Yuki left her class, heading down to the teacher's offices, she carried a bag on her shoulder holding something she had found while exploring for a good training place in the forest of this strange island. There was only one teacher she could really show it to, the only one who may know what the meaning was behind the object.

Holding it to her she walked to Prof. Anthony's office knocking gently on the door, "Professor are you in? " she called out.

The room smelled of musty old scrolls and unfiltered smoke. Prof. Montclair was sitting in a hazy daze upon his favorite chair. His coat lay abandoned upon a stack of books while his golden eyes fixed dazedly on the ceiling as hr muttered to himself.

She narrowed her eyebrows, positive that she was there during his office hours, knocking a little harder she raised her voice. A few strands of her hair had fallen into her face, having left her headband back in her room. "Professor?"

"Would you like detention if you don't lower your voice?"

His tone sounded irritable and exhausted at the same time, as if the heat that his office was swimming in was what was bothering him. The golden eyes that had earned a reputation roving over a room full of students was gazing listlessly at the ceiling fan.

With his physical body lackadaisical, his hyper-empathy picked up on Yuki's enthusiasm. What exactly made her so excited was beyond his ability to sufficiently get off his chair and find out. A hand was stretched and a listless gesture for her to come inside was barely made out.

She stepped inside gently closing the door behind her, her eyes then travel to him. Raising an eyebrow to his expression, shaking her head a little bit deciding to keep her comments to herself.

"Forgive me, I wasn't sure if you were in here or not..." she bit gently on her lip moving her bag off her shoulder and gently setting it on the desk, it seemed to land with a definite clang. "Anyway, I found something that I thought you might be interested in...noting what your field of study is anyway."

Prof. Montclair was jolted from his seat by the pure psychic manifestations radiating from the item she had dropped on his desk. Whether or not Yuki noticed this, he couldn't care.

The Savant who had voluntarily bound himself within a human coil was thrilled at the strength of such an Artefact. This idiot girl didn't even know how much it was worth to his dark brethren. But h coughed and put on a straight face, as if utterly unconcerned with his student's discovery.

"And if I am," he told her in a tone not quite cold but chill enough to curb her enthusiasm. "What could you possibly have that could interest me?"

Her eyes watched him carefully, a small smile spreading over her full lips as he jolted, so I guess it sounded like he was interested she thought to herself. "Well I have heard you would be the person to go to for this particular thing so I assumed you would want it." With that she opened the bag revealing its content.

Inside the bag, was a thick, large brace circle with slightly damaged edges, the detail on one side showed that of an eye. "I found it while ...on a walk" she lied of course...most teachers would discourage her training. "I think it may have been part of a larger mask...and there is this inscription on the back around the rim of the opening 'See what is unseen' in Latin of course." Her violet gray eyes then look to him once more.

"Your Latin is crude, provincial but adequate," Prof. Montclair snapped absently, his golden eyes drawn to the Artefact she'd plonked on his oaken desk. A quick probe revealed that while the item was not of the quality he'd come to this Plain for, it still held great esteem towards one of his kind.

After all, it wasn't every day he beheld a fragment of one of his own brethren.

Pulling a drawer open with an imperceptible creak of aged wood, he rifled through its contents, his eyes unable to tear themselves away from the Artefact.

"Here, put these on." His tone brooked no argument as the rubber gloves and surgical mask fell into her catch. The professor was already in the process of pulling on his own set of equipment as he drew out a pocket light and drew the item close to him. His elation outweighed is embarrassment, a first for the Savant.

"Where did you find this?" He was trying so damned hard to keep from sounding too excited.

She would have laughed but he didn't seem to be the type that would have accepted it very well. So holding it in she nodded taking the gloves and the mask putting them on, pushing a few strands of hair from her face. If he took the time to look away from the fragment long enough he would notice her staring at his every move. She smirked lightly noticing him holding back his excitement

Shaking her head she answered softly "Deep into the northern woods near the rocky area..." what she left out is she had broken up a few large rocks uncovering the strange brass fragment. "I noticed a glint between the rocks and pulled it out with some effort... I don't think I saw anything else around it. However, it had started to rain so I had to leave soon after finding it."

He shook his head as he reached for a thin brush in the pencil holder. "I never ceases to amaze me how people just leave ancient artifacts lying around."

With deft strokes, he cleared away a greater deal of the particles that had collected on its surface. Even within his mortal disguise, Montclair could feel the hidden name runes engraved upon the material.

"'Ku'o'thek'," he whispered through the surgical mask. The material around his face artfully concealed a triumphant smirk as he trained his framed eyes upon Yuki. Almost grudgingly, he handed her the mask.

"Here, feel the engravings. Do you notice anything odd about them?"

"Who knows...maybe they didn't have any other choice" she muttered softly watching his hands move then slowly she looked up to his face as he whispered something. However, he spoke much to softly for her ears to pick it up clearly. She seemed to be staring at him until he looked to her. Her eyes catching his gaze, sending the blood rushing to her cheeks, looking down quickly.

She nodded reaching out, gently holding the mask fragment in her hands, almost in a 'loving' way, she slid her fingertips over the markings shuddering a little "They..almost feel a little warm...But I'm not sure how that is possible..who ever wore this mask must have perished long ago.."

He rolled his golden eyes. Why are humans so dense? If they're not careful, that is what will be listed as an answer to 'What was the main cause of the demise of humanity?'.

"While I do applaud you for pointing out the obvious," Prof. Montclair's voice held a veiled edge, the dagger hidden in the cloak's folds. "The Romans had an unwonted but little-known love for dual meanings. Those who are aware of this fact would argue that any letter in the Latin alphabet could be used as some sort of code. Apparently..."

His voice had noticeably cooled. It was his prime weakness, as a member of a race that thrived exclusively on knowledge, that he saw it as his sacred duty to 'teach' all they perceived as 'lower' than them.

Besides, all Nal'senshi knew that freshly-taught thoughts tasted better.

Somewhere in his ramblings, Prof. Montclair knew that he had gotten off track. He let out a gentlemanly cough and took Yuki's hand, making her feel the inscription once again.

"See, right underneath the letters you've first seen. They also mean, 'At the risk of thine own damnation'..."

Oh, if only she could see the grin behind his lips, smiled by lips not there, right behind his own mask of pale flesh.

She narrowed her eyebrows slightly listening to him speak, somewhere in the back of her mind she groaned, never having been one for history lessons. But she tried her best to be polite and at least appear interested. Then lowering her eyes once more she looked down at the object as he guided her fingers over the lettering once again.

She almost huffed, people in the past seemed to put such meaning into such simple things "If that is the true meaning behind it...what fool would dare even attempt to see through these eyes" she muttered softly to herself. Curiosity could be one of the reasons she thought...but then again she was never the curious type. It would seem that the simple word would only cause trouble. Shaking her head softly she spoke once more "What kind of ceremony would someone use such a morbid item for?"

Leaning back in the luxurious felt of his seat, Prof. Montclair switched off the light and tapped his nose, his handsome face crumpled in deep thought.

Of course he knew what the item's main purpose had been. But that would give away the game and alert the students to the existence of a Nal'sensi teaching in their classes.

Ergo, a lie needed spinning.

After three hours worth of thinking done in the span of a breath, Yuki's ears were entranced by his story-telling voice, which was incidentally his lecturing voice.

"Are you familiar with the Cult of Mithas, Ms. Sakura?"

Gently setting the piece down on his desk she watched him carefully, something about this teacher always seemed a little...off. But, she could never place what exactly.

Folding her arms over her chest she let out a heavy breath when he began to speak again, her attention going to his voice instantly like a powerful magnet "I don't think so...of course I am not as well educated in anthropology and history in general as yourself" she answered softly, a little flattery never harmed anyone.