"Eh?" Lyra's ears perked up, and then she looked down at the strings of her violin. Some of them were still pulsing, but not like the sound left after they're plucked and left as is, more like they're still being played, quietly, by invisible bow. Immediately after she noticed this oddity, it stopped, and the air was again quiet.

"Oh, I didn't know it can do that. Well, it shouldn't. Nothing was touching it." Lyra said. "Or, did I do that? Hmm."

There were so many things about these elements that were unknown to her. Her mentor from back in her hometown, who had taught her a thing or two about the elements in secret. Wind, he had said, is an invisible force. It's always around you, even if you can't see it. A wind elementalist can make this invisible force do things that you wouldn't normally expect.

She was woolgathering in her mind. Lyra turned her attention back to the girl. "Mmm, oh yes! This is also my first day here. My name's Lyra. I'm a wind elemental." She offered her hand to shake. "Well, I don't really have anything else to do today. I can explore with you, if you don't mind me."

@Raptra

Kanako expected the boy to either become angry or flustered at her accusation. She certainly didn't expect this ending up being the result. Now the boy had the galls to take a strand of her hair and pull it across her cheek. And when she tried to turn her head away, he turned it back by force. Then, he even gave her his camera to hold and he began to draw again.

"w-w-w-w-what are you doing?" she asked him, her voice terribly flustered. She wasn't used to a boy being this close to her. Her heart was beating rapidly and she felt like it was going to come out of her chest anytime soon.

The final nail in the coffin however was when she heard him saying the word "pretty". She simply couldn't handle the embarrassment anymore so she reacted the only way she could, that is, slapping him right on his cheeks, pushing his camera back into his hands, and saying, "Y-y-y-you pervert!" before storming off with a beet red face.
@Regitnui

@Lord Orgasmo@Stern Algorithm@Aquanthe@KRAZY J@Aiyanna





Kanos pace through the halls had been leisurely, his attitude had broken from his usual seriousness and was replaced with that giddy feeling that always took root as the next batch of young minds cycled through the doors of this grand establishment.
From thatched roofs and primitive beginnigs to now, a journey over the course of centuries, and the ancient being that roamed the halls had never lost that thrill of seeing new faces learn of the harmonious song resting in their heart and mind. Even the darkness of history could not damped Kanos ultimate joy as the first years began to wander this place of wonders.

A home to all. To the abandoned and feared, for the loved, for the dead, for everything but the shallow hatred of humanity. Yes.. for all his love, if the black seeds of corruoted hearts again sprouted in these sacred hallways again, Kano would do his duty.
Many blamed the corruption that the Darkness was said to bring but Kano had seen hatred fester in the hearts of every practitioner to grace this place. It was those who chose hatred over peace that had to be dealt with. They threatened harmony.
Dissolved the unsteady peace the world now shared with the communities of Elemental Practitioners.
To avoid the waste of human life.

Kano shook his head to dispel the unpleasant thoughts invading his mind amd focused again on the light reflecting off the waters outside the windows of the upper floors. Memories of happy times tutoring students near the lake fluttered through his mind as each step forward took him to a different time. Sometimes a few short years, others an entire lifetime. All of them brought a smile to his hooded face.

------------------

The door to the infirmary was already opened when he arrived, a singing student apoarently having wandered in before him and letting thr many other voiced echo into the hallway where his natural worry played part and warned him of a disaster that may have occured or an accident of some kind amongst the more aggressive students testing their mettle.
Kano stood in the door frame silently scanning the room for signs of injury amongst the gathered but blew a sigh of relief when reality struck. This must be the antisocial students who either feared the outdoors or simply wanted some quiet alonetime.
Yet the quiet ones always seemed to attract others..

Stepping fully into the room and closing the door, the students would feel his presence with a tingle up their spine. The feeling of something ancient. Living shadows crawled under his heavy robes and obscured his face even in the most well lit areas of the school. The only flesh visible was his left hand, the skin was pale white, borderline turning a very light shade of blue, and was gaunt.

"Ah, so many students crowding the infirmary this year!"

Kano beamed with joy that none were injured, advancing on the nurses desk. Every step brought the temperature in the room down further. When he finally stood next to Miss Stargazer, every exhale of breath was visible amid the cold.

"I'm terribly sorry to interrupt but I have suffered a mild injury I was hoping you could help me with. Another teacher and I were having an afternoon spar and well.."

Kano brough his right hand up, the long robe sleeve was moved back to reveal the stump where a hand should have been. The pristine white bone, jagged where the limb had been torn off rather than a clean cut, was clear for everyone to see. The withered skin around the injury hung in tatters but no blood flowed from the grey flesh.

"Do you think I'll make a full recovery, doctor?"

Kano kept track of every students initial expression to the ghastly sight, carefully studying how they handled the situation.

Zeke was left stunned for a good few moments, watching the girl go. The image of her hair against her cheek had dissolved when she slapped him, and now he had nothing. Except the speckled rock, but that somehow seemed less important. "Ow..." he complained, rubbing his cheek. It had been really pretty how she had gone red, and her hair stayed blue. Why'd she seem so mad? And what did she call him? His cheek hurt. He wandered off in a different direction, going downstairs. Maybe something out here would be as pretty and fun to paint.

He eventually stopped outside a greenhouse, and contented himself by painting and photographing the flowers. Maybe if he asked nicely, she'd do that again and he could finish drawing it. He could remember the right colours. The next flower he painted in those same shades, just to prove it, but he couldn't remember anything else. Turning away from the greenhouse and its distractions, he tried to draw her face. It ended up as a red blur, crowned by blue hair, the features marked only by different shadows on the red surface. It even seemed flat.

As he flopped down onto the springy grass, he watched the clouds go by and cast shadows on the ground. "People are weird," he mumbled.

Vera gave 'Lyra' a firm handshake, her eyes lighting up at the latter's offer to join her for the day. "Oh, I would love that! It's a pleasure to meet you, Lyra, I'm Vera."

She then turned her attention back to the violin, which had gone silent. "A Wind Elementalist, you say? It's highly possible that you might have been subconsciously doing that. There's still so much we don't know, but then again, it is our first day here. Maybe we could ask one of the nice teachers here about it."

Vera was glad to have made her first friend at the academy. It was always more enjoyable to start something new with other people rather than having to go through it by oneself. That was how she personally felt anyway. Lyra mentioned exploring around too, and Vera wondered if she meant within the school grounds or going out into the city. She also wondered if the city was new to her too, though, if Lyra would rather stay at the academy to learn more about the place or her own elemental abilities, Vera would gladly tag along for the company.

"So... do you want to stay here and discover what we can about the academy, or would like to grab a bite or something out in the city?" Vera asked, before letting out a short gasp as she remembered something she had forgotten to do before attending the assembly. "Oh right! If it's the second option, I'm going to need to find a currency exchange booth. I mean sure, I've got my credit card, but it's always safer to have some cash in hand. Can't assume every place in this city accepts payment by card."

@Pseudo Stygian

Just when things had seemed to have settled down, God himself decided to have a little laugh, apparently. Out of nowhere, Headmaster Kano Burts through the door like he was in some sort of flamboyant musical. Stepping up to her, he revealed that his hand had been cut off in a sparring accident.

"Do you think I'll make a full recovery doctor?"

Monica simply rolled her eyes. "You know full well that you'll be fine. This is the fourth time this has happened. I'm begging to suspect these aren't accidents anymore. Besides, you don't have any blood. I can't do anything to help you without it." She waved her hand over his stump, and nothing happened, demonstrating that he really didn't have any blood in his arm.

The train had just arrived as Maelyne reached the underground station. As expected, it was crowded with eager students seeking to explore the city on their first day at the academy. There were also some citizens that weren't students, but they were so few in number Maelyne had paid no heed to them. She waited for the current riders to disembark before boarding, and once Maelyne was on, she glanced at one of the various clocks on the tram. It had been only a few minutes since her departure from the restaurant, which was great for the food Maelyne carried in her lap. She hoped that the tram wouldn't take long in order to make sure the food was still warm by the time it reached Priscilla, and by the time that had passed, it seemed her hopes were fulfilled.

Upon her return to the academy, it was bustling with activity as usual. Students and teachers were flocking about the school, the students doubtlessly exploring and the teachers answering questions or scolding mischievous children. Maelyne took a look around and figured her sister must be somewhere quieter within the school, and so she went on to explore the hallways. The further Maelyne went into the academy, the less noise could be heard echoing throughout the halls. Eventually, she stumbled on a door that signified the infirmary and Miss Stargazer's office. Believing that might be where Priscilla would be, Maelyne began to approach the door only to be stopped by the sudden appearance of a ghastly man. She stopped in her tracks for a minor moment, almost certain that the man was a ghost. Those few seconds had felt like an eternity before Maelyne had remembered that the school was a magic academy. Assuring herself that it must be a magical creature, Maelyne stepped towards the door and placed her hand on the door knob.





One by one, the office kept receiving new visitors. At first, it was simply Miss Stargazer and Priscilla, but then the red-haired student had arrived. Following that, his friend, a timid girl, and then another girl, whom had set a strand of her hair aflame on accident. The growing crowd was more than enough for Priscilla to handle, and she shrunk back beneath her book despite the friendly greetings from the other students. The bookworm wanted out of the office, but every attempt Priscilla made towards the door, another person would appear. This time a pale, ghastly man entered Miss Stargazer's office. He had the air of a teacher, but the man had hardly seemed human.

The fact that there was no blood when he revealed his hand assured Priscilla that he couldn't be human, or at least, not anymore. His skin hung like tattered cloth, and in all, the wound was a creepy and gruesome sight, excluding the lack of blood. Priscilla certainly didn't find anything humorous in his words when Kano called the injury mild. A missing hand was hardly a mild injury. Still, regardless of how mild the injury was, Priscilla was perplexed about the man. She was ultimately curious, and a sparkle of a want to learn flashed in her multicolored eyes. As Miss Stargazer demonstrated Kano's lack of blood, Priscilla was filled with a number of questions, but a quick glance to her surroundings made her return to her reclusive nature.

---

Dia sat beside of one of the greenhouses, staring intently at the wall.

It's so odd. Not like ice, but not unlike ice. The warped texture makes it seem like it should be rough, but it's smooth to the touch. Hard to believe it's origins is sand. Papa always said an Earth and Fire elementalists could combine their talents to create class. But to see it like this? It really drives the point home. This glass is so different than normal. Rough, yet smooth. Dull, yet clear. Colorless, yet I see a tinge of green.

A flash of light cut through her thoughts, causing her to look around the corner.

She gasped, slapping a hand to her mouth, before ducking around the corner.

"I thought I was alone out here," she muttered to herself. She peaked back around the corner, and she fully took in the details this time.

Such beautiful paintings. With light? It flows flawlessly, though I can't make anything out. Is it flat? Or am I not seeing it properly? I can't imagine such things. There's no system to it, no solidity I can trace. I don't understand it.

@Regitnui

Jideh Basrah had arrived. It had taken him several hours to make his way to the Academy but the travel time was well worth the wait. The grounds were magnificent, awe-inspiring, and generally exciting to him. Lugging his bags anxiously towards a collection of buildings that Jideh guessed were the main part of the campus, he stopped in his tracks.

"A greenhouse?" Jideh asked, to nobody in particular.

Jideh dropped his luggage (a suitcase, backpack, and duffel bag) and made his way into the impressively large building. There was no lock on the door, and as he stepped into the moist warm microclimate, a thrill ran down his spine. The variety of plants that jumped out at him was staggering, and without further hesitation, Jideh set to cataloguing each specimen in his head. Here, there grew a Red Ginger plant, and there grew a Durban. He spotted all sorts of climbing vines and mosses on the walls, and as Jideh creeped along, he began nursing several of the wilting plants. A spurt of energy, nothing more, just to give them a spring in their leaves. A well-practiced hand dug into his pocket and pulled out an granola bar, which he crunched on noisily. As a child he despised granola, but ever since hunger had become a constant companion, his distaste had faded considerably. Especially given the high caloric content which he could take advantage of, when stuffing dozens of granola bars in his pockets on long trips.

Jideh's plant-growing, granola-eating, sprightly stroll through the greenhouse was interrupted when he spotted a figure through the mossy growths in the wall. Somebody else! Jideh would normally have ignored this person and continued about his business but this was a special occasion. He was at the Academy now! This person could be a teacher, maybe even the Headmaster! He'd heard so many rumours about Kano, as he was called, and frankly Jideh was terribly curious. Thus Jideh crept along the path and left through another door. He spotted a white-haired boy who seemed to shine very brightly. He was drawing with the light, pulling sunbeams out of the air! A Light elementalist, Jideh realized. As the boy flopped onto the grass and stared up at the sky, Jideh heard his remark about people.

"Well, as far as people go, I'm as weird as they come!" Jideh exclaimed, walking right up to the boy from behind, staring at his inverted features. "I'm Jideh Basra, and I like what you were doing with that light show over here. Can you show me more?" As Jideh ate his granola, a few crumbs fell to land on and around the boy's face. Inwardly, Jideh was shaking with laughter. He tried to maintain a straight face and gauge the boy's response and reaction.

@Regitnui

"Hmm. I'm not sure." Lyra looked at her surroundings, her eyes involuntary darting all over the place. There was the beautifully-built central building, but she had an odd feeling that she'd rather be outside than wandering in there again. Behind them, the hill sloped down and you could see the city sprawling underneath. It'll be quite a distance if they want to go there.

A thought occured very suddenly to her. Wind elementalist can generally fly, right?

Well, yes. But I don't think you should be doing that now, she could imagine her mentor from back then saying it. Who was it in your family who's a physicist? Your grandmother? She must've told you about how plane works, right? It's not something you can grasp in a day. But imagine if she could fly right now. Jumping off this ledge (and landing safely) would be the fastest way to town.

There was a little sound, a little tune, coming from her violin. The moment she noticed, it stopped.

"Ah, sorry if I space out there," Lyra said, remembering her new friend. Vera was waiting for her. "I was thinking of, hmm, flying. I wonder if-"

Lyra's eyes opened wide, as they caught someone up in the sky. Someone. Definitely a person, a teacher perhaps, hovering quite a way up in the sky. "Ah!" she gasped. "Who do you think that is?"

@Stern Algorithm @Raptra

Dia sunk further back around the corner as another boy appeared. A very noticeable chill began to seep from her.

That was the problem with young elementalists. It was too easy to get hurt.

And if they get hurt, I can't do anything. I don't know enough. The patterns of muscle memory of ingrained knowledge doesn't exist. I don't know what the new one does. Light, at least, is less likely to have an accident early on. Greenhouse.... So, is the new one an Earth? Most likely... Unless he's a Unique, like myself. So many variables to the pattern. I don't have enough information. Should I get involved? Talk? No. No. No. Can't do that. Too few patterns. Not enough structure.

She let out a little involuntary noise as her anxiety climbed, and she began seriously considering running away from the scene.

"Ppth." Zeke blew, trying to push the crumbs off his face. "That's not nice!" He said, sitting up and brushing his shirt. He hadn't noticed this person until they'd come up next to him either. Or, in his case, leaned over and spat crumbs on him. "You're rude and that stuff is crumbly."

Finally, he heard the boy snickering. "It's not funny. You know what you look like?" Zeke started drawing a bad drawing of the boy's face. "You look silly. Like that." He had paid extra attention to the crumbs and expression, and he added one of the funny looking chocolates the other boy held.

He had said his name, hadn't he? Just like the girl earlier, and he couldn't remember her name either, just the blue hair. Maybe he was trying to be friendly. Maybe Zeke should introduce himself too. He would be able to remember the yellow eyes. "I'm Zeke. I think your name is Yellow."

@Old Amsterdam@Kalleth

Jideh watched with great amusement as the boy drew a caricature of him that was impressive both in its accuracy, and its purposeful exaggeration. He nodded approvingly and took a seat on the ground next to the boy. He reached into his pocket and drew out another granola bar.

"Hi Zeke, and sure, you can call me Yellow. Thanks for being a good sport, I bug everybody. The people who can take the bugging, and even dish out as good as they get, well those are the kinds of people I like to call my friends. So what do you say?" Jideh held out a new granola bar, both as a gesture of goodwill and to shake Zeke's hand.

"By the way, your abilities are super cool. Would you like to see what I can do?"

@Regitnui @Old Amsterdam

Dia peaked around the corner again, thoroughly confused at the situation she was observing.

Did... Did they just Bond over insults and rudeness? she wondered to herself. Boys are weird.

That conundrum was eating at her now. Becoming impulsive, she stepped around the corner tentatively.

Drawing closer, ever so slowly, the picture came into view. Distorted, mocking, it held a twisted kind of structure to its design.

"Errr..." She muttered. "I-i-I'm terribly sorry to intrude. But..." She faltered, losing the brief confidence she'd gained. She froze, still several feet away from the duo.

What the hell was I thinking?

@Regitnui@Kalleth

Hailee Dormin

Hailee Dormin raced up the stairs into the academy, sprinted past offices and doors and classrooms, finally arriving at the Headmaster's office. She paused there, straightening her skirt and fixing her hair. Then, she knocked on the closed door 3 times. No reply. "Heloooooo," she called experimentally. Then, she looked through the glass insert in the door. Nobody was there.
Hailee began slowly retracing her steps, past the offices and doors and class rooms, looking at the floor when suddenly, she ran into a tall man, who was most likely a teacher. Hailee took a couple hasty steps back. "I'm so sorry, sir! I didn't mean to run into you," she said. "I'm Hailee Dormin. I was looking for Headmaster Hargor. Do you know where he is? I'm late."

@Raptra

@Lord Orgasmo@Stern Algorithm@Aquanthe@KRAZY J@Aiyanna





"You know full well that you'll be fine. This is the fourth time this has happened. I'm begging to suspect these aren't accidents anymore. Besides, you don't have any blood. I can't do anything to help you without it."

The statement was true enough. The Headmaster had ceased being human when the Academy was still in its infancy, an estimation of time even he could not rightly fathom. At the present time his body was more akin to a living body of water he could reshape at will. Further mastery over his new form allowed for further detail until eventually he seemed to just resemble someone who had been dead for a year or so but not quite turned to a skeleton. The shadows writhed across his form unpleasantly in an attempt to remind him of his duality.
Ever at odds with even himself..

"Yes, well, apologies for attempting a bit of surprise for their benefit."

By that he meant the students who would likely never have seen such a thing. Kano was one of five capable of being more than they were. The price for power however had been steep indeed. Kano caught the girl laying in the bed staring at his hand and guessed by her lack of mortification that it was more intriguing than anything else. Turning just a bit so she could see his outstretched hand, Kano made sure Priscilla was watching when it happened.
The jutting piece of bone sticking out of his wrist bloated for a moment as some unseen force took hold of it, the tattered 'flesh' hanging from him ceased to look as such and flowed back onto his outstretched arm. Normally it would have been a quick fix for something as mild as losing a hand but the opportunity to display his curse and blessing was not often. Slow and steadily a pocket of liquid swelled at about the wrist until it expanded, steadily taking the shape of a human hand. Like the rest of Kano it was a gaunt and withered thing to look at.

Returning his attention to Miss Stargazer he began again.

"Apologies for the interruption. As founder and Headmaster of the Academy it is my duty to oversee students and staff equally, so I thought it prudent to welcome you back personally for yet another hopefully exciting year on school grounds." Kano bowed respectfully to Miss Stargazer and turned to the students as well, offering yet another respectful but short bow. "A welcome to the school for you as well, students. I look forward to seeing you grow as practitioners."

---

@CriticalHit @Zelosse @Aquanthe @Stern Algorithm @Lord Orgasmo @Krazy J

Jordan frowned, sitting at his desk, tapping away at his computer. He heard students running in the halls. Wasn't the clichéd misbehaviour only supposed to begin in a few days, when the school year proper began? The gym teacher was preparing a speech of greeting for the newcomers, and he was nearly finished. The running noises stopped nearby, and he heard the sound of a body slumping to the floor. Jordan wanted to keep working but...

He sighed, cursing his inability to stay out of things. Making his way across the office, he took hold of his willow staff and cracked the door. He saw a hunched form, a student, sitting in the quiet hallway that housed his and the offices of several other teachers. Jordan stood for a beat, and noticed the shaking of her shoulders, and realized she was crying.

Gently, carefully, and not without a little hesitation, Jordan entered the hallway proper and got down on his knees. He tapped her leg gently, and took a breath.

"What brings you to the Academy?"

@Aiyanna

Silas found himself wandering through the halls, although he had been quite excited about the Academy the monotonous and boring formalities of the first day had stripped him of his excitement. Well hasn't today been oh so enjoyable! Silas thought to himself, smirking at his own sarcasm. His mild amusement was quickly replaced by boredom as his memories of the day's tedious events washed over him once more.

There was for starters, the train ride, it was long and it bugged Silas as every time the train would pass over a new section of the rail there would be a loud and annoying clicking sound. Not to mention that the station was underground, he hated being underground, but he should've figured that the station would be there. After all, he was heading to the Elemental Academy, of course there would be some connection to the earth.

After the train had finally finished its arduous journey Silas was ecstatic to begin exploring the grounds, only for him to be lead with all the other students into an auditorium where a plethora of pointless speeches were read by the teachers. Silas thought about ditching the snore-fest but the moment he was about to stand up, he caught an infernal gaze from one of the teachers. Deciding that it wouldn't be wise to piss off someone who could immolate you in a heartbeat, Silas sat down and suffered through the teachers lecture on how they were all "the future of the world". Once he and the other students were released from the torment that was the assembly, Silas left quickly to begin exploring.

Silas' quest to find something out of the ordinary was completed quite quickly as he heard a soft sobbing coming from a nearby, mostly vacant hallway. He advanced down the hallway and discovered a purple-haired girl crying and a teacher at her side. He approached the pair and quite bluntly asked: "What the hell happened here?" He focused his gaze on the girl rather than the teacher "If we were at midterms or exam time I'd be breaking down right here with you." Silas said chuckling as he tried to lighten the mood.

@Aiyanna@Kalleth

Seemingly unaware of his outstretched hand, Zeke took a photo of the tall boy with the crumbly bar. Now he'd have something to check with. He should have taken a photo of the other girl as well. "No," he answered. "It doesn't matter what you can or can't do. That's what my mom says."

When the girl showed up, with the almost-grey-from-black hair, Zeke took a photo of her too. "What's intruding?" He asked her. He knew what the word meant. Someone had explained it once, but he didn't get how walking around looking at things was intruding. "You can sit there." He pointed at a spot next to him. "Your hair's almost like charcoal, you know that?"

@Old Amsterdam @Kalleth