There is a hush to the air here in the Aether Alcove, as though it hangs slightly apart from the rest of the castle. The silence here is not heavy, but expectant...broken only by the scratch of a quill across parchment, the faint rustle of vellum charts shifting in a draft, or the gentle clink of runestone against runestone. Tucked into a windowed corner at the end of the corridor beside the Ancient Runes classroom, the alcove's tall glass windows stretch upward into the ceiling, framing sky beyond. Through them a shifting light filters in, spilling across the stone floor and carefully arranged workstations. That light strikes hidden sigils in the flagstones at certain moments around twilight, causing faintly etched runes to glow and reveal a short illuminated path that leads to a recessed stone bay window.

This bay, serving as an Observatory Desk, is strewn with vellum star charts, celestial globes, and enchanted astrolabes. Each instrument is etched with bindrunes that shimmer faintly in response to moonlight and any students who tamper too much with the astrolabes often find the devices spinning of their own accord, locking onto star positions not due to rise for centuries—or worse: showing alignments that do not exist on any known chart.. Nearby, a well-worn Rune Casting Mat of dark leather is spread across the floor in front of the sweeping windows that overlook the castle grounds. The mat itself is ringed with circles and constellations for readings not performed in isolation, but in tandem with planetary and celestial motions. On the rare occasion, a rune cast onto the mat flares with such intensity it sears its outline into the leather, leaving a mark that stubbornly refuses to fade—remnants of which you may be able to see if you look closely enough, though only a mystery awaits those trying to see just which runes left their shadows where.