The air was cool and crisp as the Friday morning sunrise painted the sky in shades of pink, purple, and orange. Several howls, screeches, and chirps could be heard in the distance as beast and dragon alike were awakened by the light of the dawn. It appeared it would be a normal day at L'Mordryn Academy...but what qualifies as normal at a school where fire sprites, military drones, and direwolves regularly roam the campus? This particular week had been rather uneventful to say the least, but that only served to leave the end of the week open for something exciting. It was rare that any stretch of time went on at L'Mordryn without at least a noteworthy episode.

---

Silas was awakened in typical fashion: by the incessant tapping of beak to glass as Nicah requested in her own special way that the window be opened. He sleepily and robotically rose from his pillow while simultaneously reaching for the window's latch, a motion that seemed a bit too well practiced. A burst of cool air rushed in to meet Silas’ face as he pushed one of the panels open, which helped awaken him even further. He stretched and immediately turned to dangle his feet off the bed before he got the urge to get a few more moments of rest. Nicah made a small 'thank you’ caw before taking to the morning sky. Silas rolled his neck and shoulders as he slid out of bed to start his morning routine. After taking several minutes to get clean and presentable, he made his way out to the living room. He bypassed the invitingly cushy couch to go and stand on the balcony. He took in a deep breath of fresh air as he silently and graciously greeted the morning. The cafeterias weren't going to start serving breakfast for another fifteen minutes, so Silas wasn't in any kind of rush to get going. He lingered a moment longer to enjoy the coolness on his skin before finally heading towards the door to begin his morning stroll to the nearest cafeteria.

---

Darcy groaned as she slowly faded into consciousness. She lay face down on her bed with a certain dragon-cat curled up and enjoying a nice slumber on her back. The warmth emanating from Ceraseth felt quite nice to Darcy, which only served to discourage her getting up. She made a few small protests before rolling over, much to Cera's dismay as he was jarred awake, flopping over to Darcy's side. Cera made a sound that was a cross between a feline yawn and a draconic growl as Darcy threw back her covers. She gave a slight shiver as her bare legs were exposed before ungracefully dismounting her bed. She blew a few strands of hair from her from face and stood for a few beats wondering what realm morning people came from. It had been a bit of a sacrifice for Darcy to not take 1st session as a free-study so she could sleep in, but the trade-off of having class with her favorite mentors was worth the morning struggle. Not bothering to put on pants, she groggily made her way to the bathroom to wash her face and attempt to rouse herself.

Simon looked back at himself on the mirror, his bloodshot baggy eyes exhausted from a week of heavy studying. He couldn't believe the figure that looked back at him, the once joyful and excitable boy looking like a haggard stranger. None of it was in vain however as yesterday he was finally able to summon his first elemental. The images of his family pushing him on to try his best in an art he'd barely even known about not weeks prior finally paying off. Mixed emotions filled him, guilt, fear and anxiety being ones he'd gotten accustomed to but finally, a tinge of warm pride welled up in his chest at what he'd been able to achieve. Simon looked back at himself and smiled, for the first time since he left his home the boy finally seeing a glimpse of who he once was.

He promised himself that for just this one day, Simon would try to enjoy himself. He could never forget the people he cared about nor if they'd still be waiting for him but for that one day, he'd resigned himself to be happy if only for his promise to Grandpa Peter. The young boy held his head up high, following the throngs of students aiming towards the cafeteria with a confident walk and proud gaze. Instantly he lost a tinge of his confidence for a moment as he awkwardly tried to follow behind the crowds without stand out.

---

---

As usual, Corona was the first to awaken.

It wasn't just because her habit and natural affinity to wake up early that she obtained for living alone for so many years. No, it was also thanks to her familiar waking her up using their mind link like a really fancy and soundless alarm clock.

Programming something like that to it was as easy as a child's play to her. She did it the first week after she first obtained her first familiar, though at that time, she couldn't use it as an alarm clock yet since she couldn't continuously have her summon be present all day, especially through the night when she slept.

But now, she would have at least one watching over her while she slept.

After some yawning, she rose up and walked to the living room, merely giving a glance at the still asleep Esther. Just a little stopover before she went to the bathroom as that was what she had to do thanks to how the layout of the shared dorm room was.

She didn't even say anything. She just ordered her familiar to take her towel with it in her mind and it immediately obeyed.

No need to fear. It's completely waterproof.

---

Esther woke up second.

Unlike Corona, she woke up with more groans as she had to muster the strength needed to go up from her bed. Her familiar couldn't help her in the department.

She sat up on her bed first, stretched and let out a big yawn before going off it. She looked towards Corona's empty bed. Once again, she woke up earlier than her.

Aah, that means the bathroom would be occupied again...

It was already annoying when she wanted to take a bath right away. But when you needed to do the--ahem--other things you usually did with toilets, it became almost aggravating.

She took her towel by herself before heading to the bathroom also. Once there, she could hear the showers running inside. Unlike her, Corona never really sang in there.

Knocking on the door, she said to her, "Can you please hurry, Corona? I need to, ehem, do my business!"

She shifted her legs as she waited. Maybe she should try the other bathroom.

...Nah. Would be occupied as well at these morning rush hours.

Alebard stretched and yawned as the morning sun streamed in through the window of his bedroom. Curled up beside him and still snoozing away was Zalek. Alebard reached over and scratched his best friend's eye ridges. "Come on, Zalek. It's time to get up," he said.

The miniature dragon grumbled a half-hearted complaint and remained curled up.

"I know, but it's morning," Alebard said. "And you don't want to miss breakfast, do you?"

Zalek's head perked up just a little bit at the mention of food, causing Alebard to chuckle. After spending 6 years with the dragon, he knew all the best ways to get Zalek's interest up in a situation.

Alebard stretched again as he pulled himself out of bed. Zalek also began to uncurl and stretch out his sinuous form. Alebard grabbed a set of clothes and made his way into the bathroom to shower and get dressed before he and Zalek went down to the nearest cafeteria to get food.

"COME ON SAZEL!" said a female voice from the other side of the door, she was still not bad to bang constantly, but she banged twice to make her pointer clear. "Not everyone skips on the first class like you, I am going to be late."

The younger summoner stretched in her bathtub, splashing some water with her feet before sighing. "Just come in, there is no need for two ladies such as us to be shy at the sight of each other..."

"Yeah, no, I don't mind that bit, but you are you, and just yesterday you came home smelling like rotten fish."

"Those fishes were very much alive, my summon enjoys them for snacks and..." there was a sigh from the other side, her roommate had given up with a sigh and moved to the kitchen to prepare breakfast for herself.

That was the cue Sazel needed, and with a smirk, she waited, staying still in her bathtub as she heard plates and utensils moving about. "Now..." she whispered, getting out of her bath, wrapping herself on a towel and opening the door with a bang, The roommate, who was about to get the first bite on a sandwich, stopped herself and looked up.

"Ugh, finally." Without thinking twice, she moved to the bathroom, and Sazel, in turn, moved to the table, with a smirk. In her rage, her roommate had forgotten the breakfast she had prepared for herself unattended. Sazel was quick to fix that, digging in.

"Operation free breakfast is a success~" she hummed. By the time the roommate was out there would be no food or Sazel in sight.

---

---

Alistair could be described as nothing other than a corpse when he slept. Strategically, he had 2 alarms set on his clock on weekdays. One at 6:30, the other at 6:35, both of which he'd hit snooze on an average of 3 times before he woke for the day. He was definitely not a pretty sight when he woke up, his thick brown hair looking more like a rug than anything else. On this morning, he'd forgot to set his alarms the night before. He'd only woken up because of one of the cats had found his face the perfect place to lay on. Unable to breathe, and his mouth getting clogged with thick tabby orange fur, he attempted to pull the cat from his face. Claws latched into his skin, and he yelped, finally dislodging the feline and sending it back to his realm.

With a bit of morning grumpiness he muttered something about never letting his summons sleep in his room, but there was no real threat behind his words. On the nights that memories of his past wormed their way into his dreams, the cats helped him to sleep. Often, he didn't have to command them to comfort him, most of them were more than happy to keep him settled through the night. He didn't show it much, even in the privateness of his room, but he was grateful for the cats that laid on and around him.

He grabbed a couple of clothes and stumbled over to the bathroom, his hurried attempts to get to breakfast before the best of the food was picked over sacrificing his gracefulness. He managed to trip over a pile of books and stub his toe on the leg of his desk before he made it to the bathroom, thankfully in one piece. A wide toothed comb did little for his hair except take out the knots and make it lie a little flatter, giving his mop of hair its trademark 'messy in its own charming way' look it had every day. He grabbed his bundle of clothes, pulling off his night shirt, his movements slowing as his eyes fell on his scar. He turned around and looked over his shoulder to see if it looked any better than it had yesterday, but as usual, the skin was still pale and irreparable. He scowled, even after years since the incident he never got used to the look. He pulled his shirt over his head and rounded the corner to get to the cafeteria, nearly running down one of his roommates, Silas, in the process. He just barely pulled up short in time.

"Shoot, sorry man. I didn't see you there."

---

---

---

Ives awoke with a dull ache in his head. He blinked sleep from his eyes, blearily sitting up but stopped when the movement shot discomfort up his spine. His back had an awful crick in it, but he expected as much from sleeping upright. He'd fallen asleep on his books again, and his glasses had been pushed up his forehead, leaving ridiculous pressure indents in his skin.

No matter how late he stayed up the night before, Ives woke up at the same time of day every morning, at 6:45. Today was no exception, despite his estimates that he'd been up past midnight the prior night. He always promised himself that he'd drop the habit of staying up late to study, but he never really bothered with trying. One way or another, he'd make his family wish they wanted him when they had him.

There were noticeably no pictures in Ives' room, and there were very few objects of sentimental value. It didn't take someone to know Ives personally to conclude this, his room was barren except for school books, and tons of sketchbooks, canvases, and art mediums lined neatly by his bed. Some were full, others blank. Several of his paintings were stored on his bed, and a vanitas he'd painted were hung up on the wall. He was particularly fond of the one he'd done of the skull with red and white wilted roses growing out of it resting atop an overflowing chest of gold. Most who saw it would poke fun at Ives for it, calling him edgy or depressive.

Ives went to his wardrobe, grabbing a navy collared shirt and a black pair of jeans. Ives was careful to check no one was in the hall when he slipped into the bathroom, he was certainly far from presentable at the moment. His hair, washed the night before as it always was, no longer had gel to hold it back from his face. Jet strands hung over his eyes, which had pronounced dark circles under them. He changed into his shirt, making sure the collar was properly folded, and washed his face. The cold water certainly helped to wake him up and took care of the pressure indents. He slicked back his hair and grabbed his glasses, getting ready to leave for breakfast.

The boy was hunched over the desk, scribbling away, pausing at times to consult an open book nearby. Nothing else in the room could be heard save for the movement of pen on paper. But suddenly, the boy stopped. He furrowed his brow at the sheet of paper in front of him and frowned, as if something had gone wrong. Putting his pen down the boy sighed and leaned back in his chair. He rubbed the bridge of his nose tiredly, before idly looking through the nearby window. He winced a little as light hit his eyes. The sun was coming up, that meant it was a new day.

Nikola stretched his limbs. He'd been awoken by a nightmare up in the middle of the night and he decided to study rather than go back to sleep. He had big dreams, after all, and he needed everything he could get. The boy looked around his room. His books for the day were safely stowed in his bag by the bed (save the ones he was using to study), his day to day clothes were ready to wear hanging on the cupboard, and his bed was... rather messy, but he supposed he'd have to fix it later. There was still a fluffy entity resting on it, and he didn't feel the need to wake it. Nikola shrugged and got off the chair. He took his clothes and headed to the bathroom - it was time to get himself ready for the day ahead.

Soon enough he came back from the bath, clean and ready. The boy moved to his bed, hovering over the ball of fluff resting peacefully on his pillow. He prodded it gently, trying to wake it.
"Kitten, it's time to wake up." He whispered.
The furry dragon opened its eyes slowly, glancing at the disturbance to its rest. It yawned, stretching its limbs, before rolling onto its back.
"Kitten..." The boy murmured disapprovingly, rubbing the dragon's belly.
It purred softly but made no attempt to move.

Nikola frowned, picking up his pillow and moving it to the floor. He began to make his bed, fixing the sheets, tucking them in, folding his blanket. Roused by the action, the fluffy dragon blinked awake, rolling off of the pillow onto its feet. It stretched its hips into the air and yawned, before coming over towards Nikola. It rubbed its head against the boy and he responded in kind, giving it a few affectionate strokes. The boy picked the pillow up and putting it in its rightful place, before finally scooping up the dragon into his arms. He looked around the room once more, to ascertain that everything was in order.
"Alright... Let's go then." He said to the dragon.
It cooed in response. The boy scratched its head and began walking towards the cafeteria, for the noble aim of breakfast and whatever else would come their way.

Lorcan stirred from the weak attempt at sleep as his carriage rolled over yet another subtle bump in the road, an annoyed sneer smearing across his face as he added it to his ongoing count of sleep depriving detritus experienced over the last few hours. Realms above and below he hated traveling, especially overnight. His carriage was finely made, Brougham style and made from a richly blue-purple wood that he could not name. Gold leaf inlaid into richly detailed filigree carved into its sides and pulled by twined stallions of alabaster white and intimidating physique. All of which was likely to distract from the faint glow of magi-tech plates resting between the passenger car and the wheels.

A more reasonable soul might assume the plates acted as a form of suspension, a magically crafted guarantee of a smooth ride. And had a more reasonable soul commissioned the construction of this vehicle, it probably would have. Sadly, his father was not a reasonable soul, and instead had insisted on the traditional image of a horse drawn carriage be maintained and egregiously decorated. Even the horses were mere affectations, the rich thud of their hooves against the road to their bodies being little more than minor illusory effects. Courtesy of some here to unknown (but doubtlessly expensive) mystical bauble a machina alum was doubtlessly proud of.

No the real ‘horsepower’ of this gilded affront to rationality were the aforementioned plates; Magi-tech engines that thrummed quietly as they pushed the carriage along at an (admittedly) impressive clip. However, by this point Lorcan was far from being impressed. Being trapped inside the damnable thing for two days somewhat robbed one's appreciation of even its finer qualities. The inside was decorated with stiff leather, embossed with gold nailheads that dug into his back after the first hour. It helped little that the thing was packed to the gills with luggage. Only one case of which he personally had deigned to bring. The rest had been ‘helpfully’ provided to him, much of it formal wear, should he have need of it.

The carriage would likely turn heads when he arrived (if anyone was even awake at this hour to see him), but as it stood he was thoroughly miserable inside it. Only his driver having it worse, the open air seating he was given doing little to protect him from the elements. With a swallowed sigh he pushed open the curtains and leaned his head out the window, addressing the man in question.

“Feston.” He said primly but softly, honestly not wanting to agitate the poor man unduly. Last night’s storm had done more than number on the poor man’s spirit thank you very much. “I apologize but how much furt-”

Feston, a balding man of his forties with a normally lush and well groomed moustache, wiped his head back towards Lorcan, voice creaking with an agitation constrained only by years of practice. “A few minutes young master.” He huffed, voice raspy and thick. “Ye can see L’mordyn oncein we crest this hill.”

Lorcan took the brusque response in stride and did not let his instinctual reaction to show on his face. Being angry with Feston wouldn’t help either of them and, by this point, suffering the man’s ire was more than a little deserved. “I see. Thank you Feston. Please, let me know when we are at the gates, I wish to freshen up.” Lorcan chimed pleasantly, the subtle grunt being the only acknowledgement the order was accepted.

Carefully closing and securing the curtain Lorcan grabs a small jug of water and opens a random suitcase, grabbing a freshly pressed shirt to use as a rag. His parents likely would have been aghast at him stripping and washing himself (albeit with some limitations) in such a manner, but they were thankfully not here. And right now, Proprietary could eat a fat dick. He was NOT attending classes smelling like the back end of a wyvern.

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

“Young Master.” Feston said a good half hour later, a note of relief ringing heavily in his voice. “We’ve arrived.” Lorcan leans out of the carriage window, looking up towards the vast stairwell that lead into L’mordryn proper. Staring up the stairs (and boy where there a lot of them) up at the main entrance allowing his eyes a moment to roam up the yellow-white brick to the statue of a four winged angel, weapons at ease in their hands as their immense form stood sentinel over the school.

“Very good.” Lorcan says, stepping out quickly and dusting off a fresh uniform, a small bag draped casually across his shoulder. “Please see to my luggage being delivered to my room if you would be so kind...I’m sure the school has some staff who could happily assist you.” He said, watching with some amusement as the man’s deep scowl quickly evaporated the moment he was not expected to do so alone. Like Lorcan could be so cruel.

The sun had only just risen, so classes had likely yet to start, which meant he’d arrived on time at least. As much as he would have liked to settle in today, the school was already being more than generous in taking him in so late in the year (even if he DID study while competing). It would be an intrusion on that kindness to skip the first day in his new home.

“Speaking of intrusions…” He said, pulling a small golden dragon ear piece from his pocket, the metal cold and stinging against his skin in the cold autumn morning. He concentrates for a moment, wondering if (given the sheer size of the campus) if she was even in range. A soft tinny ringing from the dragon banishing the concern from his mind just as quickly as it came.

“Isobel. I hope I did not wake you…” He said, smirking as he began to ascend the steps and knowing full well he did. The day Isobel was an early riser was the day he ate his own hat. “I just wanted to let you know I’ve just arrived safely. How have you been?”

---

When Esther knocked, Corona was closing her eyes, savoring the nice and pleasant feeling of the warm water coursing through every inch of her body.

Naturally, the sound interrupted her, bringing her consciousness back from the heavens.

She sighed. This certainly wasn't the first time this had happened.

"Please wait," she shouted back. Technically, she could open the locked bathroom door and let the girl in, as the toilet itself was separate from the showers, but that would mean exposing her naked body to her as she did her business.

And she, as someone with a well-ingrained decency, couldn't do that. Not even when they're both girls.

It wasn't just about exposing herself. It was also about her not wanting to see the younger girl relieving herself, be it number 1 and 2.

And so unfortunately for Esther, she just had to wait a little longer.

---

Esther knocked again several times more in one minute intervals afterwards.

And yet, Corona still refused to go out and let her do her business.

Urgh, Corona... just let me do my business. You're not even actually using the toilet yourself!, she thought in exasperation.

But, she knew her friend decided on something, she was stubborn enough to continue sticking to it. Even in a mundane matter of bathroom privacy.

In the end, she gave up and went to the other bathroom. If she were lucky, it would actually be empty and she could use it right away.

Which, of course, didn't happen.

There stood in the front of the second bathroom door a fellow Machina student. She was also Virtuoso 1 like her, and she was also waiting for her friend to finish using the bathroom.

"Heya, Mary. Waiting for Clara too, huh?" Esther greeted her with an empathetic smile.

The girl turned to her and said with a flat expression, "And you're waiting for Corona. It's the only reason why you would be here."

"...Well, you got me there." Esther added with a chuckle.

Esther wasn't as well-acquainted as she was with Corona with her. All she knew that she was an all too-serious noble girl from somewhere.

"I suggest you go back," she told her. "Corona would finish before I am, I'm quite sure of it."

She was pretty much not-so-subtly telling her that she wasn't giving her turn for her. Looking at the way she kept glancing at the bathroom door and how she kept walking around in place, Esther knew that she was in a similar boat to her.

"Okay, okay, I'm going," Esther replied. "Tell Clara I said hello," she added with a grin before leaving.

And sure enough, Corona was just finished when she got back. Still in her towels (with her hair actually held up in a separate towel), Corona returned back to her room with Esther rushing into the now free bathroom.

Such was the typical start for Corona and Esther's day.

Nettle

She began to stir as a small hairy leg was placed upon her shut eye. The tarantula had crawled up upon her during the night, now sitting on her face as the morning light drizzled through the gaps in the vines covering her window. As she opened her one free eye she could see her little roommate looking straight back at her with all eight of it's own.

After a moment of stillness Nettle calmly lifted her arms up from her sides. She laid one hand flat in front of it and used the other to nudge the spider forward gently. With it having crawled up onto her hand she carefully placed the tarantula upon the trunk of the pygmy tree that grew directly above her head.

The waters trembled ever slightly as she rose from the pool of murky water she slept within. The pool was just deep enough to cover most of her body when she was laying flat but shallow enough that she did not risk inhaling water while she slept. The roots of the pygmy tree trapped the water to form this pool. The floor of her room was covered with rich, dark soil that all served as the base for all the plants which grew upon the floor of her room. The soil at the bottom of the pool was rendered a soft mud upon which a species of moss that thrived underneath shallow water grew. The moss helped to hold the mud together without sacrificing it's softness making for a nice bed to sleep upon. At least it was for those who do not mind the bugs, bacteria and other facets that come into play with all of these organic elements present. That pretty much meant only Nettle for the most part.

Standing up from the pool the strange mixture that the water now consisted of dripped from her wet body back into the pool, mixing back into the swirling composition of white, black and translucent blotches. This was of course a result of her adding special salves and other herbal mixtures into the liquid, giving it a nice refreshing feeling and scent while also helping to keep the pores of her skin splendidly clean. It was a far cry from the benefits that dining upon the Caregiver's special stew held but that particular meal was now in limited supply ever since the Caregiver disappeared from their lives. As for the sweat and oils from her body those were taken care of by the roots and moss which happily dined upon the water's rich mixture. While this meant she had to refill the pool after each day this also meant every night she'd rest in a clean, healthy mixture.

_
Though she was introduced to the concept of towels during her year as a tyro she never found such things all too useful. They just wipe away the water along with all the beneficial ingredients she put in said water. She much preferred to let herself dry naturally. That way the water would evaporate but leave the herbal mixture on her skin which prolonged it's usefulness.

As she sat cross-legged upon her carpet of vines, moss and reeds she brushed through her hair with a comb she had made by gluing together two pieces of wood using a particularly sticky sap which hardens with time. The hairs of the brush were particularly stiff whiskers harvested off the giant bodies of Stranglesun Swamp rats that were found dead in the stranglebriar vines and then stuck between the pieces of wood where they're held fast. After working out any tangles in her glistening cascade of moss green hair she got up, now dry for the most part, and went over to the pile she left her clothes in.

She started with a long cloth which she used to wrap around her chest and hips with. The teachers had informed her partway into her tyro year that covering certain areas of her body with undergarments was an expected social norm, especially when wearing robes, so she got into the routine of using a cloth wrap to cover these specified regions of hers. After that she simply slipped on her earthy brown robe, stepped into her oversized hide boots and hung her satchel off the shoulder before stepping up to her door. A small tangle of stranglebriar vines hung in front of the door and several spirit charms and dream catchers hung not only from nails embedded in the door but across the walls of her room and just over her vine-tangled window. These charms and wards she has crafted are enchanted with effects designed to ward off unwelcome spirits from many different venues of approach. These were just a small few of many arcane secrets the Caregiver had imparted upon them. A little something to make life more livable down in the swamp where not all the dangers were always strictly natural.

While stranglebriar vines were notorious for grappling and killing prey for nutrients she knew them well. A big part of surviving these lively thorned lengths was to simply not agitate them. Motion aggravates these vines, especially when caught within them. Calmly she gently lifted them aside like a curtain before opening her door and stepping through, careful not to simply drop the vines as she lowered them with due caution so as to not agitate them.

_
Now out of her room and into the dorm proper Nettle approached the bathroom on her side only to find it locked. Upon testing the handle to discover this a sing-song voice called out to her in response to the knob's rattle.

"One moment~!" The response of her dorm-mate was shortly followed by the unlocking and subsequent opening of the bathroom door. Striding out past her was Tinita Drendle, a fellow student in house Phantasma who was settled in the room on her side of the dorm. With her curly blonde locks bouncing on each step she strode past Nettle with a spring to her stride as always.

"Good morning Nettle~" She merrily greeted Nettle despite not slowing in the slightest in her pace as she approached her own room. Upon her shoulder sat her summon, a cat with long golden fur and a pair of angelic wings. It was playing a soft harmony on the golden harp it carried while it rode almost weightlessly upon Tinita's shoulder. In truth the cat was actually a divine spirit summoned from one of the many heavens. Probably a heaven for cats.

"Hhh... Hgood morning." Nettle answered back plainly in her usual breathy drawn out accent knowing that regardless of her answer Tinita was unlikely to stop and chat. Unlike a fair portion of the students she was familiar with Tinita had class for her first session and she often liked to eat breakfast early so she could arrive early to class as well. It was part of Tinita's efforts to impress the teachers or at least such is how it appeared to Nettle. She didn't hold any strong opinion on her about that. She didn't really understand it but there was also a lot of social intricacies that weren't familiar to her either.

Now in the bathroom Nettle went about her morning bathroom routine as usual. She always made her own toothpaste and after rinsing her mouth out she'd take a type of small dark herb that secreted a transparent, odorless resin which was poisonous and rub her teeth down in it. She found it did a good job at killing off bacteria. It didn't effect her any so all she knew of it were it's benefits.

After she was done she stepped out and proceeded towards the door. She was in no hurry herself since she didn't have class for her first session but food was starting to sound quite welcome to her stomach. In measured form she ambled coolly for the front door.

Just an average start to another normal day at L'Mordryn Academy for Nettle.

L'Mordryn academy is home to noble children from all the lands for the beginning of their journeys on the path of invocation. The Veill family is one which has only been a noble family for a little while, but is now seemingly entering their rise to prominence. They've gained a reputation for being talented invokers. The head of each generation have all become masters, and Clarence, the current scion of the house seems to be one of the most talented invokers they've seen yet.

He summoned his first familiar at a very young age, before his schooling had even begun. The link between him and his familiar was unheard of, like the steel of its making was how it was described by a L'Mordryn assessor. It seemed unbreakable, the distance they could be apart seemed limitless. If one were to let their imagination run wild, it was as if Orewing were a being of this Earth, and they didn't have a link at all!

Which is exactly how it was.

"Clarence," Mort spoke.

His call fell on thickly blanketed ears. Underneath a mound of soft linens a small groan emanated from within.

"Clarence." Mort said, more insistent this time.

An hand poked through a gap and widened it, allowing a soft, and small red haired head to poke out of the covers. It breathed through its nostrils for a few minutes before groaning again.

"I don't want to come in today... Help me Morttttt..."

The daily routine. This was Clarence Chaunce Veill, scion of the Veill family.

When one has a burden pressed onto them, they can either try to bear it, or try to lighten it. As the only son of the Veill family, Clarence doesn't have the luxury of lightening it, but if someone can't bear a burden properly, they will inevitably crash, which was Clarence, every day. Mornings were tough on him, but he needed to keep up appearances. For the sake of him, and his family.

"Up you get," Mort said, floating closer.

Orewing was the, decidedly not false name of the warhammer inhabited by the Earth-bound spirit Mort, which Clarence had met some time ago. To find out how exactly he came to be, the both of them had decided that L'Mordryn was the way to go.

Clarence weakly gripped the handle of Orewing, and Mort dragged him around the room to try and dislodge the boy from his cocoon. It wouldn't do to have the other members of the dorm room see him in this state. Mort didn't have a particular preference, but Clarence was rather particular about his appearance.

Once blankets were dislodged, Mort helped Clarence to his feet and guided him over to the bathroom. He deposited him in the bathtub and closed the door behind him as he left.

Clarence's burden was magnified somewhat by his personality. He dwelled on mistakes, and was always somewhat anxious, but once he realized he hadn't done anything wrong and that he didn't have anything to stress about he was generally fine. Clarence emerged from the bath, refreshed and somewhat at ease. There weren't any tests or assessments due for at least a month so he'd be fine for today.

Mort kept Clarence's cup on top of Orewing while Clarence brushed his teeth. He put Clarence's towel into the laundry basket once he finished drying himself off. Once Clarence was dressed, he was as ready as he was going to be.

"..." Clarence was looking at himself in the mirror. There weren't any bags under his eyes. "Let's go get breakfast, Mort."

But a bad night's sleep is a bad night's sleep. He'd have to compensate on the weekend.

It wasn't a secret that Mort could talk, just that Orewing couldn't. It felt strange to call him Orewing in public so they just didn't speak unless they needed to. At this point it wasn't as if they needed to, they already knew everything about each other. Mort was a spirit with no memory, but not one without any discretion.

They both exited the dorm room in silence.

6th Floor, Dorm room 5, House Dracona
@ghastlyInc

---

while the other people in the house were waking up, a certain someone in Room C of Dorm 5, was electing to sleep in. She had first session free, after all, and had no reason to wake herself up. Unlike most noble ladies graceful sleeping posture, Isobel's was anything but elegant. Covers already halfway off the bed, one of her arms hanging limply over the side, hair an utter mess and a bit of drool running down the side of her face and wearing nothing but a disheveled tanktop and shorts to sleep in. Laying with his head right on her chest, was a certain frosty dragon.

"Mrrrgh..." A sharp Tinny right in her ear from a rather unpleasant device attached to it was the first to try and rouse her from slumber. "Too early..." Was the first thing Lorcan would get in reply as Isobel groggily woke from her sleep, trying to roll over onto her stomach. The next thing Lorcan would hear was a resounding "Thud" and a metallic screech from the Earwyrm.

"...I'm gonna kick your ass for that, Lorcan." Isobel replied with a loud yawn, pushing herself up from the floor. Ciervia, also woke from his slumber positioned himself on Isobel's shoulders, face next to the Earwyrm.

"Mrrrawr!"

"Frost butt says he'll kick your ass too." She stretched, cracking a few of her bones in the process. Satisfied that his message had gotten across, the furry pygmy drake curled itself around Isobel's shoulders. "Jeez, what time is it?..." Glancing out the window, Isobel noticed that it was daytime. Well, that was normal. Sleeping in was normal for her.

"Hmm...? What is it boy?" Ciervia nudged the side of her head was she forgetting something...? "GAH!? I'M GONNA BE LATE?!" The connection to Lorcan's Earwyrm was suddenly cut off after that loud shout, the shout of witch, probably woke the rest of her entire dorm if they weren't already.


4th floor, Dorm room 4, House Phantasma
@Pyromania99

---

Livia was awake likely hours before anyone else. Early yo bed and early to rise, as they say, though she often found herself doing only the first part of it. Long nights, and early mornings were her usual routine. Studying long hours into the witching hours, and rising early enough to get a head start on her studies. Sitting at her desk, Livia flipped a page in the heavy tome she was reading, a book simply titled "Daemones autem Epíscopi". A fairly comprehensive work on a number of so called demons she had brought with her this semester.

Sighing lightly, the former noble leaned back in her chair, reaching for a teacup and bringing it to her lips. Progress had been slow. Steady, but slow. Too slow, almost. She was patient, but even her own patience had its limits. She should be attempting a second summons soon. A permanent connection again, like she had with Siobahn. The chirping of a bird outside her window caught her attention.

Glancing over to the covered window, Livia frowned lightly. Breakfast time already? Ugh, why did there have to be so few hours in the day? She could hardly get half of the reading she wanted too done. Well, no matter. She'd just have to make time later and spend less time on distractions. Sighing, she placed the teacup back onto the desk and closed the thick tome before standing and walking over to a bookshelf in the dimly lit room and replacing it.

"Eva, sister," She began, tracing a hand down the other tomes on the shelf. Seemingly not finding what she was looking for, Livia turned to face her sister across the dimly lit room. Her summons, Siobahn, and Eva were currently engrossed in a game of cards. Several were splayed out before them. It was part of responsibilities she had given her summons - Eva desperately needed a playmate late at night when she was asleep. A ghost or undead was the perfect choice. "...or rather, perhaps I should say Siobahn, stop cheating."

"Na'Wa?!" The spectral entity gave a shout of surprise as she was caught off guard by Livia's sudden accusation. "Cu'laihm! Getal F'ashis!"

"Hmph," Livia chuckled lightly. "Oh really? Care to explain why you keep drawing more than one card when you draw?"

"...Meui sciant meb." Siobahn shifted her gaze to the side as Livia turned her attention to Eva.

"...and could you not just phase half your body through the floor? The people in the dorm below us probably don't care to be spooked by you this early."

"Cu'laihm fehno..." the specter seemed to pout lightly as Livia walked over to Eva, ruffling her sisters hair.

"How are you this morning, Sister?" Siobahn floated up from the floor, letting a few of the cards it was holding fall to the ground. "Siobahn giving you more trouble?"

Albus Winterhold

It was one of those mornings. Albus was a bit on the cold side. He was just laying there with no sheets on... Wait. "No sheets." He jumped up and looked around. The summoner was in fact, on the floor. Slight investigation of the bed revealed that there was a pink fluffy thing on the bed. "You damn bird brain, you knocked me out of the bed!"

Vesper, the wyvern gave a small yawn and just eyeballed him. She telepathically told him something and his face burned red. "Oh come on! As if! If I thought you would taste good I would turn you into dragon patties!" The wyvern got a really tired look in her eyes and Albus seemed taken aback. "Well the feeling is mutual then. Oh anyhow, last day of classes for the weekend." Albus continued as if they had never had an argument. He checked his clothes. He had his normal at home shorts on (way too short and revealing more than they should) and a tank top. "Gonna brush my teeth and go down to breakfast. Want to return for now and get your food?"

Vesper shook her head and rubbed her belly with a satisfying look on her face... As much as one could tell such a thing. "Ahh, you did it already. Just don't eat my chips. I'll legit curse you." The dragon responded something and Albus nodded, "Fine, you can have those experimental ones they gave me."

With that matter finished, Albus walked out of his room and headed over to the bathroom where he kept his toothbrush. Luckily, it was warm inside the dorms. Otherwise, it would be a little bit on the cold side and he'd have to wear more. And if he needed to wear more, he couldn't mess with the others as much as he is. Well, it didn't matter too much at the moment anyhow. No one seemed to be around. To be fair, they were down a person. They were suppose to be coming soon right? Heh... "I guess I can do something stupid. Sneak in maybe? Leave a present?" Albus started to brush his teeth as he kept his evil scheming, spit, gargle, spit, repeat. "Bleh! Always the worst."

Finished with that, he took a quick shower. Nothing spoke as much as staying clean. Finished, he wrapped a towel around his waist and proceeded back to where he was sure a certain wyvern was getting into a stash she shouldn't be getting into. As he opened the door, he just yelled. "Get out of there!" Vesper quickly moved from looking into some dark crevice and looked innocent. "Yea, yea, tell it to the judge when I get you for chip theft." He started looking through his wardrobe for something to wear for today. Nothing too nice, but not super casual like at home. "Allegedly, thank you. They didn't catch me in the act so I don't have to repay them. I mean, it was just like... Five bags, Vesp."

Oh, this shirt should do nicely. Cute and buttons up. Perfect for the weather as well. Not quite a wool piece but should keep him warm. "Come on, they won't miss a couple of bags. Oh, but I will. I keep that stuff under a very stiff list. You touch one single chip and I'll know. If you really want some eat the ones in the kitchen." Vesper just rolled her eyes and walked toward the kitchen. She was taller than average but she could still fit under the door frame.

A skirt on the shorter side worked, but still required some tights to stay fairly warm, especially to Albus, a creature that felt cold even in late spring at times. Lastly, a scarf for good measure. Great! Now he had proper clothing to leave. Quickly he dressed, put on some fashionable legwear and shoes and left toward the kitchen. "Okie doke. Hey, Vesp, want to lounge around and watch TV today or did you want to head back to your realm for a bit?" The dragon looked at a nearby clock and then at the Magivision "Oh, did that get moved to fridays? Damn, fine. Watch it. I'm off to breakfast. He waved at the wyvern as it fumbled to get to the channel it wanted.

He took the quickest route down he could and that almost resulted in him face planting on the ground, but he caught himself and continued on. "Breakfast, breakfast~ I want a big waffle and some bacon~"

Evangeline Lindall

It was another one of those nights. Trying to get to sleep at 9:30 or so, finally falling asleep an hour later... Only to wake up 4 hours later without the ability to go back to sleep. It was another six or so hours before classes would start. What better time to go invade her sister's room? Siobahn was always awake anyhow. Maybe she could convince her to play a game or something all night. Again. It was time to sneak in. Not that it was all that difficult. Livia just left the door unlocked anyhow. "Coming in..." Eva said in a low voice, as to not wake her sister up.

She looked around and saw the banshee and waved. She mouthed, "Want to play something?" and without waiting for some much as a movement, started to dig in Livia's belongings in a small chest their mother forced her to bring. She found whatever it was she was looking for before holding it high up in the air. "Du-dah!" She said excitedly but quietly so Livia wouldn't be woken. With that, she and Siobahn played cards for quite a while. Long enough Livia woke up and did her usual early morning stuff. Eva didn't pay too much attention. It was all weird things anyhow, nothing cute like Floofel or Siobahn. Then Livia started commenting on their game. "Ahh! I knew you were cheating Siob! Not like how that one person accused the woman mom was with that one time but... Uhh, I mean, Grr!! I'll catch you next time you do it."

Then she looked up to Livia. "No more than usual, heh. She's just lucky she's a cute ghost. I can't give her a tickle attack like mom taught." Evangeline giggled a bit before looking at the time. "Oh! It's almost breakfast time. I'm hungry. I'll go get changed into a proper dress and come back." Eva said, putting down her hand, a winning one at that, and shuffled off to her room to get changed into one of the very similar dresses her mom made for her. They were fairly simple to put on though the accessories were a bit on the annoying side. She had taken a shower earlier that morning.... Sometime. As she left the room, she noticed that someone else was heading towards the door. "Oh! Nettie!" She exclaimed as she did a running jump onto Nettle, giving her a hug. "Good morning, Nettie! Heading to breakfast?"

She was as excited as she always seemed to be despite the huge bags under her eyes that indicated lack of sleep. Despite the many attempts at rectifying the issue, nothing seemed to work so she just continued her life of not sleeping. The Lindall didn't let that stop her from enjoying the life she was given though. Her mom always told her to stand strong, so she had to. "I hope they have those pancakes again. And the syrup! We never had those back home. Mom could make tea but not that syrup. Or it was too expensive. Well, whatever, we can have it here." She seemed to remember something though as she turned to Livia's room. "Livia, I'm out here talking to Nettie. Ready for breakfast!?"

The dawn light always brings about a new start, a new spring. Animals wake up, plants wake up, the world wakes up. As millions of lives are stirred, so does it stir the Nidhogan. Whether a gnarled tree, a large bush, topiary, or just a mound of compost, the Nidhogen roots itself into the ground, drawing the life from the soil to feed the copious life within it. The Nidhogen was an elemental, though a powerful one that encompassed the complexity of life. The Air blows, Fire Burns, Earth stands, and water flows. Life, life grows.

With the dawn it rises, every sound an movement the sound of wind through an overgrown forest, wood bending and twigs snapping. It would rise to tower over the average man, nine feet at the shoulder, its hunched form causing it to walk on four limbs, the only way it could fit in the school corridors without shedding its husk. The Nidhogen was used to it by now. Nettle brought it here, a different world from the outside. Still the banquet of colors and the creatures it has seen had made this part of its existence quite fun.

It begins to move, its vines and branches furling into its form, the various insects and creatures crawling in and out of its form as it set itself into a shape that it can move and prepare itself. A few rabbits scurried about it, trying to figure out the new place they found themselves in, the courtyard, a vast and lush and beautiful courtyard surrounded by the halls of the academy. The Nidhogen would sleep here most nights, or the gardens around House Phantasma, but the Nidhogen would always try to eat the undead summons of the other students, viewing them as nice rotting compost.

With a new morning came a new day. Nettle would let it do as it wished, which seemed primarily to be involved in the classes and clubs and other students. It led to some chaotic and interesting moments in the past but getting approached and greeted by the big friendly elemental was just a part of life now.

Nidhogen began to walk its path waiting for someone, anyone to enter the halls surrounding the courtyard. It would run towards anyone who came nearby, giant leaves on its back to collect the sunlight, and little bulbs and flowers forming on its arms and body. By the time it would rush to a student, its arm would already would have disappeared in a patch of twigs leaves and the bulbs of ripe fruit.

Today the Nidhogen grew apples, a free treat some of the cheaper students would take advantage of. However the Nidhogen was in a very exuberant mood this morning and when it was excited, it would be a little too helpful. A group of students wouldn't receive a single apple, but the Nidhogen would shout its greeting. "Green morning!" Its voice never seemed to stay the same from word to word, masculine, feminine, childlike, always echoed by the sound of bending wood and splintering trees. It would then hold out its arm over the students and offer them their breakfast. A small avalanche of apples.



Back in House Phantasma, one of the students, a leaf on his blazer would run back to their dorm house. @A Lowly Wretch"Nettle! Can you get a hold of that giant thing of yours!? Its making a mess!" Indeed, the hallways around the courtyard would be littered with apples, too many for even a class to finish.

---

---

In the Head Mistress's personal quarters. @Artifex

0550 - Exit sleep cycle and recharge.
0551 - Open curtains, brew coffee, lay out the Madame's clothes.
0552 - Heat skillets, set up breakfast utensils on cart.
0554 - Double check daily itinerary. Set up automatic schedule for all teachers and prospectors for daily announcements and activities.
0555 - Cook breakfast. Two eggs, sunny side down, bacon cut into inches, sliced fruit and berries, pour orange juice.
0558 - Prepare coffee lattee. Talian Sweetner, half cup. Three cubes sugar, twelve stirs.
0559 - Be by the headmistress' side for 0600 for foor prepared.
0600 - Scheduled wake up.

"Good morning Madame." Cogsworth in his immaculate butler attire with the cart of food for the woman of the school. He had awakened her with a greeting and playing very soft violin music to make sure she starts the day right and easily. Despite her capability and renown, he knew full well by now that she needed a pleasant start, and pleasant end to a busy day, and Cogsworth was more then willing to provide.

"The Temperature is 23 degrees Celsius, 26 percent humidity with light clouds. Another beautiful day on campus madame." He set about offering her the tray, her breakfast and coffee laid out before her in a lavish banquet and diligent care, including a flower in a vase, a splash of color with her breakfast. Once done he would stand back, at attention, his cerulean eye watching her, awaiting any changes and orders she required.

"If there is anything you need to announce to the school, I will make sure the messages are updated." After her breakfast, he would draw her morning bath, get her lunch ready, and perform some minor cleaning and maintenance before starting his own day, aiding the teachers and house representatives for maximum efficiency.

Janee smiled as she looked towards the window, the light now starting to show itself more prominently. It was finally morning and almost time for classes. Without much of a thought, she left her bed, grabbed a large towel and gently walked out of her bedroom, trying to not make a sound that would wake up her roommates. She had met them before, but sadly, her shyness had prevented her from holding a long conversation with them and she wasn't sure if they were such an early riser as Janee was.

She carefully made her way towards the bathroom in front of her bedroom and smiled, seeing that it was still unoccupied. After closing the door behind her, she opened the faucet on the tub and waited on the edge for the water to rise to a comfortable level. Last year had been crazy here in L'Mordryn Academy, and while it was clear that she had the theory of summoning completly memorized, she was still unsure as to why she couldn't summon anything with attacking power. Well, she could... it just wouldn't work... or just plainly disassemble in front of her. It was very strange indeed... She could swore that every time she tried it, she felt something. Something that was stopping her... Something that didn't want her to do it... Something wet...

"Wait... Wet?" She thought, forcing her senses back down to earth and to the water in the tub now starting to overfill. "OH..." She exclaimed, quickly turning off the faucet and opening the drain for a bit to let the water level lower a bit. She looked at the mirror, not slightly foggy. Even then, she could see it clearly. She was completely red with embarrassment. "Luckily no one saw it..." She thought to herself as she climbed in to the tub and just began relaxing in the water. "I love mornings." She said to herself.

After the bath, she put on some clothes and walked outside of her dorm, closing the door gently behind her. It was still very early, only almost 7:00, but Janee enjoyed the shyness of mornings when everyone is still waking up and not wanting to have deep conversations with anyone... Especially her. Knowing that it was still a bit early for breakfast, she walked towards one of the courtyards and sat on a bench, checking her schedule after. "Lady Acera huh? I like her." She smiled, once again letting her imagination run wild as she thought about previous lessons with Lady Acera and how future lessons would be like...

---

In the early morning hours of the phantasm tower, Max lies in a deep sleep sprawled out onto his bed clutching a full-body pillow with a print of various fuzzy animals upon it. On top of the end table beside his bed a small digital alarm clock ticks over to 6:30, it then let's out, not an obnoxious beep, but instead plays a sound clip of swarm of crows angrily screeching. Max awakes in a panic and rolls off his bed and onto the floor becoming tangled in his sheets. He lets loose a string of curses and colorful insults as he untangles himself. He springs to his feet ready to introduce some fowls to his fist but finds nothing but empty air. As the last vestiges of sleep leave him and his eyes zeros in on his clock. He makes an annoyed growl and stomps over to the clock and slams his fist onto the button on top further indenting the wood underneath. He takes a breath as the horrid screeching stops, then presses another button on the side of the clock. The display of time changes to that of a song title and a soothing piano piece starts to play.

Max lets the tension drain from his body as the music washes over him. This alarm clock had been a unique commission by Max's parents. Max had been diligent in his studies and training, but he had one problem that they couldn't condition out of him no matter how hard they tried. He slept like he was dead whenever his head hit the pillow. It seemed traditional alarms and music were ineffective at waking him thus a different approach had to be taken. Max was at the minimum a fairly paranoid man, and they decided to take advantage of his more sharpened survival instincts. Thus a clock was built with a massive library of sounds meant to spook Max and his half-asleep brain was compiled and set to random. It was very effective, but Max, of course, hated it and would break it often. It was made tougher with each iteration until finally, to appease Max, a music player was installed. The clock could be turned into a portable speaker for Max's music giving him a reason to not destroy it with a vengeance upon being disturbed.

Max made his way into the bathroom and removed his red and black silk pajamas. His body, if one were to see it outside his Achilles armor, is covered with many faded scars from cuts, burns, and bullet holes. This would lead some to believe Max had an abusive household, but he would insist otherwise. He would tell you every injury he received was from training and never as a punishment. His scars all had stories of live-fire exercises, gladiator style sword fights, and out of control summons. His parents always healed every injury with the best magic money could buy, but magic could only do so much. His parents never treated him with the kid gloves believing the best way to learn anything was the real-world experience.

It took several minutes of hot water and music before Max finally started to hit the Zen-like state he used to get through every day. He focused on today's goals and what he had to accomplish. His research had finally born fruit yesterday having stumbled upon an unusual aberration known as a Changeling. He had high hopes for this creature boasting a physical immunity to damage and the ability to drain life and magic from a creature. He did feel some reluctance due to its stated weakness to fire but unlike his last summon that was far easier to fix. His last summon having been a shadow person. A creature that was intangible unless it wanted to attack and could move at high speeds through darkness and shadow had seemed rather ideal. However, it had an unlisted weakness to light and after getting caught in one shot from Lighting had died instantly. It had been a massive disappointment especially since there was no getting around it. He intended to consult Lady Lestrelle on the matter later today and attempt a summon around lunch. After setting his plans for the day he finished up his shower and stepped back out into the hall.

It was now 6:45 according to his clock and he could hear Ives stirring in his room. Max had an unusual relationship with Ives. The man was the perfect roommate for Max. He was dedicated to his studies, was an artist, and most importantly was quiet. However, what made their relationship unusual is that at the beginning of the year Max had made a special secret request of Ives. In order to join the Cute and Fluffy Club one needed to make a special offering to the club leader. Max could not ask his parents to supply him with what he needed without having to answer questions he did not want to. In his desperation, he asked Ives if he could make a dozen 'cute' pillows for him if he provided the supplies. Ives had agreed to Max's delight but didn't want monetary compensation. He asked simply that Max do him a favor when he asked and Max reluctantly agreed. He didn't like favors as they meant someone held sway over him. However, he couldn't just blow it off when the time came least his secrets be revealed to the wrong parties.

As Max entered his room he made his way straight for his closet. The first thing anyone would notice is that his closet is metal and not the standard would. The next would be the various runes on the front warding against all manner of intrusion and tampering. He began typing a code into the runes that led to a bright glow and then a click as the door swung open. His parents had convinced the school with some financial donations to allow Max's room to be modified. The vault he had in place of a closet was installed to keep the many valuable technologies of his family safe from tampering or theft. The vault carried everything Max owned and was chock full of all his equipment along with ammo, tools, and the special pillowcases. He quickly pulled out his gear for the day and arranged it on his bed and desk. He put on Achilles first and began loading the pockets with his various tools. He slid tri-tips into his sleeves and boots and clipped a couple of grenades to his belt under the duster. He then slipped on a large belt made to hold both the sheaths for Fester and Nail and the holster for Lightning. He slips Whisper into a special pocket on his left breast where it fits snuggly resting against his heart. He then loads Whispers various attachments into his pockets along with plenty of spare ammo magazines.

After taking a quick stock to make sure he hasn't gotten anything he closes up the vault and locks it. He makes his way out into the hall hearing Ives in the shower as heads for the door. Upon stepping into the hallway the first of many annoyances of the day greeted him.

"Good morning, Nettie! Heading to breakfast?" He heard the loud childlike voice of Evangeline exclaim. Max had a mixed opinion about Evangeline. Where Ives had been the perfect roommate Evangeline was the worst neighbor. Her loud obnoxious and lazy attitude grated on Max, but he had to tolerate it because she was the head of the cute and fluffy club and of course knew of his attendance. Her only saving grace was her summon a fascinating creature she calls a fluff fairy. Max can't find any entries on fluff fairies thus making it a bit of a curiosity whenever he gets to see it.

Her friend Nettle was a different case entirely. He didn't know her nearly as well, but she was quiet so it was already higher then Evangeline. Her rather extreme specialization was an odd yet powerful one as evident by the Nidhogen. Her body also wasn't natural anymore and he could not fathom what had made her that way.

Her other roommate Livia was another person after his own heart. A smart talented girl that knew what power was and worked hard to get it. Her only flaw would be her pseudo sister Evangeline. He had no idea what Livia saw in her, and thus had a slightly lower opinion of her then Ives, but just slightly. Her summon and consequently fighting style was interesting, to say the least. Allowing a summon to possess you to increase your physical prowess was a novel idea. So much so Max had considered the idea himself but ultimately abandoned. He couldn't justify the risk of allowing himself to be taken over by another entity and trust it would not betray him.

As Evangeline went on about breakfast Max silently steps over to the door and said in a calm monotone, "Evangeline. Are we meeting tomorrow?" Max realizing it was Friday needed to know when they're flighty club leader would decide to host the next meetup. He would simply stare at Evangeline until he got an answer.

-Room 1, 6th floor, house Bestia-
@Artifex
A soft vibration on his chest alerted Odhra that it was time to wake up, bleary eyes opening weakly to the clacking mandibles of a giant blue and white spider shaking violently on top of him. Most people at this point would probably have started screaming, but Odhra had long since become accustomed to such morning calls. "Good morning Snuggles" he coo'd, stroking the beast gently atop her head. It was an admittedly silly ritual of hers, the poor dear. Afraid that if she did not wake him up early enough he would not feed the various spiders and scorpions littered about his room, most in small plastic cages to keep them safe but a few freely wondering about on the walls in small nests of webs. As if he would ever let his babies go without their meals, but Snuggles was a sweetheart like that.

Carefully he let his hands roam around his body and towards the edge of the bed. Not for any sense of comfort, but because of a hard lesson he'd learned long ago about scorpions and their love of dark warm places. His bed being a prime candidate for such things. Losing a baby due to his own mistakes was always hard, especially when he accidentally squished them, but it was the nature of owning this many wild animals. They weren't summons, there was no desire to obey as there was with Snuggles. Only primal needs and knowledge and a frustrating lack of trainability. Working AROUND them was the only option sadly, the creatures too unintelligent to know how to work with him and only encouraging bad behavior if he worked FOR them.

That wasn't to say he was unhappy with the situation, far from it. Of the ten (eleven he reminded himself) arachnids currently sharing his space most were happy to be held or occasionally petted. But it was a small thing, tolerance and not love, for none of them were built for such things. Pushing himself up from the bed he stepped carefully over to his desk (eyes keenly watching for any wandering souls) before opening the desk and taking out a seal plastic jar, filled half way with writhing maggots and discarded fruit.

Reaching inside and ignoring the faint squishing sensation of rotting fruit he withdrew the four he'd need for today. Another hard lesson. The temptation to over feed all of his pets was there but it would only hurt them more if he did. Strict diets and regimented feedings was the way to do it. Just as important was growing his own food for his babies, carefully monitoring the intake of the maggots and roaches he gave to them to make sure they were free of harmful contaminants like heavy metals or mold.

The first three went well, the four spiders sensing their prey and hungrily snatching them up and giving him little to no mind. The fourth, a small brown scorpion missing a pincer, instead flared itself threateningly at him as he opened its cage. "Mr. Gigglesworth..." Odhra sighed, trying to sound disappointed to his newest arrival despite still being half asleep and the admittedly illfitting name. The poor scorpion probably had reason to distrust him, having been stepped by a heartless jerk when he was first rescued. But still, after all the effort he'd gone through to nurse the poor little guy back to health it was a little frustrating to still be considered a threat. Closing the cage he left the scorpion to his meal, noting to find some gloves and handle him a little tonight after classes when he might be more relaxed and active.

He left his room, stopping only to grab a fresh set of clothes and check the seals around his door. Escape attempts were common, though thankfully his roommates were more or less familiar with standard opperating procedure now. Herd his babies into a jar with a hole in the lid and wait for him to collect them. Or there would be hell to pay in the form of Bubbles.

Odhra ran through his morning shower, not really enjoying the hot water or the fevered scrubbing as he cleaned himself. When you spent a lot of your time washing your hands already, bathing sort of lost its relaxing element. As he finished dressing a heavy weight slammed into his back, attempting to climb atop him but sending him tumbling to the ground. "Snuggles..." He grumbled, pushing the large spider off him. "Baby girl we talked about this. You're too big to carry around campus sweetpea..." He said, trying to ignore the pained look on the giant creatures face as it was reminded again that it was no longer the cute little hatchling that sat atop his head.

"Don't worry..." he coo'd rubbing her mandibles gently as she chittered her begrudging pleasure. "I'll let you and Bubbles out during my free period today...and if you behave I'll let you feed today. Okay?" he asked, the giant spider shaking for a moment before disappearing back to her own realm with what Odhra recognized as a pouting look. Satisfied she would behave herself Odhra finished dressing and made his way out the door, heading to the cafeteria to grab some food himself, reminding himself that Snuggles was looking a little thin recently and that he'd need to have a fat heavy breakfast today.

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-Gates to the Cafeteria-

Lorcan rolled his eyes and suppressed a chuckle at Isobel and Ceirvia's threats of retribution. "I'm certain you will try. But alas, I don't think my insult so great that it could not be resolved with a massage and liberal application of mint candy respectively." He chuckles into the earwrym as he sauntered up the stairs. Gods there were WAY too many of these. He was about to ask if Isobel wanted to meet up for lunch when the girl practically exploded on the other end of the line, a cry of tardiness being all he could make out before the line went dead. A small snort of amusement escapes him as he takes the earwrym off and pockets it, glad to see that his 'cousin' was as much a disaster waiting to happen as ever. Some people, like himself, were reliable bastions of order. Some folks might have found comfort in that. Lorcan preferred the proxy catharsis that came from watching Isobel wing...well pretty much everything to varying degrees of success.

He could ask what all that was about later though, for now it was best to orient himself. Reaching the top of the stairs (FINALLY) he reaches into his bag, pulling out a small map of the school and his itinerary for the day. "Penjani..." he huffs, the familiar sense of warmth that came with a gate opening suffusing him as said summon apperated next to him, purple hair wiping about for a moment as she took in the surroundings before relaxing fully. "We've arrived at L'mordryn's." He offered simply, the explanation not really necessary for his dragon-gir-companion. But it would have been rude not to provide it. "I'll need your aid in navigating for the next few days." He says, a faint bubble amusement as the summons eyes widened with excitement, eager as always to earn some well deserved praise. "Yes yes you will be doubtlessly invaluable." he added, the snark lacking any real venom as he gently patted her head, the dragon girl fussing for a moment before leaning into the gesture.

"For now, let's start simply..." he continues, glancing down at the map for a moment while continuing to pet her. "The cafeteria's not far. Lead me there." he commands, the bliss on the dragon girls face hardening instantly to determination as she nodded. Lorcan removes his hand from her head, letting the dragon whip her gaze back and forth as she went through her process of finding the path, something he was still unsure the exact mechanics off. After a moment her eyes lock onto a small side path, grabbing his hand and attempting to drag him forward. Though, in truth the act was fairly ineffective, Penjani looking for all the world like an overly excited puppy at the end of its leash as she lead Lorcan, content to follow but moving at a decidedly slower pace than her.

Dorm 2^nd floor, Room 3

While everyone was already beginning to get into the swing of things, there was a boy in the dorm rooms struggling to get out of bed. Not because of tiredness, he was a farmer's son, he was used to waking at the crack of dawn. The reason was because of the gigantic summon he had sleeping on top of him.

"Tohi, come on, wake up..." Arkadian said as he tried to gently coax the giant cat awake. Trying to shake her awake wouldn't do any good. She was taller than he was just from her front paws to the top of her fluffy head, not to mention she was much, much longer than he was.

"Lohi, help!" He said to the other cat on his bed. Another giant cat, just as big as the other one, thankfully not also on top of him. Lohi looked up at Arkadian and seemed to scan the scene, before promptly settling back down again and closing his eyes to go to sleep.

Nothing else for it then, Arkadian squirmed and squirmed, but it was like being a mouse trapped under the hunters' paws. He eventually wriggled free from the trap.

He looked down, or as down as he could look anyway, at the bed, blanket tossed aside. He didn't need a blanket with these two around. He would've been in a much deeper predicament if he'd managed to get tangled up in the blanket while under the two cats so it was even good that he didn't have it.

Tohi and Lohi were Divine Cats. From legends passed down through his family and his own conjectures coming true as was the way of Invokers, he could only guess that they were what pulled the chariots of some long-forgotten gods back in the past. Maybe it was due to his inexperience as a summoner, or perhaps their nature and pedigree, but Arkadian couldn't unsummon them if he wanted to. He'd tried once, but they simply refused to be unsummoned. Lohi made it clear that he shouldn't try such a thing again, even if he couldn't speak.

"Hey, you're going to be late," Another voice said from behind him.

He turned, and sure enough, Krampus was there.

Tohi and Lohi had allowed him a special admission to L'Mordryn academy. Over the last three months, Arkadian had been living there and learning from its teachers. To test his talent again, he decided to try and summon another familiar. If he'd known Krampus would come out he would've tried summoning something else.

"They're going to run out of those potato snacks I like if you don't hurry up."

"Do you even need to eat?!"

"No."

Arkadian stepped back a bit. Arkadian found it really hard to keep his cool around Krampus. He was a trickster spirit which commonly took the shape of a black cat. And sure, while he was a cat, and when he acted like a cats, Arkadian could deal with him, but while he was being a man in the body of a cat he couldn't deal with him.

"Fine, I'm getting ready," He sighed as he made his way over to the bathroom. "But you're not leaving unless I say so, understand?"

"I don't understand how you're planning to enforce that while you're on the crapper but alright," Krampus said.

Arkadian shot him a withering glare before slamming the bathroom door shut.

---

Breakfast at L'Mordryn was something he'd had to get used to. Sure, it was a cafeteria like he'd expected, but the variety of foods on offer was just... unreal. Because he'd gotten into L'Mordryn in the way that he did, he sort of forgot that mostly everybody was rich. Well, it wasn't that obvious, just the sheer amount and quality of food blew away anything he'd even seen before in his life. It took a while but he finally settled on a few favorites.

He was on a bad start this morning so he picked up an omelette and two waffles, slathered them in syrup and made an impromptu sandwich. He made sure to grab a few potato snacks so Krampus wouldn't get too antsy.

While Krampus was the bane of his existence... Arkadian still wanted to get to know him better. It seemed like it was clear what he was and how he was, but he had some oddities to him. It was possible for Arkadian to unsummon Krampus but he actively tried to stay. Normally he'd stay near Arkadian but he'd once mentioned wanting to try unsummoning and resummoning Krampus, only for Krampus to run away for a whole day.

He gave up on it and Krampus was back the next morning as if nothing ever happened.

He was a handful, that was for sure. If he took his eyes off him for even a second he'd always end up doing something he didn't want him to.

"You got some for me? You're the best master ever," Krampus said.

"Yeah, there wa-" Arkadian looked over at Krampus who was opening his mouth wider than any normal cat could. He was able to partially change his form which he used a lot to unhinge his jaw to eat. It was incredibly unnerving the first few times he saw it but that wasn't the important part.

"Krampus..." He said slowly. "Who's bagel is that?!"

Krampus had a filled bagel half-way in his mouth. Arkadian knew it wasn't his because it was filled. Krampus could take a bunch of forms, even a human form but he couldn't cut a bagel like that if his life depended on it. He had next to no coordination.

"I don't know who it was but it's mine now," He replied, resuming his previous action.

"No!" Trying to scold him was usually futile, but it was how Arkadian dealt with cats to he couldn't help it. He pushed Krampus' face back with one hand and tried to hold the paw he was holding the bagel with back. In response, Krampus extended his fingers and deposited the entire bagel in his mouth before swallowing.

"Mmmmm, Salmon and cream cheese. Nice combo," He said, licking his lips.

So this was how the day started, huh, losing to his own cat familiar.

"How're those potato snacks?"

A monotone voice softly broke the silence in Allie's room. "It is the time of your morning alarm." The dark room, window blocked by blackout curtains, was illuminated by a soft light. The hologram of a tiny girl stood within the source of light, and continued. "It appears that you were already awake. In that case, I will give my night report." DataSec paused, as if waiting for some kind of affirmation.

Allie never really was one to talk in the first few hours of the morning. Her stirring from the bed was going to be the only confirmation DataSec would get. She slowly did a few stretches, feeling a light soreness in her muscles from the previous day's training. She had begun to stand as DataSec started speaking, seemingly giving up on the chances of Allie saying anything to her. "There were no attempted entries into your room. There were no attempts at surveillance of your room. There were several statistical outliers in nightly occurences, however. There were three percent more footsteps outside your room than the average for a weekday. You turned over in your sleep eight times which is lower than average. Around two hours into your sleep, you chewed on your pillow and mumbled nonsense about desserts-"

Allie put her hand over DataSec's hologram projector, disrupting the AI's image. Not that it actually stopped her from saying things, but it was a gesture that meant "cease immediately." Allie had configured that after the first few nights that she had DataSec watch her room.

Allie dressed herself in silence, peering outside from the room's blackout shades. It seemed peaceful, like normal. As peaceful as the academy could be at least. She slipped on her pants, shirt, and surplus jacket, tucking DataSec's storage device into one of the jacket's large pockets. With that, she stepped out of her room, making her way to the cafeteria.

---

After taking their baths, the two soon dressed up to start the day. As usual, Corona wore her casual thin sleeveless white dress with a silky green loose coat to cover her otherwise naked shoulders and arms. She also wore sandals underneath, certainly an unorthodox choice for such an institution like a school or a learning academy. Maybe if she were Bestia, it would look more normal, but Machinas certainly mainly wore shoes or boots as their footwear. She also wore a green headband with a rose attached to it as her head accessory. Another oddity for a Machina. Her outfit was mostly similar to what she used to wear as the village apothecary, and back then, she was certainly surrounded by nature more than bricks and machines like she was now.

Esther on the other hand wore a more traditional yet risque outfit. She also wore a sleeveless dress underneath her tougher autumn brown jacket. But the hem was clearly much shorter than Corona's, showing a generous amount of her legs and thighs. However, she wore a pair of shoes and socks as her footwear. And her headband had no flowers on it, just a blue gem to decorate it. In all respects, she certainly looked more like your typical Machina student.

The two then went down to the cafeteria for their breakfast. Both had classes for the first session, so they couldn't dilly dally around for long.

Once there, they took their food first, with Corona choosing some simple bread while Esther chose the chicken soup instead. They then took the nearest empty-ish table, which just so happened to be the one Allie was sitting at.

"Excuse us," Corona said to her as she took her seat beside her. Esther on the other hand sat across them two.

@Crowvette