Dia bit her lip, her mind going through dozens of thoughts.

No. Stop. Like the Headmaster said. Control it. Help...

Closing her eyes, Dia focused on her breathing. Wasn't that supposed to help calm you down? She felt like she'd read that somewhere before...

She had to admit it hurt to be pushed away. But she couldn't blame Zeke for it. She was cold to be around. And she had just trapped him in ice, even if the Headmaster had freed Zeke.

She could fix this. She just needed to concentrate. Could she let her fears and worries drift away, just for a little bit? Or at least lessen them enough?

She didn't feel like she had a choice.

She let out a deep breath, having realized she'd started holding her breath.

Dia felt something from her core. A stirring, like a great snake connecting her to...

The water.

For the first time since her powers had awakened, Dia felt a sliver of control. For the first time in what felt like forever, there wasn't a chill around her.

She opened her eyes, slowly moving closer to Zeke. She doubted she could replicate what the Kano had done for her, removing the water, so she settled for the next best option: her own body heat.

Carefully, slowly, Dia snuggled (she couldn't think what else to call it) up to Zeke.

And slowly the water left on him started moving, unbeknownst to her, and turning into little floating ice crystals around them.

"I'm sorry, Zeke. Please don't hate me," she muttered.
@Regitnui

@KRAZY J @Kalleth @Regitnui @liferusher @Raptra @Pseudo Stygian
@Old Amsterdam

Before ShiZhen was able to properly reach out to the girl who seemed to be panicking because of the splash that she and Jake had created, a dark, refractive shadow formed over their heads. Looking up she saw a massive sphere of water being formed, and for a moment ShiZhen thought she was responsible for creating it subconsciously. The sphere released itself, becoming a torrential downpour, making sure that everyone was soaked. After the 'rain' subsided, the girl ShiZhen had been trying to comfort, yelled and amazingly created ice from the surrounding water. The headmaster showed up again to defuse the situation. Looking around, disoriented, ShiZhen noticed a blonde, sleepy-looking girl offering her a hand up. Appreciating the gesture, ShiZhen takes it and let's Emi help her back to her feet. She notices that the girl who had frozen the water was now comforting a blonde boy who was crying. 'Big sister mode' kicked in and without thinking, ShiZhen said to her new acquintance, Emi, "Let's go see if they need help," knowing already that this girl with curly blonde hair was a friendly, helpful person. She went over to Zeke and Dia and stood beside them. "Are you two okay? Are you hurt anywhere?" ShiZhen asked as she carefully put a hand on their shoulders. "Can you stand? We can warm up more easily somewhere dry." ShiZhen offered a hand to raise them up out of the wetness should they take it, wondering if there was anywhere nearby that might be even remotely dry.

---

Catherine watched with callous amusement at Jordan's attempts to sneak a peek between her legs. Of course, it was foolish of her to not wear pants when flying, but she wore a knee-length pencil skirt, so it was long enough and tight enough to make seeing anything practically impossible, but it was still tantalizing enough that people like Jordan would try. As Kano's sphere of water began to form, Catherine apprehensively floated just a bit further so as not to get caught in whatever was about to happen.

After the downpour, the headmaster saw fit to show himself, dealing with one of the students he had frightened. Another one was still crying, but of more immediate danger was Jordan, who had hilariously gone from hanging from a spire, to ripping his pants open and revealing his underwear, to landing exhausted, face-down in the water. Two students were trying to pull their gym teacher out of the water lest he drown. Casually, Catherine hovered down to them. She was aware of the effects of asphyxiation, having suffocated, or partially suffocated her fair share of victims. When the human body was deprived of oxygen, brain cells were the first thing to go, so she wasn't that worried for Jordan seeing how it wasn't a great loss for him. "My patrol is intended to prevent students from getting into trouble, but it seems it's the teachers I should be worrying about," She joked to the two good Samaritans trying to save their teacher. With the three of them, they were able to move Jordan out of the water and on to relatively dry ground.

Catherine considered giving Jordan mouth-to-mouth resuscitation and imagined what a gift it would be for him to regain consciousness with her lips locked onto his. But as an air elementalist who had specialized in emptying out people's lungs, there was more than one way to skin a cat. She gently placed one hand over his mouth and raised the other high up, palm open. She suddenly brought her open palm down on his chest with a mighty 'thud', conjuring a pocket of low pressure near his mouth with one hand, and simultaneously increasing the air pressure in his lungs with the hand that came slamming down, the net effect being that the air in Jordan's lungs would force any water he had inhaled out of his mouth. Of course, she didn't really need to slap him in the chest that hard, but that was just a bit 'playful' payback, something for him to remember her by. As the water from his mouth dribbled through her hand, she wiped it on his shirt and stood up, her 'rescue' complete.

Current location; Fountain

@KRAZY J @Kalleth @Regitnui @liferusher @Raptra @Pseudo Stygian @Old Amsterdam

Kano watched the young girl take her first tentative steps towards the lofty goals Dia had created for herself. Like every student of the Academy, the Headmaster and the many talented teachers (excluding maybe the unconscious one in his underwear a few feet away?) would all work their hardest to assure that these young minds would overcome every obstacle they must face. Even if the challenge was too hard the first time Kano still had faith that these proud learners would overcome it eventually.

"Well. If everyone is starting to feel better, please do your best to dry off in the sunshine. The Dormitories will be ready for you all after the ceremony."

Kano offered a low bow to the gathered students, even if they weren't watching, and smiled behind the obscuring darkness veiling his face. Departing from the fountain back through the main doors. The Audience hall was going to take a bit to prepare..

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

TIMESKIP!

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

(For those of you unfamiliar with the concept, there is an established time of day/month/year vaguely placed into the world. A timeskip as the name suggests involves moving the clock forward and beginning a new established time with its own events, making those of the previous time ended. You are generally allowed one follow-up post to wrap up that timelines business before moving onto the next.)

Current location; First floor, east wing. Audience Hall

From the main entrance of the Academies amidst the staircase rising to every subsequent floor and training area dedicated to the corresponding element, there was also a series of hallways that lead to many other chambers within the expansive schoolgrounds.

Offices of every Teacher, private study halls, a grand library stocked with donated books from many former students specifically to the school, there were even rooms given to students who needed a quiet space to study or practice. All of those were located near the private offices of the staff so as to keep a close eye without disturbing concentration.
The largest of the rooms was the Audience hall. Carved from living stone like the school, it featured 4 titanic pillars of marble at each corner spiraling to the ceiling. On the roof of the hall was the likeness of the sun, a large circular glass skylight ringed with gold to resemble the sun carved into it. Upon the floor was lush green grass and dirt with smooth polished stone walkways. Chairs made from living bushes had been grown right from the ground.
Carved into the left wall was in beautifully shining red stone was a masterpiece resembling a large fire. Reds and yellows swirled in a mesmerizing display into a perfect likeness of the real thing.
To the opposite wall was a large crystal blue water drop. A thick piece of glass had been shaped for this purpose, stretching from the floor all the way to the ceiling. Inside of the glass tank was crystal clear water.

The entrance to this room was similarly extravagant, with thick wooden doors lovingly shaped by the hands of a skilled artisan. Some pieces had been hand carved while others shared the natural grown look of a shapers will. Respect for their homelands tradition and customs had been put into everything within this room. Just as they tried to do with every part of their town.
Suspended high in the sky were fluttering feathers, drifting lazily back and forth just out of reach. No matter how long you waited there was no telling when they would finally find their way to the grassy floor below.

To the far end of the room was a raised platform of wood and stone draped in a dark purple cloth, a podium rested at the center facing out towards the wooden tree-chairs.

Every student in the first year, nearly three dozen in total, were seated in this room. Even with teachers included, the amount of people the Audience hall could host was likely just over 100. Though there was not enough seating space for all of them if such were to come to pass.

As the students gathered and settled, Kano waited for them to take in the sights before jumping right into his own initial speech. Every teacher was expected to give a short speech welcoming students to the schoolgrounds, announce which classes they taught (whether it was an Elemental-core class or not) and detail their hopes for the new crop coming in.
Not every staff member chose to do this so it had always remained Voluntary. First come first serve.

Kano had traditionally always been the first, as he was the first of the teachers. Historically speaking.

As the gathered mass of bodies turned their attention to the robed figure at the podium, the lights went up. Torches alongside the wall flared to life on every side of the hall, a volunteer atop the roof manipulated the light to reflect off the may panels of glass atop the ceiling to shed life into every inch of the room. The torches made the various metals of the red wall shimmer at every angle, while the water tank reflected it back as well.

"Students of the Academy! I welcome you to my home, and to your home as well. For those who have not gotten a chance to meet me in the hallway or on the grounds, my name is Kano Hargor. Headmaster of the establishment and resident teacher of the Water and Dark students. It is my greatest pleasure to again see the smiling hope filled faces of you all, each eager to learn of their heritage."

Kano reached into his sleeve and pulled out a long piece of paper and began again.

"The following are the established rooms of every student, a copy of which will be placed at the Coed Dormitory building approximately 25 minutes away from the main building. For those of you concerned it will follow the theme of this room? Rest assured, it is a modern made building designed to house your needs. Electricity, soft beds, and plenty of space to grow. From here until your graduation it is yours to do with as you please. Though there will be penalties to Students who believe they can destroy the property given to them."

The piece of paper was unfolded and placed at the front of the podium. Students would be allowed to come and view it after the welcoming ceremony was completed.

"Before you rush the front to see your rooms, let us all hear from the teachers who will be leading you all this year. The next speaker, if you please?"

Kano moved off to the side and motioned to other faculty members gathered in the room.

(student characters, feel free to idly chat with each other. When every teacher who wants to speak has done so, we will move forward to the dorms and then the following day IC)

@KRAZY J@liferusher@Kalleth@CriticalHit@Old Amsterdam@Arya10108909@Raptra@Aquanthe@Regitnui@Pseudo Stygian@Hammerman@Lord Orgasmo@Stern Algorithm@Ayame

Jordan stood at the top of the hall, lurking in a little alcove made by space between the alcove and the stage, and as he listened to the Headmaster give his speech, he rubbed gingerly at his chest feeling over the bruise that had been left there. That woman... He remembered jerking to consciousness, with his heart fluttering, coughing up water. Only, she'd already walked off. That was such a very Catherine thing to do, woman that she was. She'd always had to control things and it had eventually driven Jordan crazy. If she was the wind, and he the sand, then he was perfectly capable of being carried on her breezy path through life, only eventually all sand had to settle down. That was when he'd been blown out of her life, quite abruptly. Of course they still had to work together, but Catherine was nothing if not professional. And she was lucky he wasn't a total prick, but it wasn't just out of his not-prickedness that he kept her secret. It was actually mostly because the cloaked figure who was just now calling up teachers with words to share would have him teared limb from limb if he learned of Jordan's role, which he inevitably would, Jordan did not doubt.

As he unstuck himself from his alcove, Jordan's gaze scanned the crowd and the people nearest to the stage. His eyes even rose up towards the fluttering feathers, but wherever Catherine was, he couldn't spot her. Funny, she'd insisted he had been specifically selected by Hargor to do this year's speech. And yet now she was nowhere to be found? Jordan shrugged, unclasping his satchel and retrieving the stone slab from within. He was obviously, no longer in heart-boxers, but he planned to run ragged anybody who gave a cheeky word otherwise. He certainly would never admit that the cotton really was softer...

The podium was short, and when Jordan placed the slab down, he noticed there was no lip to hold the slab on a slant and he scrambled to catch it when the slab slipped off. Nearly tripping over himself before he'd even gotten a word out, Jordan shook his head and looked out over the entire assembled student body. Well the assembled first years, since all the others students had better things to do than listen to Jordan's amazing speech. The gym teacher cleared his throat, straightened up, and held the slab at arm's length. With a booming voice, Jordan began his speech;

"HELLO FIRST YEARS! WELCOME TO YOUR ADVENTURES AS A NEWLY MINTED ELEMENTALIST LEARNER! THIS WILL BE THE BEST PERIOD OF YOUR LIFE AND ALSO THE WORST! THAT IS TO SAY, IT WILL BE WHAT YOU MAKE OF IT! MY NAME IS PROFESSOR JORDAN MANILOW AND I WILL BE YOUR GYM TEACHER! SO IF YOU THINK THAT I'M GOING TO LET YOU OFF EASY IF YOU START SLACKING, YOU'LL HAVE A WORLD OF HURT COMING YOUR WAY! AND ALLOW ME TO ALSO ADD THAT-," Jordan glanced at the slab and squinted. "THAT THERE ARE VERY BAD THINGS, THINGS THAT COULD SCAR YOU FOR LIFE, SERIOUSLY, IF YOU MAKE ANY ATTEMPTS TO GET AT OR INTRUDE UPON MY SHED! OKAY? DO NOT ASSUME THAT JUST BECAUSE YOU ARE UNDER THE AGE OF MAJORITY THAT AN EXTREME LEVEL OF PREJUDICE AND FORCE WILL NOT BE USED SHOULD YOU FAIL TO COMPLY WITH THIS DIRECTIVE." Jordan took a breath, and continued, slightly quieter.

"I am honoured to be a member of this Academy's faculty, and it will be a beautiful experience to get to watch you all grow, as people, as elementalists, and as leaders. I've taught many students who went on to become far greater people than I, and also I have taught my fair share of students who have gone on to disappoint me to a degree that does not bear thinking about. I will repeat this, and you should all think of it as your initiation motto; This journey will become what you make of it. So whether you're a wielder of light, illuminating new ways of seeing truth, or a shaper of earth, growing deep roots of riches in yourselves and others, or a tamer of fire, burning a path towards renewal, or a channeller of water, flooding the land with power, or a bringer of air, blowing down barriers with bravery, or even... Even if you use darkness, you can still fight for the ideals of a just and fair society, even if the tools required demand harsh measures. But I expect the best from each student who attends this Academy, and no matter your element, you will be thrown out of it, and challenged, and made to grow. I will be your aid in this, as will every other member of the faculty. As long as you take each of our hands, we will raise every last one of you up into a world that's made all the brighter every day for your efforts! Welcome to the Academy! WELCOME TO YOUR NEW LIFE!" Jordan ended with a shout, his hands held high, the slab forgotten in his hand. The hall was silent. Jordan waited for applause, thinking he'd done a damned good job with that speech. He might've, maybe, just slightly strayed from Kanako's material, but... He'd had to! There was Jordan's shed to consider! Did Catherine see my speech? Did she like it? That damned woman better not have missed my big moment!

@KRAZY J@liferusher@Kalleth@CriticalHit@Old Amsterdam@Arya10108909@Raptra@Aquanthe@Regitnui@Pseudo Stygian@Hammerman@Lord Orgasmo@Stern Algorithm@Ayame@Zelosse

@KRAZY J@liferusher@Kalleth@CriticalHit@Old Amsterdam@Arya10108909@Raptra@Aquanthe@Regitnui@Pseudo Stygian@Hammerman@Lord Orgasmo@Ayame@Zelosse@Kalleth

Catherine surreptitiously came onto stage to sit with the other teachers. It was one thing to show up fashionably late for things, but something else entirely to be asked to scour the perimeter for any straggling students. Having assured herself that no first years were still wandering the grounds, Catherine was able to make it in time to catch the entirety of what passed for a speech issue from Jordan's flapping gums. When he finished she stood up, ready to give the new students some inspiration. She smiled slyly at Jordan as they passed each other, a smile that was distancing from the mischief in her smirk, yet warm in the recognition and gratitude in her eyes.

Standing at the podium, she wondered what dark paths some of the less fortunate would walk. Would their education keep them from straying? Or perhaps the education would crush them and push them towards unsafe alternatives. Who wanted freedom? Who wanted security? What would they be willing to do to get it? She remembered being indoctrinated, being told to follow a strict set of beliefs and rules, to obey, to not question. Today, she stands here as educator, yes, but also as enforcer, disciplinarian, judge, and executioner. The power she would hold over her students was enormous, though nowhere near the level of power she had held before. But could she bend their minds? Should she?

"I would first like to thank Headmaster Hargor for giving us, the faculty, the freedom to volunteer to give these speeches," She said in a crisp, clear, elegant voice, pausing to let the last part sink in for Jordan, "And that is my theme for this speech, and for the rest of the year: freedom. Everything is a balance between chaos and order. The main goal of your education is to teach you control, which requires order, and the Academy is an environment of order. But you are still young, and you are still growing. If you grow a watermelon inside a square container, you will get a square watermelon. So we need balance, we need a bit of chaos. That's where you come in; take your self-expression, your rebelliousness, your energy, your curiosity, and push against your constraints. This Academy can't teach you everything, some things must be experienced, and the best ideas come from innovation rather than paradigm. But. Do not bring harm upon yourselves or upon each other. Exercise your freedom, but know that guilt is the heaviest shackle you can bind yourself with. I hope you all have a safe and wonderful time at our Academy!"

And with that, she stepped down and returned to her seat.

"What in the world happened here?" was Kanako's reaction when she arrived at the courtyard. It was as if a sudden flash flood had just appeared and drowned the ground around her. But surely, there was no way that could happen, especially when there was no river around.

But she had just been through a cloud of smoke produced by some girl with an out of control power. It was certainly not out of her imagination that something similar might have happened here.

Suddenly, she heard an announcement echoing across the ground, calling all the students to gather at the audience hall.

...Well, she better go now. Professor Jordan should have gone there right away, and she had missed him thanks to the "delay" those two caused her. And so she hurried on to where she remembered the hall was, putting the thought of the flooded courtyard out of her mind.

---

"It's beautiful..."

Kanako stopped on her tracks once she entered the audience hall. And how could she not? It was simply nothing like the other audience halls she had ever been in in her entire life. It was certainly made with beauty in mind, and it perfectly symbolized the gathering of all kinds of elementalists in one room. She looked at the feathers floating above her, a showcase on what a wind elementalist like her could achieve.

She took her seat, still looking around the room even after she had been seated.

After a while, the ceremony started, with an amazing light setting from the torches in the room (she simply had to praise whoever thought of that arrangement). And the first person that took the podium was a cloaked man. Kanako had no idea who this person was, other than the fact that he exuded such a mysterious and important aura. But soon, she knew that he was the headmaster of this place. Kano was his name. Kanako made sure to note that in her mind.

After him, she saw a familiar face taking the podium. Professor Jordan. She watched intently at his speech, not just because it was the proper thing to do but also because she was quite curious how he would deliver the speech she had written. It started off with her facepalming at the clumsiness of the professor, as he almost dropped his slate to the ground. And then she facepalmed again when he started his speech not with the text she had written for him. And then once more when he abruptly switched to the text she had written from him, the jarringness between the directness of the former and the politeness of the latter terribly apparent.

After that near trainwreck, the next teacher who gave her speech was a woman. And this one was actually quite good. She certainly could agree with what she had just said. So apparently she was a wind elementalist teacher? Then Kanako would look forward to be in her classes for sure.

@Stern Algorithm@Kalleth

Lyra's mind was exploding, but in a good way. The hall was a thing of near-impossible beauty, with its naturally made seats and walls, but as soon as the speech started, her mind drifted back to what just happened back in the fountain. She couldn't remember all the faces who were there, not paying attention being exactly her forte, but he remembered the headmaster, and the voice of the second teacher sound familiar. She remembered Ms. Hargreaves, of course. Oh, if she had the time and the mind for it, Lyra would scramble all over her, asking her so many questions about the elements.

She couldn't really pay attention to their speech however. Her mind was still drifting back to what she saw earlier. A boy who was drawing in the air! A light elementalist, she guessed, who was able to rearrange electromagnetic waves in small space. He was crying earlier after the girl had started freezing (Lyra couldn't remember the girl either, but her voice was fresh in her mind), and-

And he's sitting right in front of her! Without thinking too much about it, she tapped the boy lightly on his shoulder. "Hey, hello," she whispered. "You're the one from the fountain, aren't you? The one who was drawing, in the air?" And then realising that it was probably rude to suddenly ask up how a stranger does anything, she added, "I'm Lyra."

@Regitnui

Zeke's hands itched. He really, really, really, really wanted to take photographs, but the teacher had told him to sit still and listen when he tried. He couldn't even draw, because he had to sit still. He had his head tilted back, watching the feathers circling around the ceiling. His fingers twitched, spots of light appearing in his lap out of habit.

The first speech, from the headmaster, was alright. He wondered who he'd have to share with. Hopefully they'd be nice and they could be friends. The second speech from the big teacher was loud. Zeke put his hands over his ears and he could still hear all the words. The last speech, he hoped, was a lady teacher who had a nice voice. He started looking at the ceiling again while she spoke.

A girl behind him tapped his shoulder, and he bent his head back a little further to look at her. "Hey, hello," she whispered. "You're the one from the fountain, aren't you? The one who was drawing, in the air?" She had blue, perfect blue, eyes, and red-brown hair. His left hand made a few dots of her eye colour. His right, her hair. "I'm Lyra."

"You're Viola," he responded, pointing at the instrument leaning against her and leaving a blue spot in the air. He wiped it away with a shake of the offending hand. "I draw," he agreed. "I also take photographs, but they say I have to sit still and not do either now. I have to listen."

@Pseudo Stygian

The interior of the Audience hall was just as captivating as the exterior design of the academy. Vera was impressed with how the natural features of the hall blended so well with the man-made ones. It seemed more like an indoor garden than an Audience hall. It all felt very unfamiliar to her, however. It wasn't just the surreal, almost magical charm of the place, but it was also due to the fact that because of her background, she had little opportunity to be so close to nature. For her, nature and the outdoors had always been associated with dirt, grime, and contamination. This mindset had her uncomfortably trying to settle into one of the bush-chairs, and awkwardly shifting for awhile longer after she had finally taken a seat. She eventually felt compelled to sit still after realizing that a couple of students seated nearby had turned to look at her, noticing her apparent discomfort.

Hargor was the first to speak, providing the details about student accommodations. She liked how he took care to mention that the dormitories weren't like the Audience hall. Well, thank goodness for that. She wondered what her dorm mates would be like, if she even had any. She also imagined that the students' living quarters would be much smaller than what she was used to, though that might just a good thing, considering she'd have to keep her own place clean now.

Manilow was up next. Vera was beginning to think that the guy had a knack for making extremely umm... memorable, first impressions. It had first been that whole show at the fountain, and then he start his speech shouting out some threat? In spite of all that, including the loud, boisterous teacher having a rather questionable choice of underwear, Vera had to admit that the second part of his speech, when he had stopped yelling, was actually well-delivered, and even inspiring. Guess first impressions aren't everything. Too bad so much importance is placed on them, though.

Vera recognized Hargreaves when she stepped up to say some words of her own. It was intriguing to hear the elegant, graceful woman, who projected an outer image of what was expected in high society, speak about freedom and chaos. Vera was raised to believe that image was everything, that those who dared to be authentic would lose out, that it was important to impress others. It just didn't fit - the front that this teacher was putting up had no relation to what she was saying. Perhaps people weren't as simple as she thought, and that no two or more traits came as a package, but each individual possesses a unique and different combination of them. If what Hargreaves said was true - if there was no one at the academy who was going to tell her what to be, if they were going to let every student be themselves, Vera was going to take this opportunity to discover who she truly was, and to not be afraid to make mistakes and learn from them.

Considering she had somewhat met the first three speakers before the ceremony, the earlier events were still playing in her head. That whole fountain experience had really been something. She had seen fellow students with rather rare and distinctive abilities, helped save a teacher's life, and witnessed another teacher's interesting lifesaving method. That other boy with longish black hair who helped out with her and Hargreaves though, she didn't get his name. She glanced around the audience, and spotted him sitting behind her. She gave him small wave and leaned slightly over her backrest.

"Hey there, I didn't get your name earlier," she whispered. "I'm Vera, by the way."

@Kalleth

---

Xavier leaned back in his seat as he listened to the various speakers who took turns to address the new students. Apart from the first part, which had been completely expected of the gym teacher, he was admittedly impressed with Manilow's speech. Who would have thought that he was secretly a metaphor type of guy? In fact, that entire second half almost didn't sound like him at all. Strange, yet pleasantly surprising... Now that Manilow had mentioned it to the entire cohort, Xavier would be expecting that a few curious and overly-adventurous students would be trying to break into that shed throughout the year, not that it would be his problem.

He decided to pass when his turn came, gesturing for the next teacher to take their turn. He figured that the first-years had gotten enough motivation from Manilow and Hargreaves. This was assuming Reyes would have had anything motivational to say in the first place. Well, that would have been subjective. He shared Hargreaves' sentiments about daring to take risks yet not going too far with them. Accidents were understandable, but it seemed that there would always be at least one knucklehead in every cohort who would try to blow the lab up during his classes. Hopefully there wouldn't be any this year, but he'd save the lab safety talk for the first lesson.

Well, my name's from a lyre, and that's a violin, not a- OH! For a second there was a blue spot where the boy had pointed. It was so much more vibrant, so much more real, that it happened in front of her eyes instead of from afar. He quickly wiped it away with his fingers, as if wiping a stain from a glass, but Lyra was already transfixed. The boy was definitely a light elementalist. He didn't shine the same way Vera did, but his fingers did, in a way. They could change the movements of light, and he might not even realise how he did it, just like-

Just like what she was doing right now. Her violin was humming a little song. It wasn't loud enough to reach the front, where the teachers were, but just enough to gain her some odd stares from nearby students.

"Whoops. Ahh." She tucked the violin back and it stopped. "Sorry, sorry. Sit still and listen, right. Sorry."

She was going to sit back, and then a thought flashed by her. "Hey, I'd love to see some of your drawings! Maybe, later, when we're not supposed to sit still," he whispered to the boy up-front. And then she leaned back, continuing to fail at sitting still and listening as her mind drifted again.

@Raptra

Jideh had sat down in his seat with great apprehension. A whole audience hall full of elements, and these architects had decided it wise to make the seats out of... Plants? Jideh had seen what kinds of treatment the seats at the Agricultural Hall back home had endured and he was examining his own chair with the greatest of worry. He checked for scratched messages in the bark, forgotten pieces of gum, or any other kind of abuse. Fortunately he found none on his own chair, but he couldn't bear to check the other seats in case his was the exception and not the norm.

Jideh picked a leaf off his seat, and sniffed at it. He felt the texture, feeling for veins and gauging stem thickness. A glance to either side and at the audience hall ceiling provided no clear answer to whether these plants received significant amounts of sunlight, which made the strength and health of their growth a mystery to him. While his eyes were up, he noticed the teacher he'd helped to rescue getting up on stage looking no worse for the wear of having nearly drowned. Jideh smiled at that, and then he went back to his leaf. Tearing a small piece off, he put it in his mouth and sucked, trying to get a sense for taste. This plant wasn't a tea plant of course, though Jideh had brought plenty of tea dried and in seeds, but he'd heard that other kinds of plants, such as certain pines could be brewed in tea. Jideh made a face at the increasing bitterness, and decided chewing the leaf to be too sour a prospect to pursue. Removing the leaf from his tongue, Jideh folded the bit of sucked leaf into its parent leaf and then buried the ensemble into a little patch of earth between his feet. Letting loose a bit of his recovered power from earlier, Jideh saw the beginnings of a sprout poke through. He smiled widely at that, and then sat back, trying to figure out if he should swallow the bitterness in his mouth or if he should try and discreetly spit it out.

A girl he only vaguely recognized from the incident at the fountain had turned around and seemed to recognize him as well. She waved and introduced herself, leaving Jideh no choice but to swallow his bitter spit. He failed at masking his grimace. "It's bitter. Er, that's not my name. My name's Jideh, and this plant," Jideh poked the seat he was sitting in. "It tastes bitter. That's why I made a face. I didn't make a face because of you, is what I mean. Ugh. I don't know what's keeping my words from flowing properly today." Jideh caught the last part of Ms. Hargreave's speech. He was momentarily drowned out by applause which once finished, allowed him to add, "Ms. Hargreaves certainly hasn't got my problem. Anyway, I'm a Flora specialist of the Earth element. I'd show off my power to you, but I don't know when we're having supper, so you'll have to take me at my word that I can make plants grow, and all sorts of wonderful stuff like that. I don't exactly have the luxury of being say, an air elementalist, who basically have an abundance of their element unless they go to space or deep-sea diving." Jideh smiled warmly, and nodded. His problem seemed to be going away, bit by bit. As long as he just kept his cool, and no half-naked girls scared him half to death, he'd be fine.

Zeke felt an odd feeling in his stomach. Like a sort of lightness, or like a giggle wanted to burst out. This girl wanted to see him draw? That was the first time in ages. It made him happy, but also that he wanted to draw for her. Something nice. Something special that would make her really happy too.

Her violin was humming, and Zeke turned in his chair to look. A few other people did too. Viola pushed it down, and the singing stopped. He looked up at her face, and it struck him again how nice it looked. That was the third girl he met today who looked nice enough to draw. This place was funny.

"After," Zeke said, "play that again and I'll find you." He idly drew a few cartoon notes in the air with the same colour of her eyes. He wasn't sure if they meant anything, but maybe the picture of a violin with the notes and the colour would help him recognise her later. Maybe he should draw pictures for Yellow and Icy too. A flower and a snowflake?

@Pseudo Stygian

Vera was slightly stunned at the boy's expression of disgust when she had waved to him, but was then relieved when he explained what had happened and told her his name. She stifled a chuckle, though the amusement she had gotten from the awkwardness that 'Jideh' was displaying as he fumbled for a way to answer her was clearly written on her face.

"It's a pleasure, Jideh," she replied softly, but with a bright smile, hoping to make him feel more comfortable. "It's alright, I understand, and no worries love, you're doing fine. Although I don't think you should be eating the chairs."

She leaned in closer, her eyes lighting up as he went on to tell her more about himself and his abilities. "That's sounds really interesting. I'd love to see what that's all about after this is over. Guess you can show me then. I could show you what I can do too, if you're alright with a few minutes of flash blindness, that is."

Vera then let out a soft snicker before whispering again. "I'll see you later then."

Turning back to the front, she was excessively aware of the rustling of the leaves of her seat. Vera wondered if she'd ever get used to this.

@Kalleth

@KRAZY J@liferusher@Kalleth@CriticalHit@Old Amsterdam@Arya10108909@Raptra@Aquanthe@Regitnui@Pseudo Stygian@Hammerman@Lord Orgasmo@Stern Algorithm@Ayame@Aiyanna

Kano applauded each and every teacher after their rousing speeches. Those of exceptional note were two of the least likely to have performed at all. Manilow and his accomplice, Ms.Hargreaves. Despite a very keen set of senses telling him that the two harbored a secret they would never allow the light of day to hear, the ever inquiring Headmaster would not relent until it was known.
Even her speech had spoken out against order and control. Indeed he had enjoyed the concept of it all but the impression of outward rebellion was rooted somewhere in her words, Kano could feel it, but for now she had a clean slate as far as he knew. In the quiet moments of contemplation Kano often wondered if he was suspicious for nothing.
As one of the last teachers on the stage finished explaining their role in the school, the podium was taken by another.

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



Felix strode up the side of the stage with both hands in his pockets, a look of bitterness on his face accentuated by a scowl. To the outside world he hoped they would take him as a thug. Some sort of horrible delinquent only interested in causing trouble. That was what he had to do here now with this little speech. Keep them far away from him and this 'power' all the freaks here talked about. Even if it was just an act of anger, the hatred in his heart while looking around at the unnatural room was driving his feet forward without shaking.

His stride was unmatched, the teachers clearly not sure if he was a proper speaker or not, and that brief few moments was all he needed.

Standing at the carved stone podium, eyes scanning the crowd, Felix took a deep breathe and readied himself. If there was any chance of stopping the inevitable from coming to pass Felix would take it in an instant. An outsider was all he was. Just some freakshow with a bad pyro habit he couldn't understand.

"FUCK THE WHOLE LOT OF YOU."

To accentuate his point and drive home his rebellious little facade, he put his foot on the podium resting just in front of him and pushed with everything he had. With a protest of groaning wood under the shifting stones great weight. As you would expect of something so heavy, its fall was slow and ungraceful as it topped off the raised stage and into the soft grass and dirt, all but exploding under the impact.

"Whichever one of you morons gets paired up with me, get ready to move."

Spitting on the fallen podium, he calmly walked off with that same arrogant pace that had carried him there in the first place. Down the stairs, across the room, and out the main doors. In his heart there was fear of the punishment that would no doubt come from this. He hoped to be expelled, removed entirely, and spare the other bright eyed students from getting burned. All that talk of order and control was a load of crap, it had to be.

-----------

Kano watched in shocked silence. Unable to bring himself to action in the face of a very familiar outrage. One he had just helped another student deal with, but in a very different way. Dia wanted friends and to learn so she wouldn't hurt them. This new one wanted the opposite. Or did he? Rather than dwell on this trouble case at the moment, Kano opted to wave away the teachers from taking action as the boy made his less than dramatic exit.

speaking Just loud enough that only the teachers could hear him, "Ignore him for now. When the students are settled we can deal with his attitude. For now, priority is a smooth transition to their new home."

Walking up to the spot where the Podium had previously rested, Kano addressed the students calmly. Seemingly ignoring the entire outburst. If it bothered him at all he gave no sign.

"Thank you all for your attendance today. I speak on behalf of every teacher when I say to enjoy your time within the academy grounds. With the assembly and the day coming to a close, I invite you all to the dormitories that will serve as your home until graduation. When you leave the academy buildings front door, simply follow the guide to your destination. Until tomorrow, students! Have a wonderful time!"
Despite the outburst, more than a few students had chosen to clap as they all rose from their seats and flowed from the grounds.

Kano simply stared at the fallen Podium as they shuffled off, lost in his own thoughts.

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

OUTSIDE THE ACADEMY DOORS

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

The guide to the academy grounds was not a human being. Rather, it resembled one very loosely, but was comprised entirely of shaped and flowing water. It had the upper frame of a humanoid but the bottom was more like a large blob. It would almost be funny if it didn't stand over 8 feet tall.
As the last few students arrived, the water elemental began its easy flow north east, following a smooth stone path across the open field surrounding the main schoolyard. The walk took about fifteen to twenty minutes based on the individuals preferred pace, but the actual trek was fairly straightforward.

The dormitory itself, when they arrived, was massive. The building itself was five stories tall and decorated with a thousand different color combinations across what was assumed to have been grey or white walls. It had become a tradition over the years for students upon graduation to leave their mark upon the dormitory outer walls and the results had been unique to say the least. Mosaics of flowers blended overtop flaming skulls, musical notes, crudely drawn pictures, and hundreds of other varying designs that had once held meaning to a student.
The lower level was thick with paintings, and naturally as you got higher and higher they became more and more scarce due to the inaccessibility.

Students arriving were told to line up and approach the front desk, submit their name, receive their key, and bring whatever they thought was important up to their room. The room itself was massive and divided for privacy. Every student had their own personal room to keep clean and decorate as they saw fit, with a bathroom attached. The middle room was meant to be a common room of sorts, where both occupants could relax as they chose. Dorm rooms came with a toaster, oven, fridge, and a microwave.
Students had a curfew of 9pm so any business outside of the dorm grounds would need to be finished by then or face a punishment of some kind.
a building attached to the back of the dormitory had been turned into a cafeteria a few years ago, but it had always been a tad cramped. Meals were served buffet style every morning, lunch, and dinner, but students could submit a request form to get their own groceries and utensils to cook food in their own rooms. Of course, there was a sprinkler system installed in the event of an accidental fire.. cooking accident or a practitioner accident.

(The current time IC would probably be around.. 430/5pm. The sun will be dipping over the mountains edge currently.)

The first thing Zeke did after getting out into the sunshine was take a photo of the water elemental. When it started moving, he took another, and so on until it reached the dorm building. He didn't so much follow the guide as try to keep it in shot, and so by the time he arrived, he was a little more out of breath than the others.

But the outside of the dorm building occupied him for another few minutes, and by the time he made it indoors, he was one of the last kids in. As much as he itched to paint the elemental and the dorm building, he had to find his bed. His luggage was heavier than his dad had made it look, and he was really grateful for the wheels.

He arrived at his dorm room to see a sunset through his window. He dropped his bag, opening the window and sitting on the sill. His roommate was already there, but this sunset and it's yellows and pinks and oranges was more important. He scanned the mountains for the most interesting outline, and took a panoramic shot.

He could paint a whole mural from this shot alone! Making an excited noise, he climbed back into the room with a huge smile on his face. Only then did he look up to see who his roommate was. He stopped. Purple contrasted poorly with orange, and...

@Aiyanna

Dia walked into her assigned dorm, marveling at everything from the creature that had guided them, the view of the setting sun, the mesh of colors on the building, and the dorm itself.

Of course, she noted Zeke taking pictures, smiling to herself. She couldn't wait to see what he painted out of it all.

She touched the seed she'd been given, wondering where she was going to put the people flower-to-be.

And then she looked at the ice rose. I wonder if I can make one of these, but smaller? And so I can make it a necklace? she wondered idly.

And that's when she noticed her roommate.

She blinked a few times. "You're the one from the fountain!" Dia blurted out, turning red.

Why did I have to get paired with someone so much prettier than me? Sure everyone is prettier than me, but not so outlandishly! she thought I'm dismay.
@liferusher

Hmm, this man is also a teacher? He certainly doesn't give off that aura. I wonder how his speech will go.

Those were Kanako's thoughts as the next person rose up to the podium. She immediately felt like she wouldn't like this person, just from the way he stared and the way he carried himself. She certainly hoped that she wouldn't get him as her teacher.

And then, all hell broke loose.

Kanako could only watch in awe as the man insulted everyone in the assembly before turning over the podium with his foot. After that, he just left like he had done nothing wrong.

And amazingly enough, the headmaster then closed the ceremony like usual, as if nothing had happened.

What is up with this school?

---

After the ceremony was over, Kanako headed straight to the dorms along with the other students, just like they had been instructed to. The one that would guide them was not a teacher however, but instead a water elemental. It was the first time for Kanako to see something like that so in a way that was out of character for her, she pushed away the other students just so she could see it up close.

And once she reached the dormitories, her amazement still continued with how lavish everything was. Of course, just as she now had expected from the academy, there would always be something unique or odd accompanying that lavishness, and with the dorms, it was how the students had added their own marks upon the dormitory's outer walls. She wasn't really that fond of the clashing drawings, but she had to admit, it was certainly memorable and unique.

"Here's your key, miss."

Finally, that took long enough, she thought. She had to fall in line with the other students as one by one they signed their names before receiving their key.

Arriving at her room, she saw that nobody was there, meaning her roommate hadn't arrived yet.

Well, might as well rest while waiting for her.

After taking off her shoes, she immediately threw herself into her bed. It was indeed as fluffy as it looked.

After todays commotion Emi had left almost immediately after the disaster at the fountain. It had become way too busy and it wasn't any more fun with all those hurted people, to top it all she was likely gonna get a cold staying like that so she got to her room as quick as possible. Emi already had recieved her key from the small dorm leader when she got here a day ago so she was lucky to get ahead of the great attack on the dorm leader. It was chaos in the halls short after like she predicted.

Emi got a quick shower and already dressed herself in her evening wear which were a pair of oversized pyjamas. The sloppiness of the pyjamas was the best part of it, she thought at least. Emi proceeded to cook some food atleast before night fell, her drowsiness had already kicked in a bit making her awfully slow in doing stuff. Emi got into the kitchen area and made herself some tasty beans with potatoes and apple sauce, topping it off with a snitzel for meat today. Just as Emi was finishing the last pieces of the cooking her roommate barged in. She hadn't expected to get a roommate mostly because she had already slept a night alone in here. Emi slowly turned her head at the already inside roommate with an airheaded stare. She gave a short timid wave making the oversized sleeve slapping about.



The person to walk on in had noticed her too making her almost scream her words out in panic. Emi looked a little confused, had they met? She didn't think so. This girl probably had seen her already so there was nothing to say against it. For some reason the pretty flat chest got all red all of the sudden. Emi kept staring for a moment longer and went on with her dinner. Instead of one plate she pulled out a second one to share the food with the strange long black haired girl. She cut the snitzel in half and made even porportions. She left the food on the counter for a moment longer before timidly turning around and making her way towards the same height yet also small girl.





The hall inside the dorms began to fill with more and more people, the girl behind the counter was working her hardest to give everyone the right key to the right room. It was a very easy task yet also mind wrecking. It took a lot of concentration to give everyone the right key and not to irritate the boy and girls too much by making them wait for too long. Everyone has had a busy day so they mostly wanted to get quick under the sheets or hang around, so getting them even more irritated was not what she wanted to do. Or atleast prevent it for as much as possible.

After quiet a while of hard work the crowd had finally died down a little, she could take it a lot easier now. Less stress and at least the time to do everything properly. She atleast had the time to wipe the sweat from her head from all this heat. Drow quietly stood by the reception desk sipping away from her ice tea as boys and girls strode by one by one asking for their keys which she happily wanted to take care of now.

Dia dipped her head. "Th-that would be amazing​," she stammered quietly. "I'm Dia. I'm, I'm really happy it's so l-l-large. I don't want to bother you with the cold I normally gen-generate."

Moving slowly, pretty clearly a nervous wreck now, Dia took the offered plate. "Thank you," she mumbled. "I can cook tomorrow, if y-you'd l-like."

I don't know what I expected. Why wouldn't everyone have roommates? At least Emi seems nice. And at least it's a girl, she thought. I wonder what she can do, though? Is it rude to ask something like that? What if I offend her? Then I'd be with a roommate who can't stand me for... How long? I really don't know... Maybe I should've listened better after that guy broke the podium.

Looking up, and blushing again, Dia decided to ask Emi about the guy.

"Emi... Do you know the guy who broke the podium? He seemed really angry. I really hope he's not a teacher."