---

It's been around a month since the school term had started, a buzz of excitement surrounded the students as April approached it's end. Those from the magical world of Mundus Arcanis were not sure why at first, but a week-long holiday called Golden Week had them excited, after all a holiday was something enjoyed universally, no matter what world they came from.

Standing at the front of the class was Utsumi Shichimori, the Magic Studies teacher. Everyone within this class no matter their year in Highschool was gathered here to learn magic together, though most of the time if they've done one year of this already, they'd be going off to learn advanced magic from a University professor, or have given up. Regardless, he noticed the restlessness of the class, this was afterall their last day before they'd be let go for a whole week.

"I'm sure everyone's excited about Golden Week, so other than what we have been learning for the last month, I don't expect anyone to be presenting me any kind of work or progress. By now you should all be quite familiar with incantations, the next step of magic", he began.

"We have around ten minutes before the end of class so I'll do a quick review. Incantations are words of power that bind magic to will and intent, to recite them is to begin a brief ritual that gathers one's own magic energy and focuses it, like converting kinetic force into electrical energy, as a generator would. We now understand how to do them, everyone here has shown the ability to do them, or can already do them afterall. I can see some of you more... Advanced students being a little bored for the first month, for that I apologize, but it was quite necessary as some here were only beginning to become familiar", this was true. Not everyone did magic back in elementary school after all, but everyone here was also new to the school, so going through Utsumi's course was required.

"We won't be doing this until next month, but it may be of interest to you. There are many ways to get around having to recite every single word in your spell", he began.

"The most straightforward way I'm sure you've figured out is short versions of your recitations, but to do so without mastering the spell sacrifices power and effectiveness, so such a thing takes practice. But it is the first and important step, because when you can break down a spell, understanding everything about it, there are a few things you can do to cast them quickly",

"For example, you can break it down to one word... Scan!", as soon as he stated the single word, an array of screens popped up, though in reverse from the student's perspective, to the teacher Utsumi, they all showed every student's status.

"The fact is that there are 5 different Scan spells I can use, but with intent and the spells grouped into Scan, I am able to choose the one I need with one word despite overlapping commands", he waved his finger and the screens all disappeared.

"There is also physical inference. Those of you who are familiar with Performance Magic may be a lot more capable of this", he continued, before clicking his fingers. Within moments, glowing birds began to appear around the room.

"I've associated my own finger clicks to this particular spell, unfortunately unlike the previous example I can't link more spells to this action. If you've watched how some mages cast magic, the reason some of them do poses or little physical rituals while chanting is for this reason", and with another click the birds turned into specks of light, before disappearing altogether.

"That is of course, it should not be mistaken with Performance Magic, which requires no incantation, and the actions within are more dances and... Performance, than they are quirky actions", he adjusted his glasses as he spotted the clock.

"There is much more to learn about these topics, but that will have to wait until next month. For now I shall let you all off for today. Be sure to review the spellbook you were given at the beginning of the month, as when we return I will be testing everyone's ability to cast magic using incantations",

"Oh... I suppose I forgot to mention... There will be transfer students from Arcanis joining us next month. You may see them around the town this week, as they should be moving in today".

"Well other than that, have a good Golden Week. Class dismissed".

---

Usually, Edward was all over Magic Studies. For a full month Edward found himself right at the front of class, eagerly noting down everything he could manage that came out of Mr. Shichimori's mouth. But even the ever-eager Edward couldn't ignore the allure of time off of school. In England they called this holiday Easter, but to Edward it was all the same: Time away from maths and phys ed and all of that, free to do whatever he liked. The idea of practicing what they had been working on in this class since the start of the term, Arcture Academics, was what was most enticing, probably what he'd spend most days doing. He felt like he was particularly close to being able to reliably use Force, so a whole day to set aside just practicing that would be nice. Getting the hang of one of the incantation spells Mr. Shichimori was talking about for the past few classes wasn't out of the question either, but Edward wasn't so singular of focus.

This free time was a great way to make friends, too. Ed wanted to show Ramyu some more of Earth's fine heritage-- the arcade especially, and he was sure with all of the students having time off many others would be frequenting hotspots like that. He'd only hoped things wouldn't be so crowded the two of them couldn't enjoy themselves. He was sure no matter what they could find some fun in the situation, however.

Ed snapped out of his daydreaming as his teacher cast a spell. With a single, emphatic word, a grouping of holographic screens popped up around the professor. Ed's eyes were drawn to them-- the mirrored blocks of text scrolling by rapidly, until they were all dissipated just as quickly as they had appeared. Despite the youthful energy that was bounding to get out of the room and past the last day of schooling, Ed was back into it. Casting an incantation spell with just a single word was something he'd definitely be interested in. So was linking spells to physical movements. He assumed that was done in some similar manner to how he was able to cast his Lighter spell without talking, but that question wouldn't be answered for a while unless Ed trawled through the book. Just as he had got back into the learning spirit, the class was ending. Not before Mr. Shichimori dropped the bomb that right after they got back, everyone would need to have learned how to cast incantation based magic. Looked like Force was going to have to wait...

Ed couldn't help but silently 'aww' at this as he began clearing away his things into his pack. Ramyu couldn't help but roll her eyes at this. "'Tis just a week, Edward. I'm sure a man like you has many more to study magic."

"Nah it's not class ending," Edward said, hefting his bag over his shoulder and standing up. "I'm just kinda disappointed. I wanted to work on a different spell this week, but I haven't actually learned any incantation magic so I'm gonna have to work on that. As exciting as this is, I feel like stuff's moving way to fast. I mean I just learned a month ago magic even exists. Which, hey, I'm grateful for but--"
"Edward, we should continue this conversation while leaving the classroom."

"Er, right, yeah." Edward mumbled, pushing in his seat and following close behind Ramyu as they left. "Anyways I'm sure it'll all work out but... I don't know if I'll be ready, or deserve it."


"Hm. I'm not sure if many people are ever ready, or deserve what they get." Ramyu mused.

"Not helping, Ram. Could we maybe study together? You've known about magic you're whole life since you lived in Arcana-Whatever."

"Hah, you're much better off than I. At least you have your passion, all I've been doing a'fore is swing large blades and crippling old men."

"Jeez Ram, give yourself some credit. At least if we study together it'd be a bit less boring. We'll just do it like, an hour a day and then we'll get lunch."

"Bribing me like the old man?"

"Gah, I just can't win with you sometimes..."

It's been a full month since she officially enrolled at Silvergate and still hasn't gotten any closer to finding the answers she seeks. With a sigh, she decided to get her mind off it and opened the spellbook that was in front of her. "Arcture Spellbook Volume 3" It was given to them at the beginning of the school year, one month ago. Though, there was only a few spells in the volume that actually interested her. "Healing Light" and "Ward Of Shields" Given the spells and skills she knows already, she felt a strong need to learn a support and Defense spell.

After all, she wouldn't last long if all she had was offensive spells. Granted, she has that one restraining spell but it's not exactly a skill can she constantly throw around. If she could master "Ward Of Shields", it could definitely help her in the future and a healing spell wouldn't hurt either. Over the course of the month, she was able to get the incantations down pat to where she can easily remember them by heart. As she lazily turned through the pages, halfway tuning out the teacher, she was brought back to reality when the teacher cast his spell.

One word, all it took was one word and he was able to pull out 1 scan spell out of 5 and get the one he wanted. It was definitely amazing, to get all that just from one word, not even amazing could fully cover how great that was. If one could master a spell like that and shorten it to one word, not to mention link it with physical movement.....it would make fighting so much easier. It's definitely something that would Aid spells with long incantations....Hmm, I wonder if there's limits regarding the shortening of certain spells...

Suffice to say, she paid attention to the rest of the class. Before the teacher dismissed the class for golden week, he mentioned new transfer students from Arcanis one month from now. I wonder what they're like and where in Arcanis they're from...Less headaches the better. Losing interest the moment she left the classroom, she decided to head back to the dorm and decide what she'll do during golden week.

Her notebook lay open before her on the desk, margins packed with chicken scratch so tailor made to the writer that her professors demanded any homework longer then a short answer be typed. Sprawled out in ink and graphite was the sum total of the days lecture lost to frantic confusion that saw sections split across multiple pages and some sentences ending mid-letter stroke because the professor had moved on faster then she could scratch. In spite of that, for an hour of class she had managed to laden down six pages in so many notes there was surely no way to fail.

Lorelai had absoluletly no idea what lay before her, much less what the professor had just demonstrated. She wanted to cry on the spot, but with that being her outlook the entire semester, she had long since grown used to putting on a smile and idly asking her classmates about their golden week plans. Her books felt like leaden weights in her arms as she laughed at some of the sillier answers, or sharing a wistful sigh at those who planned to head off to the beaches or go meet up with family after long monthes apart.

The spines of her books strained under the pressure of her grip and Lorelai had to forcefully exhale, loosening her grasp under the pretense of brushing at her uniform's skirt. There was a nagging desire for some physical release from her stress and she let her thoughts drift towards the Silver Farms. It wasn't a terribly large span of land but the prospect of getting her hands dirty under the sun, working her body to help produce some of the strange and delightful crops from the linked worlds set her heart at ease.

"Maybe I can ask about planting sunflowers. Florist Ume does seem to have stock out of season for it-" There was a hard crack as she walked head first into the doorway, heads turning to see her brow planted deadcenter to the wood while she blinked away stars. "Why does it keep jumping out at me like this?!"

Face flushing with the heat of attention she cried out an incoherent apology and fled the room in a whirl. The sound of further crashes would tell just how poorly she handled the stairwell.

The past month had been eye-opening for Yasu. Not only did she get to learn about the existence of magic, she even took class for it. A class, full of people her own age. Being taught magic. By teachers. Who specializes in magic. How rad is that? Sure, Yasu did not show it in her face, but everyday had been very exciting for her.

She scribbled and drew mindmaps on her notes as Mr. Shichimori explained stuffs about short incantation and physical inference - something she never did during her years of normal school, by the way - and enjoyed every second of it. She was so absorbed in her study that, to outsiders, she might seem like an addict getting a high from her favourite drugs, perhaps.

Then the bell rang and class was dismissed.

"Aw man, no magic class for a whole week?" she thought to herself. Of course, she knew that rest is important for the long run, but she would prefer if this holiday came after another month or so, because let's face it, she hadn't had enough. She wanted to know more about magic: their history, their application, and the possibility to integrate them to society in the (far) future.

Still, there are plenty of way to spend time. Yasu was particularly intrigued by Mr. Shichimori's last announcement: transfer students from Arcanis. That place did not ring a bell to Yasu, which means it's time to hit the library and learn a thing or two about them.

Clearing out her desk and tidying her locker, Yasu readied herself to go to the library.

Edward and Ramyu stood silently in line of students exiting the classroom as everyone funneled out from their last class out to do their own thing. Some would be returning to their dorms certainly, whether to retire for the day and take it easy or to switch from their uniforms to something more fashion forwards or comfortable. Some may have had clubs, though many were off starting today because of the break. Edward was sure, however, most were out to explore the city like him. He had a fairly okay idea of campus (or at least where he needed to be on campus) but the city of Rindou was begging to be explore. All Edward had experienced so far were the restaurants and convenience store so close they may as well have been on campus. Today he just wanted to explore, maybe show Ramyu the earthling experience.

Before he could tell her his plan, however, a loud 'crack' resounded through the classroom. Most seemed to ignore it, but Edward and a few others looked for the source of the sound, a young woman about his age who had bumped into the door. Edward had never done so himself, but he heard tales of how painful just stubbing your toe was so hitting your face on a wooden board sounded awful. He wanted to ask if she was okay, but he was too slow on the draw. She shouted something incomprehensible and ran off, further crashing and thumps following.


"Man, I hope she's alright. We ought to--"


"Add her to your ever growing list of female companions with fruity gifts?"

"--Make sure she's okay. For someone so serious you sure are quick to accuse me of being a womanizer."

"Living in Gran Harenae will do that to you. Many men who give as freely as you do expect women at their feet."

"...I keep forgetting how sucky your life is. Remind me to buy you one of those stress squeezy things."

"You know I don't know what that is Edward. Are you going to chase after her or not?"

"Oh, crap, right!"

Edward, as respectfully as possible, tried to slip his way through the remaining crowd. Ramyu let him do so with a sigh and a roll of the eyes, but not much else. After squeezing through however, he couldn't tell in which direction that girl actually went once she left. Trusting his gut, as was often the answer, lead him down the stairwell. There he found the girl from before crumpled in a heap at the bottom. He slid down the railing at once to reach her, and crouched to offer her his hand.

"Are you okay? Should I go get a nurse?" He asked. Ramyu joined the two shortly after, having let the room clear out first. They were, admittedly, kind of clogging the stairwell. Seeing all the annoyed students try and scooch past them, Edward also asked "Can you stand?"

Her return to the dorms lasted only 20 minutes before growing bored. Normally if she was back home, this would usually be around the time she'd hole up in the mines but she couldn't exactly go around digging up on academy grounds. In her one month of coming to the academy, she has grown restless without much to do. Sure, she could always train to kill boredom but she always has time for that. With golden week now here, she could probably hit the town and do some sight seeing proper.

Leaving the dorms behind, she headed off into the town. Hmm, maybe I should see what kind of food they have in town.

@Celsius

---

Yasu Minori-Schreiber, other than one other student, she stood out just a little among the magic class members. In the normal curriculum perhaps not so, as it was just normal schooling. As she perused the library, which at the moment was near devoid of students but the most studious or introverted, or book-loving, she noticed one curious thing standing out among all of this. A large hat like that of a traditional wizard or witch, buried behind some books, and by some of the movements, quite busily writing and reading away. It couldn't be a teacher, the person was too small, and it was certainly not a student, they didn't wear the uniform, which became clearer as she might flank around to get a better look. The boy of red hair wore a large cape and hat almost as if to make himself look bigger, when in fact the contrast had the opposite effect. He looked like he was fresh out of elementary school by his size. A fledgling junior high student perhaps? But this was the highschool building.

Still, among the books on his desk, many were of interest to Yasu. They all had to do with spells, history of Arcanis, and among them also history of Earth as well, Yasu's own homeworld. She may get closer and hear him speak, he seemed to be rather impressed with this library's selection. Well, Silver Gate was funded by Kreydon's company, which if you were at university level, might be reminded from time to time by Kreydon himself. That aside... There didn't seem to be other copies of some of the books he had on his desk, and they were of interest.


@I-Am-X

---

Seidoujima Island, a rather quiet sort of place, it was honestly more frequented by students than anything else. Some called it an academy town because of this. As Ultana walked down the streets that she had acquainted herself with over the last month and a half or so, she found herself looking at a familiar sight, one that reminded her of herself. A young girl of raven black hair who looked about the age of her classmates was looking around in wonderment. She did not wear the uniform, instead wearing a white blouse and a long blue dress, which she also did not seem entirely comfortable with... Perhaps she was a visitor off-island? Or maybe even an exchange student? She did get the memo in class afterall.

The girl did not appear lost, rather she appeared beyond that. Struggling to read some letters, squinting and looking at some shops wondering what some of it was, and so on and so forth. This was a rather quiet part of the markets. As Ultana walked closer, the young lady interacted with an old man walking with his old wife, and began asking in English where or what this or that was. Ultana should recognise this dialect. It came from her world after all.

Enjoying one of her favorite fried foods ever, French Fries, she continued to walk down the street looking into the windows of the shops she passes to see if there's any sales. Ultana wasn't looking for anything in particular, just your typical window shopping to relieve some boredom. As she was nearing the next shop, she noticed a girl with raven black hair in a long blue dress and white blouse in the distance. To her, it really stood out because it didn't seem like something one would wear out on the town.

But then again, this was Ultana we were talking about. She's not exactly the poster child for feminine charm or anything remotely close, after all. A total tomboy, closest thing to dressing feminine would be the Chinese tang suit she normally wears. So long story short, she has no fashion sense whatsoever and is probably out of touch in what exactly is 'normal'. Anyways, as she got closer, Ultana could see her trying to communicate with an older couple but didn't exactly look like things were going well.

And just when she was about to walk passed them, as soon as she heard the girl speak, she stopped. It was a dialect that she was quite familiar with. Given how soft-spoken the girl, it took her a moment to pick up on it. What region was it from again? The mines of Igneus Caute attracted all sorts of people from all over, but she definitely heard it before. As she lost herself in thought, her grip on the french fry in her hand slipped and fell on her shirt, leaving a nice ketchup mark on it.

Luckily, her shirt was red to begin with so it wasn't very noticeable. But unfortunately, she found herself short one french fry. Damnit.... Wiping her shirt, she approached the girl and asked in English "You're from Arcanis, right? Given how confused these old fossils are, you need some help yea?"

@Kafka Komedy



Lorelai remained slumped upon the floor, paralyzed not by pain as she didn't feel anything from her repeated face first collision with with the stairwell, but from the sheer weight of stares upon her. Far easier then to keep her head down as she pondered simply sinking into the ground and being trampled by her peers. That seemed preferable to her spinning head, but others seemed to disagree as a voice prompted her to look up and see a hand offered. Looking and acting every bit the owl, she accepted the proferred palm without even considering it and stammered out, "Who- Umm, I mean thank you."

She sprung to her feet with alacrity and shuffled against the wall, clearing up the considerable sprawl to let their classmates mill downstairs and make to flee the halls of academia to enjoy a non-productive Golden Week. Suddenly it struck her that getting away from the school and any familiar faces might be a good idea, after all, and set aside her lofty desires for menial labor for another time.

"Sorry, I'm fine. I take falls like that all the time. Builds character, as my daddy used to say...or was that about closing your eyes as you cross the street? Hmm..." She hummed aloud, genuinely considering the virtues of a leap of faith when it came to crosswalks before realizing the two who had stopped were still there. Her hand snapped back and she curled it into amidst her skirt. "You didn't have to stop to help, so maybe I can return the favor? There should be some nice cafes in town. My treat!"

It did not take long for Yasu to reach the library. But finding the books she wanted to read? That was a different matter entirely. For some reason, all the books she had planned to borrow were all missing from the shelf. Weird, she thought. While she saw a few of her fellow bibliophile reading merrily in the library, they were not borrowing the stuffs Yasu was looking for, nor do they usually read things that Yasu would place her interest on in the first place; probably thanks to their different specialization and/or year.

It was then that she saw something curious. A large hat like that of a traditional wizard or witch, buried behind some books. Her first thought was somebody got buried when they were trying to get something from the top shelves, but the hat was moving rythimcally, which - by Yasu's observation - seemed like whowever was wearing the hat was quite busily writing and reading away.

Curious, she tiptoed closer to the peculiar hat. She was not sure why she needed to tiptoe, actually, but she kinda felt that it was appropriate. Anyways, having taken a closer look, she noticed that the person of interest was a small boy that was both too young to be a teacher, and too unusually dressed to be a fellow student. A Junior High student, perhaps? Or maybe, the transfer student Mr. Shichimori had mentioned decided to show up early?

In any case, she needed to read the books on spells, Arcanis history, and her own world's history: all of which were stacked neatly and orderly on the mystery young boy's desk.

In short, there was only one way this could go.

"Hey, quite the interesting selection of book you got," Yasu initiated the conversation. "Do you mind if I take a seat?" she continued with a smile while gesturing to the chair next to the boy.

Edward grimaced at the girl sitting face down in the stairwell. Before Edward got down to her and offered his hand she just... sat there, not moving at all. Her neck didn't seem bent at any odd or dangerous angle, but he was very worried the fall had knocked her unconscious. Blows to the face tended to do that. Luckily, she responded without taking even a second to gather herself. As such, Ed's frown dissipated. He appreciated people who accepted help readily, since so many refused generosity thinking they needed to repay it.

He got confirmation of the questions he asked her in her actions; judging by how quick she got to her feet, she probably didn't need to see the nurse. Obviously she could stand as well. She pressed herself up against the wall to let the students pass, and Ed and Ramyu followed suit. She spoke for a moment, seeming to both regard them and ignore them at the same time. Ed and Ramyu exchanged looks surreptitiously and shrugged. Her subject matter was also... bizarre. But she turned it around by offering to take Ed out to a cafe. Whether that included Ramyu or not, Ed couldn't tell, but he'd pay for her anyways.

"Sure, I'll take you up on that if you've got the cash. Mind if I bring Ram here along?" Ed asked, gesturing to the cat woman. "I can foot her bill."

Ramyu had just about gotten over Ed's insistence on paying for everything, so she simply sighed, pouted, and rolled her eyes. If the woman happened to accept (and Ed was pretty confident she would, she seemed nice) than he'd make some small conversation as she lead the two too whichever restaurant she had in mind.

"You were joking about your dad telling you to play in traffic right? I don't know how many girls with daddy issues I can handle with Ram--" Edward's joking was swiftly cut out with a loud yelp as Ramyu punched him in the arm. "Ow, jeez. Watch it, you're way too strong to be jokingly punching me in the arm."

"Then don't say I have 'daddy issues.'"

"Fine, alright. Sorry to offend. Oh! We haven't done intros. I'm Ed, or Edward if you wanna be fancy. Like I said that's Ram."


"Ramyu."

"And you are?"

@Celsius

---

The young boy took more than a few nudges until he realized someone was talking to him. His gaze darted sideways in initial surprise, taking a moment to notice that a student was addressing him, and then another moment to realize what she was asking him.

"O-oh! Sure, but I'm afraid there isn't much room...", he was correct. Actually more surprisingly, his Japanese was a little broken, but it was all understandable. There really wasn't much room or table-space to use, it was almost entirely covered in books, open or piled. Still, it didn't seem to be a problem.

"I didn't see many people in the library, and I heard it was a holiday for the people here, so I decided to take the chance to take stock of the library here. You have an amazing selection, in new and unseen prints. Here, the book in front of me is actually an old manuscript from the Dragonic Dynasty, predating the current Arcture Dynasty by two whole dynasties, but in a new and fresh print! This one in particular details the comings and goings of merchants and the spread of magical herbs at the time", he seemed to be quite into what he was talking about, but at this point he realized he was rambling as he stopped and looked back to Yasu.

"I-well I'm sorry about that, when I... Get a little too into it, I tend to ramble... I suppose I should introduce myself, as I should have done first... I am Elliot Harvingford, I will be a student here starting today. It's nice to meet you. I hope my Japanese is sufficient, I had been studying in preparation for my move here", throughout the whole time he was talking his Japanese was quite good, even with some complex vocabulary and syntax he seemed to have that all down. Regardless of that, he seemed a nice kid, and eager to learn no less.


@I-Am-X

---

The fine lady was trying to make her best "I'm being patient" face as she smiled while trying to deal with the awkwardness of the situation. She regretted not taking some of the classes offered to her prior to coming here, she could only barely understand some things the old couple was telling her, but they also seemed to pick up that she wasn't getting all of it and it created a somewhat weird atmosphere. Such was broken when Ultana had appeared, cutting the mood with her rough speech.

The old couple noticed it too, the young lady turned to face Ultana with a somewhat relieved expression. Someone she could understand. Finally. The old couple noticed that someone who was better equipped had arrived and bowed out, waving at the two before going along their way.

"Thank you, yes, yes I am, I had decided to go out shopping for the local delicacies, but I'd gotten completely lost. I managed to find a market district, but I don't understand some of these strange new foods. Unlike the other students, I have had no exposure to imports from this land and so I am completely blind in this environment", he speech was soft, like silk, it was a bit stiff as if she was keeping up some kind of act or mannerism on purpose, but it was still quite pleasant nonetheless.

"I don't recognize you from the induction, mayhap you are a student who has been studying here longer than I? If so, you must have good ideas on places to eat?", she was quite eager to latch onto Ultana, was it relief of someone familiar or was it in her nature? Either way she remembered.

"Ah, before that, I must introduce myself, I am Asta Brunnhildr... It is strange that I do not have ears and a tail like my family, but I consider myself one of them all the same", the Brunnhildrs aren't a famous family by no means, but with a last name like that it meant they came from the north, which was populated by cold climate beastmen, but Asta was a completely normal Arcanis brand human, based on her fair features contrasted with raven hair.

"Oh! Certainly, Ramyu can come with. I can pay for all of us. I know this place and it has the best sweets, I could eat them by the dozen and never get tired. Mmm, and the drinks! Coffee and tea and all the hot chocolate you can order. It was the first place I went to when I came from the countryside and I've loved it ever since!"

Chipper as could be the bubbly Lorelai grasped Edward and Ramyu by the wrist and bolted down the remaining stairs, through the halls, and out the doors to embrace the city beyond in all its splendor as she was serenaded with songs of confectionaries so sweet, she completely forgot she was dragging two people bodily in her wake.

---

"Here it is, my favorite cafe in the whole world. A real lucky find for me, cause I'd never even been to one till I came here."

The only reason she didn't drag Ramya and Edward inside was because the door to the Starbucks was a pull instead of the many push doors she rammed through. She waved to them from her place in line before pointing to a cramped corner table while she regaled a tired, disinterested cashier with an order that saw her returning with three dozen mini-bagels, four premade sandwiches heated up crispy, enough slices of pound cake to reform the cake, and enough chai latte to require a pitcher.. That she carried it one handed was almost as impressive as her intention of eating it all in this sitting.

"Come on then, dig in~!"

---

JM never thought he was a good student. Hell, his age relative to the people in class was a dead giveaway. He'd been held back once and dropped out of school for a year afterwards - both instances, he was embarrassed to admit, were his fault, not that he cared at the time. He was angry and frustrated, and with no clear goal in life just doing whatever the hell he felt like doing seemed like the best thing to do. At the time.

Now though he had a goal, and even more surprisingly people he wanted to prove himself to. But goddamn if the process wasn't frustrating. He wasn't used to this whole studying thing. He usually skipped classes, never mind paying attention to the goddamned teacher - and that was when he attended a regular old school! This magic thing? It was something else altogether.

He'd scarcely finished putting together his notes about incantations (Ha! He was even taking down notes now!) when he noticed his teacher had already dismissed the class. Crap, he was missing something, he knew he was. Unfortunately the teacher had already bailed and there was no way he was making an ass of himself by asking his classmates and making it obvious he wasn't paying any fucking attention and-

He took a deep breath. He was getting pissed again and he didn't even know at what, which was just stupid.

Okay, whatever. He missed something, probably wasn't anything important?

His pathetic attempt at rationalizing his fuck aside, it was now the start of Golden Week, which meant he had some time to kill and full shifts at work. On that note, if he didn't hoof it he was going to be late for his shift at the Department Store. He'd rather not have his supervisor get on his case just as Golden Week got started; the bastard would probably give him the night shift.

---

"JM!"

Head swiveling to the side, JM looked at the man calling him, a senior coworker at the Department Store. "Ah?" It was never a pleasure talking with him.

His senior scowled at him. "Show some respect kid. Whatever, you're needed to man one of the food stalls. Teiko's called in sick today."

"What?" he groaned. "Come on old man, why me?!"

"'Cause I said so! Now git!"

Grumbling, JM set the crates of supplies he was hefting down. It took a bit of patience to not just slam the damn things into the ground, fragile goods be damned. He hated working the front, especially for the food stalls. At least with cashiers he could keep interaction to a minimum, but with the stall he actually had to make an effort to be nice.

"Alright, whatever. You better tell Teiko she owes me for this!"

Slipping on the apron with the logo of the department store in front, he made his way to the food court. It was especially busy today, what with all the students that were off enjoying the first day of a week long vacation. It was amazing really, how many there were.

"Okonomiyaki! Git yer fresh Okonomiyaki for sale!"

Goddamn he hated working the front.

@Lonewolf685@Kafka Komedy

---

The motley crew of students sat down and began their afterschool meal, the kind that was quite lively, suffice to say. Behind them with little notice walked in two rather elegant people, a girl in a long navy dress with brilliant hair like the night sky, and a handsome tall man whose composure was like that of ice, but a smile like that of a cool winter's breeze, and hair white as snow. They were head-turners, that much was an understatement though as they appeared to be quite used to this kind of attention. They wore no uniform, only casual clothes, so one can assume they were not students, and yet the age they appeared was as such.

"Oh my, the sweets of this world quite fascinating, these cakes are rather elaborate",

"Must you always be looking at the sweets Helena? Well I suppose a good cake can make tea time feel right and proper. While I am here, I had wished to have some of their coffee. Supposedly it is a drink that keeps one wide awake, even in the wee hours of the night. Keeping soldiers awake through long shifts can be quite useful",

"Come now Rodrick, we need not talk about such affairs. We are here to see and observe the world beyond ours, we should enjoy ourselves first and foremost",

"Hmph. I suppose that is true", he smiled. "Now then, I wish to order...", despite speaking the Arcanis dialect of English for quite some time, he went straight into almost seamless Japanese, which the lady at the counter was immediately taken aback by, completely ready to try and get someone to help her, but seemed relieved that it was not necessary, although... It looked like she was not the one in need of help.

"A... Grande...? Frappucino is a...? I see, Ameri-... Hmmmm", well, navigating the menus of Starbucks for the first time is always a bit of a challenge. These two found themselves bombarded with options that they didn't really understand.


@TheHangedMan

---

The food stalls outside the department store surrounded a foodcourt provided by the department store itself, and was a common stop for shoppers looking to eat. It was a good choice, food was fresh, pretty cheap comparatively, and it was simply also convenient. Among the passersby though Mr. Mason would spot a peculiar boy, around his age no less. Why was he peculiar? Well first, his fashion sense looked straight out of fantasy old Europe, second, he seemed rather pervasive with the way he was walking, and the way he looked around, was as if he was chasing some kind of scent like a dog. He could not help but stare at the peculiar sight, until he turned to Mason himself.

Was he hungry? He would ask as expected of his station as a clerk for this store, as soon as the boy got closer. He looked at him strangely, scanned him up and down, rather it was a discomforting feeling.

He made a click with his tongue, seeming to know where he was... Then raised a finger, one? Then pointing at the okonomiyaki.

"P-... Please", was all he said. The look on his face was nasty though but... Well, what can a boy serving at an okonomiyaki store do in a situation like this?

Edward did not have the chance for small talk he had hoped for on the trio's way to this mysterious cafe. The girl did not bother to give her name after Edward pointed her to Ramyu. Instead she gushed over this amazing place she was bringing them to for a few moments after confirming Ram could come along. Ed was about to direct her to start guiding them there and then lead in with his introductions and asking her name, but she took the initiative in a big way. She grabbed the both of them by the wrist and began hauling them off campus. Ramyu hissed and her tail stood on end, while Edward was almost thrown onto his face from the sudden force. They were harshly dragged down the stairwell and through the halls all the way off campus. The entire thing was a blur of colors and trying to keep balance.

By the time they reached the shop, Ed was sick and frazzled while Ramyu was fuming. Hands on his knees and dry heaving, Ed managed to reach a hand up to pat her on the shoulder, reassuring her it was fine. She was still upset and pouting at the lack of boundaries and the rigamarole the new girl had literally dragged them through, but it was better than her blowing up at her. She probably meant the best. The catgirl helped Ed to the table the blonde pointed them too while ordering, letting the two of them catch their breath assumably. Once Ed got his bearings about him, he realized what exactly this 'excellent cafe' was. A Starbucks. It... wasn't his favorite exactly, but he wasn't going to look a gift horse in the mouth. Besides, if this was her favorite cafe he could probably show her a great time in an actual cafe.

Just as Edward and Ramyu got their bearings and returned to their old selves, the blonde returned with their meal. And quite the meal it was. Ramyu could probably put a dent in it but Ed was less sure about his own capabilities on the subject. Hopefully this girl was a big eater.

"Haha, that was quite the journey you took us on." Ed joked, picking up one of the sandwiches and taking a nibble out of it. "Ramyu thought you were trying to take us out!"

Ramyu confirmed this with a slightly sour look in Lorelai's direction, before chowing down on some of the bagels, intermittently washed down with the chai latte.

"We both appreciate being fed though and you... well, taking us out I guess! Are you sure about paying for all of this though? You just mentioned the countryside so I assumed--"

Edward cut himself off as he noticed the two new people attempting to order at the counter. He didn't bother to look at them when he heard the door, but they were now in his peripheral vision up at the counter and they seemed to be having some issues. While they spoke English and Japanese just fine, they were clearly out-worlders. I mean, who didn't know what a Frapuccino was? In his ever present calling to do nice things for people, Ed rose from his seat and said to Lorelai and Ramyu "I'm gonna go help them out." Ramyu's rolling eyes confirmed this was not an uncommon occurrence, so she simply let him have at it while indulging in one of the sandwiches.

Now up at the counter with the two Arcanis residents, Edward cleared his throat and asked them as politely as possible "Do you two need some help?"

---

JM was had fried up a good batch of okonomiyaki when his eyes wandered to a boy standing out in the crowd. Now, he was new to this whole 'magic world' stuff, to be sure, but he was fairly sure that mages didn't walk around looking like a lost cosplayer. Eh, whatever. Wasn't really his problem.

...and of course he jinxed it.

As soon as he had finished that though, the boy began walking towards him, and oh man did JM not like the look on his face. The dude was looking at him like those rich pricks back at his old school did. Fucking pissant.

At least the bastard had the good graces to say please. That was about the only thing that stopped JM from throwing something at him - which he really wanted to avoid, by the way. He may have been on a scholarship, but living expenses were something else entirely and there was no way he was going to ask help from his parents.

"One okonomiyaki, coming right up," he said through grit teeth. He packaged the food as quickly as he could, before handing it over to the boy. "You'd better watch those eyes of yours bro," he couldn't help adding with some snark, "lots of room from the kitchen to your hands."

Pot, meet kettle.

With as quick as it took for the old couple to bail, she wondered if she should've just continued walking by but it's far too late now. Especially since she already started talking to her. Regret aside, she doesn't like to half-ass things. Lost while food hunting, huh? As she listened further, it turns out that she's one of the transfer students from Arcanis that they heard at the end of class earlier. Intended or not, eventually the questions she had about them ended up being answered anyways.

"Brunnhildr, eh?" She's a Valkyrie, hmm? Ultana chucked inwardly to herself. But Ears and a Tail? From what she knows, the north is pretty much Beast-men dominated. So her family are beast-men....Adopted, huh? "I'm Ultana Whelen, Miner by family trade. But yea, was in your position a month and a half ago myself, so I've explored around whenever I had some free time. It really depends on what kind food you're into, though."

By the looks of Asta, She really didn't seem like the type that'd be into the kind of food Ultana was into. Which of course was Meat, fried food and well, not exactly luxurious dining. "Hmmmm, might not be your kind of places, but I've got some places in mind if you're looking for some places to eat?" she offered. There was a particular ramen place she was fond of and while Asta seemed like the kind of person that usually annoys her, she was still hungry and had a craving for some ramen. Either way it was a win-win for her.

@Kafka Komedy



There was half a bagel in Lorelai's mouth when Edward addressed her, leaving Lorelai to to furiously chew and swallow the delightful disc of fluffy dough, but by the time the hearty notes of asiago were but a memory on her tongue he had already dashed off to help a pair at the counter. "Bwah! So dry!"

Turning back about she wilted under the annoyed gaze of Ramyu, the catgirl managing to convey the full disdain of her more beastial counterpart so clearly Lorelai was afraid she'd start knocking things off the table. She did look a bit like she'd been hit by a tornado, and even as oblivious as she was, Lorelai knew she and the tornado were one in the same.

"Darn, I really bungled this up. Stupid, stupid, stupid...Gah!" The blonde verbally despaired, long braid bouncing like a cobra lashing out at imagined prey before she lurched forward. Her chin hit the table with a crack but her expression didn't even give away a flinch as she stared morosely at Ramyu. "The first people to talk to me in this school outside of classwork and I manhandle them! Now you're gonna go off with those strangers because they have city manners!"

Her eyes were starting to water and she sniffled, looking very much like a puppy who'd been kicked yet still wanted to love the shoe that strikes it. "M-My name is Lorelai. Please don't think badly of me. Dad always said I'm too strong for my own good."