Tick tick tick. Every second of the day represented in such a simple and inescapable sound. The stopwatch had been set to stop when the timer had expired, the run was not an all-night event and not solely exclusive to the first years either. Day one was the legend of its creation to get students introduced to some of the traditions and stories of the hallowed ground they trotted on.
Many more such myths and legends, some true and others not, were retold to every subsequent generation to keep the belief and sense of wonder alive. Older students pondered the truth of the haunted forest legend as they competed in the event which became far more difficult than a blind run to the fountain and back.
First years could be eliminated by being caught by first years, but fifth years on their run were encouraged to treat every moment like a warfield. Full use of their skills to overcome the teachers instead of being spooked by them.
PING~!Kano stuck his hand towards the shrouded forest, his will reaching across every inch of it and the blanket of fog that had given it the name, and flicked his hand to the skys. Like a vacuum the fog flowed along with the path of his desire to disperse into nothing high above the treetops and allow the bright moonlight to illuminate the complete darkness of the forest paths.
Every volunteer stopped their pursuits and pranks simultaneously and began calling down from their perches to the students below that the games had ended. Kano expected the usual hospitality and friendly sportsmanship to occur as the players were directed back to the dormitory.
Whether or not there was an afterparty or social gathering to celebrate their first day at school and the strange event was anyones guess but as usual Kano would not investigate or he and the other teachers would be responsible for making sure all students were in bed and ready for the early lessons the following day..
Turning a blind eye was a better option.
To the students who had stayed awake to help make the run as chaotic as possible, he thanked. To those who controlled the zone guardians he would shower praise upon.
It had been a good night at the academy.
Kano glanced towards the the sky and the moon, reveling in continued calm of the Academy even after so many years had come and gone in what felt like a blink of a humans eye. His free hand brushed the worn leather cover of the book resting in chains at his hip tenderly.
"You would have loved it here, Sky Flower.." The words were softly spoken to the wind. Long after every student and teacher had departed from the forests edge, Kano remained rooted to the ground staring at the skies tracking the moons flight across the stars.
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The following day!
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Classes had been cancelled for that morning. There was an intended make-up lesson for what they failed to cover but most of the faculty had agreed that the first official school day after last nights event should be waved out of respect for a proper sleep schedule. With only six hours between the events end and the expected morning hours, very few students would have been receptive to trying to learn.
So instead a memo had been slid underneath every students door explaining that they were expected to arrive after lunchtime for elemental training. It was glorified free-time but students were expected to make use of the teachers and try to use their powers.
Teachers were encouraged to offer suggestions to students to help them practice control and precision. How they did that was up to each individual student and teacher.
Kano, being the water teacher, had chosen to venture to the the schools underground Hotsprings and left signage on his office door detailing where he would be in case of an emergency or an urgent request of any kind. To get to them was a very short trip through the corridors and down a flight of stair. After about 10 minutes of walking the polished stone would become a little more rough and unruly but there were 3 seperate rooms to choose from.
Male and Female bathing areas, and a third room intended for training which was much larger than the other two. It was four minor pools spread close to each other with a walkway dividing them, a large circular 'island' located in between all four. Some students new to shaping water often tried to raise a stream from one pool to the other until it overflowed back into the others. Some desired to shape warm water to cold, even freeze it. The more advanced students rarely bothered with the hotsprings.
Kano walked to the very edge of the steaming pool and idly threw himself into the waters without disrobing, the clothing simply floating atop the pools as his body simply vanished below the surface without a trace. Even the book usually kept at his hip sank below..
When a student came calling, if at all, he would reappear.
