thought for a few seconds. He looked to the floor and it seemed like he was mulling something over with himself before responding; "I think I shall decline. I'll stay with Hamon".

David pouted. "Oh yeah? Hm, okay then…", he turned to the two in the distance. "I mean, I don't feel all too good about leaving you. I could still canc-!"

"Urgh, not this again! We'll be fine together, you just have your fun", the glutton insisted, physically turning David towards the girls and pushing him.

"O-Oh, sure, okay! Well, have fun, you two!"

After sending David away to have fun with Tina and Natalie, Shiren and Hamon were together and walking around the festival. The two were side-by-side and the latter was holding a leaflet which had information about different activities and locations.

"Hamon, you've been to this festival before, correct? What's the need for the leaflet?" Shiren asked, tilting his head down towards his hands.

"I come to every Star Festival but a lot of the stalls change and new ones come in. Things from last year aren't being sold this year so having this…", he waved the piece of paper with his hand. "... is the perfect thing! Ooh, this particular activity is new. Now, where is it…?"

As Hamon indulged himself in the festival's information, Shiren looked around by himself. He spotted something that grabbed his attention and walked towards it. Looking up, he read the name of the activity.

"Mana Matcher", he repeated. "That's the name?"

Hamon caught up with the Stone mage. "I didn't think you'd run off on your own. I read about this new activity and thought it could be interesti-", he paused as the name of the stall in front of them came into view. "Oh, this is the one".

The building that housed the activity was not what you'd expect to see in the capital, to say the least. Structurally, it was dome-shaped and was silver and white in colour. There were a row of glass windows going around the circumference of the dome but you couldn't look through it from the outside. Around the entrance, on the floor, were circular patterns that looked very out of place that a lot of people were standing on.

"This looks shady", Shiren said plainly, opting to turn around and walk away. However, just before he took a step, the sliding double doors opened, revealing a woman dressed in a white lab coat.

She shook her head with her hand before lifting her head, revealing her green eyes which had two moles underneath the right one. The lady walked forwards and addressed the people that had gathered around.

"Um… How does this usually go? Do I just tell them what this activity is or do I show them through it?" She whispered and mumbled to herself. "Urgh, my boss really makes me do annoying things. I guess doing this helps the branch, though", she shrugged.

A voice from the crowd shouted out towards the one in the lab coat. "Can we get to it? This looked quite interesting when I saw it as I was walking!"

Shiren's ears picked up on the high-pitched voice and he closed one eye as a reaction, flinching in the process. "That voice… is not suited for my ears", he thought, touching them to make sure they were alright. He then turned his attention to the voice and saw that it was a little, blonde kid.

Breaking the Stone mage's attention, the green-eyed lady coughed and brought all attention back to her. Looking closely at her, she also had medium-length green hair with a red headband holding it in place. She also wore a dark-blue shirt that was tucked into a khaki, knee-length skirt, along with brown shoes.

"Sorry, I'll explain but the activity is only two people at a time. I'll pick from the crowd at random…", she said before looking around and eventually landing on two people. "Okay, you two contrast each other well, let's do this and follow me".

The area around darkened and only two of the circular patterns lit up. One was on Shiren and the other was on the little girl that was shouting earlier. The two looked over at each other and stepped forwards through the double doors and into the odd dome.

"Looks like I'm on my own…", Hamon sighed before spotting something else on his leaflet. "A food truck that's selling burgers? I guess I'll go check it out in the meantime".

After the doors closed, both participants looked around but couldn't see much as it was quite dim inside. There was only enough light for the three to see each other. A few seconds later, the lady introduced herself.

"My name is Millie Maxwell and I'm a researcher of Magic Tools". She introduced herself by putting a hand to her hip. She removed her glasses which hung around her neck with a chain. "This activity here is set to examine the way bonds work between two people". She looked at Shiren first and nodded, but paused after focusing on the little girl. "Um, I probably should have asked this earlier but are your parents okay with this?"

This rubbed the girl the wrong way and steam started coming out of her ears. She jumped up and down with her fists waving in the air.

"I am NOT a little girl! My name is Rose and I am 20-years-old! If you don't believe me then here's my grimoire and squad robe…! This will prove that I'm at least 15!" Rose screamed, blowing a casket.

The short-statured woman took her spellbook and Purple Orca robe out which made Millie nod in acceptance. "Sorry about that, Rose".

Shiren didn't show a reaction but he was shocked. "This little girl is, in fact, only three years younger than me…", he thought as he looked down at her.

Rose tensed and a strained vein came into view on the side of her forehead, barely visible through her honey-blonde bangs. "What is it, big guy? Is this the first time you've seen a petite girl?"

"Yes, it is", he replied plainly which irked the Purple Orca.

Millie clapped her hands together, bringing the two's attention back to her. "That exchange actually helps since I now know that you two are strangers which works in my favour". She clicked her fingers which made the room fully visible, replacing the dim light they saw.

On opposite sides of the room, there were two consoles with handprints on each. There was a white, glass wire in the middle that connected the tops of the consoles to each other and also a blackboard at the back.

"My boss has tasked me with researching bonds. Even though it's an odd research topic, we all know that bonds are between you and anyone else, be it someone you know or someone you don't. We believe that cultivating and developing these bonds can lead to strength and thus power, but what we're focused on is how the bonds between strangers develop in a short period of time".

Shiren raised his hand. "Does this research teach you about friendship?"

"Why yes, it does. Friendship is just one type of bond out of many".

The Stone mage looked down and put his fingers on his chin as if he was thinking deeply about something.

"This guy's really weird…", Rose rolled her eyes. "So, what exactly are the big guy and I doing here? Are we your experiments or something?"

"Correct", Millie smiled.

"That was a quick response…".

"Now, go to a console and place your hands as shown", she instructed.

Both mages went to opposite ends of the room, walking up the few steps to the black and silver consoles. The two placed both hands on each as told which made the wire between them turn black.

"That's not a flattering colour", Shiren thought.

"Ew, how ugly", Rose stuck her tongue out.

The blackboard behind them started to write in a white, glowing font. Most of what was being written was research and scientific jargon but there were a lot of zeroes.

"Okay, that was the activity! Was it fun?" Millie asked, looking at both Magic Knights.

"H-Huh, that was it?!" Rose was surprised. "From outside, this looked like some really cool thing but all we had to do was place our hands on this thing?"

"Yeah, fun, right?" Millie smiled, blowing smoke from her flared-up nostrils. "The intrigue of research and the ability to find things out… Isn't that the definition of fun?!"

Shiren and Rose were both speechless as they exchanged confused looks.

"So, is that it?" Shiren asked.

"Um, kind of. You're now linked to the machine through your mana signatures and it will read any changes that you go through in a short amount of time. The black colour signals that you have no bond right now. To change this, all I ask is… that you two spend the rest of the Star Festival together, no matter what!" She put her thumbs up and gave each a small piece of paper before pushing both confused participants out of the dome, closing the doors behind them.

Millie turned around and tilted her head, furrowing her brow. "They didn't seem all too excited about helping my research. Maybe I marketed the activity in the wrong way? Perhaps having an assistant or two in the future will help…".

"Can you please… STOP following me?!"

"We have to help with the research, though".

"Urgh, you're so annoying!"

"How so?"

Rose was trying her best to get away from Shiren but she was having no luck. Due to how small her steps were, the Stone mage was easily catching up and even overtaking her at moments. As Rose walked five steps ahead, Shiren's two steps was enough to be level with her.

Eventually, the Purple Orca turned around and raised her fists, moving them around in a circular motion to try and intimidate the tall man.

"I'll fight you right now, big guy!" Rose shouted as she landed a hit on Shiren's stomach.

Much to Rose's dismay, Shiren was left unharmed and had an inexpressive look about him. He looked down at his stomach and rubbed it.

"Did you do something?"

Rose started to get red in the face as she reeled her fists back towards herself. She looked at them and then at Shiren, opting to turn around instead but all her eyes saw were people looking at the two of them.

"Are those two siblings? Big brother and a little sister, hm?".

"Awh, would you look at that? She's play-fighting!"

"I guess you can never be too old for things like that".

Rose face-palmed and turned back to Shiren. "Urgh, just follow me for a second".

The two escaped the gazes of the crowd and found themselves leaning against the back of a building. Rose put her left hand to her hip and wagged her right hand and finger at the tall man.

"Look, I don't want to go around the festival with you. I have plenty of people I'd rather be with than some stranger!"

Shiren looked around but his eyes ended up looking judgingly at the Purple Orca in the end. "So, where are these people?"

The blonde went red again. Her mind instantly went to punching him but she'd only fail again as she didn't have the strength. Instead, she just sighed afterwards.

"You're really not going to leave me alone?"

"All I'm trying to do is what the kind researcher asked us to do. If I'm in the wrong, then please tell me", he said.

"Hm, I guess he's not doing anything inherently wrong. It is quite annoying though and I do need to find Daimon again. If I do one activity with this big guy then he should leave me alone, and it'll help with that Millie lady's research as well…".

Rose shrugged her shoulders and closed her eyes. A few seconds later, she jumped up and stopped leaning against the building, turning around to Shiren. "Fine, one small activity and then I'm leaving!"

Shiren smiled for the first time since meeting her but his expression went stoic quite quickly. He then brought out a leaflet and showed it to Rose. "We're close to this one. Shall we try this?"

"You just… had this ready?"

"Yes, I picked it up before following you".

Not replying to the Stone mage, Rose walked off towards the activity that Shiren suggested. He followed her closely behind but his mind was on something else as he did. Sweat fell from the side of his head and he wiped it.

"To be honest, there is another reason why I'm so insistent. I couldn't find Hamon after and I guess that researcher gave me an excuse with Rose…". He thought back a few months when he first tried to change his usual, stoic mindset.

"During the Kiten mission…".

"Good work though, you two". Shiren went to put his hands on their shoulders but hesitated. "Is this what… I should do to show my appreciation?"

"That sure is one way…", Klaus answered, accepting the pat to his shoulder.

"What's been up with you lately? We can tell you're not comfortable like this", Hamon asked with a puzzled look to his face.

Shiren's face didn't move an inch to show any sort of reaction as he was thinking to himself. His calm, green eyes looked blank so no one could really tell where his mind was going. "I… want to have friends…", he said with a bit of difficulty.

"And the recent day off…".

"I too am excited for today", Shiren said with a slight boost of tone instead of his usual, passive one.

For the past few months now, Shiren had been acting differently to his normal, stoic self. It seemed like he was putting more emphasis into his words and actions but they didn't always come across well enough and made the others question him. However, the fact that he's done this around David and Hamon many times has made them used to his changes.

"Did someone say something to him? Usually, he doesn't let anyone else's opinion sway him so I'm a bit confused", David noted. "I think Hamon has been thinking about what happened as well".

"Maybe with this…", he caught up to Rose in front.

The two reached an opening where a large crowd was. Most of them were in a circle, watching what was taking place in the middle. A lot of them were jumping and cheering, whereas the others were placing bets off to the side.

There were four people in the centre. One was blindfolded and held a foam stick, whereas the others were tasked to avoid being hit within a certain timeframe judging by the floating mana numbers in the sky that were decreasing every second.

Rose put her fingers to her chin and gave Shiren little sly looks without him noticing. "Hehehe… If we both enter this, there's a chance I actually get to hit him with that stick. It'll serve him right for forcing me around with him". She took the Stone mage's hand and dragged him forwards with her.

"She doesn't need to drag me. I can walk by myself, and… she doesn't really have the strength to pull me along but I don't think I'll mention that right now", Shiren nodded.

"We'd like to enter!" Rose waved at the event organiser.

"Perfect, we have two openings now!"

After a few minutes of getting set up and ready, both Shiren and Rose were within the confines of the circle. One of them had to hit the other three each with the foam stick but, much to the latter's dismay, she wasn't the one holding the weapon.

"Just my luck…!" She fell to the floor.

The organiser lifted his hand and set it down, signalling the start of the activity.

"The man in the middle has 60 seconds to hit the three of you with the foam stick. You can avoid him by running, dodging, jumping, but you cannot escape the circle! Magic is allowed but don't go overboard!"

The three all thought about what to do as they saw the blindfolded Stone mage walk towards them with the weapon in his right hand. One decided to float in the air using their mana, whereas the other two decided to hold off on their magic use for the moment.

Shiren could not see a single thing through his blindfold but, instead of feeling confused on what to do, he was calm.

"Currently, there are two people that are still on the floor. One must be floating in the air…", he dragged his right foot across the floor, leaving a faint, brown glow on his shoes. "Stone Magic lets me connect to the earth in a roundabout way. It's not as strong as something like Earth Magic, but since stones are derived from the earth, I can sense anything that's come in contact with it. However, it only works for a few seconds before I have to concentrate and use it again. So, for now…".

The Stone mage stopped walking and slowly turned in the direction of one of the participants. With no hesitation, he zoomed forwards, using his feet to jump in the same direction.

"Wh-Wh-What is this guy?!" She shouted as she saw the tall man towering over her in an instant. Shiren swung the foam stick and lightly tapped her on the head.

"You're out!" The organiser shouted through the microphone. "That's one down, two more to go!"

Rose was impressed as she put a hand to her gasping mouth. She looked at where Shiren originally was before he jumped to eliminate the other girl and she saw something interesting.

"The floor is broken where his feet were. It looks two, heavy weights crashed onto the floor where his heels would have been", she examined. "He used his strength, or his magic, to put weight on the floor and flung himself forwards. Kind of like a bouncy ball".

Shiren now had two people remaining and, judging through his magic use earlier, only one was still on the floor.

"I could use the same magic again but… I don't need to. All three of the participants were on the floor at the start and only one second after the organiser started the event did one of them leave the ground. I didn't hear any movement from the air so that likely means they're still in one place".

"Stone Magic: Guided Pillar".

A brown pillar rose from the ground and formed a hand at the top. Shiren let go of the foam stick and the pillar held it as if it was a human. Then, it flew towards the floating person making them move around for the first time.

"I didn't know that was possible! This guy… hm, I guess he is strong since he's from the Golden Dawn", the flying participant said aloud.

"That was your mistake", Shiren said plainly as he directed the pillar around the air. He easily figured out where the guy was flying to and had his pillar wait for him, tapping him on the shoulder with the foam stick. "If you're talking, I can easily pinpoint your location. Using Stone Magic requires me to be aware of the entire battlefield. If there's even a little discrepancy in the silence, I'll figure it out".

"And another one is eliminated! Only one remains, and…", the organiser looked at the time. "There's 15 seconds left!"

Despite there being such little time, Shiren remained in place. Rose was shocked at how smart this man was and she was getting worried.

"Did he even need to be blindfolded?! It's like… he's using his eyes anyway!" Rose looked around with her widened, pink eyes to figure something out. "If I move, he'll know, if I float in the air, he'll find me. What I can do is… ".

Shiren moved towards the Purple Orca. "She hasn't moved at all, so this is a win for me".

"Water Magic: Puddle Focus!" She jumped in the air and made a puddle right where Shiren was standing, covering a large amount of area around him.

Shiren furrowed his brow. "This… interferes with my sensing, but it doesn't matter. I know where she jumped". He looked up at Rose and put his arm forwards. "Stone Magic: Guide-!"

"Water Magic: Heaven's Raining Droplets!" Rose put her arms in the air and framed a grey cloud right above the arena. From within, hundreds of droplets of rain hid the puddle on the floor, creating multiple points of sound. "Haha, surely all that sound is interfering with your heari-!" She quickly put her hands over her mouth as she realised her mistake.

"Not quick enough!" Shiren exclaimed as he sent his Guided Pillar towards Rose. It was mere inches away but…

"And that's time!" The organiser whistled.

Both Shiren and Rose put their grimoires away and looked at each other. Shiren took his blindfold off and saw something he didn't think he'd see from Rose - a smile.

"Ah, really…?" Rose blew air out of her mouth as she walked. She had her hands behind her head.

"I'm also disappointed. Not because I lost, but because you were disqualified", Shiren added.

"I didn't know that my Water Magic would drench the prizes on the side! I thought I controlled it well enough, but… maybe I need to work harder to do so", she noted. "Oh, by the way, the way you use your magic is really interesting. I never knew Stone Magic could be so intricate!"

"It is basic magic, but I've tried altering the way I can use it. I believe I've been quite successful", Shiren replied.

"Seems like it. I just wish I had actual attack spells in my arsenal. All I'm doing is support when I want to be on the front lines!"

Shiren looked at the honey-blonde girl skipping with the white ribbons on her black shoes jumping in the air as she did. She seemed to be more open and accepting of the fellow nobleman now compared to earlier.

"You seem happier now. I take it that you had fun in that activity?" Shiren asked.

"Look at you getting straight to the point, ay?" Rose smiled. "Yeah, it was fun, but what I really liked was the way you used your magic. I like seeing magic being used in different kinds of ways", she added.

She stopped walking and turned around. "Also… I'd like to apologise for how rude I was. I, um… don't work well with strangers at the start and…", she thought back to Millie calling her a kid. "I absolutely HATE when people call me a kid or treat me like a child just because I'm petite!" She held the red ends of her white skirt and curtsied.

"I don't mind", he replied before holding his hand up.

"It'd be fun to hang out more but I really need to find a friend. I kinda… just ran off since I liked the look of that dome structure from earlier", she toothily smiled.

Shiren nodded. "Before you leave, I'd like to tell you something if you want to hear it".

Rose was silent but that was the signal for Shiren to continue.

"The reason I was so persistent in following you around was because of two reasons. One was to help the researcher, but the main one was because I don't understand friendship", he admitted.

"You don't have any friends?" She asked.

FLASHBACK - CHILDHOOD:

From a young age, friendship is something I've never really understood.

"Shiren, come out and play with us!"

A few of the neighbourhood kids were calling for the young noble outside of his house. He looked through the window and stared plainly at them.

The noble walked out and followed the kids to a nearby park. It was fenced in a rectangular shape and one of the kids pushed the small, wooden gate open.

They proceeded to play on the slides, the swings, and the different playground rides. One of them brought a ball with them and threw it at the other.

"Here, Shiren, catch!"

The ball headed towards the boy and he caught it with one hand. He brought his hand towards his face and looked at the ball with his green eyes taking the whole toy in.

"C'mon Shiren, throw it back!"

I'd throw the ball back and we did similar activities most days until we got tired. From playing catch, hide-and-seek, tag. Anything that regular children would do, I would also.

Did something like that equate to friendship? What even is friendship? I'm not sure.

The day I entered the Golden Dawn was much the same. I experienced similar things here that I did as a child.

At the top of the large staircase in the common room, Captain Vangeance stood addressing the members of his squad. The shining light from the sun behind the glass mosaic phased through, illuminating the area.

"As you know, we have an addition to the Golden Dawn this year. I'd like them to introduce themselves", he said, shooting a look at the teenager just a step below him. "I remember some people standing here for 10 minutes talking about themselves… Will he be the same?"

Shiren put his left arm to the side and used his right to clover-salute the rest of the squad who were kneeling at the bottom of the stairs.

"He's quite tall, I wonder if he's strong?"

"Being friends with him would be cool".

The Stone mage scanned the squad and started speaking. "Hello, my name is Shiren Tium. I am 15-years-old and I use Stone Magic".

Then, there was silence. The squad were expecting him to speak more but he stopped after his brief introduction. He kept his clover-salute for the next 10 seconds or so with nothing escaping his mouth. His face was inexpressive as he took in the awkward stares of the squad.

Eventually, Shiren turned his face towards the captain and all he had was a small smile on his face.

"Well, that's Shiren here. I assume all of you will become good friends", he said.

I didn't think I did anything weird or wrong. All I did was introduce myself like I was told. At the time, David, Hamon, or Klaus weren't in the squad so there were others who tried to get close to me.

We did plenty of different things at the start. There was lunch…

"Hey, want to go to the capital for lunch, Shiren?" One member asked.

"Okay", he replied plainly.

"What's your favourite food?" A member asked, sitting at the table next to him.

"I don't have one", he replied plainly.

There was training…

"So, Shiren, what do you think I can improve on?"

"Your output of magic", he replied plainly.

There were a lot of things but eventually I stopped getting invited out. I didn't think anything of it at the start.

"I wonder where everyone is. It's fun going out with them to the capital and spending time with the squad", the teenager thought as he walked through the courtyard of the base.

Suddenly, he stopped as he caught a few of them in the corner of his eye. "Ah, hello, you gu-", he stopped himself as he caught the first few words that one of them said.

"Shiren is really weird, you two", one said to the others.

"It's like he can't even express himself".

"We're always waiting for him to say more and he never does".

"It's just extremely awkward".

"He never smiles. He never talks more than he needs to".

"Being around him sucks the fun out of you".

Shiren, hiding behind the corner, lifted his arms, focusing on the palm of his hands. He slowly drew them closer until they covered his face. "I didn't think there was a problem. Is there… something wrong with me?"

That was the first time I started questioning myself.

Was I really weird? Was I a problem? Will I ever have true friends?

A few years later, two other nobles joined the squad. They're the ones I'm around the most these days and I think we're friends.

Yet I didn't understand.

The day was just transitioning into the night. A trio of Golden Dawns were sitting at one of the benches that were on the edge of the courtyard. Looking at the fountain in front of them meant that there were times that they were silent, enjoying the view it gave them. However, that silence wasn't going to be today as the two started going off on their tangents.

David jumped up and turned around the duo of Shiren and Hamon. "Say, let's go to a mixer tomorrow! Imagine all the beautiful ladies we'll encounter there!" He spun in a circle, forming a heart with his fingers.

"Ooh, I'd love to come. Not so much for the girls but for the food they usually serve! You don't get that kind around where we're from". Hamon leaned back and stared into the sky as he pictured all different kinds of food.

"I really want a girlfriend!" David pumped his fists. "I want to hug! To cuddle! To smile! To laugh! To kiss!"

"You're certainly into all this stuff, David. Well, I can't lie and say I'm not interested in all that either. However…", he licked his lips. "The feeling of hot food in your stomach! The cold beverages that accompany it! The dessert afterwards!"

Shiren remained silent but his mind was thinking about a lot of things. "They're so talkative about their interests. David likes socialising and Hamon enjoys food… Hm, to talk so sincerely about something. Is that what friends do?"

David suddenly pointed at the Stone mage. "Don't think that your silence will get you out of doing this with us. You're joining Hamon and I, and you'll definitely enjoy it!"

"Right! We'd love for you to be there as well, Shiren", Hamon smiled.

Both were now away from the bench but each grabbed an arm each, pulling Shiren up.

"Well, let's go!" David shouted, steam coming out of his nostrils.

Shiren spoke for the first time this night. "You said it's tomorrow".

"Oh, yeah…".

"We can at least think of what we'll say and eat!"

The two still dragged Shiren off to one of their rooms and they stayed up quite late thinking about all the fun they'd have tomorrow.

I was invited to something again. I can't say I ever participated in a mixer but it was fun. I enjoyed my time with everyone, but I didn't expect to be invited again.

"Wanna go out for dinner? I know a cool place", Hamon asked.

"Yeah, sure", Shien replied plainly.

"I need to go shopping. Can you come with me?" David asked.

"Yeah, sure", Shien replied plainly.

Things were going the same way as before, but I was never left out of anything. I don't think I was different or changed how I spoke, but they still asked me.

Is this what friendship is? A bond between others that doesn't change no matter what?

I still don't really understand it.

But I want to learn more about it.

Do I have to change to become a better friend? Do I have to talk more? Do I have to always smile?

FLASHBACK - END

Shiren finished explaining his concerns to Rose. He re-focused on the Purple Orca but she was nowhere to be seen. He looked to the right and then to the left, and then he looked even further down to see that she was on the floor.

Smoke was coming out of her ears and her eyes were in confused swirls. Slowly, she got up from the floor and looked at the Stone mage.

"I'm not going to lie, that was a very long explanation. I didn't really understand it all but tell me this - You want a friend… to understand friendship?"

"Correct".

"But those two, David and Hamon, are they not your friends? You can learn from them, no?"

"It's different with them. I believe there is a friendship there but it isn't new and raw anymore. I believe I've gotten used to how they are. I think becoming friends with someone totally new would help the most".

Rose crossed her arms. "That's not the way of going about it. You're friends so raise your concerns with them. It shouldn't matter how long you've known them", she scratched her head. "It seems like he can't express himself, or he thinks that the way he does is not good enough. I could just reject him and leave but… I actually did have fun with him earlier. I don't have too many friends so being with this big guy could be something".

She walked a step forward. "If you really want to, then fine. We'll spend the festival together, and maybe we'll hang out in the future", she smiled.

Shiren put on the faintest of smiles. "Thank you. By the way, did you want something from me?"

Rose narrowed her eyes. "No, nothing".

"Is there something you want to understand? I'm not so good in the emotion department but I can help with magic, mana, and all that relates to it", he asked, trying to pay her kindness back.

"What I want…", she looked up and pictured someone, closing her eyes. "He has the coolest, smoothest black hair known to man and his fashion sense is amazing! The way his soft, brown eyes look at you through his glasses, and the way his strength leaves you shocked!" Rose twirled around in place. She opened her eyes and then quickly face-palmed, realising that she actually spoke her wishes out loud.

"What do you mean?" Shiren wondered, tilting his head.

"Urgh, I might as well tell you", she said defeatedly. "There's a guy - Aiden Sitrol - that I'm head over heels for! He's so cool and I think… I'm in loooove", she squealed, her tongue turning into the shape of a heart for a brief moment.

"Love, hm?" Shiren thought for a second. "That's another thing I don't understand".

The noble thought back to when David invited him for the double date earlier which he rejected. "I'd like to understand friendship first before going into that kind of territory".

Rose stretched her arm out, hanging it in front of the tall man. Shiren didn't know what to do but a little nod from the Purple Orca towards her hand was enough for him to figure it out. The Stone mage took her hand and she smiled.

"We'll focus on friendship first. Who knows… maybe through that, you'll figure out love".

NOTES:

I bet you didn't think I'd focus on Shiren at all in this fic! Or maybe you did considering the Golden Dawn is a big part of it…

I was sprinkling some things about him throughout some of the recent chapters where he's appeared in without making it too obvious. Now, I hope you see and understand that I want to give him some focus.

It's not too much of a serious topic compared to a lot of the other flashbacks/motives/goals that we've gotten but it can be important in its own way.

We're slowly getting to the big 100!