Unable to sleep (open)

Jaebi lifted up on the door handle as he opened it, reducing the weight on the hinges and muting any noise it might have made while in motion.  It was nearly two in the morning, and no amount of staring at the ceiling in his dorm room made him feel more inclined to go to sleep.  

He ambled over to the piano and brushed his long fingers over the cover before pushing it up.  A small smile curled his lips as he lowered himself onto the bench and slowly eased Mad World from the keys.

Dom was on patrol when he heard the music drifting through the halls, and turned to investigate. It wasn't Vincent's turn to patrol, so maybe he just couldn't sleep.

He poked his head into the music room and blinked. Not Vincent at all, but a student. They definitely had skill, though. Regardless, they shouldn't be out of bed at this hour. He stepped forward, clearing his throat to announce his presence. In case that wasn't audible over the music, he then said, "Shouldn't you be in bed?"

The music stuttered as Jaebi flinched. He looked up at Dominic and his brow furrowed.

Looking around for a piece of paper and seeing none, he struggled to remember the signs for the words he needed. He settled for pantomiming, pointing first at himself, then making an "x" with his hands, then folding his hands to one side of his head as if they were a pillow.

I couldn't sleep...

Dom nodded slowly. Right, this was the young man who couldn't speak. Lucky Vincent had taught him ASL for easier communication with Diana.

I'd still rather you weren't out here by yourself. Don't you have homework you could be doing in your room? Your music is lovely, but you might well be keeping others awake. He should get back out on patrol, too.

Jaebi's brow furrowed further. He watched Dom's hands and bit his lip, wondering how to show that he didn't understand.

He pointed to his ears, indicating that he wasn't deaf, then made a few fleeting motions with his hands, hoping that the teacher would catch that he didn't know ASL well enough to communicate with it.

He did know the alphabet, though.

U c-a-n s-p-e-a-k, he spelled, slowly. His hands were not yet used to the motions.

Dom's eyebrows rose slightly, but he nodded. "Alright, I'll do that. What I said was, I'd rather you weren't out here by yourself. Don't you have homework you can be working on? As lovely as your music is, it might be keeping others awake."

Jaebi rubbed the back of his neck and looked down at the floor. He shook his head at the mention of homework and made a very feline grumbling noise and shrugged as he glanced back to Dom. He really didn't like the idea of being confined to a room while unable to sleep.

M-a-y I c-o-m-e w-i-t-h y-o-u?

Dom tilted his head. Didn't seem like such a bad idea. The kid wouldn't be alone after hours, and his patrol would be a little less lonely, even if it was just as quiet. "Sure, why not. Come on." He smiled and jerked his head toward the door behind him.

Jaebi's eyes reduced to slits with the force of the grin that stretched across his face. He slid the cover back over the keys and stood.

Then he blinked, not expecting the height difference between himself and Dominic.

Dom blinked too, craning his neck to look up at Jaebi. Easily the tallest person he'd ever seen -- quite a bit taller than some of the Fair Ones. And he didn't look a day over seventeen. "Well then." He held the door open for Jaebi to exit ahead of him, then fell into step beside him once they were out in the hall.

"You must be new here," he said after a moment. "I'd definitely remember if I'd seen you before. Are you settling in well?"

Jaebi nodded and loped along beside him, unconsciously slouching as if trying to appear smaller.  

F-i-r-s-t y-e-a-r, he spelled.  L-i-k-i-n-g m-y c-l-a-s-s-e-s.

Dom nodded. "Glad to hear it... for lack of a better word." He half-grinned. "Have you met my brother Vincent yet? He teaches music and choir, and does a lot of singing and piano-playing outside of that. I think you two would get along well."

Jaebi smiled as he shook his head. Kemekin had mentioned that Jaebi visit the choirmaster as well-- unfortunately, between classes and learning his way around the castle, Jaebi hadn't had the chance to seek him out.

He tried to remember the signs to ask if he needed to schedule a meeting. Unfortunately, the progress he had made trying to teach himself ASL was minimal. He had the alphabet memorised, as well as some basic signs (mostly insults, thanks to Kemekin,) but he'd yet to build the muscle memory to be able to sign quickly.

Jaebi's ears perked. He caught a trace of iron in the air and stode forward to gaze around the corner as he and Dom approached.

Bolin blinked when someone rounded the corner, then blinked again when he had to look up to see their face.

"Oh. Hello, Mr. Lyckander." He adjusted the backpack slung over one shoulder and arched an eyebrow. "What are you doing out after hours?"

Specifically, out and about at the moment Bolin was coming back from another job. He heard another set of footsteps and smiled when he saw that Jaebi was not, in fact, alone.

"Found a sidekick to explore the castle with, eh Dom?"

Dom sped up a bit as an iron tang tainted the air, and Jaebi moved ahead of him. He smiled as he caught Bolin's eye. "Indeed. He couldn't sleep, so I thought he might as well join me on patrol." His gaze roved over Bolin's face, and he tilted his head. "Busy night, hm?"

Bolin tipped his head and shrugged. "Tedious, yes. Not difficult, though. I was a little disappointed."

A familiar mischievous glint came to his eye and glanced up at Jaebi before turning back to his friend. "Have you told him about the ghost in the west wing yet?"

Jaebi's ears perked with interest, and he straightened his posture as he looked between the two teachers.

A ghost?

Dom grinned and shook his head, trying to recall if he'd ever heard of a ghost himself. The only one he could think of was his brother, the self-proclaimed Opera Ghost. "Nope. Why? Think it might be abroad tonight?"

One corner of Bolin's lips curled upwards.

"Perhaps. It's easier to find on quiet nights-- Oakleigh says to find it, you have to listen for a whirring noise echoing down from the westernmost tower. It's near imperceptible if you don't know what to pay attention to."

To Jaebi, he added, "Nothing stays in that tower. Not dust, not leaves, not even bugs. It's spotless."

Jaebi blinked. He looked to Dom, then back to Bolin, then to Dom again. If he had a tail, it would be wagging.

I-n-v-e-s-t-i-g-a-t-e?

Dom laughed at Bolin's words. "That makes me think it might be Allan. Except that he doesn't whirr."

He looked at Jaebi's hands, then back at Bolin. "Could be worth looking at. What do you say?"

"If you've made a round of the castle already, I say let's investigate."

He adjusted his backpack again. "Though I might want to drop my toolkit off first."

Dom nodded. "Good plan. Did you want us to wait here while you did that, or shall we meet you in the west wing?"

"I'll meet you there." He had to reach up to ruffle Jaebi's hair. "Won't take a minute."

"Fair enough." Dom grinned at Jaebi, then turned to head toward the west wing. "Seems like tonight's about to get a lot more interesting."