[IC] Myth Academy (PG-13)

[Berzie]

"I just got a bit of a knock from that fur ball."

Jack commented as he made his way over to where Anais was. She nodded in agreement: "Indeed. It was quite rude of him." Frowning, Anais mentally took a note to never cross paths with Scovian. It wasn't until Jack spoke up again, did Anais snap out of her thoughts. "Let’s hurry up and get to the club room. I want to take a nap!" Only just then realising she was still sitting on the group, Anais gently pulled herself up, wobbling slightly before catching up with Jack. In a few minutes time, the pair had finally made their way to the Music Club room. Having walked ahead of Jack, Anais opened the door to find a red-faced Xander shouting at their Head of Club, Wilhelm Wicki.

"You are seriously the worst teacher in this school. You're always late and you smell like cigarettes half the time!" Xander screamed at a straight-faced Wilehlm.

"Hey, at least I show up, Casper. And how would you know what I smell like anyway? I thought ghosts didn't have any physical senses?" The Wendigo replied, raising an eyebrow at the transparent student in front of him.

"I ... I hear other students complain and -- wait, don't change the subject! See, you always do this whenever I --"

"Ah, my favourite students!" Wilhelm stood up from his seat behind the desk before waltzing towards Anais and Jack. Throwing a muscly arm over the pair of student's shoulders, he clung them close to him as he looked at Xander. "See? These are ideal students. Why can't you be more like them?" If Xander could have, he would have busted a vein that very moment. His relationship with Mr Wicki was a tough one. Wilhelm Wicki was very particular with which students he treated nicely and which students he didn't - unfortunately for Xander, he got the short end of the stick. "Uh ... Good morning to you too, Mr Wicki" Anais managed to squeak under Wilhelm's grip. "Like I've said many times before, call me Wilhelm," he chuckled before letting go of Anais and Jack, shoving them gently towards their desks. Anais wasn't a particular fan of calling elders by their first names, but she wasn't exactly one to blatantly disobey orders either. "Erm .. Okay, Mr Wilhelm Wicki." The dark haired teacher gave Anais a confused grin before chuckling. "Ah, loop-holes."

[Iluvatar]

Gideon, Katsu, Andrej (mentioned), Swimming Club

Well, if wasn't enough to almost be knocked unconscious by a water dragon, Gideon had to almost get his eardrums ruptures by a Kappa. Clearly, the swimming captain didn't have what preschool teachers call an 'indoor voice'. A large name-tag hanging from one pocket revealed his name to be Katsu.

Shrugging, Gideon decided to try out the 200 first, and then moving on if he felt at home. Clearly, it wouldn't be a good idea to phase into the water at this point, but he couldn't resist allowing his toes to dissolve slightly as he lowered himself into the pool. His slightly over-large swimming trunks expanded slightly with trapped air. Gideon hurriedly sank, batting at them with his palms until it escaped.

He began to swim freestyle, or, as it was called back in England, front crawl. As a naiad, he was an excellent swimmer, but he disliked entering large bodies of water the first time he came into contact with it, on account of the difficulty in gathering your consciousness back together if a particularly violent swimmer upsets the water too much. Even in physical form (difficult to maintain while submerged) he preferred to start shallow, and increase depth over time.

As he made his way down the pool (quickly), Gideon extended his consciousness outwards into the water. As he focused, he sensed the purity of the water - no chlorine or chemicals - and trace amounts of salt, presumably for ocean going creatures such as Oceanids and Merpeople. He could feel the other swimmers' movements and, even the ripples of the cleaning system. Suddenly, he snapped back to full consciousness. His legs and one arm had melded into the water.

With a yelp, Gideon pulled them pack into physical form and reached the other side of the pool. A few of the other swimmers were also there, and many had already turned back. Reaching backwards with his legs, the swivelled in the water and propelled himself towards the ugly figure of Katsu and the promise of more swimming to come.

[FoxFireOfDawn]

Kuro

Kuro awoke with a stretch and yawn, shifting under the covers of his bed. He didn't want to wake up today. He'd probably have to go the the music club and do some things, but he was feeling lazy today. With some effort, he slowly got up from his bed and decided to take a warm shower. After that, he quickly got dressed, hair still slightly wet and fuzzy, before going out and heading to the music club. He hadn't felt the need to eat breakfast, so he didn't bother going to the canteen. He'd probably go later, but he was way too lazy now. He hadn't really bothered dressing neatly and combing his hair. He'd do it later. Kuro continued on his was to the music club room, humming a random song that he thought of.

[Sam12435]

Jack, Anais, Xander, Wilhelm

Jack hummed happily as he walked along. The event from earlier had left his mind and he was in a content mood. As his comrade opened the door Jack smiled to see the head of the club having a lively discussion with Xander. He was about to call out and greet them when Wilhelm started to walk towards them. "Ah, my favourite students!"

As his arm wrapped around Jack’s shoulder he couldn't help but feel a little warm and fuzzy. Jack loved hugs, they are the best thing. Any bad feelings or ill tempers can be solved with a simple hug. “Why can’t you be more like them?” He heard the man say. He looked up to his ghostly friend and grinned wide in a teasing way. As he heard the usual interactions of his club members he was gently directed towards the desks.

“Morning Mr Willie!” Jack called out as he leaned against his desk. As he leant back he was met with the scent of smoke that he had become familiar with. He walked over towards his teacher and smelled him deeply. “I do always love your smell. Reminds me of home” He says in a cheeky voice before he walks back to his table, sitting down and putting his feet up on the table. He leans back in his chair and lets out a tired sigh. He leans back and closes his eyes. “I’m sleepy” He says in a tired tone. He yawns tiredly before closing his eyes to rest in the chair.

[Spawnling]

Dantus, Willhelm, Xander
"MISTER WILHELM!"
The piercing voice of Dantus echoed through the buildings hallways as the Lich practically smashed the door off it's hinges. Floating in, it cast a glance at the Musical Club before holding out a small leather bag to the professor.
"Your...medicine."
As the music teacher reached for it, the lich suddenly pulled it back, getting right in the Wendigo's face and giving a deathly rattle from it's skull.
"And IF I ever overhear you treating a student in such a disrespectful manner once again, rest assured you will have to find ANOTHER source for this concoction and Headmistress Grey will hear of it. And you know how she feels about equal treatment of students."
Dantus flicked it's burning eyes to Xander before throwing the satchel at Wilhelm, ignoring the look of anger the Wendigo gave him. Pivoting in the air, he folded his four arms, nodding at the students.
"Excuse my interruption."
As the Lich left, he paused at the door, one large hand gripping the wood as he glanced back over his shoulder.
"By the by, you reek of cigarette smoke. Set a better example for the students, Mister Wilhelm."
The door slammed shut behind the lich, the sound of wood cracking being heard as Dantus' voice yelled at some student for running in the hallway.

---

Nathalia, Gardening Club
As the final gardening students sat down near their pots, Nathalia clapped her hands to get attention.
"Alright my little blossoms. Welcome to the first gardening club meeting, yaaay, how exciting! So, today, I thought we'd get a little down and dirty, and plant some Mandrakes!"
A hand shot up, and the Nymph smiled, pointing at the incredibly out of place cyclops.
"Samuel was it?"
"Aren't Mandrakes deadly?"
The Nymph tapped a finger to her lips, quirking one brow as she stepped down the row of plants.
"Good question. Let's go over what we know. An adult mandrake, a semi-sentient plant, has a defense mechanism against foragers who wish to dig it up to munch on it. The tubor juuuuust below the sprout, when unearthed, sends out a powerful scream that damages the synapses in the brain, causing massive damage to those within...oh what was it, a 30 foot radius?"
A couple students shifted back from their pots in alarm. Nathalia pointed at Fiona.
"Fifi, why should we not be worried about that?"
The dryad fidgeted a moment before clearing her throat and speaking in a low whisper.
"We're planting babies."
"Exactly. The baby mandrake isn't deadly, but it'll give you one heck of a headache and knock us all unconscious for about 3 hours. Hence, these."
Bending down, Nathalia picked up what looked like a spray can made of tin.
"This is our tool of choice. As you unearth your Mandrake, you will give it a blast from the Smoker. The herbs within will daze the baby, and allow us to safely move it out of the pot. Now, I don't want to see ANYONE blasting each other with this, I'm serious. But I want you all to pair up please, one of you will be digging, the other will be on Smoker duty, because I don't want any mistakes. If you're in doubt, stop what you're doing and call me over, I love helping you wonderful little blossoms out."
"Miss Nathalia? The carnivorous green house?"
"OH RIGHT! Thank you Fi, by the by everyone, I'm looking for volunteers to help with the daily maintenance of the Carnivorous Plants Greenhouse. Anyone interested, I need two or three of you."

---

Getch, Lailah, Harley, Eric
Getch finished handing out the equipment to the newcomers and headed over to Lailah. Her head, to be exact, standing next to it. He watched the body practicing for a few moments before pointing at her back arm.
"You dip before your high thrusts, it's minor, but it's there, let's try to remove that so opponents don't see your attacks coming and sixte you. And you're going to hate me for this next part."
The orc gave an apologetic smile, avoiding the Dullahan's eyes as he spoke.
"I...kinda need you to show the newbies the ropes today. Just today, honest, I promised Bruli that I'd help him fix that leg stutter thing he does when he lunges, and forgot about the new members! Harley will help you out, use her as your sparring partner to teach them, and Eric can be the ref to keep her from, you know...pushing it too far. I appreciate it!"
Before she could refuse or object, a voice that could only be described as bitchy rang out.
"Alright all you fresh meat, come over here, where Lovely Lailah and I are going to show you the basics of sparring."
Harley, a revenant, flourished her epee in one hand, giving a smirk to Lailah's head as she walked over to the body. The newcomers crowded around, whispering about Lailah's head and various advantages and disadvantages. Harley raised a hand, gesturing at Lailah's body.
"This is Lailah. Most of her. That's the rest of her over there. You get used to it, don't mistake it for a soccerball, she gets pissy. During this match, we'll go over the basics of attack and defense. I will attack. She will defend. Since her head is out of the way, and you are all so close to it, why don't we have her call out the maneuvers we use, hmm?"
A few snickers as Harley lowered the mask, and pulled the salute, waiting on Lailah as a slow breath left the Revenant, small beads of frost appearing on the wire mesh of the fencing mask, her body tensed like a spring as she waited for the duel to begin. Eric walked through the crowd, standing to one side with folded arms as he nodded at Harley.
"Fencer ready?"
"Ready! Come on O'Hearn. Let's see if you got rusty."
The cambion looked back at Lailah's head.
"Fencer ready?"

---

Dagr. Sigurd, Gunnar
One of the balls Dagr was juggling was suddenly grabbed out of the air by a large bright red fist as Gunnar got right in Dagr's face.
"Well well, if it isn't Drags."
Gunnar was a massive Ispolin with brick red skin. He looked almost entirely human, except for his massive size marking him as a member of the Giant species. Sigurd immediately dropped his weights, moving towards the pair. It was no secret that Gunnar didn't like Dagr, having lost to him in a match last year. This was the ultimate insult to the Ispolin, to whom image meant everything. The match was a close one, Ipsolin was larger and beefier than Dagr. But at the time, he was a poorer wrestler. Sigurd pushed the two apart, glaring at Gunnar.
"Oi oi! No matches yet! You have a grudge to settle, you do it on the mat AFTER warm ups!"
Gunnar grinned, throwing the weighted ball a centimeter from Dagr's foot with a heavy CLANK.
"No worries Sig. I'm not in a rush..."
The Ispolin walked off to the benchpress, piling weight on and setting to his own workout. Sigurd looked at Dagr.
"Looks like he, uh, hasn't forgiven you for beating him last year. That, uh, sucks. Try not to let him uh...bait you? Keep it on the mats?"

[Berzie]

“Morning Mr Willie!” Wilhelm frowned at Jack as he made his way back towards his desk. "I thought I told you not to call me that either? What is with you kids." He shook his head and in a split second, Jack was right next to him again. “I do always love your smell. Reminds me of home” Wilhelm chuckled in response, "I'm not sure how to respond to tha--" Dantus stormed in, screaming Wilhelm's name ... A common greeting between the two.

"MISTER WILHELM!" Dantus screamed as a tired Wilhelm flinched before noticing the small leather pouch that the Lich was carrying. "Your...medicine." Wilhelm reached out to the tiny bag before pulling his hand back as Dantus recoiled. Wincing at the up close and personal view of Mr Dantus's skull, Wilhelm frowned. "And IF I ever overhear you treating a student in such a disrespectful manner once again, rest assured you will have to find ANOTHER source for this concoction and Headmistress Grey will hear of it. And you know how she feels about equal treatment of students."

As hard as he was on the students, he was always the quickest to defend someone in need. "Right, won't happen again." Wilhelm said, posture stiff and face cold. Dantus' little glance at Xander left him smiling softly. Xander didn't have many people to defend him, so it was nice for a change. "Excuse my interruption." Just as the Lich was about to make his exit, he turned for one last comment, "By the by, you reek of cigarette smoke. Set a better example for the students, Mister Wilhelm." More aftershave and cologne it is, then, Wilhelm thought before nodding at Dantus with a disingenuous grin.

"Of course sir! Understood!" And with the sound of the door slamming shut, Wilhelm slumped back into his chair, letting out a breath he hadn't realized he had been holding. "15 years, and he still scares the absolute day lights out of me," Wilhelm mumbled to himself, smiling as he fiddled with the pouch of medicine in his hand. Anais, somewhat frozen with terror by Dantus looked to Jack with a confused shrug, "That was crazy!" she mouthed. Wilhelm, sighing, looked up at the dark haired ghost whom was staring out the window, grinning like he had just won the lottery. "I suppose I do owe you an apology. I was rather unprofessional. Sorry, Alexander." The ghost's smile faded before he gave Wilhelm a shrug. "Yeah, its OK.."

[Aphelion]

Arcana (Featuring Simon, Ajala, Nathalia, Fiona (mention), Lilith (mention), Shippo (mention))

Arcana couldn't get herself unhooked from the creature that slammed into her, and was jettisoned aside after an abrupt stop. She landed near the pots that the Gardening Club had set up, skidding to a halt just before she knocked one over. She stood, her knees shaking unsteadly, and cranked her head back to see what had happened to the creature. Her hands immediately when to her braid, tension seizing her body. 'He looks d-d-dead!' She thought in horror, hurrying forward. Thankfully, blessedly, the creature's limp form began to move. Arcana nearly fell over in relief, steadying herself by laying a hand against the tree next to her. 'Ohmigod, I thought... I thought I had...' She tugged on her braid even more sharply as her thoughts took her to darker places. Then she realized something. 'Ohmigod! What if he tells people I tried to kill him!?' Horror seized her body once more, and she began tearing at her braid.

That was when she saw it. The bloody jacket in his arms, the leftover flecks of crimson in his hair, and she went numb. 'He's... he's hurt! He's dy-dy-dying! Ohmigodohmigod.' She paced back and forth frantically. He turned to ask her if she was alright, and Arcana paused for a moment, going entirely still. 'I almost killed him and he's asking if I'm okay?' She felt her cheeks grow hot, and lowered her eyes to the ground. "Y-y-yeah.. I'm sorry..." She mumbled underneath her breath, too late though, for he had already left.

Arcana trudged over obediently at Nathalia's request, standing quietly with her head lowered. 'Great load of good I'm doing...' She thought dejectedly, her lips coming to a pout as she played with her ring. Coming to the rescue, as always, was Ajala. The young harpy perked up at the nagini's presence. "I-I-" Arcana gulped, shocked at Ajala's words, "N-n-no! I don't think he did any of that to hu-hurt me! I got in his way. I almost..." As she finished speaking, her voice lowered to a mumble, her words becoming indistinct. Nearly immediately, a loud clap brought everyone's attention to Nathalia, the pretty nymph who led the Gardening Club.

Her dour mood was broken upon the mention of mandrakes. She loved them, they were one of her favorites. Babies were less exciting, in Arcana's opinion, but it was good to become attached to them as young as possible. She wanted to be the digger, but didn't know who she could partner with. She was never good at pairing up with people. She fidgeted in place nervously, her fingers twirling around her ring. Her hair, free to do what it willed, floated behind her head like a giant cowlick.

Her hand shot up mostly on instinct after hearing the word "carnivorous". "I'll g-go! I wa-wa-want to!" Arcana exclaimed as she tippy-toed on her clawed feet. Nathalia smiled in response, pointing at Arcana. "Come to Fiona or me after the meeting, we'll make sure that enthusiasm doesn't go to waste." The nymph clapped her hands once more, then gave a gesture to the shovels and tin-can Smokers. "Alright everyone, front and center! Older students, please try to partner with the newer ones."

Arcana stood rooted in place, looking this way and that in nervousness. She made out a few faces in the crowd: a small fairy looking at the mandrakes (perhaps somewhat mischievously, Arcana thought), Shippo - the fox boy she bumped into yesterday (a blush rose to her cheeks as she quickly glided her eyes past him), Ajala, the pretty and soothing nagini Arcana had come to like in their two interactions with each-other, and finally Fiona, the cute dryad that seemed to be Nathalia's helper. 'I doubt any of them have problems talking to people...' Arcana's dour mood roared its ugly head yet again.

[Card Captor]

Shippo, Gardening Club

So they were dealing with baby mandrakes today. Oh well, it couldn't be any worse then the time his big sister brought home a mandragon, he still had nightmares about that thing, although they were pretty rare now. 'I wonder why we're even dealing with mandrakes; baby or not, these things can be dangerous. Sure, one might not be life threatening, but a bunch of them can paralysis someone, maybe even stop their heart.'

Looking around at all the faces in the club, he saw some new ones, some familiar ones, and....wait, he knew her. He hadn't just seen her before, he had talked to her. Gah! He could take one quick look at a detailed and complex map and have it completely memorized...but names and faces were a whole 'nother story. Just who was she......that right! She was the girl who he bumped into yesterday. Suddenly realizing he had been staring at her while in thought, his cheeks flamed up and he diverted his eyes to the ground

[Spawnling]

Miri, Gwendy, Ahmose, Isaac, Helga, Jousting Team

"Miss Soze, don't poke the bear please."
The Valkyrie crooked a finger at the Succubus as Ahmose shoved Isaac, who was in the middle of making some comment about poking. Helga gestured at a squad of girls to one side.
"To help with your self control, you'll be flying with Squad B, it's all girls. Up in the air everyone, give me 10 laps, medium pace! Gwendy, keep anyone from flying too slow, you're anchor. If Gwendy passes you that's an extra 3 laps, keep up the pace people!"
The whistle shrieked out as the students rose up, flitting through the hoops that circled the stadium. Isaac's shadowy wings spiraled as he flew backwards, giving a wicked grin to Ahmose as the incubus sped ahead, skirting the heels of the group ahead of his.
"Come on Ahmose! Make me sweat!"
"Cheeky little shit..."
The incubus gave a whoop, buzzing the heads of the Jousting Team and causing the newcomers to duck in alarm. Diana lifted her lance calmly, aiming it dead at the Incubus, forcing him to lift up to avoid being skewered. He gave a laugh, saluting the deadpan centaur.
"Good morning beautiful!"
Helga's whistle pierced out.
"Isaac, stay to the track or I'll give you to Mister Dantus for detention, that's your only warning now GET BACK TO WORK!"

---

Gideon, Katsu
The Kappa watched the newcomers with eyes like a hawk, now and then kneeling down and giving pointers. As Gideon returned to one side of the pool, Katsu motioned for his attention.
"You're good, but you're not pushing yourself. You're phasing into the water too much, is your mind wandering? Let's see if we can give you some incentive. Miriel!"
From the other side of the pool, a mermaid's head popped up, hair tucked underneath a black swim cap as she leaned on the ledge. Katsu waved her over to an empty lane, then motioned for Gideon to do the same, looking at his clipboard.
"Gideon right? The only naiad on my list, so yeah. Gideon, you're gonna race Miriel here, whatever stroke you want. I'm gonna be watching, every time you phase in, you get an extra lap after practice."
Miriel gave a dismissive nod to Gideon, rolling her shoulders with a small chuckle. Katsu quirked a brow.
"Let's make it interesting. If Gideon beats you Miriel, you get to put the equipment away today. Alone."
The mermaid stiffened slightly. Lacking legs, mermaids instead used wheelchairs to get around. Trying to haul lane lines out of the pool with one hand while steering with the other was a nightmare.
"Ready? GO!"

[Completlie]

Lilith, Nathalia*, Arcana*, Ajala*, Shippo*, Leonardo*

I see, so unearth the baby mandrake, then smoke it. Got it.

"But I want you all to pair up please..."

Wait, WHAT?!

Lilith groaned. She barely knew these people and she has to team up with one of them. She thought for a moment, and realized that this is a blessing, one can handle the mandrake, she can smoke it. Reason being is that while she can keep her plant growing abilities in control for most of the time, they activate by mere touch, and when those go off on a mandrake...you get the picture. Lilith scanned the room for a person that she can at least tolerate.

"I'm looking for volunteers to help with the daily maintenance of the Carnivorous Plants Greenhouse. Anyone interested, I need two or three of you."

"Ok, one thing's for sure, I AM NOT VOLUNTEERING FOR THAT. Carnivorous plants are interesting and all, but they're not for me, I remember the time where a Venus Flytrap nearly RIPPED MY ARM OFF. Alright, let's see what we got here, Fiona, but I think she has an important role in this club, so she looks like she's out of the question. The glowing harpy thing, wait, how did I not notice her? She intrigues me...I don't want to approach her yet. How about that snake...erm...no...Or maybe that boy over there? Or that minotaur? I don't know, why can't life just pick for me? Just, I don't know how to go about this. At all."

[Sam12435]

Jack, Anais, Dantus, Wilhelm, Xander

Jack smiled as he was listening to Wilhelm respond. Just then the massive Lich that was all too well known burst through the door. Jack darted over to his desk, hiding under it before he realized what was going on. He poked his head out from the back of the table as he watched the argument between the men. He waited carefully, flinching at the louder words and trying to stay out of sight. Jack hated fighting or arguing. Jack saw Dantus turn and nod at him so he nodded back with a smile.

"By the by, you reek of cigarette smoke. Set a better example for the students, Mister Wilhelm." As Jack heard this he pouted slightly. As the Lich finally left, Jack jumped back on his table. His eyes turned to his vampiric friend mouthed to him. “That was crazy!” He saw. With a smile he mouthed back “He scares me” Before he looked back over to see his teacher and club mate making up. With a little jump, Jack stood up and walked his way over to his teacher’s chair. He put his hands on the man’s shoulders.

“Everyone is friends again!” Jack announces happily. He smiles over to his ghostly chum before squeezing the shoulders he had in his hands. He lets go and walks around the table towards another one. With a hefty sigh he lays down on the table. “What’s the plan now Willi- I mean Mr Wilhelm?” Jack asked as he rolled around on the desk.

[Vocalia]

Ajala, Arcana, Shippo, Lilith, Gardening Club

Ajala pondered upon whether or not she should take the chance or let some of the newer members take it. After a brief deliberation, she decided that she would rather deal with flesh-eating plants than speaking living beings. "I'd like to volunteer as well," she said to Fiona and Nathalia, not particularly caring if anyone would like to join her and Arcana to volunteer for the daunting job.

With that out of the way, she returned to the mandrake problem. While she was willing to assist the newer members, she knew she could only assist one unless she knew how to split herself into three parts. Still being relatively new, she was somewhat hesitant to speak to the senior members. Sighing quietly, she gestured to the new member Fiona had signed up and to Arcana to pick a spot close to her so she could help. Picking a few Smokers, she back to where Shippo was first and asked, "Would you like to do the smoking or digging duty?"

[Iluvatar]

Gideon, Miriel, Katsu

Gideon threw himself into the water, a split second after the mermaid, Miriel. His webbed hands and gills would help him to swim fast in physical form, but the fish tail of his opponent would make an equal, or most likely better, swimming aid. He couldn't phase in - it was not the though of an extra lap, on the contrary, he would almost have welcomed that, but the insult of being beaten on his first day - by a girl.

Risking a glance to his left, Gideon saw that mermaid was already two meters ahead and not slowing. He increased his speed further, drawing level with her.

She also glanced at him, and, seeing him so close, beat her tail deep into the water and launched herself forward, dousing Gideon. Already wet, and being a naiad, this wasn't a problem, but the message was clear - back off. He blinked the water from his eyes, and saw that she had gained four meters on him.

Diving underwater to escape more deluges, he kicked with his feet and shot forward, just below the surface. Wriggling like an eel, he slid through the water and overtook Miriel.

Then, he realised. His legs had phased into the water. Pulling them back together, he allowed his buoyancy to lift him to air above, hoping no one had noticed. If only the mermaid had been a nereid or an oceanid - both would have had the same problems as him.

But, Gideon had one advantage; she was an ocean dweller - he inhabited enclosed sources all the time. Focusing his mind, he allowed his consciousness to examine the water (carefully holding his cellular structure together) and search for a way. With the race nearly over, and the side of the pool growing ever closer, it was a race against time.

Then, he saw it. Or rather sensed it. A sideways current from a filter accompanied by the forward drag of Miriel - a perfect route. Pushing with his hands, he threw himself forward and got caught in the flow, propelling him onwards. With a cheeky grin, a swept past the mermaid and doused her with water.

The side was inches away. As he reached forward, a sploosh sound resounded in the water - Miriel leaping out of the pool and thrusting her tail forwards. It brushed the side just before his fingers closed around the edge.

Turing to glare at her, she gave him a smug grin. Clearly, she thought nothing whatsoever of him.

Now to see whether he was in for another lap...

[Aphelion]

Arcana (Featuring Gardening Club)

Arcana squatted next to the mandrake, making sure to reserve the empty one next to her for Ajala and Shippo. With her head tilted to one side it made her look like the picture of a bird examining it's prey. She held a gardening shovel loosely in one hand, she didn't plan on using it however: she liked the feel of the earth between her fingers, something about it made her calm down and forget her troubles. She peeked a doey teal eye at the fairy that Ajala had paired her with, and felt inwardly grateful to the nagini.

'I couldn't have a-a-asked anyone. Ajala is s-so nice to help out.' Arcana ducked her head down to hide the smile blooming on her face. Something about being here just felt right. Maybe it was the comradery, or the comfort of so much greenery around her, but she lifted her head up to look at the fairy, revealing a big goofy grin across her face. "H-hi! I'm Arcana!" She said, sticking out a taloned hand for the small fairy to shake... or land on, or something.

[Card Captor]

Shippo, Gardening Club

"Oh...um. I-I don't really c-care" he answered Ajala, who had seemingly volunteered to be his partner. Looking back at the mandrakes, he found himself once again wondering why they were planting something like this 'I thought the Gardening Club was all about taking care of pretty flowers. mandrakes aren't pretty at all, and they're even dangerous to some species. I still remember that time one sent poor Kenny into critical condition.' Shaking that thought from his head, he returned to the task at hand. He couldn't risk messing this up. Someone could get badly hurt if he did

[Completlie]

Lilith, Arcana

Lilith sighed in relief Oh hey, I actually got paired with someone, that's a good thing. A very, very good thing.

Lilith looked at the hand that Arcana extended to her. With both hands she shook her index...talon, or at least what Lilith thought would be so.

"I'm Lilith, would you like to be the digger? If it's anything else, I would be arguing over who gets the digging role, but in this case, I'd rather stay away from the mandrake." As she was finishing that last line, she looked down on her hands which were still on the talon. Lilith let go of it, adding "Yeah, if you're digging, I would appreciate that you try to not let me touch the mandrake, just, don't let me touch that thing. I might demonstrate why sometime, but, yeah, don't let me touch the mandrake."

[cedric of trall]

Dagr raised in a light blue eyebrow as he looked down at the iron ball in the ground, "Looks like he, uh, hasn't forgiven you for beating him last year. That, uh, sucks. Try not to let him uh...bait you? Keep it on the mats?" Dagr would have laughed in his captains face if he was one for laughing, he had no problem with Gunnar, and wasn't overly concerned with the big Ispolin. Of course Dagr would never say that out loud he liked Sigurd and wouldn't want to hurt the fire giants feelings by laughing at him, not to mention the trouble it might start with Gunnar and even though Dagr was confident he could best the larger giant he knew the schools policy on fighting, and he didn't want to walk that road again.

With a simple nod to the fire giant Dagr moved to the weight stick that the oni had been using and started to swing it in wide varying circles then stopping it halfway through the swing and starting the other way.

[Spawnling]

Simon, Scovian

KRACK!
Simon trotted over to the freshman who had made the hit, shifting his grip with a smile.
"Hold it here, flex the arm here, so your shoulder is supporting the weight, not your wrist. Don't brace your arm for the hit, brace your stomach, remember that you're going to be getting hit at the same time."
The younger centaur nodded, sweating heavily.
"It's really heavy!"
"Solid ten pounds, all stretched out in front of you. You get used to it, you're gonna get muscles you never knew existed. Next up!"
Scovian, the lion hybrid, pulled his helmet on, ratcheting it into place as he rolled his shoulders. Simon watched carefully, eyes flitting between the lance tip and the training dummy. A short ways away, the older members were drilling, slamming into each other at top speed. Simon had been delegated the duty of training the new recruits on the basics. Since he trained at night, walking them through the basics wouldn't set him back any. Scovian braced himself, then took a run. The lanced slammed into the training dummy, Simon watching carefully. The centaur walked over to the dummy, feeling the heavy shield where Scovian had hit.
"Scovian, come here for a sec."
With a snort, the lion padded over, pulling the helmet off.
"What?"
"You missed."
Blinking in confusion, Scovian examined the shield.
"What are you talking about, it's right there!"
"Yup. Out of the legal target area. Everyone, come over here, this brings up a good point. You see where Scovian hit?"
Simon gestured to the huge dent. The circular shield was specially designed to angle all hits to one side, and there was a large red circle at the center. Scovian's hit had landed outside the circle. Simon smiled, rapping the shield with one hand.
"Anyone wondering why we have red paint on both the shields and the sides of the chest piece that faces the opponent?"
Silence, before a female centaur spoke up.
"Um...to...make a target?"
"Exactly. The armor and shields are specially designed to deflect blows, and it's really hard to see with the helmet on. So we paint it red, easy to see, and that's what you aim for. Scovian hit outside the legal zone, the point wouldn't have counted."
"I couldn't see, it's not MY fault!"
Ohhh, that left a sour taste in Simon's mouth, but he smiled at the lion.
"I didn't say it was, this is why we practice. But I want to point out WHY it's bad to hit outside the target area."
Scovian gave a low growl, folding his arms angrily as he listened. Simon grabbed the shield on one side, specifically where the hit had landed, and began to pull back, twisting the dummy's arm.
"It puts torque on our arms. The shield is bolted to the chest piece, but trust me when I say I've seen the bolts break under the hits we take. Too much stress..."
KRA-KRACKLE!
The dummy's wooden arm ripped out of the socket at the shoulder. The freshman stared as the realization set in.
"And your shoulder is popped out of it's socket, or the arm is broken. We haven't had anything serious since..."
Breaking bones, wood splintering, the crowd yelling out, blood, so much pain...
"...since last year, but that was an accident. More often, we just leave with big ole bruises and sore shoulders."
Simon pushed the smile back up, moving to set up another dummy, shoving the memory down deep.
"Whose next?"

[Aphelion]

Arcana (Featuring Lilith - Gardening Club)

Arcana let out a small "chirp" noise when the fairy, Lilith, shook the talon at the end of her index finger. "Ye-yeah! I'd l-lo-love to dig!" She stammered in response, then shifted on her clawed feet make herself more comfortable in her squatting position. 'She's really afraid of mandrakes, or something. I wonder why? They're so cute.' She thought as Lilith expressed her desire to stay as far as possible from the mandrake.

"W-well, I'll t-t-try my best." Arcana mumbled nervously, her hands fumbling with the trowel she was holding until she dropped it. She left it there and took a small breath to calm herself, then turned slightly to examine the mandrake they were going to replant into the empty bed of soil in front of them. Arcana could tell by it's leaves that it was a chubby and particularly healthy one, which made her wonder how effective the Smokers were for a brief moment, before she discarded the thought. A direct hit should stun even adolescent mandrakes. These would go down even if they weren't blasted full-force, even if they were rather... fat, or so she assumed. She carefully worked her talons around the edges of the dirt in the pot, making sure not to unearth the mandrake's face just yet. When the soil seemed loose enough to give-way, she cocked her head to look at Lilith.

"Ah-alright, um - I'll dig it out on th-the count of three," Arcana's heart leapt to her throat, causing her to gulp audibly. She waited for Lilith to get ready before placing her hand loosely around the stem poking out of the soft soil. "One... two... t--three!" She gripped the mandrake's head stem firmly and pulled. She felt the dirt give-way as the head and face crowned from the soil. Time seemed to slow down as she waited with anticipation for Lilith to smoke it.