The first day

Aria: "Oh it was too much of a hassle. I just left them open."

Helen chuckled, "I wish I could be as carefree as you."

Aria walked upto Helen and took the comb, "Is that your way of calling me lazy? Do you mind if I do your hair today?"

Helen shook her head and sat down.

Aria thought for a while before deciding to go all out. She twisted here, put a clip there, tucked here, braided there, and was finally done.

"Here, all done." Aria said as she took a few steps back to admire her handwork.

Helen touched her hair but they felt a little too complicated. "What did you do? Tell me." she said.

Aria described to Helen how she had made the hair and how they looked. After she was done, Helen said, "Thanks. I can already imagine them, they must be looking so beautiful. Say, where did you learn such a complicated style?"

Aria rubbed her nose. This had been Penny's favourite style. She often styled Aria's hair this way when she was small and grumbled about not being able to do it when Aria began cutting her hair. She said, "I don't know. I did anything that came to my mind, and the result turned out to be quite nice."

Helen opened her mouth to say something, but Aria cut in, "Can we go down for breakfast now. I'm so hungry."

Helen nodded and the two headed down the tower. Some way down, they bumped into Jacob coming up.

He saw the two girls and seemed rooted to the spot, staring from Aria to Helen.

Aria snapped her fingers in front of his face and asked, "What's wrong?"

Jacob turned red and said, "Nothing. You both look good today."

Helen also turned red as she mumbled a small thanks. Aria looked from Helen to Jacob, wondering what was all the blushing about. She pushed the thought to the back of her mind and asked, "Anyway Jacob, why were you coming up?"

Jacob blinked a few times before saying, "I was coming to pick up Helen."

A look of realisation came upon Aria as the three headed to breakfast.

The rest of the day passed quite uneventfully.

Aria learnt about the system of teaching at the water academy.

It was quite different and difficult than the fire academy. The students had to pass eight exams for each subject they took. As Aria was taking precision and power of water, and also wind and earth along it, she had to take 32 exams in total.

Aria sighed when she was told this, "Damn. Feels like I'll be here forever."

The exams were held at the end of each month and you could attempt one for each subject. So technically, someone who took one exam for each subject they studied every month, they would pass the academy in eight months. But the exams were difficult and no one would be able to pass each month.

The exams were based on different skills, intelligence, precision, power, over-all fighting skills, etc.

And after passing one exam only the student will be able to move onto the next class.

All in all, it was difficult to pass out of the academy, and took students many years.