When they arrived at the lists on dorm room assignments Cassie went over towards where Emi was and gave her a tight hug while letting her full body weight onto the poor girl. Emi yelped in surprised for a moment but realised it was a hug and gladly returned it with a satisfied smile on her face. The girl didn't at all look fazed by the attire Emi was walking around in which made Emi a little surprised she must say. Well she wasn't the first one so it didn't really matter anyway.

The girl looked quite happy to have known her room number after all this time. She definitly looked tired, probably from the long trip she had. It must have irritated Emi too if she was in the same situation as the girl. Emi now knew her full name at least and room number, hopefully she was able to remember that. It seemed like a nice girl to visit. Could she call it a friend? Perhaps, she didn't really have many at the school at the moment.

The girl said she was fine on her own from now and gave her an abrupt goodbye. Emi seemed startled but happily smiled and waved after her when she headed down another corridor. It's best to leave this girl alone for now. Emi headed back to her room after a short round around the dorms to see if there was anything intresting except for the warm roof and took place on her comfy chair again where she started working on little Hildy's book.



A man passed by them with an awful dark aura around him. Without a word or anything he passed by the two of them. He was clearly looking at them probably noticing on how they were new. Yoshino watched him walk by and kept gazing at his appearance. He looked grim and his face was overshadowed by the hood from his cloak. What was his job here? He looked and acted like he was beating children in his lessons. If he was giving lessons that is. Yoshino kept staring at him for a little while longer to notice he was walking over to quite a familiar place.



Yoshino's head shot up as the expression on her face became a little bit more worried. She turned around again and quickened her pace. Her shoes were making a clomping sound as she walked-ran through the hallway. She at least had to get around the corner of the hallway. If he noticed that he was missing something she had to run even harder. He would probably shout after them but Shino could ignore that hopefully.

Knowing she was almost safe her pace slowed down again and just as she did that a sound of water bursting through a wall or something was heard behind her. Collapsing ceiling or something? Shino quickly turned around to see with both her hands peacefully bungling in front of her belly. Oh shit, there was a giant wave of water behind them. Since when were these things happening around the school. Yoshino wanted to use her abilities but was startled by the wave.

The wave was faster than expected, it quickly rushed passed them. The force of water hit her hard making Shino fall over. She could feel stuff being ripped from her lower body. Strong current? No, something else! After the water died down a little she ended up with her chin resting on the ground arms along sides her body and her butt high up in the air displaying a frilly pink underwear.

The look in her eyes was blank as she was lying there on the ground staring forwards. After 30 seconds or so a fountain of water erupted from her mouth letting out the water that was still inside of her mouth after having opened her mouth in the middle of the tsunami. Her warm socks were gone now, she had to snatch them back from this bully. Slowly but surely Shino got up on her feet again standing small in front of the teacher. Her body was a little balled up with her big eyes looking up at the headmaster while her head was still down.

The headmaster spoke to the two of them to explain themselves. From the looks she could clearly see that the headmaster had found the picture back that Shino had taken from his office. She only balled up more, her shoulders dropping as her eyes turned more to the ground in front of his feet. She was cold and was being lectured by this person for stealing. Truly a desperate day.

Small tears started forming in the corners of her eyes as her mouth opened. Her knees shuddered from the cold just like the voice that sounded of the lips of the girl.



Shino wiped the tears away with her overly long sleeves only to form new ones. Her nose turned slightly red from the cold and tears as she sniffed to keep it from running out. She looked up for a millisecond to see the headmaster his reaction but was quick to look regrettably at the ground again.

---

---

The Hall Monitor was about to pull the reports off of the clipboard and slide them through the mail slot when he saw a Native American woman coming at him, finger pointed at the clipboard. She seemed to be very much out of breath, and was actively trying to talk to him. He couldn't hear a thing she said, though, and it briefly crossed his mind that maybe he should take off the headphones. The headphones fell off of his head on their own, though, when a puff of air jerked them up and forwards.

"...one of these reports."

Run. Don't confront. The words of the club president echoed through his head as he realized that the woman was trying to talk to him about Hall Monitor business. Usually confrontations turned nasty very quickly, on account of people generally disliking being spied upon. He nervously backed away and tried to turn and run, but his feet never made contact with the ground, and he very nearly faceplanted into the floor. Running wasn't an option, apparently. Confrontation it was. He rolled himself over to look at his assailant.

Brunhilde had arrived a minute after Saqui, having been led along the hallways by the energized scent of tampered-with air that Saqui had left behind in her attempts to ease the chase. The fellow air user had apparently found her mark and was in the middle of trying to interrogate the kid, whom Brunhilde had stopped from running using what anyone who had been present at the time would have recognized as the same trick Avarius had used on her the previous morning. An inch thick pad of air was nigh impossible to get any traction on regardless of one's choice of footwear, after all.

"We're here about an incident that happened yesterday."

Oh shit. That confirmed it. He was about to be the victim of a revenge-beating, like in those horror stories the President had told him. But he still had a job to do. He threw himself towards the classroom and crammed the entire clipboard through the mail slot to the right of the door, incident reports and all, where it got stuck on the clipboard's metal clamp and loosely flopped about, halfway in and halfway out of the Fire classroom. In the same motion, he threw up a hand, slinging a ball of glowing red and black liquid towards Saqui, whom he assumed to be his attacker. Some droplets of the liquid flew from his now-blackened hand and landed upon the floor, where they burned the vinyl tiles and quickly solidified into beads of obsidian. At this angle, a large pouch leaking sand and pebbles everywhere could be seen hanging around his waist. He appeared to be absolutely terrified.

@FaithsRose
@Sif
@Xandrya

---

@Zelosse@liferusher

A man with a dark aura, or perhaps it was just a fast first impression-type reaction to the looks of what was actually one of the Headmasters. As new students however, none of them knew who the man was. But the aura definitely emanated power. A part which Emilia is actually familiar with, but she didn't actually even realize it at that moment. The thought and feeling was so tiny that it merely passed by her thoughts like water flowing through the river. And without a second to consider, Yoshino speaks up as the pace of their walk starts to quicken out of nowhere.




There was not much time to even receive a response as Yoshino kept her pace up and actually quickened soon after the headmaster had properly passed and seemed to be less and less visible. Confused as is, she didn't really ask after her or attempt to stop there. Ironically her coincidental premonition would come true not soon after they had turned a corner and ran a bit farther.

A sudden onset of sound. A wall breaking down, mist and debris following. And the next thing she knew, a whole tidal wave was surging through them. With a slight stroke of luck and situational awareness, Emilia did manage to at least stay on one knee and hand on the floor as the wave lashed out and surged past with strong force by using a bit of water as shielding on her back. The teachings she had received weren't completely for naught. But she did feel her muscles weaken by the sudden outburst regardless, which in turn almost made her lose balance.

Getting a chance to finally look around to realize only that the same man they had passed was now in front of them. His own belonging on his hand that seemingly Yoshino had taken, whether it was by accident or not. As it was somewhat impossible for her to tell as she did not pay attention before, she didn't question it either. And quite immediately after, the figure had demanded an explanation for all of this.

Even more perplexed, she hadn't realized that her earlier premonition had actually come true until that moment of realization. She was drenched from top to bottom, not to mention even her socks and shoes were taken. Not that she minded, albeit it was a bit inconvenient to be on bare feet along with drenched clothing.
Even Kano would see the quite awkward yet perplexed expression Emilia wore on her face. It seemed more likely that she had at least tried not to steal anything valuable or any belongings. As in truth, she had merely looked at a list for info and directions. Though she had left that same note inside his office.

And now for the worst part, answering to the man himself. But before that she tried to remove some of the moisture in her clothing by using a tiny bit of her own power. Only really a quarter successful so to speak, as she couldn't really get even half of it off. Probably due to concentration issues of the predicament. Only to quickly realize the fact that Yoshino had actually started to cry right next to her. A bit of guilt and pity was all she felt. All the while she stayed on her posture of one knee and hand on the floor, somewhat resembling a kneeling knight of the old days. One slight gulp and a bit of a nerve racking situation, which Kano might have already realized from the slight body language hints.



Even her voice emitted a bit of guilt, albeit she did speak her mind truthfully. Her head was lowered a tad, but enough to gaze at Kano with her own eyes. She truly had thought that the situation was the worst possible one to get into. And just because they had decided to barge into an open office. A slight feeling of fear was hovering over her head.
To make matters worse, she still felt bad for how Yoshino had seemingly broken down a bit emotionally. Or at least so it seemed to her. Which in response, she puts her left hand on top of her head. Hoping it would at least calm the lass down a bit.



And if that didn't seem awkward enough, not knowing who the man was or his name made it all the bit worse. A stranger, and most likely important at that. Now faced them both with anger. But who could really blame him either, as it seemed a precious belonging had been stolen from the room.

Among the confusion, she managed to at least half-dry her clothing while Yoshino still seemed to be completely drenched from top to bottom. The water from her own clothing spiraling behind her back in a constant circle pattern. One of her own little habits or quirks.

"I couldn't be off any worse than this... I think my luck just turned a complete one-eighty degrees to the wrong way...
Mulling over in her own thoughts, since they couldn't do much while being at the mercy of Kano himself.

@Inertia@Jedly





@inertia@jedly

@Ennui@Azereiah

The raging storm that was Kano Hargor, founder of the academy, turned to a light drizzle the moment Yoshino began to weep. Normally quite a calm if a bit serious type of person it was a bit out of character for him to act like this. Though he was confident neither student was injured by his flowing form, he was still a tiny bit ashamed.

I let my emotions get the better of me on this one. He glanced at the frozen picture with a mixture of sadness and anger.

Kano relaxed his seemingly aggressive stance and let the frozen ball of personal items fall to the hard wet floor with a splash, focusing on the two girls who had entered his office without permission. New to the school though they might be it was still common sense not to take personal items from someone elses room, and still worse to even enter it without permission in the first place. Though he would admit that his personal sanctum would be fascinating if you took to the time to truly appreciate what he collected. Thousands of years worth of lessons and memories resided in that single room alone.

Kano let out a sigh and crossed his arms over his chest.

"There are easier ways to find information besides going to the source. Other students may yield the same answers, along with directions to any of the main buildings you wish to find. Furthermore, on what ground do you stand on to defend your actions of invading the privacy of a teachers office." @Ennui
He shook his head to clear it of the accusations. Children never listened to rules and water students had a bad tendency for just going with the flow of things. Couldn't blame them for that kind of nature, really.
"I suppose you are not entirely to blame."
Kano pointed hos open palm at both of the young girls and willed the water on their clothing, and all the other water on the floor and walls, into his hand. The water flowed out at his command to flow up his robes and seemingly disappear. The cold water was gone and the hallways were always quite warm, so neither would likely catch a cold.
"You get one warning, miss Emilia.. Though, if you wish to see what is in my office then I will happily show you."

With that, he turned his eyes to the one crying on the floor. His footsteps were soft as he approached, leaning down to one knee as Emilia was and placed his hand gently on Yoshinos head. The darkness of his hood masked any expressions you could see but the aura around him revealed the lack of anger.

"Do not cry, young lady. Curiosity in most cases I can understand. Had I been there to ask about it, you would not be denied to view what it is I hold close to what remains of my heart."

Kano held out the thawed picture for her to take. A softy in soul, he could never deny a students interest in something. The picture was dated and old, the edges had begun to fade and the color had almost completely drained away. Had it not been for a very small layer of ice coating the photo it was likely to have crumbled to dust years ago. On it was the Headmaster looking much the same as he did now, and a young girl of about 19 years of age. Long brown hair cascaded to her waist, tied in a tight braid with the ghostly outline of blue at the tip. Her clothing was simple fare. Sporting a long black and purple dress with sandals and a wide brimmed hat, the young girl smiled. To the headmaster he had believed that her smile contained the sea itself; endless and brimming with life.
Even now he viewed it with reverence.

"She was a student like yourself. Josephine Valencie. Gifted and easily bored.. Had a terrible habit of getting into trouble, that one." Kano gave a light chuckle as he helped Yoshino to her feet. His hand slipped behind his back and the frozen ball flew into his hand, melting to water that returned to his robes, leaving the socks and shoes. To which he returned both of them.

"If you please, I'd like to see both of you in my office."

Kano led the way, giving instructions to a junior student to ask if someone could come mend the wall he had accidentally damaged. The student ran off with a smile to find a wood specialist student or teacher.

The door swung open once more as the Headmaster continued once more to his familiar spot behind the polished oak desk and into his comfy chair. The two seats in front of said desk would soon be occupied by the students.

Suddenly everything had become a little damper than a few moments prior. His form remained still as oblong drops slid down brown locks and onto the formal pants below. Zephyr calmly turned his head in the direction of a worried voice, the owner of which was already atoning for his mistake, as expected of such a courteous fellow. To prevent the almost imminent event that was Luke prostrating himself in remorse, the darkness user opened his mouth, given that his complexion wouldn’t be of any assistance. Oddly enough, the copy of Thus Spoke Zarathustra gingerly gripped between his hands and the satchel that rested by his side remained in a state drier than Vlad’s humor. But before any words could flow forth, something else had caught his attention entirely. It on the other hand had flawlessly succeeded in flowing and then some. His gaze continued to climb as the tempestuous ebbs and flows gradually coalesced. The wild waves sentiently carved themselves into something just as awe-inspiring as it was petrifying. The two remained motionless as the waves’ will took form, leaving the students powerless to this presentation of prowess.

Zephyr was utterly captivated by the spectacle. He could almost feel the hum of the running water that perfectly emulated veins. But the boy had always been one to quickly grasp situations, and surely enough, this aqueous beast wasn’t going to present a gift as congratulations for Luke. In all actuality, it had the polar opposite drive. ”Ah.” He nonchalantly regarded the development with before he placed the book in his satchel for safe keeping. Taking in their opponent in its fullest, glassy eyes scrutinized every facet, both physical and underlying.

Zephyr brusquely straightened out the wet silk woven around his neck as he got to his feet. From the looks of it, the kid had already overcome any sort of fear that an imposing foe of this size would normally evoke. Luke, for starters, as normal and down-to-earth as an adolescent could be, was probably still frozen on the spot. Wrenching him free from his daze, the boy spoke in an earnest tone, one that slightly strayed from the usual. ”Luke. This seems to be an obstruction you and only you can quell. But by the looks of it, you have been granted me as an aide.” Without any visible sign, the orb shrunk its orbit at an alarming rate and came to a halt by the brunet’s right hand. ”I will keep it preoccupied, but know that the outcome of this fray solely rests on your shoulders. Failure is not an option. I’m sure it doesn’t intend to harm us to a grave extent, but rather than our health, it’s your capacity as a Water Elementalist that’s on the line. Do not waver. Be forthright in your resolution. And most of all, have faith in your own abilities. I am certain this trial would not have presented itself if you were not capable of overcoming it.” His voice carried a heavy resolve with it, one that would hopefully imbue his classmate with even an ounce of courage.

The student took one step forward and brought the orb into his clutch. Enshrouded under a low breath, Zephyr uttered in a faint vocalization, ”Mo Ye, to me.” The command was soft and lacked the authority that would normally compliment it. In spite of his lax ruling, his will began to take form. From the bottom of his hand protruded a small cylinder ended by a flat hilt. Meanwhile the top entailed more to show. An extension let to another orb, and from there continued an average but relatively wide double-edged blade. After a few sparse seconds, eel designs began to be etched into the weapon’s figure. ”Gan Jiang, delegate your beloved wife’s embodiment to me for this endeavor. May your souls rest in peace and accept this prayer.” With his gaze now leveled with his foe, Zephyr suddenly rocketed towards it. Not on the ground, but through the air.

In the blink of an eye, his thin form closed the gap of empty space parting himself and the dragon. His blade effortlessly sliced one of the extremities attached to the beast’s jaw in two during his trajectory, yet the two halves were connected almost instantly as water bridged together. From the looks of it, Zephyr was on a one-way course for a splashy embrace. Though before his body even came anywhere close to the water, he was curtly caught by the same thing that had propelled him towards the dragon.

A fine string of darkness originating from his hand led below the boy and formed an almost two dimensional platform. It was quite the strenuous task maintaining the orb as a medial part of the weapon while diverging a fraction of its form to the support he currently stood on, but it was a feat Zephyr could perform with enough concentration. The beast now stared at its assailant, just like a predator, analyzing the youth in his fullest. After tactful planning, it lurched forward with its jaws wide open. The student quickly boosted himself over the dragon’s watery hide and with his entire figure upside down, jammed the blade into the creature’s back and let gravity do the rest of the work. Water spewed uncontrollably in various directions just like actual blood. Mo Ye created a cleft as the boy was dragged down to the water’s surface, stopped short by yet another platform. As expected, the divide created was mended. The dragon swiveled around to face Zephyr yet again, completely unaffected by his attack. Hopefully Luke was on his A-game, otherwise this was going to be quite the long clash.

@Inertia

Madison opened the door to leave Mr. K's office, some paperwork had just arrived for him through the mail slot so she would give him his privacy. When she stepped outside, though, she noticed a couple of students amidst a battle of their own. Almost immediately, she closed the door again and turned to her teacher.

"Something's going on right outside your door," she said matter of factly, "I believe it's two students going at it with whatever elemental ability they possess. Thought you should know."

Madison stepped aside, not wanting to interfere with the fight outside in order to avoid being collateral damage. Instead, she would let Mr. Kessinger handle things the proper way. If those two fools outside couldn't settle their differences in a more appropriate manner, then Mr. Kessinger would do it for them.

@Sif
@Azereiah
@FaithsRose

---

His offer was cut short, as he felt a shiver run up and down his spine. The aggregate and now placated energies of the water began moving again, against his will. He felt that this was the work of the headmaster, a test of sorts. Even if he had somehow managed, with his limited control of the waters, he felt that he just scratched the brim of proper control, but he gladly accepted the challenge, a slight grin etching his face. He looked at the towering beast, forming into a snake-like dragon, slithering wildly. Luke could also sense that the vitality- the vigor of the waters had changed, flowing into a more concentrated pressure. His arm trembled, but not out of fear, rather, it trembled with gleeful anticipation, the feeling of a challenge. It's waters were thrashing all over that one would think it impossible to take any shape, let alone a dragon.

”Luke. This seems to be an obstruction you and only you can quell. But by the looks of it, you have been granted me as an aide.”

Those words cracked through his dazed self, he shook his head and eyed the boy,

”I will keep it preoccupied, but know that the outcome of this fray solely rests on your shoulders. Failure is not an option. I’m sure it doesn’t intend to harm us to a grave extent, but rather than our health, it’s your capacity as a Water Elementalist that’s on the line. Do not waver. Be forthright in your resolution. And most of all, have faith in your own abilities. I am certain this trial would not have presented itself if you were not capable of overcoming it.”

These words changed Luke's initial impression of the apathetic and silent student, he weaved his words that sprung about courage in Luke, but he was already ready. He silently accepted the offer with a short nod before the boy turned around, his orb in tow. Smacking his trembling arm back to a resting state he eyed the situation. Zephyr was certainly skillful, in the blink of an eye he was next to the water dragon. Even making a platform etched in darkness to stand on and dodging its swift strike and countering with a blow.

He shook his head, getting distracted once more, and ran forward. His eye spotted a water-like whip protruding from the dragon lashing at his side. In response, he striked back at it with his self-produced water, effectively making both attacks cancel each other it. The water splashed all over his dry clothes and glasses. Truly a pain. He wiped his glasses clean and snapped his head back to the towering dragon. He held out his left hand towards it, but was somewhat surprised that he could not will the beast to do anything, unlike before where he could somewhat make it listen to his commands. Whereas this dragon resisted his command. Was there some sort of hierarchy- No time to think about it.

If he couldn't forcefully take it down, maybe he could etch away at it. Bit by bit, he could take down the dragon. He tried to test his theory by slashing a wave of water at its flailing whip-like structure. A surge of water came out of his hand and rapidly traveled to the dragon. Yes, he had hit the mark, and the part came off and splashed all over the place. However, in a short amount of time, the waters gathered and reattached itself. At a slower pace than before, which didn't matter.

A memory flashed by his head, his Uncle had taught him once, and only once, that if he were ever to face something he could not control, he should try and forcefully will it back to its origin. In this case, forcing the aggregate energies to spread out, hence forcefully dissipating the water. It would be a strenuous task indeed, as basically he had to pit his own prowess against the dragon. The dragon itself had different inklings of energy, all slightly different. Luke somehow figured out that this dragon had absorbed energies from ALL the water students who took the same trial before. It was unnerving to say the least, pitting his own energy against the energies of hundreds- if not thousands of prestigious water students who came before.

The process itself would probably require extreme and utter focus due to its strenuous nature. Any break in his concentration would just be him adding his own energy to the already bucking dragon, which isn't what anyone would want. Lifting his right hand towards the creature, the hem of his clothes slightly wet and draping downwards against the cold wind. He began gathering all the energy he could muster, he pit his own vitality against the dragon. The pressure was immense, and extremely heavy, as one would expect from a dragon who has absorbed energies throughout the millennia. Luke's hand and body almost gave away from the initial pressure exuded from the beast. Through gasped breaths he tried to cast it back to its origin, from whence it came.

The process was slow and cumbersome, it also whittled away at Luke's own vigour, he was getting tired- at an alarmingly fast rate, at a rate that he didn't expect. In between trying to subjugate or force it back to its origin and withstanding the sheer amount of pressure it exuded. He was glad to have Zephyr around as when Luke was on one knee he blocked any oncoming attack from the wild flays of the beast's tentacles. As sweat poured out of him, the dragon started diminishing in size, which was a slight victory, however it's thrashing began to get more feral as it tried to protect itself from Luke.

Through battered breaths he noticed that it got to a very small size, he was close, but he was also approaching his own limit. The pressure discharged were all accumulated by the waters from previous water students, hence, it even began britlling away at his own hand, beginning to get slightly cut. The light in his eyes began to grey and he almost collapsed then and there, but his Uncle flashed through his mind once more. This was his Uncle who pat his head when he was young, the time when he couldn't even conjure up a basic bubble of water.

"It's okay to struggle, struggling usually means you are trying your best. So get up, get up and try once more."

With those words echoing in the deep chambers of his mind he got up and breath a second wind, he ran the last stretch of forcing the dragon back to it's origin. The dragon disappeared with a soft drip into the pools, and everything was calm and serene once more, as if nothing had happened. No thrashing water dragon, and so, he dropped down to the floor beside the floor. He wasn't even suppose to be able to do it, with his stamina being close to- if not nil. Well, Zephyr was right, but Luke barely had enough to overcome this 'trial'. Headmaster Kano is a scary teacher.

"Hey... Zephyr, thanks for the help." he called out, his breathing still heavy, "If it wasn't for you then I don't think I would've been able to properly handle this task... I would get up properly congratulate you, but I barely have enough fortitude to speak, let alone get up. I owe you one." with those words said, and mentally noting that he would properly thank him afterwards, he stopped talking and tried to catch his breath.

He was taking it. Shino sniffled and brushed the tears away with her sleeves. She wasn't really crying all that hard but her eyes got watery which made it hard to see. Kano calmed down from his outburst just now and was seemingly more calm than before. She was surprised he had this many different emotions despites looking so grim for appearance. It wasn't clear if he forgave them or not but they were on peaceful terms with him now because of Shino.

Emilia was doing the rest of the talking while Shino didn't seem to be in any state of contact at the moment. Emilia placed their hand on Yoshino's head as Kano did the same to comfort her. The soft rubbing of the hands on her head clearly seemed to have calmed her down a bit. Her tears eventually stopped with only a soft sobbing left. The expression on her face had clearly changed to a bit more small sweet smile with a slight blush on her face.

While Emilia was trying to get her clothes dry with her own powers. It clearly showed she was a water elementalist just like the big guy in front of her. Yoshino was however still drenched in water. It was slowly dripping down her hairs and body. But luckily for them Kano used his powers to gather the water around the area. Yoshino angled her head forwards and shook it around to shake the water from her hair as it was funneled into Kano his hand. When she didn't hear any more water dripping she stopped and looked back up with quite messy hair and a bit of a agape expression on her face.

Her attitude had completely changed again, she was back to her usual quiet self staring at the man a little while the two of them talked. He handed out the frozen picture back to Yoshino which she carefully took with both her hands. Yoshino stared at the picture of the woman and Karo together while the headmaster told her a little about the picture. Yoshino ran a finger across it with her empty hand to touch the ice surrounding it. It was something unique, this picture was at least several years old she could tell and looked like something he held dear. But for some reason she thought it was weird that the picture was slightly burned. Accident? or something else perhaps.

Either way they ended up peacefully after all this drama and all was well. Shino came out of this mess and now they were taken to his office again... Shit not good after all. She didn't want to go, she wanted to find her room but she had no choice. He was a teacher and would likely do the same again. She tilted her head forwards a little with a not so pleased look on her face but followed anyways and returned normal quickly after. She gave a nod at Kano as she trailed behind him still a little curled up.

Saqui jolted forward as the Hall monitor turned to run, she'd seen the deer stuck in headlights look before he turned and instinctively prepared herself to dart forward at Flash speed once again. When he seemed unable to run however she retracted her hand to her face, resting her index finger on her lip as she studied the hall monitor or more to the point the interesting wad of air that seemed to be preventing him from escaping.

Turning to Brunhilde she parted her lips, no doubt in preparation to ask a question, which fell short when the small girl spoke. She turned back to the hall monitor and nodded her head in agreement...

When the poor lad threw himself at the classroom door and attempted to jam the whole clipboard through the mail slot. Saqui wasn't entirely sure what to do with herself, except look on with a mixture of curiosity and concern...which didn't even last a second as in the blink of an eye the 'poor' lad had thrown a glowing ball of magma at her face. Right. At. Her. Face.

Whether it was shock or complete disbelief that kept her still for the shortest time it didn't look as if she was going to move. 'Defend yourself, Saqui!' The commanding voice of her father leapt to the forefront of her mind, as if a switch had clicked in her mind, there was a disturbance in the air surrounding Saqui and she jumped to life...quite literally as she jumped out of the magma's path. She completely misjudged the amount of aid she'd need to move fast enough though and ended up flattening herself against the wall with a hollow thud as the glob sailed on.

"Ow, wall! Hot, tsss" She blurted out, swiping angry blobs of obsidian off of her sleeves and tentatively touched a scald mark on her chin. She whipped round to look for the hall monitor, her brow furrowed and her eyes narrowed once she caught sight of him. Yes, she saw that he was terrified...did it help? Unfortunately it did not.

Saqui was generally a calm and amicable young lady...unsurprisingly having magma thrown at her face was just a step too far.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" She snapped, hoping against hope that none of the glob had ended up on her bag. She zipped forward and lifted a fist above his head, fully intending on bonking him on the head with it. Not hard enough to cause injury per say but enough to show how displeased she was with him.

"If someone comes to talk to you-" There was the briefest pause as she tried to give him another bonk on the head "-you don't throw glowing magma-" And another "-or whatever the hell that was in-" still going for it "-their-" and once more with feeling "-face!" if she hadn't already been blasted or god knows what, she retracted her hand after the last bonk had been felt or dodged.

"I've met wild animals with better manners!" She bristled, swiftly cursing under her breath in her native tongue.

...this was probably not the best way to handle the situation...

@Azereiah
@Xandrya
@Sif

---

@Zelosse@liferusher

The whole atmosphere felt quite heavy around her. Be it from the imposing figure of Kano or just the combination of both her situation and him. Emilia didn't try to move much nor did she open her mouth as it seemed Kano was about to lecture them on the mistake that spawned this whole ordeal.

His tone proved to make the situation seem a bit grim in one way. The question pointed back at her made her think a bit back as to how stupid that decision probably was. She hadn't really interacted with many students and she didn't see many either. It was partly due to unwillingness due to her own nature, and an innate curiosity that led to the idea of going into the office in the first place. Though she didn't get a chance to respond at first as Kano seemed to brush the earlier accusation aside with the movement of his head along with a follow-up statement.

And if that wasn't enough leniency and kindness, he managed to drain all the excess water from them and sucked it all seemingly into him. Her expression became a bit dumbfounded, as the control of said water seemed quite extraordinary. She felt quite ashamed as she didn't actually know the person in front of her, and just a minute ago she had barged into his private office. This was probably her most shameful moment in life to count. And the warning she had been given completely smashed her spirit for a few good seconds.

"This just can't get any worse, right? And of course I'm warned on my very first day... bollocks." She refrained from speaking out loud and only repeated said words in her mind. It would be a bit offensive to just say it out loud right in front of him at the very least. She nodded slightly in recognition of the warning.

And now having turned his attention to Yoshino, she was at the very least glad to see her calm down for the moment at hand. The words Kano spoke though made her eyes widen. He had lost something in his life? A momentary feeling of utter guilt made her withdraw her hand from Yoshinos head. First an invasion of privacy, along with a precious item stolen yet returned, and now this? Being secluded and afterwards sent to her grandparents didn't even sound remotely as scarring as the complete loss of a loved one. Having no experience of this, she of course had a sense of curiosity but a higher sense of dread that she caused something repressed for a reason to show back up in the headmasters memory. She didn't really know how Kano actually felt about it though.

From a minute or two of waiting for the two to finish their "conversation", she got her shoes and socks back dry and clean as they were before. She slid the socks on and quickly put the shoes back on and now simply stared at the back of Kano. She wanted to know more of him, but a slight premonition and his aura told her that it wouldn't come so easily nor out of the blue. Personal matters were indeed that, personal. She began to follow him along with Shino who seemed a bit distraught, though only for a quick moment it seemed.

She opens a small vial of sorts from a small picket on the side of her leg as they were walking. It contained only handful of water, more or less. She makes it hover over her left hand in a small ball, until she cascades it into 3 different small streams that orbit her hand slowly. It was a little bit of a habit she developed over the few years after she came to know of her own ability. It mostly served as a way to calm her mind and distract herself from outer disturbances. This time it was to simply calm herself. "I wish I could actually say something back to him... been a while since I felt this speechless."

A short passing thought.

A wave of relief came over the boy when his peripheral vision caught a forthright Luke. It was hard to discern his mien from this range after considering the fact that Zephyr was nearly twenty-five feet high and falling. Even though the watery tendrils may pose as a hurdle that obstructed the water elementalist from his goal, the main foe laid right before Zeph- or rather, below. The sable-hued weapon emitted a faint hum as the boy led it down unto his opponent. His target quickly changed from the dragon’s scalp to its open jaws. He reassured himself that the aqueous assailant lacked a digestive system, even a toddler could deduce that. With that sentiment backing him, the well-dressed figure plunged into its mouth.

His vision was nearly unaffected once his body had been fully immersed. The water itself was pristine, almost safe for drinking, sans the energetic overload one would take. Mo Ye effortlessly sliced through his opponent’s internals. With cheeks full of air, he continued his streamline strike until he broke through the back of its fluid hide. The boy was able to manifest a platform just in time for another strike. A tendril was jetting its way towards Zephyr. In retaliation, the student held his blade up before him and met the extremity head on. Its uniform edge created a divide in the appendage. Water haphazardly geysered as the dragon retracted the two halves and mended its wound. His chilled sensation from his soaked clothing barely surmounted to a distraction. He’s been through whole winters with only a few meager layers.

Zephyr was preparing to turn himself into a human bullet once more when he noticed something soothing. The dragon’s size was waning. Slowly, but surely. But the beast wouldn’t go down without a fight, that much he knew for sure. The boy brandished his blade and homed in on all of the wildly flailing tendrils. The dragon’s itself was far from pacified, yet at the moment it appeared to be fending off Luke’s efforts on a whole separate plane, one unseeable to a darkness user. Now locked on his targets, Zephyr leaned forward and sent himself flying across the outer boundary of their trial. The tendrils and neck of the dragon were just in Mo Ye’s reach. The self-propelled boy cut through them all in one fell swoop.

His attack must have done enough to help Luke enforce the ebb side of the cycle. The dragon, almost submissively and somewhat anticlimactically dwindled down back to the tranquil waters. He welcomed the sensation of grass beneath his formal footwear, yet the boy’s momentary muse was cut short by the reminder of Luke. Zephyr paced his way over to his classmate, engrossed in facilitating the flow of air within his lungs. The recreation of the fabled Chinese sword dissipated. The umbral mist was siphoned back into the dark orb, which now remained whole. He gave a curt nod to the student sprawled out before him. Although his deadpan expression failed to offer a smile of praise, the blank countenance was at least capable of managing a few words. ”Good job to you. Rest for now.”

For playful fun in hopes of raising Luke’s spirits, Zephyr was tempted to produce a water bottle from his satchel and ask if the guy was thirsty. Yet again, common sense reasoned against it and instead the boy wordlessly slung it over his shoulder. ”I’m going to change. We’ve got a while before any afternoon classes. Take comfort in this respite, Luke… See you around.” Carrying the student back probably wasn’t a plausible option. His muscles and spirit must have been crying in unison after that struggle. Best thing to do was to let him rest to the pacifying sounds of the lakeside.
@Inertia

---

@Liferusher
(Will edit this part in after graduation party)

---

”Good job to you. Rest for now.”

Zephyr congratulated in his usual, dreary tone, which was odd given the predicament they were just in. Well, if he spoke with his normal timbre then by all accounts he should be alright, at that thought Luke sighed in relief, Well he seems to be doing just fine after passing those thoughts he straightened his gaze towards the clear skies, focusing on recuperating what energy he could muster.

”I’m going to change. We’ve got a while before any afternoon classes. Take comfort in this respite, Luke… See you around.”

"Right, I'll extend my thanks once more." Luke said to his figure who was beginning to turn away, he weakly raised up his left hand and waved him off, "Bye." Whether the goodbye was too abrupt or concise, it was all he could think off at the moment. He glanced at the boys diminishing form and then looked upwards once more and shut his eyes. The depth of his breaths receeding with each desperate gulp of air, he placed his left hand over his eyes, becoming totally encroached in darkness. He may have rested for just about half an hour before he could even gather enough energy to stand on both legs, and even then he felt slightly woozy and stumbled with each step. He was not in any pristine condition to be able to conjure or manipulate his element, which made Luke feel slightly naked. Like a knight with an empty scabbard, or an bowman without his arrows.

---

---

He opened his eyes and in a daze he looked down on the shadows cast by the sun, he judged the time of day it was- Just kidding, he literally had no idea what time it was. But by guessing with how high the sun was, it was just about nearing the end of lunch. Gathering his bearings, he promptly and lethargically walked towards the direction of the cafeteria. Luckily, he kept his 'Lunch Ticket' inside his, fortunately dry satchel.

Lunch was just about to end, so he got to the closest stand, which was some burgers and fries, and he ordered two of each. After receiving a tray with his order, he walked a free table and began chowing down. It was an odd sight to see, his hunger overtook his etiquette, even if his Uncle did say to have an air of prim composition. And after he was done, he felt a bit regretful at his unmannered-self but he could feel most of his energy returning to him, being able to use his powers... albeit rather simplistic things for now, but it was something. Luke would be damned if that test wasn't a strenuous task.

He put away his tray, right after lunched finished. Whilst eating he had decided to look for headmaster Kano, see if there was anything else he should do after the challenge given. Luckily for him, the second student he asked had seen the Headmaster, who apparently wasn't in any giving mood. Nonetheless he had to ask.

After a few minutes of uninterrupted walking and admiring of the school's interior, which still impressed and bewitched Luke. If the engineer was still alive he would surely get a commendation from him. He was eyeing the embellished walls in awe when he heard the voice of the headmaster. He poked his head out of the corner and saw him walk into his office.

---

@Zelosse@liferusher@Ennui

Luke didn't think that he was busy, and rudely let himself into one of the most heavy and drab atmospheres he'd felt in a long while. Almost a heavier one than when he bested his older brother in the duel. He eyed Headmaster Kano, as expected... talking to two female students he had never seen before. Luke swore that you could cut the tension in the air with a pair of scissors. In his haste, he had interrupted something.

"Oh- Uhh, S- Sorry!" Luke stuttered out, bowing his head, "I'll- I'll come back after you're free Headmaster Kano. Sorry for interrupting... something." He closed the door, slowly and silently. Whatever the situation was, Luke was a tad tired after the whole Water Dragon ordeal so he'd rather not get dragged into anything as of now.

---

---

Brunhilde was, in a word, quite shocked to see a ball of volcanic unpleasantness flying through the air. She fired off an air current to throw the glob of molten rock away from Saqui, and at the same instant, Saqui blasted herself out of the ball's path - straight into the wall. Graceful, Brunhilde thought. The ball of magma got caught in the blasts of wind and curved around Saqui mid-flight, slamming into the wall just a foot behind the girl and revealing some previous repair work (shoddy metalwork and mismatched replacement wooden segments blended into the original beams). Apparently the Fire building had been lit on fire every few days for decades. Brunhilde quickly scribbled down that Saqui apparently knew basic manipulation and could conjure relatively strong currents, much like how she herself could.

When Saqui dashed towards the cowardly Hall Monitor, he reached for his pouch of earth to sling another ball of magma at her - but instead found himself weakly flailing in her general direction. Brunhilde was now standing behind him, sandwiching him between herself and Saqui. A soft 'crunch' could be heard as she tossed the small sack of gravel and sand between her hands, and the Hall Monitor's fear worsened. Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit, oh shit, oh shit was running on a looping track through his head when he was smacked in the head.

It was more humiliating than painful. Saqui was a few inches taller than he was, and he knew that if she had genuinely wanted to harm him, he would be in a lot worse shape. It still rattled him, though, and with each conk on the head, he lost a little bit more heart. The short, percussive lecture pounded itself into his head deeply, and he felt like an absolute idiot.

"I've met wild animals with better manners!"

His voice cracked as he pleaded for forgiveness, appearing as the very picture of patheticness. "I-I'm sorry! I th-th-thought you were some of the p-people the Pres told me about!"

A last thump hit his head, but it wasn't from Saqui. Brunhilde had dropped the bag of rocks on his head. She was quite pissed off by his behavior. This kid had nearly melted his new friend's face off, and Saqui had been a little bit too kind with her words. Brunhilde tilted his head back and looked down at him, near expressionless, and coldly tore into him herself.

"Look here, shitkicker. We weren't going to hurt you, but you fucked up when you threw a ball of goddamn lava at someone you didn't even know. We'd be justified if we threw you out a window for that. But we're not going to do that, alright? Instead, we're going to ask our question, and we're going to expect an answer."

The Hall Monitor's sticker fell off his shoulder when he nodded upwards in acknowledgement. One last tap on the head came from Brunhilde's notebook, and she stepped away to finish her notes on what had just happened.

@FaithsRose
@Xandrya
@Sif

@Inertia@Ennui@liferusher





@inertia@jedly

Kano stared at both girls with a mixture of respect and resignation. His role as Headmaster was absolute so he could mete out punishment or reward as he saw fit but at times like these, even after a thousand lifetimes worth of dealing with students, he never really knew the exact answer that should fit the scenario. Every case was unique to the individuals involved and it seemed like he would in fact need to dispense a very mundane bit of discipline but on the lighter spectrum of things.
It was only when he had begun to speak his peace on the subject that he had been interrupted by his student, Luke, entering the facility. The boy showed great talent to have bested the challenge of the water dragon in such a short time, even with a teammate he had rarely seen a student overcome the challenge in such a small window. The boy had wasted no effort to overcome his adversary. Ambitious and good fortuned seemed to define this crowning achievement.
Though Kano inwardly wondered if his momentary anger had distracted him and thus weakened the dragon. The headmaster banished the thought as quickly as it had come, refusing to doubt his own prowess or diminish the achievement of his student.

"Not so fast, Mr.Thames." Kano caught him as the boy tried to shyly leave the room. "Congratulations are in order for your fine demonstration. If you would, please, attend me for a moment."

The boy had excellent timing. The girls were looking for the dorms, and Luke was likely returning to his own room anyways.
That just left the matter of what to do with these two.

"Miss Averill, you are excused from any formal punishment regarding the intrusion into my inner office. But any other issues that arise in the future will carry extra weight from the warning today. You may leave." Kano turned to address Luke. "Mr.Thames, if you please. She was lost and could not find the dormitory. Please escort her on my behalf. Afternoon classes are not in session today, so enjoy your time to relax." He left unsaid that there would still be a challenge for the water students in the next few days.

Changing his sights to that of young Yoshino Hirasawa, he spoke with a more stern tone.

"Miss Hirasawa, while I accept your curiosity as harmless, you will still be serving a minimum disciplinary punishment." There was a sinister feel to his aura as the idea suddenly came to him. An answer to his problems, and perhaps an opportunity for the girl as well, to settle both their troubles. "For the next month I will ask that you assist me in my work here in the offices. There is a great deal of paperwork piling up and some issues about the school on the regular, and it would be of great help to have someone to run letters for me. Will you assist me?"

---

@Zelosse@liferusher@Inertia (P.S. Slighty shorter post perhaps this time. Couldn't think of much else. Sorry! :S)

Nothing short of being one of the weakest and worst first impressions she could ever give. The day had been nothing but a small misfortune paying them back tenfold. But much to her surprise, the reaction from the headmaster seemed to be more lenient than she had expected it to be. The atmosphere still didn't feel any lighter. It still felt like there was pressure on her neck, just ready to crash down and smother someone.

And by probably just pure coincidence and ridiculous timing, the atmosphere lifts somewhat by a stranger coming through the door. It being one of the other students in the academy. Though she didn't know who he was or what element he wielded. At that point it wasn't the most pressing concern on her mind either, given that up until now as Luke came in through the door. And the worst part actually now was that Kano wasn't just a teacher, but the actual headmaster. Effectively dropping another slight drop of pressure on her head.

She was expecting to repay him somehow. But to some slight degree of luck, the headmaster issued no formal punishment for her. To which she followed with the usual awkward facial expression, but she didn't say anything back. It wasn't something she shouldn't have retorted either way. And as such, she complied with his decision. She got up the chair, walking a few steps to the door before turning and offering a slight curtsey before heading to the door. She went to the other side of it while passing Luke, and straight up leaned against the wall after she was out of sight of Kano and Yoshino.

She slowly slid her back down the wall until she was practically sitting against the wall instead of leaning on it while standing. Letting out a deep sigh and a mixed feeling. While on one hand she felt she should have been fine to do something in return, on the other hand she felt relieved to get away unscathed. Albeit she did still feel a bit awkward since Yoshino was left in the room with Kano. "I think I just dodged a bullet..." She speaks out loud without realizing it, as Luke was still close enough to hear her. Oddly enough her expression seemed to show that she was more than relieved to get out of the situation. Having ignored mostly everything after leaving the room, she didn't realize anything until her eyes saw Luke close to her.
"Oh..."

---

"Not so fast, Mr.Thames."

Stopped dead in his tracks, Luke probably looked like a deer caught by headlights. He opened the half door closed to listen to the Headmaster and stepped halfway into the office. It was sincerely unlucky for him to be caught whilst basically most of his energy was sapped away,

"Congratulations are in order for your fine demonstration. If you would, please, attend me for a moment."

"Many thanks Headmaster, but I feel like i couldn't have done that alone, so if you will, please extend your congratulations to Zephyr, he basically did all the hard labour." he replied, rubbing the back of his head shyly, "Yes Headmaster?"

"Mr.Thames, if you please. She was lost and could not find the dormitory. Please escort her on my behalf. Afternoon classes are not in session today, so enjoy your time to relax."

Luke sighed in sweet relief, the afternoon classes took a toll and if he would've attended he wasn't sure if he could have stayed awake, "Sur- Yes, the dorms are where I'm planning to go to next anyway." Luke continued his prattle, fixing his glasses back onto his face as it slowly began to slide off, he left the office feeling that he had been dismissed but waited by the office door for the student.

"I think I just dodged a bullet..."
"Oh..."

"Hello, Mrs exempt from punishment." Luke called out to her, "I'm Luke Thames, non-descript water student, and through my lethargy I'll be guiding you to the dorms. Uhh, I hope you know your dorm room, otherwise you should go back in and ask Headmaster Kano, otherwise we'll be going."

Luke led her through the myriad of long hallways and intricate paths. It was a long winded path for sure, "I don't blame you for getting lost in this maze-like building." Luke said outloud on accident as he led her through. There were many students loitering about as per usual, many showing off their powers, which was a waste to be honest. In the midst of sighing he noticed the stares again, well whatever. He turned the final corner and they were in the dorm area.

"Well, here it is!" Luke exclaimed, although in a whisper as he was lacking energy, "I'm sorry but you have to excuse me, I'm feeling a bit tired after a 'special' task given to me by the Headmaster. Hope you find your way to your dorm." he continued, cracking his shoulders and hands, before waving her off and walking to his room.

After a turn of the first knob and consequential locking and a turn of the second knob to his room, he collapsed on the bed, a nap... no rest for a few hours should help. Maybe. He snuggled up to his bed, and before he slept he could notice the faint traces and scent of a female,

@Liferusher
"Mm~ oh.. yeah, Emi wahs sleepng... hre.. Zzz" he said in his drowsy, half asleep state, soon after he closed his eyes and fell into a comfortable and deep slumber.

The receptionist couldn’t determine what was more unsettling; the fact that a student had arrived at the dormitory entrance complete drenched, or the painfully unsettling nonchalance painted on his face. The Academy decided that the boy had outgrown his training wheels and rewarded him with the privilege of rooming with another soul, yet another sign of acceptance from the institution’s board. Luckily he decided against unpacking since it would have been a hassle reorganizing all of those books.

Now standing in front of his room, Zephyr took a quick glance down at the metallic key in his palm. The scribble that embodied his room number came off as provisional, as if it had been jotted down on the spot at a hurried, and under intense scrutinization, anxious pace. The only made his hold on the pocketed orb of darkness only tighten. Without further adieu, the student began the procedure by verifying whether the door was unlocked. Surprising thing was, it was. A minor seedling of perturbation cropped up as thoughts began to race forth. Perhaps the cleaning personnel forgot to lock it. Or… Worse for the outwardly distant kid, his roommate was home for the lunch slot. The infantile plant gradually grew as it extended its leaves and firmly dug its roots deep into his temperament. The elementalist gulped down trepidation and wrapped his grasp around the pristine knob. He felt the door click as the internal mechanism gave way, entrusting Zephyr his portion of the effort. He slowly pushed forward while images of various character archetypes gained from multiple reads uncontrollably flowed through his conscience.

The room was surprisingly simple, providing the essentials while simultaneously offering adequate space to cater to the young mind’s urge to express itself. He almost felt at peace, having slept in barns, trees and caves, the arrangement was more than a blessing. Save for the half-naked girl casually tending to a wounded book like a literary corpsman. This specific scenario was almost cliche, one his eyes have glazed over and reread many times over, his iteration of the self-taught birds and the bees. Some characters played along, others retreated in flustered disarray, a few even spurred on the romance. Zephyr failed to do any of the above. In contrast to all of the listed reactions, he simply did not know how to process the scene before him. ”My apologies.” He announced as he calmly eased the door close, hoping that his existence wasn’t even noticed.

Zephyr’s gaze oscillated between the 106 engraved into his key and the plaque on the upper part of the entrance. It was definitely his room, and subsequently the girl with pink locks was his roommate. The boy took a take two as he entered again, maintaining his blase expression to mask the internal turmoil his mind was in. ”Greetings.” His monotone voice extended his salutation in place of his hand, since the girl was preoccupied with the work in front of her. ”My name is Zephyr Heidrich. I’ll be your roommate for the remainder of this year.” He awkwardly adjusted his tie as he shifted his gaze to his left, instantly taking in his culinary assets. Although it wasn’t visible, the student was more than glad to have a quality set of kitchenware, though most would chalk it up as commonplace. Zephyr eyed the open bedroom and crossed over to place his suitcases in its door’s frame. He attentively open a case’s compartment and produced a small french press, ”Um, would you like to talk over coffee? Bought some in the local town. By the way, what's your name?” The student asked, still unsure of what to make of the partially dressed girl.

@Liferusher

They entered the room again, Shino wanted to take off her shoes and put them down by the door as to not ruin the headmaster his carpet but when she looked down her shoes and socks were still gone. Oh right, the hallway. Yoshino looked back behind her into the hallway and they were still lying there. Yoshino didn't bother getting them at first but kind of would regret it if her only shoes were stolen. She lightly tapped her foot on the ground as in the hallway happened something completely else. The floor beneath the shoes and socks almost immediately moved. The ground beneath the items acted like a catapult and launched the shoes and socks her way. She didn't think this through. One of her shoes clattered against the wall while her socks slowly fell to the ground. A loud tud was heard as the other shoe collided against her head.

From the others their perspective it might have looked like someone threw it at her but she spoke no word about it. The thing fell to the ground as Yoshino placed both hands on her head in pain. She kept standing still in pain for a short moment but was back to senses quickly again acting like nothing happened. She shyly stood next to Emilia with both her hands bundled in front of her lap. Her head was slightly down looking like she was sorry for what she had done.

Before Kano could say any more about the trivial at hand they were abruptly interrupted by a student that just stormed in without knocking. It looked like he didn't mean too but it was easy to avoid by just knocking. Yoshino mindlessly stared at the person as he was about to leave again. When he wanted too however Kano decided to stop him instead. He was asked to listen to him for a moment and so he did. Kano began about the matter at hand and addressed everyone separately. Emilia was good to go and Luke was asked to bring Emilia to her dorm. Wait... Shino needed to get to the dorm too. Why couldn't Shino go with the two of them too. Yoshino started looking a little more worried than before and raised her hands closer to her face preparing for impact knowing she wasn't gonna be let off the hook just as easy. He spoke.

When she looked at him he grew more distant and darkness enveloped the room. His unseeable expression became more sinister as his eyes grew red. His voice was lowered to a heavy punishing voice. Yoshino jumped a little and suddenly felt really small. Was this really all happening or was it just a picture in her mind. Her legs shook a bit as he continued speaking and when he finished Yoshino fell down to her knees hands up at the sky as his words had been spoken. Her voice yelping in pain.



Drops of tears fell down her face as she spoke. She took it harder than expected. Well she wanted as less problems as possible of course.



She was holding her hands in front of her near the principals desk like she was about to be cuffed by him. An occasional sniff and sob was heard coming from the girl as she was quietly sitting in front of him on her knees. Maybe he was gonna show some sympathy after her show. Well that was what she hoped at least.



Patiently stitching the book she was. Her hands moved carefully and precies. She had done it two or three times already. Luckily she did things like this back in the days a lot with her mother. She was happily humming along with the song in the background in the meantime while occasionally taking a light sip of her soda.

At the other side of the room an individual had entered Emi her room without a knock or anything. She heard the faint clicking noise of the door but paid little to none attention to it. She merely gave a look at the faint noise and turned back to the book. In the corner of her eyes she could see a boy and almost immediately turned back to look at him again in shock. Without a word she silently stared at him for a moment.



The door was closed again after a short few seconds of him standing in the room. Why did he do that for! She placed her hands on the table and stood up shouting after him as he apologised and left the room.



Emi was left alone in the room standing there in confusion. She was still looking at the door to see if he would return. What a weird situation she was in at the moment. Did she leave the door unlocked or something? After a short few seconds she could see the door being opened again with her full attention pointed at it.

From a longer look she could tell this boy clearly had to be here for some business. Well she could almost immediately tell that he was suppose to be her room mate for the rest of the year. Thinking about the fact that her roommate was gonna be a guy made her redden a bit but she could mostly suppress it. They had two different rooms so it wasn't as bad as it seemed.

He calmly introduced himself now like nothing happened. Emi decided to do the same and said no more word about the scene just now. She gave a nod at him when he said that he would be her roommate for the rest of the year. Giving him a second look over his clothes seemed to be a bit more on the darker side. Looking even closer she could tell his clothes were completely drenched. He was still casually talking further like there was nothing to see and asked if she wanted some coffee.



Emi stood upright and went into her room. She turned the music softer and went into her bathroom without hassle. She grabbed the first and the best towel that was in her storage and headed back into the main room. She walked up to him with her expression turning more into a smile as she threw the fluffy towel onto his head.



Her expression slowly seemed to fade as she had gotten closer to him. Her arms dropped as she looked in awe at him. She suddenly took action and stumbled backwards. She dropped her back against the wall and slid down without her gaze faltering from him. She was trying to get farther away from him but only looked like she was clawing the wall. When she finally noticed she wasn't able to gain distance from him she covered her head with both her arms.



The tension in the room had clearly risen all of the sudden and the girl seemed to be really in deep fear at the moment.

---

@Inertia (P.S.S. Composed slightly sluggishly. Apologies for anyone reading 'if' they find some odd discrepancy or fault.)

After an awkward session to another, the day had probably been more lively than her whole early childhood combined. She was now stuck with another unfamiliar student from the academy, another first impression to handle, or not.

"Hello, Mrs exempt from punishment."
This line alone was enough to mildly irritate her, even if it did make sense. He didn't know her name, and only knew she had almost been punished for something rather foolish. She didn't say anything back as he was about to continue.

Besides his rather witty greeting, he didn't seem all that bad from the looks of things. And whether or not it was on purpose or on accident, the words he used painted a sort of awkward aura on him in her eyes. Perhaps he simply preferred not being known to random people all too easily, if at all. But the way he introduced himself induced a brief giggle from her. "Well I hope you don't suddenly fall asleep on the floor while we walk." She replied along with slowly bringing herself up to a stand. "I'd be troubled if you would just randomly fall asleep along the way." The remark wasn't anything short but a payback attempt at his earlier greeting.

Thankfully she had managed to figure out her room number from the mess that was Kanos desk at the time. And just like that, they were on their way already. While all the time a part of her felt odd just leaving Yoshino back there with the headmaster by herself. It didn't feel right. But seeing as to how her situation was handled, there wasn't much she could do. She had all the time to ponder and think as both she and Luke made their way through steps upon steps in the confusing and ample amount of hallways and walls. Beautiful but confusing at the same time.

And the next words Luke spoke came out of nowhere, so it took her by surprise to say the least. At the very least she didn't think someone would agree to her opinion just like that. Not like she ever said it to him either. But an accurate assumption to make judging as Kano had mentioned her being lost. She eyes him directly a bit and simply shrugs with a sigh, while uttering something quietly. "This place really is something else entirely."

The only weird aspect she caught by chance was the random stares some people gave Luke. Resentment? Hate? She didn't know, nor would she probably even be given an answer straight up. Perhaps something she might bring up later just to sort out any problems that might rise up. Just a few minutes before they reached their destination, she had picked up the water from the vial again and was executing the same movements as before. A split orb of water made into three streams that encircled her hand like a cascade.
Restless, troubled, unsettled, erratic, unsteady. The water felt disturbed, as it showed visible ripples while flickering. Guess she really needed a slight timeout from all that had taken place. Bad emotions tend to just cause more havoc than good.

"Well, here it is!"
A slight moment later he would utter those words, as they had made their way into the dorms. It didn't take that long either, which was quite surprising, given the scale and size of the place. "Yeah, thanks for the company." Sincere, even though her focus and voice seemed to be towards something else.
All the while Luke told his reason for excusing himself immediately. To which she didn't respond to with much. Until a rather odd idea hit her in the head. Before he even took a few steps away, she spoke back at him before waving back as well. "Feel free to explain later as to why people stare at you with those kinds of eyes."

With Luke out of sight, she walked around slowly for about a minute, eyeing the surroundings before finding her dorm room. "Room 187, huh." She muttered on her own, before opening the door. Which opened with a slight creak into a fairly spacious room. A room for two, but still enough space for privacy. "I'll probably get the rest of my stuff here later." As she had overheard, the so-called afternoon classes weren't in session. Which meant she had plenty of time to rest and read. Perhaps even practice the accuracy of her control, if the situation and her emotions allowed it. She sat down on the sofa with legs crossed, a comfortable position regardless of how it looked to others, and picked up a small book from one of her other pockets. A light novel, perfect way to pass the time and regain some composure. At least until something else happens along the day.

@liferusher

"Nooooooooo, Yoshino isn't made for hard labour."

Drops of tears fell down her face as she spoke. She took it harder than expected. Well she wanted as less problems as possible of course.

"B-but I understand -sniff-. I didn't do good so have to be punished -sniff-. Do whatever you wish to me."

It was hard to take the girl seriously when the slightest idea of punishment seemed to invite the waterworks from her eyes. What a shame her element is earth. She would never want for a water source.. Kano kept that thought to himself for the sake of the conversation. The girl was blubbering and pleading to do whatever he wanted. Some with less pure intentions might have taken the phrasing as an invitation to do something terrible or make her suffer in a humiliating way, but the headmaster was not the type. Nor had he ever been. On rare occassions there had been teachers, and students, who had tried to do less than appropriate things on the schoolgrounds. One such incident had taken place near a student hosted dance. His long time friend, the other headmaster, had walked in on the scene as it unfolded.
There were probably still burn marks on the hallway now that he thought about it.

Kano patted the air calmly as he spoke.

"Now now, let us not be so overdramatic. Secretary work is just running a few errands I do not have the time for, and maybe a bit of help organizing my paperwork. If you do not wish to aid me for a short time I'm sure the cafeteria could use a dishwasher of some sort. We host a variety of fine eateries."

Actually.. The girl was still afraid of him and unfamiliar with the school. Her assistance at the current time would not be beneficial, as he would still need to guide her around the school anyways.

"You have a week to make a choice. Please, consider my offer as a chance to experience more of the school rather than having to help and old man like myself. In the meantime, as I have already sent Luke and your friend off, I will escort you personally to the cafeteria. The dormitories are not far from there."

Kano glanced at the mountain of paperwork on his desk and resisted the urge to simply destroy the pile. Thankfully, resisting the urge for violence was normally pretty easy. Standing up from his chair and coming around the desk, he motioned for Yoshino to follow, and proceeded through the familiar corridors until they reached the long path leading to the cafeteria and dormitories.

"right down that road. You have already been assigned a room so simply talk to the dorm head at the entrance."

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A week later!

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(morning. Before classes)

Classes had progressed at a steady pace. The new students were adaptive and receptive to the lessons, even some of the stranger ones that involved not attacking your classmates. Memories of those damnable hall monitor reports came to mind forcing Kano to frown. Not that anybody ever saw anything but his eyes with all the shadows clogging his hood. Just how he liked it. The clock was ticking on the first years to make a good impression tonight, every minute that passed brought them all closer to their first real taste of power and danger.

The C.E.T.

Combat Efficiency Test.

Every elementalist learned to control their powers to a point where they could be used not just to honor them, or manipulate them, but allow the students a way of defending themselves against the very real threats of the world. Not all the regular humans were peaceful against our kind and a greater number of elemental spirits were lashing out against the natural order.
The true duty of a practitioner was to destroy these spirits so they could be returned to their natural forms.

The test itself had been given as a warning to every first year student. They would be leaving the dormitories at 7pm when the sun had set, and approach the base of the mountain. It would be an hour walk from the dorms to the designated meeting place. The gaping maw of the mountains pass, a tunnel stretching the entirety of the mountain in a straight line used primarily to transport goods, also served as an entrance the belly of their home. Lit with a strange glowing Lichen the tunnels were dangerous and often barred off thanks to the earth elementalists.
Tonight the doors would be opened and the first years cleansing would begin.

The objective of the test was to see if the students were capable of using their powers in a way that was not only capable of defeating a foe but to see if they could overcome their own fears for the good of harmony. There would be beasts warped by the influence of strong energies and even core elementals that had taken a corrupted solid form. Each one of them had to be destroyed. If left to fester it would spell disaster for everyone.

First years were not the only ones doing the cleansing.

Third year students did routine sweeps and some even took residence in the maw, dedicating themselves to the practice, while others went in with groups to distribute supplies and goods or replace others.

Second years went in regularly to offer assistance and train with the third years. Those who did not wish to partake were allowed to do regular classes with the teachers. A few others with the knack were allowed to help build the city to gain knowledge in other fields such as construction.
Some even went to the techmentals to help keep the lights on.

First years were untrained and often undisciplined. They were rash. They made mistakes. But they all had the potential to learn and would from here on be finding themselves at the entrance to the maw on the regular, if only for a few hours. Of course if they took a liking to it they could frequent the nightly patrols and learn from older students, but only with express permission and a supervising teacher. Third years or not, safety could not be guaranteed and precautions needed to be taken.

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(After lunch class)

Kano stood in the fields near the pools he had been using for training. His students showed excellent growth in controlling the once raging pools, now finally calmed and inviting to those who had earned the elemental trust needed to allow such an unruly spirit to aid them. That alone was a feat of great skill. Besting it in the dragon form had earned Luke more credit with the spirit than he knew.
To Kanos knowledge there were few patches of nature inhabited by a strong elemental spirit like this so training near it was quite interesting.

Glancing at the sky he watched the sun begin its gradual dip behind the mountain. Six hours until the C.E.T began. Students would be showing up for the afternoon water classes soon but Kano had no intention of pushing them today. It would be a simple class, one aiming to develop just a bit more combat readiness. That was all he could do.

Hopefully other teachers would be doing the same.