Varesa was not surprised at all. Instead, she smiled, let go of Bai You's hand, and hurried over.
"What are you doing here? Have you been waiting long? I don't usually see you here."
"Since you were supposed to be back." Odette straightened up, her gaze settling on Varesa's face. "Three hours and seventeen minutes."
Varesa stuck out her tongue.
"Sorry, sorry, something came up-"
"I know." Odette cut her off, her tone flat. "Whenever you say 'something came up,' it means no one can reach you for at least half a day."
Her gaze passed over Varesa and landed on the small figure behind her, who was shrinking back.
Bai You stiffened under her gaze.
Odette's eyes lingered on her face for a few seconds, then shifted slightly downward to her ears.
Bai You's hair was pale cyan and very soft, falling loosely over her shoulders.
Her hair wasn't thick enough to cover them, and she hadn't deliberately hidden them. Or perhaps her ears were simply too long. Their outlines were fully exposed in the light: the outer ears were pointed, and a pale cyan, slightly translucent fin edged each one, giving off a faint cyan sheen.
They seemed just a little paler, but were otherwise almost identical to Varesa's ears.
Odette's pale purple eyes narrowed slightly.
"And who is this?" she asked, her tone unreadable.
"Ah, she's-" Varesa had just begun to introduce her.
"Another Water Nymph?" Odette said before she could finish.
The corridor fell silent for a moment.
Bai You froze and looked up at Odette, then at Varesa, panic in her eyes.
She hadn't expected her first meeting with Odette to go like this, and she didn't quite know what to do.
Varesa also paused, then smiled. "How could you tell?"
"The ears," Odette said succinctly. "They're just like yours."
She paused, then added, "And her aura. It feels a little like yours."
Bai You instinctively touched her ears, her face growing a little warm.
"I..." Bai You opened her mouth, wanting to explain, but didn't know where to begin.
Varesa turned around, gently patted her shoulder, and gave her a reassuring look before turning back to Odette. "It's a long story. Her name is Bai You, and she's my-"
"This isn't the place to talk." Odette cut her off again.
She glanced to either side of the entrance, her brows drawing together slightly. "We shouldn't talk at the entrance. Let's go inside the theater and use the dressing room."
With that, she turned and walked away, her steps light but carrying an unmistakably decisive rhythm.
Varesa shrugged at Bai You and whispered, "That's just how she is. Don't mind her. Come on, we can explain everything in the dressing room."
Bai You nodded and followed.
She stole glances at Odette as she walked ahead.
The way she walked was beautiful-not deliberately so, but with an elegance ingrained in her bones through years of training.
Her back was perfectly straight, her strides even, her arms swinging naturally. Every step seemed precisely measured.
Even walking down a dim corridor in practice clothes, she looked as though she were onstage.
She sounded much more aloof than she did in the game, and her graceful, dignified bearing was plain to see.
Is this the real-life prima ballerina of the Korolevsky Theater?
Bai You wondered silently.
They went straight down the corridor and turned left at the end, where a small gold plaque engraved with "Principal's Dressing Room" hung on the door.
Odette pushed the door open, walked in first, and pressed the switch on the wall.
The light came on.
It was a small room, but neatly and orderly furnished.
A beige sofa stood against one wall, with a small round table opposite it. A teapot and two cups sat on the table.
There was a clothes rack in the corner, with several costumes and coats hanging from it.
Several ballet posters were on the wall, one of them the largest.
It was a production photo from Swan Lake: Odette stood on one foot at the center of the stage in a white swan dress, her arms spread like a swan about to take flight.
"Sit." Odette pointed to the sofa, then went over to the small round table, picked up the teapot, and gave it a shake. "There's still tea. Would you like some?"
"Yes!" Varesa plopped down on the sofa without ceremony and stretched. "I'm freezing to death. Snezhnaya's damn weather."
Bai You carefully sat down on the edge of the sofa, taking up only a third of the seat. Her back was ramrod straight and her hands rested on her knees, like a student summoned to the office.
Odette poured three cups of tea and brought them over to the small round table.
Rather than sit on the sofa, she pulled over a chair from the side and sat opposite them, her legs crossed and hands resting on her knee.
"Go on." She looked at Varesa. "Three hours and seventeen minutes. Where did you go, what did you do, and who is this... Water Nymph girl?"
Varesa picked up a cup of tea, took a sip, and warmed her hands before she began.
She kept it brief:
Bai You sat beside her, listening quietly. She occasionally glanced up at Odette and saw that she was listening attentively the whole time.
Her expression barely changed, but the concentration in her pale purple eyes was unmistakable.
"...And that's what happened." Varesa finished and took another sip of tea.
"She has nowhere to go right now, so I want to let her stay at the theater for the time being. If that really doesn't work out, once my cave is finished being renovated, I'll go live there with her."
Odette was silent for a few seconds.
"Water Nymphs are already rare in Snezhnaya," she said mildly. "Most of them were banished by the Tsaritsa. Are you really sure she's one of your kind?"
"I'm sure." Varesa nodded. "She can switch to mermaid form in the water. Her tail is pale cyan, and her scales are the same color as her hair."
Odette raised an eyebrow slightly.
"Never mind. As long as you're happy."
"But the problem now is where she's going to stay. If I remember correctly, the theater's dressing rooms are all occupied."
"With me, of course," Varesa said matter-of-factly.
"Your dressing room?" Odette glanced at her. "There's one single bed. You expect two people to squeeze into it?"
"We can squeeze in just fine." Varesa waved a hand dismissively. "Besides, one of us can sleep on the sofa-"
"No." Odette flatly rejected the idea. "Have you forgotten? Your dressing room doesn't even have a sofa."
She thought for a moment, then said, "The storage room next to your dressing room was cleared out last month. It was supposed to be used for props.
"I'll have someone clean it up again in a little while and bring in a folding bed. She can stay there for now. It's late today, so let's get her settled first and talk about the rest later."
Varesa blinked. "Since when were you so kind? I was thinking of having her sleep with me."
Odette glanced at her, her tone flat. "I just don't want you neglecting rehearsals because you're taking care of her."