Damon stood at the edge of where everyone was to meet, leaning up against a tree with the shade wrapped around him. He had no care for the outside world at the moment as the only thing on his mind was "Why in the world was I sent here?". He assumed more people were to come here so he stayed where he was, waiting for them. It probably meant nothing but he was still perplexed about why he was dragged off and why a potential consequence seemed like the government having permission to kick the door down. I'm not guilty of any crime, that I know of...It's not like I murdered the damn U.S. President or anything. Damon managed to get the thought out of his head and slumped down onto the ground. He pulled a phone out of his pocket as well as a pair of earplugs. Plugging the earplugs into his phone and his ears he played a song in hope to pass the time. Hopefully someone is here that can explain what the hell is what around here. A letter with a threat involving the government? Should anyone give a damn? Apparently so if I'm here. On an island in the middle of the whatever-one-it-is ocean waiting for Mr. or Mrs. Whoever. Oh to hell with it.

@Blizz
As the lone child at the beginning of the island pathway waited for any others, the headmasters slowly began to get impatient. "If any of the students accepted the letters within an hour of receiving it, wouldn't they all already be at the start of the path?" a blonde male in a dark grey suit asked the others, digging around in his pockets. "They should be in our view by now." He looked up to the other two female headmasters, blinking a pair of red and blue eyes once. Twice. Three times before looking to the path.

"Maybe they already died, y'know? They could've stepped at the wrong spot at the edge of the island, slipped into the water... got eaten by Thalasso knows what." The shortest headmaster licked her lips with anticipation, stopping to wince as her stomach growled beneath what looked like white pajamas - or a straight jacket.

The tallest and most out-of-place headmaster was a tall woman in a black Victorian dress. Chains on her arms seemed to appear and fade in and out of existence as she stood before the other two. From the back her arms were on her hips, but the two headmasters saw her arms crossed. "Oh hush, just wait a few more minutes before going out for the brats. They're supposed to socialize before entering because they won't get a lot of time to do so here, remember? Just get yourself together."

The shortest headmaster would shuffle around to face the path and ask, "Can I go get the students myself?"

"No," the others replied in unison.

"Aww. More waiting it is."

@RainbowFactory

Damon checked again and saw no one arrive. ...Fantastic he said out loud with painfully obvious annoyance. Wow this place is desolate Damon remarked before pretending to put his arm around someone's shoulder like an old friend Not a soul in sight huh pal? Oh wait...you can't talk, why? BECAUSE YOU'RE NOT REALLY HERE Damon remarked before falling on his back, his earplugs slipping out and falling on the ground. Oh to hell with it, someone comes and thinks the same thing? Not my fault. Damon thought before getting up. He turned his phone completely off, music and all and stuffed the thing in his jacket pocket. Facing the pathway off to who-knows-where land, Damon started walking. Looking around he saw nature for miles, but kept on the path as it was the only thing he could use to find his way as he had no idea where he was. I swear to god if you took a piece of paper seriously Michael... Damon's best guess was that this was all some insane joke, and that someone on the other side would pop out and say 'GOTCHA' at any given moment. Well...they better frickin' pay me for this if their gonna laugh.

@Blizz
The shortest Headhmaster would start getting tired of standing around, letting out a bored growl while rolling her head back. "It must of been an hour of waiting by now. Shouldn't they be here? What if none them accepted at all?" she would complain, angrily bumping into the tallest Headmaster's legs. "Do I get to go nowwww?"

The Headmaster would groan from annoyance then lightly kicked off the short one. The male said nothing, staring off into the distance, tracing the path with his eyes. However, the short Headmaster had a feeling she was still being watched by him.

"It's only been around ten minutes the last time you asked, but it's starting to get close to the time we were supposed to enter with the group. You might as well go after the children and if there are any, bring them back to the castle - alive." he finally told her.

"Really?!"

"Yes, really."

"Really really?"

"Go before I change his mind!" the tall one snapped.

The short one wasn't fazed by the woman's sudden anger, standing towards the edge of her feet while curving her upper half back. Over her abdomen were her arms strapped around her by clips and belts - definitely a straight jacket. The blonde Headmaster would sigh as the other next to him waved her hand towards the happy brunette. Her arms were suddenly free, clips and belts unlocked. The towering Headmaster didn't even reach down to unlock the other - did she?

Just as the short Headmaster was free she would speed out of their range, racing the path on all fours like a wild dog, her messy hair flapping in the wind. It was easy for her to travel down the path this way.

Only seconds after leaving the castle entrance, the Headmaster was leaping into a tree that halfway down the path. A lone child was walking there, occasionally talking to himself. She grinned and sped to another tree on the other side behind the child, purposely making loud noises to attempt scaring them towards the building.

Damon continued down a seemingly endless pathway to god knows where. Quietly singing lyrics to himself, bored out of his mind and just as confused. Far from the sun... Damon stopped and swore on his life that he saw something moving through the trees. He peered through them for a few minutes but saw nothing out of order, shrugging it off he continued walking. - Where no one knows...I've watched you from...my t- Damon froze and went silent, he saw something. He knew he saw something in the trees. He dropped his bag and turned to face the trees. Gone.

Damon did not move an inch, he did not utter a sound. He listened, he swore on death itself that something was over there. And then whatever he heard proved him right by making loud noises that nearly gave him a heart attack. WHAT IN THE- Damon, oh so brilliantly wise Damon did not run, when this thing could be a wild animal for all he knew but no, he turned around to look at what could have already been mauling him. He turned around and saw a fox-looking creature wearing a straightjacket in dire need of a haircut, all he did was slowly back up. What the hell are you? He said out loud, rooted in place, but ready to run if he had to

Ruth jolted her body awake by stretching and twisting different parts of her body after an aching boat ride of what the travel time felt like centuries passed.
Stepping off the vehicle, her slightly-widened eyes traveled around her to scan her surroundings, seeming to be too occupied to listen to the captain’s instructions of trailing nowhere but down a specific path.
As the girl heard the engine of the vehicle behind her kick up to operate, she turned over her shoulder and watched the boat accelerating further away from her sight, mentally wishing it a solemn farewell.

Head cautiously turning from left to right, the girl eventually found that she was alone; a sensation she grew quite numb to. Her sight was being engraved by nothing but lifeless trees and dark skies. At one moment, she pondered as to what exactly were their intentions of sending her to such a place.

Not that it was not okay.
This was far better than the place where she had come from.

With that thought in mind, Ruth simply shrugged her shoulders and proceeded down the only welcoming pathway that was present.
The place was deafeningly quiet and the only eerie sounds that could be heard were the soft treading of the sole of her shoe as they came in contact with the ground and her steady deep inhales of her nostrils. Looking back would be at the bottom list of one of the best ideas that Ruth, or anyone in particular, could do, so kept her gaze fixed right at the front.

Along the way, Ruth felt a spark of shock and ease in her chest when she trail of what seemed to be like a person’s outline not far away from where she stood. Years of feeling isolated, she wasn’t too certain of her ability to communicate with another individual, but a fact about the place where the both of them are standing on is that it’s particularly not even plotted anywhere in any geographical maps, and she’d need all the help her sanity can get on. And, just maybe, he’s one of the people who will be assisting her throughout. She had no choice but to gather her courage to speak up to him or her, be it an epic fail or not.

Just when her pace increased down the pathway, she was halted by another indescribable figure that appeared out of the sudden blues, making the poor girl gasp and freeze in horror. “What the-!” She silently cursed.

“What the hell are you?!” a voice echoed out loudly, quite sure directing at the creature. From this, Ruth was able to extract a few facts about the lad; from the tone of the voice, it’s a young man, and a lone clueless rabbit, just like her.

@Blizz@PokimKyOshi
The wolf-like Headmaster grinned as she scaled a tree, watching from on the top of a branch in a crouched position. It was barely getting started, and the lone boy was already regretting his decisions. They had a lot prepared for him in the future, might as well hype him up now. However, one of her ears twitched to ear the low talk of another person, a girl this time. The Headmaster would shift her head towards their direction to see the student not far from behind the boy. Now they're coming over, eh? Geez people, learn to follow directions and go to the castle entrance, the beast thought while rolling her eyes.

She inspected her surroundings to see if she can use anything else to drive the children towards the school. The trees. Most of the trees in that area were decaying or were already partially destroyed, so that can help. The Headmaster would leap around the branches, putting force onto them so they crashed down on the ground, and went to a large tree that was already tipping over. It was before both of the kids and should do some more effect.

With a quick leap to all fours, the small Headmaster got next to the tree, facing out towards the path. She took a few steps back, curling her fingers slightly, then rammed into the tree with full force. It was easy to tip as it creaked, crashing onto the pathway behind the children. As it fell the Headmaster quickly got into a tree to stay hidden. With a few more leaps in the shadows she ended up in the same tree that she first climbed into, waiting to see what the pair would do.

Near the front of the path the two Headmasters could hear the tree crashing down, only groaning as they knew that their smaller helper was being insane as usual. No wonder she was dressed like she escaped an asylum.

@RainbowFactory@PokimKyOshi@Blizz

Eyes wide, Kane gazed out over the water, watching as the boat that had brought him to the island departed. It had been a bit longer than expected, three and a half days rather than the apposed two, but it has been smooth sailing and he had slept nearly the entire time. While he wasn't afraid of swimming or drowning or anything like that, the soft lull of the boat made him rather sea sick. A wave of relief filled him as he looked down at the ground under his boots, a small hum of appreciation escaping him. He felt much more secure on land than on a boat!

"But those instructions sure are a tad bit vague." He muttered softly to himself as he spun on heel, making long strides along the edge of the trees before finding the path after a few long minutes. It really wasn't that hard to find, actually, but his attentions had been elsewhere- on the trees, the water, the soft crunch of earth under his boots. He'd been in forests before, on hiking trips and even camping during his school breaks with friends and their families. And after being cramped into that boat for three hand a half days he was honestly just grateful to be off of the boat with his feet on solid ground, ignoring the fact that these woods kind of gave him an unusual vibe of 'creepy'.

For good measure, Kane quickly went about rolling up the long sleeves of his shirt until they were just above his elbows, made sure his bag was all closed up securely and that the straps were secured correctly, and then made sure the ends of his old, torn up jeans were tucked carefully into his boots. His hair he knew was absolutely hopeless cause, but regardless he dug a hand into one of the pockets of his jacket and pulled out a few black bobby-pins, quickly using them to pin his hair away from his eyes. It worked for the most part but he gave it no more thought as he slowly started his way onto the path.

And what would have been a calm, simple walk suddenly became much more urgent before he even got to his third step. Though it echoed, he heard what sounded like a shout or something of the sort, just a short distance away, followed by the sound of creaking and the sound of crashing trees. Or what he assumed were trees, at the least. Normally you should stay away from things like that, avoid it if possible- but Kane knew he couldn't. Even with just the off-chance that someone else was over there, he couldn't ignore it, because if there was someone over there and they were hurt... he'd feel awful.

With the thoughts of others in mind, Kane pushed forward at a slightly faster pace.

"Hello?! Is anyone over there?" He yelled aloud, his usually quiet voice booming with the enclosure of the trees as he practically began to jog.

@Hazard Bits @RainbowFactory @PokimKYOshi

Ok um yeah NO. Damon practically yelled as the creature started to drop tree branches on the ground. He look behind him to see a girl on the path and yelled to her. RUN WHILE YOU CAN! THIS THING IS NOT OUR FRIEND One of the branches crash near him which was more than enough incentive for Damon to grab his bag, sling it over his shoulder and run for dear life down the path. The further he ran the more he wondered about the girl. Was she okay? Eventually Damon reached the end of the path and saw...a castle? To hell with it, it's safe from that thing I'm sure. Damon slowed down and looked around, the creature wasn't anywhere around. But then he noticed two people standing there, a man and a woman with her back to the pathway, her hands at her waist. Did they know about the thing behind him?

You all should probably run considering the wild mongrel back there! Damon yelled when he got close enough, though he decided to keep his distance, who knows what else could be amiss on this island?

Sickening chills ran down the girl's spine as her eyes trailed towards the creature's direction, watching it swiftly pouncing and forcefully ramming itself onto trees for them to come crashing down. The ground shook vigorously as a response, resulting Ruth to cautiously hunch down to the ground and back away, even if no trees were landing near nor towards her. Well, to be on the safe side.

"RUN WHILE YOU STILL CAN! THIS THING IS NOT OUR FRIEND!" She heard the same voice yell out and a few seconds later, his trace completely disappeared from sight along with the halt of the falling trees. "No. Wait!" She called out as loud as she could at him, but unfortunately no response came back to her. "Oh, how wonderful. Her thoughts trailed. With a heavy sigh, the lone girl hoisted herself up from the ground and dusted away the dirt and hopelessness from herself.

Swinging her bag over her shoulder, she looks up on what was left of the path and had noticed the trees had blocked all available openings but one. Perhaps that 'thing' had actually been assisting them? The boy couldn't have possibly gone anywhere else but down there.
But there was still uncertainty swarming around in Ruth's chest and her mind was jumbled in thoughts. Why would something like that creature HELP? Will this path even be safe? Because the thought of being gobbled up alive in this situation really isn't that hard to imagine. But one thing that the girl can't do now is turn back, ultimately leaving her no more available choices left but to follow that road.

Ruth made a sharp inhale and shook her head lightly, but just before she could journey on, another loud yell and quick pattering of footsteps can be heard clearly just behind her.
"Hello? Is anyone over there?!"
The concern-tainted voice made her face light up with joy and relief to have finally found somebody - a fellow human being, at this rate, still alive and safe. And from the looks of it, they could be, what those old people call it, two same peas in a pod. In the same trick of trouble.
"U-Uhh! Right here!" The girl gave in all of her audibility in hope that her subtle voice can at least reach an ear.

@Hazard Bits@PokimKyOshi
The little monster laughed to herself as she watched one of the children, a boy, run towards the castle's entrance. Just as planned. However, the girl behind him was still standing. She was trying to call for the other student but he was running away too fast. Ironic. The Headmaster usually sees the more masculine trying to assist the damsels in distress, but the boy was just giving up on the situation entirely. Hopefully the other two Headmasters would greet him though. He might be going on about her chasing them around but it's not like the pair would be surprised.

She would turn back to the other girl then heard another voice, a second male. He was behind the tree on the first half of the pathway, seeing him in the distance while the girl was on the other side of the tree. Oh, yup, that's great. Totally great, she sarcastically thought to herself while pouncing around the trees to be at the border created between the two students. So I have to make him climb over the tree and run with the girl now, don't I? They would let out a sigh then continue going further down the path, claws slowly extending for her "attack".

When the Headmaster got far enough in the trees behind the other student, she crouched down on another branch and waited for the remaining children to interact. Maybe talk about the tree between them, what's going on, try helping the boy over the tree... Whatever they were going to talk, she was going to let them do so before she tried to chase them down. Hopefully they don't try to attack her or she'll have to call the "others" for assistance.

---

@Blizz
As the boy ran towards the two Headmasters, the blonde shorter one nudged the taller one to get her attention. She only turned her head towards his direction while the suited Headmaster turned entirely. He blinked a few times in silence before repeated the boy's statement. "Wild mongrel?"

The grey-skinned one would lean down to the Headmaster and whisper, "He means Despair," before standing straight again. He would do a surprised expression of realization before looking back down to the boy.

"Oh, Despair! Right, right. She actually purposely got you here. I'm guessing you're the first with a few others still on the path if she's not- well, chasing after you. And there's much worse than her for you all to learn from," he would tell the boy.

The Headmaster crossed his arms and turned his body back towards the other one present. "Now, we're the Headmasters that will be assisting you around the school. We're only the two here at the moment. The one you called a 'wild mongrel' is the third, Despair, as I said before. We'll explain the rest of the details when she returns."

@RainbowFactory@PokimKyOshi@Blizz

"RUN WHILE YOU CAN! THIS THING IS NOT OUR FRIEND!"

Unfortunately, much despite the warnings and all the yelling, Kane did not feel deterred in the slightest. Of course the thought of 'stop, turn around, and go back to the water' popped into his mind but it was quickly pushed aside for other more important things. Like, there were two people over there and the fact that they seemed to be okay, from what he could tell. One of the voices was moving away, but as he got closer and the tree blocking the pathway came into better view, a more feminine voice spoke. It was softer and a bit harder to hear, but he sure caught it.

"U-Uhh! Right here!"

Bits of relief flooded Kane, she didn't sound hurt, at the least! This small, simple fact inspired him though. From a simple jog forwards he promptly burst into a full out run directly towards the fallen tree in his way. Years of hiking and playing in the woods had clearly prepared him for moments like this, especially as he got closer and closer to the tree. Once he was within a few feet of the tree he jumped. While it was not an overly impressive jump for someone of his size, it was just enough to get him to a good spot on the tree trunk to easily climb over. His fingers dug into the rough bark and his boots easily caught secure places as well, pushing himself upwards was a small strain but he only made a small grunting sound- far too focused on the task at hand to give anything else much mind.

"Hold on, just gimme a- just a minute!"

One swift movement after the other he continued upwards at a rather rapid pace, taking only a mere few minutes to scale. And most of that was just because of the bark, it dug into his hands and stung where he had been grabbing, so he had to be a bit more careful to not accidentally slip and get any of it stuck in his hands. Having it happen once was definitely enough for him to learn that lesson, digging splinters out from under your nails was by far one of the more gruesome things he could recall ever happening while camping.

"So, uh." Kane started after he finally pulled himself into a sitting position atop the fallen tree, he gazed downwards with a wide eyed gaze. His eyes easily fell upon the girl that he had heard, or at least the person he thought he had heard. He was breathing just a bit heavily, obviously from the running and then the rapid climb. "You... okay? Where'd the other guy go? At least, I think it was a guy?" His voice was laced with some confusion and relief as he stared down at her, not yet having climbed down or anything. Getting down would be the easier part of this whole thing, really. But sitting up here, he really felt like even more of a giant than he already was! She was just so short compared to himself. Not that it was an uncommon thing for him, he towered over many adults and people his own age rarely brought themselves anywhere near his chin.

Ruth paced closer towards the eerie yell out of sheer bliss and curiosity, only to find one of the fallen trees barricading in between where they stood. "Crap, really?" Her arms flopped up lazily and back down to her sides, practically whining to no one but to her own ego for having to expecting good results for once, because it hasn't even been half of her journey, she can already feel the aching throbs of her head from the continuous pilling up of confusion and questions. Now how on earth will she be able to reach out?

"Hold on, just give me a- just a minute!"
Shortly, soft grunting and the sounds of cracking twigs followed. The slight shaking of the giant log served as a signal for the girl to take a small steps backwards.
A few quiet minutes passed, and a head eventually popped up from the top of the log. He proceeded to hoist his own body up and lounged upon the fallen tree to rest - probably from all that climbing.
Gazing upwards at him, Ruth shifted her head slightly to take a better look at him, his hair seemed to be all over the place and his head was bent down, until he finally regained strength to at least make eye contacts with her. "So, uh," Ruth watched him as his eyes grew wide once he glanced down at where she stood. This caused the girl to flinch. Quite an awkward gesture for meeting someone for the first time.

"You... okay? Where did the other guy go? At least, I think it was a guy?" He spoke through slow heavy breathing, but had a twist of concern, Ruth could tell. This was proof enough that he was easy to respond to, thank heavens. "Oh, yeah, I'm- I'm okay. And uhh... him." Ruth turned over to her shoulder to glace back at the open path way, done and welcomed by the fallen trees. A.K.A, down to where he had left her for. She sucked in her cheeks before turning back to the young man, still seated upon the tree. "Hopefully still safe." With uncertainly tangled around her voice.

Ruth looked at him for a few more seconds before breaking the ice. "I.. think it'd be best if you get down from there quickly. Don't we still need to head somewhere?" She gave a soft chuckle at him before turning around to start pacing down the pathway. "I'm Ruth, by the way. It's nice to meet you." She introduced as she stride. She appeared calm, but internally, she was screaming at were on earth was she picking up all the sudden confidence to speak up like that? So covered up her panic by walking faster down the path to quickly reach their destination.

Not that far away from where she had first encountered the boy, she finally seemed to have reached the end of the road, since there was no more fallen trees in sight - just a wide open space and in where a dark, colossal castle-like structure stood at the center. This was where Ruth gradually decreased her walking pace into slow ambling, scanning the place that started to build up a feeling of fright inside of her.
Just then, her eyes trailed down at the center of the place in where a giant gate was open. Standing just at the middle of it, she could see three figures, and in relief, one of them was the first boy she saw earlier. The three of them conversed away, but Ruth couldn't hold in her horror when she eventually took a proper glimpse of who he was talking to. To say the least, they undoubtedly differed from the term 'Human'. And if not mistaken, one of them had wings!

When Ruth got close enough, she came into an alarming halt, fear-paralyzed hand frantically searching for her companion's support. Her instincts were practically scolding her to the edge of her mind to turn back. But that the other problem, turn back to where now?

@Hazard Bits @Blizz @RainbowFactory
Ruth paced closer towards the eerie yell out of sheer bliss and curiosity, only to find one of the fallen trees barricading in between where they stood. "Crap, really?" Her arms flopped up lazily and back down to her sides, practically whining to no one but to her own ego for having to expecting good results for once, because it hasn't even been half of her journey, she can already feel the aching throbs of her head from the continuous pilling up of confusion and questions. Now how on earth will she be able to reach out?

"Hold on, just give me a- just a minute!"
Shortly, soft grunting and the sounds of cracking twigs followed. The slight shaking of the giant log served as a signal for the girl to take a small steps backwards.
A few quiet minutes passed, and a head eventually popped up from the top of the log. He proceeded to hoist his own body up and lounged upon the fallen tree to rest - probably from all that climbing.
Gazing upwards at him, Ruth shifted her head slightly to take a better look at him, his hair seemed to be all over the place and his head was bent down, until he finally regained strength to at least make eye contacts with her. "So, uh," Ruth watched him as his eyes grew wide once he glanced down at where she stood. This caused the girl to flinch. Quite an awkward gesture for meeting someone for the first time.

"You... okay? Where did the other guy go? At least, I think it was a guy?" He spoke through slow heavy breathing, but had a twist of concern, Ruth could tell. This was proof enough that he was easy to respond to, thank heavens. "Oh, yeah, I'm- I'm okay. And uhh... him." Ruth turned over to her shoulder to glace back at the open path way, done and welcomed by the fallen trees. A.K.A, down to where he had left her for. She sucked in her cheeks before turning back to the young man, still seated upon the log. "Hopefully still safe." With uncertainly tangled around her voice.

Ruth looked at him for a few more seconds before breaking the ice. "I.. think it'd be best if you get down from there quickly. Don't we still need to head somewhere?" She gave a soft chuckle at him before turning around to start pacing down the pathway. "I'm Ruth, by the way. It's nice to meet you." She introduced as she stride. She appeared calm, but internally, she was screaming at were on earth was she picking up all the sudden confidence to speak up like that? So covered up her panic by walking faster down the path to quickly reach their destination.

Not that far away from where she had first encountered the boy, she finally seemed to have reached the end of the road, since there was no more fallen trees in sight - just a wide open space and in where a dark, colossal castle-like structure stood at the center. This was where Ruth gradually decreased her walking pace into slow ambling, scanning the place that started to build up a feeling of fright inside of her.
Just then, her eyes trailed down at the center of the place in where a giant gate was open. Standing just at the middle of it, she could see three figures, and in relief, one of them was the first boy she saw earlier. The three of them conversed away, but Ruth couldn't hold in her horror when she eventually took a proper glimpse of who he was talking to. To say the least, they undoubtedly differed from the term 'Human'. And if not mistaken, one of them had wings!

When Ruth got close enough, she came into an alarming halt, fear-paralyzed hand frantically searching for her companion's support. Her instincts were practically scolding her to the edge of her mind to turn back. But that is the other problem, turn back now to where?

@RainbowFactory@Hazard Bits@PokimKyOshi

When the shorter of the two headmasters gave the best "explanation" Damon was clearly going to get currently, he wasn't any less flabbergasted as he was upon his arrival. Now just hold on for a moment, "school"? If I had known people could be forced into an education on an island in the middle of god knows where, I'd be homeschooled. Your friend back there could have killed someone and you call this a school? Damon paused for a moment. What's next? A crash course in surviving burning tree branches falling from the sky? A quiz on how to be confused? He decided to stop there and wait it out, the man said he'd give a better explanation when more people arrive so Damon would give him until then. So when's "What the hell is this hellish hell?" period? Somewhere in between "Oh dear god we're dead!" and "Save us please!" period?

@Blizz@PokimKyOshi@RainbowFactory

Catching the way the girl flinched at first, Kane felt the smallest twinge of guilt, as if he had personally done something to her to make her do that. But it quickly dawned on him that he really hadn't done anything to cause such a thing, at least he didn't think he had. Mentally shrugging it off he felt a bit of relief upon learning that the other person a guy, wasn't hurt either. Though it was a bit concerning how he had bolted off like that, did the guy never watch a single horror movie? People tend to die when they run off on their own like that! But, this wasn't a horror movie and it sure wasn't scripted. If someone was scared, they were bound to run if they were able and there was a place to run. Having played tag in the woods before, during the day and night respectively, he could understand. It was frightening.

In fact, this whole place was kind of terrifying, the more thought he gave it.

Just a few moments after she suggested that he get down and that they still had somewhere to be, he could only find it in himself to nod his head and make a small noise in agreement. With a quick twist of his body and some careful hand and foot placement, it took Kane a mere few seconds to get down the side of the fallen tree. He dusted his hands off on his pants and quickly caught up with her, the distance relatively short compared to his naturally longer strides.

"I'm Ruth, by the way. It's nice to meet you."

"Kane. Likewise to you." He replied in turn, but otherwise remained quiet as he followed beside her in a strange comfort of having another person near. His attention span seemed to have died out entirely, at least until Ruth slowed her pace and then stopped entirely. His attention had been, well, elsewhere. At his feet, looking at his boots as they walked, how red parts of his hands were from grabbing the rough bark of the massive tree trunk he had to climb over. He probably should have been looking up, it was almost troubling how he fell right back into old habits the moment someone else was nearby. Kane stilled just a few inches behind Ruth as his eyes went wide for several seconds, the rest of his face painfully blank as he stared, desperately trying to comprehend what he was seeing. Dark castle-like structure and three figures- two of completely questionable origin and one that seemed human for the most part. He honestly wouldn't be able to tell until they got closer, his glasses were in his backpack and reaching for them seemed stupid right now. He couldn't even fight the horrendous shiver that ran down his spine the longer he stared, seemingly stuck in place from fight.

But after a few moments longer, Kane clenched his jaw and forced one booted foot out in front of the other. One step turned into two, and two steps turned into three, rigid looking with the motions. He was so stiff it probably looked a bit painful. But he didn't get any farther than that before turning his head just enough to look at Ruth from the corner of his eyes "C-come on. T-the guy that ran off, I think, uh... Is, over there, b-by himself? With them." Kane managed out after he stopped clenching his jaw, his voice shook only slightly, completely betraying the confusion and terror he was feeling at the moment. Because really, that was the only thing that was allowing him to move right now. The fact that he was quite sure the guy that ran off was over there with those strange people. People was a strong word, really. But he was over there and in a sense, alone. It didn't matter if he didn't know the guys name or the fact that he was obviously standing and talking with some less than human people, it was sort of horrible he was over there on his own. More than a little horrible, actually. It was just more than a little horrifying to Kane himself.

"He shouldn't be."

So, with one sharp breath, Kane pulled his gaze away from Ruth and slowly began to walk forward once again. But this time his figure was less rigid and seeming much more natural in his movements and less forced, once again spurred onwards towards potential danger.

@Hazard Bits@Blizz@PokimKyOshi
Despair, the Headmaster that was apparently sent out there, watched from her hiding spot as the boy behind the tree climbed over the large bark, talking with the girl about what was going on. Her ears twitched and swerved around, trying to find the right position to listen in on the conversation. It was faint but clear enough for her to know that they were introducing themselves to each other and continuing on. Good, I don't have to chase them down and call 'them' for assistance, the little one rejoiced in her head. It would have been fun for her to scream and run after them like an insane murderer in the forest, but she had to keep them alive for the school. Dying of a heart attack was the least of their worries.

As they advanced down the pathway, Despair leaped forward through the treetops to follow after them, keeping track of their movements and conversation until they stopped near the entrance. The first child that ran earlier was talking to the Headmasters. Perfect timing. She just heard them mention her, too.

With a giant leap towards the castle entrance, she landed on all fours in between the two taller Headmasters. "Sup kid," she casually said to the one waiting near the three while rising to her feet. On closer inspection, it was clear that she seemed to be some sort of hybrid. Calling her a 'wild mongrel' was an understatement. The boy being the closest one to them - however, he was still keeping his distance, which was probably a good idea - had the best point of view on her. She was more beast than the other two Headmasters. Wolf ears that were blended in her hair were swerved towards the three children; the front of her mouth having no skin for cover as it was shaped like a snout; and had a fluffy tail happily wagging around as she stood on her hind legs, her hands curved downwards towards each other like a dog on its back legs. Despair had no shoes due to the fact that her bottom half seemed more animal, especially the extended dog feet blatantly showing.

However, the two Headmasters didn't care for her appearance. For all the students knew, they could be much worse than the little one, just more formally dressed for a first impression. They certainly didn't look human, but at least they looked more human than Despair.

"Now that Despair is here, we'll introduce ourselves now. We apologize for the little one attempting to chase you all to the school, but remember - there's much worse for you all that awaits both inside the school and within the forest. So, skipping to our names, our official names are The Trickster-"

"-and The Judge-"

"And we are the Headmasters that will be guiding you throughout the school. Do not be afraid of our current appearances because that is the least of your worries. Come inside. We'd like to check you all in so we know who we're dealing with. Trickster would wave a hand towards the door, barely touching it with her fingertips as it swung open, the gust of cold air coming through. Despair would ran inside, wobbling on her hind legs, and waited at the beginning of the hallway for the children to enter and follow her.

@PokimKyOshi@Hazard Bits@RainbowFactory

Damon was about to walk away when "Despair" leaped out of what seemed to be nowhere as it it was a normal situation. Uh, yeah hi...Um, sorry about calling you a mongrel, I didn't realize you were, whatever you are... Damon tried to apologize as best he could, how was we supposed to know that they were anything more than a wild animal? If this wasn't the worst of his worries, Damon may as well have brought popcorn. Okay, I'm listening to reason, whatever you're doing, do it. Damon said as the one calling themselves "Trickster" led him and the other children into the building. Damon stepped through the doors with a burst of cold wind that just seemed more welcoming to him, Damon quite liked a cold breeze. He went off to the side and leaned against the wall, waiting for the three spook twins to do their thing. Damon looked on the ground and saw a spider crawling across the floor a few inches away from his shoe, it looked like a Black Widow, he just watched as it scurried around. It didn't make him flinch or anything but he just watched it.

@Blizz @RainbowFactory @Hazard Bits

Ruth felt the edge of her shaking fingers brush against the cloth of Kane’s shirt. She turned to him, wide eyes portraying a mix of horror and disbelief. Kane had utter confusion painted on his face. He stayed in the same position, silently processing exactly what his eyes had just caught sight of.

He was momentarily petrified, but decided that it would do little to no good being glued in the same spot forever. "C-come on. T-the guy that ran off, I think, uh... Is, over there, b-by himself? With them." He stuttered as he paced forward, oddly looking calm.
Ruth bit her bottom lip and with no other possible choices left, painfully agreed to his notion as she cautiously followed him, taking small steps at a time. Ruth’s pace decreased as they got closer to the circle of 'aliens', the only sole thing she could think of calling them for now, and fellow ‘being’ and as the dark castle-like structure was only a few steps away. And out of the blues, a cat-like creature pounced in the circle and greets the boy that she first saw. Ruth gazes at the creature, more than certain that it was the same creature she had encountered earlier with the fault of pushing down the trees. Though she still had yet to uncover if it was a friend or a foe – practically all 3 of them now.

As they introduced themselves, every information they spilled just made Ruth’s urge to run away bigger.
She’d expect this place to be anything but a school. And having to be warned that their appearance should be the least of their worries made her heart sink down to her stomach. Albeit so, she couldn’t help but feel excitement quietly rising up her spine.
The doors finally opened and the cat-like creature was the first to rush inside with everyone just on her tail. Ruth took a deep breath and turned to Kane. “Welp. Let’s go?” with a hysterical smile that followed as she nervously ambled through the opened doors.

@PokimKyOshi@Blizz@RainbowFactory

Kane was utterly quiet while the three 'Headmasters' spoke. He definitely didn't miss the whole 'our current appearances', especially how that those should be the least of their worries. He gave a small nod to the guy who they'd been looking for and had full plans to keep quiet, until Ruth spoke again. It caused that blank face he had put up to crack as he frowned, letting out a soft, nearly non-existent sigh. He managed to get a small smile back onto his face though as he stared at her, just unable to help himself. "Don't forget to breathe, okay?" He muttered to her quietly, reaching over to give her a small pat on the shoulder before growing quiet once again as his gaze returned towards the three Headmasters, stuffing his hands into his pockets with well practiced ease.

If these Headmasters weren't to be the worst of their concerns, it bothered him a small bit at what else they'd have to be dealing with. They still had to check in and he honestly wondered how it could get any worse than what he'd already seen. He expected more people, too. There were only three of them at the moment and that was worrisome-ish. Did they not make it or was this whole thing just that selective? Well, whatever.

As he stepped inside, Kane flinched slightly as he turned around quickly to look back outside.