Mana Academy (IC) (Open, Fantasy)

[Luminesa]

Before Timeskip

Rabbit looked around him at Mana Academy. The beautiful, rolling campus, now with colorful leaves floating all around, was so peaceful and quiet in the early morning. When Henry, Rabbit, and Allistor returned, however, it would probably be covered in snow, over even flowers if it was spring. He had no idea how long any of this would take. However, Henry was right. The group did not have much time to wait. “...‘And miles to go before I sleep...and miles to go, before I sleep...’” he whispered, a piece of a poem that played in his mind for just a moment. He then turned toward Henry, and nodded. “Yes. Let’s get Allistor and get going. I hardly think we’ll have much luck if we have to chase down the plane,” he joked.

On the other side of campus, Oliver and Ambrosia continued their fight. Ambrosia persisted in rushing her opponent, flailing him repeatedly until she noticed the new magical circle. This time, she jumped away from the circle, knowing very well that she could not sustain another shot from Oliver’s hidden powers. Seeing him form the sword and cover it with wind made her gulp with fear, but his challenge re-bolstered her desire to strike back. “...Alright! If you asked for it! I’ll beat you into the ground!” Now she summoned a fiery whip with each hand, and she rushed toward him.

After Timeskip

With the two students and their teacher off the campus, the air did not initially change. Everyone had an exam to which they needed to look forward, and plenty of studying and training needed to be done. Of course, everyone would hope for the trip to return safely, and with one of their worst enemies-Blanchefleur Rise-vanquished. In the meantime, several characters were spending time together, working on honing their abilities.

Ambrosia flopped down on her back for a final time, the landscape around her torn by wind and fire. She was covered in sweat, dizzy, and ready to vomit. She had worked her heart out, and could only eye Oliver from her place on the ground. “...Darn it...darn it, darn it...ughhhhhh...” she mumbled, struggling to lift her aching limbs. Her hair was knoted and covered with twigs and leaves, and her stockings were torn and scraped. “...You’re really good...” she breathed, after trying-and failing-to pull herself to her knees.

After the fight, Oliver dusted himself off, as if generally nothing had happened.
He still had some wounds, but considered them minor if they didn't pierce him entirely, which there was.

In the last, desperate assault, he had gotten unusually careless and let himself be pierced by one of Ambrosia's whips. The wound was seared and essentially never even started to bleed, but it did feel bad to get his shoulder pierced.
Of course, it would get healed in a matter of minutes once he hit the infirmary.

"You're not that bad yourself. You did manage to pierce my shoulder and wound me here and there when I was actually starting to dodge.
I'd say this was productive." He squatted down to her height and smiled.

"There's no point in stopping there, so how about a deal? You train up on your own, spar with me every once in a while, and I'll let you join the little training group I've been constructing. Not that I really even tried to make it at all." Muttering the last part, he went to offer his hand, then pulled it away, realizing that she wouldn't be able to stand up on her own.

So instead, he did what an awkward and entirely blind to consequences man would do, and pulled her up and laid her accross his shoulder.

"Come on, you need to rest, and ideally not outside. Unless you're in the shade, you're never going to get any strength back."

Ambrosia stared up at him as he approached, and listened to him as he offered to continue training her. She let out of weak smile and nodded, before she realized that she could barely even move to answer him. She had been in the sun for so long that she was now delirious, and could barely make-out Oliver’s face. Fortunately, Oliver had decided to be a gentleman and to help her off the battlefield. Picking her up and laying her across his shoulder, she suddenly felt a little safer. She knew that he would carry her to safety. Her heart fluttered in her chest, but as long as she was in the sun she could not express what she was thinking.

[Luminesa]

“Oh!...I-I use Wind Magic...like...u-um...” Soleil was not sure how to explain his skills, so rather, he decided to demonstrate as usual. He held out a hand, and the wind around the two floated into his palm. After a few moments, it turned into a little canary, and its lungs-made of air, of course-breathed out. It then began to chirp a little song, pleasant and twinkling. The little canary then flew to Valerie, and landed on her hand, cheerily singing a greeting-song to her. Soleil smiled, hoping the canary’s song would make Valerie smile as well. After all, she seemed just positively...lifeless. And few could resist grinning at the happy tune of a canary. “...I-I can make constructs...shields...a-and swords...I-I’m not that good, but I’m getting better...” He blushed talking about himself, but his eyes sparkled, as he was eager to train and to become better as a Mage. “...What kind of things can you do with your Magic?” he inquired.

Valerie stayed perfectly still as the Canary landed on her hand. It was neat, she had to admit, and in a simpler time she could recall being enamored by such unique displays of magic. However, as much as she wanted to feel something...anything...she could only stare at the bird with no emotion. She couldn't just snub Soleil's attempt to show her something he was proud of, and did her best to wrest a smile to her face. It took a moment to perfect, and if he was watching closely would of likely seen the twitch at the end of her mouth. Coupled with how her eyes still looked as passive as ever.

"That is very beautiful." She stated. Valerie thought about what she could do to impress him walked towards the Ocean water. With a flick of her wrist, she separated some of the water from the Sea and it wrapped smoothly around her arms like a snake. She clapped her hands together and as they parted, she created a 'Liquid Snowflake' in shape only.

"I...was not sure what to present off the top of my head." Valerie explained, hoping her meager display was substantial for Soleil.

Soleil watched Valerie carefully, and saw a tiny smile stretch across her face. Happy that she was pleased by his display, his grin grew just a little wider and confident. He then watched as she used her own powers, easily summoning water from the sea and wrapping it around her arms like fine silk. She then created a liquid snowflake from the water, and showed it to him. She sounded uncertain of her abilities, so to encourage her, he clapped for her. “N-No, no, that was really good! I-I can tell you’re very good with Water Magic! Good job!” He noticed that she still seemed distracted, however. Yet now he wondered if perhaps some pain was weighing on her mind.

...What if...What if she’s been hurt...like me...but she doesn’t know how to talk about it... Whatever pain she had suffered, he had no idea. However, he knew that he wanted to keep the smile on her face, at the very least, and he wanted to bring the light back to her eyes. She seemed to be a kind girl, after all, just...lost. And to him, the world was too beautiful to wander through with such sad eyes. ...It’s okay, Valerie...when I came here, I was really lost too...I was scared...and I felt alone...but I’ll make sure that you don’t feel that way. That’s why we’re working together. he thought, suddenly blushing as she stood in front of her.

[Imperial--japan]

Valerie stayed perfectly still as the Canary landed on her hand. It was neat, she had to admit, and in a simpler time she could recall being enamored by such unique displays of magic. However, as much as she wanted to feel something...anything...she could only stare at the bird with no emotion. She couldn't just snub Soleil's attempt to show her something he was proud of, and did her best to wrest a smile to her face. It took a moment to perfect, and if he was watching closely would of likely seen the twitch at the end of her mouth. Coupled with how her eyes still looked as passive as ever.

"That is very beautiful." She stated. Valerie thought about what she could do to impress him walked towards the Ocean water. With a flick of her wrist, she separated some of the water from the Sea and it wrapped smoothly around her arms like a snake. She clapped her hands together and as they parted, she created a 'Liquid Snowflake' in shape only.

"I...was not sure what to present off the top of my head." Valerie explained, hoping her meager display was substantial for Soleil.

Soleil watched Valerie carefully, and saw a tiny smile stretch across her face. Happy that she was pleased by his display, his grin grew just a little wider and confident. He then watched as she used her own powers, easily summoning water from the sea and wrapping it around her arms like fine silk. She then created a liquid snowflake from the water, and showed it to him. She sounded uncertain of her abilities, so to encourage her, he clapped for her. “N-No, no, that was really good! I-I can tell you’re very good with Water Magic! Good job!” He noticed that she still seemed distracted, however. Yet now he wondered if perhaps some pain was weighing on her mind.

...What if...What if she’s been hurt...like me...but she doesn’t know how to talk about it... Whatever pain she had suffered, he had no idea. However, he knew that he wanted to keep the smile on her face, at the very least, and he wanted to bring the light back to her eyes. She seemed to be a kind girl, after all, just...lost. And to him, the world was too beautiful to wander through with such sad eyes. ...It’s okay, Valerie...when I came here, I was really lost too...I was scared...and I felt alone...but I’ll make sure that you don’t feel that way. That’s why we’re working together. he thought, suddenly blushing as she stood in front of her.

Valerie was content that she was able to please Soleil with a display of her abilities. Now the real challenge would be to concoct ways that the two of them could use their powers in sync to best the competition in the exams practical portion. Valerie pondered on how they best would be able to cpliment each other. Wind and Water....perhaps a storm of some form? Could they create something to affect the terrain if need be? It would be an unusual way to proceed, but not ineffective.

"I am happy that my display...satisfied you!" Valerie attempted to say with a little more enthusiasm in her voice, only for it to come out somewhat cracked instead. She noticed the redness on Soleil's face however and wondered if he was alright. Perhaps it was hot out and she didn't even realize? It wasn't as though she could feel hot or cold anyways. Or was he feeling sick? Valerie would feel terrible if she forced Soleil to push himself when he wasn't feeling up to par.

"Perhaps utilizing our proefficiency with Wind and Water could allow us to create a localized storm?" Valerie suggested, keeping a close eye on Soleil for his health, though it could come across as creepy staring.

[Luminesa]

Soleil watched Valerie carefully, and saw a tiny smile stretch across her face. Happy that she was pleased by his display, his grin grew just a little wider and confident. He then watched as she used her own powers, easily summoning water from the sea and wrapping it around her arms like fine silk. She then created a liquid snowflake from the water, and showed it to him. She sounded uncertain of her abilities, so to encourage her, he clapped for her. “N-No, no, that was really good! I-I can tell you’re very good with Water Magic! Good job!” He noticed that she still seemed distracted, however. Yet now he wondered if perhaps some pain was weighing on her mind.

...What if...What if she’s been hurt...like me...but she doesn’t know how to talk about it... Whatever pain she had suffered, he had no idea. However, he knew that he wanted to keep the smile on her face, at the very least, and he wanted to bring the light back to her eyes. She seemed to be a kind girl, after all, just...lost. And to him, the world was too beautiful to wander through with such sad eyes. ...It’s okay, Valerie...when I came here, I was really lost too...I was scared...and I felt alone...but I’ll make sure that you don’t feel that way. That’s why we’re working together. he thought, suddenly blushing as she stood in front of her.

Valerie was content that she was able to please Soleil with a display of her abilities. Now the real challenge would be to concoct ways that the two of them could use their powers in sync to best the competition in the exams practical portion. Valerie pondered on how they best would be able to cpliment each other. Wind and Water....perhaps a storm of some form? Could they create something to affect the terrain if need be? It would be an unusual way to proceed, but not ineffective.

"I am happy that my display...satisfied you!" Valerie attempted to say with a little more enthusiasm in her voice, only for it to come out somewhat cracked instead. She noticed the redness on Soleil's face however and wondered if he was alright. Perhaps it was hot out and she didn't even realize? It wasn't as though she could feel hot or cold anyways. Or was he feeling sick? Valerie would feel terrible if she forced Soleil to push himself when he wasn't feeling up to par.

"Perhaps utilizing our proefficiency with Wind and Water could allow us to create a localized storm?" Valerie suggested, keeping a close eye on Soleil for his health, though it could come across as creepy staring.

Hearing her enthusiasm made him happy. Soleil’s face brightened, and he blushed even redder. Her voice sounded a little awkward as she tried to express herself, but it was progress, and that progress made him happy. Almost bubbly, even. When she started giving ideas on how they could use their powers together, however, he blinked and began to think. “...A storm?...W-We could do that...or fog...or...um...steam...th-though they’re...um...kinda the same...or we could make a tidal wave...Th-There’s a lot we could do! We’d just have to get kinda...creative!” he suggested, clapping his hands together again.

[Saldinado]

Shaun Calhoun & Dominique Corleone

"Okay! Tell me when!" Exclaimed Dominique as he looked at his fellow Solum. The early morning sun shined above him with the rays transforming his eyes into a light honey color. The soft wind softly blowing in between his fingers as his held his right hand up towards the sky, as if he was trying to touch the Heavens themselves. In them, a clay archery plate remained in his hand. He stood up straight in his usual attire of khaki shorts with a white basic tee and sneakers; his socks folded up and placed so neatly upon the edges of his sneakers to give a sense of warmth yet allow for easy access for the wind to his legs if he did get too hot. His eyes gazed upon the group of 7 Terracotta-like warriors that Shaun created from clay as they readied themselves with shields with bulls-eye marks on them. Each of them lined up together side-by-side and so packed together that no even the sunlight can pass behind them. Dominique was helping Shaun with his archery for the upcoming exams, and in return, would get help from the snowy-haired teen with his combat skills as well. But then again, even if there wasn't any form of combat training, he would almost always take the time to hang out with him.
With a small smile upon his face Dominique turned his attention to Shaun and called out to him, who was more than about 50 yards away. "Okay dude! Are you ready now?!"

Meanwhile far from Dom and the warriors stood the young Shaun. His lavender eyes which were usually filled with amusement, interest, and even reluctance and timidness, were now filled with determination. Seriousness. And overall focus as he looked upon his targets. The wind began to pick up a bit causing his hair to blow softly towards the right of him.

So wind direction is coming from the west... Feels like its about 10 miles per hour. Not bad at all I guess.

He then sighed to himself and shook his head as he stood up straight and looked towards the center warrior from afar. He squinted his eyes and focused on that particular one. He never tried this trick out before but his mother taught him about it. Hopefully it'll be somewhat good. With his hands readied at his side, he brought them up to reveal a wooden longbow and held it in his usual archer position. Angling his body at around 45 degree, he softly sighed as he pulled the longbow back in his hand; his fingers wrapping around the string, but not fully holding it.
He pulled it behind him as he began to form an arrow. The weapon-which was made of water-began to accumulate in size as he increased its volume with water. Once he was finally done, the water arrow was now around 2 feet in length yet still maintained the shape and width of a normal arrow. Yet Shaun could feel the increased weight in his fingers and grunted. To those who can see him, he looked like a professional archer. Stone-faced and concentrated so much that one would even be somewhat apprehensive to disturb him. Yet on the inside, he was indeed the opposite. He was slowly worrying to himself about too many things at once.

Would I be able to pull this off? And I'm right in front of Dominique, so what would he think if I were to fail? Oh man, it would be so embarrassing if anyone else were to see me mess up. Am I facing at the right angle? Did I make the arrow too big? Okay, I can't continue doing all of this worrying. He's waiting on me.

Clearing his throat, Shaun positioned himself once again and looked at the warriors with even more intensity while also keeping his angle. With a deep heave, he breathed in and exhaled before cutting through the silence of the air, in a husky voice, yelled out to Dominique. "Pull!"

Dominique heard the signal and with his strength, threw the disk into the air like Frisbee; the air taking hold of it and almost carrying it away. Suddenly, Shaun let go of his arrow as it whizzed right pass him; the sharpness of the arrow cutting through the hair and lifting his hair up ever so slightly as it flew high in the sky with traces of water splashing on his pale cheeks. He lowered his bow as he watch it glide, practically merge with the air before watching it slowly split and divide into six, more smaller, yet faster arrows. The main arrow soon after caught up with the clay disk before piercing it and still traveling forwards towards the center Terracotta warrior and colliding in with it as well. A rather large splash being heard from the direct contact between the two. He watched four of the seven arrows made their way to their targets, each making a distinctive splashing sounds and sight. However the other three were more reluctant as two went pass their designated targets and landed in the nearby trees, the force of the arrows making some of the branches shake vigorously for a bit and causing their leaves to fall. Yet the last one made a more opposite direction. It was quickly starting to lose trajectory and go into freefall, heading straight for Dominique.
Shaun saw where it was going and felt his eyes widen before yelling out to his friend. "Dom! Look out, now!"

Dominique saw the arrow, but it was too late. The arrow quickly hit him in the abdomen. A loud splash was heard from both of them as Dominique's eyes shot wide open only to collapse on his knees and fall over on his side, holding onto his stomach. Shaun quickly dropped his bow and ran towards Dom where he was continuing to hold his stomach and cough. The arrow didn't do any internal damage or anything, but if one were to get hit, they would feel as though they got the wind knocked out of them. Or like doing a belly flop even. But nothing life threatening. He knelt down and helped up Dominique to his knees where he held him in his arms and cradled him as he could feel his body shake from his coughing. "I'm so sorry! I-I didn't mean to! I'm so, so, so sorry!" Shaun exclaimed as he held Dominique even closer to his chest.
Dominique could do nothing but stay silent for a bit as he felt the rapid heartbeat of Shaun fill his ears. Soon in the mist of his coughing, all he could do is weakly laugh before stopping to cough a bit more and laugh again. "Please Shaunie. I'm...I'm fine. I've been hit with worst in w-worst places. And besides, I kno...I know that it was an accident. Its not like...like I'm dying hehe. So please, don't apologize." And soon he began to laugh even harder in between coughs as Shaun held him in his arms like a mother does to her child. He fought to hold back the tears and with a shaky voice, spoke to him. "A-alright then. If you say so. Are you okay?" He said as he buried his face in Dominique's hair and hugged him closer. "I'm so sorry..."

"Goddamnit Shaun! Stop apologizing!" Dominique suddenly said in a more serious yer playful tone. "Its not your fault, okay?! You couldn't have expected this, so shut up about it being your fault. If anything, I only have myself to blame for being so unaware of my surroundings. So stop that right now! Be proud that your trick even worked in the first place without that much of a mess-up and hold your head up high damnit! This just means that there's still room for improvement, and I'll help you with that until you master it! Hell, I'll even call your mother to come and help talk you through what to do! So just shut up and be confident!" Those last parts of his speech were more serious rather than playful and his voice even gotten deeper, almost like a father would.

Shaun looked down at Dominique in shock and silence. He didn't expect to hear him be so serious like this. It was almost scary to him. He tensed up a bit and replayed those words in his head.

"Just shut up and be confident".

"O-okay...I will...Thank you." Shaun softly said to Dominique as he let go of him and soon sat down on the ground next to him. With a soft chuckle, he shook his head and brought his knees up to his chest, holding them with his arms before looking up at Dominique, who was also sitting on the ground, with his legs crossed and his hands over his stomach still coughing. Shaun looked at him and smirked at him. "Really? My mother? Were you serious about that?" Dominique chuckled in his now usual deep and soothing tone and looked at Shaun. "I mean, if it would get you to admit to yourself that you're a great guy, then so be it."

[Imperial--japan]

Valerie was content that she was able to please Soleil with a display of her abilities. Now the real challenge would be to concoct ways that the two of them could use their powers in sync to best the competition in the exams practical portion. Valerie pondered on how they best would be able to cpliment each other. Wind and Water....perhaps a storm of some form? Could they create something to affect the terrain if need be? It would be an unusual way to proceed, but not ineffective.

"I am happy that my display...satisfied you!" Valerie attempted to say with a little more enthusiasm in her voice, only for it to come out somewhat cracked instead. She noticed the redness on Soleil's face however and wondered if he was alright. Perhaps it was hot out and she didn't even realize? It wasn't as though she could feel hot or cold anyways. Or was he feeling sick? Valerie would feel terrible if she forced Soleil to push himself when he wasn't feeling up to par.

"Perhaps utilizing our proefficiency with Wind and Water could allow us to create a localized storm?" Valerie suggested, keeping a close eye on Soleil for his health, though it could come across as creepy staring.

Hearing her enthusiasm made him happy. Soleil’s face brightened, and he blushed even redder. Her voice sounded a little awkward as she tried to express herself, but it was progress, and that progress made him happy. Almost bubbly, even. When she started giving ideas on how they could use their powers together, however, he blinked and began to think. “...A storm?...W-We could do that...or fog...or...um...steam...th-though they’re...um...kinda the same...or we could make a tidal wave...Th-There’s a lot we could do! We’d just have to get kinda...creative!” he suggested, clapping his hands together again.

Valerie was pleased that Soleil had seemed so encouraged by her suggestion, and that he continued to support their cause by offering even more suggestions. Valerie felt that she should feel bad for not truly feeling anything or being able to express her feelings properly. As happy as Soleil was, she was completely indifferent, but still managed to maintain the facade. Perhaps when she eventually reversed her dreaded affliction she would be able to apologize to Soleil for her awkwardness, but until then she had to make do.

"All very viable suggestions." Valerie stated.

"Other than coming up with ideas, would you like to practice any of these? Or would you like to train possibly?" Valerie suggested, attempting to not let the conversation lull.

[Luminesa]

Hearing her enthusiasm made him happy. Soleil’s face brightened, and he blushed even redder. Her voice sounded a little awkward as she tried to express herself, but it was progress, and that progress made him happy. Almost bubbly, even. When she started giving ideas on how they could use their powers together, however, he blinked and began to think. “...A storm?...W-We could do that...or fog...or...um...steam...th-though they’re...um...kinda the same...or we could make a tidal wave...Th-There’s a lot we could do! We’d just have to get kinda...creative!” he suggested, clapping his hands together again.

Valerie was pleased that Soleil had seemed so encouraged by her suggestion, and that he continued to support their cause by offering even more suggestions. Valerie felt that she should feel bad for not truly feeling anything or being able to express her feelings properly. As happy as Soleil was, she was completely indifferent, but still managed to maintain the facade. Perhaps when she eventually reversed her dreaded affliction she would be able to apologize to Soleil for her awkwardness, but until then she had to make do.

"All very viable suggestions." Valerie stated.

"Other than coming up with ideas, would you like to practice any of these? Or would you like to train possibly?" Valerie suggested, attempting to not let the conversation lull.

“Y-Yes! Let’s practice all of these! After all, a-all of them should have good uses for our exam,” Soleil explained, “s-steam and fog both obscure vision, so if we have to fight then we can use it to cover ourselves...or others...our friends...and a storm could cause damage! Yes, we could actually fight really well together!” He suddenly became excited, only for someone’s memory to quickly play in his mind, as he started going through ideas.

Kasumi.

He remembered the first time they had worked together, to make the dancing ice-girl. He remembered how fragile she had looked...and how fragile and sweet Kasumi had looked. They had really worked well together, for the short time they had been together, and for a second his heart began to ache. His sweet, happy expression faltered for just a moment, and he looked away. He knew Valerie probably would not understand his personal reaction, however, and so after he reacted in such a way, he turned back toward her and smiled a little more gently.

“...W-We’ll...work on all of them. We can start with fog...b-but to make fog, we’d also need a temperature difference. Right now, the water is cool...th-that means you need hot water, or water cooler than the beach-water...Once we’ve done that, I can use my wind to move it around a little...What do you think? Let’s try it.”

[Finsternia]

Artosh Luxenia

Artosh fanned himself with his hand as he trudged through the foresty terrain of Mana Academy. He is partially to blame too though. He was wearing a light doctor's coat over casual clothes. The doctor's coat and a pin that dictates his name are the only things that could tell that this man is a part of Mana Academy's faculty. Artosh is in fact quite young, just a wee bit above 20 and is closer to the age of the students than the other teachers. The young teacher's destination was a certain clearing where two male students are training. He was supposed to be in duty in the clinic but the lack of activity and a certain someone's rather persuasive talking forced him to get his ass off the comfortable swirly leather chair in the clinic.

Blinking away the memory of a tall young man with flowing black hair, continued his leisurely walk before picking up his pace as he heard the sounds of water crashing, groaning, coughing, and screaming. There he came to the scene of broken Terracotta warriors, broken branches, and Dominique and Shaun seemingly reenacting the scene where Mother Mary is carrying the lifeless body of Christ. His hand shot out and casted a spell out of reflex. "Healing Field!" The entire training ground was traced with grand rune circles of sheer black before exploding into a warm gentle golden light. He stepped into the circle and dashed towards the two, the Arcane Mana inside his body pulsing. Each step introduced a blast of the potent magic into the spellwork and each of his steps turned the world around them into a massive show of Heaven's mercy. He kneeled down and started to speak. "What happened? Did something happen to your training?" He looked at Shaun first before on Dominique. He was clutching his stomach, which was drenched with water. He hovered his hand over the place and a faint light blossomed from his fingertips. There were no grievous injuries, just a rather bad bruising afterwards. Sighing, Artosh rose his hand and gathered the healing magic around them and poured it over Dominique's stomach, knitting any damage that has occured. Artosh then stood up and stomped his foot down, the light around them exploded like the incomparable brightness of the Big Bang, and the surroundings turned back to normal. The damaged trees grew back the fallen branches and from the fallen branches were new sprouts and saplings. He breathed deeply, letting the healing magic suppress any manifestation of the Arcane within his body. "Now, any explainations on this?

[Serah]

After the fight, Oliver dusted himself off, as if generally nothing had happened.
He still had some wounds, but considered them minor if they didn't pierce him entirely, which there was.

In the last, desperate assault, he had gotten unusually careless and let himself be pierced by one of Ambrosia's whips. The wound was seared and essentially never even started to bleed, but it did feel bad to get his shoulder pierced.
Of course, it would get healed in a matter of minutes once he hit the infirmary.

"You're not that bad yourself. You did manage to pierce my shoulder and wound me here and there when I was actually starting to dodge.
I'd say this was productive." He squatted down to her height and smiled.

"There's no point in stopping there, so how about a deal? You train up on your own, spar with me every once in a while, and I'll let you join the little training group I've been constructing. Not that I really even tried to make it at all." Muttering the last part, he went to offer his hand, then pulled it away, realizing that she wouldn't be able to stand up on her own.

So instead, he did what an awkward and entirely blind to consequences man would do, and pulled her up and laid her accross his shoulder.

"Come on, you need to rest, and ideally not outside. Unless you're in the shade, you're never going to get any strength back."

Ambrosia stared up at him as he approached, and listened to him as he offered to continue training her. She let out of weak smile and nodded, before she realized that she could barely even move to answer him. She had been in the sun for so long that she was now delirious, and could barely make-out Oliver’s face. Fortunately, Oliver had decided to be a gentleman and to help her off the battlefield. Picking her up and laying her across his shoulder, she suddenly felt a little safer. She knew that he would carry her to safety. Her heart fluttered in her chest, but as long as she was in the sun she could not express what she was thinking.

The first thought he had was to bring her to her own room.
However, he also figured that it would be something a friend would do, not just someone she fought against or a possible mentor. Time would tell if they got closer.
Oliver decided against it, and instead headed for Amanda again, taking care of passing through as much shade as he could to bring her back to her senses.

"Quite awkward innit?" He asked, with some level of smugness in his tone. "There's not much I can do for you besides passing through shade for now. Also, sorry to have gone hard on you. As I've said, I'm not really used to holding back on people, I guess instincts kick back in faster than I thought, huh?" He laughed almost sadly, whether or not it was because he knew she couldn't answer directly or because he had once again failed at something, unless he told of it himself, none would know.

It took a few minutes of slaloming between the shades of trees and the building to get to a spot of shade next to the teacher, but he eventually made it.

"Oi. Ammy's gone and overexerted herself in the shade. I'll need you to point me to her room, or something like that. Maybe the infirmary would be better."

[Saleon]

Amanda Stradt
The Storyteller
Outside the Aquo Building

---

---

Ambrosia stared up at him as he approached, and listened to him as he offered to continue training her. She let out of weak smile and nodded, before she realized that she could barely even move to answer him. She had been in the sun for so long that she was now delirious, and could barely make-out Oliver’s face. Fortunately, Oliver had decided to be a gentleman and to help her off the battlefield. Picking her up and laying her across his shoulder, she suddenly felt a little safer. She knew that he would carry her to safety. Her heart fluttered in her chest, but as long as she was in the sun she could not express what she was thinking.

The first thought he had was to bring her to her own room.
However, he also figured that it would be something a friend would do, not just someone she fought against or a possible mentor. Time would tell if they got closer.
Oliver decided against it, and instead headed for Amanda again, taking care of passing through as much shade as he could to bring her back to her senses.

"Quite awkward innit?" He asked, with some level of smugness in his tone. "There's not much I can do for you besides passing through shade for now. Also, sorry to have gone hard on you. As I've said, I'm not really used to holding back on people, I guess instincts kick back in faster than I thought, huh?" He laughed almost sadly, whether or not it was because he knew she couldn't answer directly or because he had once again failed at something, unless he told of it himself, none would know.

It took a few minutes of slaloming between the shades of trees and the building to get to a spot of shade next to the teacher, but he eventually made it.

"Oi. Ammy's gone and overexerted herself in the shade. I'll need you to point me to her room, or something like that. Maybe the infirmary would be better."

Amanda ruffled from her chair a bit, removing her hand from her cheek that supported it. She moved a bit closer, looking to Ambrosia and Oliver, "I was worried about this. She'll be fine with a rest. I do find it odd that she didn't think to get to one of the practice rooms to fight where she wouldn't have to deal with sunlight..."

Amanda moved her wheelchair over to the direction of the infirmary, "they get a bit of this at this time. Students need to train for the tests, so sometimes they get some people overexerting themselves."

Virgil came to the scene, the cook seeming to have followed. Looking at the fallen student, they got a little worried, laying the plate with Amanda and then needing to be dissuaded from helping. Amanda knew it would only make a scene, and the cook was already busy. Needed to get back to the cafeteria. Virgil rustled up a bit, before plopping on Oliver's shoulder as it looked at Ambrosia.

"Shall we head the way?" Amanda says, moving her wheelchair. "Not a bad skirmish, I will say. Your spellcircle was quite well-tuned, but I think you need to cut down on time. Had Ambrosia been more careful, she could have tried to break it before you finished. A well-timed attack would have had you going all the way back to the beginning. Of course, someone could also try to prepare a defense against it, or mess with the spell circuitry, but that is beyond your levels."

She rolled her chair, continuing. "Has the substitute done well at teaching the class? I do teach it in a slightly interesting direction. I believe in linguistic Magiohistorical theory, so I often trace the 'language of magic' so as to understand previous magics and where they split. It can be a bit of a tougher class to teach."

[Serah]

Amanda Stradt
The Storyteller
Outside the Aquo Building

---

---

The first thought he had was to bring her to her own room.
However, he also figured that it would be something a friend would do, not just someone she fought against or a possible mentor. Time would tell if they got closer.
Oliver decided against it, and instead headed for Amanda again, taking care of passing through as much shade as he could to bring her back to her senses.

"Quite awkward innit?" He asked, with some level of smugness in his tone. "There's not much I can do for you besides passing through shade for now. Also, sorry to have gone hard on you. As I've said, I'm not really used to holding back on people, I guess instincts kick back in faster than I thought, huh?" He laughed almost sadly, whether or not it was because he knew she couldn't answer directly or because he had once again failed at something, unless he told of it himself, none would know.

It took a few minutes of slaloming between the shades of trees and the building to get to a spot of shade next to the teacher, but he eventually made it.

"Oi. Ammy's gone and overexerted herself in the shade. I'll need you to point me to her room, or something like that. Maybe the infirmary would be better."

Amanda ruffled from her chair a bit, removing her hand from her cheek that supported it. She moved a bit closer, looking to Ambrosia and Oliver, "I was worried about this. She'll be fine with a rest. I do find it odd that she didn't think to get to one of the practice rooms to fight where she wouldn't have to deal with sunlight..."

Amanda moved her wheelchair over to the direction of the infirmary, "they get a bit of this at this time. Students need to train for the tests, so sometimes they get some people overexerting themselves."

Virgil came to the scene, the cook seeming to have followed. Looking at the fallen student, they got a little worried, laying the plate with Amanda and then needing to be dissuaded from helping. Amanda knew it would only make a scene, and the cook was already busy. Needed to get back to the cafeteria. Virgil rustled up a bit, before plopping on Oliver's shoulder as it looked at Ambrosia.

"Shall we head the way?" Amanda says, moving her wheelchair. "Not a bad skirmish, I will say. Your spellcircle was quite well-tuned, but I think you need to cut down on time. Had Ambrosia been more careful, she could have tried to break it before you finished. A well-timed attack would have had you going all the way back to the beginning. Of course, someone could also try to prepare a defense against it, or mess with the spell circuitry, but that is beyond your levels."

She rolled her chair, continuing. "Has the substitute done well at teaching the class? I do teach it in a slightly interesting direction. I believe in linguistic Magiohistorical theory, so I often trace the 'language of magic' so as to understand previous magics and where they split. It can be a bit of a tougher class to teach."

"What is out of my boundaries and skill level is relative." He answered shortly, yet politely.
"The spell circle, and this one especially cannot be fine tuned otherwise. The fastest I can do when I'm only concentrating on it goes from thirty to ten seconds.
It's a hybrid Scandinavian-Sumerian purification circle." Oliver explained, trying not to come out as too haughty in his thoughts.

"The whole point of it was to either stun her or nullify her magic. Although it was more aimed at blood manipulating vampires, hence why I stopped focusing on it once I figured Ammy wasn't one of those.
But I at least know how to do it in a fight situation, which is what I actually wanted to see. But again, unless we delve into quantum mechanics, I probably won't be able to set it to be any shorter." Shrugging lightly, he grabbed Ambrosia again, and followed the teacher, following her.

"If I'm to be honest though, this fight could've ended much faster, however, simply for safety purposes I asked her to not my arm.
Had she done so... I frankly have no idea how it would've reacted. But chances are I wouldn't have been able to control it. Adding to that, I've seen what it can do." Oliver fell silent for a moment as he reminded himself of what happened just a few days ago. His Crusader Mode, and the Predator's first manifestation. He wasn't exactly upset at it, but was definitely uncomfortable knowing that Ambrosia could very well keel over if he didn't hold himself back enough.

"... As for the substitute, I'll be honest, I haven't yet paid much attention to her classes. Most of what we covered are things I already know about. As for you... Well, my little side hobbies have kept me from remembering things correctly lately.
That said, you likely remember my last name, Hofmann. Why did you let me train with her knowing what I could potentially do?"

[Saleon]

Amanda Stradt
The Storyteller
Outside the Aquo Building

---

---

Amanda ruffled from her chair a bit, removing her hand from her cheek that supported it. She moved a bit closer, looking to Ambrosia and Oliver, "I was worried about this. She'll be fine with a rest. I do find it odd that she didn't think to get to one of the practice rooms to fight where she wouldn't have to deal with sunlight..."

Amanda moved her wheelchair over to the direction of the infirmary, "they get a bit of this at this time. Students need to train for the tests, so sometimes they get some people overexerting themselves."

Virgil came to the scene, the cook seeming to have followed. Looking at the fallen student, they got a little worried, laying the plate with Amanda and then needing to be dissuaded from helping. Amanda knew it would only make a scene, and the cook was already busy. Needed to get back to the cafeteria. Virgil rustled up a bit, before plopping on Oliver's shoulder as it looked at Ambrosia.

"Shall we head the way?" Amanda says, moving her wheelchair. "Not a bad skirmish, I will say. Your spellcircle was quite well-tuned, but I think you need to cut down on time. Had Ambrosia been more careful, she could have tried to break it before you finished. A well-timed attack would have had you going all the way back to the beginning. Of course, someone could also try to prepare a defense against it, or mess with the spell circuitry, but that is beyond your levels."

She rolled her chair, continuing. "Has the substitute done well at teaching the class? I do teach it in a slightly interesting direction. I believe in linguistic Magiohistorical theory, so I often trace the 'language of magic' so as to understand previous magics and where they split. It can be a bit of a tougher class to teach."

"What is out of my boundaries and skill level is relative." He answered shortly, yet politely.

"The spell circle, and this one especially cannot be fine tuned otherwise. The fastest I can do when I'm only concentrating on it goes from thirty to ten seconds. It's a hybrid Scandinavian-Sumerian purification circle." Oliver explained, trying not to come out as too haughty in his thoughts.

"The whole point of it was to either stun her or nullify her magic. Although it was more aimed at blood manipulating vampires, hence why I stopped focusing on it once I figured Ammy wasn't one of those. But I at least know how to do it in a fight situation, which is what I actually wanted to see. But again, unless we delve into quantum mechanics, I probably won't be able to set it to be any shorter." Shrugging lightly, he grabbed Ambrosia again, and followed the teacher, following her.

"If I'm to be honest though, this fight could've ended much faster, however, simply for safety purposes I asked her to not my arm. Had she done so... I frankly have no idea how it would've reacted. But chances are I wouldn't have been able to control it. Adding to that, I've seen what it can do." Oliver fell silent for a moment as he reminded himself of what happened just a few days ago. His Crusader Mode, and the Predator's first manifestation. He wasn't exactly upset at it, but was definitely uncomfortable knowing that Ambrosia could very well keel over if he didn't hold himself back enough.

"... As for the substitute, I'll be honest, I haven't yet paid much attention to her classes. Most of what we covered are things I already know about. As for you... Well, my little side hobbies have kept me from remembering things correctly lately.

That said, you likely remember my last name, Hofmann. Why did you let me train with her knowing what I could potentially do?"

"My gosh, you make for a sad sap to teach in class. Well, I'll try to meet your level of expertise. She had to mostly cover the basic stuff. Linguistic Magiohistory can be quite fascinating. Runes, sigils, circles, circlets, essences and quintessences, , verbal casting--I go through all I can. Been a while since I have seen scandinavian or sumerian magics. Though they had their benefits," Amanda said, pulling her wheelchair forwards. She looked up at Oliver and Ambrosia.

"Do be advised, knowing her she will jump and make a mess if she wakes up soon. The type to be easily flustered, energetic," she added as he lifted Ambrosia up.

"There are other circles for purification. When it comes to magical negation, I look into attempting magical reversal or miniature incantation. I have been around enough that I will definitely test the boundaries of your skills," Amanda says in a cheeky rhythm to it. Amanda rolled her head over to the side to face him once more.

Oliver then posed a question, "That said, you likely remember my last name, Hofmann. Why did you let me train with her knowing what I could potentially do?"

"Ah, Hofmann. Now the name sounds familiar. Hmm... the monster hunters, yes? Does explain your familiarity with vampiric orders. Hunters in that area... quite the competitive, often fighting against each other... Well, had I fear you intended to harm her, I would have cordoned off the area between you two. Placed you in a snare of some kind," the professor posited.

She shrugged a little, "but I can read you. I knew you meant no harm. Besides, a good spar was what she needed. Isn't that right Virgil?" The little mouse on Oliver's shoulder nodded, before poking Ambrosia's cheek with the tip of his little blade, more a letter opener for humans. He mostly seeing if she'd move a little. "Even when I sensed something odd with your magic, I knew you wouldn't harm her."

[Luminesa]

Amanda Stradt
The Storyteller
Outside the Aquo Building

---

---

"What is out of my boundaries and skill level is relative." He answered shortly, yet politely.

"The spell circle, and this one especially cannot be fine tuned otherwise. The fastest I can do when I'm only concentrating on it goes from thirty to ten seconds. It's a hybrid Scandinavian-Sumerian purification circle." Oliver explained, trying not to come out as too haughty in his thoughts.

"The whole point of it was to either stun her or nullify her magic. Although it was more aimed at blood manipulating vampires, hence why I stopped focusing on it once I figured Ammy wasn't one of those. But I at least know how to do it in a fight situation, which is what I actually wanted to see. But again, unless we delve into quantum mechanics, I probably won't be able to set it to be any shorter." Shrugging lightly, he grabbed Ambrosia again, and followed the teacher, following her.

"If I'm to be honest though, this fight could've ended much faster, however, simply for safety purposes I asked her to not my arm. Had she done so... I frankly have no idea how it would've reacted. But chances are I wouldn't have been able to control it. Adding to that, I've seen what it can do." Oliver fell silent for a moment as he reminded himself of what happened just a few days ago. His Crusader Mode, and the Predator's first manifestation. He wasn't exactly upset at it, but was definitely uncomfortable knowing that Ambrosia could very well keel over if he didn't hold himself back enough.

"... As for the substitute, I'll be honest, I haven't yet paid much attention to her classes. Most of what we covered are things I already know about. As for you... Well, my little side hobbies have kept me from remembering things correctly lately.

That said, you likely remember my last name, Hofmann. Why did you let me train with her knowing what I could potentially do?"

"My gosh, you make for a sad sap to teach in class. Well, I'll try to meet your level of expertise. She had to mostly cover the basic stuff. Linguistic Magiohistory can be quite fascinating. Runes, sigils, circles, circlets, essences and quintessences, , verbal casting--I go through all I can. Been a while since I have seen scandinavian or sumerian magics. Though they had their benefits," Amanda said, pulling her wheelchair forwards. She looked up at Oliver and Ambrosia.

"Do be advised, knowing her she will jump and make a mess if she wakes up soon. The type to be easily flustered, energetic," she added as he lifted Ambrosia up.

"There are other circles for purification. When it comes to magical negation, I look into attempting magical reversal or miniature incantation. I have been around enough that I will definitely test the boundaries of your skills," Amanda says in a cheeky rhythm to it. Amanda rolled her head over to the side to face him once more.

Oliver then posed a question, "That said, you likely remember my last name, Hofmann. Why did you let me train with her knowing what I could potentially do?"

"Ah, Hofmann. Now the name sounds familiar. Hmm... the monster hunters, yes? Does explain your familiarity with vampiric orders. Hunters in that area... quite the competitive, often fighting against each other... Well, had I fear you intended to harm her, I would have cordoned off the area between you two. Placed you in a snare of some kind," the professor posited.

She shrugged a little, "but I can read you. I knew you meant no harm. Besides, a good spar was what she needed. Isn't that right Virgil?" The little mouse on Oliver's shoulder nodded, before poking Ambrosia's cheek with the tip of his little blade, more a letter opener for humans. He mostly seeing if she'd move a little. "Even when I sensed something odd with your magic, I knew you wouldn't harm her."

Ambrosia indeed had woken-up, after Oliver had picked her up and had begun to carry her to the infirmary. When she noticed that Oliver was carrying her, her eyes got huge and she began to blush. She glanced up at Oliver, but she was still too weak to say much. Thus Ambrosia looked like a silent, glowing tomato, as her face got as red as was possible for her. Nobody had ever carried her around like a princess before, and even if she still felt hot and uncomfortable she was pleasantly surprised to awaken in a man’s arms, as he was carrying her to safety. ...Even though I’m a vampire...and...he hunts people like me for a living...He still wants...to protect me...He wants to take care of me... she thought, bewildered by his kindness. Of course, given she had just suffered what could only be equivocated to heatstroke, it was only proper that he was trying to get her care. Still, Ambrosia felt loved, as Oliver carried her in his arms. That did not happen often, and thus she cherished the feeling.

[Saldinado]

Shaun Calhoun & Dominique Corleone

The sudden booming voice of another being followed by the sight of the ground becoming pitch black only to soon be covered in a golden light as if they were suddenly rushed by a sea of marigolds completely disrupted the calming and serenity of the two boys as they rested beside each other. Dominique's eyes quickly closed and as a reaction flinched away from the light, causing him to wince a bit more in pain and cough softly even more. Shaun on the other hand began to felt his heart suddenly increase and let out a small yell in response to the blinding of the light.
Both teens slowly opened their eyes to adjust to the light around them only to see that they were surrounded in a curtain of gold and white rays that blanketed them from all sides. They looked down at the ground to see a pair of shoes walking towards them before they saw the pair of shoes get shorter only to reveal the body that they were supporting.

It was only Artosh. Neither of them knew the man that well only to see him in the halls and such and say hello. Nor did they really knew about his certain magical properties that he'd carried with him. However it was sorta comforting to see those piercing blue eyes and that snow white hair meet their own eyes. In a way.

"Oh? We-well um...Not really. Heh." Started off Shaun as he soon began to grow nervous and awkward around the teacher. His face softly began to grow a soft shade of pink around the cheeks from embarrassment before looking over at Dominique who was still softly coughing to himself. The latter looked down in a bit of apprehension as he saw Artosh's fingers go towards his stomach, causing him to slightly wince away from him out of impulse only to see him...well not touching him. But instead the rays of a soft and gentle light hovering over his abdomen. He softly exhaled and coughed softly like before out of relief before hearing Artosh himself sigh and wave his hand. Both Shaun and Dominique watched as the golden curtain was quickly dissolved around them by the one who created it only to have it be poured onto Dominique's stomach. Shaun watched as if he was slightly entranced by the sight while Dominique could do nothing but laugh softly at the sight in front of him. He didn't feel anything when it happened, but it was still rather weird to see this happening. Amusing mainly.

But soon the creator of the light stomped his foot on the soft grass around them, only to watch as everything around them quickly reverted back to their normal selves. Even the trees that were destroyed by the arrows began to go back to normal and the branches of the fallen began to sprout and bloom ever so slightly as they still had a long time to go before becoming like their mother. The slight of the branches doing so especially intrigued Dominique as he watched the small green from the saplings come back to life. However it was soon overshadowed by the deep breathing of Artosh which was followed by the voice that wanted an explanation.
Both Dominique and Shaun looked at each other figuring out what to say before Dom himself just looked back at Artosh and gave his familiar hearty and warming laugh. "Oh! Well nothing happened here." He said before coughing a bit more soon after and finishing his explanation. "We were just in a bit of practicing mood for the upcoming exams and got a bit carried away heh..." He weakly, yet awkwardly chuckled and scratched the inside of his ear in hopes that maybe he'll believe him.
Then Shaun spoke in an attempt to save them from their embarrassment.
"Hm? Oh yeah, we were both practicing when things got out of hand and we were both a bit lost in the moment and got careless. One of my training arrows had hit Dominique and I um, rushed over to help him out." He tried to say without becoming even more flustered or nervous like he was on the inside already. They both crossed their legs and sighed almost in unison before looking up at Artosh and giving a meek smile. Hopefully that might help win some points over with him.

[Serah]

Amanda Stradt
The Storyteller
Outside the Aquo Building

---

---

"What is out of my boundaries and skill level is relative." He answered shortly, yet politely.

"The spell circle, and this one especially cannot be fine tuned otherwise. The fastest I can do when I'm only concentrating on it goes from thirty to ten seconds. It's a hybrid Scandinavian-Sumerian purification circle." Oliver explained, trying not to come out as too haughty in his thoughts.

"The whole point of it was to either stun her or nullify her magic. Although it was more aimed at blood manipulating vampires, hence why I stopped focusing on it once I figured Ammy wasn't one of those. But I at least know how to do it in a fight situation, which is what I actually wanted to see. But again, unless we delve into quantum mechanics, I probably won't be able to set it to be any shorter." Shrugging lightly, he grabbed Ambrosia again, and followed the teacher, following her.

"If I'm to be honest though, this fight could've ended much faster, however, simply for safety purposes I asked her to not my arm. Had she done so... I frankly have no idea how it would've reacted. But chances are I wouldn't have been able to control it. Adding to that, I've seen what it can do." Oliver fell silent for a moment as he reminded himself of what happened just a few days ago. His Crusader Mode, and the Predator's first manifestation. He wasn't exactly upset at it, but was definitely uncomfortable knowing that Ambrosia could very well keel over if he didn't hold himself back enough.

"... As for the substitute, I'll be honest, I haven't yet paid much attention to her classes. Most of what we covered are things I already know about. As for you... Well, my little side hobbies have kept me from remembering things correctly lately.

That said, you likely remember my last name, Hofmann. Why did you let me train with her knowing what I could potentially do?"

"My gosh, you make for a sad sap to teach in class. Well, I'll try to meet your level of expertise. She had to mostly cover the basic stuff. Linguistic Magiohistory can be quite fascinating. Runes, sigils, circles, circlets, essences and quintessences, , verbal casting--I go through all I can. Been a while since I have seen scandinavian or sumerian magics. Though they had their benefits," Amanda said, pulling her wheelchair forwards. She looked up at Oliver and Ambrosia.

"Do be advised, knowing her she will jump and make a mess if she wakes up soon. The type to be easily flustered, energetic," she added as he lifted Ambrosia up.

"There are other circles for purification. When it comes to magical negation, I look into attempting magical reversal or miniature incantation. I have been around enough that I will definitely test the boundaries of your skills," Amanda says in a cheeky rhythm to it. Amanda rolled her head over to the side to face him once more.

Oliver then posed a question, "That said, you likely remember my last name, Hofmann. Why did you let me train with her knowing what I could potentially do?"

"Ah, Hofmann. Now the name sounds familiar. Hmm... the monster hunters, yes? Does explain your familiarity with vampiric orders. Hunters in that area... quite the competitive, often fighting against each other... Well, had I fear you intended to harm her, I would have cordoned off the area between you two. Placed you in a snare of some kind," the professor posited.

She shrugged a little, "but I can read you. I knew you meant no harm. Besides, a good spar was what she needed. Isn't that right Virgil?" The little mouse on Oliver's shoulder nodded, before poking Ambrosia's cheek with the tip of his little blade, more a letter opener for humans. He mostly seeing if she'd move a little. "Even when I sensed something odd with your magic, I knew you wouldn't harm her."

"I do listen, I just don't feel like writing notes on what I already know. Also, my expertise, while somewhat higher than your average student is probably lower than you'd expect.
I specialize in Sumerian and Nordic runes. But otherwise, the one thing I dabble in are Irish ones.
I find the language interesting, and the link with the fae runs deep in each letter, which makes it both incredibly difficult to handle and immensely interesting." He answered calmly, taking the time to bring Ambrosia back up into his arms.

He could feel her squirming ever so slightly, but thought nothing of it.

"Although about the competitive side of those hunters... It ended with me.
Since I'm the next in line, their battles lie with me, and me only. I personally dislike that tradition of proving oneself by killing one another."

[Saleon]

Amanda Stradt
The Storyteller
Outside the Aquo Building

---

---

"My gosh, you make for a sad sap to teach in class. Well, I'll try to meet your level of expertise. She had to mostly cover the basic stuff. Linguistic Magiohistory can be quite fascinating. Runes, sigils, circles, circlets, essences and quintessences, , verbal casting--I go through all I can. Been a while since I have seen scandinavian or sumerian magics. Though they had their benefits," Amanda said, pulling her wheelchair forwards. She looked up at Oliver and Ambrosia.

"Do be advised, knowing her she will jump and make a mess if she wakes up soon. The type to be easily flustered, energetic," she added as he lifted Ambrosia up.

"There are other circles for purification. When it comes to magical negation, I look into attempting magical reversal or miniature incantation. I have been around enough that I will definitely test the boundaries of your skills," Amanda says in a cheeky rhythm to it. Amanda rolled her head over to the side to face him once more.

Oliver then posed a question, "That said, you likely remember my last name, Hofmann. Why did you let me train with her knowing what I could potentially do?"

"Ah, Hofmann. Now the name sounds familiar. Hmm... the monster hunters, yes? Does explain your familiarity with vampiric orders. Hunters in that area... quite the competitive, often fighting against each other... Well, had I fear you intended to harm her, I would have cordoned off the area between you two. Placed you in a snare of some kind," the professor posited.

She shrugged a little, "but I can read you. I knew you meant no harm. Besides, a good spar was what she needed. Isn't that right Virgil?" The little mouse on Oliver's shoulder nodded, before poking Ambrosia's cheek with the tip of his little blade, more a letter opener for humans. He mostly seeing if she'd move a little. "Even when I sensed something odd with your magic, I knew you wouldn't harm her."

"I do listen, I just don't feel like writing notes on what I already know. Also, my expertise, while somewhat higher than your average student is probably lower than you'd expect. I specialize in Sumerian and Nordic runes. But otherwise, the one thing I dabble in are Irish ones.

"I find the language interesting, and the link with the fae runs deep in each letter, which makes it both incredibly difficult to handle and immensely interesting." He answered calmly, taking the time to bring Ambrosia back up into his arms.

He could feel her squirming ever so slightly, but thought nothing of it.

"Although about the competitive side of those hunters... It ended with me. Since I'm the next in line, their battles lie with me, and me only. I personally dislike that tradition of proving oneself by killing one another."

"Well, I hope to provide a very intriguing class. One that truly gives honor to magicohistory. Irish magic is quite interesting. Irish Druidism has been quite intriguing. I believe have a a succinct little books on it. Talked to the author a bit before, she tends to pack a lot into a small amount of space. Might come intriguing to you?" Amanda says, rolling closer to the infirmary. Just a bit more and they would be there.

Oliver then shifted a little, talking about his family more, "Although about the competitive side of those hunters... It ended with me. Since I'm the next in line, their battles lie with me, and me only. I personally dislike that tradition of proving oneself by killing one another."

"I'm sure you've seen a lot about the families of hunters," Amanda added, "if you need help relating to that... I may not look it right now, but I am a great resource. Just a little magical fatigue in my legs. Should be up and running soon during the week."

She then noticed as Ambrosia squirmed a little. At which point, she had a mischievous snicker. It was hard to not notice her... flustered cheeks. At some point, a violin's strings snapped in an adjacent room. Her eyes grew close together like ravens, the edges of her smile curling into a spiral.

"So, how about a less serious topic?" Amanda said, a spring in her tone, "I know Ambrosia probably interrupted breakfast, but what do you think about her? Not her combat skills. Personality-wise? Anything you like in particular? Sticks out?"

[Serah]

Amanda Stradt
The Storyteller
Outside the Aquo Building

---

---

"I do listen, I just don't feel like writing notes on what I already know. Also, my expertise, while somewhat higher than your average student is probably lower than you'd expect. I specialize in Sumerian and Nordic runes. But otherwise, the one thing I dabble in are Irish ones.

"I find the language interesting, and the link with the fae runs deep in each letter, which makes it both incredibly difficult to handle and immensely interesting." He answered calmly, taking the time to bring Ambrosia back up into his arms.

He could feel her squirming ever so slightly, but thought nothing of it.

"Although about the competitive side of those hunters... It ended with me. Since I'm the next in line, their battles lie with me, and me only. I personally dislike that tradition of proving oneself by killing one another."

"Well, I hope to provide a very intriguing class. One that truly gives honor to magicohistory. Irish magic is quite interesting. Irish Druidism has been quite intriguing. I believe have a a succinct little books on it. Talked to the author a bit before, she tends to pack a lot into a small amount of space. Might come intriguing to you?" Amanda says, rolling closer to the infirmary. Just a bit more and they would be there.

Oliver then shifted a little, talking about his family more, "Although about the competitive side of those hunters... It ended with me. Since I'm the next in line, their battles lie with me, and me only. I personally dislike that tradition of proving oneself by killing one another."

"I'm sure you've seen a lot about the families of hunters," Amanda added, "if you need help relating to that... I may not look it right now, but I am a great resource. Just a little magical fatigue in my legs. Should be up and running soon during the week."

She then noticed as Ambrosia squirmed a little. At which point, she had a mischievous snicker. It was hard to not notice her... flustered cheeks. At some point, a violin's strings snapped in an adjacent room. Her eyes grew close together like ravens, the edges of her smile curling into a spiral.

"So, how about a less serious topic?" Amanda said, a spring in her tone, "I know Ambrosia probably interrupted breakfast, but what do you think about her? Not her combat skills. Personality-wise? Anything you like in particular? Sticks out?"

"It'd be a pleasure to talk about it further." A semblance of a smile could be seen creeping up on his face. Although it was discreet, his smile was among those that could brighten his entire face even if it wasn't a full one.

However, he didn't even have time to answer before she asked about Ambrosia.

"Ambrosia? Hm, well I'd say she's nice, yes. Somewhat of a spaz, but it's endearing. A nice change of pace.
Though that's with the hour or so that we've officially known each other. Before then, I was keeping to myself for the most part, I don't know her much yet.
But I guess it wouldn't be so bad to meet again every once in a while, as long as I can eat breakfast before being taken away."

[Luminesa]

Amanda Stradt
The Storyteller
Outside the Aquo Building

---

---

"Well, I hope to provide a very intriguing class. One that truly gives honor to magicohistory. Irish magic is quite interesting. Irish Druidism has been quite intriguing. I believe have a a succinct little books on it. Talked to the author a bit before, she tends to pack a lot into a small amount of space. Might come intriguing to you?" Amanda says, rolling closer to the infirmary. Just a bit more and they would be there.

Oliver then shifted a little, talking about his family more, "Although about the competitive side of those hunters... It ended with me. Since I'm the next in line, their battles lie with me, and me only. I personally dislike that tradition of proving oneself by killing one another."

"I'm sure you've seen a lot about the families of hunters," Amanda added, "if you need help relating to that... I may not look it right now, but I am a great resource. Just a little magical fatigue in my legs. Should be up and running soon during the week."

She then noticed as Ambrosia squirmed a little. At which point, she had a mischievous snicker. It was hard to not notice her... flustered cheeks. At some point, a violin's strings snapped in an adjacent room. Her eyes grew close together like ravens, the edges of her smile curling into a spiral.

"So, how about a less serious topic?" Amanda said, a spring in her tone, "I know Ambrosia probably interrupted breakfast, but what do you think about her? Not her combat skills. Personality-wise? Anything you like in particular? Sticks out?"

"It'd be a pleasure to talk about it further." A semblance of a smile could be seen creeping up on his face. Although it was discreet, his smile was among those that could brighten his entire face even if it wasn't a full one.

However, he didn't even have time to answer before she asked about Ambrosia.

"Ambrosia? Hm, well I'd say she's nice, yes. Somewhat of a spaz, but it's endearing. A nice change of pace.
Though that's with the hour or so that we've officially known each other. Before then, I was keeping to myself for the most part, I don't know her much yet.
But I guess it wouldn't be so bad to meet again every once in a while, as long as I can eat breakfast before being taken away."

Spaz?

SPAZ?!

HE THINKS I’M A SPAZ?!

Ambrosia was mortified. She of course tried to hide it, but her face was red and her eyes were as big as small worlds. They swirled with color like marbles-hues of darkness to show her shame and confusion, hues of light to show her surprise and her panic. She felt a large mix of things. She wished she could leap out of his arms and run to her room, but she also wished that he would say more. She wanted to know what else he thought of her. He did also say “endearing”, but she could not get the phrase “spaz” out of her head. She thought about her behavior in the last few minutes. She had run around the campus to get him breakfast, she had spoken loud and fast, and she had fought...

I bet I looked like a spaz too, when I was fighting... she thought, after a moment. Compared to Oliver, who came from a long line of monster-hunters and who was an experienced fighter, she had been raised as a spoiled little princess who had only learned some Dark Magic and some basic Fire Magic. Her self-consciousness returned. She knew she was not ready for the exam next week, and she knew that she had made a fool of herself in front of Oliver. Her face became hot, and prickled right around her eyes. She wanted to cry. Yet she sucked-in her tears and held her tired, blank expression.

[Finsternia]

Shaun Calhoun & Dominique Corleone

The sudden booming voice of another being followed by the sight of the ground becoming pitch black only to soon be covered in a golden light as if they were suddenly rushed by a sea of marigolds completely disrupted the calming and serenity of the two boys as they rested beside each other. Dominique's eyes quickly closed and as a reaction flinched away from the light, causing him to wince a bit more in pain and cough softly even more. Shaun on the other hand began to felt his heart suddenly increase and let out a small yell in response to the blinding of the light.
Both teens slowly opened their eyes to adjust to the light around them only to see that they were surrounded in a curtain of gold and white rays that blanketed them from all sides. They looked down at the ground to see a pair of shoes walking towards them before they saw the pair of shoes get shorter only to reveal the body that they were supporting.

It was only Artosh. Neither of them knew the man that well only to see him in the halls and such and say hello. Nor did they really knew about his certain magical properties that he'd carried with him. However it was sorta comforting to see those piercing blue eyes and that snow white hair meet their own eyes. In a way.

"Oh? We-well um...Not really. Heh." Started off Shaun as he soon began to grow nervous and awkward around the teacher. His face softly began to grow a soft shade of pink around the cheeks from embarrassment before looking over at Dominique who was still softly coughing to himself. The latter looked down in a bit of apprehension as he saw Artosh's fingers go towards his stomach, causing him to slightly wince away from him out of impulse only to see him...well not touching him. But instead the rays of a soft and gentle light hovering over his abdomen. He softly exhaled and coughed softly like before out of relief before hearing Artosh himself sigh and wave his hand. Both Shaun and Dominique watched as the golden curtain was quickly dissolved around them by the one who created it only to have it be poured onto Dominique's stomach. Shaun watched as if he was slightly entranced by the sight while Dominique could do nothing but laugh softly at the sight in front of him. He didn't feel anything when it happened, but it was still rather weird to see this happening. Amusing mainly.

But soon the creator of the light stomped his foot on the soft grass around them, only to watch as everything around them quickly reverted back to their normal selves. Even the trees that were destroyed by the arrows began to go back to normal and the branches of the fallen began to sprout and bloom ever so slightly as they still had a long time to go before becoming like their mother. The slight of the branches doing so especially intrigued Dominique as he watched the small green from the saplings come back to life. However it was soon overshadowed by the deep breathing of Artosh which was followed by the voice that wanted an explanation.
Both Dominique and Shaun looked at each other figuring out what to say before Dom himself just looked back at Artosh and gave his familiar hearty and warming laugh. "Oh! Well nothing happened here." He said before coughing a bit more soon after and finishing his explanation. "We were just in a bit of practicing mood for the upcoming exams and got a bit carried away heh..." He weakly, yet awkwardly chuckled and scratched the inside of his ear in hopes that maybe he'll believe him.
Then Shaun spoke in an attempt to save them from their embarrassment.
"Hm? Oh yeah, we were both practicing when things got out of hand and we were both a bit lost in the moment and got careless. One of my training arrows had hit Dominique and I um, rushed over to help him out." He tried to say without becoming even more flustered or nervous like he was on the inside already. They both crossed their legs and sighed almost in unison before looking up at Artosh and giving a meek smile. Hopefully that might help win some points over with him.

Artosh Luxenia

Artosh crossed his arms over his chest, his soft blue eyes staring at the two students lying down on the ground. He sighed as he gave a sympathetic smile at the two. "I wouldn't blame you. I would be lying if I would say that I wasn't like you when I was your age. Atleast you only got a little bruise from that water arrow, Dominique. I've seen things like that before get all messy. There's nothing much that we cannot heal here but still, an injury is still an injury and you need to be careful!" There was a slight glint of happiness from his eyes, both from his students being alright and his studied matter being put to use.

Artosh raised his arms and stretched, making satisfied groans as his joints popped at the movement. Stretching a bit more like a kitten and waving his arms around, the white haired professor finally spoke. "You might be wondering why I am here. It's quite a coincidence that I found you right after Dominique got shot by the arrow right? Well..." Artosh slightly held his pointer finger towards his cheek and rubbed it there in an unconscious reflex. "I was asked to be your mentor by a certain someone. Since they have not told me to not keep their identity secret and I believe that telling you would be the best, well... Allistor asked me just before he took his flight for Austria along with Rabbit and Henry. I really don't have much choice since he boarded the helicopter before I could reply."

Artosh sighed. 'Finally I got that out of my system...' It's not that you can even refuse a favor that was asked by a noble, especially an heir to a powerful family like House Abendroth. It was still quite terrifying when he remembered it. He was just there to bid his goodbye to Rabbit and the two other nobles when suddenly Allistor marched towards him and clamped down his shoulders while staring down at him intently. With Allistor's inherently cold mana and his imposing stature and physique, his presence alone convinced Artosh to do so. 'Not that I wouldn't help the kids... I'd still do it... I'd rather do something with my free time rather than sitting in the office...'

He then placed his hands on his waist and examined Shaun and Dominique. "You two are bigger and stronger than me so I can't really help in that department but..." He turned towards Shaun's terra cotta army and stretched his hand towards them. "Since you have made these statues already and have started on your target practice, how about you practice with moving targets?" Whitish purple mana seeped out of his fingers and at the surface of the terra cotta's earthen skin were glowing purple tattoos that hummed with magical power. Their bodies shook and cracked as they were given autonomy and soon they stood with their weapons at hand. "Now, here's the twist! If you destroy one, the arcane mana within them would explode and would trigger a chain reaction if they explode and damage other terra cottas! Let me test how you can control your mana! Let's see if you can retake the control of your own contructs!"

[Saleon]

Amanda Stradt
The Storyteller
Outside the Aquo Building

---

---

"It'd be a pleasure to talk about it further." A semblance of a smile could be seen creeping up on his face. Although it was discreet, his smile was among those that could brighten his entire face even if it wasn't a full one.

However, he didn't even have time to answer before she asked about Ambrosia.

"Ambrosia? Hm, well I'd say she's nice, yes. Somewhat of a spaz, but it's endearing. A nice change of pace.

"Though that's with the hour or so that we've officially known each other. Before then, I was keeping to myself for the most part, I don't know her much yet.

"But I guess it wouldn't be so bad to meet again every once in a while, as long as I can eat breakfast before being taken away."

Spaz?

SPAZ?!

HE THINKS I’M A SPAZ?!

Ambrosia was mortified. She of course tried to hide it, but her face was red and her eyes were as big as small worlds. They swirled with color like marbles-hues of darkness to show her shame and confusion, hues of light to show her surprise and her panic. She felt a large mix of things. She wished she could leap out of his arms and run to her room, but she also wished that he would say more. She wanted to know what else he thought of her. He did also say “endearing”, but she could not get the phrase “spaz” out of her head. She thought about her behavior in the last few minutes. She had run around the campus to get him breakfast, she had spoken loud and fast, and she had fought...

I bet I looked like a spaz too, when I was fighting... she thought, after a moment. Compared to Oliver, who came from a long line of monster-hunters and who was an experienced fighter, she had been raised as a spoiled little princess who had only learned some Dark Magic and some basic Fire Magic. Her self-consciousness returned. She knew she was not ready for the exam next week, and she knew that she had made a fool of herself in front of Oliver. Her face became hot, and prickled right around her eyes. She wanted to cry. Yet she sucked-in her tears and held her tired, blank expression.

Amanda rolled her way, the door to the infirmary right at the end of the hallway. She stopped just at the side of the door, "well, nice you have a good opinion of her. She is quite the piece of work, but a nice girl." She guided the way, deciding to let Oliver bring the girl in first.

Virgil then hopped up, jumping over to Ambrosia's shoulder to see her face. He worked subtly, not wanting to alert Oliver's attention. Virgil could see as her face crinkled and looked distraught. He lifted up his notepad. The white rat poked her cheek to get Ambrosia's attention, quickly writing, "endearing", "found", "you." He then quickly added, "sad", "why?"

"hopefully, they don't bother me with a number of 'tests' and 'checkups'. They can be slight annoying with their procedurals," she says.

[Serah]

Amanda Stradt
The Storyteller
Outside the Aquo Building

---

---

Spaz?

SPAZ?!

HE THINKS I’M A SPAZ?!

Ambrosia was mortified. She of course tried to hide it, but her face was red and her eyes were as big as small worlds. They swirled with color like marbles-hues of darkness to show her shame and confusion, hues of light to show her surprise and her panic. She felt a large mix of things. She wished she could leap out of his arms and run to her room, but she also wished that he would say more. She wanted to know what else he thought of her. He did also say “endearing”, but she could not get the phrase “spaz” out of her head. She thought about her behavior in the last few minutes. She had run around the campus to get him breakfast, she had spoken loud and fast, and she had fought...

I bet I looked like a spaz too, when I was fighting... she thought, after a moment. Compared to Oliver, who came from a long line of monster-hunters and who was an experienced fighter, she had been raised as a spoiled little princess who had only learned some Dark Magic and some basic Fire Magic. Her self-consciousness returned. She knew she was not ready for the exam next week, and she knew that she had made a fool of herself in front of Oliver. Her face became hot, and prickled right around her eyes. She wanted to cry. Yet she sucked-in her tears and held her tired, blank expression.

Amanda rolled her way, the door to the infirmary right at the end of the hallway. She stopped just at the side of the door, "well, nice you have a good opinion of her. She is quite the piece of work, but a nice girl." She guided the way, deciding to let Oliver bring the girl in first.

Virgil then hopped up, jumping over to Ambrosia's shoulder to see her face. He worked subtly, not wanting to alert Oliver's attention. Virgil could see as her face crinkled and looked distraught. He lifted up his notepad. The white rat poked her cheek to get Ambrosia's attention, quickly writing, "endearing", "found", "you." He then quickly added, "sad", "why?"

"hopefully, they don't bother me with a number of 'tests' and 'checkups'. They can be slight annoying with their procedurals," she says.

"I'm sure she is, but I'll have to hang around her a little bit more to figure it out for myself." He shrugged, and brought the girl down to one of the beds.

"That I know, they tested me several times to check how my arm functioned and they found nothing.
Maybe the fact that it's a relic I barely had heard about works in its favor." He added with yet another shrug.

"Well, either way I think I'll be off, you know where to find me if there's anything else, I'll be in my room."

[Luminesa]

Amanda Stradt
The Storyteller
Outside the Aquo Building

---

---

Amanda rolled her way, the door to the infirmary right at the end of the hallway. She stopped just at the side of the door, "well, nice you have a good opinion of her. She is quite the piece of work, but a nice girl." She guided the way, deciding to let Oliver bring the girl in first.

Virgil then hopped up, jumping over to Ambrosia's shoulder to see her face. He worked subtly, not wanting to alert Oliver's attention. Virgil could see as her face crinkled and looked distraught. He lifted up his notepad. The white rat poked her cheek to get Ambrosia's attention, quickly writing, "endearing", "found", "you." He then quickly added, "sad", "why?"

"hopefully, they don't bother me with a number of 'tests' and 'checkups'. They can be slight annoying with their procedurals," she says.

"I'm sure she is, but I'll have to hang around her a little bit more to figure it out for myself." He shrugged, and brought the girl down to one of the beds.

"That I know, they tested me several times to check how my arm functioned and they found nothing.
Maybe the fact that it's a relic I barely had heard about works in its favor." He added with yet another shrug.

"Well, either way I think I'll be off, you know where to find me if there's anything else, I'll be in my room."

Ambrosia laid down in the bed and turned her face away from Oliver. She did not want him to see her pain, as she held back tears and tried to hold herself together. He hardly sounded interested in her at all. Everything had been a mistake, in her mind. ...I shouldn’t have bothered him...He thinks I’m dumb...And hyperactive... she thought, her lips tight as she kept from heaving a sob.

Yet just when she was about to break into tears, Virgil appeared. The cute, friendly little mouse wanted to check on her, to see what was the matter. He said she was endearing, which did make her feel slightly better. She smiled sadly at the little magical creature, and pat his head with a finger. She then wrote in tiny letters on the pad, “Sad”, “Oliver”, and “doesn’t like”. She hoped that he would understand what exactly she was trying to say. ...Is that bad?...That the only person who seems to understand me is a mouse?...

In the meantime, Cecily arrived, coming to check on the new patient. She was dressed in light colors again-a frilly pink blouse and a short, cream-colored, pleated skirt, presumably because she had wanted to look good when she saw Rabbit off on his “trip” with Henry and Allistor. As she noticed Ambrosia’s distress, she turned toward Amanda. “Professor Stradt! What exactly happened here?” she inquired.

[Saldinado]

Shaun Calhoun & Dominique Corleone

The first reaction that both boys had was a feeling of uneasiness and awkwardness as they both heard Artosh's joints pop and crack from his movement. Dominique especially had a hard time dealing with it and quickly winced and groaned, trying his best not to cover his ears at the sound. The constant cracking and popping wasn't something that he heard unless he walked passed the closed door of a certain room in his home.

When he was a few years younger he would pass by it; the soft sound of muffled screams and yelling filled the usually quiet corridor of the home was followed by the sound of soft, albeit distinct sounds of either fingers, arms, or kneecaps being smashed or popped out of their sockets only to be replaced by even more muffled screams. Even the sound of crying was heard. And then, there would be silence after a period of time. It was if nothing or nobody was ever in the room to begin with. The only noise was the sound of glasses clanging together when Mother was washing dishes or the sound of soft clacking as Prince ran up and down the hardwood floors. And before he could be spotted, he would quickly move away from the door and watch as he saw his dad and a couple of his workers walk out as though nothing ever happened. Although he could see in his deep golden amber eyes that there was something lurking and hiding in him. It was full of malice and frustration. But also a sense of relief. But then again, his eyes were usually like that when it came down to doing his job.

But once it was over, Dominique's body released a small shiver before he was quickly brought back to what was going on around him. "Huh?" Was all he said to himself ever so quietly as he watched Shaun's expression on his face change from being concerned and anxious to now filled with a mixture of deadpan and annoyance.

"So in other words, he asked you to watch over me as if I couldn't handle myself while using the word 'mentor' as a cover-up?" Shaun suddenly spoke to Artosh with a sense of slight disappointment and annoyance. He then sighed and combed his white locks with his hand before speaking to him once again, now with a more friendly appearance. "Sorry. Just ignored what I said." He explained to the teacher before looking down at his legs and crossing them while listening to what he had to say next.

Both boys soon looked towards the new mentor's hand as he waved his attention towards Shaun's constructs and watched as he explain on practicing on moving targets. And soon afterwards, the sight of what looked like deep purple tattoos covered the bodies of his terra cotta warriors. Shaun and Dominique watched intensively as they saw the bodies of the once still and quiet creations now become sentient and full of life. Mana now flowing through their clay bodies. And weapons in hand as well. Shaun giggled softly at the sight as Dominique sighed and closed his eyes knowing that now he would have to partake in what seemed to be a challenge. As Artosh explained his rules for the challenge, both boys got up and dusted themselves off and showed off a set of soft smiles that were filled with charm and excitement. At least they would have something to do as well. Soon, Shaun conjured up the long bow that he was using previously and altered it to make it shorter so it can be used while moving quickly.

Dominique on the other hand sighed as he knelt down and lowered his right sock, revealing what looked like to be a small firearm of sorts. It was all gold with what looked like silver embroidery styled as and vines covering the entirety of the butt of the pistol with a large golden rose in the center of the entangled vines. It may seem extra to most, but its one of the perks of being the son of a mafia member he guessed.
While at ground level, Dominique picked up a handful of dirt that was close by and closed his hands. He sighed and remembered what John told him the other day. Just like playing music. That's all there is to it. And with the sound of small humming for about a few seconds, Dom opened his hand to reveal to both of the guys a small handful of what looked like to be bullets. He then placed them into his pistol one by one as the sound of satisfying 'clicks' filled his ears. Once full, he placed the remaining ones in his pockets. Looking at both Artosh and Shaun, he sighed and stretched his neck without any sounds of popping and chuckled heartily. "Okie dokie. Once we're done, can we go and get something to eat? I'm starving. Oh! And I'll be more than happy to make all of us some food with the permission of the chef." He chuckled. "I'll think about what would be nice to make afterwards." He said as he combed his hair back as well. The soft dark curls flowing freely through his hands. Shaun looked at Dominique in surprise as he pulled out his gun from his sock. How did he manage to carry it around with him so freely without him noticing or even seeing him with it. He looked at Artosh to see what his reaction would be as well as he was rather surprised and confused rather than scared or anxious.

[Saleon]

Amanda Stradt
The Storyteller
Outside the Aquo Building

---

---

"I'm sure she is, but I'll have to hang around her a little bit more to figure it out for myself." He shrugged, and brought the girl down to one of the beds.

"That I know, they tested me several times to check how my arm functioned and they found nothing.
Maybe the fact that it's a relic I barely had heard about works in its favor." He added with yet another shrug.

"Well, either way I think I'll be off, you know where to find me if there's anything else, I'll be in my room."

Ambrosia laid down in the bed and turned her face away from Oliver. She did not want him to see her pain, as she held back tears and tried to hold herself together. He hardly sounded interested in her at all. Everything had been a mistake, in her mind. ...I shouldn’t have bothered him...He thinks I’m dumb...And hyperactive... she thought, her lips tight as she kept from heaving a sob.

Yet just when she was about to break into tears, Virgil appeared. The cute, friendly little mouse wanted to check on her, to see what was the matter. He said she was endearing, which did make her feel slightly better. She smiled sadly at the little magical creature, and pat his head with a finger. She then wrote in tiny letters on the pad, “Sad”, “Oliver”, and “doesn’t like”. She hoped that he would understand what exactly she was trying to say. ...Is that bad?...That the only person who seems to understand me is a mouse?...

In the meantime, Cecily arrived, coming to check on the new patient. She was dressed in light colors again-a frilly pink blouse and a short, cream-colored, pleated skirt, presumably because she had wanted to look good when she saw Rabbit off on his “trip” with Henry and Allistor. As she noticed Ambrosia’s distress, she turned toward Amanda. “Professor Stradt! What exactly happened here?” she inquired.

Virgil looked at her scribbles on paper, turning his head a little. He scratched his head, before flipping the pages up until he was actually back at his last 3 words, "Endearing", "found", "you." Virgil then flipped pages forwards to the end, leading him to write a couple more things, "no", "find", "unlikeable." He pulled out a small smile, hoping she would perk up. The girl did seem to take things the wrong way a lot. Fortunately, Virgil was apparently a therapist. Or maybe he was just the type to note the shifts in facial expression.

Virgil then jumped down and on to the rim of the bed, then back to the side of Ambrosia. He moved over, patting her cheek in a kind old sage's manner.

“Professor Stradt! What exactly happened here?” Cecily inquired.

Amanda turned over, her head rolling over to see the nurse's face. "Don't worry, she just needs a small rest. She overheated while training. She just needs a cup of water and a bit of a nap."

[Luminesa]

Amanda Stradt
The Storyteller
Outside the Aquo Building

---

---

Ambrosia laid down in the bed and turned her face away from Oliver. She did not want him to see her pain, as she held back tears and tried to hold herself together. He hardly sounded interested in her at all. Everything had been a mistake, in her mind. ...I shouldn’t have bothered him...He thinks I’m dumb...And hyperactive... she thought, her lips tight as she kept from heaving a sob.

Yet just when she was about to break into tears, Virgil appeared. The cute, friendly little mouse wanted to check on her, to see what was the matter. He said she was endearing, which did make her feel slightly better. She smiled sadly at the little magical creature, and pat his head with a finger. She then wrote in tiny letters on the pad, “Sad”, “Oliver”, and “doesn’t like”. She hoped that he would understand what exactly she was trying to say. ...Is that bad?...That the only person who seems to understand me is a mouse?...

In the meantime, Cecily arrived, coming to check on the new patient. She was dressed in light colors again-a frilly pink blouse and a short, cream-colored, pleated skirt, presumably because she had wanted to look good when she saw Rabbit off on his “trip” with Henry and Allistor. As she noticed Ambrosia’s distress, she turned toward Amanda. “Professor Stradt! What exactly happened here?” she inquired.

Virgil looked at her scribbles on paper, turning his head a little. He scratched his head, before flipping the pages up until he was actually back at his last 3 words, "Endearing", "found", "you." Virgil then flipped pages forwards to the end, leading him to write a couple more things, "no", "find", "unlikeable." He pulled out a small smile, hoping she would perk up. The girl did seem to take things the wrong way a lot. Fortunately, Virgil was apparently a therapist. Or maybe he was just the type to note the shifts in facial expression.

Virgil then jumped down and on to the rim of the bed, then back to the side of Ambrosia. He moved over, patting her cheek in a kind old sage's manner.

“Professor Stradt! What exactly happened here?” Cecily inquired.

Amanda turned over, her head rolling over to see the nurse's face. "Don't worry, she just needs a small rest. She overheated while training. She just needs a cup of water and a bit of a nap."

“...’Found’...’endearing’...So what you’re saying is...he actually...found me endearing?” Ambrosia blinked, as she read Virgil’s words, and then re-read them. Her eyes were large with shock, as she realized that in her mind she had gravely misunderstood Oliver. He did not dislike her-he just did not know her very well. She blushed brightly, and wished she could call for Oliver. However, he was gone, and she was too weak to get out of bed to go find him. Sighing at her bad luck, she felt glad that Virgil was with her to comfort her. “...Thank you Virgil...Could you...maybe message him and tell him that I’m sorry?” she inquired. She knew that if anyone could hunt him down, that the little mystical mouse could find him. “...Also...um...can you...tell him...I find him nice?...Um...” She did not want to come across as too bold, but she wanted to be honest. She eyed Professor Stradt, uncertain as to what to do.