Heroes in Training

[Gisk]

While the children enjoyed what many of them took to be a special breakfast, Roland stood by the stairway with a glass of fresh milk from a jug in the cold pantry. They were all finally seated with a plate in front of them when there was a knock on the door. Roland frowned, but most of the students didn't pay it much mind. As he crossed the room and opened the door, the old man hobbled down the stairs.

"Good morning," Roland said, looking down at the red headed girl who had come calling. "Is there something wrong in the village?" Most of the time people came to see Roland, it was to seek his help. Oddly enough being a hero seemed to keep people from making social calls.

[Aydan Tenaebra]

Cael looked at the man and swallowed shaking her head. A deep breath helped her find her voice as she described- kind of- her meeting with Jayce. "Village? N-no, sir. I don't come from any village. I was traveling through the forest. There was an old man with a cane... Some kind of magician... An illusion, I think. It.. Erm, he said to knock if I wanted a place at the table?"

As if to punctuate her point the girl's stomach let out a loud growl. She blushed nearly as red as the long curls of her hair, that she brushed out of her face. She fiddled with her bow string, trying to ignore the smell of the food that drifted out the door, as she waited for the man to answer. She hid the quivering that signaled her nerves as best she could. He didn't feel threatening, but she still didn't like approaching strangers for help- even if she was willing to offer to work. A year orphaned hadn't done much to change that.

[Lydyn]

She was given far more than she could eat and definitely more than she knew she needed. Looking at the large plate of eggs and meat, she pursed her lips for a moment before separating a decent portion from the rest using her fork. Aw'del started to slowly put the food into her mouth as she glanced up and watched the others gather around the table, smirking slightly to the scolding to Roland's nephew, though she admitted to herself that she was slightly surprised that family was here as well. She shouldn't of been surprised though, she thought and returned to her meal until she heard a knock at the door. Not that she stopped to stare, but she certainly took notice ... however there was pause as she caught sight of the redhead at the door, looking lost and hungry. Somewhere deep inside herself, her heart sank, as if she somehow knew what the girl had been through and what it must've felt like standing in front of a stranger's door asking for help. If Roland hadn't been so adamant about taking her in for god's knows what, she would've scoffed at the man and minded her own business of living.

Aw'del nearly giggled inside her head as she watched her blush a bright red and quickly looked back to her meal, staring at it like it had offended her somehow. She was only starting out in life and a lot of things still confused her. Marriage - the word was usually paired with images of a man kneeling in front of the woman he loved and asking for her hand, a ring in hand, wedding bells and running down the isle. The honeymoon was supposed to be a night spent in the moon's glow and loving each other as they promised to grow old together ... if that's how it was supposed to be, then why did she feel the way she did when she looked at other girls? A shiver ran down her spine as she picked her fork back up and started to chew on some of the meat, her eyes glancing up to Franchesca as well and just letting out a soft mental sigh. Was she wrong or some sort of anomaly? The thought made her tense a little and her confusion and frustration caused her to purposely avoid eye contact with anyone as she silently ate her breakfast.

[Gisk]

Roland stood back from the door to let her in, but after a moment he had to tell her, "Well come in, then. What is your name?" The girl answered him and he gave his in turn, "I am Roland, these children here are my students."
"Yes," Jayce cut in, "And I hope you children are ready for today," he said as he eyed his eggs. He mashed them with his fork, apparently trying to make the pieces as small as possible.

"Indeed. As it happens, Cael, we're going on a jaunt in the woods. Would you like to join us?" Roland didn't seem like he was giving orders, but he always gave off an aura of authority, and it was hard to disagree with him.

[Aydan Tenaebra]

When he stepped back for her to enter, she stepped inside enough for him to close the door. She gave her name and swallowed down a gasp of surprise when he gave his. Roland... What am I getting into? She glanced around and took notice of the nice looking woman, other children, plus two more that must have come in after the old man- who she also spotted at the table now- caught her, she had seen through the window.

Fiddling with the bowstring that sat across her shoulder again she nodded to Roland, "Well, sir, I guess I could. I was just looking to work for a good meal or two and a night's rest, really, but if you don't think I'd be in the way I'll come along."

[Yevin]

Xander chomped down on a huge spoonful of eggs and quietly watched the ongoings of the morning - the mild scold of a kid his age, the gruff entrance of some late-sleeper, and the subtle knocking on the door. He leaned back in his chair, nibbling on the end of crispy link stuck on a fork to see the newcomer. A flash of red hair was all that he saw until Roland maneuvered out of the way for her. By then, the new girl wasn't his source of curiosity. What Roland had said was.

We're going on a jaunt in the woods!

The two front legs of his chair clicked back on the floor and Xander shoved the last of the link in his mouth. If this jaunt in the woods was anything like what his uncle usually brought him along on, he was going to need all the energy he could stuff in his belly. It didn't take him long to scrape his plate clean, only the greasy juices remained from the links.